It was common for Percy to see other timelines as he slept. It might've been said before, but now is as good a time as any to repeat it, given that that's exactly what happened after Percy passed out from the arai. The way he figured it worked was that he unconsciously knew about each of these timelines, but couldn't have fully registered them all at once when Luke showed them. Now, in his sleep, as his mind compartmentalized everything he'd experienced, he might do the same for one of these timelines.
This time was special however. Normally, he was an active agent in the dream. He didn't have any free will in the events that occurred, but he was always in the other Percy's body. This time, though, he retained not only his body, but all of his emotions and feelings and memories. And all of his guilt.
"Come on; let me introduce you to my other family," Other Percy said as he came into view. And not just him; all of Camp Jupiter came into view, as the Argo II descended into New Rome. Instantly, this Other Percy's memories flooded into Percy's head. Everything happened similarly to how Percy had gone about things during the Titan War, only he was younger, and his father wasn't an asshole and had actually claimed him when he was supposed; that was probably the catalyst for the change.
Other Percy had two people in his arms, which Percy knew were Frank and Hazel. In Other Percy's timeline, he'd been sent to Camp Jupiter instead of Annabeth, and unwillingly; everything that happened did so solely by the whims of Juno, and had gone on a quest with the two to rescue Thanatos, just as Annabeth, Reyna, and Luke had done.
Other Percy looked happy, if a bit tense. Others were around them that Percy vaguely recognized, that praetor woman who had frozen on him, and the blond boy that'd been with him, and a few other blurs of faces he saw briefly in Camp Jupiter as well. What struck him, though, was how laid-back Other Percy seemed, as everyone readied their weapons for an attack, and a warship descended upon New Rome, Other Percy had a goofy grin on his face.
The scene shifted to the banquet that happened later that day. "I want to show you around New Rome. Just you and me," Other Percy had whispered into Other Annabeth's ear. The girl got a twisted look on her face, one of betrayal, as everyone around her minded their business and ate like there was no tomorrow. Once Reyna, the praetor woman, called a toast to friendship and introductions, the individual groups shared their stories, of rescuing Juno and Thanatos respectively. Other Jason whistled.
"No wonder they made you praetor," he said, obviously impressed. Both he and Other Percy wore the standard decorations of the rank. Percy couldn't help but scowl at that; that not only was he regarded as an equal to Other Jason, a unfair thought to be sure, but that Other Percy would even think of associating so closely with the Romans as to have rank within their army. Other Percy nodded.
"On the bright side, both Jason and I outrank you, Octavian. So we can both tell you to shut up," said Other Percy, to which he and Other Jason fist-bumped.
"Stop being so happy," Percy demanded, even though he knew they wouldn't hear him. "Gods, you're so annoying! He's a Roman! You should be at each other's throats! Like I was with the bastard!" he found his voice rising to a yell. "Or maybe this was the right approach; you saw how the bickering turned out…" some irritating part of his brain called 'rational thought' cooed.
Percy realized he'd missed part of the conversation, as Octavian, the blond boy, began reciting a prophecy. "Seven half-bloods shall answer the call. To storm or fire the world must fall," he began, to which Annabeth finished.
"An oath to keep with a final breath, and foes bear arms to the Doors of Death."
At that, Percy couldn't help but realize how simple it was, at least simpler than their Prophecy of Seven. Seven half-bloods; either Jason or Leo would destroy…something. An oath presumably on the River Styx; demigods, probably Greek and Roman (foes), or possibly demigods working with Titans or Giants, working together to get to the Doors. Easy. Even Percy could figure it out. Gods, but his own timeline's Oracle had a huge purple-prose stick up her ass, didn't she?
Percy was getting restless; usually something bad happened around this point, but they just kept droning on and on about things that weren't important, like how Minerva was a maiden goddess and stupid crap like that. "Do something!" he called to them, and his wish was granted. He jumped forward to some shit going down.
For some reason, Leo and Octavian, the two you shouldn't trust, were allowed to tour the Argo II alone, as some way to placate the wariness of the Romans. Percy saw the cannon fire immediately as a red glow, but Other Percy and Other Everybody-The-Fuck-Else was slower on the uptake, letting a few hit New Rome before they did anything. Instead of immediately trying to diffuse the situation, Other Percy stood there as tensions rose and the Romans assumed Leo was attacking them. From there, it was a mad scramble for the chosen Seven, Percy, Jason, Annabeth, Piper, Leo, Frank, and Hazel, to climb aboard the Argo II to begin the quest forcibly.
Come to think of it, Percy had no earthly idea who his "Seven" were. Obviously, he and Annabeth were a part of it, and so was Jason, Pier, and Leo. That made five. Was it the other two who went on the Camp Jupiter quest, meaning Reyna and Luke? Except Reyna didn't come with them. Only six demigods left Camp Jupiter, so was Luke one of them, or did he not count since he's technically supposed to be dead? Bianca was rescued; is she one of them?
Realizing that he was thinking too hard, Percy occupied himself by becoming increasingly annoyed as the Other Seven went on their merry little journey where everyone got along save for a bit of relationship drama that Percy didn't care about. Though, if Other Percy saw his timeline, he'd probably say the same about his and Jason's squabbles. Hell, Percy himself would probably say that if he had to re-experience their trip to Rome. Thankfully, he didn't have to spend the whole time they used to make the journey, just the important parts. Or rather, the parts that made him mad. Like when Octavian attacked Annabeth and Piper, and Other Percy blasted Octavian and made some stupid quip like, "I think you dropped this," instead of, you know, running to the Argo II to escape the pursuing Romans. Or like when they ran into Chrysaor and the pirate beat Other Percy so handily because he was 'rusty', that he was disarmed twice and forced to lie that Dionysus was on board with them, whom Chrysaor, for some reason, feared.
But as much as it made Percy mad that everyone was getting along and there were so few consequences, he'd be lying if he said it didn't make him a little bit jealous. He wished so badly that he could be happy like Other Percy was, but he was also infuriated at Other Percy for being like that. Maybe it was an extension of his jealousy. And the more he thought about it, the more he felt it related to how Percy had treated Jason. Maybe Percy was jealous, that this Roman was so driven and determined, that he so readily accepted his role and even aimed to rise above it. Gods, but Percy handled him all wrong. And yet…he never lied to the kid. Never. Percy didn't know how to feel about that and that he felt he was wrong at the same time.
Thankfully, more stupid shit happened in this timeline, distracting him. Jumping all around for some reason, Percy saw him and Annabeth share an underwater kiss, before jumping immediately to Rome. They had decided to get pizza before he sent her off to her death at the hands of that spider monster. The two looked sullen, and Percy knew they were only doing this reluctantly.
"Then why are you doing this?" Percy demanded of them. "By the gods, just go with her! What's stopping you? Idiot!" he yelled, frustrated beyond belief.
"You'll have to let me search for the Athena Parthenos on my own," Annabeth said, after going on a short speech about how Other Percy couldn't expect to carry the whole quest on his shoulders, to which Percy thought, "You don't know a damn thing about what you're talking about," despite himself. Somehow, he felt okay about thinking that about something Other Annabeth said, because it hadn't been his Annabeth, just like when Annabeth had yelled about not needing him in Tartarus. She still wasn't his Annabeth. And she knew that, and he knew that. So they'd protect each other until she became his Annabeth again, like they both wanted.
Other Percy was obviously not thrilled about Annabeth saying that. "I missed you," he confessed. "For months. A huge chunk of our lives was taken away. If I lost you again-" the boy's voice caught in his throat.
"All I hear is damn words! Act on it, you little prick!" Percy snapped.
"You'll have to trust me," Other Annabeth said, voice soft and unsure. "You've got to believe I'll come back."
"I believe in you; that's not the problem. But come back from where?"
And before they could speak any more, they were interrupted by two gods, which adds another reason as to why Percy couldn't really stand them and their attitude. Honestly, he should feel grateful; the gods in this timeline were way worse than in his own, when it comes to messing with demigods without their permission.
In another few minutes, with hardly a squeak of protestation, Other Percy was watching his Annabeth ride off alone. "Idiot…idiot, idiot, idiot!" he tried to grab Other Percy's shoulders, to no avail. He tried to punch Other Percy, to no avail. "Go after her! What the hell is wrong with you?! She's everything to you! Go after her!"
Instead, Other Percy walked back to the Argo II to face the Giants waiting for him.
Percy clenched his fists, enraged at this timeline. He didn't like it at all. Forget compassion and forget the friendship of these assholes; they didn't understand what true suffering was. He saw everything that happened to them, everything that was done to them, and none of it held a candle to what he's lost. Other Percy still had a mother and he still had Tyson. Luke was never a friend; he was always an enemy to Other Percy, except at the very end; there wasn't any turmoil. Other Percy didn't have a child to worry about, his feelings were predicated on a four month relationship. It was pathetic to think he was a warrior, let alone a hero.
Percy let out a yell, wishing for the dream to end. But the Fates wanted him to see one more thing. One more thing which would send him into despair.
All the Giants had been defeated, the Seven were in Athens from the battle, but Gaea, as spelled in their timeline, had risen, and was attacking Camp Half-Blood…for some reason. Leo realized that one of them had to fall along with "the world" as told in the prophecy, and chooses to be the unlucky egg. Zeus agrees to send him and the Argo II back to Camp Half-Blood to stop it, and the Seven bid their farewell to Leo.
"No…" Percy muttered, his clenched so hard as to draw blood. "No, no, no! what are you all doing?!"
"You were all the best friends I could've asked for," the impish boy said, as the others cried and said nothing.
"Do something!" Percy demanded. "Say something and stop him! He doesn't have to die! He doesn't deserve it!"
"But now…I've got to go keep my promise."
"Fuck your oath to keep on a final breath! You should live! I don't care what happened between you or anyone around you! Goddamit I'll make sure you live and keep on living!" he yelled into the Other Leo's face.
With some final goodbyes, despite Percy doing everything in his power to prevent it, Leo closed the doors and bid his friends goodbye. He perished in the battle, and then Percy awoke.
xxxXXXxxx
He shot up in the bed, and that was the first thing that was wrong. Bed? What bed could there possibly be in Tartarus? Well, how about the one in the shockingly cozy log cabin that he was in, though it smelled nothing like a log cabin, and more like a Cyclops' foot. Still, better than the absolute rancid, unbreathable air outside.
Annabeth was next to him, both under some basic form of sheet. She awoke when he did, startled by his movement. "Mm…" she muttered something indiscernible.
"Where are we?" Percy demanded, still on edge from the dream. When she didn't answer, having fallen back asleep, he shook her. "Annabeth, where are we?"
She turned over like they were still in their cabin, and rubbed her eyes lazily. "Huh?"
Percy sighed. He didn't know what he was expecting; she was always like this when she woke up, 'this' being 'not even there for a good ten minutes'. So instead, Percy stood, feeling himself. When last he was conscious, he was under the most intense pain he'd ever experienced; probably on par with bathing in the River Styx. Most of his body was bandaged, and Percy guessed he sustained more damage than he thought; he was too caught up in the pain he felt that he didn't notice any cuts form.
That said, they seemed to be healed, and all he felt from the experience with the arai was a vague soreness and fatigue. That and a headache, but that was probably from when Annabeth knocked him out.
He looked around the cabin, seeing all sorts of weird stuff. It was like they took a modern log cabin, Radagast's home from The Hobbit movies, and a hospital and smashed them all together, creating this weird complex of potions and healing herbs and…ski retreat vibes.
After checking every nook and cranny, and looking outside to see they were in a forest of some kind, Percy returned to the bed to see Annabeth sitting up, hair disheveled. "Did you say something?" she wondered, eyes still closed.
"Yeah, about five minutes ago," he sat back down beside her, signaling for her to lean into him. Gods, but she was beautiful. "Where are we?"
"I found a cabin in the woods. The monsters don't like the woods, I guess," she explained as she yawned and stood. She retrieved a bottle and a paper. "Here, drink a bit; it's nectar. It heals things."
"I know what nectar is," he claimed, before taking the items. The paper held a short note. It read: "If you're reading this, then I, Damasen, am dead, either for good or temporarily. This cabin is yours to use, whoever you are, doing whatever you're doing. This has healing medicine, warmth, and relative comfort. I wish you well."
"Weird, huh?" Annabeth said.
"Yeah, I'll say," Percy agreed. "We should get moving," he said, to which she let out a groan, burying her face in his chest. "Annabeth. We can't stay here."
"…A few hours?" she begged. "What's the harm?"
"There's a lot of harm," he claimed. "…If I hear one thing wrong out there…fine, we'll stay."
With that, the daughter of Athena plopped back down onto the pillow, and Percy followed her. As much as he wanted to be all business and get out of Tartarus as soon as possible, he couldn't help but agree that they needed the rest. This was going to be their only true reprieve for a good while, especially if things weren't going absolutely perfectly up in the mortal world. Besides; they'd both been awake, active, and fighting for their lives for what must've been over sixty hours beforehand, and he figured Annabeth had only slept a few after that, after having set up Percy. And his wasn't truly sleep, more like visions.
Speaking of visions, however…
"Did you get any more of your memories back?" he asked off-handedly.
"Mm, not that I can remember," she muttered, smiling, now awake and wanted to be close to him.
"Very funny," he said, wrapping his arm around her. "…I had a dream," he said, being careful with how he phrased it.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah. In it, I was the one sent to Camp Jupiter."
"Really? Did you replace me with Reyna?"
"No…at least, I don't think so. It was weird, but at least I didn't blow up the whole world, right?"
"That's something," she offered. Percy was thankful that she didn't guess that Other Percy was completely different from Percy. Instead, she asked a harder question. "Hey…does it bother you that I don't have my memories?"
Percy considered the question. "No matter how I answer, you're gonna get mad," he guessed.
"Probably," she smirked, closing her eyes and waiting for his answer.
"…Yeah, it does. It bothers me a lot. It's like I'm cheating on you with another girl, even though you have the same body and face and eyes and hair…it's just…"
"Not the same?" she guessed.
"…Yeah."
"Mm…I guess I can understand that," she said. "It's been so weird, ever since I saw you. I really, really wanted to spend time with you, but…things happened and it was all so weird…Tempus and her book didn't help, with it brainwashing me into thinking I had to do everything myself…"
"I don't…I don't think that was Tempus. You've always been…independent, to a fault."
"Have I?"
Yeah. We both were, and sometimes it was like you did it just to get on my nerves," he said. She was quiet, waiting for elaboration. "Like the second summer I was at camp, this girl, Clarisse, was chosen for a quest to get the Golden Fleece to save camp, right? Well, I didn't think she was up to it, so I decided to go off on my own."
"Glory-hog," she teased, to which they both chuckled.
"Heh, yeah, maybe that had something to do with it. Anyway, it ended up that I wasn't alone. I had you hitch a ride without my knowing, and a baby Cyclops tag along. And before you say it, you two were friends."
"Hard to believe."
"Yeah, it was then too. Anyway, you completely went against what I wanted and wouldn't leave and even threatened me, just so you could go on this quest."
"With you," she clarified.
"At that point, uh…we weren't together."
"Oh…so it wasn't like a 'you need to stay behind so I can protect you' kinda thing?"
"No."
"Oh, okay…so, what happened then?"
"Well, we ran into some assholes. Luke had turned evil and taunted us and showed us how much of a badass he was like, 'ooh I can beat a Cyclops by myself, I'm so strong!' and shit like that."
"Sounds like you were jealous," Annabeth smirked, to which Percy shrugged.
"Yeah, whatever. And then we saw a Hydra and you started doing your thinking shtick."
"You mean staying alive?"
"Yeah, that, while I was going to town on this thing. And then Clarisse comes and steals my thunder!" he exclaimed, to which she laughed. He continued recounting the tale, about how he first learned he could make new water, how both of them were blasted into the Sea of Monsters (he also had to explain what the Sea of Monsters was since she forgot), and when they met the Sirens, and Percy saw the vision of everything he'd wanted.
"What did I see?"
"Hm?"
"A vision from the Sirens. You saw one; what'd I see?" she asked.
"You stuffed your ears with wax, so you didn't see one," he explained.
"Oh…"
"And then…and then we got to Circe's Resort."
"Circe, as in the witch Circe?"
"Yeah. Long story short, you saved my ass, and we freed some pirates."
"That's when we met Reyna and Hylla," Annabeth recalled. "She told me about that, briefly. So, what about long story long?"
"Well…" he recalled the event. "It started with us both being ushered in by someone; I can't remember who exactly. But then you were taken to get your makeup done."
"And I allowed it?"
"We were both really tired," was his excuse. "Anyway, Circe sat me down and started singing sweet nothings into my ears. She showed me images in a mirror," he said, surprised that he remembered the detail, and also a bit depressed. "It showed…it showed me, like I am now at eighteen, only…better. Happy, courageous, heroic…" he listed off the adjectives like they were his dreams escaping him. "Just like Other Percy had been," he thought bitterly. "A-anyway, then she turned me into a guinea pig, and you rescued me, turning me and a bunch of pirates back to being human again."
"Cool, so I'm the hero of this story."
"Yeah, in…way more ways than one," he said, interlacing his fingers with hers. "Annabeth…I couldn't live without you."
"…Why not?" she wondered.
"Because…because I love you."
"I want a more specific answer than that."
"I don't have one," he said, kissing her. "I'm sorry."
Still unsure, Annabeth forced a smile. "It's okay…"
Percy wasn't finished, though. "It's just…everyone expects me to be the hero, you know? But…part of me doesn't really care anymore, about anyone. No one except you matters, you know?"
"Well, you did win the Titan War, right?"
"Exactly. But then…if I don't get stronger, if I don't protect them, then…what am I supposed to do? Just give up? Just let them fend for themselves? What if I can stop people from getting hurt? What if I…" he took a deep breath, about to go morbid. "What if I were put into a situation where I had to choose between saving you and saving the camps, or the Seven?"
"You…you said….you said it wouldn't be a hard choice," Annabeth recalled them having a similar conversation earlier. "That you'd choose me. Were you lying?"
"No, I wasn't lying, I just…I don't think…I don't know. Annabeth, I don't know," he sat up. "I just…I get these worst-case-scenario thoughts in my head and it keeps getting worse and worse until I'm six feet under my own…stupid depression and anxiety! I can't choose you, Annabeth, not while that choice leaves everyone else unprotected like it is!"
"Percy…you can't expect to be able to carry the world on your shoulders."
That set him off; that was exactly what Other Annabeth had said. "You don't know a damn thing about what you're talking about!" he snapped, making her recoil. Percy took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and tried to calm himself. It didn't work. So instead of facing it, Percy buried his face into his hands and cried. Annabeth sat up with him, wrapped her arms around him, and held him until he held her back.
"…It's okay…Percy, it's okay to feel like this sometimes…"
"…I should be better."
"And I say you don't have to be, and you're supposed to blindly do what I say," she reminded him.
"I…" he was going to say he never agreed to that, but instead, all he said was, "okay," before they both laid back down to rest.
Somehow, Percy knew that he'd have to face these thoughts again very soon.
xxxXXXxxx
In a few hours, when they both felt somewhat well-rested, they stood, gathered a few supplies which both of them knew Tartarus would somehow make them lose before they could be useful, before they set off. At first, they tried to find their way back to the River Phlegethon, but as they wandered in the forest of shadows, the less likely seeing the River seemed to become. Instead, it felt like they were being led somewhere, and that somewhere turned out to be a mansion.
A mansion made out of the night sky.
Author's Note:
So how about that massive shade I threw at the original series, huh? For those that couldn't pick up on it, this other timeline was of the actual canon, call me a meta-whore on that creative decision.
That said, a few things; I haven't read The Blood of Olympus in its entirety, but from what I understand, everyone goes back to fight Gaea with Leo, or at least he doesn't go alone. But I needed a striking finale to the dream, and everyone watching as he closes the door is as good as any. For an image, go look up viria's "How Far We've Come" slideshow; it's there at the end of the bridge of the song.
Anyway, I forgot how much I like this chapter. I still think I like chapter 54 a bit more (call me a sucker for weird-ass ships), but this one probably has my favorite conversation so far, with Percy talking with Annabeth in the cabin at the end. I like how it ends strangely and kind of abruptly too, like even the characters know that there's more to be said, but for now, they decided to drop it because they themselves didn't understand their feelings. I don't know, something about it felt...genuine, to me anyway. That might just be my ego talking lol
In any case, to give a small timeline until chapter 58, tomorrow is the big moment for Reyna/Winona, the next is coming back to Tartarus for a big moment with these guys, and chapter 58 is a big moment for the Argo II crew, or at least Jason. So get hype!
Anyway, with that, I'll see you all tomorrow!
