Hey guys. Just wanted to let everyone know that my updates may take a little but longer from now on. I just got a new job and it takes up a big chunk of my time. But, whenever I am off, I am writing, coming up with new chapter ideas for my stories so you all can enjoy.
I also want to take this time and send a personal message to all of our soldiers who are fighting or has fought for our country. I thank all of you for your service to this country and we can never repay you for that. I salute you! Happy Memorial Day everyone!
So on with the chapter!
The Mind of a Monster
Previously…
"Well how about that folks? What did I tell you? An AMAZING performance by Perseus Jackson The Monster Shifter! I did not expect that!" Perses yelled out in glee, creating a new name for me. He looked at me with a look that said we would talk later.
"The fights from here on out will get more brutal and I can tell you, you won't want to miss it!" Perses said as he dismissed the crowd.
I shifted back into my regular form and saw that I was still covered in deep cuts from my fight. I felt weird and a little scared during my fight; not because I fought one of the most dangerous monsters in mythology but because how I fought it. I fought like a monster; sadistic and mercilessly. I actually enjoyed the suffering I brought on the Nemean Lion and I could feel myself getting sick. I swayed back and forth before I collapsed to the ground.
The last thing I saw before I drifted off into unconsciousness, were Damasen and Bob running towards me, looks of concern plastered on their faces.
Now…
Percy POV
I was standing in a hug room that was pitch black to where I couldn't see a thing. I couldn't see or hear anything. This darkness was darker than the House of Night when I had that little run in with Nyx, the primordial goddess of the night. The darkness seemed to be all encompassing, wrapping around me like sheets of lead.
I began to panic, breathing gasps of breath, feeling like the walls of the rooms were about to cave in one m. Before I could start to scream and lose what little sanity I have left, I felt the pressure decrease off my chest and retreat into the darkness. I gulped down deep breaths of air before I began to analyze the situation. I have never been as smart or as tactical as a child of Athena, but having to survive in the Pit made me develop skills that were essential to survival.
I stretched out my senses to my surroundings, trying to get a fix on where I was at and what the threat level was. I was in a dome shaped room about 30 feet high and 30 feet wide. It appeared that I was the only one in the room but it felt like my presence was…everywhere. Usually, I could sense my position in accordance with my surroundings but this time it felt like I was everywhere at once. It was very weird and creeped me out.
"Hello?" I called out and my voice seemed to bounce back and forth across the walls, magnifying it.
The room began to tremble and turn, spinning very slowly until it grinded to a halt. An explosion of light filled the chamber causing me to yell in pain as my eyes were seared with the blinding light. Letting the pain in my eyes subside, I slowly opened them to be greeted by a strange sight.
The chamber I was in was now filled with light coming from a bunch of torches lining the walls. There were dozens upon dozens of doors inside the chamber, all pulsing with a different color. I walked around the chamber, reading the labels on the doors/ Many had weird titles and they all had to do with me.
Percy's Childhood Memories, Percy's Emotions, Percy's Powers, Percy's Personality, Percy's Loyalty, the list went on and on. I suddenly felt another presence behind me. Tensing my arms in anticipation for a fight, I whirled around to be met but a shocking surprise.
The person standing before me was my height and was covered in muscles. He had strong arms, with a broad chest that led to a narrow, taper thin waist connected to strong powerful legs. His body just screamed power, strength and speed. His face was handsome and defined and looked almost feral with his oversized canines and how his face was defined. He had familiar raven black hair and sea-green eyes that held untold pain and emotions swimming in their depths. The person standing before me was ME!
He looked at me with a critical eye before grinning. So that's what my lop-sided grin looks like. Kind of weird to be on the receiving end of one of those.
"Are you gonna close your mouth or catch flies all day?" He said in my sarcastic tone. Oh great, he has my sarcastic personality too! I shut my mouth with an audible click before narrowing my eyes at him.
I kept my stance up, just in case this guy got violent. He shook his head and gave me a smirk that made me frown and start to get annoyed with him.
"Who are you and why do you look like me? Where am I?" I yelled threateningly.
He just chuckled amused at my outburst.
"Don't you know Percy? I am only a manifestation of your mind. And if you must know, we are in your, our, mind." He said, gesturing to himself and me.
It took a little bit for that nugget of information to digest. My eyes widened in realization at what he said and he nodded his head, noticing the look on my face. I was inside my own mind!
I was reeling in shock and a little fear; what would I find within my mind? What kinds of memories would I relive and what secrets will I uncover. I was also worried about this dude...him…me….whatever it was!
He caught my look and raised his hands in a placating manner.
"Easy bro, just so you know, I mean you no harm and am here to help you." He said convincingly.
My eyes narrowed at him. "Yeah, whenever someone says that to me, they either turn out to be a really bad guy and I end up in a fight for my life or they are good guys that throw me in Tartarus after I save their worthless asses, so you'll forgive me if I don't believe you until I see more proof." I snapped at him.
He sighed but nodded his head, understanding my skepticism and suspicion.
"All right Percy. How about this, I will tell you a secret that no one, not even mom, Poseidon or anyone knows about that will show you that I am who I say I am and that I am here to help you." Other Percy said.
I looked at him suspiciously for a moment before nodding my head.
He nodded before gaining a faraway look in his eye.
"Remember when we were young and the time that mom and Gabe got in that huge fight on how there was no such thing as blue food?" He asked.
"Yeah and she mixed in food coloring with all my desserts and food showing that blue food was possible and that she wasn't completely suckered to Gabe." I said recalling that fight and the reason why blue was my favorite color.
He took a deep breath and looked at me. "Remember what happened a week later when Gabe decided to get 'revenge' for making him look like a fool?" He said.
My eyes widened as I flashed back to that painful memory. He nodded his head as he too got that look in his eye and I could tell he was relieving the same memory.
"He came in and beat us that night. He was so angry and drunk that he took out his embarrassment and anger on us saying…." He trailed off.
"…'If you and you mother think blue is such as great color, then why don't I beat you black and blue?'" I finished, remembering what smelly Gabe whispered in my ear as he beat me the entire night.
The other me winced as he remembered as well. "Mom was working a double that night and she didn't get home until morning. You wore a long sleeve shirt to cover up your bruises and never said anything to her for fear that Gabe would beat her like he beat you off and on throughout the years." He said. "So do you believe me now that I won't harm you and I want to help you?"
I looked at him and nodded, a single tear trailing down my cheek. I quickly whipped it away before schooling my expression back to normal.
"Ok, I believe you. But what are you exactly?" I asked curiously.
He smiled and spread his arms out. "I am what you would call an artificial construction of you mind. Think of me as hologram artificial intelligence that is based off your brainwaves, personality, memories and experiences. In essence, I am you and you are me." He said as his form flickered.
"So what's your name?" I asked, trying to gain as much info on my mental manifestation.
He shook his head. "I don't have one. Since I am just a mental construct, living in your mind, I never saw fit to name myself."
I looked at him in shock before gaining a thinking face. I stroked my chin as I thought up potential names for him before snapping my fingers."
"How about Riptide?" I said. "Since you are a part of me and I feel like Riptide is a part of me, why not use that? We can shorten it to Rip to avoid any confusion."
He had a thoughtful look on his face before smiling brightly. "I like it. Rip, short for Riptide will be my new name from now on." The newly christened Rip said happily.
I smiled at his enthusiasm before getting serious. "So you said that this is my mind and that you are a reflection od me that my mind has created. So why am I here?" I asked him.
Rip stopped smiling and turned serious. "I am here to help you conquer your demons and to help you control the monsters within you. Each room in this chamber is a doorway to different parts of your mind. Your mind holds many things within where some are good, some are bad, and some are so terrible that if they were to ever be unleashed, everything around you will be destroyed." He said ominously.
I was very nervous now. What could be in my mind that would be so terrible that if it got free that could be the end of everything?
He walked over to a certain door and motioned me over. I walked over and saw that the door was black in color with sea green lines running along the edges with a reptilian monster eye in the center. It was the same symbol that was tattooed on my hands. There were black spidery lines all around the doorframe that were stretching out like veiny fingers to all the other doors. They seemed to pulse with a black light and power as the glowed.
"This door has recently popped up in here when Kronos gave you that monster curse. Within are all the monsters that you have absorbed; their essences, their memories, their personalities all reside within you now. A piece of them live within you and it is slowly spreading throughout your mind, tainting everything it touches." He explained, as I saw the black lines around the door spread out further.
"Yeah, I've noticed that I have been crueler and more brutal in my battles. I can feel a sadistic nature clawing at the back of my mind, the voices of the monsters chanting for death and destruction." I shuddered as I remembered my past battles.
Rip nodded his head at my confession. "Yes, these black lines are infecting your mind. The true purpose of the curse is that the more monsters the wielder kill, the more essences they absorb until the person is slowly drowned in a sea of evil and monster instincts until they are no more. Their humanity is burned out, they forget their past life, memories are replaced, and all that is left is the uncontrollable anger and rage of the monsters." He said.
I felt sick to my stomach at the revelation. The curse may have brought me incredible power and new abilities, but it was infecting my mind, slowly turning me into the things I hate most.
Clarity struck my mind as I recalled all the monsters I fought. Medusa, Arachne, and many others I have fought had a similar curse placed on them. They were all either once mortals or were born from a mortal. They didn't start out as monsters; they were ordinary but were cursed to live lives as monsters, slowly having their sanity and humanity ripped out of them as they were consumed in rage, anger, bitterness, and hatred. I actually felt sympathy and sorrow for them as I was now going through a similar situation.
Yet, I had it worse. They were transformed physically because of their pride and arrogance and they gave in to those negative feelings of insanity while my curse was slowly eating me away until I would become nothing more than hunger and instinct, clawing for survival and killing all in my path. Friend or foe, it wouldn't matter, as I would carve an arc of destruction behind me and all would fall to my rage.
I steeled my emotions and resolve. I would not become like them. I would control the monsters inside me and I will not allow it to take over my life.
I looked at Rip with fiery determination in my eyes. "What do I have to do to make sure that doesn't happen?"
He gazed at me uncertainly. "I don't know."
"What?" Incredulity lacing my tone.
"I don't know. I want to help you as much as I can, making the transition as easy and painless as possible, but it can't be stopped. Frankly, I'm surprised that you have lasted this long with those essences in your body. I would have to say your unpredictable nature of the sea is confusing and prolonging your curse." He contemplated.
"So you're saying that this is gonna happen to me whether I want it to or not?" I said, feeling the spark of rage begin to fill my heart.
He just shook his head sadly. "It is inevitable. There is nothing you can do."
"BULL!" I yelled, anger rising in me. "I have done the impossible before! They said that I couldn't defeat Kronos, but I did! They said Gaea was all-powerful and we would all be destroyed, but I put her back to sleep. They said that it was impossible to survive in Tartarus and escape but I am doing it and I have escaped before. Now you're telling me there is nothing I can do to stop this? I don't think so! I have defied fate before and I don't care what those bitter old crones say, I will not allow this to happen!"
As I ranted, the room began to shake and Rip began to look uneasy. "Percy, calm down! If you keep it up, you'll collapse the room!"
I laughed a humorless laugh and I was surprised by how dark it sounded. "Why? We are in my head so how can a room collapse within my own mind?" I said, not caring how crazy I sounded.
"Percy, please! Just calm yousel-!" I cut him off by pushing him against one of the walls.
I spoke with a coldness in my tone that I didn't know I possessed. "Listen here and listen well, Rip. I will not fall victim to this curse. Call me an idiot, call me a Seaweed Brain, call me whatever you like, but I will survive this and I don't care how it happens. I may become monster in the future, but I will harness and control my rage. I will control and channel my anger and insanity and I will not let no two-bit punk tell me otherwise!" I yelled as I pressed my forearm against his throat.
He was struggling underneath my unrelenting grip, as the pressure increased cutting off his circulation. Looks like even in my mind, I can choke people out. I released the pressure on his neck where he immediately collapsed in a wheezing heap. He rubbed his neck and looked at me in fear.
I turned away from him and approached the monster door, it pulsing in tune with my heartbeat. I reached out and place a hand on the doorknob.
"Don't do it Percy! You don't know what will happen!" Rip called out from the floor behind me.
I turned to look at him, smiling a smile that indicated that I might not have been completely sane.
"That may be the point. See you on the other side." I said, before doing one the stupidest and most impulsive things I have ever done in my life.
I opened the monster door and rushed through it into pitch darkness, hearing it slam behind me with an ominous bang.
Line Break
It was at that point where I realized that snapping at the one person that knew me better than me and jumping blindly through an open door that lead to the heart of all my problems wasn't exactly a great idea.
The room was just as if not even darker than the last one. Only difference here is that the pressure and darkness was unrelenting. It felt like I was walking through molasses, which I knew from experience. Faint shuffling and growls could be heard throughout the room. I felt a whoosh of air rush behind me as I whipped around to see what it was. I felt light brushes across my back and shoulders that sent shivers down my spine. I felt like my body was crawling with ants. Little pinpricks of sensations were rushing all up and down my skin and my instincts were screaming at me to get the Hades out of her as fast as I could.
Dark chuckling came from behind me as I whipped around, only to have a fist shoot out from the darkness and slam into my face. I grunted in pain as I stumbled back in surprise. I felt sharp claws rake across my back that tore through my skin and muscle only to have something bite down on my left shoulder as a follow up attack.
Stumbling around, I tried to fight off my opponents, but in the darkness, I couldn't see anything and I could tell these presences were super hostile in nature.
"Well little demigod. You seem to have lost your way." A deep voice called from the darkness. "You were foolish to venture into this park of your mind."
"Yeah! This place were you are keeping us prisoner!" Another voice growled out.
A third voice joined in, "We shall have a lot of fun seeing how you like getting torn to pieces! We shall see what it's like to have your consciousness trapped and your body used like a puppet!"
Light then flooded the room and shadows were dancing along the walls and over the figures standing in front of me, making them look extremely intimidating and evil.
In front of me were all the monsters I killed and absorbed into my body. There was one Hellhound, three Laestrygonian Giants, seven Cyclopes, and my newest form, the Nemean Lion. All of them were glaring at me in hatred.
Joe bob stepped forward along with his brothers. "You see son of Poseidon. You didn't just get our forms and powers when absorbed us, you also got a piece of our consciousness. We are trapped and very much alive within your mind and we want out!" he snarled at me.
I began to back up as they advanced on me. "Wait! I didn't know you all were in here! Like I need more mental issues than I already got!" I yelled in exasperation.
They laughed as they looked at me arrogantly. "Oh yes, we have seen your memories. Just like when you get our memories, we get yours as well. Every painful memory of your torture with Kronos, which I have to say was so much fun to watch." He said wickedly.
I felt anger begin to well up in me as they laughed at my tortures and painful memories.
"Oh! Oh! How about the one where the council of the gods sentence him down here, huh? Or when his father disowns him and calls him a mistake? I personally like that one!" A Cyclops joined in on the taunting and laughter. The anger began to grow as I felt it pulse through my body.
Joe Bob then smiled at me knowingly and it was not a nice smile. "I believe my favorite painful memory of his was when his friends abandon him and that little daughter of Athena cheated on him with his half-brother! That one kills me!" He roared in laughter as all the others joined in.
"No, I will KILL YOU!" I roared in rage as my anger finally snapped.
I launched myself forward and delivered a thunderous punch on Joe Bob, sending him flying through the room and making him collapse against the wall, unconscious.
The monsters were stunned that I was brave enough to do that and glared at me in anger before freezing at the wicked look on my face. I realized that I couldn't shift in my mind, but my anger and rage were giving me power. I then had a wicked idea that could possibly save me and change me forever.
With a wicked gleam in my eye, I stalked forward as they back-pedaled. Funny how the roles were reversed now as I was the one hell-bent on making them suffer with them cowering under my rage.
"You know. I just thought of something. Since you are in my mind, I can essentially do whatever I want to you." I said with a maniacal grin as I stretched my hand out, willing the floor to restrain.
I smiled wickedly as my theory was proven correct as the floor reached up and restrained all of them. The struggles in their bonds and had looks of terror on their faces as I approached them.
"You see, I have learned recently that the more monster that I absorb, the more sadistic and monster-like I become as you all overpower and erase my former self." I said as I began to rain down punches on my restrained victims, taking deep pleasure hearing their screams of pain.
"I have been struggling against you all as you have tried to overthrow my mind and assume control of my body to somehow get your lives back. But this is my body and I'll be damned if I let one of you take it from me!" I ranted as I snapped their ribs from vicious kicks.
I stepped back and admired my handy work as they were all whimpering in pain from my brutal beat down.
"Now, I have thought of a solution to our mutual problem. You are in my body so you have to deal with it and I have to deal with you being trapped in my mind." I said as I got their attention. This was going to be tricky to convince them after the beat down I just gave them but it was the only way for me to survive this curse and for them to benefit as well.
"So here's my compromise. We have to form a bond, a meddling of the minds and body. You would be absorbed into my mind and we would share this body on mutual terms. You would become part of me and my mind won't fade and be stripped of my humanity." I declared as they all looked at me, wide-eyed in disbelief.
"You can't be serious! After the beating you just gave us, you must be out of your damn mind!" A giant yelled out. I just sighed and punched him in the jaw, breaking it.
"Look, I don't like this anymore than you do. However, I don't want to fade and you don't want to be trapped in my mind like prisoner. If my mind fades and my body is all that is left, then all of you will have to fight each other for control over my body until one by one, you all with fade with me. And trust me when I say there will be a lot more monsters joining joining you soon." I said thinking of all the fights that Perses would make me do.
Some of them were furious that I even suggested this crazy idea while a few others looked a bot uncertain. I noticed that the Hellhound was looking at me in curiosity and I walked over to it. It growled at me before I sent it a warning glare, to which it shut up.
"What's your name, Fido?" I asked it. It glared at me as I smirked at it.
"My name is Viktor, Demigod." He growled at me. "And if I wasn't tied down I would tear out your throat!"
"Well, Viktor, I offer you my deal. Meld with me and you will live through me. What do you say?" I offered, releasing him to show I was sincere.
As soon as he was free he pounced on me pinning me to the floor as he snarled at me. Saliva dripped from his sharpened fangs as they were within an inch from my throat. He closed his mouth, pulled back and looked at me.
"Why are you unafraid? I could easily tear your throat out." He said.
I smirked "But you didn't, which means that you are seriously considering my offer."
The hellhound gained a contemplative look before nodding his furry head and getting off of me. I stood up and looked eye to eye with the monstrous dog. I gazed into his burning red eyes, gleaming with hell-fire that seemed dimmer than usual. They looked closer to Mrs. O'Leary's eyes.
"You have to want this. I won't force this upon you. I could, but I won't and I think it would be a lot better if we cooperated with each other. Deal?" I asked to which he nodded.
"Ok. Here it goes."
I placed my hand on either side of his massive furry head and concentrated. I felt little pinpricks on my skin as his fur began to stand up on end. A circle of green light surrounded me while a circle of black surrounded him. The glowing stands of light swirled around us before the two strands began to twirl around each other and formed a spinning ring of glowing green and black light.
Viktor's form began to flicker, turning see-through like a ghost's. His body turned to vapor and all of it spun around my body as the light and vapor were completely absorbed into my body. I collapsed on the ground as I felt his consciousness merge with my own as his memories and thoughts merged together.
I saw through his eyes all his memories. Him as a puppy, opening his eyes for the first time gazing into the eyes of his loving mother. Growing up with five other siblings without a care in the world as they all grew big and strong. I saw his mother push him and his siblings into a bush as demigods burst through the trees, all wielding weapons. I watched through his eyes as his mother was killed in front of him and felt his anger and resentment of demigods form then and there. I watched as he and his siblings charged the surprised demigods and slaughter all of them and how they mourned over their fallen mother. I saw as he lived multiple lives, the innocent puppy having to become brutal and vicious to stay alive. More and more memories flashed through my mind of his life. I saw the rise of Rome, the moving of the west, multiple battles and trips to Tartarus, the second Titan war, him escaping with his sister, and his sister falling in battle. The final image I saw was of me stabbing my sword into his chest as his body was absorbed into mine.
Reeling from the images, I snapped back to the present. I could feel my control over my hellhound form rise immensely as I gained all the knowledge from Viktor. I could feel him in my mind and my mind in his.
We are one. We thought at the same time and we were. We were bonded for life now. I felt as he looked through my memories and I could feel his sympathy for me grow as he watched all my hardships before I became a demigod, after I was claimed, and up till this moment.
You have lived a hard life Percy. I am sorry for that. Viktor said in my mind.
As have you Viktor. I replied as I felt his mind pull away from mine. While we now share mind and body, we still have our privacy.
I opened my eyes and saw all the other monsters looking at me in astonishment and a little fear. I held my hand out to them as they flinched away.
"Do not be afraid." I said and my voice sounded doubled. "I offer you the same offer that Viktor has taken. He see through my eyes and lives through me. He has seen my life and I his. Join us and you will not regret it." I said as I held my hand out once again.
All the monsters looked contemplative before nodding their heads in consent. I smiled at them as they returned the gesture. I performed the procedure again and watched as the light rings surrounded us and as their forms turned to vapor and they were all absorbed into me.
I clutched my head in pain as I witnessed multiple lives of the monsters I had just bonded with. I saw the Laestrygonians have their run in with Odysseus and his crew and how they ate some of his comrades. I saw as they adapted to modern changes and pick up their love for dodge ball. I saw the lives of the Cyclops as they were born from my father and other nature spirits. My head was swimming with all the knowledge and smithing skills they picked up from the forges of Hephaestus and from under the sea. I felt like I could fix and create anything. From the Nemean Lion's point of view I watched as he ransacked villages and was killed by Hercules. I saw how that worthless hero stole my pelt! Whoa I was even beginning to think like them too.
I felt myself grow stronger and stronger after bonding with these creatures. I felt my sympathy for these monsters grow but only them. All the others that I haven't killed yet, I still despise them and will not hesitate to kill them. The weird thing was, I as felt my personality change from absorbing them, I could feel their personalities become more like mine. It was a sharing and melding of good and bad traits that were spread out evenly between all of us.
Standing up I saw little afterimages of the monsters in this room and realized that they had to stay in here until I called upon them. I felt powerful, huge, and like I could take on anything. Who knew I could get this kind of power from the monster world of Mythology?
Percy…Percy….PERCY! I heard my name be called as I felt a massive headache come over me. I could see that my surroundings were fading as I was forcefully dragged back into the world of the conscious.
I felt two presences hover over me as someone was shouting my name and shaking my shoulder trying to wake me. My eyes fluttered open to the worried faces of Bob and Damasen hovering over me. Their worried faces quickly melted and were replaced by looks of relief.
I took note of my surroundings. I was lying in a narrow bed in a room that reminded me of a hospital room. It was small and looked like it was hardly ever used. Dust was everywhere as mold grew in the corners of the room. The beds beside me were all rusted and some of them were in collapsed heaps. Beside my bed was a small little table with a bunch of rags that were covered red in blood and some herbs and medicine that I guess were used to heal me. I cursed that we didn't have any ambrosia or nectar.
I groaned as I sat up, feeling all the aches and bruises all over my body from the fight. I felt Bob reach out and gently push me back on the bed.
"Easy Percy. You had quite a fight out there. Thank Hades that Damasen is extremely proficient in medicine and healing." Bob said gently as he praised his half-brother.
I smiled then winced as the ache in my back.
Damasen looked at me apologetically. "Sorry about your back Percy, but the claw marks were pretty deep and you will have scars for the rest of your life."
I just shrugged my shoulders not really caring. What was one more scar added to the hundreds that I already had gotten from the countless battles and tortures I went through. I then turned and looked at Bob curiously.
"Hey Bob, I've noticed that you sound…a bit more mature in your speaking. Does that mean that you have your full memories back?" I asked a little uneasily. I was worried that if he regained his full memories that he would want to take revenge on me. I also felt guilty about never visiting him when he was in the Underworld with Hades.
Bob nodded his head. "After the fight with Tartarus, I regained all my memories." I looked at him uneasily before he smiled at me and placed a hand on my shoulder.
"Don't worry Percy. While I may have all my memories, I do regret what I have done in the past and I have you to thank for setting me on a different path." He told me sincerely.
I breathed a sigh of relief before a look of shame crossed my face. "Bob, can I still call you Bob?" I asked uncertainly.
"Of course my friend. While my real name is Iapetus, only my friends are allowed to call me Bob." He said smiling.
I felt tension leave my body at his reassurance. "I just want to say that I am sorry for leaving you and Damasen down here. I know that it had to be done but I didn't feel any less guilty about it and I am so sorry. I'm also so sorry for not being a better friend to you before I was trapped down here. You heard me calling for help and jumped into the pit with no hesitation after I was a crappy friend to you and for that I am truly sorry." I said as I looked down in shame.
I felt a hand on my shoulder before I looked I was staring into Bob's silver eyes. "My friend, you do not have to apologize to me. While we are stuck down here, I wouldn't change a thing. You have freed me from the Titan's hold and for that I am truly grateful." He said sincerely.
"As am I my friend. Without you and that daughter of Athena, I would have been trapped in that swamp forever fighting a continuous battle with that Drakon. Because of you, you have showed me a different path and allowed me to shape my own destiny and for that I am so thankful." Damasen said as he placed his hand on my opposite shoulder.
I felt so happy that I had these two as my friends. My greatest shame was leaving them down here and yet here they were forgiving me of that. Despite the aching in my body, I sat up and pulled them into a man-hug.
Hearing a cough from the doorway I pulled away and saw Perses looking at me with a mocking smirk.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I interrupt an emotional healing moment between the three of you? My bad." He said in a mocking tone, with a cruel smirk on his face.
I growled in anger and started to get up from the bed before a felt a slight burning in my forearm, coming from Perses's Brand.
"Ah ah ah. Can't have any of that now. can we? You need to save that anger for your upcoming battles." He chided me as I saw his eyes glow with the power of destruction.
I shot him a glare and mumbled under my breath. He just laughed at my attitude.
"Such spirit! I do have to congratulate you for that EXCELLENT battle! There has never been such a reaction in the entire history of the games!" Perses said in uncontained excitement.
"But I do have one question…" He suddenly rushed across the room and pinned me to the wall.
"How did you do that changing ability?" He growled at me as his grip increased on my arms. Bob and Damasen tried to help, but Perses looked at them and they fell to the floor in pain, clutching their arms.
"Leave them alone!" I yelled as I struggled in his unrelenting grasp.
He smiled a sadistic smiled before fresh screams of pain came from my fallen friends.
"Now why would I want to do that?" He asked with a cruel smirk. "It shows them who is the boss and it gets you to cooperate with me. It's a win-win in my book."
I looked on helplessly as Bob and Damasen, writhed on the floor in pain and I couldn't do anything.
"Stop it! I'll tell you what you want!" I said in defeat.
Perses just smiled widely like he wasn't a crazy, sadistic monster a few seconds ago.
"Excellent!" He said as their brands stopped glowing and their screams of pain stopped. They climbed shakily to their feet, but glared in hatred at Perses.
"Now, I will ask one more time, where did you get that changing ability." He asked seriously. I could see the madness in his eyes, promising pain if I didn't answer him.
"I got it from the Tooth Fairy, where do you think I got it?" I said snapped at him. "I got it from dear old granddad Kronos. Apparently he placed something called the Monster Curse on me." I said holding up my hand, showing my tattoo.
Perses narrowed his eyes and grabbed my hand, inspecting the tattoos. He got a wicked gleam in his eyes and he looked a little…fearful.
"Great Gaea. He actually did it. He finally placed it one someone." He whispered before he let go of my hand and appraised me in a whole new light. "He must of truly hated you for him to put this on you. He held onto that knife since I was only a few decades old and I have seen some people he really hated." He said in disbelief.
"Yeah well I have that kind of effect on people. Just ask dear Uncle Zeus." I spat his name out as a curse.
Perses raised an eyebrow at me but just shrugged as if my anger didn't really concern him.
"Since you have done so well in your fight against the Nemean Lion, I have scheduled a few more fights for you in the next few weeks. Seeing as how you have a new monster form, it's best to get you fighting before you lose your gods-damned mind." He said nonchalantly.
I wanted to punch him so badly, but restrained myself. Not yet, but soon I will be free from him and I will free Damasen and Bob from him too. I also decided against telling him that I had solved my problem and merged with all my forms. Didn't want to give him that kind of information.
"So, over the next two weeks, you will train to master your monster forms and will be taught a variety of weapons. I know that you are already proficient in your forms and current weapons, but I want you at your best. The crowd demands it. " Perses said.
I nodded my head before getting a crazy idea. "How about we make things interesting?" I said with a hint of challenge.
He raised his eyebrow but nodded his head for me to continue.
I smirked as he took the bait. "I bet you that I can defeat anything you throw at me. Whatever opponent you put against me, whatever monster you schedule to fight me, I bet I can kill them all." I said.
"Interesting. And pray tell, what does that have to do with anything." He asked bored but I could tell he was interested.
I took a deep breath and plunged ahead. "If I win, you have to set Bob and Damasen free from your grasp, along with myself. You will never bother us again and will let us go free." I said confidently.
"Interesting proposition. But what if you lose? What do I get then?" He asked frowning.
"What do you want?" I said. He smiled sadistically at me and I could tell what he was about to say would be horrible.
"You. Should you lose I want you to be my champion and fighter for the rest of eternity. You will do what I say, when I say it, and I will take your free will from you. You will be my weapon of destruction I will release on the world and you will abide by my commands." He said smiling manically.
I paled until I resembled Hades. I thought for a moment before nodding my head.
"Deal." I said.
"No Percy! Don't do it! Don't through your life away for us!" Bob and Damasen yelled out only to be silenced when Perses flicked his wrist and sent them flying into a wall. Looks like Perses's power here was absolute.
"Last chance Perseus. Final decision. Make you choice." Perses said, completely serious.
"I, Percy Jackson, swear upon the River Styx that I will abide by my terms and should I lose, I will give Perses whatever he wants." I said as thunder could be heard booming even from the pit.
"I, Perses, The Titan of Destruction, swear on the River Styx to abide by the terms set by Perseus Jackson and should I lose, will give him whatever he wants." Perses swore as thunder boomed again.
He stalked close to me, but I just glared back defiantly. He just smiled at my defiance.
"Know this Perseus, I will make your battles incredibly difficult, bordering on impossible. You will fail and you will be mine. Enjoy your freedom for now, what little bit of it you have left." He patted my cheek and I slapped it away. He just laughed.
"Oh yes, you will be an excellent champion of destruction. An excellent champion indeed!" He laughed hysterically as he left the room.
I quickly rushed over to my fallen friends and helped them up.
"Percy, why would you do that? Why would you be willing to bet your free will to Perses just so we can get out of here? It's not worth it." Damasen with an intensity that shocked me.
"Because I choose to. What kind of life is this to forever fight in a coliseum for the entertainment of monster and a mad titan? What kind of life is it to be ridiculed and tortured everyday? You are the children of the Primordials! You are great deities that don't deserve this kind of life! If there is even a remote chance of escaping here, I will take it and I would do anything for you guys. I only have a few people left that I am loyal too and that includes you too. Bob, I will help you see the stars again and Damasen, you will see the upper world once more. I promise." I said with fiery conviction.
Bob and Damasen were stunned by my outburst before looks of gratitude and hope came across their faces. The stood from the floor and towered over me.
"Well my friend, if you are gonna win this bet, then you need more training in hopes to survive." Damasen said.
"Yes. Perses is a cruel titan but also very crafty when he needs to be. He will throw everything possible at you to get you to fail. Monsters so old that demigods have never seen them before. You will need every advantage you can get." Bob said solemnly.
I nodded my head. "When do we start?" I asked and I could already tell from the looks on their faces.
They looked at each other before looking back at me.
"Now."
So there is chapter 7! Hope you all liked it and I will answer any questions you have.
So Percy has learned to got into his mind and speak with the monsters that he has absorbed. He has learned to merge his and their minds into one, giving him all their memories, fighting skills, and increasing his powers ten-fold. He is still the dominant one in control; they are what you could call advisors in his mind that helps him control his abilities. If you have ever read comic books from DC, think of the hero Firestorm and how those guys merged into one superhero but only one of them controls the body.
So Percy has made a deadly bet with Perses in order to achieve his, Bob's and Damasen's freedom. The consequences are steep and he will need a lot more training to survive what is to come. Perses has a bunch of tricks up his sleeves and he is not afraid to use them.
I wanted to portray Perses as unpredictable in nature, like when he talks, his actions, and his whole personality. Destruction is random and unpredictable just like Perses; so sometimes he can be friendly, other times he can be a psychopathic killer that wants to destroy everything. Just like you everyday immortal.
I just want to let everyone know that I truly appreciate all your reviews and views and I will keep it up.
Please review if you like this chapter and if you want, please check out my other story "Betrayed Son of the Sea"
I will try to get that chapter written and up sometime this week so do not worry. It is coming.
