AN: Hey guys! Missed me? Don't worry, I'm still alive. As promised, here's the new and improved version of Perseus: Reborn. I must admit, this was hard. Keeping the plot similar enough that so people won't hate the story was harder than I thought. Don't worry though, it's still the same story, but with some plot devices changed. You won't notice much of it here, but trust me, later on, the story will branch out into a different storyline from the old one. But anyway, without further delay, I give you Perseus: Reborn
Disclaimer: I don't own PJO
Perseus: Reborn
Chapter One | The Return
The winds blew harshly through the dense forest trees. The leaves rustled and were whipped up by the wind, but the rest of the world remained still.
An eerie silence had enveloped the land. Nobody talked. There was only preparation. Weapons were crafted, skills were taught and learned, and enemies were killed. This had suddenly become the life at Camp Half-Blood.
The only warning they had gotten was very vague, but came from the god of the dead. "Be Ready"
At first there was confusion, no one knew what he had meant, but as the days wore on, monster sightings became increasingly frequent. And worse, they were always close to Camp. It had been going on for the past week. Then it happened.
A crack appeared on the ground. A scream pierced the night sky. A slight tremor ran through the earth. And with it a wave of dark energy.
The gods of Olympus stood stiffly, waiting for the ripple of power to pass. It was an old power, and one that do not bode well if it could not be tamed.
The titans stopped pacing their various cells, affirming the ancient power and fearing it all the same.
The Demigods at camp half-blood froze when the foreign energy wave passed through them. Instantly on alert, they continued on, their rounds but glanced around with an uneasy wariness.
Chiron shared the wariness of the campers. However, he could sense the unrivaled oceanic power combined with the dark power, and he shivered with trepidation. Those were two volatile powers; combining them would surely mean the destruction of them all.
Annabeth Chase was overseeing construction of an outpost when she felt the energy.
Her task was a very simple one. Because of the rise of monster attacks in the New York area, Chiron had decided to set up various outposts to keep a tab on growing monster activity in various places. She was currently overseeing the final outpost they had to build. Codenamed Fort Pan, it was currently half built, but was shaping up to be the largest outpost they currently had.
If it weren't for the glass of water in her hand, she might not have felt The Ripple. As she went to take a sip, she noticed her water was behaving weirdly; it was sloshing about and moving as if it were reacting to something.
Then it hit her. A wave of despair. A wave of misery. A wave of old, dark energy, yearning to cause chaos. But it was tainted. Tainted with a raw, yet powerful sliver of oceanic force.
She froze. Something about that sliver of sea reminded her of something. Or Someone.
She left the build site, telling the Hephaestus campers there that something had come up, and hopped into her baby blue BMW Z3. She needed to get to Camp Half Blood quickly. That wave of dark energy scared her.
She arrived at camp half-blood and practically jumped out of her Z3. She rushed into the big house and nearly ran into Thalia.
Luckily Thalia still had the grace to dance out of the way. Annabeth wasn't as lucky. She would've barreled straight into the wall if Thalia hadn't pulled her back.
"Thanks" she said, out of breath from running. She looked up into Thalia's eyes. Her eyes were stilled dull. She sighed inwardly. Thalia had become withdrawn and silent since his disappearance two years ago. She became withdrawn and cold, keeping only to herself and Nico. It was understandable though, since he was gone, Nico was the only family she had left. He was much the same. They both had been affected when he disappeared. Though he tried to act otherwise, he kept insisting that he wouldn't want them to act all sad and mopey, it was obvious that he missed him dearly.
"Why are you here? I thought you were at Fort Pan." Thalia asked, turning back around.
"Oh!" Annabeth suddenly remembered why she was here. 'I need to talk to Chiron. I sensed something.
"So you felt it too?" Thalia gestured for Annabeth to follow her. At her nod, she continued. "So did everyone else. Nico and Luke are talking to Chiron right now. The best they can figure is that it has something to do with the increase of monsters and P-" she cut herself of abruptly. Even saying his name was painful. "Chiron's put the camp on full alert."
Annabeth nodded as she walked. She knew what Thalia was about to say. She missed him as well. She wanted to atone for the terrible mistake she had made two years before. But she wasn't sure he would forgive her. After all, she was responsible for sending him to...she shook her head. She couldn't think of that place. She wouldn't think of that place.
They walked into Chiron's office and stopped, acknowledging Luke and Nico and turning to Chiron. He had his back turned to them and was hunched over in his chair.
"What's going on?" Annabeth asked.
"He's not talking to us anymore. The last thing he said was 'It's over...'. We have no idea what he means by that."
Annabeth looked around. She took a deep breath before speaking. She didn't want to fill Talia and Nico with false hope.
"Do you guys think it's about him...?"
A lone figure stood outside Camp Half-blood, staring up at its new fortifications. He shook his head in dismay. Were that really that pathetic that they needed to fortify the camp? He had already passed many of their "forts" and had been tempted to tear them down and set fire to the remains. It would serve them right for what they had done to him. Especially her.
He shook of his growing feeling of hatred. It wouldn't do him good to lose control here, else it would surface and he could only control a bit of his power. He set forth; ready to announce his return to the rest of the world. He grinned underneath his hood. He couldn't wait.
He sauntered forward and passed through the invisible barriers. His touch sent a dark ripple through the shield. He grinned at this. He could practically feel the state of awareness that the camp was suddenly put in.
He started moving. He wanted the reunion to be worthwhile. A shout rang out through the silence. He looked up. Two armed demigods were rushing towards him, weapons drawn. They obviously thought he was a threat. He growled in annoyance. He didn't have time for this. His thrust his arm out and flicked his hand to the side. The demigod on the left was flung to the side, as if he was pulled by some invisible strings. His companion stopped, and looked at his body lying strewn on the floor two0 yards away. He turned heel and ran, terror evident in his steps.
"Oh no you don't." The stranger muttered. He stuck his hand out again and made a pulling motion. The demigod was suddenly yanked toward him. Before he hit him, however, he flicked his hand to the right and the body switched direction in midair, and flew into a nearby body.
The cloaked figure smiled as the body crumbled to the ground. His presence would surely be detected now.
A flash of light caught his attention and the scent of burning ozone filled his nostrils. And turned his head to the side. A figure in a dark, hooded cloak holding a lightning bolt stood in his way.
He growled. "What do you want old man? I don't have time for you."
Zeus raised an eyebrow. "As much as I hate you brat, I've not come to stop you."
The figure grunted in reply. "Fine then." He looked around. "Who else is coming?"
Another flash of light. Another figure stepped out of the mist. "All of us"
He raised his eyebrow, mimicking Zeus's earlier expression. All twelve Olympian gods, here, escorting him? He nearly laughed at the thought. Surely they could feel his hatred for them. Yet they still insisted on being here? Absurd. There had to be another reason. He didn't trust them with his life.
He eyed them warily before shrugged his shoulders. It would come to light soon enough. Now was the time to proceed. The rest of the Olympians materialized and took there positions in a V-shape, with him as point.
Now was the time.
There was somebody here. Somebody powerful. Annabeth could feel it. They had felt, rather than seen, the ripple g through the force field. They had dashed out of the Great House, weapons drawn. They gathered with the rest of the campers in the middle of the cabins, ready to face whatever was coming for them.
She looked over at Thalia and Nico. When they had felt that disturbance, they had both reacted strongly to it. They had stood in a trance like state and Annabeth had heard Nico mutter "...feels familiar..." Regardless, she was worried for them.
"Where are they?" she muttered to herself. They had sent Will Turner and Mike James, to sons of Apollo, to act as scouts and see whatever was coming.
"Look!" Someone in the assembled crowd pointed.
The cloaked figures strode toward them. Annabeth noted their air of confidence. She glanced at their leader. He didn't seem as arrogant as the other twelve figures. Instead he looked rather reserved and world-weary. She glanced apprehensively at them.
They stopped some ten yards away from them. Chiron stepped forward. He had left his wheelchair and was in full centaur form. "Who are you?"
"You don't remember me old man?"
Annabeth shivered at the voice. It sounded raw and powerful yet familiar. She felt Luke stiffen beside her.
"What is it?" she whispered. Luke just shook his head. She frowned but turned back to Chiron.
"I'm afraid I don't." The centaur responded.
The lead figure shook his head, as if disappointed. "Of course you don't. After all, it's been two years, hasn't it?"
Annabeth froze in shock. Two years? That was when he disappeared. She looked over Thalia and Nico. They were both frozen too. But she saw something in their eyes. Something she hadn't seen in a long time. Hope.
"And I had gotten my hopes up too." The figure continued. He stood silent for a moment, as if thinking about something. His hands slowly went up, and grabbed the folds of his hood. He slowly pulled the hood back, drawing Annabeth to his lovely sea green eyes. Wait, sea green eyes?
Her mouth dropped open.
Percy Jackson stared at the group assembled. "Missed me?" he asked bitterly.