Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson or the Heroes of Olympus.

Story Title: Percy Jackson: Too Powerful

Chapter 10

Camp Half-Blood

The van parked near the barn that was just over the hill from camp.

Percy and the others left the van, walking toward Half-Blood Hill.

"Perce, you ready to come home?" Jason asked. He was smiling, holding Piper's hand as they walked next to Percy and Annabeth.

"Has it changed much?" Percy asked. His voice unusually shaky.

Annabeth smiled knowingly. "We'll let you judge that for yourself."

They reached the top of the hill, Percy's heart caught in his throat. The camp was the same; there were a few additional cabins, but that wasn't the reason for his surprise. Passed the camp and beyond the Big House was a town or a small city; Percy wasn't sure how to describe it. It looked like a smaller version of New Rome with houses of varying size, marble streets, larger public buildings and temples on a hill that Percy never remembered being there before. He looked back at Annabeth, his surprised face making her smile widen.

"Do you like it?" She asked. He could see the hopeful look in her gray eyes.

"What is it exactly?" He replied.

Annabeth laced her arm through his and squeezed. "It's a city, the City of New Athens."

Percy looked at the city and back at Annabeth; his mouth fell open before he composed himself. "I love it."

"Come on, let's get down there, everyone will be happy to see you, and then I can take you on a tour," Annabeth said as she dragged him forward. Piper and Jason were already down the hill running to the border of camp.

The two made it to the border, crossing it before Percy's eyes landed on the dragon under Thalia's tree. He smiled as he walked up to the dragon, extending his hand out to the beast. Peleus sniffed his hand before moving its head closer and rubbing the side of its snout against Percy's hand. Percy rubbed the head of the dragon, his smile growing as the beast pressed itself further into the caress.

"Looks like someone really missed you," Annabeth said.

Percy turned to her, his smile making Annabeth smile in return. "Yeah, I… I forgot how beautiful it was here," he said before he wiped a stray tear from his eye.

Annabeth pressed herself against his side, holding onto his arm. "Hey, you're home now."

Percy gave the dragon one last pat before he and Annabeth walked down into the camp.

A small group of people waited for them. In the center of the group was Chiron. He smiled at the son of Poseidon, but his ancient eyes betrayed him as a few tears leaked down his cheeks. The crowd of demigods parted as Percy approached, leaving Chiron standing in a circle. Percy reached his old mentor and hugged him tightly.

"It's good to see you, Chiron," Percy said.

Chiron smiled before wiping the tears from his eyes. "You've grown. I no longer see the boy, but a man before me."

"Yeah, sometimes you have to grow up to survive. I'm sure everyone here knows something about that." The crowd of demigods nodded. There were many young campers here, training to be heroes, not the older campers that lived either in New Athens or in New Rome.

Chiron's eyes grew sad. "The gods have told me the reason for your visit. I wish it was under better circumstances."

"I do as well." Percy looked around at all of the young kids, or at least they looked that way to him now.

Annabeth stepped forward, eyeing Percy worriedly. "Chiron, I need to take Percy to New Athens, can you join us there, in say… two hours?"

Chiron nodded. "I will see you there. I'll make sure to bring the cabin counselors as well."

Annabeth grabbed Percy's hand, pulling him behind her as she walked toward the ocean, where New Athens was located. As they walked through the camp, campers watched them both in awe, especially Percy. He was a legend the greatest son of Poseidon.

The two walked through camp to the forest, but Percy stopped at what he saw. The forest was there, but it was split into two areas. A twenty-foot wide road, made of cobblestones, split the forest. Percy looked at Annabeth. "A little inspiration from New Rome," she said.

He smiled, remembering his time in New Rome; a time before he became an outcast, before the gods' betrayal. His smile faded as he thought about his father and the others. He thought of how they turned on him because of his powers because they were afraid of him. A sadistic grin etched across his face; they should be scared of him now.

"Percy," Annabeth said. "Percy!"

He looked up at her, his mind shifting, remembering where he was. "Yeah, sorry, I was just remembering."

Annabeth knew there was more than that; she saw his smile fade and his mood change. She let it slide as she led him through the forest. They moved up a hill and stopped at the top. Down in the other valley opposite camp was a town, no, a small city. The buildings were a mix of Greek architecture with some newer buildings made of glass and steel. Percy smiled again, knowing exactly who was responsible for designing this city. He looked back at Annabeth; she was smiling at him. "You did a great job, Wise Girl."

Annabeth laced her arm through his. "We have temples for all the gods and newer buildings that are used for the library and the work out room. We have a mix of old and new architecture for the communal dining hall. The city has houses of varying sizes for single people, couples, and families. We have a functioning…" She stopped talking since Percy put his hand over her mouth.

"You need to slow down and take a breath," Percy replied. Her gray eyes staring up at him with s slightly disappointed look to them.

Percy removed his hand from her mouth; her gray eyes were big. She leaned forward, getting closer to his face. "I should show you the bath house. The water is so hot and warm. You'll want to just lay in there naked, letting the water jets rub all across your body."

Percy's green eyes dilated as she spoke with such a sultry tone that he almost forgot that she was the same woman that had just recently gushed about the architecture. "I…I think… y-you can sh-show me later."

Annabeth smiled; she turned away, walking down the hill with a sway in her stride. Percy stared after her before realization dawned on him. She just played him. "Hey, wait up," he yelled as he ran after her.

He caught up with her just as she entered the city. A familiar woman with short brown hair and reddish brown eyes greeted the daughter of Athena. The woman was tall, about six feet and had a very athletic physique. She hugged Annabeth. The daughter of Athena returned the hug. As he got closer, the tall woman's eyes widened when she saw him. She pulled out of the hug with Annabeth and stalked toward him. Percy realized who it was it was Clarisse LaRue. Percy stopped walking as she approached; she reared back her fist to punch him, but her fist never connected, instead, her entire body was frozen in place. "Hi, Clarisse, nice to see you."

"Prissy, you better put me down or I'll make sure to get you… you dirty… piece." She never got to finish her threat or insult because Percy made sure that her mouth couldn't move.

"Now, here is what you need to know. I never deserted Annabeth or the camp. The gods banished me because my powers had grown. I was in Canada; out in the forest alone. I was away from camp, away from New York, away from my Mom, and away from Annabeth. Do you know what that was like?" As he spoke, Clarisse began to float off the ground. Her eyes wide with fear.

"Percy put her down," Annabeth yelled. A crowd began to form around them. Percy looked at Annabeth her eyes wide and a concerned look on her face. He looked back at Clarisse. He could see the fear in her eyes. He placed her back on the ground. She could move and talk now. Chris ran up to her, putting his arm around her to make sure she was okay. He sent a glare toward Percy.

Percy walked into a nearby park and sat down on a bench. A water fountain was in the center of the park. A marble statue sat in the middle of the fountain. He stood up and walked toward the fountain, kneeling on the marble base of the fountain, looking up at the statue. The statue was a boy around twelve years old. He had messy hair and he held a sword in his hand. He looked closer at the face of the boy when he realized that he was the boy, it was a statue of a young Percy Jackson. He stared at the boy's face; the face conveyed innocence and fear, but with a resolve to persevere.

"Percy," Annabeth said, a little wary of how he might react.

He turned around his green eyes were dull and sad. "I didn't mean to overreact… I don't know… I'm so angry… so tired of hating the gods and hating what they did to me."

Annabeth wrapped her arms around him and placed her head on his shoulder, as he continued to look up at the statue. "I'm here for you. I'm so sorry that I didn't look for you, that I believed what the gods told us."

Percy didn't want to dwell on her apology. He loved her, no matter what she did or didn't do. He knew that she loved him. "I can't believe I was ever that young."

"You were pretty skinny too."

A smile stretched across Percy's face. "And shorter than you."

Annabeth's smile widened. "You were kind of a little runt."

"Hey," he said as he turned around, wrapping his arms around her as she looked up into his eyes. "I grew up."

Annabeth stared into his green eyes, getting lost in those two orbs that were as deep as the ocean. "You did."

Percy leaned down and kissed her, putting all his emotion and love in the kiss. He pulled away after a minute with a serious expression on his face. "I love you. I never stopped and I never will."

Annabeth's gray eyes shined. "I love you, too. I lived without you, but I really didn't live, I just survived, holding on until you came back."

"I know what you mean. I was alone in the forest. I never thought I'd see you again. I never thought I'd see anyone until Thalia showed up."

Annabeth nodded; she couldn't imagine what he went through. "I'm here now, Percy. I won't go anywhere. You're stuck with me."

Percy was going to kiss her again, until he heard, "Percy!" He looked up to toward the entrance of the small park to see two goat legs connected to a satyr wearing an orange sweater, a very familiar satyr. He pulled away from Annabeth, his green eyes wide. "Grover," he said, almost like a question.

The Satyr's brown eyes began to tear up. "Perce," he yelled as he ran forward and hugged the demigod, his best friend.

Annabeth stood off to the side. A tear slipped down her cheek before she wiped it away.

Percy and Grover pulled apart, but Percy held his friend's shoulders. "Grover, I missed you." Grover cried harder. Percy pulled him back into a hug, patting his old friend on the back. "It's okay, Grover. I'm here now."

Grover finally stopped crying. They pulled out of the hug, but the smiles on their faces were infectious. Annabeth was smiling as well. "You're back. I lost hope. I searched the wild, but couldn't find you. I finally started to believe the gods' story. I'm sorry I never found you. Some Searcher I am."

"I was outside of the Olympians domain. You wouldn't have known where to look."

Grover nodded. "Well, you're back now. I hear there is a war coming."

"Yeah, it looks like they never will stop.

Grover bleated. "Just our luck, huh?"

AN: Going to end it there, stay locked on target and I'll be back soon with the next chapter.