Chapter 9: An encounter with Desire.

Please heed this warning, the Seastone Chair must never be held by one with the Blood of Titans. It is the first step towards disaster, and you must avoid it at all cost. If it means to abandon our place in the Pantheon, so be it. But I will not be responsible for the deaths of thousands merely because of your grudges.

Poseidon's Notes, page 1.

Percy had not paid much attention in Chiron's class if he was completely honest with himself. The weight of his father's book was heavy in his breast pocket, the implications of it scaring Percy deep to the bone.

What could he do? It was the question that burned in his mind throughout the entirety of Chiron's class in tactics. All he had managed to pick up was that Hunters could form teams to go on missions, with a minimum of three and a maximum of seven, although three was the preferred number. The rest of the class he had spent it lost within his own personal hell.

Should he keep reading? That would shed some light into his father, but it would mean that he would have to accept that his sins were his own. Should he throw it away? There could be secrets hiding in those pages, something to help him understand why his father had abandoned him. Something important perhaps, or important enough for Clarisse to risk her neck by trying to steal it.

He left Chiron's class quickly, ignoring the quizzical looks Annabeth, Nico, and even Chiron sent him.

"Percy, wait up." He heard someone say, and he noticed that it was Nico following him.

"What is it, Nico?" he asked.

"Well, we have a few hours 'till lunch, and Annabeth asked me to help you train in weapons. Coming?"

"Um Nico, right now is not a good time." Percy said.

"Is there ever a good time to do anything, I ask?" Nico said, "I can see you're in need of a distraction. Come, it might help you release some energy."

"Um…" Percy was about to decline, but as he thought about it he decided to follow Nico. Was else was he going to do? Keep sulking and asking the same two questions over and over? "Fine." He said.

"Better move then, I wanna try and get the most practice possible." Nico said, and they hastily moved through the corridors towards what Percy recognized as the path to the Arena.

"Um, Nico?" Percy asked rather hesitatingly.

"That's me." He said, "What is it?"

"Um…what's a titan?"

Nico stopped walking, his shoulders tensing. He turned to stare at Percy through dark eyes, and Percy shivered for a moment.

"Where did you hear that name?" Nico asked in a dark, dangerous voice. Right now, he did not appear like the cheerful boy he had encountered until now, no. This was the boy Annabeth had mentioned, the Hunter of Demigod rank.

"I…read it somewhere." He said.

"You're going to have to tell me where you read that, because that name has been prohibited in every single book that I know of."

"I…look. It doesn't matter. Let's just go." Percy pushed Nico forward, but they boy didn't bulge. He kept staring at Percy through narrowed eyes.

"You're asking a dangerous question, Percy, a very dangerous question." Nico said, "There are some things better left forgotten, and other things that are only known within a very tight circle." Although Nico visibly relaxed, Percy could tell he was still rather shaken by what Percy had asked.

"I'm not allowed to tell you," Nico said, "but I guess you have a right to know. You are a heir after all." He then sighed and turned around to face Percy fully. "Look, I'm not going to go into specifics, but all I can tell you from the top of my head is that they were…something else. A group of people, of evil people, who had the desire to rule the world and enslave all those who were not Enlightened. The thing is, they had unusual powers. I don't know much, this is usually something told only to the Heirs, but…" Nico leaned in, getting as close to Percy as he dared. "There are myths of them being able to see the future, and even alter time." Nico said, "The Titans are not something openly known, only the Pantheon. us heirs and a few select individuals know their existence. I'd suggest asking Bianca, she may know a little more, but keep quiet about it. We don't want people who are seeking power to go messing with things they don't understand, the last time someone tried well…let's just say that it's really hard to clean blood."

Nico pulled back quickly and turned around to walk again.

"Now enough chatting, I still need to turn you into a swordsman."

They arrived at the arena to find it mostly empty aside from a few groups of people who were training. Nico seemed to approve.

"Good, I don't like when people watch." He took off his uniform jacket and placed it on one of the seats surrounding the arena. He motioned for Percy to do the same and he gave a sigh of relief as he undid his tie. That left him with only the bottom part and his white button-up shirt, which he rolled the sleeves and loosened a button at the top.

"Good, now come." Nico said, sharing Percy's messy look. They walked towards a small storage area under the seats, where several weapons, shields, and even some pieces of armour were scattered around.

"Dude, we're in the 21st century, why swords, spears and armors?"

"Normal weapons do not work with Enlightened. Ask Beckendorf, the fool tried to shoot a gun and now he has a nasty burn. The thing nearly blew of his hand!" Nico said, "So the next best thing is to go traditional. Here, this should work for you."

He handed Percy a short one-handed sword. It felt…strange, in his grip, like it was too heavy on one side and too light on the other.

"It feels unbalanced…" Percy said.

"Yeah, no shit." Nico said, "It's a training sword, not the best quality. If you want something better made, go talk to Beckendorf, he's our Blacksmith." He said as he stepped out of the room.

"Not getting one for yourself?" Percy asked, but Nico simply smirked. He thrusted his hand to the side and shadows began surrounding his outstretched palm. Slowly they extended until they formed a beautiful black blade. The blade was darker than the pommel, and Percy could see some sort of red jewel in the centre of the crossguard.

"This is Styx." Nico said.

"Whoa, how did you do that?" Percy asked.

"If you're powerful enough, you can condense your Enlightenment into a weapon or something else. It's called a symbol of power. Styx is on its final stage before becoming a full symbol. Father has one, he chooses to condense his Enlightenment into a terrifying armor. He once wore it to scare Bianca's boyfriend, it was hilarious. I wonder what happened to the boy.

"Zeus' chooses to display a great spear called Masterbolt, and your father was rather famous for his Trident." Nico said.

"Wait, can I do it?"

"I mean, you're certainly powerful enough but…" Nico said, "I wouldn't recommend you trying to do it until you master your control a little better. It takes a lot the first time, and I'm afraid it could do you a lot of damage if you were to rip out a part of your own power without fully understanding it."

Percy agreed with Nico, nodding his head.

"Good, now, step one is to work on your form. Stand like me, feet a little—no you look ridiculous, try widening your—yes. Good." Nico said as he guided Percy through the stances.

"Like this?" Percy asked.

"Yep, good." Nico said, "Now, I'm going to strike, and you're going to try and block. The key is to maintain that form, use your joints to move, not your entire body. Understand?"

"um…I think so?" Percy said.

"Good." Nico didn't hesitate as he lunged towards Percy. Percy's eyes widened, and instinctively raised his sword to block, however he lost his balance and stumbled when Nico hit him.

"Good but remember. Keep the form or else you will lose balance. Again."

Nico and Percy sparred for over an hour, with the younger boy giving pointers and Percy slowly getting comfortable in the stances. By the end of the almost two hours that they had been sparring, Percy was confident enough that he had managed to get a few hits onto Nico.

"Good work." Nico said panting. Percy laid on the dusty floor, breathing heavily.

"I-I—that's too much work!" Percy heaved.

"It will get easier with practice. You did well, but that's only the most basic of things. Maybe tonight we can go another round, I'll teach you one or two things about range and lunges." Nico said.

"I'll see if I'm alive by then." Percy joked.

"Well, if you die let me know. I've been looking for a way to off Leo and if all it takes is overworking him, then perhaps it's easier than the things I have planned." Nico said in such a serious tone that Percy had to raise his head to stare at him.

"W-what do you have planned?" Percy asked.

Nico merely smirked, and Percy felt a chill run down his spine. "Never antagonize Nico." He promised himself then and there.

"We should probably head to the cafeteria. They're serving lunch right now." Nico said, "After that we have more classes, but it's mostly physical work like archery and swimming. We go outside for that one, there's a lake behind Olympus."

"That sounds nice." Percy said. Although Olympus was big, Percy was beginning to miss fresh air and some sunlight.

"Alrighty then, let's get movin'!" Nico said as his sword disappeared, and he picked up his jacket. Percy ran to put back his own sword but realized that someone else was already inside.

"Oh, excuse me." Percy said to the girl. The girl turned and Percy had to work really hard to control his emotions. The girl was gorgeous. She was tall, dark hair in ringlets, and wore plenty of jewellery and perfect makeup.

"Oh," she said in a sweet voice, "Hello, hun. Need help with your…sword?"

"Uh…" Percy stammered, "Sorry what?"

"That sword, are you going to put it away?" She smirked and licked her thick, red lips.

"S-shit, you can see that?!" Percy yelled, looking down. He quickly realized she was referring to the sword he carried in his hands, and Percy blushed deeply. "Oh, y-yes." He stuttered, "I was just leaving it here."

"Oh, I can help you with that." She said, taking Percy's sword and smiling at him as she did. She turned around, exaggeratedly swinging her hips as she walked towards the display of weapons. She dropped it, muttering a loud "oops", and she bent over without bending her knees. He then realized she was wearing really tight shorts.

Percy's eyes bulged at the show.

She then left the sword and turned around back to Percy, pressing her back to the far wall.

"Anything else I can help you with, hun?" She said.

"N-no." Percy said, "Thank you."

He was about to leave, but he felt a hand pulling his arm.

"Are you sure?" the girl asked, "I can help you in…lots of ways. Why don't you come with me?" she teased.

Percy wanted to refuse, but something was stopping him. He felt a compulsion to follow her voice, a draining touch of his will.

"I can do lots of things, Percy" she purred in his ear, "But I need a favour from you…"

"W-what?" Percy asked.

"There's a…book I've been looking for." She teased, "Its brown, the size of a notebook. Bring it to me and I will blow your mind."

"a…book?" Percy said barely above a whisper.

"Yes, hun. I am very generous with my rewards." She kissed him on the cheek and bit his earlobe, pressing herself against him as she did. Percy could feel her breasts on his chest, he wanted more. He felt himself losing control, emotions he had not felt in a long time resurfacing. Emotions he had only felt with one person before…

Percy reached towards his pocket. He tried to think of what he was doing, but there was a fog clouding his mind. He saw the girl teasing him by undoing a button of her shirt, slowly exposing her cleavage.

He needed to be with her. All she wanted was a book, right? He would give her the book and then…

Book.

Prophecy.

Titans.

Percy, in a moment of clarity, realized what he was doing. Reaching deep within him, he looked for the familiar feelings of the rush. They were there, ready to be used. The girl had done something to him that messed with his emotions, so it was easy to access his inner power. He called upon it, feeling its warmth. Then the flared it.

The girl gasped and flinched, her eyes widening in shock. Percy's mind cleared of the fog, his senses suddenly screaming at him that there was something wrong. He stared at the girl, glaring at her. He reached out with his hand, grabbing her by the neck and pushing her to one of the walls.

"What did you do?" Percy asked roughly.

"O-oh, hon. I do like it rough." She said seductively, but it was clear that she was panicking.

"What. Did. You. DO?!" He flared his power with every word, anger fuelling him. He had enough with the voices controlling his mind, torturing him. The girl had done something to him, something that had made him loose control. It angered him when others stole people's wills, and knowing that someone had the power to play with others minds, it infuriated him.

"I—" the girl began to furiously try to free herself, but Percy pressed his hand harder on her neck. The girls eyes widened, and tears began to fall from them.

"P-please…" the girl begged.

"Percy!" Percy heard Nico yell behind him, "Percy, what happe—" He could tell Nico was surprised at finding him manhandling a girl.

"She did something to my mind." Percy said.

"Charmspeak." Nico spat. He closed the distance, standing next to Percy. He looked towards the boy, noticing a dark look on his eyes. So he hated it too.

"Y-you weren't complaining when I-I was offering myself to y-you, were you?" the girl smiled, but Percy merely glared harder and tensed his hand.

"Let her go." Nico said, and Percy complied. The girl fell to her knees, breathing in deeply. She looked up at an angry Percy and an even angrier Nico.

"I-I—" she stammered as she pressed herself to the wall. "D-don't hurt me!" she said, "I will do anything." He felt something pass through him, like a cold wind. He shook his head to get rid of the unpleasant feeling, and when he looked at Nico he seemed to have grown angrier.

"You cheap slut." Nico spat, "How many times do I have to warn you. Never. Charmspeak. Me." He said. The air seemed to grow colder around them, and the girl began to openly weep.

"So that's how it feels." Percy said as he felt Nico's power first-hand. It was like a sudden gust of wind pressing onto him, making it hard to breathe for a moment. There was a chill in the air, but suddenly there was horrible heat rising from the floor, as if the ground had suddenly turned into lava. Percy felt something uncomfortable in his chest, and something calling him from somewhere.

"Listen here, Drew, and listen well." Nico said, "I will give you ten second to get your ass out of here. If you are not gone before I reach ten, I will cut that tongue out of your mouth and you will never be able to speak or do anything else with it. Clear?"

The girl, Drew, nodded furiously, and began to stand up.

"If I see you near Percy again, or anyone under the protection of the House of the Dead, I will make sure that you know nothing but pain. Oh, and do not speak a word to anyone of what happened here, or else…Capisce?" If possible, Nico's pressure increased, and Percy began to see him glow with a faint outline. He had seen something similar from Bianca that morning, she had glowed a dark silver, Nico's however, was a dark red, almost crimson. He saw the floor glowing too, strange weblike cracks appearing around his feet. The girl began to whimper loudly, and in a display of speed that would have amazed Percy if he wasn't so angry, she left the room.

Nico's aura faded, and Percy calmed himself too.

"What did she want?" Nico said darkly.

"A book." Percy said.

"She risked her life and honour of her House of a book?" Nico asked in disbelief.

"It's a rather special book it seems." Percy said carefully, "Clarisse sent three kids to try and steal it from my room, and now this girl, Drew?, she also wanted it. What's going on, Nico?"

"Beats me." He said, "but she was a girl from the house of Love. Stupid name. They specialize in seduction, and some of them, like Drew, can subtly control people's emotions."

"I take it you're not a fan?" Percy asked.

Nico turned red, and beckoned him to follow.

"They're dangerous. Like a cult. More than a few people owe debts to the House of Love, some even to Aphrodite herself. Do not let them fool you, out of all the houses here, I consider them to be the most dangerous of the bunch."

"I can see why…" Percy said angrily.

"No, you can't, and hopefully you never will." Nico said, "And also hopefully you never meet Aphrodite. That woman terrifies even Father."

"Is she powerful?" Percy asked.

"Physically? An asthmatic turtle in the moon taking a piss would beat the shit out of her." He smirked, "But there are more ways to have power than simply excelling in battle. Be careful around them Percy, they can pry things off you before you even realize, Aphrodite especially." He scowled.

"I take it you speak from experience?" Percy said before he could stop himself.

Nico merely sent him a dark look.

"That's where the conversation ends. Now come, although I lost my appetite, I think Bianca wanted to talk to you."

Percy nodded, leaving the room behind.