Chapter Twenty-One

Percy

Percy's senses came back to him slowly. Where ever he was, he was partially submerged in water, and the rest of the place was sterile. It smelt like chlorine and rubbing alcohol. His body felt like it was wrapped in plastic, and all his nerves burned like crazy, but as far as he could tell, he was alive.

"I'm starting to think you actually enjoy visiting me, but you can't figure out how to come by like a normal person," Dustin Cole's amused voice reached him. Percy cracked open an eye to see the doctor leaning over him.

"What's up doc?" He rasped, his voice rough from disuse. "You look tired."

"I've been working pretty tirelessly for the past two weeks," the surgeon sighed, "there were a lot of casualties, even after you killed Krios. Good on you for that, by the way. The Senate went and gave you an agnomen. 'Titanicus,' they're calling you officially."

"Officially," Percy repeated, "that means there's an unofficial nickname."

"The Legion's been calling you 'God-Killer,'" Dustin said, "a bit inaccurate, but no one's corrected them so far."

Percy tried to move, but Dustin placed his hands gently on his shoulders.

"What's the damage?"

"You sure you want to know?" The son of Apollo asked. Percy glared at him, and he shrugged. "All right. You've got second degree burns all along your chest and legs, because the armour took most of the damage there, but your arms… there were third degree burns along your forearms and hands. It took a miracle to heal you properly, and even then, you might find your hands to be a bit stiff for a while. The water really helped, as did the unicorn horn shavings. My advice would be to stay submerged for an hour everyday now that you're conscious. There's also the scars. When Krios went boom, so did your sword. A shard of it hit your face, and another one buried in your leg"

"Show me," Percy demanded. Dustin held up a mirror, and he let out a deep sigh. The scar was still pink and agitated, but it was already showing signs of fading towards the ends. It formed an X-like pattern on his left cheek, not too large, but not insignificant either. "Mors exploded?"

"Completely destroyed, save for a few small chunks that buried themselves in you," Dustin informed him, "your armour was almost fused together. We had to break it off you, so that's not functional anymore either. The gauntlets were melded with your skin at parts, but it seemed to heal pretty well. All in all, you're lucky to be alive, Percy. Krios didn't kill you, but his death nearly did."

"And the army? The one he led out?"

"Ah, that's an interesting tale," the doctor said, "Krios death wiped out a chunk of them, and more were killed when Jason stormed out of Orthys after seeing your body slam into the ground, and then Lupa's pack of all things joined the fray. The rest of the legion barely had time to engage before the monsters were being routed."

"So we won?"

"A Pyrrhic victory," Dustin nodded.

"Do you…" Percy trailed off before steeling himself, "do you have the butchers bill?"

"I do," he nodded, "it's not good, Percy."

"Tell me."

"Seventy-one are dead, killed throughout the fighting. That includes all Centurions save for Jason, and the Praetors. Twenty-seven are crippled and will never fight again. There's not a single legionary who wasn't injured, but many of those were minor enough for the medics to be able to handle it."

"Twenty percent of our forces dead," Percy breathed, "a fifth of the legion, just… gone."

"Several veterans have offered to re-join the service, but the Praetors…" Dustin trailed off as he realised what he had just revealed.

"Jason's praetor, then?" Percy asked. The medic nodded, "who's the other?" Dustin hesitated in answering. "Dustin, who's the second Praetor?"

"It's… it's Reyna," he said, "the legion raised Jason at Orthys, and Reyna was voted in three days ago."

"Good, good," Percy muttered, before smiling, "they deserve it."

"You… didn't want the position?" Dustin asked carefully.

"Gods no!" Percy laughed, "I'm content just being the Centurion of the Fourth, and all that entails. High Command wouldn't suit me, I don't think."

"Ah, yes, about that," Dustin muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. Percy let out a groan.

"Gods be good, Dustin, you're not being very forthcoming, are you?" Percy asked him, "you're never this reserved, which means you're worried how I'll react to whatever news you have. Now, would you go and spit it out, or do I have to drag myself from this room and find it out myself?"

"Alright, alright, no need to get moody," Dustin put his hands up in defeat. "No one really knows why, but the Fourth elected to raise Leila as Centurion. She's the Princeps Posterior now."

"That's surprising," Percy admitted, "but then again, I was gone for eight months, only to take command of the First during Orthys. That's fine. She deserves it."

"You're not angry," Dustin noted, "I'm honestly surprised."

"Despite what the rumours say, I tend to have a pretty good hold on my emotions, Dustin," Percy gave a hollow laugh, before pulling himself upright. He could feel the skin on his chest stretching with the movement, but it wasn't painful. Well, it wasn't too painful. "Can you help me…?"

"Oh, yes," the medic moved to help him, up, and once he was out of the tub, he willed himself to dry, the water being absorbed into his body and easing some of the pain he felt. "That's a neat trick."

"I'm full of them," Percy said, "where is everyone?"

"Jason and Reyna are meeting with the Senate right now," Dustin told him, "the rest of the legion has been given a month for mourning and rest. Most of the funerals are over, but the Fourth refused to cremate Tony until you were conscious."

"We'll get right on that," he muttered to himself, "where are my clothes?"

Jason

When the doors to the Senate house flung open, Jason had risen to his feet, ready to scold whoever would interrupt a session without warning. The rebuke died in his throat when he saw Percy limping in the door. The other senators became deathly silent at the sight of Percy, his new scar marring his face, only adding to his intimidating nature.

Well, intimidating to most. Reyna was out of her seat and throwing herself at him within seconds, a hushed back and forth between the two unheard by everyone else. Jason let it last for several minutes before he cleared his throat.

"I'm happy to see you, Perce, I really am," he said, "but what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be resting?"

"I've had two weeks to rest," Percy waved his hand dismissively, before pulling it to his chest as it spasmed slightly, "oh, that wasn't fun. I know I'm not really meant to be here, but I wanted to extend my congratulations to you. Besides, I always wanted to dramatically enter a senate meeting, and this gave me the perfect opportunity."

"You idiot," Jason laughed, but there was no malice in the statement. "I can see not much is going to be accomplished. We'll adjourn until tomorrow. If it's an absolute necessity, bring it to me. Otherwise, have a good day, and we'll see you all tomorrow."

The senators rose, some calling thanks and blessings to Percy as they left. Reyna had attached herself to his hip, but Jason noticed that Percy was leaning on her slightly. She was likely helping him stay upright at the moment.

"You look pretty good for someone who took an exploding Titan at point blank range," Jason told him, and Percy chuckled, which devolved into some coughing. "Are you sure you should be up?"

"Probably not," Percy replied, "but I'm up, and I'm not quitting yet. Tony's waited long enough to earn his peace, I think."

"Ah, yes, that," Jason was trying to think about how to tell Percy he'd lost the Fourth when his cousin laughed at him.

"I already know about Leila," he said, "it's not an issue. I'm just grateful they waited for me to wake up."

"We kept his body preserved," Reyna said from Percy's side, "Jason, could you go get the Fourth ready for Tony's funeral? It'll take Percy and I a while to get there, so you should be ready by the time we arrive."

"Of course," he said with a tip of his head, "keep an eye out for Octavian. His rhetoric has been a bit… heated, lately. You scared some people with your display of power, Percy. He's using that to his advantage."

"Let him," Percy scoffed, "I know where my loyalty stands. Worrying what other people think about me is a waste of time. I'll see you soon, Jason."

Jason smiled, before he began making his way through the winding streets of New Rome. The Fourth's Castra was busy, with some of the new recruits being drilled by the veterans. Aidan, the son of Bellona who Percy considered a solid soldier, and a candidate for officer-ship at some point, was the first to greet him.

"Hail, Praetor Grace!" He called out, and the others came to a halt, turning a giving him a salute. Leila emerged from her office at the noise, blinking in surprise as she saw Jason.

"Praetor," she greeted him "what brings you here?"

"It's time to put Tony to rest," he told her, voice loud enough for the others to hear, "assemble on the Field of Mars and prepare his pyre."

"Respectfully, Praetor, we agreed to wait for Percy to wake," Aidan said, but Leila shot him a look.

"I'm aware of that fact," Jason told them, "but Percy's not as fast as he used to be. It'll take him some time to get to the Field, and I think he'd prefer if Tony was ready to be sent to the afterlife."

"He's awake?" Leila's voice betrayed her true feelings. There was too much emotion.

"He is," Jason confirmed, "and he's on his way. Don't let him down, quartae cohortis."

"Aye sir!" They cried out, and the bustle began. The probatios seemed confused, but it didn't take long for them to be issued orders.

The Field of Mars had seen seventy funerals in two weeks, and the space where the bodies were burned were blackened and covered in a layer of charred wood and ashes. That didn't stop the Fourth from building a large pyre for their centurion, a man who had led them for nine years with charm and grace. His body was carried out on a stretcher and was laid to rest atop the unlit pyre. The Fourth formed ranks and waited patiently for Percy to arrive.

Three minutes later, he did, still being supported by Reyna. But when he reached the edge of the cohort, he detached from her, limping his way passed them all, making his way to Tony's body. Jason was standing next to Leila, and Reyna soon joined them, and where they were standing, they could hear everything he said. The others, unfortunately, could not.

"I'm sorry," he said to the body, "I never wanted you—any of you—to die. My one hope was that you and Michaela would have been able to retire, get married, and have kids. You should've had a life, Tony, and the war took that from you. But I won't forget what you did for me. You were good to me in a way that not many people were. You treated me with kindness and respect, and valued me for what I could do, not for who's son I was. I hope that I can make you proud."

And then he rose, covering the body with the oil that would be used to cremate the body. No one questioned why he was doing it instead of Leila. This was something deeply personal. There was no one else who could have done it. It was Percy's responsibility, all the way. He limped back several steps, before he was handed a torch, which he threw onto the pyre. The flames erupted upwards and began consuming the pile of wood.

The Fourth watched wordlessly as their former Centurion was cremated, but the silence didn't last. Jason didn't know who started the barritus, but it was done without command. This one was different than the one that had occurred at Orthys. It was a low murmur, closer to a wail than a war-cry, but it conveyed the message. Percy kept his eyes locked on the funeral pyre, watching as his mentor, the closest thing he had to an older brother, was consumed by the fire. He didn't react when Reyna took his left hand in her own, nor did he move when Jason placed a hand on his shoulder. He just watched the fire.

MMXVIII

So we get to see the aftermath of Orthys. It's been two weeks since the battle, and Percy gets caught up with what happened. As for what's to come—you'll just have to wait for the coming chapters.

Cheers, CombatTombat