Interlude: Always a Hero
Percy Jackson hadn't dreamed of the end of the world for over a year.
Life was good. He and Annabeth had settled on an apartment in New Rome. They'd enrolled in the university and were on track to living peacefully in New Rome for the rest of their lives. Percy loved being able to breathe easier, his friends and family not in constant danger.
He had time to surf, these days. Surf. Life was good.
As caught the next wave, he stood up on the board and looked back to make sure he was steady. Then he looked out to the beach, and saw something strange.
A man in a golden mask stood near the shore, watching him.
The sight jarred him, and he instinctively shifted his footing, lost his balance, and tumbled off his board. He mentally kicked himself as he submerged. Stupid mistake. He grabbed his board and surfaced, glancing toward the man again. He was still staring at Percy.
His mask was featureless, but Percy could feel the weight of his gaze. He ignored the man, climbed back onto his board, and began paddling back to shore. A minute later, he reached the shore and stood, hoisting his board. The man walked over and Percy sighed. Another perk of the recent peace and quiet of his life had been not dealing with supernatural weirdos.
He felt deep in his gut that was about to change.
He studied the man as he approached. The man wore a black cloak over a silver breastplate. His hands and feet were covered in heavy greaves and gauntlets. He vaguely reminded Percy of one of the Ringwraiths from Lord of the Rings. It was a sinister thought since the Ringwraiths were the epitome of evil.
"Who are you and what do you want?" he said with a sigh. He stopped ten feet away from the man, ample space to maneuver if the man tried anything.
"A doomsayer who wants people to listen," the man in the golden mask replied. "A warrior who wants justice. An enemy who wants a reckoning. An ally who wants your safety."
Percy blinked.
"Are you always that melodramatic?" he asked, shifting his weight, ready to roll to the side. Poking over the man's shoulder was the hilt of a sword. Light shone from it, hurting Percy's eyes. He decided to not look at it.
The man laughed, a deep baritone laugh that matched his voice.
"I have a penchant for the dramatic, I'll admit," he said. "You can relax. If I had come for war, we would not be having this conversation."
"Why are we having this conversation?" Percy asked. "You want to give me a straight answer for who you are?"
"I really am an ally, for the time being," the man in the golden mask replied. "I've come to warn you. A war has begun. The first shots have been fired. Your friends are going to come to you, desperate for aid. I am here to tell you to not give it to them."
A chill crawled up Percy's spine.
"What is any of that supposed to mean?" he asked, playing nonchalant. "My friends need help, I'm going to give it to them."
"Of course you will," the man replied. "But, Percy Jackson, consider why it has to be you. Why must you answer the call to save the world every time it is in danger?"
"You really are that melodramatic all the time, aren't you?" Percy said.
The man laughed again and spread his arms. He shrugged.
"I suppose. Old habits die hard, you know," the man said. "But have you ever considered that. Why you? You are the son of Poseidon, among the mightiest of demigods of your time. You braved the Underworld, navigated the Labyrinth, defeated the strongest of the Titans. You payed the world your due, when you owed it nothing. And then, when called again, when Gaia rose, you answered without hesitation. Why you?"
"Someone's got to do it," Percy shrugged.
The man inclined his head. Even though Percy couldn't see his face, he got the impression the man was smiling.
"Someone has to do it," the man said. "This time, why not let it be someone else?"
"Since I still don't know what you're talking about, I'm just confused," Percy said.
"Of course," the man said. "Come. Walk with me."
Percy regarded the Ringwraith-lookalike, melodramatic, golden man warily. If the man had wanted to harm him, he could have: he was armed and armored, and while Riptide was in Percy's pocket, he didn't like his chances against a guy in plate armor whose sword was throwing off a glow like the sun. He frowned.
"I swear you no harm," the man said. "I'm here as an ally, and I will leave here as an ally. If you do not heed my advice, next time we meet, we may be enemies, but until then, count me a friend."
Percy thought for a moment about the man's words: not why he always stepped up to save the world, but why all the weird stuff happened to him. Annabeth never met weirdo dudes with broadswords on California beaches.
"All right," he sighed. "What do I call you?"
The man turned and Percy fell into step beside him, walking along the beach. They passed people running down to the water or sunbathing, but none of them seemed to notice the man. Percy tried to eye him and see if the Mist surrounded him, but he couldn't tell.
"My name is inconsequential," the man said. "If you wish to construct a humorous nickname to call me, I won't oppose it."
"Goldy work?" Percy asked.
"That's fine," the man nodded.
"Okay, Goldy," Percy said. "You want to start from the top and explain what the heck is going on? Because I love bad guys who explain their plans, and it would really help clear some things up for me."
Goldy surveyed Percy sidelong, his faceless mask communicating nothing. He nodded again.
"Soon, my people will attack your world. We are beyond your ability to defeat," he said.
There was no sense of pride in his voice, just a finality. Percy knew Goldy completely believed what he said.
"We are the forgotten, the maligned," Goldy said. "I have gathered my people in a noble goal: a righting of wrongs. We will bring a reckoning to the demigod worlds."
He looked over to Percy. The golden, faceless mask started to look even more sinister.
"We have already made a first skirmish in Boston," Goldy continued. "Testing the Norse. Soon, the rest will arrive here, where the first major battle will be fought. The Romans cannot hope to stand against us, let alone while fighting Caligula at the same time. Once the Romans fall, we will join our allies in New York and sweep aside the Greeks. The Norse and Egyptians will follow. The end of the demigod worlds is coming."
"You know Gaia tried and failed to take down all of us Olympians," Percy said. "And she failed. So why do you think you and your friends are different? Do you honestly think you're stronger than Gaia?"
Again, Percy got the impression Goldy was smiling under the mask.
"Good assessment," he said. "If I told you yes, I'd be lying. If I told you no, I'd be selling myself short."
"You must be real fun at parties," Percy said. "Melodramatic, cryptic, and conceited."
"I'll work on my character flaws once my work is done," Goldy quipped back. "The difference between Kronos and myself, between Gaia and myself is that I seek balance, not domination, not annihilation. All I want is for me to no longer be necessary."
"That would be noble if you hadn't just talked about taking down all the demigods in the world," Percy said.
"That's fair," Goldy said.
"And you've come to tell me that when the fighting starts here, I should stay out of it?" Percy asked.
"I have," Goldy replied.
"That's not going to happen," Percy said.
"I know," Goldy said. "And that saddens me. Enough great demigod blood will be spilled by the end of this. I will continue to implore you, though, Percy Jackson, to consider letting this fight pass. The battle lines are drawn. Each sides' champions are chosen, even if they don't know it yet. I have seen the end. You have no place in it."
"If my friends are in danger, then I'm going to help them," Percy replied.
Goldy turned to face him and nodded. He clapped Percy on the shoulder with a gauntleted hand.
"You are a true hero," Goldy said. "Next time we meet, we will likely be enemies, but know that I respect you to the upmost."
"I think you're another evil guy I'm going to have to beat," Percy replied.
Goldy laughed, turned on his heel, and began walking away. The sword strapped to his back shone with a brilliance that threatened to blind Percy. He looked away, and when he looked back, the man was gone.
Percy sighed. It looked like he was going to have to be the hero again.