My first Pertemis story (I will do other ships)! Hope you enjoy! Review! Thank you!
Percy
I never thought I could get this mad at Annabeth. As I walk angrily over to my cabin, I replayed the event that made me so angry. I was away on a quest, which had begun a few weeks ago, but ended a few days early, and decided to surprise Annabeth. I looked all over camp before heading over to the Athena cabin, raising my hand to knock before I realized the door was open a sliver, and moans were escaping through the opening. I pushed the door open fully, and was shocked at what I saw.
Annabeth was sitting on some random camper's lap, making out with him. Enraged, I slammed the door closed and stormed off. I heard someone open the door to the cabin, and Annabeth's voice pulls me back to the present.
"Percy! Come back! I can explain!" she said, running to catch up with me. "Please, Percy," she begged, grabbing my arm. I pull away, furious.
"How in Hades can you explain that?!" I say, pushing her away.
She hesitates, unsure. "It-it was an accident, Percy, I swear."
I sneer. "An accident? Sitting on some guy's lap and making out was an accident?"
"Please, seaweed brain," she says, hoping her stupid nickname for me will help. "Do you want me to show you how much I love you?"
I turn away, disgusted. I can't believe that worked once. "Get away from me," I say, entering my cabin and slamming the door. Once alone, my anger fizzles away completely and I lay face down on my bunk and cry myself to sleep.
A knock on the door wakes me up. What time is it? "Yeah, come in," I say, expecting Piper or someone to talk about Annabeth. Instead, a random kid walks in, a year or so younger than me. No, not just a random kid. The one Annabeth was making out with.
"What do you want?" I spit out, glaring at him.
"Listen, I'm sorry," he says, putting his hands out in a placating gesture.
"Sorry? Really? Didn't look so sorry when you were kissing my girlfriend," I cut him off.
He shakes his head. "Please, just listen, okay?" he pauses, waiting. When I don't do anything, he continues. "Look, I just got here a week ago. I didn't even know you existed, much less that you were her boyfriend. So, not my fault. If I knew, I wouldn't have even gone near her. She told me she didn't have a boyfriend, man. I'm so sorry. I honestly hope you don't hate me, but if you do, I get it." he rambles. "Okay, I'm gonna go now," he turns. "Oh, Chiron says he wants to see you in the Big House," he adds. "He'll bring dinner for you."
"Thanks." I say. "And I don't hate you."
He relaxes, grinning. "Thank you. My name's Mark, Mark Peter. Son of Hermes."
"Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon."
At the Big House
Turns out, it was not just me and Chiron. It was all the head counselors of each cabin, and the roman praetors from Camp Jupiter. Which includes Athena's cabin. When I get there, half the counselors are there, and so is Annabeth. She smiles when she sees me, like nothing happened. Instead of taking my regular seat next to her, I sit as far away as possible, at the other end of the table.
"Alright," Chiron begins once we all sit. "I called you all here to discuss something very important," I roll my eyes. Real specific, Chiron. "It involves the maiden goddess Artemis, or Diana," he adds for the benefit of the praetors. "Her father, Zeus, lord of the skies, or Jupiter, has decided to make her break her maiden vow, and get married." says Chiron.
"And this concerns us how?" Clarisse asks, not looking up from carving her name for the millionth time into the ping pong table.
"Because of this, she has given her hunters a choice. They may come back to Camp Half-Blood, or try to survive on their own. She has been forced to disband her hunters. We do not yet know their choice, but any who choose to come are to feel welcome," he says, looking pointedly at Clarisse. "Do not flirt or try to seduce them, as many may choose to maintain their vows. Understood?" We all nod, and Chiron continues: "Tell your cabins what I just told you, word for word. We do not need injured campers as a result of 'making a move' on one of the hunters. Alright, that's all, you may go," Chiron says.
Everyone gets up to leave, but Annabeth asks a question: "Do we know who Artemis is going to marry?" she asks, looking at Chiron.
"We do not," Chiron responds. "But I imagine it will be decided soon."
As we walk out, Annabeth whispers to Drew (Piper's sick): "Probably some bone-headed weakling god," Drew laughed.
Since when did she have friends like Drew?
Back at my cabin, the weight of today's events really hit me. I sob into my pillow, the feeling of betrayal and sorrow painfully throbbing in my gut. I decide then to leave camp. It is much too painful to see Annabeth every single day. I stand, face sticky with tears, and grab my backpack. I stuff it full with clothes, ambrosia, nectar, and food. I grab Luke's old shield from where it was leaning against my bed, slip it on, shoulder my backpack, and leave under the cover of night. On my pillow, I had left a note: Ask Annabeth Chase, or Mark Peter in Ancient Greek.
A few yards away from my cabin, I heard a voice: "Where are you going, Percy Jackson?" I smiled. I knew that voice. This was a friend, not Annabeth.
I turn, almost missing Nico Di Angelo in the shadows. "I'm leaving for a while. Need to blow off some steam. I promise I won't die, and your boyfriend won't have to patch me up," I say. Nico blushes at the mention of Will, and looks down.
"He's not my boyfriend," he says, blush still present and obvious on his pale skin.
"But you'd like him to be right?" I tease, but my heart isn't into it. Nico doesn't respond. "Well, I better get going. Don't want the Harpies to eat me. See you, Nico."
"You better come back alive, Jackson," comes Will's voice.
"Gods, who even sleeps at night in this place?" I ask exasperatedly.
"Like, no one."
"Leo?! You too?" Nico says.
"Yeah, baby. Do you know how hard it is for an ADHD Hephaestus kid like me to sleep?"
I roll my eyes. "You can't tell anyone I've gone, okay?"
"Why not?" asks Will.
"Just promise?" I beg.
"This conversation never happened," Leo says. "I got you covered, PJ." he opens his eyes wide. "Oh. My. Gods. Best nickname ever. When you come back, you will be known as 'Pajamas,'" he says, grinning like… well, like Leo.
Nico rolls his eyes, and Will grabs his hand. "We swear," Will says as Nico turns beet red.
I turn to leave, and Leo calls behind me: "See you later, Pajamas!"
"Shut it, Valdez," says Nico.
"We're all gonna miss you Percy! Clarisse is going to pound us in capture the flag!" a pause. "Ow! What was that for?" another pause. "Well, it's not important, but it's true! He was the only reason we ever won!"
"Shut up, Leo!" both Nico and Will yell.
I laugh silently as I cross camp borders. I really will miss those guys, and Piper, Jason, Hazel, Frank… I stop. If I keep going, I'll lose my nerve and turn back.
I continue walking, past Thal's pine tree, and next to the road. I stop a cab, where I meet my first monster. I have time to think, already? before I'm plunged into battle.
~~~~~~~Timeskip - about a week~~~~~~~
"Percy, wake up," a voice says beside me. I groan. This past week, I've been attacked by twenty or so monsters everyday, and it's really been getting to me. I honestly don't remember what it feels like to be relaxed, much less happy. Every muscle, joint, and bone hurts like Hades, and I haven't gotten decent sleep since… well, a while.
"Wake up, Percy," the voice says again. Since whoever it belongs to hasn't killed me yet, and since I doubt it will in the next thirty seconds, I don't draw my sword. Er, pen. Same thing.
"What?" I mumble tiredly as I blink slowly. Sitting beside me is Apollo. The Apollo, god of the Sun, etcetera.
"You really need to get more sleep," says Apollo. All I can do is stare. What in the gods does Apollo want with me?
I sit up and look around, trying to form words. Below me is the softest bed I have had in a long time, and it's… gold. As a matter of fact, everything in sight is gold, minus the god and myself. Apollo laughs, seeing my stunned expression. "Not King Midas' castle, don't worry. This is my palace on Olympus."
"Er… why am I here?" I ask, confused.
Apollo sighs, like this is going to be unpleasant. "You know by now my twin sister, Lady Artemis, is going to be forced to marry?"
I hesitate to answer. Yes, I know that, but I've never heard Apollo talk seriously. He's always joking, playing around. "Ye-Yes, Lord Apollo," I say, still confused. "But what does that have to do with me?"
Apollo smiles sympathetically. "First off, just forget about the 'Lord' thing. Just call me Apollo. Your dad asked me to keep an eye on you. He told me about how you found Annabeth, with that boy, Mark? Yes, Percy, I do care about you, and so do a surprising amount of gods, including Artemis. Well, sort of. You are one of the only males she doesn't hate," he says and I'm even more confused than before. He must see it, because he continues. "Okay, to the point. Artemis can't marry me, dad, or uncle Poseidon. Everyone else she hates. Well, she probably hates me too…" he frowns. "But she doesn't hate you. Do you see what I'm getting at?" he asks, and I nod slowly. "Okay, look at it like this. Marrying Art could help you get over Annabeth. Plus, Zeus thinks she'll just choose some minor god, so you'd annoy him too." he sighs. "She asked me to help, and this is the best way I could think of, and I sorta help you too. Oh, and you'd get to be a god, so, bonus for you?" he says, shrugging. Then he sighs. You probably need time to think about it, right?" I nod, unable to form words. "Right," he says. "Back to Camp Half-Blood we go?"
Before I can respond, he grabs my hand and teleports - well, it's more like flashing into existence - on the top of the Big House. "Oops. Well, anyway, if you don't hear from me in seven days, uh…" he pauses. "Artemis probably killed me. See you in seven days!" he says.
"Wait!" I say, but he's already gone. How in Hades am I supposed to get down from here? Suddenly an idea hits me. This is probably a really bad idea, but hey, I'm Percy Jackson. I'm known for my bad ideas.
I take a big breath, hoping he can hear me. "JASON GRACE!" I yell as loud as I can, cupping my hands around my mouth.
A few seconds later, I get a response. "WHAT?!" I laugh so hard I nearly fall off the roof. Finally, I get it under control.
"I NEED HELP!" I yell.
"WOULD YOU LUNATICS STOP YELLING?!" comes Clarisse's voice.
"COMING!" Jason yells, ignoring Clarisse. A pause, then: "WAIT, WHERE ARE YOU?!"
"THE BIG HOUSE! ON THE ROOF!" I yell, laughing again. I can't stop, and when Jason appears, floating in the sky, he joins me.
"What the Hades are you doing up here?" he asks once we finally stop laughing. By this time, we've gathered quite a crowd. Piper, Nico, Will, Hazel, Frank, Reyna, Annabeth and countless other campers stand below us.
Gasping, I manage: "As-Ask A-p-pol-lo," I say, trying not to start laughing again. "Can you help me? I'm kinda stuck," I say. Below us, everyone is laughing, and even Reyna cracks a smile.
"Sure, man. Just jump off." Jason says. I stare at him. "I'm serious. The wind will catch you, I promise."
"Okay, here goes," I say nervously. I jump, and the wind actually does catch me. I thought Zeus would have let me fall. I land softly on the grass in front of the Big House… and Annabeth. The one person I did not need to see right now. "Annabeth," I say shortly.
"Percy," she says softly. "I was so worried. You were gone for a week! Nico, Will, and Leo wouldn't tell me anything!" she says. "You could have told me!"
"You were worried about me? Sure, Annabeth, and I'm a son of Demeter." I say spitefully.
She bristles. "That's it, Perseus Jackson! I have been nothing but nice to you, and you're treating me like garbage! I have done nothing to des-"
"Nothing? You have done nothing?!" I yell, my voice rising as I continue. "So, I'm just supposed to forget about you sucking Mark Peter's face off?!" I yell. A collective gasp ripples through the crowd. I forgot we had an audience. Instead of waiting for her (probably) stupid answer, I walk away. Jason, Piper, Nico, Will, Hazel, Leo, and Frank follow.
They begin asking me questions - where was I? What happened with Annabeth? How in Hades did I end up on the roof of the big house? - but I ignore them.
"APOLLO!" I yell, and he appears in front of me.
Only one thing has changed about the god since I last saw him. He is now sporting a black eye, most likely from Artemis. I flinch. "I guess she didn't take it well, then?"
"Actually, you'd be surprised," he says, healing his eye quickly. "Let's talk in private, shall we? Hey, son," he waves at a wide-eyed Will before teleporting us away. We appear in Apollo's palace, where Artemis nearly gives me a heart attack.
"Lady Artemis," I sputter, bowing.
"Please, Percy, rise. If you are to be my husband, you do not need to bow to me." Artemis says, and I'm struck by how beautiful her voice is. The other times I've heard it, it was hard, commanding.
"Now, Apollo tells me you needed time to think of the idea," she says, sitting in one of Apollo's many couches. "Have you decided?"
"Yes, Lady Artemis," I say as Apollo sits next to her. Next to each other, the twins really look like twins. The same height, structure, face shape…
"If you would allow me, I would like to accept." I say. Seeing Annabeth today had basically made my choice for me.
Artemis' eyes light up. "Wonderful! Now all we have to do is tell Father," she says, turning to Apollo.
"Right," he says, frowning. "And hope he doesn't blast Percy here to pieces." Artemis winces.
"I'm sorry - hope he doesn't what?!" I say, panicking.
"Don't worry, Percy. I won't let him hurt you," Artemis says, relaxing me. "At least, not until you're a god," she adds, smiling mischievously. "Now, how are we going to tell everyone?' she asks.
"How about at the meeting?" Apollo says, confusing both of us.
"What me-" Artemis begins to ask before lightning flashes, signalling a meeting.
"That meeting," Apollo responds. Right. I had forgotten Apollo was also the god of prophecy.
"Come on, Percy," Artemis says, grabbing my hand and teleporting us to the entrance of the throne room. "Wait here," she says, walking in and taking her seat. Once everyone appears, Zeus begins.
"Before we begin, is there anything of special interest we should discuss?" he asks, looking at Artemis.
"Yes," Artemis says, standing. "I have chosen a man for my husband, as you requested, father."
"And?"
"And you must swear on the Styx that I can choose whomever I want, so long as I do choose. You may not harm him, nor prohibit me from marrying him." says Artemis.
'Very well," says Zeus. "I swear on the Styx that I will accept any man you choose, as long as you choose one."
"Good," Artemis smiles. "Then I present to you, the hero of Olympus, Percy Jackson,"
I enter the room, and Zeus' face is priceless. "Him?! Of all the gods and demigods on Earth, why him?!" he sputtered.
"Because I chose him," Artemis says confidently.
"But… why…" Zeus says before regaining his composure. "Alright, fine. I swore on the Styx, so I can't do anything."
Artemis smiles. "Good. Now we have to set a date for the wedding," she says.
"Yes, yes," Zeus waves his hand. "First, we have to make Jackson a god."
My eyes widen. "Right now?" I ask, and Zeus laughs at my expression. "Will it hurt?" I ask.
"Most likely," Zeus responds. "But not more than drinking Phlegethon water," he adds.
Okay, I can tolerate that. I hope. Zeus raises his hands, and each god does in turn. They begin chanting in ancient greek.
"Εμείς, οι θεοί του Ολύμπου, όλοι μπορούμε να συνδυάσουμε την εξουσία μας για αυτή τη σύντομη τελετή, για να μετατρέψουμε τον ήρωα του Ολύμπου σε θεό. Μπορεί να ζήσει αιώνια δίπλα μας."
I understand all of it, and, to be honest, "We, the Gods of Olympus, all may combine our power for this brief ceremony, to turn the hero of Olympus into a god. May he live eternally by our side," is not the most creative chant.
Suddenly, lightning streams from Zeus' hands, water from Poseidon's hands, black matter from Hades', and light from all the other gods' hands, all coming towards me. I panic, trying to run, but I can't. I'm stuck in place, and I can only watch as it comes towards me. Just before it hits me, it all merges into one bright stream of light.
When it does hit me, it hurts so much worse than fire water. I fall to my knees, supporting myself on my hands as I absorb the light. Through the pain, I can feel myself getting much stronger, more powerful.
The light fades, and Artemis kneels beside me as I breath heavily. "Percy? Are you okay?" she asks, worry and concern in her voice.
"So… much… worse… than… firewater…" I choke out. Artemis laughs, rubbing my back soothingly.
"Percy, sit back, come on, it'll help you feel better," Artemis says, pulling me back. We aren't even married, and she's already acting like a caring wife. I sit on my heels, and immediately lose all strength and fall into Artemis. I groaned.
"Open your mouth, Percy," she instructs, and I do as she says. She puts a piece of ambrosia in my mouth, and tells me to chew. I do, and immediately feel better. I stand, and realize that Artemis had teleported us to her palace, in one of the bedrooms.
"You know, you did better than the last guy. Last time, he couldn't take the pain." she says, putting away the rest of the ambrosia and nectar.
"What happened to him?" I ask
"He died." she says nonchalantly.
"Oh." I say stupidly. "Now what?" I ask.
"Now, we go back to the throne room and find out what you possess." she replies.
"Possess?"
"Yes. You are now Perseus, lord of… something. We have to figure out what that something is. If you have a lot of power, you will most likely be given a throne on the Olympian Council." (sorry I don't know what it's called).
"Alright," I say. "How do I teleport?" I ask.
"Just think of where you want to go, and picture yourself there," she instructs.
I think of the throne room, and I appear there. All the gods are there, apparently waiting for us. They all sit, but Zeus remains standing.
"Perseus Jackson, hero of Olympus, God." he says. "We are gathered here to discover what powers lie in waiting, and what you control." he says something else in ancient greek I don't catch, but I'm suddenly in the middle of a ring of ice spikes.
"Lord of ice," Zeus says.
The ice melts away, leaving nothing, and suddenly water appears above me, huge waves forcing it to shift and change constantly.
"Lord of the tides," Zeus declares, surprised that I have more than ice.
The water dissipates, and huge gold letters appear above me.
Zeus considers them, and then, when they disappear, says: "Lord of ice, tides, loyalty, swordsmanship, horses, mist (not THE mist), and freshwater." he says, and immediately, the council starts bickering.
"He needs to be placed on the council,"
"Yes, but who else can we add? We need to keep it even,"
"Don't add him!"
"Let's get rid of Dionysus,"
"SILENCE!" Zeus yells. "Perseus will be added to the council, but we need to keep it even. All in favor of adding another to the council?" All hands went up. "Right. All in favor of adding Hestia back to the council?" again, all hands went up.
"Hestia is again an Olympian council member. Perseus Jackson, Artemis, you must now choose a date for your wedding," Zeus says as two more thrones appear in the throne room.
"Yes, father," Artemis says. "We shall discuss this with utmost importance,"
"Wait," Zeus calls as all the Olympians are about to leave. "No, I just need to talk to Perseus."
"Yes, Lord Zeus?" I ask as everyone else leaves, nearing his throne. "What is it you needed to talk to me about?"
"I know you've just become a god, but I need you to help some demigods defeat a giant, Mimas."
"He was created to defeat Ares, right?" I ask. One bit of knowledge I learned from Annabeth. Slut.
"Yes." Zeus replies. "You can find him and the demigods on Crete,"
"In Greece?" I ask.
"Where else is there a Crete?" he replies.
"Sorry," I say. "I meant, what is he doing in Greece? That's where the ancient power is," I clarify.
"I don't know. That's why I want you to help them destroy him, since he's near the ancient roots. You are a newer god, so the roots shouldn't affect you nearly as much." Zeus says.
"Alright. Should I go now?" I ask.
"Yes, yes, Jackson, go. Make sure you wait for them to weaken him before killing him off," he says.
I teleport to Crete, drawn immediately to a… feeling I somehow know is monster. Is this how Artemis hunts? Nevermind, doesn't matter.
I teleport next to a strange obelisk (I don't know if there's an obelisk in Crete), where several demigods are pressed back against it, fighting off a horde of monsters. There are gorgons, earthborn, cyclops, and various others I can't name. I watch from afar, knowing I can't help, but I do get a closer look at the demigods, and I notice that I know all of them. Fighting off the largest monster is Jason, covered in nicks and cuts from head to toe. On his right is Piper, trying to charmspeak while slicing earthborn to pieces left and right.
On his left is Leo, swinging a flaming hammer while yelling: "Take that, ya stupid mud man! You should've joined Team Leo when you had the chance!" I smirk. Same old Leo. On Leo's right is Hazel, slamming monsters with precious metals and gems and running others through with her spatha. Next to her, Nico beheads gorgons constantly with his stygian iron sword, occasionally summoning a skeleton or two. Over his shoulder, Will shoots at monsters with his bow, glaring at the back of Nico's head when he uses his shadow powers. Circling above them all as an eagle is Frank, diving down and blinding monsters occasionally.
Eventually, the amount of monsters die down, leaving only the seven standing there, panting. When they all get their breathing under control, they start discussing something. With my godly hearing, I hear their conversation from the far distance.
"Right. So now, how do we kill Mimas? We don't exactly have a spare god lying around," Leo says. I smile. Perfect opportunity to make a dramatic entrance. Oh, geez. I'm starting to sound like Uncle Zeus. Nonetheless, I reveal myself.
"Well, I wouldn't say lying around," I say, walking towards them. I'm in my sixteen-year-old form, so as to not freak them out.
Hazel's face lights up. "Percy! Where have you been? We missed you!" she exclaims, throwing herself at me. She wraps me up in a giant, and, I must say, powerful hug for a mortal. I don't respond, instead watch as everyone else smiles, exhaustion showing on their faces.
"Good to see you guys too. Where's Annabeth?" I ask. I'm so used to seeing all of them together, but it seems she isn't here.
"She wanted to come," starts Nico.
"But we didn't want her," interrupts Leo. "After you told us what happened, we stopped listening to her. We left her back at camp," he says. "When we said we didn't want her, she started acting all bitchy. I've never seen her act like that. She was like: 'Well, I don't care if you don't want me. I'm coming, and that's final.' Like she has the authority to push us around. She was acting like camp leader the entire time you were gone. I, personally, am relieved you're back. It was a nightmare with her bossing us around," he says, going on and on.
"Leo," I interrupt. "Shut up."
He grins. "Good to have you back, Pajamas."
"Pajamas?" Hazel questions, tilting her head. Next to her, Frank lands in human form, done with scouting.
"That, my scary gold-summoning friend, is a story for another time," Leo says. Will and Nico roll their eyes.
"It isn't even a story!" Nico protests.
"Ah ah ah," Leo says, shaking his finger. "Never doubt the Leo."
"Guys!" Piper interrupts. "We have a giant to kill, remember?"
"Right."
"Frank, did you see anything from the air?" Jason asks. Frank shakes his head.
"No, nothing. For a giant, he's pretty hard to find on this island." Frank comments.
Nico groans. "I officially hate this place. We've only got four hours to find this thing, kill it, and get back to CHB. My day couldn't be better," he says sarcastically.
I consider this. Zeus never said anything against helping them find the giant. I focus on that strange feeling I had before. "He's that way," I say, pointing. They all stare at me.
"How'd you know that?" Will asks.
I hesitate. "Doesn't matter, guys. Come on. Let's kill a giant," I say, changing the subject. I walk towards the giant, the others following. I'm hesitant to tell them I'm a god, so I decide I'll hide it. Besides, I won't be able to hide it much longer.
We walk for about hour and a half, finally reaching a giant gladiators' arena, which is totally deserted.
"He's in there," I say, looking at the arena.
"Great," Will mutters. "We get to die, gladiator-style."
Nico laughs. "Well, Solace, there's nobody I'd rather die with," he says, nudging his shoulder. Hmm. I narrow my eyes, wondering what exactly their relationship is. Nonetheless, I'm happy for Nico.
Will smiles, walking forward. "Well, then, sunshine, let's go kill a gladiator giant."
We all walk in, through a dark tunnel before it opens up into a huge, empty gladiator arena.
"Ah, demigods! I was wondering when you'd arrive!" a booming voice comes from in front of us. "You, of course, know who I am?" he asks smugly.
For once, I can answer with a yes. "Sure. You're Mimas, bane of Hephaestus." The giant - who is over fifteen feet tall, hoisting a club over his shoulder - looks surprised, as do the rest of the demigods. "What? You said it on the way here," I cover. "Oh, come on, let's just kill this guy." I pause. "Uh oh. I can't help you guys," I say, telling half-truths. "Zeus won't let me," I add, praying he doesn't smite me for that lie.
"Why can't you-" Piper begins to ask, but is cut off by Mimas.
"Good! Easier to kill you all," he says. "Don't worry Jackson, I'll kill you last."
I smirk. "Kill me? I don't think so."
"Well, you can't kill me; you need a god. And, obviously," he says, moving his arm in a large sweeping gesture, "You don't have one," he says smugly.
I roll my eyes. Idiot can't sense a god right in front of him? "You guys have to weaken him. Get him to challenge me, and I'll be able to help," I whisper, loud enough for all to hear.
"Yo, Mime!" Leo yells, walking forward with a ball of fire in his hand. "I hear you're the one supposed to kill Hephaestus," he says angrily. "How about a round with his son? Bet you can't even deal with me!"
"Do. Not. Call. Me. MIME!" the giant roars, swinging his club. The rest of the demigods fan out, forcing him to switch his attention from one to the other constantly. Frank is a huge eagle, swooping down to mess with him every time he gets close to whacking one of the demigods. When they start to tire him out, they themselves obviously exhausted, I step in.
"Hey, MIMAS!" I yell, catching the attention of everyone. "Seven demigods to much for you? How about one?" I ask, smirking. I know this will work, he's not smart enough to see a trap.
"Fine! Percy Jackson, I will battle you." he says, glancing at the now still demigods at his feet. "Alone," he adds.
All seven send me weary glances, and I smile. "Don't worry, guys. You're all exhausted. Let me fight him," I say as they walk closer.
"But what about the god?" Jason asks.
"I've got that taken care of," I reply, still smiling. They all send me confused glances, but I smile even wider. "You're all about to see the real Percy Jackson in action!" I yell running toward the giant.
He smirks. "One puny demigod against me? You really think you can win?" he asks as I stop in front of him.. "I give you one more chance, Jackson. Join me, and you can live," he says.
I pretend to consider. "No, not happening," I say, and charge.
The battle is terrific, but also surprisingly easy, given I'm the god of swordsmanship. Most of the battle consists of me dodging his predictable attacks, then slashing or stabbing at his legs. Sometimes, I have just enough time to jump up and hit his back or chest, or even glance at the demigods' shocked expressions. I smirk. Eventually, the battle winds down and the giant collapses to his knees.
"Still sure you're going to defeat me?" I say, pointing the sword at his neck.
"Weakling," Mimas gasps. "You don't have a god, imbecile," he continues.
Enraged by the fact that I just beat him without breaking a sweat and he's calling me a weakling and imbecile, I stab him in the neck. His face is priceless as he disintegrates into golden dust, which then fades. Have fun in Tartarus, weakling.
I look back at the seven, shocked expressions on their faces as they stare at me. I walk back towards them, and they don't react.
"What?" I ask, trying not to laugh.
"Wh-what? How?" Leo sputters, shifting his gaze to me.
I roll my eyes, waiting.
At the same time, both Hazel and Nico's eyes widen comically. "You're a god," Nico whispers. Realization dawns on all their faces.
A laugh comes from behind me. "Percy Jackson? A god? I was right, Nico, you are losing your marbles," I turn to see Annabeth stride towards me with a cocky smirk. "First, thinking Solace here could ever love you," she says, causing Nico to blush. "Now, thinking this sack of potatoes is a god?" she asks sarcastically, rolling her eyes.
Instead of giving in to my anger, like I would have before, I shrug. "Really, Annabeth? If you're so sure, care to test?" I ask, drawing Riptide. "I heard the self-elected camp leader learned some new moves," I lie.
She smiles smugly. "You're going to regret leaving me, Jackson," she growls, her smile replaced with a snarl. Then she smiles at me again. At once, I understand. She's trying to get me angry, so I don't think straight.
I laugh. She blinks, confused, but continues. "I bet even Zeus wouldn't want his master bolt back if it was touched by you," she taunts. I glare, pretending to get angry. Judging from her expression, it's working. I refrain from rolling my eyes.
"Even Hestia wouldn't want you to sit by her!" she yells, drawing her sword and walking towards me. I pretend to let anger consume me and I charge toward her, yelling. She smirks, again, and runs towards me. We fight for a long while, her panting, with multiple cuts and red blood flowing from some of the deeper ones. She hasn't even hit me once, and she's obviously getting tired. Eventually, I get tired of her repetitive pattern of fighting. Slash, stab, retreat, fake, slash… I disarm her, pushing her over. I hold my sword to her throat, smiling smugly.
"Surrender?" I ask sarcastically. She doesn't respond, glaring at me. I turn, walking towards the rest of the demigods.
"Percy, watch out!" Hazel yells, and I instinctively turn, blocking her strike.
"Really, Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, reduced to a cheater?" I say. She doesn't reply, her eyes wide. I curse. It seems I didn't block her slash entirely. Her sword grazed my cheek, and golden ichor flows down.
She kneels down in front of me, previous attack forgotten. "Please forgive me, Lord Perseus. I did not know," she says.
I laugh. Really? Annabeth the suck-up now? I ignore her. She is possibly the only person who is not worthy of my attention. I walk back to Frank, Hazel, Leo, Piper, Jason, Nico, and Will. They all kneel, and I frown.
"Oh, come on, guys. I'm still me. The day you bow to me is the day Hades marries Gaea," I say, and they smile, rising. Annabeth rises as well, smiling, like I was talking to her. I sigh, deciding to ignore her. "You guys need to get back to Camp Half-Blood, right?" They nod. "Alright. Hazel, Pipes, grab my hands," I instructed. "Jason, Frank, grab my arms, and Nico, Will, grab my shoulders," I say. "Hold on," I say once they all do as I said.
"Wait," Annabeth calls. "What about me?" she asks.
I stare at her, expressionless. "I don't know. Book a plane or something," I say before flashing right in front of the Big House. Everyone lets go, walking shakily towards the Big House. Twenty steps later, Frank trips. He groans, not even moving to get up. Hazel sits beside him, obviously shaken from teleporting. I shake my head, flashing back to Olympus.
I end up in front of Zeus' throne, with Zeus in it. "I did as you asked," I say, kneeling.
"Rise," he says. "Jackson…" he begins.
"Yes, my lord?" I ask.
"Do you like your camp?" he asks.
"I do, my lord. Why do you ask?" I reply.
"How would you like to be the camp director in Dionysus' place?" he asks.
My eyes widen in shock. "I-I would be honored," I say.
"Very well," he says. "You are now camp director. Please inform Chiron of this change," he says before flashing away. I flash in front of the Big House again, causing a now-standing Frank to fall back down.
"Percy," Hazel greets me. "Back so soon?" she asks, confused.
I smile. "Come with me. You're going to like this," I say. Both her and Frank frown in confusion, but follow me up to the Big House nonetheless.
"Hello?" I yell as I walk in.
"In here!" someone yells back. I walk towards the meeting room, following the voice. The first thing I see when I enter is the ping pong table. Then, I take in all the figures around it. All the cabin leaders are there - minus Annabeth - and Chiron. Jason, Leo, Piper, Nico, and Will all look exhausted and shell-shocked, practically sleeping on the table. I laugh, and notice everyone else's shocked expressions.
"What?" I say, staring back at them. Hazel and Frank move to the spare chairs, leaving me as the center of attention.
"Where have you been?!" Clarisse explodes, standing and knocking over her chair. I shrug, not yelling back as I used to.
"Percy, welcome back," Chiron says, glaring at Clarisse. I smile at him.
"Thanks, Chiron." I reply. "Oh, I almost forgot," I say, facepalming. "Dionysus isn't your camp director anymore," they all stare at me. "You've got a new and improved camp director. The best of the best!" I say dramatically, and thunder rumbles. "Alright, not the best," I say, scowling at the sky. Damn Zeus and his pride. "But pretty good!" I add, looking up for more signs of thunder. Instead, I hear a light breeze. I can practically hear Zeus sighing and rolling his eyes.
Chiron coughs, interrupting my silent argument with the sky. "Right," I say, distracted. "What was I talking about?" I ask sheepishly.
"New camp director?" Jason mumbles, falling asleep once again.
"Right!" I straighten. "I'm you're camp director!" I say, smiling at their ridiculous expressions.
Finally, Clarisse breaks the tense silence. "Yeah, for sure, kelp head," she snorts. "You're not a god,"
"Yes, I am," I reply, rolling my eyes. "Why does nobody believe me?"
She laughs, disbelieving. "Really? What are you the god of?" she asks sarcastically.
I pretend to hesitate and her smirk grows. Then, without pausing, I say: "Ice, tides, mist, freshwater, loyalty, horses, and swordsmanship," I smirk.
All their jaws drop, and I laugh. Then, Clarisse, who still doesn't believe me, talks again.
"Prove it," she hisses, narrowing her eyes.
I roll my eyes. "Fine. Outside," I order and flash away. Outside, I see everyone - even Jason, Leo, Will, Nico, Piper, Hazel, and Frank, who are still exhausted - slowly walk out. I sigh, tapping my foot impatiently. Being a god, I have nearly unlimited energy, and that is not exactly a good combination with ADHD.
"Hurry up," I whine impatiently. Nico rolls his eyes, and sits on the porch of the house, next to Will. When they all finally arrive, I grin.
"Okay, which one first?" I ask. Clarisse yells ice, and I suddenly remember: I never even practiced these abilities! I take a deep breath, trying to summon ice the same way I did with saltwater when I was a demigod.
It doesn't work. Clarisse snickers, and I'm filled with disproportionate anger. My vision turns red, and I have the foresight to turn towards the woods. I shove my hands out in front of me, and a huge wave of ice crashes over the woods.