A/N: I really do read every single review that you guys gave me. It just motivates me to write more with such nice and kind words. Also constructive reviews! Thanks for that for those of you who did that. Now, as the situation stands, Pertemis is what you guys want the most, though some say they want Percabeth. Don't worry. There'll be a few more chapters left for you guys to decide on the pairing of this story. But for you Pertemis fans out there . . . Here's a little something as a treat. Enjoy the chapter :D
Dinklebergsc3: Ask and you shall receive!
Bionic608: Stop with the cliffhangers? Sometimes. I like to keep you guys waiting. As for how long this story would last, I'm not too sure about that. I have a somewhat clear image on how I want to end it, but the writing is just how things go. So, stay tuned for that.
JC RH: Thanks for that! I appreciate these kinds of reviews. Hopefully, I'll be able to maintain this until the end.
Zayden StormVoid: Glad to see you liked it! I really do enjoy your reviews. It helps clear the image on how I should write this story and where I'm going with it. So, thanks!
Let's get on with the story.
Chapter 4
Percy stood in the middle of the empty Crimson College Arena. By now, everyone has gone home so the school should empty.
He paced around the court until he heard the Arena doors open. Walking towards him was a woman with the same age as him. Her auburn hair flowed lusciously down her back. She was wearing a silver hooded parka with jeans and Reebok sneakers.
Artemis, Percy thought to himself.
"Hey," Percy greeted with a smile.
Artemis smiled back at him. "It's been a while." She said, stepping closer to Percy. "Since we're along like this."
"It has, hasn't it?" Percy said, his voice getting lower by the second. "How are you? I heard your team has been doing well this past couple of months."
Artemis smirked. "I thought you said you didn't play Olympia back then."
Percy stammered. "I-I mean I just read it in some news reports. It just happened to be there." He wanted to die right there and then because it was too embarrassing for him.
Luckily, Artemis managed a small laugh as the tension between them broke.
Now, you might be wondering. Clearly there's a story here between the two of them. Well, here's the thing.
They used to date each other.
Cue the gasps of disbelief.
But that was in the past. Percy and Artemis were dating for almost a year back then until she finally got her big break at the pro scene. Then she decided it was best to break up. While Percy didn't want to, he knew he had no choice. Artemis was going to play Olympia professionally and there was nothing Percy could do to stop it. He would just get in her way and Artemis wouldn't have the time to constantly be with him.
So, out of mutual respect, they parted ways.
But that was two years ago, when they were sixteen. They haven't spoken to each other since. It was kind of difficult, especially since Percy didn't use AR Glasses back then. But he does still miss her. He just doesn't know if Artemis felt the same way.
"I've been doing fine lately." Artemis admitted as they both took a seat on the nearest bleachers. "I've become captain of the Hunt and currently, we're preparing for the Rookie Showcase."
Although he pretended that it was new news to him, it wasn't. Percy has been keeping tabs on Artemis's progression over the past few years. He felt like a creepy stalker, but hey, he was a teen.
"That's good." Percy said nervously. "So, what did you want to talk about?"
Artemis stroked a strand of hair behind her ear. He loved it when she does that. "Um, I was wondering if you're going to be in the Rookie Showcase next week."
"Yeah," Percy nodded. "I'm going to be a Wildcat, or something like that."
Artemis chuckled. "It's Wildcard, you dork."
Percy remembered the insane amount of times that Artemis had endearingly called him a dork. While it annoyed Percy at first, he has grown into it. "Yeah, that thing," Percy smiled.
"Have you decided on what team you're going to be joining?" She asked. Her voice was strangely soft. Maybe it was just Percy.
"Not yet," Percy sighed. "To be honest, I haven't thought about it that much. With all that's been going on lately, I didn't really have that much time to gather my own thoughts."
"So I've heard," Artemis said. "I'm guessing you know why I'm here."
Percy nodded. Though he was happy to see her after such a long time, and he knew that she was also happy to see him, they both knew what this was really about.
"The Hunt has been strong lately. I see a lot of potential in you. And this is me talking without taking into account about our past." Artemis said.
That sort of hit a sore spot, but Percy managed to hide it. He nodded absently. "I'll think about it."
Artemis looked at him with a sad smile. "It really is good to see you again Percy." She held his hand. "I've missed you." Percy only managed a smile as he pulled Artemis into a hug.
"See you soon, Arty," Percy said as they pulled away. Artemis put her Glasses on and did some things in her UI. When Percy put his Glasses on, he already had a friend request waiting for him. He accepted without hesitation. Artemis gave him one last smile before she exited the building, leaving Percy alone once again.
Then an email arrived in Percy's inbox. At first Percy thought it was Artemis, but the sender was from Nico.
From: Nico
To: Percy
Saw that. Why do the top players all go to you, man?
Percy rolled his eyes as he replied.
From: Percy
To: Nico
Have you been following me? You're creeping me out.
Then, Nico emailed him again.
From: Nico
To: Percy
I have my ways.
He sent it with a grin emoji. Percy shook his head as he took of his Glasses and put them away. He exited the Arena and headed towards the Orphanage.
He found that Grover was waiting for him at the entrance. "Where have you been? I've been waiting for like fifteen minutes."
"Something came up." Percy said.
"And this morning, you were late for school!"
"Yeah, something came up." Percy said again.
Grover rolled his eyes. "What something?" They started to walk back home.
"Well, I can't say anything about this morning."
"Did you sign an NDA?" Grover asked. It stood for non-disclosure agreement.
"Kind of." Percy said. "But as for just now, um, well, I just saw Artemis."
Grover stopped him. "Hold up," He said in disbelief. "You saw Artemis?" Percy nodded. "As in, Artemis?" Percy nodded again. "Like, your ex girlfriend Artemis?"
Percy rolled his eyes. "Yes, Grover. That Artemis." Percy sighed. "She was trying to invite me to join her team."
"And?"
"I said I'll think about it."
Grover sighed. "You have never failed to surprise me, Percy."
"Well, I don't plan on stopping now," He grinned. "Are you stopping by the Orphanage?"
"I've got some stuff I've gotta do. There's a lot of homework to do, plus I gotta –"
"Hestia's making enchiladas tonight."
"I'll stop by."
Line Break
Grover sometimes stopped by the Orphanage along with Percy, so he was a familiar face around here. The kids have taken a liking to him. Plus, Hestia had always liked Grover's reaction whenever he gets a taste of her cooking.
When Percy entered, he anticipated Thalia perfectly this time. When Thalia went to tackle, he just stepped to the side and let her run past him and into Grover. He huffed in pain as Thalia tackled him to the ground.
"Holy mother," Grover muttered in pain. "Are you practicing Judo or something?"
Thalia laughed. "Well, it's Percy's fault for moving out of the way."
Percy held his hands up innocently. "I wasn't the one charging towards him like a bull." As Grover got up, Thalia smirked at Percy.
"So, you ready to have that duel?"
"You're so on." Percy said as he put his Glasses on. Thalia did the same. When the invitation for a duel popped up, Percy accepted.
"First to the floor loses?" Thalia asked as her attire changed. She wore a black leather jacket studded with spikes on the shoulders on top of a black t-shirt. She wore tattered jeans and combat boots while her wrists were wrapped in chains.
Her weapons were a spear and shield that sent shivers down Percy's spine. The bronze shield had the imprint of a woman with snakes for hair on it. It was Medusa, one of the monsters from Greek mythology. Although it was just a game, Percy couldn't help but feel a bit terrified at it.
"You're on," Percy said with a nervous smile. One way or another, that shield has gotta go. "Grover, do you mind being the referee?"
"Sure thing," Grover said. "So, are you ready?" He asked Thalia. Thalia nodded. He then turned towards Percy. "You ready?" Percy thought about taking both of his swords out, but he remembered Annabeth's advice. So he just took one of the swords out and nodded at Grover. "Fight!"
Thalia moved first as she rushed forward and thrusts her spear at Percy. He twirled out of the way and was going to strike Thalia straight at the head, but her shield was there to block it. Thalia pushed his sword away before she punched Percy's chest with it, causing him to stumble.
From what Percy's seeing, Thalia's class is a Vanguard. They tend to carry a shield and a melee weapon with them, acting as a Tank. Vanguards are notorious for being what people call an 'immovable object', due to their strong defence. On the offensive side, they are known for their powerful counter attacks but that's about it.
One weakness about this class is that they have low mobility. It means they don't move around much, so pretty much the exact opposite of Assassin's who utilizes speed and mobility.
"That hurts," Percy said.
"Good," Thalia grinned. Percy moved on the offensive again, trying to get through to that terrifying shield. For some odd reason, his movements felt sluggish and slow. It felt like his sword was heavier than it usually is.
Percy's sword got parried again by the shield and was met with a powerful kick to the gut. The counter attacks from Thalia was not to be messed around with.
The tables turned as Thalia saw her chance and thrusts her spear forward at Percy. He sidestepped the attack and yanked the spear from her hand. She yelped in surprise as she was disarmed. It gave Percy enough time to make a downward strike towards Thalia. She raised her shield above her head, blocking the attack.
Percy smirked as he knew he was going to win. Using that brief moment of hesitation, he tried to sweep his leg underneath Thalia's so the she would collapse to the ground.
Again, the keyword here is tried.
Percy felt like he was moving through lead. He knew that his foot was not this heavy and his movements were not this slow.
Thalia seemed to move faster as she brought her shield down to the floor, smacking Percy's foot with the edge of her shield. Percy yowled in pain as he dropped to the floor while holding his foot.
"And the winner is, Thalia Grace!" Grover announced with a mouth full of enchilada. "Hestia, these are so good!" He said to Hestia who was observing their little match next to Grover.
"Thanks," Hestia smiled appreciatively.
Thalia walked over to Percy with a wide grin on her face. "I win."
Percy grumbled. "Yeah, yeah. That's just our first match. I will beat you in the second one." Thalia just stuck her tongue out at him before going to the others kids to brag about her victory. He went and sat next to Grover, grabbing an enchilada for himself. "Man, I really thought I had it."
"Yeah," Grover said as he swallowed a lump of his food. "If it hadn't been for that shield effect, you would've won."
Percy stopped eating. "Shield effect? What's that?"
Grover rolled his eyes. "Dude, seriously? Have you not read Olympia's Newbie Guide yet?"
"Haven't had the time to do so." He took a bite out of his food.
Grover sighed. "I'll give you brief explanation. Some weapons and items have status effects. Status effects are generally things that affects your fighting capabilities. For example, Thalia's shield – Aegis, it's called – has a status effect that inflicts Slow on the enemy. That means every bit of your movement will be slowed down."
Percy smacked his knee. "So that's why I felt like I'd gained thirty pounds when I fought against her."
Grover nodded. "Aside from that, there are also a bunch of other status effects like Paralysis, Blind, Poison, and etcetera. I suggest you go through them just so you don't look like an idiot after this."
Percy nodded. He really needed to look that guide up.
Line Break
After that brief stop at the Orphanage and Percy swearing revenge against Thalia, – who'd been teasing him non-stop about his loss – he had finally arrived home.
He took a warm relaxing shower before collapsing onto his bed. Just before he went to sleep, he decided to check into his AR Glasses one more time. He scrolled through the Olympia News website. There were a bunch of articles talking about the upcoming Rookie Showcase and who are the pro teams going to recruit from the fresh roster of new talents. One article did catch Percy's eye.
Percy Jackson and Nico di Angelo are seen talking with each other. Is Percy Jackson joining the Rebellion?
The famous Wildcard contestant for this year's Rookie Showcase, Percy Jackson, has been seen together frequently with Nico di Angelo, one of the top Rookies of the season. Nico has already been confirmed to join the Rebellion after the Rookie Showcase through the team's announcement.
Seeing these two young talents together, you can't help but wonder if Percy Jackson has already chosen his pro team, should he's qualified for it. So far, the only teams that has shown complete interest in this unknown talent is the Rebellion and Minerva, as stated by the team's captain, Annabeth, in their previous press conference.
Percy Jackson, the newbie who had won in a match against the top rookie of the year, Luke Castellan, had taken the Olympia community by storm when he'd defeated Luke in just mere seconds. While the community has voted him the be a Wildcard contestant during the Rookie Showcase in six more days, we have yet to receive any word from Percy himself. If he really does plan on going pro, then these kinds of exposure are what he needs.
Percy rolled his eyes. He emailed Nico.
From: Percy
To: Nico
Did you do this?
He send the email along with the link to the article. Nico just replied with a winking emoji.
As he was about to take his Glasses off and go to sleep, an email notification popped up. At first he thought it was Nico just messing with him again. But then he looked at the sender.
From: Artemis
To: Percy
I really do mean it when I say that I missed you, Percy. This is not me trying to butter you up so you would join my team. It just felt so good meeting you again.
Goodnight, Percy.
Percy couldn't help but smile at the email. He responded almost immediately.
From: Percy
To: Artemis
I missed you too, Arty. It was good to see you after two years, three months, and twenty one days. But hey, who's counting?
Goodnight, Artemis.
With that thought in mind, he went to sleep.
Line Break
Percy woke up to the sound of someone furiously banging his door. At first he thought it was Mr. Funk, demanding for this week's rent. But then he remembered that his rent has been covered for the next year.
He looked through the door's peep hole. He couldn't see anything, which means it's being covered. Percy had no choice but to open the door to see who it was.
As soon as he turned the handle, the door burst open and Percy was grabbed by big guys who was manhandling him. He struggled, but to no avail. Partly because the guys that were holding him were built like pro wrestlers and partly because he was still half asleep.
They held him down on the couch, where a girl stepped into the room and stood in front of him. The first thing Percy noticed about her was her piercing black eyes. They looked like they could cut carrots in half. Her glossy black hair was tied into a single braid and her face was regal and beautiful from a Hispanic descent. When Percy looked at her, she has this look on her face that tells everyone, try and come at me and we'll see how that turns out.
"So, the famous Percy Jackson," The girl looked him from top to bottom. "After all these news I've heard about you, I expected you to be . . . more."
Percy glared at her. He knew who she was because she's the captain of one of the strongest teams in Olympia's competitive scene, the Roman Legion.
It was Reyna.
"What do you want?" Percy growled.
"What else?" Reyna said. "I want you on my team."
"Well if this is your invitation, then consider this my way of declining." He gave her the middle finger. One of the big guys grunted and wanted to smack Percy in the head, but Reyna stopped him.
"Aurum, Argentum, come over here please." Reyna called. From the apartment door, two guys come out. They were identical twins, with their only difference was the colour of their eyes. One of them had silver eyes and the other had golden eyes. They look like they were constantly snarling as well. Reyna turned towards Percy. "Now, which teams have approached you into joining them? And please, don't lie. Aurum and Argentum knows bullshit if they smell one."
Percy was about to tell her to piss off when his AR glasses started to ring. Reyna's did as well at the same time. Percy wanted to answer the call, but the big guys were still holding onto his arms. "Let him go," Reyna ordered before they released him. Percy put on his Glasses only to find him in a video call with Reyna and Annabeth.
The video call worked differently then how Percy imagined it to be. The AR glasses projected real time 3-D images of Annabeth through their Glasses. So it felt like she was really there with them.
"Annabeth," Reyna said grudgingly with a bit of a tense voice. "What do you want?"
Annabeth smirked at Reyna. "I want you to lay off of Percy." She said.
Reyna snickered. "Do you really expect me to believe that Minerva is going after someone as unpredictable as Percy?"
Annabeth smirked at Reyna. "You'd better."
"I know you, Annabeth. You hate things you can't control. You won't go for him."
"Call my bluff," Annabeth dared her.
Percy cleared his throat, making both females turn their attention towards him. "I really don't think I should be here. Can you guys just settle this somewhere else?"
Annabeth wanted to answer, but Reyna got there first. "I will be in touch with you, Percy." She said coldly as she turned the video call off. "Let's go." Her bodyguards, including Aurum and Argentum, started to exit the room. "Don't think this is over, Percy Jackson." Reyna warned him one last time before slamming the door behind her.
Percy was starting to think that Reyna and Annabeth have some bad blood with each other. And Percy was now caught in the crossfire.
Just my luck, Percy thought to himself internally.
A/N: Despite the little Pertemis moment in this chapter, the pairing has NOT been decided. It'll be up to you guys on who Percy's going with. From what I see, Pertemis is going to be the favourite pairing for this story. Just leave it in the reviews on who you think is fit to be with Percy.
And I know Percy is kind of sucking at this point. But hey, where's the fun in making him OP at the beginning of the story? And I know that some characters, like Reyna and Artemis, are not very 'themselves' in this story but hey, it fits the plot.
And there will be more surprises in the next chapter. So, stay tuned!