I dashed through the forest, narrowly dodging an oak tree. Behind me, I heard the howls of hellhounds. Despite the cold wind, sweat poured down my back. I felt like my heart was collapsing in on itself. I wished I could stop and rest, but I knew that wasn't an option. The hounds would find me where I lay and tear me apart. I wished I could turn and fight like I used to, but I knew that wasn't an option either. I had nothing to fight with.
Once, in a time long past, demigods like me could walk in the open without getting killed. Once, there was a place for us to train, grow, and thrive. Once, there was hope in our lives. But two years ago, our world was destroyed. The gods fell; some faded, others wander in Tartarus for eternity. In their place, the Protogenoi rose in a dawn of death. Camp Half-blood, the only haven we ever had, was destroyed and erased from the world. We demigods were cast out into the forest, to be hunted to extinction by monsters. I don't know what the Primordials did to the mortals, but I've heard rumors. Terrible rumors.
In that time long past, I was known as Percy Jackson, Saviour of Olympus, Bane of the Titan Kronos, blah blah blah, insert a few more titles here. You might've heard some stories about me. But that was the past. Now, in this dark wilderness, nobody has a name.
My strength was failing. I knew I couldn't keep on like this. The hellhounds had infinitely better stamina; eventually, they'd wear me out and overtake me. I'd lost Riptide several days ago; the enchantment on it had vanished along with the gods. It no longer returned to my pocket. With my sword gone, I'd lost my last means of defense. By then, I knew it was only a matter of time.
With the last of my strength, I propelled myself forwards through the trees - only to find myself standing at the edge of a cliff. The ground dropped straight down into nothingness.
I turned around in time to spot the lead hellhound spring from the woods. Twelve others followed it, staring balefully at me with glowing red eyes. As if sensing that their prey was cornered, all thirteen of them slowed down. They growled menacingly.
I looked around, weighing my chances. I wasn't exactly known for my smartness back in the old days, but two years alone in the wilderness can really sharpen one's survival skills. To the left, my escape route was blocked by a pile of boulders. To the right, the ground sloped steeply downwards before dropping straight down, leaving no exit on that side. It didn't take much of a brain for me to realize that my chances of escaping were slim.
So this is how it all ends, I thought, as the hellhounds drew closer and closer. R.I.P. Percy Jackson, Saviour of Olympus two times, died in the year 2018, killed by a pack of hellhounds.
It's weird how your life flashes before your eyes right before you're going to die. I saw myself as a 12-year-old again, struggling up Half-Blood Hill, chased by a minotaur. I saw once again my mom being taken by Hades. I saw myself, Annabeth, and Grover.
Annabeth... My heart ached when I thought of her. How she'd sacrificed her life near the end of the Great War, to save our lives. But her death was in vain. We lost the war. The gods were in Tartarus.
Her death affected all of us, but it hurt me the most. I felt like a piece of my soul had been torn away and crushed, like a piece of my life had been burned up. After two years, I still remembered her long blonde hair, her beautiful gray eyes, the way she smiled when she called me Seaweed Brain...I haven't heard that nickname in so long.
I relived all of my quests, saw myself killing all of the monsters, Titans, and Giants I'd killed before. I felt the agony of the Styx. I saw Luke sacrificing himself to defeat Kronos, fulfilling the prophecy. I experienced Camp Jupiter again. I felt all the pain and despair I'd went through in Tartarus. All my fond and not-so-fond memories.
I saw all my friends again. I saw Annabeth, Jason, Leo, Piper, Frank, Hazel. I saw Thalia, Nico, Grover, Coach Hedge, Clarisse, Chris, the Stolls, Katie Gardner, Luke. I saw Reyna, Dakota, Gwen. I saw Bianca and Zoe Nightshade. I saw everybody I'd ever fought alongside. I saw Annabeth.
I was plunged back into the Great War. I saw so many of my friends being slaughtered. I saw thousands upon thousands of monsters pouring out of the earth itself. I lived through the desperate final stand, felt the despair once again at seeing Zeus dethroned and beheaded. All the gods - my father, Poseidon - being hurled into the pit. Two years of hiding in terror, leading up to this.
I closed my eyes, waiting to be sent to Hades, or whatever it was called now. If the Underworld was still working the way it did two years ago.
But the end never came.
I heard a howl that wasn't mine. My eyes flew open. I saw the lead hellhound dissolving, an arrow sprouting from its back. Another one lunged towards me, but another arrow sliced through the air and struck it in the back. The hound dissolved into dust. The other eleven hesitated for a moment, then fled back to the forest. But none of them made it far before collapsing and disintegrating.
"I believe this is thy sword," a nearly emotionless female voice said, thrusting my familiar Celestial bronze sword - Riptide - at me.
It had been so long since I'd last heard another person's voice. I almost didn't recognize it. For about five seconds, I was staring blankly at the girl. Then suddenly, a name clicked in my mind.
It couldn't be. She was dead for years.
"Zoe?" I whispered.
So...yeah. That's my first fanfic. Or at least the first chapter of it. I've read a ton of Percy/Zoe fanfics (and Percy/Artemis, but that's a different story), so I just decided to write this one. It's probably pretty bad. Like it? Love it? (Gods forbid) Hate it?
In advance, I apologize for any OOC-ness.
I'll try to update this as much as I can.
- XxShadowOfTheFuturexX
