"You mean the world has to deal with 2 of you?!" I exclaimed. He seemed only mildly irritated at the moment, all while I blinked in disbelief. He rolled his eyes, but seemed to be a tad bit amused.
"Some of the gods and mistified beings have Roman counterparts, while others are strictly Greek or Roman. You are a Greek god, but your heritage with Apollo and Nyx will likely have you crossing paths with their Roman counterparts. Each Olympian has a Roman half, but it seems you may be more... complicated." Zeus, for once, didn't seem uptight and like an asshole. He did seem a bit concerned though.
"Your mother had the power to choose your gifts and attributes, Seth. You've escaped her control using your Olympian half, but she made you a chthonic deity. An Underworld being."
"Wait, what do you mean I escaped from her?"
Zeus sighed, and a small smile crept onto his face. It was off-putting, really. "You're lucky Nyx ignored you for your childhood. She had control over you, but didn't do anything. Apollo built up your strength through the abuse, and your resilience built inside your individual mind. Most of Nyx's spawn have no real personality, they are embodiments of their domain, and are very gullible. You, while you may be gullible, are like a half of a half-blood. Your mortal part contributes to it as well."
"And what the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Listen, maybe it was Apollo's side, but my ADHD had a particular liking in Zeus.
"It means, that you are one of the most resilient and vulnerable beings of the world. The reason mortals have never been kind to you is because of your chthonic aura. You can fit in among half-bloods since you're a mortal split between many worlds. The gods are of your same status because of your powers passed from an Olympian and a primordial." He said it all matter-of-factly as if it was common knowledge, but I was hearing all of this for the first time. When Nyx first gave me the knowledge of the gods, there were lies and gaps in the info. Sure, I knew all the names and history of the gods and primordials, but I had no idea who Apollo was except for what his domains were. That was likely to try and get me to hate my father or keep him out of the picture, but words like chthonic were completely new to me.
"So I'm a mess with too many conflicting complications. Got it. And your Roman version; do you guys have the same memory, just a different personality?" I sighed and looked out over the peaceful night of the skies of Olympus. Zeus, for all I know, was more feeling the skies of Olympus, but I could see it all perfectly in the night.
"No, my Roman counter-part only has the memory and knowledge of Jupiter. Which means, Jupiter doesn't know you." I was about to turn and face Zeus, but I saw Jupiter instead. He looked about to raise his weapon, but I put a hand up for him to halt. He actually took a moment to think. This is way better than Zeus. I stayed in my dark form and began introducing myself formally.
By the end of the speech, Jupiter had lowered his offensive stance and seemed to nod in approval at me. Curiously, I thought out loud to the Roman god. "Are there Roman half-bloods, then?"
Gods, I regret asking that.
"Camp Jupiter protects legacies and demigods alike under the rule of the praeators. They are an honourable and disciplined force. My son-"
"Wait, but what about the pact? It's been weeks since Percy lifted the oath of the Big 3, don't tell me you already fucked someone to have another demigod?"
The disgust at my informality and disrespect made the Roman narrow his eyes at me, but he continued. "My son, Jason Grace, is one of the strongest. He is a natural hero; the perfect demigod with only respect for his superiors-"
"Wait, Grace? As in, Thalia Grace?" I was extremely shocked, but Jupiter just looked perplexed.
"I don't appreciate your constant interruptions-"
"Answer the question. Is your son, Jason, related to Thalia Grace? The daughter of Zeus?" The Roman stared for a moment, pondering or searching his mind.
"I am not aware of who Thalia Grace is, Lord of dark force." I cringed at the cliff-hanger and the formal yet stupid title.
If there's another camp for Roman demigods, and whatever a legacy is, then maybe I can go and ask this Jason Grace guy. Jupiter seems to like him, and he seems like a powerful demi. If he's related to Thalia though... how does that even work? Annabeth and Luke said that Thalia ran away from her mother to go on the run with them, and never made it to camp half-blood because she was killed. When she was brought back, she joined the Hunters and is now with them, but would she know who Jason was? Was he an older brother? Younger brother? I don't think Thalia would leave a younger brother behind, but they can't be twins if one's a Greek and the other's a Roman, right?
A glint of light struck me from just above the horizon. Dawn was here. I squinted as Jupiter looked on, then back at my form. He was very secretive about his observations and opinions, unlike his Greek side. In a hurry, I looked around the surroundings to make sure no other Olympians were looking to interrupt my plans. The abrupt motion must have set Jupiter off because his gaze became stern and I could feel electricity flowing just beneath his skin from 5 feet away.
"I'm leaving now, Jupiter. Nice to meet you," I muttered before reaching through the shadows. Suddenly, I considered something. The demigods don't know about Greek and Roman sides, and that must be for a damn good reason. If there were 2 camps that didn't know about each other, perhaps it was for the best. It likely wouldn't stay that way, I could tell that, but for now, it wasn't for me to reveal. In the sudden rush of thought, I miscalculated and landed emerged from the shadow just behind Percy's parents' sofa.
Stumbling when I failed to catch myself with my non-existent left hand, I felt myself fall forward from the backside of the couch. "Oh fu-" As I tumbled forward, I curled my chin to my chest to roll on my shoulders. It was a better landing than a face plant, so I went with it. When I blinked to get my bearings, I was lying on the floor opposite of the side of the couch I first teleported to. On the end of the sofa was a very confused Sally Jackson with a book in her hands.
"Seth? Are you alright, sweetie?" I pushed myself up, hissing at the phantom pain from my shoulder.
"Yeah, sorry. Miscalculated jump is all," I quickly replied. She was starring in what seemed to be worry and adoration simultaneously, and I almost froze under her gaze. Quickly, she diverted her eyes and focused on the book in her hands.
"Percy's just having a shower, and Paul went to walk and get the mail. Would you like anything to eat? I noticed you weren't at breakfast or sleeping out here, this morning." My mouth tried to bullshit some excuses out, but nothing came out under her motherly concern. "You really should eat some more, Seth. you're very thin."
With a sigh, I turned to face my best friend's mother. Just by looking her in the eye, I could see how much love she poured out for her family, and it almost made my heart crack with the raw kindness. "I'm touched by your concern, but I'm fine, Sally. Though, while we're alone right now..." The mortal woman cocked her head to the side, concerned and curious. With a small smile, I laughed a little.
"Don't worry, I just wanted to say thank you for all you've done. I saw you and Paul fighting in Manhattan, and Percy's told me so much of what you've done for him. You really are a hero, Sally. I hope you know that, and I hope you make sure that everyone else knows it too." I smiled brightly to her as she placed a hand over her heart. A grin widened across her cheeks, and she opened her arms for me to hug her. I hesitated, which somehow made her smile more.
"Come here, Seth. It's okay," she reassured. Slowly, I stepped forward for her to wrap her arms over my shoulders and pull me into a bear hug. I was a little taller than her, but I wouldn't have been able to get my arm over her shoulders if I tried. Hesitantly, I patted her on the back a few times, my muscles freezing up.
"Thank you, Seth. That means a lot, and I may have just met you, but I can tell that you're special—like Percy. I'm very sorry for the struggles you've gone through, even if I don't know their extent. You're very strong, Seth." As she released me from her grasp, I smiled a bit more. This mortal woman who I had just met, and who knew near nothing about me, had spoken the words I had yearned to hear for over a decade. This kind of thing had been happening a lot recently, but I still didn't feel ready for this much affection.
"AGHHH!" My head snapped in the direction of the startled yell. It was coming from down the hallway: 3 branches—window, guest bedroom, Percy's room. No shatter, likely not opened, window cleared. Guest bedroom is undecided. Percy's room: scream resembled that of Percy's voice, likely location. In the second that it took for me to decide the best route to go, I noted Sally's worried eyes follow me as I prepared myself for anything. A monster attack was what was likely behind the door. Probably dropped in on Percy's shower and he yelled in shock and surprise. However, Percy yelling like that wasn't the most common occurrence when dealing with monsters, so I was ready to attack or confront whatever was behind his shower door. Finding that the door wasn't even closed, I swung it open with the force of my sensitive shoulder to reveal a horrific scene.
"Seth?"
I exhaled deeply with anger and annoyance. There, having fallen backwards into the bathtub, was Percy. His lower half was tangled in a towel, and his hair was still soapy with blue bubbles in it. In the mirror, starring back, was none other than Poseidon. It was an iris messaged caused by the steam Percy's shower let fall, and the Sea king looked overjoyed to see his son, despite the current predicament. Gods fucking damn it.
"Oh! I didn't know Apollo's kid was staying with you, Perce," Poseidon quirked an eyebrow at his demigod son. Through the exchange of stares, eyes flicking around to the scene, and a slight red spreading across Percy's cheeks, I rolled my eyes. Percy must have been dozed off while he showered, and got surprised when Poseidon IMed him in the middle of it. Thus, he probably fell backwards and yelled, explaining his current situation and the yell. With a sigh, I held 1 finger up to the 2 fish-heads before stepping out to call out for Sally.
"He's fine, Sally!" While waiting for a response, I heard Percy scrambling out of the bathtub to get something over his bare body.
"Okay, thanks Seth!" She called back. I closed the door to Percy's room, but stopped before turning around.
"Is your dick covered?" I asked with as much sarcasm laced in my words as possible.
"What? I mean- yeah. I've got some shorts on now. You can look," he rambled. Turning around, I looked back to the mirror in the bathroom. Poseidon was still there, still with that overly enthusiastic smile on his face. Percy followed my gaze, and quickly nodded. "Dad invited me to visit him in Atlantis," he explained. Oh. OH. Wait, Poseidon invited me to come with him and his son to Atlantis?
"You betcha, son! Your can invite them too, if you want. Always good to connect back with your roots, right?" Percy looked around the cramped bathroom, nodding absentmindedly. I simply stared on, obviously showing my disagreement. "Well... I mean, night time's not bad? Tartarus, that's different, but the creatures of the sea sure are peaceful during the night..." I squinted before the King could continue rambling. Gods. Like father like son, I guess. Poseidon wasn't as bad as my father, but I would much rather go down to the Underworld and rub Cerberus' belly than eat dinner with Artemis and Apollo, or go swimming with Poseidon and Percy.
"Uh... sure, I'll visit. Only a few days at most though; I wanna spend some more time with Annabeth for a while." Percy smiled at the mere thought of his girlfriend, and I felt an urge to fake vomit at the lovey doveyness. With his father still wearing a goofy smile in the mirror, I glanced sideways at both water boys.
Percy looked at me, a nervous wreck while simultaneously being badass. "You can come if you want. I know you're still healing and everything with Will, Nico, and your parents, and I don't want to just drag you along-!"
"Shut up, Percy. You're making yourself more nervous than anything else, right now." Poseidon looked like he was going to scold me for telling his favorite son to shut up, but I sent a narrow glance at the god through the slits of my eyes. "I'll come with you, make sure you don't get yourself killed. I do look forward to visiting the last realm I haven't yet been to, Poseidon."
The Sea king looked to his son before showing any reply or reaction to me, and Percy just smiled stupidly as always. At that, his father did too, and he chuckled warmly. "I can promise you, you won't be disappointed, Isorreth. A young god like yourself is something I've missed. Apollo and Hermes are always fun, but they've got so much of my brother in them..." His brother no doubt alluded to Zeus, which made me smirk with him.
"I'm nothing like Zeus, Poseidon. Plus, I was there when you defeated Typhon. For that, you have a certain level of respect over that airhead in my mind." Poseidon liked the compliment, and ran a hand through his facial hair. Percy seemed more at ease now, just happy that I wasn't threatening conflict with his father. That must have been new for him.
"That was pretty cool, wasn't it? I will say, you distracted him long enough for us to get at him," he grinned. I internally winced while remembering the pain of getting bitch slapped through the air by a literal beast, but smiled to him in the mirror.
"Yeah, good plan for that one. You got him just in time before I almost turned into a rock-Seth-sandwich," I chuckled with Percy and Poseidon, but as the laughter died down, I returned to my gaze of steel. "You know, as much as your little brother can be a pain in the ass," Poseidon and Percy laughed a bit harder than they likely should have, "he did save my ass a few times during that fight. Also one of the reasons my mom was pissed at me, though. Yeah... that was not fun." I started chuckling darkly again, and I could feel my dark aura spread a bit more than usual.
Percy was looking confused, but Poseidon was still a giddy little kid watching as I laughed at my former pain. Smirking, I explained to Percy, "mother dearest didn't like that I bested her and that crazy house of night during the battle. If that didn't piss her off, the fact that I was helping save Zeus' ass definitely did. She kinda... unhealed my past injuries after this guy," I motioned to the mirror, "sent her a nice little gift. Zeus got pissy, and it got very messy. So... that's why I didn't give back a few of your shirts, Perce. Blood doesn't wash well." Percy looked just as done as I was, and he happily patted my shoulder.
"No worries, Seth. You got through a lot, and we couldn't have done it without you! We should take you shopping sometime, though. I mean- don't get me wrong, you look great in my shirts and all the stuff from your brothers and sisters-" Percy began rambling, so I rolled my eyes and sighed.
"Percy, let's just focus on the current topic? Then after, we can talk about how I look like a safe-guard veteran on a sunny day, 'kay?" I motioned quickly with my eyes to Poseidon, who was watching happily with a careless smile plastered across his cheeks.
"Ohhhhhh, okay. Wait- but how are you gonna breath? It's underwater, and-"
I laughed, interrupting the sea prince. I saw Poseidon's shoulder tense, clearly reaching for a weapon or at the very least tightening his grip on something, and I did my best to muffle my last few bursts of chuckles. "Percy, it's fine. I may not be able to just conjure air out of nowhere, but I can make a bubble of dark energy. As long as I'm enclosed, I'll be fine in my dark form."
"Oh. Okay, I guess... we'll see you..." Percy trailed off, uncharacteristically scratching the back of his neck while I pulled his arm back to his side. He smiled at me, and pulled me in for a bear hug. My muscles tensed at first, but then relaxed a moment later.
"Why not Saturday? You can tell me how that camp game of yours goes!" Poseidon was wayyyyyy too excited for this, in my opinion. Okay, maybe it was because Nico was Hades only son, and maybe I had already been to Olympus 2 too many times to like it, but still. I had to give Percy his moment here, since he was quite literally a fish out of water everywhere else. I mean, a hell-of-a strong fish, but still. I had gotten my dip into my element in the Underworld, and now Percy would get his in Atlantis.
Percy nudged me lightly, motioning to his father. Quickly getting the message, I nodded to Poseidon, "Nice talking with you, Poseidon. I'll see you Saturday." Awkwardly, I made my way out of the bathroom and shut the door behind me so Poseidon could discuss privately with Percy. This was gonna be an interesting trip.