Part II

I grinned slightly as the water slid past me as I shot to the surface. Arriving at Hudson Bay, I winced at the condition of the water and sighed. Shaking my head, I used some magic to clear a way for me. I wouldn't let that kind of water touch my skin.

My magic turned the water as clear as the waters of Greece. I smiled slightly and forged ahead. Obviously, my actions attracted the attention of Hudson, himself.

I swam past him, smiling slightly and then extending my power and watching the clean water unfurl like a budding flower. It grew bigger and bigger until the entire Hudson Bay was clean as crystal, the trash simply dissolving into sand. I pulled myself out of the water and climbed out, completely dry.

Hudson popped his head out of the water. "Feel free to drop in anytime, kid."

I rolled my eyes and waved as I walked away. I walked a little ways just getting used to using two feet. I fiddled with my jeans and shirt, not used to wearing clothes (that sounded weird).

When I had soaked in enough of New York City, I hailed a cab and jumped in. I smiled slightly as I thought of what my mom would say when she saw me.

Climbing the stairs two at a time, the elevator was out again, I grinned as I saw a familiar door.

"Mom!" I let myself in with my key. "Mom!"

"Percy?" She had walked out of the kitchen. I smelled brownies. I grinned and showed her a velvet box.

"Happy birthday!"

She tried for a smile, but happy tears kept coursing down her cheeks. "Oh Percy!" I sighed in contentment as her arms wrapped around me. "My son…oh my baby boy…I've missed you so much!" She whispered into my hair, tightening her arms. "I thought the Sea had kidnapped you!" I winced, but she didn't see.

Then she let go. Sally wiped the tears away briskly and straightened up. "Now. You know you didn't have to get me anything, dear. Your visit is a perfect gift!"

I chuckled. "You're my mom, of course I'm going to get you something." I took her hand and didn't look up at her. "I'll try and pay you back for every wonderful thing you've ever done for me. I know I never could, but…I'll try to." I stared at her. "The Fates have blessed me, Mama. They blessed me by giving you to me as my mother. I couldn't have asked for a better Mom."

Tears welled up in her eyes again, but she didn't succumb. "Oh Percy…" She kissed my cheek and focused on the box. With a eager smile, she opened it. I leaned forward, eager to see her reaction.

"Oh!"

Inside the box was a delicate pearl and diamond, silver necklace. Tyson had helped me make it. The gems and pearls were from the mines and pearl farms down in the sea. They glowed as if they were stars.

"Oh…Percy…"

"Do you like it?"

"Percy…I love it!" She gave a happy laugh. "This is the most beautiful…thank you!" She hugged me again. I chuckled and then smelled something in the kitchen. The brownies were done.

With a mischievous grin, I slipped my arms around my mom and lifted her up, carrying her, bridal style, into the kitchen. She squealed in surprise.

I stared laughing and then gently set her down in a chair. She looked up at me, her eyes wide. "I had no idea you were that strong!"

I chuckled. "Blame it on camp." I pulled the brownies out and set them on the hot pads to cool.

I didn't realize that I had pulled them out with my bare hands until I saw the look on my mom's face. It was shock and a little bit of sadness. It hurt her, knowing how much pain I'd gone through in my life, how much I had to alter my body.

I frowned. "I'm…I'm sorry. I didn't mean…" My connection to the sea had increased my resistance to fire. Similar to when those telekhines poured lava on me, and I didn't burn.

"Shh…no Percy. It's fine. I just…I'm just sad that you didn't have a childhood that others had at your age. I'm just sad that you had to be a hero instead of a teenager." She stood up and cupped my face in her hands. "But I am proud that you have always done the right thing. You've been selfless, gentle, kind, and honest."

I looked down. "I haven't been exactly honest."

Sally frowned. "Oh?"

I looked at her. "To be completely honest, I…uh…" I stared at her. My mother wasn't weak. She was incredibly strong. Where is the line between keeping harmful information from someone and being honest with someone? Did Mom really need to know about everything I've been through? Annabeth and Grover are the only ones who know about Night and Ouranos… I sighed and shook my head. "You are my Mom. I…You deserve to know."

She was frowning. "Percy?"

I muttered a few spells that blocked out the gods from listening. I spoke a few other spells that prevented our lips from being read. I smiled, satisfied that it was safe. I looked at mom. "What I'm about to tell you, Mom, is incredibly important."

I sighed. "You know about when I ask you for permission to go to Atlantis for Christmas Break?"

She nodded. I shook my head. "I would have stayed home if I had known what I was in for. Anyways, Kronos and Tartarus decided that they wanted me dead because of all the things that I had done to them. They started sending monsters to kill me. Monsters started attacking mortals that looked like me. They started raiding my father's villages and towns in the sea.

"I had to do something. The gods were willing to help me as well. It was quickly heading to war. The Roman Demigods joined up with the Greek Demigods, the armies of Atlantis joined with the rest of the armies of the gods." I sighed and took a bite of my brownie.

"You already know about me having to get the Achilles Curse again. However, what you didn't know, what no one knew, was that I had already been given something that was even better than the Curse, which I had removed seven days after the war."

I took a breath, not wanting to look into my mom's eyes. "Do you know about the very first deity?"

She frowned. "Wouldn't that be…Uranus?"

"Ouranos is his other name. I prefer to call him that, keeps me from cracking up." I smirked. "Anyways, Ouranos is the god of the Universe, of stars. He mated with Gaea, the goddess of the Earth, Mother Earth we call her. She ain't no mother, but who cares. Anyways, the gods of Olympus all claim that Ouranos is dead, killed by his Titan sons, but actually, he isn't. He's very much alive."

I sipped my milk. Sally looked at me. "Well?!"

I chuckled, bitterness edging it. "I caught his attention way back when I was on a quest for the Camp to retrieve the Golden Fleece. When I gave the Fleece to Clarisse, he was surprised. It was what he did next that made everything happen now. He blessed me."

"Blessed you?"

"A deity blessing a mortal is a way of saying that the mortal is that god's representative. I had, in a way, a small amount of Ouranos' power because of the blessing; however, it was latent, because I wasn't aware of it. Anyways, the blessing that he gave me toughened my string."

Sally frowned. "Your string…?" She paled. "You mean the one that they cut?"

"Yeah…" I shivered. "Anyways, they couldn't cut the string because of the blessing. They went to Ouranos in hopes that he would know the reason. He did, but he played dumb. Just before that fiasco last year, he went to me and told me what was happening. I still don't know why he told me, maybe to rub it in later? I don't know."

I sighed slightly and then smiled as I got up and helped her fasten the necklace around her neck.

"Later, Nyx was angered, and in retaliation against Kronos, she blessed me too. Nyx is Ouranos' sister/wife. She was imprisoned in Tartarus. We met when Annabeth and I fell in. I was only told later, but with both blessings of both siblings I was a perfect candidate for something called a Universal. Ouranos and Nyx are both Universals."

Sally frowned. "What is a Universal?"

"A being who is separate from the Council of Olympus, separate from the gods. A being who has all the power. It's the closest you'll ever come to being a god with a capital G." I rolled my eyes. "Anyways, there are three steps to becoming a Universal. First, is to get the blessing from Ouranos, second is to get a blessing from Nyx, and third, the gods must pour their power into you."

I sighed and sat down again. "Ouranos orchestrated everything perfectly. When I was fighting Kronos, Zeus used me as a conduit in order to give me more power to defeat Kronos. All demigods can be conduits to the gods. The others followed his lead and connected to me." I wrinkled my nose. "Telling aloud what happened makes it sound so weird."

She chuckled slightly, but her eyes were still full of concern. "What happened next?"

"The gods' connection to me was overloaded by Ouranos. He wanted the third and final step to be completed. Because the connection was overloaded, the gods had to pull out and leave their power inside me. Again, that sounds very weird. With that done, I was finally made a Universal, against my will, and without my knowledge."

I stood up and sighed. "That's the short and dirty version. I found out that Ouranos is fading. Erebus told me. Erebus in another sibling of these guys and another husband of Nyx. Ouranos was fading, and that was why he was so focused on getting me to become a Universal."

My mother frowned. "All the power of the gods, everything they are…Does this include their knowledge too, their memories?"

I winced. "Ah…yes. Zeus wanted to make me immortal so I could withstand the sheer amount of knowledge that's in the gods' minds, but…well…Apollo gave me a way out. He blocked my memories so I wouldn't have to become immortal. But…uhh…well, any kind of severe shock or mental strain might undo the block and then…I'll kinda of go…insane." I winced. Nice job, Percy!

Mom paled considerably and then paused. She sighed and nodded, straightening her skirt with her hands, trying to keep them from shaking. "I understand." She smiled. "You're safe right here, right now. That's all that matters. We can't borrow trouble. We can only do the next thing, focus on the things we do have control over." She smiled and took my hand gently. "We can take one day at a time and see where it leads us. Panic will do us no good."

I smiled and nodded. Mom could always find the right words to say. She calmed me down. She was my solace in the storm. The lighthouse in the endless night. A wave a anxiety coursed through me at the thought of seeing her die, whether by old age or accident…

"Mama…" I pulled her close to me. "Don't every die. Don't ever die…"

She shushed me and held me. "I can't make that promise, Percy. You know I can't. We shouldn't be afraid of our futures. We should enjoy each moment that we have. Time is not our friend, but it doesn't have to be our enemy."

I nodded slowly and then looked at her. "I couldn't bear it…I couldn't live…"

"You can, and you will. Countless others have survived the grief of losing a loved one. But let's not talk about that. It's my birthday, not my funeral!" She grinned. "Help me put icing on these brownies. Paul's going to get back from teaching within the next hour!"

I pushed away my fear and grief and smiled. "Okay."

This was just a recap for all of us. I thought it might be necessary, seeing as we're about to launch into the actual sequel of Prince. I hope you guys enjoy it. I really do.

If anyone feels like I'm slacking off on quality, then please tell me how you think I can improve.

Thank you, everyone, for the reviews!

Ink...