Percy was only offered from the fifth cohort, which he quickly learned was the worst, but thought nothing of it. It's normal for rookies to get shitty treatment, no?
That was, until Jason was offered from everyone. The first included. Fortunately, he still picked the fifth, choosing to be alongside who he considered family. Percy also quickly realized Neptune wasn't the biggest, most respected god in the camp. People looked at him like he was an animal, a freak. He was back at square one. Still getting bullied. However, this time, he felt better about himself. He had power, he could fight. He could stand up for himself.
After the inductions, he found himself wandering to where the temples were, before stopping in front of the run-down beach shack that had 'NEPTUNE' labeled on it in lazily painted letters. He walked in, and kneeled in front of the altar, which had a half-eaten apple and a spider on it.
"Hey Neptune… I don't know why you did what you did for me back there, but I must thank you. To know that somebody wants me to be apart of their family out there, gives me confidence, gives me hope." Percy wandered, "I know you're not my real father, but I guess you're what I'm going to get, and I couldn't be happier."
"You're going to make my cry, boy." Neptune said from behind Percy, who stood in an instand, and hugged the god, much to the god's surprise. Neptune hugged him back.
"I can't stay long, but just know I believe in you. You're going to do amazing, and bring pride to Rome and bring pride to the seas. Your real father is unknown to me as well, much to my displeasure, but that's nothing we can't handle. In time, you'll learn everything." Neptune said, smiling. A tear rolled down Percy's face. Neptune took Percy's hand and placed a ring in it.
"That ring is enchanted, to fit on any of your fingers, and turn into any weapon you choose. All of the weapons were specially crafted in my forges, specifically for you. They'll grow with you, and are unbreakable by all metals on Earth."
"Any weapon?" Percy asked, astounded.
"Any." Neptune said, smirking. Percy thought of a whip, and sure enough, in his hand, a 20-foot whip sat, curled, waiting to be unleashed. He thought of a ring again, and it was a ring.
"I cannot thank you enough, Neptune."
"I need no thanks. The pride you'll bring me is enough."
X
The fifth cohort was friendly to Percy. He assumed it was because they understood the resentment he faced from the rest of the legion, being a son of Neptune. From what he understood, Michael Varus took the legion's eagle and the cohort to Alaska, where he lost it. Most of the kids in the fifth were bullied and picked on due to the cohort. Jason, however, stood out. For the few days the kids had been in Camp Jupiter, Jason was adored and almost, dare Percy say, babied, by most of the higher-ups. Percy understood it was because of his connection to Jupiter that caused the behavior, but it didn't mean Percy felt a tang of jealousy every time Jason was hit on, or complimented by a centurion. He found that when Jason wasn't around, nobody really wanted to associate with him. Percy took up most of his time by practicing with his sword, and sometimes going onto the beach to practice with a whip. He was too nervous to ask anyone to spar, with the fear that if he'd lost, he'd be bullied harder than he was before. Percy also quickly realized that the two bracelets that his 'father' had given him were enchanted, and Percy couldn't remove them. He'd asked Jason to try, to no avail. He cried the first night here, fear of loneliness and emptiness taking over. Percy was never an extrovert, always keeping to himself. His anger with his lineage was growing, faster than he'd ever wanted it to.
"Percy." His eyes snapped up from the bracelets which he was fiddling with. Gwen, the centurion of the fifth stood above him.
"It's our cohort's time at the arenas. Are you coming?" She asked with a smile. She was one of the nicest people to him, outside of Jason. He nodded with a small smile, and stood.
On the cohort's walk to the practice arenas, Percy noticed the Tiber. He promised himself he'd visit the lake after this, wanting to connect to whatever new connection to the sea he had. He also noticed smoke emerging from the Caldecott, which made Percy frown. He broke from the cohort, to nobody's notice, and started to walk over to inspect what was going on. He reached the bank of the Tiber, a girl with dark hair came sprinting from the tunnel, towards the river. Following closely behind was nothing other than the Chimera, running towards the girl.
"Come here!" Percy yelled, and the girl sprinted towards Percy, who summoned a sword from his ring. The girl was on the other side of the Tiber, and Percy closed his eyes, thinking about the body of water in front of him, and spread his hands out. When he opened his eyes, the water was split in two, creating a dry walkway across the river.
"Cross it!" Percy growled, trying to focus. The girl ran across, but the Chimera followed. When the girl got through, Percy let go, and the water slammed on both sides of the Chimera. Percy sighed, and caught his breath.
"Tha-" the girl started, but the lion lunged out of the water, at Percy. Percy barely managed to dodge, but the tail bit him.
"Fuck!" Percy hissed, his face morphed into anger. He stood, and the lion was slowly stalking towards him. The lion jumped again, and Percy perfectly countered, going under the lion, and slashing at one if its legs. The lion roared in pain, and rolled over. Percy's head got dizzy, and was slowly losing consciousness.
He quickly summoned a spear, and when the Chimera roared once again, he mustered as much power as he could, and chucked the spear into the Chimera's throat, killing it. He fell backwards, and the last thing he saw before he passed out was the girl he'd saved. Her black eyes stared into his, her face that of worry.
"You- l-look pretty." he stuttered out, before his vision faded to black.
X
Jason heard the commotion towards the Caldecott, and he, alongside many others, ran towards it. What he saw was not what he expected. His best friend throwing a spear into the heart of the Chimera, and passing out. He ran forwards, budging through the small crowd that had formed to Percy.
"Percy?" he asked in worry.
"He's unconscious." the girl that was next to him said, sternly. He looked up at her, and it was a demigod he'd never seen before. Her black eyes oozed confidence and Jason could tell she was sizing him up. He looked down at Percy, before he noticed his leg. There was a bite mark, and from it, green protruded onto the skin around it. He almost puked at the sight. He looked around worryingly.
"Medic!" he called out, and someone from the crowd rushed forward. Their centurion, Gwen, alongside Praetor Julia.
"What's going on here?" Julia demanded. The girl rose from kneeling before Percy.
"This boy just saved me from this- lion creature. It had a snake for a tail, a goat on its back!" the girl almost reported. A guy with blonde hair kneeled next to Jason.
"This is poison I've never seen before, Praetor."
"Can you fix it, medic?" Julia asked sternly.
"No." Jason's breath hitched. He was going to lose Percy now. He looked around, and his eyes locked in on the Tiber. Jason quickly grabbed Percy's limp corpse.
"Probatio!" Julia growled, but Jason ignored her. He walked towards the bank of the river, before lobbing Percy's body into it. The legion gasped.
"Are you trying to drown him?" someone from the crowd shouted. Other jeers of confusion followed. Julia stormed forward, anger written in her movements. She slapped Jason, much to his pain.
"Probatio Grace, what are you thinking?" She growled at him, and Jason took a step back, fear filling his lungs.
"I- uh, don't know! Son of Neptune! Water?" he stumbled out, and Julia's eyebrows furrowed.
"What in Pluto's name are you saying?" She asked, but Jason didn't get to answer. The Tiber exploded, a geyser shooting upwards, and landing on his ass between Jason and Julia, a completely dry Perseus Jackson.
"Jupiter's balls." he groaned. Jason's eyes widened.
"Percy!" he said worryingly.
"That's me." Percy said, standing. Julia's frown deepened. The gash on Percy's leg was gone, completely healed. The only way you could tell something happened was the large, gaping hole in his sweatpants. Percy looked around.
"What happened?" he asked to nobody in particular. Jason shook his head.
"You killed the Chimera." Jason said, and Percy's face scrunched.
"Oh, yeah. I remember that." Percy mumbled, noticing the crowd around them, much to his embarrassment.
"Fucking freak." someone from the crowd yelled. Snickers from the surrounding kids followed. Julia shot back a glare, shutting them up.
"We are to remove Grace and Jackson's probatio tablets and induct them as full members of the legion. Jackson's ability and Grace's quick thinking have proved worthy enough." Percy's eyes darted to Jason, who smiled at him. Then he looked at the girl who'd been followed by the Chimera, looking at him with scrunched eyebrows, and as their eyes met, she quickly looked away.
X
Jason and Percy got their SPQR tattoos, and as Jason got his, cheers and applauds came from the kids there, and Percy's was met with silence, even some heckling. They walked back to their barracks, Percy felt a tap on the shoulder. He turned, to be met with the same girl he'd saved at the Tiber.
"I never got to fully thank you…" she led off.
"Percy." he smiled, which she returned. "and your name is?"
"Reyna."
yes, it moves quick. yes, i don't put too much detail into these early chapters, just the important stuff.