Greetings readers! I hope that all of you enjoyed the previous one-shot!
This is the fifth and final one-shot and it directly follows the events of the previous two books and the first four one-shots.
If you have landed on this one-shot by chance, please read the first two stories and the four one-shots or else this one-shot won't make any sense and it will also spoil the two stories. Both stories are thirty chapters each and have around 389K words, so give them a try! The stories are:
The Tale Of Perseus: Beginnings(Book 1)
The Tale of Perseus: The Trojan War(Book 2)
Friendship (First One-shot)
Family (Second One-shot)
Reminiscence (Third One-shot)
Love (Fourth One-shot)
If you have already read those prequels, I hope you enjoy this one-shot.
All credit for the characters goes exclusively to Rick Riordan.
Aphrodite stood in the shadows and observed as her son Aeneas unveiled a statue of Percy to honour him and a watery smile broke out on her face when she observed the sincere adoration emanating from all the remaining survivors of the sack of Troy.
Percy had not only saved a chunk of the Trojan civilians, he had also given them a very strong tailwind and a calm passage across the Ionian Sea which led to the survivors building a town in a boot-shaped peninsula west of the Ionian Sea.
There were hardly a few thousand people in it and most of them were women and children and it had been rough for them initially but under the guidance of her son, she had no doubt that it would eventually turn into a cultural, social and economic hotspot. But she was not here to appreciate their resilience. She was here to inform Aeneas of the sacrifice of the greatest hero to ever walk the Earth. She patiently waited as she heard Aeneas delivering a passionate speech.
"General Perseus Diaboles is indubitably our savior. He was wholly responsible for helping us escape Troy when those barbaric Achaeans burnt our magnificent city to the ground. He commanded the sea to not only grant a safe passage but to also guide us here, to this land which is full of untapped potential. And this is where we shall rebuild our city into something greater than ever before." Aeneas stated in an impassioned voice and he was met with a thunderous applause.
He then turned to the fifty feet tall bronze statue that had been covered under a large linen sheet. The statue had showed up in the centre of their town only a few days ago and it was no doubt something sent by the gods, imploring the surviving Trojans to honour their savior. And they were ecstatic to be presented with this opportunity.
He made his way towards the statue, bowed in front of it before standing up and slowly removing the cloth covering the statue. Once the intimidating visage of Percy was unveiled, all of them deeply bowed.
It was a magnificent statue. It was large enough to tower over the entire town and was situated in the heart of the town. Percy was wearing his infamous armour and his swords were crossed in front of his torso. Aeneas stood up and placed his sword, the sword of Troy at the foot of the statue.
"Lord Perseus, you gave me this sword and along with it, the responsibility to guide these people, my people, to a new dawn. You told me to build a civilization based on the virtues of honour, valour and strength which would reunite all the people who worshipped the gods under one banner. Henceforth, all those who are to be worthy of wielding this sword shall spread your ideals to every known corner of the world." Aeneas respectfully bellowed and the crowd erupted into applause once again.
After a few more formalities and sacrifices to the gods and Percy, most of the crowd dispersed but Aeneas stood in front of the statue, staring at it. And that was when Aphrodite decided to talk to her favoured son.
"Aeneas, it gives me a great amount of happiness to see you honour your uncle." Aphrodite stated from behind Aeneas who recognised her voice, turned and bowed immediately.
"Rise my son. We have decided to bestow this honour of hosting the statue of the great Perseus Diaboles upon you and fully expect you to live up to his expectations. I am here to inform you about some recent developments but before that, I am sure you have many questions." Aphrodite calmly stated.
"Mother, I shall strive to live up to your expectations and I am deeply honoured to be given this opportunity to honour our savior. But yes, I also have a lot of questions. Firstly, a few weeks ago, we sensed some very erratic weather and some of the merchants from Sikelia told us that a gigantic storm had raged through the Ionian. Secondly, ever since the sack of Troy, we feel like our connection with the Divine world has been cut off. We haven't even heard anything from even Lord Perseus. Is something wrong?" Aeneas respectfully asked.
"Son, the cause of both these events is the same thing or rather, the same being. A few weeks ago, Tartarus, the Protogenos of the Abyss took a physical form and to make matters worse, he took that form inside a storm giant he had sired with Gaia named Typhon. We fought across the Ionian sea and finally imprisoned the storm giant under a mountain near the Sikelian coast. Unfortunately, we had to deal with the primordial himself after that and after another titanic struggle, we managed to defeat him and scatter his essence forever. But it came at a great cost. My brother, your uncle, sacrificed himself to take out Tartarus." Aphrodite stated in a morose voice.
"What?! Lord Perseus is dead? How come a conflict of such magnitude went unnoticed by so many of us?" Aeneas questioned.
"That was because we ensured that mortals didn't get involved in this conflict. Tartarus destroyed the physical forms of over a dozen minor gods and the rest of us are still exhausted. If mortals were allowed to get involved in this conflict, the world would take decades to rebuild. It already was in a very bad place due to the Trojan War. So Hecate covered the clash in multiple layers of Mist to prevent mortals from getting involved and injured." Aphrodite explained.
"Is Lord Perseus really gone mother?" Aeneas asked with a broken look on his face.
"He's not dead Aeneas. But he's not alive either. Assuming that he does regain consciousness, we suspect it may take him eons." Aphrodite stated with a sad sigh.
"What are we supposed to do now?" Aeneas asked.
"Dark times are ahead of you Aeneas. The world is saturated with a toxic outwash of energy. Long winters, famines, epidemics and widespread death will be mainstays for the next few decades. The world as you know will crumble to more primitive times. But power through. Do what he would have wanted you to do. My brother saved you not just because you were his nephew but because he saw someone who could sow the seeds for a united world. Lay the foundations to a civilization that will bear his vision to fruition." Aphrodite answered.
"I will not fail you mother." Aeneas promised.
"This may be the last time you see me for a very long time Aeneas. The gods will need to stop actively participating in mortal affairs to prevent any further outwash of energy. But never doubt that I love you and that I am very proud to be your mother." Aphrodite gently stated as she affectionately stroked his cheek. Aeneas closed his eyes as his mother teleported in a pink flash of light.
He then turned back to the statue and a determined expression made it's way onto Aeneas' face. He would not fail his uncle.
Ares watched as his son - King Romulus, the latest to ascend the throne to the city that housed the descendants of the survivors of the sack of Troy named the city after himself, giving it to the name Rome and its citizens the name Romans.
Once only a small town, over the past few centuries, the city has increased in size many times over and its population had increased exponentially as well. And now that Romulus had conquered the lands around Rome, he could finally crown himself king and Ares couldn't help but feel proud.
Romulus had been a result of a passionate affair between him and Rhea Silvia, a maiden that was a priestess of his Aunt Hestia and the boy had been raised by the fearsome wolf goddess Lupa.
After all those years of grueling training, Romulus had finally turned into a king and had taken the first steps into the creation of an empire that would eventually encompass all their worshippers. It would take centuries but Ares knew that Percy's vision would eventually become a reality.
Athena, or, as she was now known as Minerva by the Romans observed as the farmers of the Roman Republic revolted against the greedy nobles and gained the ability to determine their rulers themselves.
The Roman civilization had shifted from a kingdom to a republic a few centuries ago when the last king of the Roman Kingdom had turned out to be a tyrant. But the power had been in the hands of only a select few nobles.
Athena could see that this Roman civilization had potential to unite all the people who worshipped the Olympians because unlike the Greek city-states which had more differences than similarities, the Roman civilization was based on a principle of homogeneity in values.
They had a very strict view on life, kept a large, well-trained army and conquest was by far the most important thing for them. Aeneas had not been lying when he had promised that he would bear Percy's dream to fruition because he and his successors had made conquering the world their biggest priority.
The result had been that this new republic was already greater in power and population than any other state in their sphere of influence preceding it. And the gods could already feel the increase in power that they were experiencing due to the enhanced worship.
Unsurprisingly, the Big Three or as they were now known as Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto received the most worship from the Romans due to obvious reasons. Her father was revered as the great leader of the gods who was the protector of the skies while Uncle Poseidon was worshipped reverently for giving them safe passage across the seas, where most of their trade took place. Her other uncle was worshipped because it was believed that he was the one who gave riches to all the people living in the republic.
However, it had come as a surprise to her when the Romans had elevated her to a very high status as well, along with Ares who was now known as Mars. Athena had deduced that the Romans revered both of them so highly because they were war deities. Along with them, even Percy received a very high degree of worship.
The Romans had elevated Percy to hitherto unknown levels. They revered him so much that they hadn't even latinized his name, preferring to still call him Perseus Diaboles. But they had added a more apt title to him by which he was known more – Salvator Orbis, Latin for savior of the world.
They had erected statues of him all across their territories and worshipped him as the first citizen of the Roman civilization. Aeneas and his successors had ensured that Percy's involvement in the origin of the Romans would never be forgotten and that had resulted in an entire segment of worship being dedicated to Percy.
The Priests of the Salvator as they were called were highly respected citizens of the Republic. Aeneas had started the group by inducting and training those in the ways of the Salvator. Every consul and member of the Senate had to compulsorily learn under the Priests of the Salvator before they took their positions.
This group was made of very dedicated and influential individuals who were determined to keep the Republic in line with Percy's vision. They served as jurors, enforcers and in multiple other public offices.
Unfortunately, they had also made him seem like a very strict and intimidating figure unlike the Greeks who still revered him but also thought of him as a kinder and more pragmatic individual. This was a common problem for all the gods.
While there were many similarities in the way the Romans and Greeks saw them, there were enough differences for their aspects to start separating. And that was most certainly not a good thing.
Rome and Greece would eventually clash, Athena had no doubt about that but she didn't want her Roman aspect to bulldoze the Greek one because the clashes between aspects would give her a big migraine.
It would also be disastrous for Percy. He could not afford to be stuck in the midst of warring aspects. That would most certainly slow down his recovery. For that reason, Athena had come up with a plan. A plan that would let them keep the best of both aspects.
Apollo watched as Octavian, the nephew of the famous Julius Caesar crowned himself as Emperor, thus starting a new era in the history of mortals. It had been more than a millennium since the sack of Troy and the Roman civilization had grown vastly since then.
Now spanning the entirety of all the lands within their sphere of influence and some even outside, it was truly worthy of the title of an empire. And the gods were filled with an influx of power that had made them stronger than ever before. And thanks to Athena's ingenious plan, they had avoided a disastrous war between their Greek and Roman aspects.
Two centuries ago, when the Romans had finally started drawing up plans for an invasion of Greece, under the careful manipulation of the gods, they had instead ensured that Greece was voluntarily absorbed by Rome rather than occupied. This gave them a two pronged advantage.
One, it allowed both the Greek and Roman aspects of the gods to exist in perfect harmony because no single aspect tried to muffle out the other. This meant that the gods' aspects and subsequent behaviour was dependent on which group of people they interacted with and which aspect the gods preferred. Of course since the gods preferred their Greek forms more, they were always in that aspect unless dealing with Romans.
Two, it combined the brains of the Greeks with the brawns of the Romans to create a juggernaut of an empire. As much as Apollo appreciated the discipline and relentlessness of the Romans, he had to agree with Athena on the fact that they were no match for the Greeks intellectually.
Eventually, they would have occupied and copied the Greeks anyway so instead this new arrangement allowed Greece to thrive within the Roman empire while also benefiting the Romans.
The gods also didn't have to worry about their children from different aspects killing each other out of nothing but foolish hatred. That was something Apollo or for that matter none of the gods could have tolerated. It was much better to see his children working together rather than trying to kill each other.
Things were even starting to look good for Percy. His immortal essence had regrown to just less than a third of what it had been once been giving everyone something to celebrate. At this rate, Percy would be back in around two millennia which definitely was something to
be happy about.
Zeus disappointedly observed the fall of the Western Roman Empire and noticed the instantaneous but slight dip in the powers of the gods.
It had been good times for the past half millennium. The Roman Empire had grown to an extent beyond what even the gods could have hoped for and it had been nothing but fantastic for the first two centuries. But it had started to go downhill since then.
A crisis in the line of succession had resulted in a series of unqualified barrack emperors and it had also briefly resulted in a split of the Roman Empire into three separate empires. But then Aurelian, his own demigod son, one sired by his Roman aspect took over the throne and brought stability to the empire.
Aurelian was a man who had once been a Priest of Perseus and as such, was a capable man. He had almost single handedly brought back order and was aptly restored with the name Restitutor Orbis, a name that was no doubt well deserved. But his rein had unfortunately turned out to be a short one.
Then came Diocletian who also happened to be his son but one sired by him in his Greek aspect. Diocletian had finished what his brother had started and had finally brought stability to the empire. But he had committed a huge blunder by dividing the empire into western and eastern halves.
While it had initially made administration far easier, it had sowed the seeds for future civil wars and usurpers. And as predicted, it had led to just that. Once Diocletian's reign had ended, the eastern and western empires had gradually became different empires altogether which had been instrumental in the fall of the west and the decline in power of the east.
The Roman Empire had only held together because of the symbiotic relationship between its western and eastern halves. One served as the head while the other served as the heart. Together, it had led to a vast empire. But when separated, the halves didn't have the ability to govern such large landmasses. And the western half had finally fallen to Germanic barbarians.
While the eastern half still called itself a Roman Empire, it was most certainly more of a Greek Empire. Zeus was disappointed that the civilization which his nephew had helped found over a millennium and a half ago had fallen after reaching dizzying heights due to the actions of a few foolish mortals.
Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, adopted daughter of Minerva and legacy of Mars proudly stood as she waited to receive the mark of the legion along with her best friend, Jason Grace, son of Jupiter.
Today was the day the two twelve year olds would join the twelfth legion and they would do so in front of the statue of the great Salvator Orbis. It was the day which Reyna had been looking forward to ever since her mother had brought her to Camp Jupiter when she was four. Her thoughts were interrupted by Jason' voice.
"Yesterday, Thalia was telling me through an Iris message that today marks the day General Perseus sacrificed himself to defeat Tartarus." Jason stated.
"Yes, new legionnaires have been inducted on this day for the past three millennia to pay homage to General Perseus." Reyna answered.
"She also told me that apparently, in Camp Half-Blood, Chiron narrates the story of General Perseus at the night campfire. That must be awesome! Do you want to sneak out in the evening?" Jason excitedly asked.
"Jason, we are going to be inducted into the legion today. We can't go absconding on the same day. Besides, you know that the legion does not tolerate any indiscipline." Reyna replied with a huff.
"We can go on that wind spirit father that gifted me with on my birthday. No one will even know, Tempest travels really fast. Besides, it's been two weeks since I saw Thalia. I miss her." Jason stated with a pout.
"Stop behaving like a baby, Jason. We can go tomorrow with permission from the Centurion of whichever Cohort we end up in." Reyna chastised.
"But I really want to know more about General Perseus. These statues make him seem like a really strict and intimidating man but Thalia told me that Chiron told her that he was very cheerful and easy-going. It would be cool to know more about him than just his amazing accomplishments." Jason stated.
That was when they heard Lady Minerva's voice in their head. - " Maybe, I can help with that. Daughter, Jason is right. You should learn more about Percy. All your Greek siblings know his entire history. It's important that you do as well. So go to Camp Half-Blood after you are inducted. Tell your Centurion that these are my instructions."
"We shall do as you say, mother." Reyna respectfully stated.
"We are very grateful that you gave us this opportunity, Lady Minerva." Jason respectfully stated bwith excitement evident in his voice.
" There is much to learn for both of you from his life. Make the most out of this opportunity." Minerva mentally stated and a moment later, Jason and Reyna felt the mental link disconnecting. Jason immediately turned towards Reyna.
"What are we waiting for? Let's get inducted and then get out of here." Jason stated with a wide grin on his face. Reyna shook her head but smiled at him nevertheless. She herself was curious to know more about General Perseus.
Hey guys! So with this one-shot, we have finally completed all the one-shots that followed the previous story and next week, the first chapter of the final installment of this trilogy will be out.
First of all, the origin story of Romulus has been changed. In this alternate universe, I have changed the birth of Romulus to Ares and Rhea Silvia having a consensual affair rather than what is given in the myths because that wouldn't work in this universe for obvious reasons.
I have also changed the relationship between Romans and Greeks in a very massive way. This completely eliminates all the problem between warring aspects of the gods. And they have also not marginalized Athena so that eliminates even more problems.
Also, I have replaced Bellona with Athena in more ways than one. Of course, you would have noticed that while Athena now has demigod children, they are not her brainchildren. She only adopts legacies of other gods who need her. And of course, Reyna is now a daughter of Minerva. I will build on this more in the next story.
A shout-out to Ryan Fowler for giving me the idea about the priests of Perseus!
Read and review, I hope that all of you enjoyed this one-shot! Have a fantastic day!