Spark
Percy watch a fountain with a statue of Ares with a broad sword held above his head and a roar, as if it's ready to slay his enemy. Water pour out of the statues mouth as if it was throwing up.
weird statue Percy thought to himself while sitting on a bench. The place is very secluded which is strange because its Olympus where there's a party on every corner, only two lights illuminating the place but even with those the place is still dark.
He knew he should be at the party celebrating the end of the war with his friends and family not sitting on a bench in a dark place while watching one of his enemies throw up water but he wanted to alone.
Percy thought back on what Annabeth said when they broke up in the middle of the war, right after he got back to Tartarus.
"As long as you're you, there's no woman who is strong enough to be able to keep up with your destiny, no woman will be able to withstand the pain that comes for loving you"
Apparently, she got tired of him disappearing all the time and always worrying whether he's still alive or not. Its not like that was his fault, he couldn't help that the old hags (The Fates) are very cruel to him. But that doesn't give her right to cheat on him, she act as if she started her relationship with her new boyfriend after they broke up but he knew that it started much early.
Percy held out his hand towards the fountain and wield the water on his mind to come to him but nothing happen. The water stayed where it was and continued falling.
"What about now?" Percy said to himself
"So this is where you were" a woman said from behind him.
"Lucretia" he said without looking back.
His second in command approach him from the back and move in front of him, she was wearing a red dress that stop above her knee and her auburn red hair is tied into a pony tail. Her violet eyes settled on him.
"My Lord, you need to get back to the party" she said
Percy let out a sigh "I told you to stop calling me that"
"Why not? you are my lord and master" she said with pure conviction.
"not anymore" he replied, he look at his palm "I don't have that right anymore, I am nothing"
Lucretia shook her head "No you're not"
she knelt and took his hand, she trace her finger on the line of his palm "Before we were part of the greatest army of demigods the gods have ever seen. We were nothing, we were nobody"
She look up to his sea green eyes "Then you came along and made us into something more, now it's our turn to return the favor"
As if they crawl out of the shadows, demigods appear on the garden and knelt all around him.
Lucretia reach up and gently touch his cheek "you might have lost your powers but you still have us. We will be your power, we will be your sword that will destroy your enemies, we will be your shield that will protect you from anything, we will be your wings that will take you anywhere you want to go and we will be your servants that will give you anything you desire"
as if begging "tell us what you want and we shall give it to you, please give us your orders Lord Perseus"
Percy could see in her eyes that she's ready to give up her life if need be.
He closed his eyes and thought
Without my powers, I'm nothing, I'm a nobody...
Then realization hit him like lightning.
That's right!. At this moment I'm nothing more than a clear sighted mortal, isn't this what I always wish for? to become nothing but a regular mortal, this is my chance.
Percy open his eyes again and look at his army.
Sadness wash over him.
"I want to live my life as a regular mortal" he said
Silence enveloped the whole place and only the sound of the fountain filled the garden.
"I know this is me being selfish but I always wanted to be normal and I finally got it" Percy said
Lucretia knows what he meant without him saying it. He wants to cut all ties related to their world, the world of myth where demigods belong and since he's not a demigod anymore...
This is his second chance to live a peaceful life and Percy is not going to waste it.
Her hand fall back to her side "Is that what you desire?
Tears threaten to fall out of her eyes but she refuse to show weakness in front of him.
He look at her with sadness and he nodded.
Lucretia closed her eyes and took a deep breath as holding back something. She stood up and look at her lord, her master and her love.
"If that is what you desire then we shall obey" she said with no emotion.
Percy stood up from the bench and look at each demigod on the garden "Thank you for all you've done and thank you for serving me. I wish all of you best and I want all of you to live a great life"
Percy walk out of the garden and into the street of Olympus. A woman wearing a white dress, and her braided long black hair with a streak of white drape on her right shoulder. Her eyes are the color of white as if mist is covering her iris.
"Are you sure its alright to let him go?" Silvia ask
"Don't worry, he'll be back" Lucretia said with full of confidence.
A man wearing a suit with black tie join them, his red eyes fixed on the back of his master.
"How can you be so sure?" Lucifer ask with a slight nervousness
"Because he's Percy Jackson, and he's a man guided by his desire. Sooner or later something will catch his eyes and we will be there to give it to him" Lucretia reply.
People turn their gaze on him as he walk by them, he could hear the whisper coming from them.
"Demigod of Destruction" he heard
That was the new name they've given him and it seems its their favorite.
He didn't really want to go back to the party so he mindlessly wonder around while thinking about what happen to his life and the choice he had made. Percy wonder if they were the right choice or not.
Was it right to create HER? could he have found a way to defeat Gaia without angering the Fates? if he hadn't fallen to Tartarus could he have salvage his relationship with Annabeth? would that have prevented her from cheating on him?
Percy sigh
What's done is done, no matter how much he ponder about the past it could never change.
"hmm?" Percy look up and realize he's lost. He look around wondering where he was. He had never seen this part of Olympus before. columns stood before and the sound of party is behind him, he was about turn back but
Percy heard a woman singing on the other side of the pillars. Her voice was most beautiful he have ever heard. it very melodic, so full of life but with a tint of sadness. Out of curiosity, he followed the voice and the moment he pass the marbled pillars, its as if he step into another world.
He found himself in another garden but this one was more beautiful compared to the other one, it was full of all kind of beautiful flowers and so much brighter. It's as if Persephone threw up on the place.
There was a path leading up to a beautiful marbled gazebo at the very edge of the garden. Percy could see a familiar woman inside the gazebo, he tried to think where has he seen her before then he realize who it was.
He immediately turn back to the pillars but before he could take a step, the woman stop singing
"Stop right there, Jackson" Hera said
Percy close his eyes and muttered Damn it under his breath.
"I heard that" she said
He turn back to the gazebo and met Hera's cold gaze.
Percy put on a fake smile "Queen Hera, it is an honor to meet you here"
Hera raise one eyebrow at his politeness "Don't you think its past time to act politely?"
Percy huffed and walk inside the gazebo and he caught his breath at the beautiful view of Manhattan below them.
"Wow" he said with amazement.
Hera snap her fingers and out of thin air, two chairs and a table with a wine and two glass appear out thin air. Both of them sat down and look down at Manhattan while drinking wine.
Percy's Pov
"Why are you here?" Hera ask me, and drank her wine
I shrugged "I was just wondering around and before I know it, I was here" I said as I look at the city below me
"aren't you suppose to be in your party"
I put my elbow at the armrest and made a fist then I put my cheek in it for support
"I'm just not in the mood to celebrate"
I could feel her eyes on me, it would have made me uncomfortable when I was young but now, I'm use to it.
"you look depressed for someone so Victorious" she said
I look at her for the first time, her chocolate brown hair is braided in plaits with golden rainbow and a golden crown plated with jewels sat on her head, her skin pale and her brown eyes glazed with power and she basically look breathtaking with her silver white dress, she look like a queen among queens.
She look at me with coldness but I see a tint of sadness in them
She look away and watch the city from below, and we sat there silently. We should have celebrated a week ago but we were too tired to celebrate so we decided to do it now, before the Romans go back to Camp Jupiter.
"Are you gonna tell me your problem or are you just gonna sit there?" she ask me
"I don't know I like to, just sit here beside I'm not comfortable discussing my problem with a goddess who hate my very existence"
"Hmph"
Silence envelope them again then after a few minutes Hera broke it.
"then How about this?" she snap her finger and turn into eighteen years old "While I'm in this form, I'm not the goddess Hera, I'm not the Queen of the Gods but a regular mortal or demigod who doesn't hate you"
I look at her "Wow, you must really bored huh"
she nodded "okay but you have to tell yours too"
Hera sigh "Very well"
I look at the city "My girlfriend cheated on me. Apparently falling into Tartarus by myself to save the world made her cheat on me" I look at her "You?"
"My husband cheated on me again" she drink her wine again
"I need a drink" I pour wine on my glass and drink.
"Why turn down Immortality again? you could have eternity to get her back, she's not going to stay with that mortal you know" she said
I shrugged "I thought about it, but I want to respect her choice and I want her to be happy "
"What about your happiness?" she ask
I look at her then look back at the city
"I have experience a lot of things, horrible things. When I live this life to the fullest, I want a rebirth and start over, live a normal, and peaceful life. I realize that by losing my powers I could start a life for myself"
"a second chance"
I nodded "yes" then I drank wine,
I look down on my hands "I'm sorry" I said, then I look up, she stare at with surprise expression
"What for?" she ask
"I will never ever say this to you but since your not Hera the goddess but Hera a regular mortal" Percy paused for a moment then he started
"I'm sorry for hating you blindly without understanding why your so bitter. I understand now, your husband cheating on you must have hurt but doing it over and over again and live with that feeling for all eternity must have been hell. Enough to make you bitter and hateful. You are the strongest person or being I know to live with this... feeling for thousands years with no escape unlike me who have a second chance to live my life. I'm sorry for hating you without knowing anything, I'm sure you weren't like this before"
The coldness in her eyes disappear replace by something I couldn't recognize because she look away from me
I look at her with concern "What's wrong?"
"Nothing" she reply softly
I nodded and look at the city "You know, now that I think about it, we're the same"
she chuckled "And why is that"
"Because even though Annabeth cheated on me, I never thought about abandoning her to die and no matter how many times your husband cheated on you, you never left him. We care about family too much and no matter how much they hurt us, we will always care for them"
"Yes, I think you're right" she said gently, she reach for the wine in the table "here" she said and held it out and pour some wine on my glass.
"We should celebrate" she said
I look at her confused "What for?"
she smile warmly at me "Instead of celebrating the war that ruin your life, we should celebrate your second chance" she held out her glassed towards me for a toast
"For second chance" she said
I chuckled and toast her glasses
"for second chance" I said and we both drink our wine
I smile and look at her "Thank you"
she nodded
I sat and talk to her comfortably, I haven's felt happiness in a long time and I didn't expect Hera to be the one to make me feel happiness.
she told me what was it like in the past before the humans have started to polluting the earth, and I listen while watching her eyes lit up and dance with joy as she talk about what was the world was like, she told me about nature and beautiful landscape, how she would turn into a burn and fly the sky freely. We talk and drink wine while the others are still partying, then a slow romantic song played at the background.
I smiled, then stood up, she look at me as I held out my hand to her
"Since we're celebrating would you like to dance with me?" I ask her
she chuckled and took my hand "Very well" she said
I held her right hand with my left and put my right on her hips and she put her left on my shoulder. we dance together at the slow song, I twirl her and we both laugh, I stare at her warm brown eyes and my smile slowly faded, we stop dancing and we just look at each other's eyes, then slowly we lean in to each other. I stop myself with my lips millimeters from hers.
"This is wrong, you have a husband" I murmured
"I told you, while I'm in this form I'm not Hera the goddess but Hera the regular mortal" she murmured back
"I curse myself for always wanting what I can't have" I said then closed those millimeters and kiss her
Her lips are soft, and her mouth is warm, it was the most wonderful kiss I have ever felt. It brought out something inside me that I haven't felt in a long time since Annabeth, a spark of fire in my heart that slowly growing into a roaring flame that spread throughout my body as we kiss. I put my hands on her hips and she wrap hers around my neck
Our tongued wrestle for dominance,
the kiss is hot, making my mind go blank and my brain melted then I realized what I was doing. I grab her shoulder and push her away.
I look at her with fear and terror.
"I'm sorry" I said and took off running.
"Wait!" she called out but I did not stop and kept on running.
I curse myself in the head over and over as I run by people. If that had continued it would have been dangerous, she was about to ignite a desire of mine that should be lock to the deepest part of my heart.
she was about to make me want to be whole again and that is a very dangerous desire.
This story will be a lot similar to Queen's Affair since all of you seems to like it more. It's like a rewrite but this one is much more interesting.