Chapter Fourteen
Piper hadn't been expecting the girl from before, the younger African-American who had landed on the ship. She seemed so innocent, yet here she was describing the murder of a human, even if he sounded absolutely deplorable, as if it was no major matter. Jason was similarly confused, though for different reasons.
"They elected him Praetor, even after he killed the augur?" He asked the girl, Hazel, who nodded with a bright smile.
"Well, nobody liked him, from what I understand." Hazel said. "Once the gods acquitted him, Percy became very well-known and admired around Rome, and the legion. Four other candidates dropped out when they heard he was running. He won ninety percent of the vote!"
"And that doesn't concern you?" Piper asked, doubting the validity of the claim. It was Jason who answered, shaking his head.
"Percy's always been popular with the rank and file. That doesn't surprise me at all." He admitted. "What about this whole Imperator situation? How did that come about, exactly?"
"Well, that's an interesting story, but Percy said I could tell you." Hazel said with a smile.
She then proceeded to explain how Mars arrived telling Percy to take Hazel and Frank to Alaska, and to free Thanatos, who had been chained, which was preventing monsters from staying dead. After a series of events, including intervening in an Amazonian civil war, playing Russian roulette with poison, breaking the siege of Frank's grandmother's house, and an epic battle with a giant in Alaska, Percy and his quest mates not only freed Thanatos, but also recovered the legion's eagle, and almost all the weapons and armour that had been lost in the 1980's. They arrived at camp in time to save the legion, with Hazel and Frank handing out weapons and armour, while Percy used the eagle to destroy masses of monsters, before engaging Polybotes in single combat.
"How did he kill him then?" Piper asked. "You need a god and a demigod to beat a Gigante."
"Oh, Percy asked Terminus for help, but since Polybotes hadn't crossed into the city, he wouldn't." Hazel explained. "So, Percy threw Terminus at Polybotes, and then stabbed him in the heart. The monsters tried to flee after that, but he drowned most of them using the Little Tiber. The rest were finished off quickly, and then the legion raised him on their shields, and called him Imperator. Quite a few of the citizens who had remained came out and did the same. The senate confirmed it the next day."
"Percy…. Threw a marble statue at a Gigante?" Jason asked incredulously. Hazel nodded at him.
"Terminus wasn't very happy, but he was also the one who suggested calling Percy 'Giganticus'. Percy doesn't like the name, but he's been granted it regardless." Hazel told the group. "But, the best part is, despite all this power he has, he still lets the senate rule. Some aren't happy about him being Imperator, but it was the will of the legion, and our right. We couldn't have chosen a better leader!"
Piper noticed Jason flinch, and her heart went out to her boyfriend. The next question caught all of them off guard.
"Are he and Reyna still a thing?" He asked Hazel, who narrowed her eyes at the question.
"The Consul and Imperator are in a healthy, stable relationship." She stressed. "Not that it is any of your business."
"How is it not? I'm still a member of the legion, am I not?" Jason countered, only for Hazel to freeze. "I'm not, am I?"
"No." She affirmed quietly. "The senate gave you an honourable discharge for your years of service."
"Did Percy do it?" He asked, and Piper could feel the sadness radiating off him.
"Percy's the reason you were given an honourable discharge." Hazel said. "The Senate wanted to wipe you from our history, a Damnatio Memoriae, but Percy and Reyna shot that down rapidly. Then the Senate tried to give you a dishonourable discharge, but Percy argued that since you had been kidnapped, it wasn't your fault for being absent. He told them in no uncertain terms that you would be given an honourable discharge, and this was while he was still a Centurion."
Jason had a small smile on his face, but Thalia was clearly confused, so she put her hands up in a 'T' shape.
"Time out. An 'honourable discharge?'" She asked, a frown on her face. "That's an actual thing?"
"Honesta Missio." None other than Percy Jackson said. "The Twelfth Legion is exactly that, a legion. We have protocols, ways to acknowledge service, and even punishments, though most of those have been rolled back."
"Were you meeting with the Senate?" Jason had a contemplative look on his face, though Piper didn't know why.
"No, with Lupa. She was explaining the history of our relationship with the Greeks." He said, before visibly flinching. "It's not something to be proud of, especially not for us Romans."
"Why not?" Piper asked, curiously.
"Because we started it all." Percy said, collapsing back onto a couch. "We couldn't handle the insult of the Trojan War, so we hunted you down, persecuted you. We supported nations and groups that make me sick to think about."
"Like?" Piper pressed, but Percy shook his head.
"Like I don't want to think about it." He replied. "The Senate meeting will come later, but someone needs to tell the Faun aboard your warship to get away from the ballista, before my men get nervous."
Leo grumbled, but rose, allowing Hazel to escort him. Piper watched them go off, noticing how Hazel kept a respectable distance from Leo, almost as if she was unnerved simply by his presence. Piper frowned, but decided not to say anything. Percy and Jason were talking rapidly back and forth in Latin, with everyone, including Annabeth, watching in confusion. They were talking too quickly, and only picking up small phrases and snippets. Finally, Percy shrugged, and Jason nodded, ending the conversation. Percy rose, and left, two guards snapping into a salute as he passed, before pivoting and following him.
"What was that about?" Piper asked suspiciously. The tone didn't go unnoticed.
"Mostly politics. As a son of Jupiter, I'm afforded several privileges, but since Percy is Imperator, those technically are superseded." Jason explained. "We just compromised on letting me walk by his side, but on his left."
"What does that have to do with anything?" Thalia asked, bored and confused. "It's not like he's royalty or anything, right?"
Jason and Annabeth just stared at her.
"…Were you not listening to anything that was explained over the past hour?" Jason asked his sister after a pause. She shrugged at him. "Percy is Imperator. Emperor. According to Roman traditions, he is royalty. We're treating with a sovereign ruler, Thalia."
"Oh. I thought Imperator was just like, a fancy title. Like how Christian Popes' are the 'Most Devout' or something like that." Thalia replied, waving her hand dismissively. "Didn't think it was a big deal."
Suddenly, an explosion rocked their building. The group were on their feet in a flash, and Jason led the rush outside. To their horror, the Argo was firing down on the city, screams filling the air, while soldiers and civilians alike rushed to reach safety. Thalia and Jason exchanged glances, the anger clear in their eyes. Before either of them could react, the river that snaked around the city began rising, lifting clear out of the bed, and forming itself into two hands.
Piper stared in awe as Percy strode passed them, his hands stretched out in front of him, before he made a squeezing gesture. The water hands closed around the Argo, crushing the mast, and even denting the hull, before he jerked his hands down, and the ship crashed into the field outside the city. Silenced filled the air, before someone let out a cry.
"It was the Graecus!" Came a voice, and the call was joined by others. They began crowding around the Greeks, and Piper saw Jason try to calm them down. A brick flew out of nowhere and hit him in the head, and Jason fell down. Piper let out a scream and rushed to his side. There was a bleeding gash on his head, but they were in a terrible position. She held Jason close, and prepared to be suffocated by the mob.
"ENOUGH!" Thunder cracked, and the air became heavy. Piper looked up, only to see Percy standing in front of them, his gladius drawn, and droplets of water frozen around him, just remaining still in the air. The sight terrified Piper, but she couldn't imagine was it was like for the people who could see his face. "I had a legionnaire on board, Prefect Levesque. You know her, and you trust her. I will find her, and we will get to the bottom of this. Do not think to harm my guests."
The warning was dire, and slowly, the mob dispersed. Piper assumed on any other day, or with anyone else, they may have pushed onwards, regardless, but this display of raw power, wielded by the teen they had declared Imperator, seemed to both placate and terrify the crowd. Once they were gone, the water surrounding Percy dropped, rushing into a sewer drain. He turned to them, his face hard, almost carved out of marble. She hadn't thought him very impressive before, not like Jason. He didn't seem to radiate the same power Jason did. Until now.
"I'll send the medicus over." Percy stated, his jaw clenched. "I'll also be putting you under armed guard, at least until I get to the bottom of this."
"You can't do that!" Thalia exclaimed, her body crackling with electricity. She opened her mouth to continue, but Percy cut her off.
"I assure, you, Thalia Grace, that I can." He snapped, his eyes blazing like a storm. "You came into my city with an armed warship. I compromised with you, and let you keep it here. But that same warship just fired onto my city. My people. They want blood, and if you don't want it to be your own, you'll shut up, head back inside, and do as I say!"
His command was emphasized by the gathering of storm clouds above, and the wind picking up. Thalia seemed to realize just how out-matched she was, so she backed up, the lightning dying on her body. She nodded stiffly, before turning and marching back into the mansion. The others slowly followed, leaving Piper with Jason's unconscious body and one very angry Percy Jackson. He sighed, his features softening.
"Let's get him inside. It'll be worse for him to be out here." He said, slipping Jason's arm over his shoulders, before picking him up bridal-style. He led her inside, taking her to a bedroom, where he gently placed Jason on the bed, before moving to a chair in the corner. "He loves you, I think."
Piper spluttered. "What?"
Of course, she loved Jason. Even if their relationship had been built on lies, the one they had created afterwards was real, and so while Piper could easily say she loved her boyfriend, she wasn't sure that he could say the same. Sure, he liked her, a lot, even, but love? She wasn't sure if Jason truly knew what it was.
"I watched the way he looks at you." Percy explained. "It's the same way I look at Reyna, and I love that girl with everything in my body. Jason never knew stability. He was taken by Juno when he was two, and sent to live with Lupa for a year, where he learned how to utilize his powers."
Piper already knew this, so she didn't understand why he was telling her.
"Lupa has only ever raised three demigods in her life." He continued, watching Jason closely. "Romulus, Remus, and myself. She cares for all demigods, but she loves me. It was something Jason struggled with. When Reyna and I became close, Jason didn't like that. I was on my way to try and make things up with him when he was kidnapped. I spent four months trying to prevent another election, only to become Praetor myself."
"I never wanted this. Any of this." He motioned around him. "If I had my way, I'd have done my ten years, gone to college, and then lived a comfortable life in New Rome. But Lupa told me after I became Praetor that my life would be difficult, yet rewarding. I'm not to know true peace. Not for many years, at least. If I hadn't risen to power, Jason would no doubt be in my place. He'd have done a much better job than me."
Piper wasn't sure how to reply to that, but she never got the chance, as Percy rose, and left the room. Ten minutes later, an older demigod, carrying the look that most children of Apollo did, jogged in the room, and began looking over Jason, completely ignoring her. She didn't mind. It gave her time to think about everything that had just been said to her.
MMXVII
AN: So, people have wanted longer chapters. Here it is, this is twice as long as I normally write, so just over 2k words. Maybe, as I get better at writing, I'll increase, but for now, this is probably going to be my limit. Also, I just submitted all the rest of my pre-written chapters, which was the first fourteen, so updates will become a bit less frequent as I juggle school, gym, and martial arts with writing. Thanks for being awesome, guys!
Cheers, CombatTombat