(DISCLAIMER: I do not own the MCU or PJO)

AN: Hello Everyone!

First things first, I'd like to greet everyone, Merry Christmas! This is one of my presents of sorts to you, the readers. I'd like to thank everyone for all the support, reading this fic and baring with my mediocre. I cannot thank you all enough. And sorry for the late gift, due to some reasons, the publication of the new chapter was stalled.

With that out of the way. Some things before we begin. I have updated TLO as well aside from this story, so for those who read that story, Merry Christmas. And lastly, I've been working on a new story lately. It's still in the planning stage, but I believe that it'll definitely be better than this and TLO since I've taken some time to refine my writing and get better at writing drafts/outlining and other stuff, but you don't want to hear that.

And as always, huge thanks to Meister7! He always does a tremendous job as my beta!

So without further ado, let's get on with the chapter!

Enjoy Reading!

( - )

And of course, like any shrine's purpose, it was made as a place of worship for a specific deity. Perseus looked to the statue at the centre of the shrine and raised a brow in curiosity as he recognised the goddess.

Just as his eyes landed on it, Perseus also coincidentally felt a warm feeling as he sensed a presence behind him. His smile curled into a smirk.

"Well well, It's been a while hasn't it…"

( - )

(Chapter 6)

( - )

"Well well, it's been a while hasn't it, sister," Perseus said with a smirk before turning around to look straight into the pair of fiery vermillion eyes that were in front of him. She was none other than Hestia, the goddess of hearth, home, and family.

Perseus held back some less than respectable remarks at the Gods who said that Hestia was the least appealing among her sisters every time he saw her, as the Goddess he was looking at easily thwarted those opinions.

"Yes, it has," Hestia smiled. "How have you been, Percy?"

Perseus' brow twitched at his sister's nickname for him. "Why do you keep calling me that, Tia?" He said with an annoyed grin, earning a laugh from Hestia. "It's a weird nickname and has almost no correlation with my name."

"It's much easier to call you that. And it does roll off the tongue," Hestia said teasingly with a grin.

Percy sighed. "I suppose you're not going to stop calling me Percy anytime soon, are you?"

"Never!" Hestia giggled as she saw Percy huff in reply. "It's great to see you again, though." She smiled sincerely.

"Same to you. How long's it been? A few thousand years?" Percy said, causing Tia to shrug. "Well, either way, you should really come to Olympus more often when I'm there, you can get to see Hera's bitchy face when she loses an argument with me."

"Perhaps I'll drop by from time to time. But only to make sure none of you go too far," Hestia said and gave Percy a stern stare after she saw his innocent-looking smile. "Especially you. You can get out of hand at times, you know." She said, making an understatement as he always went out of line.

"Maybe, but it's that bitch's fault for starting all the fights," Percy said. "I swear, that old hag should've gotten the title of goddess of bitches, not marriage. Why'd our parents have twins again? They could have just had me, and the world would be far better off for it."

"Seriously, when are you two going to grow up?" Hestia asked.

"Whenever she does." Percy answered, causing his sister to roll her eyes.

She was used to this already. Thousands of years went by and Percy was just as childish as he was when both he and Hera arrived inside Kronos' belly, meeting Hestia for the first time. She could remember the countless fights those two underwent and it was exhausting. One of the other reasons why she had chosen to be an eternal maiden was that she was already the mother-like figure of her siblings, being the most responsible and mature.

"So anyway, care to tell me why you've chosen now of all times to visit me?" Percy asked, before chuckling. "I mean as much as I'd love to have you around and chit-chat, it's not every day you suddenly pop out of nowhere to just 'talk'."

Hestia didn't answer immediately and instead turned to look at the burning town. Among the Olympians, Hestia was one of a kind, she was caring, selfless, and empathetic of others. It was really questionable how she was related to her siblings, who were less virtuous, so to speak.

She had seen various kinds of violence and brutality in her time; her family wasn't exactly as peaceful as her so it was to be expected. Thanks to this though, she was not fazed in the slightest by the sight of people being killed left and right by the vampires and witches.

"You know, Percy," Hestia started, not turning her gaze away from the town and its people. "You're a really great trickster."

"Uh… thanks?" Percy said, not seeing where she was going with this.

"You could fool everyone else, but do you really think you could fool me?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Percy said, sincerely oblivious to what Hestia was insinuating. He could get an idea of what she was talking about though.

"The reason you made this… army of yours," Hestia said. "I know you the best, brother, you know this."

"Indeed you do. So, what do you think is the reason?"

"You love your family. Our family."

It was highly possible that Percy could've just made his army for entertainment or to make sure the Gods would be praised for eternity, therefore resulting in Percy living for a long time, Hestia thought. But, she knew him. She really knew what kind of man Perseus was.

Before Percy could retort, Hestia stopped him as she turned to him. "Wait. Let me finish." She said,

"I know that's why you did all this, but should you really resort to such extremes? If you keep going at this rate, the world would lose more than half its population." Hestia said before sighing. "I can understand your frustration with them, but could you hear me out?" She asks, getting no reply from Percy as a signal of willingness to hear her out.

"Mortals…" Hestia began. "They may not live as long as us. They may not be as strong as us, but they're special and must be nurtured and cared for. They're full of passion and love, something anyone could pick up after getting to know th–" She said, before getting interrupted by Percy.

"Oh, I've spent a lot of time with these mortals." Percy hissed, his eyes glowing red. "I think I've gotten to know them more than I ever wanted to. They're nothing but primitive beasts. Animals full of malice, hate, lust, and greed. They're disgusting monsters that hide their true desires behind those innocent-like skins that they wear." He said, feeling a pain in his head as he did, causing him to calm down.

Hestia frowned, "You may be right, brother. But, I'm sorry to say you haven't gotten to know the whole human race. You've just been unlucky enough to stumble upon their darker sides and conclude that they were all the same. They're not all bad, there's good in them too, I know you've seen it as well. Not everyone is evil. And those that are don't just have darkness within them, there's a light there, beneath the surface. Sometimes, those that are full of anger, full of apathy. They are just broken souls and that's why we should nurture them, Percy. We shouldn't punish them, but care for them, show them the love they've been denied all their lives. Give them and others hope that no one's ever truly lost."

Percy chuckled. "I've got to say I missed that giddy optimism and hopefulness of yours, sister, but I still don't see the point." He said. "So what if they're not all bad, that won't stop me from doing all this."

"Well…" Hestia said before she went over to Percy and pinched his cheek hard while applying an ample amount of force and heat into her fingers, causing the latter to wince in pain. "Maybe if you stopped interrupting me, I'd eventually get to it."

"OW! Okay! I get it, let go." Percy pouted as Hestia pulled her hand away. "I won't interrupt you, go on." He said as he rubbed the spot on his cheek where Hestia inflicted pain on.

"Okay, good." Hestia smiled. "Like I said. You are right, Percy. Mortals are flawed, but they're perfect for the exact reason of having flaws. This is what makes them special. They are all diverse, yet none are better than the other as they're all unique." She said,

"I know you've noticed it too, brother, but even before we met the mortals. We have already been more similar to them than you may be aware of. They live the same lives as us, go through each day like us, and even have similar problems as us. They feel emotions just like we do, pain, heartbreak, grief, love." Hestia said. "I want you to forget about our divinity, our immortality, our powers. How different are we to them?"

"There's nothing wrong with being like them. It isn't an imperfection of some kind, or a defect we should get rid of, rather be grateful for. The mortals have taught us much more than we have ever taught them, and they only continue to grow. They are starting to become independent from us and that's fine because they have the freedom to." Hestia said.

"I love my family," Hestia said. "I love you and our family so much, you have no idea. And if it were up to me, I'd love for us to live for eternity together. But nothing lasts forever and there will come a time where mortals will no longer need us, so we should accept it." She said, finally finished.

Percy chuckled as he rubbed the temple of his head after Hestia finished speaking.

"You really know how to make the other guys riled up. I'll give you that." Percy said. The pain in his head was a result of his other counterparts threatening to come out and argue with Hestia in more than thousands of ways.

Percy laughed. "You know." He said. "If I didn't know any better, I think you've spent a lot more time with the mortals than I have. You're getting a little too fond of them."

Hestia laughed in reply. "Yeah, maybe," she said with a smile, causing Percy to smile back. The two siblings stared into each other's eyes in silence as time began to pass.

The silence was broken by Hestia as she stopped staring into Percy's eyes. "Oh, would you look at that, it seems I have somewhere else to be at this moment." She said, preparing to walk away.

"It was really great to see you again, Percy." Hestia smiled.

"Same here, Tia." Percy smiled back, watching as Hestia walked out of the shrine and turned to look at him for one last time.

"See you around, little brother," Hestia said before being engulfed by flames, which dissipated just as quickly. Once the fire had died down, the Goddess of the Hearth was nowhere to be found.

Percy chuckled as he decided it was about time for him to leave too. Going to leave the shrine, Percy halted his movements as he heard the familiar sound of fire burning behind him. He turned around to see that Hestia was back.

Hestia cut off whatever Percy was about to say as she spoke, "I forgot to say that you'll be having some visitors soon." She said before disappearing once again in a flash.

Percy raised a brow in reply before disappearing as well.

'Visitors… eh?' Percy thought as he reappeared right behind Julius and Salem, the two leaders of their respective squads and the first of their kind. They both didn't seem fazed by the sudden arrival and bowed their heads to Percy.

"Well done as always, you two," Percy said as he looked at the destruction both Vampires and Witches have caused to the town. The bloodshed that was splattered around the ground and homes was like art. And the raging fires that continued to devour everything in its path.

It was all exciting.

"Thank you, my lord," declared Julius and Salem in unison.

"I think we're just about done here, so go and finish up," Percy commanded, earning nods from both demigods before they went to carry out his order.

Percy was now left alone in the spot he currently stood on and that was when he felt the presence of five different divine entities behind him.

Percy laughed. "So let me guess." He said with a grin, still not turning around to face them. "My favorite niece. My two favorite nephews. A brainless airhead. And a nerd with a head as big as my brother's ego."

Percy turned around and smiled cheerily. "Yippee! I got it all right! I deserve a standing ovation!" He said as he clapped.

Before Percy, stood five very well-known Olympians. His favorite niece, the Goddess of the Hunt, Artemis. His two favorite nephews, the God of War, Ares, and the God of Thieves, Hermes. These three were more than happy to see their uncle as they stood in front of him, very different from the other two who were glaring at Percy.

Those were the God of the Sun, Apollo, and the Goddess of Wisdom, Athena. These two were glaring fiercely at the God of Evil, which Percy expected as he smiled seeing the look of hatred he got from Athena.

"Hey, nerd, how's your asshole?" Percy asked with a mischievous grin, causing traumatic memories to come flooding back to Athena who felt weak in her knees at the reminder of that day.

Percy laughed at Athena's reaction, earning him a glare from the Goddess of Wisdom.

"So anyway, I think we should skip the small talk," Percy said, ignoring Athena, as his amber eyes began glowing, causing the Olympians in front of him to tense. "It seems I'm pretty popular. Why else would five Olympians come down to personally meet a lowly non-Olympian like me?"

"Our father has asked us to escort you to Olympus," Artemis said. "He asked, specifically, for you."

"One of you could have done that alone right?" Percy said. "So, it seems that this is more than just an escort. Tell me. What if I don't want to come with you?" He asked with a grin, causing Athena and Apollo to release a glowing aura of power that would make any mortal kneel.

As the light died down, the two celestials were revealed to be clothed with battle armor and had pulled out their respective weapons. Apollo had his bow pointed at Percy, ready to release his hand for the arrow to be shot at the God of Darkness. Athena had been revealed to have appeared beside Percy, holding a sword to his neck.

"Then we will have no other choice than to make you come with us," Athena said arrogantly. "And that doesn't necessarily mean that you have to come unscathed. Bringing you to father alive could mean a plethora of things… he wouldn't argue if he learns that you resisted so we had to rough you up a little."

"Oh, really? You don't say." Percy said. "It seems though that you all have different objectives."

Athena looked confused, but saw what Percy meant as she finally noticed what was happening.

Hermes, Ares, and Artemis were also clothed in their armor and had their symbols of power unsheathed as well. But, the difference was who they were pointing their weapons at.

Hermes and Ares had their blades pointed at Apollo, who seemed to have already surrendered reluctantly as he was not holding his bow anymore and had his hands up in defeat. Artemis had her bow pointed directly at Athena's heart, causing the Goddess of Wisdom to frown.

"What are you three doing?" Athena said, trying to sound calm, but failed miserably at hiding her frustration. "Are you disobeying father's orders? Do you know what'll happen to you if you—"

"Ah shut up already, bitch." Ares cut off Athena, as he started closing the distance between his sword and Apollo's neck, causing ichor to come out from the God of Sun's neck. "Any more words out of you and I'll slice his head clean off." He said, which successfully shut Athena up.

Hermes and Percy snickered at Ares' words, infuriating the Goddess of Wisdom even more.

"We're not disobeying our father, sister. You are." Artemis said, matching Athena's fierce stare with her own, not backing down as she pointed her bow at the Goddess' heart. "Perseus is just asking of the consequences should he deny father's invitation, so stand down." She said before turning to Percy.

"Uncle, though Athena had worded it quite harshly," Artemis said hastily. "She spoke true. You have to come to Olympus, or we will be compelled to bring you in with force."

"No, no, I understood that the first time." Percy chuckled. "But, I have another question." He said as his eyes began to glow bright red, getting brighter and brighter with each passing second.

"And what is that?" Artemis asked, feeling tense like her brothers and sister, but kept a calm composure.

"Should I feel like not coming with you, what gives any of you the reassurance that you'd be able to take me?" Percy asked with an innocent smile as his body suddenly exploded with power. The God of Evil emitted an aura of power that would rival even Zeus, sending fear into the five children of Zeus in front of him; they widened their eyes.

Artemis' whole body tensed as she redirected her bow to aim at Percy this time. She was followed suit by both Ares and Hermes who pointed their symbols of power at him, alongside Apollo and Athena. The Goddess of Wisdom smirked.

"Uncle, are you not going to come with us peacefully?" Artemis asked with a fierce composure. She did not want to fight her uncle, she was sure that Ares and Hermes didn't either. But, they would have no choice if Percy decided to not come with them willingly.

Being stared down by five Olympians did not faze Perseus in the slightest, still smiling as he looked indifferent to the consequences that would come because of what he said. Percy unwaveringly walked past all the blades and went to Athena, slowly.

Every step he took sounded like an earthquake as each step brought about a surge of power; the ground which he stepped on burned within contact with his feet. None of the children of Zeus could even move to stop him.

Even if they wanted to, it was because they couldn't.

They all watched Percy's movements wide-eyed as the atmosphere, because of him, had made them all freeze in place. They would not deny it, they were frozen in place because of fear.

Percy stopped as he found himself inches from the Goddess of Wisdom who could only stare at him. Neither the other children of Zeus nor Athena herself could stop Percy from placing his hand around her neck, gripping it tightly, and raising the Goddess up into the air.

"It seems..." Percy said, sending shivers down all the Olympians surrounding him as his voice sounded distorted and powerful; he spoke softly yet sounded like he shouted.

None of the children of Zeus were as spooked as Athena. She was forced to stare deep into Percy's eyes as she was suspended above the ground. His eyes had changed; they looked decayed, completely black, and were oozing black fog from them.

"That you have forgotten a little something about who I am. And it looks like your father has as well." Percy said as he grinned.

"Well, I guess we'll talk about that when we go to him," Percy said as he dropped Athena onto the ground. All five children of Zeus took breaths of relief as Percy's commanding and dense atmosphere had dissolved. His eyes had gone back to their normal state as well.

"What are you all waiting for?" Percy said, turning around to look at the five Olympians behind him panting as he had already begun to walk away. "My brother's expecting me, isn't he? Let's not waste any more time." He said with a grin.

"Send your people back home. Then follow me into Olympus, wait for me outside the throne room." Percy mentally instructed Julius and Salem, as he, alongside Artemis, Athena, Apollo, Hermes, and Ares disappeared in a flash.

( - )

(In the Throne Room)

It was tense in the throne room as all the Olympians sat on their respective seats of power. The particular god in question, who was responsible for the tenseness in the air, stood before them. His grinning face did not at all change the nature of the atmosphere between him and his family.

The King of the Gods sat on his throne with a serious expression as he narrowed his eyes at his older brother, Perseus. He didn't look like he usually did whenever Percy entered Olympus as the circumstances had deemed it so.

Artemis, Ares, Hermes, Apollo, and Athena sat on their thrones as they had flashed to them after escorting Percy to Olympus.

Artemis, Ares, and Hermes looked nervous. Still shaken up from what happened earlier with Percy and nervous for what would happen soon now that they have delivered Percy to Zeus. They did not know of the reason why they had to bring him in, and from Percy's earlier gestures, it looked like it would be nothing but civil.

Apollo and Athena were somewhat relieved now that they were in the throne room. They were still both shaken up like their siblings, but now that they knew their father was with them, they didn't fear Percy as they did earlier anymore. Athena smirked as she was thinking of pitting both her father and Percy against each other by telling Zeus that Percy had harmed her.

The rest of the Olympians were also tense due to the arrival of the children of Zeus.

Aphrodite was nervous and shocked after seeing her (unofficial) boyfriend look sincerely spooked and afraid. In all her time spent with the God of War, she had never seen anyone capable of doing such a feat. This made her question what had happened in the time span where he along with Athena, Artemis, Hermes, and Apollo were tasked with bringing Percy to Olympus.

Poseidon, Demeter, and Hephaestus were also shocked for the previous reason and after seeing the children of Zeus looking so afraid. Hera, too, was surprised after seeing Athena so afraid and avoiding the God of Evil's gaze, causing her to think of what Percy did to the Goddess of Wisdom. Especially since she, along with everyone else, knew that Athena never easily backed down to him.

Needless to say, the Olympians were all nervous about what would occur in the meeting that would commence soon.

"Brother," Zeus said, his eyes never leaving Percy. His voice was stern and serious as he spoke to his brother.

"Brother," Percy smirked, greeting Zeus back as he grinned. "So what's the reason for me being called to Olympus this time?"

"Cause I don't see any depressed grouch anywhere," Percy said, his eyes exploring the throne room to find that there was an absence of a particular God of the Underworld.

"I'll be one asking the questions," Zeus commanded, his tone insinuating that Percy should shut up.

The God of Evil ignorantly shrugged, "All right."

"There is a serious matter that has been troubling me for quite some time now brother. I have asked for you to be brought here so that you could ease my worries." Zeus said before his face momentarily softened. "But, before that. I'd like to ask if there were any… complications during or before your travel here?"

"Hmm," Percy said as he put a hand on his chin. "I couldn't say that there was." He shrugged innocently with a clueless expression.

"I'm sure your kids would be able to attest to this, yes?" Percy said, grinning as he turned to look at the five Olympians who were tasked with bringing him to their father.

Artemis, Ares, and Hermes nodded in reply to avoid any conflict between their father and uncle. Apollo and Athena didn't though.

"Father?" Athena called out as she smirked at Percy.

"Yes, daughter?" Zeus asked.

Athena faked an expression of pain as she put a hand over her neck. "Uncle Perseus choked me in anger earlier out of nowhere when I had peacefully asked for him to come with us to Olympus." She said, prompting a reaction from her father.

Zeus whipped his head to Percy with a fierce stare.

"Brother." Zeus started as his eyes began to glow electric blue. "Is this true?"

"The nerd had it coming." Percy shrugged, unfazed by the gaze of his younger brother. "I was just asking a question."

"Perseus speaks the truth, father." Artemis pipes up. "Ares and Hermes can agree with me on this matter too, as they were both present."

"Aye, the bitch is lying." Ares raised his hand as he did so. He chuckled as he saw the glare being directed at him from Athena, to which he just flipped her off.

Hermes laughed. "Yes, what they said was true."

From the three's interventions, Zeus' face calmed and the electric glow in his eyes died down. "Apollo, are they telling the truth?" He turned to his son just to make sure.

"No father, they're lying," Apollo lied, and knew that his father would believe him since he was the God of Truth.

"I swear on the Styx that we told the truth," Artemis retorted, cutting off her father as the sky thundered in response to the binding oath.

Zeus glanced at Apollo, who avoided the King of the Gods' gaze in humiliation.

Zeus sighed. "I'm sorry for doubting you, brother."

"Oh, no, it's alright," Percy said with an innocent smile. "I understand that even the God of Truth can lie at times and often not think ahead before acting."

Percy shot Apollo a grin. "Right, airhead?"

Zeus cleared his throat. "Seeing as there were no issues, let us move onto the matter at hand." He said as he looked at Percy with a commanding stare; his eyes glowed electric blue once again.

"I'll be blunt with you, brother." Zeus thundered. "Are you plotting to dethrone me?"

Everyone stared at the God of Evil with wary expressions. They were all curious and nervous for what answer Percy would provide; they were hoping he'd say no, but most of them had hunches. It wasn't exactly a secret that Percy was gathering an army of monsters he made from tricking demigods into making a deal with him. So, it wasn't too far-fetched to assume the God of Evil would be gathering an army to go against Olympus.

Zeus kept a collected composure, but he was just as nervous as everyone else. He wouldn't want to fight against his brother, but if it is revealed that Percy wants his throne, he will have no choice other than to attempt to take him down and send him to Tartarus for treason.

They all waited with bated breath as Percy had not replied immediately. Zeus was beginning to think he was as he gripped the arms of his throne tightly.

Percy finally reacted to Zeus' question.

He began giggling. Which turned to him chuckling. Then it turned into full-blown laughter as Percy's laughs reverberated throughout the throne room. He laughed and laughed, showing no end to his cackling.

Percy had a brain. An idiot could deduce why he was summoned to Olympus. He knew it was about his recent endeavors. A powerful God like him making an army would obviously raise suspicions. But, out of all of the words he had assumed would come out of his brother's mouth, he did not expect those.

Once Percy's laughter had finally died down, he cleared his throat. "No." He smiled. "No, I am not."

"Then I must ask," Zeus said. "The army you've been making is powerful, so you can not blame me for having my suspicions. But, where do their allegiances lie? To Olympus or you?"

"They are completely loyal to me and therefore to Olympus," Percy said. "I swear this on the Styx." He added for good measure as the skies boomed in the distance.

Most of the Olympians breathed a sigh of relief as they could finally sit on their thrones properly. Thankfully, a potential war between Olympus and the God of Evil was averted. That was for most of them. Athena, Apollo, and Hera were more than looking forward to going to war with Percy.

"I see, I trust your word then brother. Your army will be a great asset to Olympus." Zeus smiled.

"You're sorely mistaken, brother," Percy said.

"What?" Zeus asked, confused.

"I don't think you understood what I meant, is what I am saying," Percy said. "My army is loyal to Olympus, this is true. But, my army is not something that you can just beckon or call for whenever you feel like it. My army is not to be used for your own personal gains. They answer to me and only me."

"If we're at war with a threat to Olympus, then by all means my army shall aid Olympus with their lives. But, anything short of that will merit an improbable reason for my army to have anything to do with Olympus." Percy said smiling.

It took Zeus a few seconds to respond as he thought about Percy's words.

"Very well," Zeus said as his eye twitched. "But, whenever Olympus calls for it, your army must stand by us."

Percy rolled his eyes. "I feel like you're ignoring me brother. Or are you just getting really paranoid?" He said. "Either way, yes. My army will stand by you."

"Then I believe that concludes that issue," Zeus said. "You may exit now, Perseus. What follows next won't concern you."

"Alrighty then." Percy grinned as he turned around and walked towards the doors of the throne room, about to leave. He stopped, inches away from the doors, confusing Zeus.

"Oh, and one last thing," Percy said, pausing before his body suddenly erupted like a volcano.

The whole Olympian council tensed, including Zeus as the atmosphere in the throne room immediately went cold and dense. Absolute and overwhelming power emanated from Percy. Clouds of darkness shrouded his body and darkened the throne room.

Percy turned around, causing the whole council to tense even more and widen their eyes. They all had their respective symbols of power on hand while Percy looked at them. His appearance had changed, much more horrifying than the one he had shown to the children of Zeus tasked with escorting him.

Perseus' clothing had all disappeared. His skin had turned pitch black, continuously fluctuating, swirling with darkness as if he was a living shadow. His eyes were a mixture of dark purple and bright, blinding crimson red; they looked like an endless void. He had grown five times larger and taller than his usual height. His teeth, which he showed off, were crooked and sharp. Their color had blended in with his skin and looked decayed.

Zeus stood up from his throne, his symbol of power on hand. "What is the meaning of this?" He asked, glaring at what was Perseus' true form with his electric blue eyes. He had mentally ordered the others to stay seated as he addressed his brother.

Zeus was surprised at the power Perseus emitted, wondering how he'd gotten so powerful, just like the other Olympians who were shocked at Perseus' display.

"Oh, nothing. I just want to talk to you about something." Percy said with a creepy grin.

"If all you wanted was a talk, why would you be in your divine form?" Zeus asked with an unwavering stare.

"This form is needed to send the message I'm about to convey," Percy said. "Brother. I don't mind being threatened, it's always a delight. But, if you're ever going to threaten me again. Come to me yourself, it hurts my pride that you'd think your children could handle me alone. I think you can do that much, yes?"

Basically, Percy was calling Zeus a coward. The King of the Gods could interpret that much from his words. Zeus gritted his teeth as both he and the God of Evil had a fierce stare down.

In the end, Zeus had relented. "Yes." He said.

"Good. Thank you for hearing me out, brother." Percy smiled as he had reverted to his original form.

He was back to his original size and was clothed. The throne room had gotten more lively and lit up, now that Percy was back to normal.

"See you all around," Percy said. "Except for the bitches and airhead though. Next time I come here, I'll be hoping to see your faces in Tartarus." He said as he gave them all the finger.

"Bye." He said as he left the throne room.

As the doors closed shut behind him, Percy breathed the outside air with a smile. He was able to quickly find Julius and Salem standing outside of the throne room just as he had instructed.

Just as Percy was about to speak though, he paused as he felt something.

"You two, good work," Percy said. "Go back home and get ready. We'll be fetching our third recruit when I come back."

"Yes, my lord." They both said in unison before disappearing in a flash.

Once they had both left, Percy spoke. "I know you're there."

He could tell she flinched, probably because she didn't expect him to sense her.

"Well, when you're glaring at me that badly, I don't really have a choice but to notice you," Percy said. "I deserve it. I know that much."

She still resented Percy and held great hate for him. He couldn't blame her. For all he knew, she could hold a grudge against him for eternity, but his goals took precedence.

"If it provides any consolation. I'll take good care of her. You have my word… Hecate." Percy said, sighing.

After a few moments, Percy followed his underlings and disappeared into the darkness.

( - )

Hecate glared deeply at the silhouette of Perseus as he disappeared into the darkness.

'I don't want your reassurance! I WANT MY DAUGHTER BACK!' The Goddess of the Mist gritted her teeth. Her emerald green eyes that resembled her daughter's were filled with so much resentment and rage.

But, beyond the anger, her eyes were also threatening to sob. She had seen her daughter up close for the first time in so long.

Gods. How she wished that it was under better circumstances. She wanted so badly to take Salem into her arms and hug her. She wanted to tell her that her mother was here. She wanted to apologize for never being there for her. She wanted to say she'd never leave her alone again.

She wanted to do a lot of things at that moment, but couldn't. The negative thoughts that plagued her mind stopped her from doing so. She thought of the possibility that her daughter would resent her. It was likely considering what she went through and that she might think her mother never bothered to claim her.

But, Hecate did. When she had given birth to her, she had duties to attend to so she had a mortal woman act as her temporary caretaker for the time being. It was only supposed to be a few days.

Alas, things never really went her way. Days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and then years. And when she could finally see her daughter again, when she could finally claim her, she was stopped by none other than the God of Evil.

At the time, she never knew his reasoning for stopping her from seeing her daughter but it didn't matter as she wanted to see her and she would. Perseus wouldn't allow her to though as he made her preoccupied and kept holding her back.

Before Hecate could stop it. She found herself watching her daughter get tormented day after day after day, and it broke her. It broke her so much that she couldn't do anything. It hurt her heart so much to see her daughter go through so much pain. And it angered her so much that it was all Perseus' fault.

When she had figured out his plan, it was all too late. Perseus had taken hold of her daughter's soul and had her as his loyal agent of darkness. Which made it even harder for Hecate to even approach her daughter.

Oh, how Hecate wished she could just make Perseus fade and take her daughter back.

'But I can't…' Hecate dropped onto her knees as she hung her head low. Her long black hair, which came down onto her shoulders, covered her pale and beautiful face.

A single tear fell from the distraught mother's eyes. Hecate looked intently at her shaking hands while trying so hard to hold back her tears; the tears that had built up over the years.

Hecate didn't know how long it took, but it seemed like many hours passed as she raised her head before standing up. She took some time to rein in her emotions, which were now under control.

Her eyes lingered on the spot where Perseus and Salem had previously stood and sighed.

'Perhaps, she will be better off with him.' Hecate thought. In the hours she was there, she had time to think and come to terms with the fact that she would never see her daughter again. So, she tried consoling herself, thinking that she'd be safe with the God of Evil.

She knew that Salem would be safe.

That was enough for her.

'As long as she's safe… yes that's enough.' Hecate thought as her breath began shaking and her eyes began watering once more. She put on a strong composure and held back the urge to curl into a ball and cry.

Hecate closed her eyes and took a deep breath. 'Yes. This is for the best.' She thought.

On that thought, Hecate disappeared into the darkness with no indication she was ever there in the first place; except for the pair of tear stains left on the ground.

( - )

AN : Anddd done! Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! If so, then please follow and favourite, it will be greatly appreciated! If not, then you don't need to. Also Review! I'd like to hear all your thoughts, comments and as always, constructive criticism is always welcome!

I'm afraid to say right now that the next update will take a while since I'll be predominantly working on my new story this month and the next. I'm hoping to get the first 2 chapters out by New Year's. I won't be giving out too much info on it other than it'll be a pjo crossover. Specifically, a Percy Jackson and Young Justice crossover. So that should give you an idea, though it'll be different from the most I've read.

Now. I'm sure that most of you could notice that some of your favorite authors have updated their stories. Like Lildrummerboi, Greed720 and Curious Beats! That is because Beats has organised a mass update among the authors in the EL server during December 25 as a way for us authors to give back to the community.

The Emerald Library discord server is a place where both readers and authors can hang out, chat, brainstorm ideas and many more. The link to join is in my profile (It won't expire). I don't know why I haven't advertised the server in previous chapters, but I'm an idiot. So anyway yeah, go ahead and join if you have discord, I'm online there a lot, though mostly lurking.

Anyway, that's all for now! See you all in the next chapter! And once again, Merry Christmas everybody!

~Lust420