Backup Plan: Phase 2: Pt. 3

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Magnificent.

This chapter is Shin'en vs. Krios, with a little bit from the Romans, and a brief little cameo at the end.

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or Naruto

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Shin'en materialized in midair above Mt. Tam, and he brought a platform of water together under his feet no thicker than a piece of paper, and he hovered in place, observing. The fortress that was Othrys had been completely rebuilt, with no signs of damage from the fight between him and Atlas. In the distance, there was a massive pile of rubble where Mt. Diablo used to be, and Shin'en could see what looked like scientists.

Most likely searching for meteor fragments.

There was also no downward bulge coming from the sky, meaning that Ouranos was keeping his word in staying up there instead of trying to smash Gaea, so he didn't have to worry about being forced into the Titan's Curse, but neither did he have the opportunity to use the Titan's Curse to neutralize a threat.

Speaking of threats, Shin'en rose a single brow at what he was seeing.

The Romans were there, dressed in an interesting combination of purple t-shirts, jeans, and combat armor, but they were not fighting an army of dracanae, but…things. They were monsters that Shin'en hadn't ever seen before, but they were all of distinct shape:

Fish, scorpion, bear, lion, bull, crab, dragon, a Pegasus, and a sea monster of some kind—hold up.

Their bodies were black like the night sky, and lining their skin were varying amounts of lights, but those lights were in certain patterns. Shin'en looked to the sky, it being night here on the west coast, and saw that there were constellations missing from where they were supposed to be.

Slowly, he looked back at the battle below him, it dawning on him that the Titan of Constellations had made monsters out of the constellations.

"Huh. Neat."

There was a loud cry as one of the constellation beasts was felled, and Shin'en watched the monster melt upward, the lights in its body shooting to the heavens, taking their place in the sky.

However, despite the victory over one of the monsters, there were many Roman dead cooling on the slopes of Mt. Tam. Without a monster army at his command, Krios was performing his defensive assignment well. Or maybe he did have a monster army, and was simply content with letting his constellation monsters thin the Romans.

Shin'en reached out, feeling the water in the air, and he felt no distinctive shapes of the monsters he knew. In fact, all he felt within the fortress and the surrounding area was a single being, undoubtedly Krios.

A sudden build-up of energy made Shin'en's gaze snap to its origin, and he saw Jason, his cousin, eyes glowing brightly as he levitated. With a shout that had an otherworldly echo to it, the son of Jupiter called down the lightning, and struck all the monsters. The battlefield lit up like a Christmas tree, the monsters screeching. Then, in a resonating clap of thunder, all the monsters exploded, the lights in their bodies ascending to the heavens.

There was silence, and then cheering as the Romans celebrated their victory, but it was a victory that quickly died, as Jason had pulled overtime on that lightning, and fell to a knee with a cough of blood, steam rising from his body. Another factor that killed the joy was Krios himself emerging.

He stood on a balcony that lacked a rail of any kind, allowing his whole body to be revealed.

He wore classic armor, with plates on his shins, a battle kilt, hard boots, breastplate, and vambraces, but it got different with his helmet. Pitch-black with a T-shaped opening, an opening so thin his eyes and mouth couldn't be seen, with horns sprouting from the temples. Krios' entire set of armor was black and dotted with lights, a clear indication of his domain, and the skin that was revealed was a strange shade of orange, like a nebula.

"Romans," the Titan's voice rolled over the field of battle, not loud, but heard by all. "Get out of here. If I wanted I could lay waste to you now. I choose not to because I don't have to, but do not test me. My generosity has its limits. You should consider yourselves lucky I'm allowing you to live long enough to see the coming of the new Golden Age. Now begone from here, before I turn you all to ash."

Shin'en allowed his platform to fade away, and he dropped probably a thousand feet to the ground below. He slammed into the earth with enough force to send a cloud of dust shooting sky high. He attracted all the attention, and he strolled out of the crater without a care in the world.

Krios spun around, the T in his helmet glowing. "YOU!"

"Me," Shin'en said casually. "Me, me, me…hello, Titan of the South."

The Romans were thoroughly confused at what was happening, and they parted from Shin'en's path as he entered their scattered ranks. However, such proximity brought bout shock. You see, the Romans had seen Shin'en before, when he was not wearing his cloak. This time, they paled and stood frozen.

Shin'en came to a stop beside the still-kneeling Jason.

"You…you're that person from before," he muttered with bloodied teeth. "Are you…are you…a goddess?"

The Abyss slowly turned his gaze to stare out over Jason's head, and then he slowly moved his gaze down to look Jason in the eye. Silence reigned between them for so long that Jason squirmed in discomfort, and he felt stupid for asking that question.

Of course,this person was a goddess.

"No. I am not a goddess."

Of course, this person wasn't a goddess. Jason felt so silly.

"Can you stand?"

The son of Jupiter got to his feet. "I can make it."

"Good. Get Reyna to share her strength as needed, and get your forces away from here. The battle between me and Krios will be…destructive. More so than the battle between me and Atlas."

Jason did not dispute that claim, and issued the order for retreat, something that no one argued with.

With the Romans performing an unorganized fast march back down the mountain, that left Krios and Shin'en by themselves. The Titan dropped from his balcony, landing with a loud bang from his weight. He was tall, ten feet, and packed with all the muscle he thought would be appropriate for such a height, making him look like something out of Fist of the North Star.

It reminded Shin'en of the Third Raikage when he was using Orochimaru's Curse Seal.

And that thought pissed him off.

"So, you are the mighty Shin'en. So powerful that you make Kronos himself weary, so powerful that you killed Atlas and made the sky rise from the ground. How fascinating, grandnephew. But, you will not be able to defeat me."

"I've already defeated you. You unintentionally pissed me off and so therefore I've elected to not waste time on a fair fight and have instead ensured your death. But don't let that stop you from explaining yourself to me. Please, continue."

"Right, as I was saying," Krios cleared his throat, proud, gloating, and killing himself with pride. "During the Golden Age, mortal understanding of the stars was that they were but lights in the night sky, lights that told stories of the gods, and so that was the extent of my authority over the stars…"

Shin'en felt the Titan grin beneath his helmet.

"But, thanks to science, the stars of become such powerful objects. Balls of constant nuclear explosions, orbs of radiance so bright they could blind you even if you weren't looking at them, so large they pull entire solar systems around them. The super dense neutron star gives me the power to crush anything I want. The super radiant O stars, bright enough to outshine Apollo by 30,000 times. And, my favorite…when a big enough star dies and collapses, it becomes the single most destructive thing in all of Creation…a black hole."

That grin persisted.

"Yes, thanks to the mortals, they've broadened my domain to levels I never fathomed! I have abilities and powers that outstrip that of my little brother! I don't need this stupid rock from the freak Shinto god—I have enough powers to kill you myself! Without any assistance! I can destroy this whole planet if I wanted! All I have to do to do it is think it! I can make a neutron star or a black hole, and watch it tear Gaea to shreds! Or I can think of just a regular star, like the main sequence star that is Apollo, and how many times a nuclear explosion occurs on the surface. And not even that! I can make myself like the sun's corona, and burn this world to a crisp in an instant! So, come then, little boy! Come and fight the full power of the stars!"

Krios seized up and froze, so much heat sapped from him at once that his very divine being became ice. Then, he shattered into a million sparkling pieces that twinkled as they flitted out of existence.

Not once did Krios even think that the Shin'en before him was simply a trick of the light. Not once did it occur to the Titan of the South that he had been fooled by an illusion of vapor, and had been outflanked. Not once did it trickle into his head that he was leaving himself open to powerful jutsu from behind. No, so caught up in gloating about his admittedly terrifying power, Krios was completely ignorant to the real Shin'en standing behind him, his right eye leaking a tear of blood.

As for the Abyss, his chakra was cold, his eyes hard and vindictive.

"You're right. Even without the red stone, you are perhaps the most powerful Titan, maybe even more so than Kronos. The power of the stars, terrifying power indeed. The power to generate heat enough to scorch planets, generate super novae and destroy entire solar systems, create pockets of density so great that any celestial body would be torn apart, or sneeze a solar flare that'll wipe out everything from here to the moon.

"Perhaps had I been in a more generous mood, I would've gladly cut loose and fought you to the death. I might've even had to break out my most powerful techniques just to keep up with you…but, in the end, I would've won anyway. You're too brash, Krios, and have not the mind for strategy and tactics. Alas, it's all for naught. Your appearance made some bad memories resurface, and I'm afraid it robbed me of all desires for battle. I hope Kronos and Hyperion don't do such things, elsewise my birthday party is going to be a very boring one. Now, should I go back to Manhattan, or should I stay for a little chat with my cousin?"

Shin'en looked up in thought. "I don't believe I was able to catch Jason in any preemptive genjutsu two years ago, and therefore he is vulnerable to the machinations of Hera and Gaea. While the main plan is to completely prevent the Giant War, it pays to have a backup plan."

With that, the Abyss vanished in a swirl of water.

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The Romans had built a forward basecamp on Mt. Tam, using the slopes to their advantage, making their temporary fort more secure on the sides and front than the back. In their fort, they were on edge. Upon the recognition of the stranger, memories resurfaced. Memories of Terminus' barrier being shattered, Temple Hill crumbling, Mt. Diablo exploding. Memories of cold, such terrible, terrible cold like they would never be warm again, and they were going to die a slow, frigid death. Memories of great power and destruction, and that was what had them truly discomforted.

The stranger had not been gentle, and so the lack of the sounds of battle from higher on the mountain made many worry. Not for the stranger, per se, but for themselves. If there was no battle, then did that mean that Krios had erased the stranger? Had the stranger erased Krios?

In the command tent, the praetors Jason and Reyna discussed strategy with the ten centurions.

"How many have we lost?" Jason asked.

Dakota, son of Bacchus, reported, "We arrived here with a counted 235 legionnaires…now, the last head count was 197."

Jason's jaw tightened. "Injured?"

"Of that 197, only 171 are still battle-capable."

"Unicorn drought, nectar, and ambrosia?"

"Supplies are holding steady, but not after another day like this," Dakota said grimly.

Jason nodded. "Any possibility of recovering bodies for burial?"

Gwen shifted. "There's a possibility," she said uneasily, "but if Krios sees any of us coming, it might trigger him, or he could send whatever forces he has to crush us. If we try, we'd have to bear a white flag, or send small units on grab-and-go missions, which will cost us manpower here, and potentially more soldiers."

Jason nodded. "Fine. We'll worry about retrieval later. For now, we need another plan of attack in case…that guy…fails."

"That guy has a name."

Swords were ripped out of sheaths as all turned to the sudden voice, and no one knew exactly what to feel when they saw the cloaked stranger calmly sitting in a chair in the corner of the tent, draped in shadows, crimson lights shining where his eyes would be.

Jason kept his sword raised. "And your name is…?"

"Shin'en."

"Sheen…en?" Jason pronounced.

"I'm impressed. Some guy from Victoria, Texas, and I'm sure many others, kept pronouncing it as Shin—en. It's annoying."

"I…suppose so," Jason blinked. His name was easy to pronounce, and so he never had that problem. "That name sounds…foreign."

"For all intents and purposes, it's Japanese, where I's are pronounced like long E's."

"Um, okay." Amongst all the things the Romans expected to happen today, language lessons from a stranger was not one of them. "So…Krios…?"

"Dead."

Jason's eyes widened. "Dead? You mean you killed a Titan?"

"Oh, I trust he'll be back some time in the future. I don't personally know how long it takes divine beings to reform in Tartarus."

"Oh~, that kind of dead."

"Yes, that kind of dead."

But someone had to be a skeptic. The centurion of the First Cohort, one Octavian Augustus. The spindly little silver-tongued legacy narrowed his eyes. "The last time you were present in Rome, Shin'en, if that is your real name, you destroyed our temples and sent Terminus into a fit for weeks, and then you vanished, presumably fighting the Titan Atlas. Now you come to our aid, and bring news that you defeated the Titan Krios, however there were no signs of battle. No sounds, no shaking, no explosions. Forgive me if I'm skeptical of what you say, Shin'en."

"Remain skeptical. It matters not to me."

Octavian's mouth worked to form a response to that complete dismissal. In the silence, Reyna took the stage.

"I remember you." The red gaze turned to her, and it was all she could to not run away and hide. As it was, she tightened her sphincters and continued. "Circe's island. Your sister almost killed me. You stopped her."

"She was having some issues. It's been fixed."

Reyna shifted. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"So, you did take down Krios?" Jason asked.

"Yes."

"So quickly and quietly?"

"He pissed me off. I don't play nice when I'm pissed off."

Someone nudged Octavian. "Chill, man," he whispered.

The augur scowled but kept his tongue.

Jason rapidly blinked, coming to terms with something. "So…the rise of Saturn…Mt. Othrys…the battle…the lives lost…the war…Krios…that's it? We're done here?"

"Yes," Shin'en answered simply.

Jason blinked. Reyna blinked. The centurions all blinked.

"Um, okay then. Uh," the son of Jupiter looked around, "deconstruct the fort and…pack up…" he cleared his throat, and tried again in his praetor voice.

"Deconstruct the fort and pack the supplies. Get some men together to retrieve the dead. The battle is won here, but not in the east. Mt. Olympus is threatened, and we're the only ones that can defend her. We leave for Manhattan in hour."

Before the centurions could scatter, Shin'en stood. He didn't bolt to his feet, but merely rose, gracefully, beautifully, with control and nobility. He drew all eyes to him.

"Don't bother going east. That is my territory, and you are not welcome there. Do not test me, either. The generosity I've shown in defeating Krios for you was a preemptive measure in the event of something that did not come to pass. That is the extent of it. Attempt travel eastward, and I will kill you. Do I make myself clear, children of Rome?"

Unbidden, they all said "Yes, sir!" in tandem, and were left looking at each other in confusion at just why that happened.

"Good," Shin'en nodded. He stepped from the shadow, and revealed his face. His Sharingan spun slowly, not that he hadn't already done what he intended. "There may come a day when my sister visits New Rome. I expect her to be treated with…kindness. Fall below my expectations, and I will finish what Krios didn't necessarily start, but intended to do. Good day to you, Romans."

The red eyes achieved peak luminosity, becoming blinding. When the glow faded, and the spots disappeared from their eyes, the Romans were left stunned at Shin'en's disappearance.

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The son of Poseidon frowned. That had taken much less time than what he thought it would, but he still had something else he needed to do, something he almost forgot to do.

In a swirl of vapor, he appeared inside the unguarded Mt. Othrys, meaning Kronos had brought every monster he had with him to Manhattan, meaning he had a much larger force than what he typically did at that point in the timeline. It mattered not, however. Any number times zero was zero, and no amount of monsters posed any real threat to the likes of Shin'en.

The Abyss stood before the black throne, and found himself unimpressed. It wasn't grand, with a massive design about it or behind it. It didn't even share the same similarities with the typical royal chair seen in media and in London. It was rather simple actually, even if the back was shaped like a scythe blade on its side. It was high and wide enough for someone of impressive build to occupy, displaying their physical power, but Shin'en thought the entire structure stupid.

His experience with those that sat on thrones was that they failed to realize that they bled when cut.

Still though…there was an allure in the air. Something that was puling Shin'en to the black throne, tempting him to sit in it with promises of victory and power. He could feel it pressing against his mind, trying to show him what he wanted to see.

Yūrei alive.

Yugito smiling.

Persephone eternally happy.

Him and Na—

Shin'en's eyes glowed bright emerald, and a beam erupted, a beam that completely erased the black throne and pushed right through the rest of Othrys, shooting through the fortress like it was made of warm butter, and shot right over the land, continuing north until Shin'en cut the chakra flow. In the far, far distance, the laser of Gale chakra destabilized and erupted, blowing a mile-wide crater ten feet into the ground at its deepest point.

With a scoff, Shin'en spun on his heel with a swish of his cloak, and vanished in another swirl of water. It was about three in the morning in San Francisco, meaning it was about six in the morning in Manhattan, meaning that August fourteenth was here, and Kronos wouldn't attack until the coming evening, twelve hours away. However, there were already many differences between how it was now and how it was supposed to be, and so it stood to reason that the Titan could and would step up his timetable.

However, his boat had been blown up less than two hours ago, and even for a time deity it took time to reorganize the troops and bolster moral in the face of almost certain death. Not to mention get everyone's game face back on for the coming fight after the curveball of mass teleportation. Then again…

Shin'en saw it in two ways: one, Kronos was still reorganizing; two, Kronos had used his power over time to speed up everyone's recovery and was now ready to attack, four days from the day of prophecy. He was either held back by letting his forces ready themselves, held back by dates, or he wasn't being held back by anything and was massing his attack right now.

Or, another possibility, he had used his powers over time to speed up the hours and days to something more to his liking, meaning that at least in Manhattan, possibly the whole world, it was not August fourteenth, but already a later date.

Such thoughts made Shin'en mad at himself for overthinking a simple yes or no question (go back to Manhattan now?). But it was also such thoughts that made him such a great planner.

As he travelled through the vapor on his way back to the east coast, he took one side stop.

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21st Nome

Brooklyn

The Brooklyn House was seeing power it hadn't seen in decades. With Carter and Sadie, under the tutelage of their uncle Amos, teaching the Path of the Gods to a small battalion of young magicians, the House was a wellspring of power, talent, and strength. They all knew themselves to not be invincible, but they knew themselves to still be powerful.

But that still didn't stop any of them from jumping out of their beads early, early in the morning when massively loud banging came from the front doors. Staffs and wands were out and ready as the teens, preteens, and children all assembled at the doors, Carter and Sadie at the front, Amos ahead of them.

He performed a spell, one that presumably allowed him to see what was on the other side of the door, and what he saw made him stiffen as if he had just seen Apophis the Chaos Serpent.

"Amos?" Sadie asked.

"None of you even think of casting a spell. None of you even think of moving, or talking. Don't even breathe."

"What's out there?" Carter asked.

"Not what, who."

"A threat?"

"Only if you make him one…or he's here to kill you."

"Is…he…here to kill us, then?" Sadie asked.

"I don't know. No sudden movements, any of you."

With that, Amos Kane opened the doors, and revealed a teen boy in a cloak that one kid recognized. "Hey! That's an Akatsuki cloak from Naruto!"

The teen looked at the preteen boy, who paled and shrank, and nodded once. "Yes, it is an Akatsuki cloak. Good eye."

"With all due respect, my lord," Amos said, surprising all, "what are you doing here?"

"I'm giving you fair warning, Amos Kane. I know you know what is coming very, very soon, and I don't intend to pull my punches for any reason. This is the only time I'm going to give you to get out of dodge before I flatten the Eastern Seaboard. Goodbye."

The teen in the cloak vanished.

"Uh, Amos-"

"Everyone, pack your things, now! We're leaving for the First Nome in ten minutes."

They all just stared at the eldest Kane. "MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!"

That was enough to galvanize everyone but Carter and Sadie, who stood by their uncle's side.

"Who was that?" Sadie asked.

Amos gave her a glance. "Someone that even Apophis would not so foolhardily challenge to a fight. Now, pack your things."

He didn't give the children time to argue, and instead stormed away to his own quarters.

Carter and Sadie shared a look, arguing between themselves with their eyes, and they ultimately decided to do as they were told.

The inhabitants of the 21st Nome would arrive at the First Nome no more than twenty minutes later, and upon their arrival they were greeted by Desjardins who demanded the reason for their presence.

"Shin'en," Amos answered.

"Thank Heaven you're all alright."

Sadie and Carter blinked at how the man who tried to kill him was suddenly so relieved to see them alive upon the utterance of a word they didn't recognize.

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Shin'en stood in the middle of Time's Square. The sun was rising now, steadily cresting the horizon. All of the screens were off, the Square empty. The city, hailed as the City that Never Sleeps, was quiet. Peaceful, even. Shin'en stood there and wasn't put off by the silence of the city. He found it serene.

Calming, even.

It was strange to see a city like this so peaceful, and not embroiled in a post-apocalyptic story. It gave one time to appreciate the majesty of Manhattan. Its towering buildings, amazing feats of human perseverance and ingenuity, the shining glass, capturing the beauty of the sunrise, the empty streets, wide and filled with the promise of a future for those willing to bust their ass for it.

Yes, without the orchestra of bustling people and honking taxis, without the commotion of construction and commuting, without the fucking people…Manhattan, New York was a beautiful place.

It was a shame that the city would soon be nothing but rubble.

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Not much action here, but the stage has been set. This was more of a talking chapter, which was intended.

The next one will be the true beginning of the Battle of Manhattan, but before that, Shin'en will face both Persephone and Annabeth…and he's not exactly over Asteria and Annabeth from Xenophobic. PTSD is always fun to write about, especially when it's the PTSD of an overpowered teen with issues.

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