Percy Jackson was getting pretty sick of all the slowdowns that they had stumbled upon during their quest to reach the original Mount Olympus. They had seen mythical pirates, then actual pirates (who were not happy that he and Annabeth had stolen their ship when they were thirteen), monsters, sea monsters, flying monsters, random people who ought to be dead, etc. But this was bordering on ridiculous.
For some reason, they had had to stop at the site of the ancient city of Sparta. Or, at least, on the outskirts of it. And here they saw a group of gods fighting each other. Now, the last time Percy had truly seen gods fighting like this was when he was twelve and there was almost a huge war because Zeus' lightning bolt had been stolen.
This time, there were eleven gods facing off. They had to get out of here as soon as possible. Sparta was going to be a warzone soon, and Percy didn't want to be anywhere near that with his friends when the gods started going nuclear. "Percy, our parents are standing side-by-side," Annabeth breathed out beside him as they landed the ship closer to the ground. "They hate each other, what's going on?"
"I don't know, Wise Girl. But I have a bad feeling that we're about to find out." Instinctively, his hand pulled Riptide from his pocket and held the pen carefully in his hand. He reached out and took Annabeth's hand. They would get through everything together.
The seven demigods and their satyr chaperone got off of the ship and carefully approached the gods. Percy's dad, wearing more Grecian style clothing than his usual choice of Hawaiian shirts smiled slightly when he saw him. "Son, I'm glad to see you."
"Dad, what's going on?" Percy asked.
Athena stepped towards him even as she kept an eye on the gods on the other side. "Those traitors are letting their Roman sides take over. They're siding against us!" she spat angrily with a glare at the gods who were vaguely familiar to Percy. "They're siding with the filthy Romans instead of their Greek selves!"
Before Athena could be asked any questions, Piper gasped. "Mom?" Percy looked for the woman he had met while on his quest to save Annabeth, but couldn't find her. Instead, a woman with deeply tanned skin, dark hair, and warm brown eyes approached. She wore a traditional Roman-style dress with a bright red shawl over her shoulders.
She glanced at Piper. "You must be the spawn of Aphrodite, then," she said. "It's a shame, but you aren't up to par with my Roman children." She seemed like she was appraising her demigod daughter. "You don't look like you can carry much of your weight in a fight, dear."
"Mom, why are you fighting?" Piper asked.
"I am NOT your mother!" Venus hissed. "And the Greeks never valued me and how important I am! The Romans, though, they honored me as the mother of their founder! They loved and adored me! Built me temples and held celebrations in my honor! They treated me the way a powerful civilization ought to treat its gods. With respect!" She reached for the gladius strapped to her waist. "And even now, they do not restrict my children from becoming great heroes like the Greeks do. Think, Piper McLean, of how hard you had to fight at Camp Half-Blood to be respected as an equal to your fellow demigods. At Camp Jupiter and in New Rome, my children are known as fearless warriors who would do anything to protect the city they love." Her cold gaze swept across the seven demigods and Coach Hedge. "Can the same be said for you?"
She turned on her heel and stood beside a woman Percy definitely recognized. Immediately, he nodded to her. "Lady Hestia, may I ask why you side with Rome?"
She nodded. "That's Lady Vesta, Perseus Jackson. And I side with Rome for many of the same reasons as Venus. In Rome, I was honored and revered as the goddess who kept the flame of Rome alive. In Greece, I was practically forced to give up my throne on Olympus so that Dionysus could take my place. Why should I, the one who keeps order in families and the home, give up my seat of power for a drunken idiot who happened to invent wine?"
Dionysus, wearing Grecian clothes instead of his usual leopard-print shirt, scowled. "The Romans were the ones who didn't see my value! They only saw me as the god of drunks and alcohol and parties!" He scowled. "I love to party as much as anyone, but I know the limits of parties. Probably better than anyone, Vesta."
"Hera, why are you siding with the Romans?" Annabeth asked from beside Percy. "You're the one who wanted to bring the two together."
The queen of the gods laughed bitterly. "That was the fool Graeca, Hera. I know the dangers of bringing you together. Why would I go against my own guidance and bring two sworn enemies together?" She asked in exasperation. "I might as well have brought together Romans and Egyptians! Or Anglo-Saxons and the Norse!" She gripped her gladius angrily. "The Romans knew that I am not just the wife of a cheating husband. They knew that I protect and I warn and I advise. They knew that I am a warrior and will protect. The Greeks never understood that."
Another woman, this one with brown hair which reminded Percy of soft soil and golden eyes like wheat, placed a hand on the shoulders of both Juno and Vesta. "My sisters, do not grow so angry. These demigods cannot be faulted merely for being born by Greek parents."
"Ceres is right," a man who looked vaguely like Hades said. "Although, so are you, Vesta and Juno. And you as well, Venus. The Romans knew how to honor their gods and their descendants continue to do so. Meanwhile we get nothing but sassy remarks from Percy Jackson himself." The god smiled in faint amusement at Percy. "Nevertheless, my daughter values Percy as a hero. I know that she would be disappointed if I were to let him die."
The next god who spoke was one whom Percy actually recognized. It was Mars Ultor, who had appeared at Camp Jupiter and issued him his quest to Alaska. "My son is also fond of the son of Poseidon," he reasoned. "And it is not in the interests of Rome to destroy these demigods now. Terra Mater will take care of them, I'm sure. For now, let us place our attention on the greater threat. These gods before us who side with the Greeks." For a moment, Percy saw a glimmer of Hazel and Frank in their respective parents. Clarisse looked hurt by her father's statement, but the expression quickly faded off of her features. She gripped her spear Maimer—Lamer—tightly in her hands and cracked her neck.
"Heroes, you must get to Mount Olympus as soon as you can," Athena warned. "You must delay Gaea as long as you can until we can help you defeat her and her giants."
"We will, Mother," Annabeth said. The eight sprinted for the Argo II with five of them shooting quick looks at their parents. Thalia and Will, whose parents and/or patroness were not a part of the fight, didn't even bother.
Once they had taken off, they heard the sounds of battle. Upon looking down at the ground, they saw the gods fighting each other viciously. "Will they be okay?" Piper asked.
"We can only hope," Will said, though his solemn expression belied his lack of hope.
"We should get ready for the flight ahead of us," Thalia said, and her voice was colder than Percy had ever heard from her. "We can't fight for them now, all we can do is delay Gaea and hope for the best."
"Right." Annabeth nodded. "Are everyone's weapons still in good shape?"
"I can fix most of them up if Annabeth commands the ship," Leo volunteered. "I can finish all the weapons by the time we get there if I start now."
Almost immediately, the demigods began to talk about the various problems with their weapons. Annabeth and Percy turned to each other. "Yours have a problem?" Percy asked.
Annabeth shook her head and twisted her small Celestial Bronze dagger in her hand. "No, cursed blade is doing just as well as always. You?"
"Riptide is magic. I don't think that it can break," he replied. "And Tyson's watch still works well. There's a dent, but it's probably not as big of a deal as the others' weapons."
Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Clarisse's spear literally just has a small nick in the shaft and she'll get Leo to fix it for her. I'm sure that Valdez would love to take a look at your magical shield-watch."
Thalia joined the two. "Do you have anything that needs fixing?" Percy asked as Annabeth took control of the ship's steering.
She held her bracelet aloft. "Aegis has a few dents. Once Valdez finishes with the rest of the weapons I'll ask him to take a look. Otherwise I'll manage."
Percy nodded and showed her his watch. "Same here." When she glanced at Annabeth, Percy spoke again. "Annie's knife is fine, I just asked."
"Annie?" Thalia asked with a raised eyebrow. "That's my name for her."
Percy shrugged. "Calling her 'Wise Girl' can get old sometimes," he replied off-handedly. "Are you ready for this?" he asked.
"Yeah. Although, the civil war between the god doesn't seem good. Where were Artemis, Apollo, and Zeus? Why weren't they there?"
Percy shrugged. "You call me Kelp Head for a reason, Pinecone Face. I have no idea." Thalia laughed harshly.
"That's right, Kelp Head. Don't forget it." The two laughed for another moment.
"We'll fix the dam problem, Thalia," he said finally. "Then we'll get some dam snacks from the dam snack bar."
Thalia laughed harder. "After I use the dam bathroom and get a dam T-shirt."
Annabeth shot them a confused look, but the two demigods only laughed even harder. They laughed until their stomachs hurt, and then laughed some more. Percy laughed, but on the inside he was trying not to be terrified. They might die, and then he would lose his Wise Girl forever. Or, at least, until they got into Elysium. But, he decided, it was nice to laugh so hard with his cousin. Even if they were on a death mission to destroy the earth itself.
Hey guys! Thanks so much for reading, please review and tell me your thoughts. Have a fantastic day/night!
~Nerd
