I wanted to write an Octachel Beauty and the Beast AU, and got this crazy idea... Chapters!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything. But Octavian is basically my character, all the good I've done.
He wasn't, by any means, a perfect human being. By no means was anyone a perfect human being, and not even god truly came close. But as far as Octavian Alexander was concerned, he was one of the least perfect humans on the face of the current planet. Rescued from the onager, with the same unable to be said about Leo Valdez, he was thrown before the counsel at Olympus. The 20 year old had known what he was doing when he'd thrust the lever. Known that it would be the day he died. Anticipated. Now he lay in front of the counsel humbled but unafraid. They would kill him and that's what he wanted. The gods began to argue.
Furious, of course, Hephaestus wanted an explosive fire lit in each blood cell in Octavian's body.
Zeus felt only a thousand strikes of lightning would do.
Apollo, ashamed but meagerly protective of his descendant, suggested that Octavian be made a slave of the gods, forced to labor until his death.
Dionysus would've liked to see him crushed into wine.
Aphrodite unhelpfully suggested dooming him to a future of unfashionable style choices.
Hades argued that Tartarus would be fitting enough.
Ares wanted to pull him to pieces. That seemed, thus far, to be the popular opinion. But then a gorgeous, magic laced goddess spoke up.
"The traitor wishes to die and, though discomfort would endure any torture you chose. However, something that he cannot endure is himself. My suggestion? Immortality." The Olympians gasped in shock. Octavian cringed, she was right.
"Immortality?! Hecate are you mad?!" Zeus shrieked.
"Lord Zeus, please allow me to finish." She said sharply, though not exactly lacking respect. The counsel silenced itself, and Octavian flinched on the ground.
"He would be punished still I assure you. As the thing he hates most in the world is himself, it would be best to leave him with himself for all eternity. But for added misery, I will cast a spell so he is as hideous as he is on the inside, on the outside." There was a smattering of applause.
"Very well. He has been a bane to our existence for long enough. Get him out of our hair. If this little legacy brat causes any more trouble than, what was your plan again Ares?"
"RIP HIM TO PIECES!" Ares screamed, hyped at the moment since he'd downed like, five five hour energies before the meeting started.
"Yes we'll do that. Hecate?"
"Going my Lord." She muttered, teleporting herself and the shuddering bundle of patheticness.
Octavian was not ready for this.
Octavian was not remotely ready for this.
He wondered, exactly, quite how ugly he was on the inside.
"You know, young one, I'm a fan of the fairy tales?"
"Hmph?" He asked, wondering if he'd transformed.
"Uh huh. The ones with fairy godmothers and magic, curses, and spell breaking." He nodded.
"And, since the gods might actually find this amusing, let's make a little wager. You've read the stories, I'm sure, where the kiss of true love breaks the spell? It's probably nonsense that such a thing would work, but saying it does, if you were ever to find anyone to love the hideous form I will turn you into, spell breaks, Aphrodite gushes sparkles, etcetera, etcetera, and whatever. Deal?"
"Mph." Octavian muttered.
"Right, right, well, here comes the fun part." Octavian squeezed his eyes shut, waiting tiredly. He could feel the spell taking place, but wouldn't look to see what was happening. Then he felt the magic end, it hurt to move but his eyes remained squeezed shut.
"Huh. I did not expect that. Well young Octavian. You took this strange form for a reason. I suspect you'll figure it out. Maybe when you did you'll find that true love thing. Or maybe you'll be this way-
Forever." He looked up briefly, then looked away as not to look at her true power as she vanished from the scene.
"Strange form? What am I?" He wondered, standing painfully on unsteady feet. Then he looked down.
And then, he screamed. Very, very loudly.