Chapter 2: Explanations
A.N First off, I want to acknowledge everyone who has followed, favorited or reviewed. Getting the notifications that someone has done one of those things always makes my day. I also want to respond to some of the reviews.
OgamiRei-kun: Your welcome, I felt that surely Rick couldn't have finished with Jason, right after he really started building him up, and allowing him to become his own person. Jason is sort of testing the waters trying to work out what's going on, we find out part of why he's there this chapter. He is just trying to find out more information before he goes to a higher authority if that makes sense.
TheRainbowMarshmallow: I love your username! I can imagine that you're all soft and cuddly with that. Thank you for your review, I'm trying to do a different take on this sort of story.
The Goode Ravenclaw: Magnus isn't sure how much Jason knows as of yet, he started to work out about Jason when he saw his tattoo, and Annabeth had told him the stories of what had gone on in her life, so he was more prepared.
Averyinterestingperson: Thank you, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and it lives up to your expectations.
ChildofVenus: Thank you. This idea isn't exactly original, but I think I've put my own twist on it. If the other einherjar saw his powers before hearing Odin's speech in this chapter, then yeah they probably would. Rick never really tells us of the powers of a child of Thor, so that's something I could work in at some point maybe. Feel free to give me more ideas, I love getting them.
OceanLover4712: Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy this chapter too!
Thank you everyone who reviewed, as you can tell I appreciate each and everyone of your reviews. Onto the story…
Edited 07/07/2019
Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or MCGA
Chapter 2: Explanations
I was shaken out of my reverie by a knock on the door. After opening it, I saw the girl who had brought me here standing there.
"Hello," she said, holding out her hand. "I'm Samirah, you can call me Sam, it's nice to officially meet you."
Taking her hand I said "Hi, I'm Jason Grace. I take it your my Valkyrie." She looked surprised at my guess so I presumed I was correct and that she was indeed my Valkyrie, whatever that was.
"How much do you know?" she asked.
"Not much," I admitted. "Magnus gave me a rundown on my hallmates and told me the basics. I must admit I didn't expect to end up here." She glanced down at my tattoo, reminding me of Magnus' reaction to it earlier. I moved my hand to cover it subconsciously.
"You deserve to be here Jason, I am proud to be your Valkyrie." She told me as we continued on towards what I guessed was the dining hall. I nodded uncomfortably, wondering how much she knew.
As we walked Sam told me various other facts about Valhalla. I made sure to try and memorise them as I had found it better to always be prepared. I never knew how Percy could stand it, not knowing anything until someone told him about it. I would say it was a Roman thing except Annabeth is the same way, and she's about as un-Roman as you can get.
Sam was looking impressed by my comments. "You're taking this well," she said.
"Yeah, well, with the way my life has been going recently, the fact that the Norse gods exist and I'm in Valhalla isn't actually all that surprising."
She looked like she was about to question me on that, when we reached the dining hall and I wouldn't have heard her anyway.
The dining hall was impressive, it reminded me of Olympus. Except it didn't have Annabeth's architectural flare. "Wow," I murmured.
"Yeah," she agreed. "It doesn't ever really get old. There's our table over there." She pointed to a table with two other people already sitting there. "Good thing we're not the only ones." She muttered as we sat down. I wanted to ask about that but she obviously didn't intend for me to hear it, so I decided not to pry.
"So…" I started awkwardly, "Magnus mentioned something earlier about me getting the hall to myself soon? Are they all going away somewhere or something?"
Her expression darkened, "Or something," She repeated. "You see we have to stop my father from launching Naflgar and starting Ragnorak."
I had a million questions going through my head after that, but I decided to start with a simple one. "Your father?"
She nodded, "My father. Loki."
Before I could work out what to ask next, the doors opened with a boom and hundreds of warriors streamed in. I was very grateful that we had entered earlier and avoided the rush. I saw Magnus wave at me as he came in with whom I presumed to be the rest of our hallmates.
A girl came around and gave me some meat and what I guessed to be mead from the smell. Sam saw me looking around and got my attention.
"Eat now," She recommended. "After we get to watch you die gloriously."
The idea of reliving my death slowed my appetite a bit, I don't think anyone would be all too keen on that idea. Yet I did still look forward to it, if I was lucky I would find out what happened to my friends, find out if they survived.
As the meal ended my anticipation and anxiety only grew, warring for the place of pride in my stomach. First we watched the other guy die heroically, gun in hand, saving two strangers, and heard he was destined to fight well during Ragnarok. Then it was my turn. It felt odd seeing it happen again. I watched as Apollo stabbed himself and I blew Meg out the side. The others in the hall were silent, they hadn't been for the other guy, so I distantly felt that was odd, but didn't pay much attention to it, I was too busy watching what was happening. I saw myself take arrow wounds, I hadn't even noticed that I got shot. I winced as I turned to Apollo, I knew what was coming, I reminded him of his promise and then I saw Caligula stab me in the back. I heard Piper's scream of grief, and knew that even if we weren't together she still loved me. We were a team, her and I. The last thing I saw before the video faded away, was Tempest running across the water, my friends on his back. I smiled, relieved to know that my death hadn't been in vain, and that they had all gotten out of there safely.
There was silence for a moment before the hall exploded into whispers. If I tried to listen, I could hear them saying things like "Thor", and "powers". I figured they probably thought me to be a son of Thor. Suddenly they all stopped talking. On a throne that had been empty before except for two large ravens (which had been watching me throughout, they gave me the creeps) appeared a huge figure of a man. What I first noticed about him was that he only had one eye. Then I noticed that the murmurs had started up again, this time with "Odin" and "Allfather" interspersed with the ones about me.
"It is good to see you again my friends." He boomed, looking around at us all. "But unfortunately I come to you in dire times. Sitting before you is a warrior, who we will have need of before long. I sent Samirah to get him, before he left to places not under my jurisdiction, for a reason. I hope you will forgive me." He looked directly at me as he said this. "That reason being, the Pontifex Maximus may save us all. And so I humbly ask, you Jason Grace, if you will help us on this quest, or will you depart to be judged worthy of Elysium, as my counterpart has informed me you would've been placed. Without your help, I have foreseen that Ragnarok will come. And so, son of Jupiter, will you help us stop Ragnarok?"
The hall was silent except for the whispers of the warriors, that was becoming a common reaction for anything to do with me. I sighed, considering. I had just died helping out with a save the world quest, I would have liked to have a break. But I knew what my answer would be, what any demigod's answer would be. "Yes," I said. "I will help." As cheers rang around the hall, I had an inkling that I had agreed to something bigger than what I had originally thought.
The next time I looked up I notice Magnus leading who I guessed were to be my new questmates over. As he introduced us, he eyed me oddly when I didn't appear to be paying attention, I wanted to ask but I knew then wasn't the time. I asked a different question instead. "So when do we set off?"
"We're setting sail in the morning, unless something else goes wrong." The guy who I now knew was T.J replied, looking accusingly at Magnus.
"Hey!" Magnus protested, "I actually got some good advice from Percy today!"
"Yeah," Alex chimed in smugly. "He didn't die today."
While Magnus continued complaining about their lack of belief in him, I suddenly felt dizzy. Percy...Percy and Annabeth had been in Boston this weekend, helping her cousin, I think, prepare for some sort of cruise. I hadn't gotten the full details because of the communication block and the Apollo situation, but Apollo had told us that, along with the information about Percy's baby sister. Magnus must be Annabeth's cousin, that was why he looked vaguely familiar. That would also explain the odd looks he was giving me, he knew. It sounded like Alex probably knew too.
Having realized this, I wasn't surprised when Magnus and Alex dawdled after everyone had gone back to their rooms.
"Come on in." I told them, leading them into my rooms. They followed me in awkwardly. I could tell they had no idea how to broach the subject at hand.
"So...do Percy and Annabeth know yet?" I asked. They obviously hadn't worked out that I had worked out that they knew.
"I don't think so," Magnus replied. "They've been down here for the weekend, meaning they've been even more out of touch with the situation then in New York. They'll probably find out when they get back. In fact I should probably…"
He trailed off as Alex interrupted him impatiently, "So where are you in this mess?"
"Me? I'm Roman, son of Jupiter. I was on the quest to Greece with Percy and Annabeth."
Magnus nodded, "Annabeth mentioned you. You were the one swapped with Percy, right?"
"Yup that was me. So...who exactly knows what?"
Magnus thought it over quickly before replying, "So Alex and I are the only ones who have actually met Percy and Annabeth. Although Sam knows of them and the existence of your pantheons. The others had no idea you even existed, and quite possibly still don't."
I thought it over, "I'll tell the rest of our quest group once we've set off, is there anyone else other than our hallmates?"
Magnus looked startled, "Oh, right. My friends Blitz and Hearth, along with Sam as you know. Blitz is a dwarf, very fashionable. Hearth is an elf, he does magic, and he's deaf."
I nodded and relaxed from where I had been standing stiffly near the door. "Thanks for letting me know."
They nodded and then left me to it. I decided to try and get some sleep, who knew when I was going to get some.
Unfortunately, even though I was dead, my demigod dreams didn't appear to have stopped. While not as bad as Percy's, (from what I heard he had the worst dreams) they were still fully capable of ruining any sleep I tried to have. First I saw flashes of what must've been happening in California, I saw Piper grieving. Apollo speaking prophecies in chains, Piper killing Medea, Leo flying in one Festus, and then hugging Piper as she cried. Meg and Apollo boarding a plane, a coffin sitting in the plane, which I knew with a chill of certainty held my dead body.
Then the scenes slowed down and changed again, I was on what I guessed to be a Viking ship, made of what looked to be people's finger and toenails. The ship was surrounded by ice, I saw mummified human bodies and giants which thankfully looked very different from those I had fought before.
"Oh look," said a cheerful voice behind me, I jumped, turning to see who was speaking. "It's Odin's secret weapon. Not so secret now, are you boy?"
The guy's face was horrific, burned and scarred. As I studied him, he continued, his face softening. "Here's a warning for you little demigod. Don't get in my way, you may have defeated giants. But I can promise you this, I am like nothing you have ever faced before. You will not be able to escape me. Run, little son of Jupiter, and you may just survive the storm to come. This isn't your Pantheon, little Pontifex Maximus, and if you continue on this path of interference,"
His face darkened, and it struck me that he was quite mad. That didn't reassure me, I was killed by a madman after all. "I can promise you this, you will never see your friends again." I could sense someone shaking me, as the dream receded I could hear the guy laughing. "Welcome to the end, little boy, your father may be king, but I was born to destroy kings." As the dream faded away, he met my horrified gaze, "Enjoy your afterlife." His laughter followed me as I woke up.
A.N So that was the next chapter! I should probably explain the timeline to you guys. So I have The Hidden Oracle happening at the same time as the Sword of Summer, leading Hammer of Thor to be about the same time as The Dark Prophecy. I have placed Jason's death in The Burning Maze, at about the same time as Percy and Annabeth leaving Boston in the Ship of the Dead, thus they haven't heard yet of Jason's death and that Nico can't find him in the Underworld. Once they do, Annabeth will obviously try and contact Magnus, but due to him being on a quest, she won't be able to until after they get back. I hope that makes sense.
Please let me know any ideas, errors etc.
Thanks KadmeRead.
