Chapter 9

"Apologize already!" Hera snapped.

Apollo scowled. "Why should I? I've done nothing wrong! You should make him apologize to me for stabbing me! He's already lucky that I can't afford to just kill him without making Poseidon angry."

Poseidon sighed and slumped in his throne. "Must we continue bickering like this every time we settle in our Greek forms? We have a brief period where we're not completely at the mercy of our fighting forms and we end up fighting with each other. Am I the only one that finds this ridiculous?"

Athena stared at him weirdly, like she couldn't believe he'd said something sensible. "I... concur..."

The two stared at each other for a while, unsure of how to react.

Artemis put her elbow on her armrest, propping her chin up. She stared blankly at the glowing hearth in the center of the room. They'd been called up for a meeting by Zeus after everyone had temporarily settled into their Greek forms, probably to discuss some trivial matter. While Artemis was glad that she had finally settled into one form, she was a little irritated that she couldn't spend it with her Hunters. She hadn't heard from them in a while and wanted to see if they were doing alright.

Apollo and Hera continued to argue while the rest of the Council watched in annoyance. Zeus was late, holding the meeting back.

"It's nice to see everyone not flickering back and forth!" Aphrodite said as Apollo and Hera took a brief pause in their argument. "It's been a long time since we've been able to see each other. Well, I mean, it's been a long time since you have been able to see me."

Artemis glared at the goddess. She hated that Aphrodite was rather unaffected by the whole Greek-Roman split. She was the love goddess either way, though she was slightly more warlike as a Roman and slightly more risqué as a Greek.

"Uncle Poseidon, why can't you just let me kill him?" Apollo complained. He crossed his arms and pouted like a spoiled child. "You know he's just going to kill more of our children, don't you?"

Poseidon sighed. Resting an elbow on his armrest, just like her, he put a hand to his face. "Please, Apollo. I've already had enough of a headache dealing with Neptune. I don't need more of this."

"But—"

Poseidon put a hand up to stop him. "No, Apollo. Shut up. Please."

Apollo shut up.

"Where is Zeus?" Demeter asked irritably. "The crops need to be tended to. Otherwise those poor mortals will starve."

Right on cue, there was a blinding flash, and Zeus appeared in front of his throne. Thunder echoed outside, signalling his dramatic entrance. Immediately, he sat down and faced the rest of the Council.

"Did you get lost, brother?" Poseidon asked, looking over at Zeus glumly.

Zeus shot him an irritated look. "This isn't the time for jokes, Poseidon. We have serious matters to discuss."

"Then let's discuss before we're thrown back into frenzy."

"I agree," Zeus nodded. He turned to the rest of the Council. "We rarely get an opportunity like this in times of crisis, so I plan to make the most use of it."

You're not making good use of it by rambling on unnecessarily, Artemis thought.

"The plan is to kill Percy, right?" Apollo spoke up. "Father, you'll grant approval and override Poseidon, right?"

It was a valid request. Zeus had never been fond of the boy. Artemis once supported the boy, but she'd soured on him over time. Regardless of what he'd experienced during his exile, there was no rational justification for the cruelty he'd inflicted on countless innocent lives. He'd done terrible, terrible things. Of course, her brother had played a role in corrupting him, and she could understand how his mortal mind couldn't comprehend the true severity of his actions.

"No, it is not."

The whole room seemed to snap to attention. Artemis straightened in her seat and stared at Zeus. Was he actually voting against killing the son of Poseidon?

"Father...?"

Zeus twitched and slammed a fist down on his armrest. "Don't test me, Apollo. This is not the time to be arguing about whom to kill, what to kill, what to destroy. My children will be put in danger because of this forsaken war. No one here can deny the fact that were it not for Perseus, the wars would be far bloodier and ruthless than they already are."

"How does that even make sense?" Apollo scoffed. "Percy's more brutal and ruthless than anyone."

"Father is right," Athena interjected. She gave Apollo a cold stare. "Percy believes he can control fate. He plays both sides, holding them back from battle. He guides my children safely through Rome on their quest to find the statue. He holds the Romans back from killing the Greeks, and he spares the Greeks from fighting by taking on the Roman legions himself."

"Oh, come on! That's ridiculous!"

"Ridiculous as it may seem, it is far from fiction," she said calmly. "He is the key to salvation and destruction."

"But ignoring intent, his actions are reprehensible," Artemis pointed out. She met her half-sister's gaze. "The things he's done to demigods and mortals alike are not something we should revere. They are actions we should condemn."

"I don't disagree, Artemis, but there is a difference between acceptance and encouragement. Perhaps we are, indirectly, encouraging such behaviour. That is an unfortunate by-product of what we have created. But the benefits outweigh the costs."

"So we're willing to corrupt one soul to 'save' others?"

"If we must in order to keep our legacy alive, then it must be done."

"You realize you are destroying him, slowly but surely." Artemis raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you intend on disposing of him once his purpose has been achieved. You are the one on his side, are you not?"

Athena didn't back down. She kept her gaze cool, calm and collected. "Once he has created the balance needed to sustain a tentative peace, then Irene will take over. I have groomed her over the centuries for this very purpose."

Apollo blinked. "Oh, wow... Huh. That's... actually pretty good. I like the sound of that."

Artemis looked around at the Council. No one seemed to disagree with Athena's sentiment. Part of Artemis felt that way too. It wasn't unreasonable for them to get rid of Percy, especially when he had the power to cause as much destruction and devastation as he did. But the other part of her felt angry that they were toying with him.

She knew it was irrational. But she wasn't supposed to be a goddess of rationality. That was Athena's job. Artemis couldn't condone any support for Percy's ruthlessness, but she couldn't accept using him like a puppet. So many women faced injustice from men because they were seen as inferior. Percy was a demon of their own making. It was only right that they acknowledged that.

"So, as Athena said, we will begin our plan," Zeus told the Council. He cleared his throat. "Athena, you must speak to Irene and Morpheus. Get them to mitigate the damages soon to be caused by the son of Poseidon. Artemis, I need you to order your Hunters to contain him. And Poseidon, you must distract him. Slow his plans down. Give us the time necessary to pull his feet out from underneath him."

Poseidon set his lips in a hard line. "You told me you would give him a chance for redemption. You swore it by the Styx. Will you hold that promise, brother?"

"I will." Zeus looked deadly serious. "I don't like the boy, but at least he respects the gods. He views us as we are, not as lesser beings like many of the other impudent demigods."

"Respects the gods?" Apollo cried indignantly. "Did you not see what he did to me?"

"You deserved it," Ares grunted.

"He doesn't like you either!"

"So? I'm not the one that ruined his life. I just wanted to fight him."

"Wow, so helpful!" Apollo exclaimed sarcastically. "You're a real good partner, you know?"

Aphrodite pursed her lips. "He already accepted my apology. Maybe if you try, Apollo, we can resolve all of this without more bloodshed. If we reconcile, Percy might try to make peace between the two enemies."

"As if I'd apologize," he scowled. He crossed his arms. "How many times do I have to say it?"

"My daughter pities him," the love goddess continued. "How pathetic have we made him that my daughter, who's lived a horrible life because of that stupid owl goddess, pities him?"

"Excuse me?" Athena exclaimed hotly.

Apollo shook his head. "I won't apologize to him. Never! Unless he apologizes to me first. And, even then, there's no guarantee that I will forgive him. I might just smite him out of spite."

Zeus stood, silencing the room. He stared at each god and goddess intently. "Regardless of how you feel or what you want to do, no one will leave Olympus unless I grant permission. Athena and Artemis are both free for the time being to speak to their respective parties. But after you complete your task, you are to return to Olympus immediately. Is that understood?"

Apollo opened his mouth to interject, but was silenced immediately by Zeus' glare.

"Is. That. Understood."

"Yes," Apollo said meekly.

There were no objections.

Zeus scanned the room and nodded to himself. He gestured to Athena and Artemis. "Go. Be back before tomorrow. If you're not, I will get someone to find you."

"Yes, Father." Athena bowed to him and flashed away.

"Lord Zeus, can I suggest an idea regarding how to deal with Percy?" Aphrodite asked.

Artemis curled her lip in distaste. She didn't want to listen to the stupid love goddess suggest her stupid plan. She bowed to Zeus before snapping her fingers and riding the winds down to the mortal world. As the world materialized around her, she found herself in a small clearing near what was once called Massalia.

There was one lonely tent sitting in the center of the clearing. At its entrance, a silver-furred wolf lay in rest, poking its head up to acknowledge her presence. It howled quietly, alerting the tent's owner of the new guest.

As she approached the tent, the wolf stood up and walked over to greet her. She smiled as she dropped to a knee and petted the animal. She missed the little one.

The tent flap opened, and Zoë stepped out. When they met eyes, Zoë looked surprised and, for a moment, panic flashed in her eyes.

"My... my lady." Zoë bowed, dropping to a knee. "What brings you back?"

Artemis looked around at the empty clearing. There was no chance that more than two Hunters would share a tent. Something had gone very wrong since she'd last been with the Hunters. How long had she been out of commission?

Zoë seemed to understand immediately. "It's been fifteen years since you were formally accompanying us. Three years since you last saw us, my lady."

"What happened to the others?"

Zoë looked down, as if ashamed. "I'm sorry, my lady. It was my fault. I led them into a trap. The Frankish bands decided to hunt us after we killed a trespasser. We were all split up."

"What do you mean?" Artemis asked.

Zoë shook her head. "They were lost. I... I don't know where they went. We executed our contingency plan, but no one showed up. I think everyone fell back because the Franks kept advancing. I don't know why they were hunting us. I've been thinking about heading east and—"

Suddenly, the goddess' head roared with searing pain. She couldn't hear or see anything for a moment. Images of Rome flashed in her mind, and her memory distorted itself.

"My lady!" Zoë's worried voice came through when the pain subsided. "You're flickering back and forth!"

Artemis nodded in acknowledgement. She gritted her teeth, determined to remain Greek for at least a little longer. "Find the others. Use Irene. Athena created her to bring balance, to mitigate the damage caused by the wars. Save the Hunters and stop Percy."

The goddess bit her tongue, cursing Zeus for making them wait on Olympus for so long.

"Is he doing something right now?" Zoë asked.

"I don't know," she managed to reply. "Maybe. Go! Stop him!"

"I... I will, my lady."

Zoë looked scared for her. She appreciated her lieutenant's concern, but if she had been out of commission for over three years, and separated from the Hunt for over a decade, Zoë had to have been capable of leading the Hunters. She trusted that the incident with the Franks was an innocent mistake.

But the pain was too much. She couldn't say any more. She couldn't form coherent sentences and speak her mind.

Help Percy before it's too late. Help Percy before he destroys himself.

The words never left her mouth. In a blinding flash, Artemis found herself back up on Olympus. Her mind was splitting apart between her Greek and Roman forms. Nothing around her made sense. The Greeks deserved to die. So did the Romans. Everything around her was white. It felt like the whole world was screaming and shouting around her.

Welcome back, a part of her mind said, to your own personal hell.

Zoë sat on the grass, staring at where Artemis had been moments before.

She expected to feel guilty, but she hadn't anticipated it feeling this bad. Seeing Artemis in pain only made her more aware of how real the war was, how real her mistake had been. She should have done a better job protecting the Hunters. It wasn't as if she didn't know what Percy had been up to.

Anger replaced the guilt as her mind focused on the son of Poseidon. She hated what he'd done to the world, forcing everyone to suffer as a result of his selfishness. Artemis had her worst bouts when the Greeks and Romans were attacking each other.

But she couldn't not blame herself. If she hadn't gotten distracted and let the Hunters be separated, she wouldn't have been in this predicament. Percy and Irene had been in distant contact, and Irene had let her know about Percy's whereabouts. For the past month or so, that connection had been cut because she'd been on the run.

For some reason, Iris-messages to the other Hunters weren't working. There was something blocking their connection, but Zoë couldn't figure out what. She was sure that the others were still alive. She was confident in their survival instincts. Finding out where they had gone was the difficult part.

She had found tracks leading up north, but they quickly disappeared. They had been covered so well that she couldn't even make out where they had gone afterward. She went all the way up to what had once been Britannia without any luck. She'd gone down to Iberia, northeast into Germania, but still couldn't figure out where the other Hunters had gone.

She was on her way to the ruins of Ravenna, taking a quick pit stop in old Massalia for food and supplies. She hoped she'd find more success near Ravenna. The problem with finding each other was that they covered their tracks too well. Her wolf was pretty much useless, considering each time they started investigating a group of Frankish scouts would find her and attack her. They weren't as fractured as they used to be. Their communication channels were on par with the Romans'. It annoyed her.

With a sigh, she packed up her tent and went down to the river to wash her face.

"Zoë?"

The Hunter whirled around to the sudden sound, drawing her bow.

In the misty image, hovering in the air just behind her, was the aforementioned Irene. There was a horse behind her, and she looked like she was bent over a knee. Her expression was partly confused and partly relieved.

Zoë put her bow away and stared at the image. "Irene, how did you...?"

"We couldn't get to you for a while," Irene explained. She leaned back a bit in relief. "Oh, thank the gods something bad didn't happen to you. I can't imagine how screwed we would all be."

Zoë raised an eyebrow and glanced around her. "Something bad did happen. How did you get through to me? I've been trying to Iris-message the other Hunters for weeks now, and it hasn't been working."

"Other Hunters?" Irene blinked. "Weeks? What's going on?"

Zoë could feel something lurking in the woods around her, as if hunting her. A cold shiver ran up her spine. "Let's meet in person. Ravenna. On the coastline east from Classe. I'll be there within a week."

Irene scrunched her nose, the way she did when she was dissatisfied. But she obliged. "I can get there within a week or so. I made it to Corinth, so I'll probably find a way."

"See you there."

Zoë swiped through the image before Irene could say bye. She'd been on nerve ever since they'd split up, but it had gotten worse in the past few days. She could've sworn that someone... or something... was watching her. She gritted her teeth and set out.

It took her a while, but she managed to find her way to Massalia. It was nowhere near the city it had once been, but the Franks still operated some of the old infrastructure. The harbour, fortunately, was one of the few things that they hadn't plundered and pillaged. Old boats came to and fro, transporting people to the Italian peninsula. It was the one place where Franks and Ostrogoths cooperated. The war effort of the Ostrogoths against the Eastern Romans had heated up recently, which meant they needed a way to get troops over there quickly. Sailing was almost always faster than marching.

It took her a few days, having to take a few detours here and there. Her canine friend steered any troublemakers clear of her when she came upon populated town centers. The Frankish scouts seemed to disappear the farther east she went.

Zoë made her way to the spot she'd told Irene to meet her at.

While Irene surely had questions for her, she also had a lot of questions for the Champion of None. She wanted to know exactly what was going on with Percy.

Fortunately, Ravenna was Roman territory. She was also shielded by the Ostrogoths, who, other than in Massalia, weren't quite so friendly with the Franks. The cold feeling of someone following her didn't go away, but it didn't feel as threatening as she waited within the city.

Irene arrived just a couple days after her. The Champion of None was waiting at the shore, staring out at the sea longingly. She turned as Zoë approached, giving her a brief but curt nod.

"What has Percy done this time?" Zoë demanded.

Irene didn't meet her eyes. "He's beginning an assault on the Eleventh Legion. With the intent to kill them all."

Zoë clenched her fists. "Again? How much longer does he have to do this?"

Irene didn't say anything. She just stared down at the ground in silence.

"Irene!" Zoë grabbed her shoulders. "You're letting him destroy the world when you're the only one powerful enough to stop him other than the Olympians themselves. Does watching thousands of people die excite you?"

"This isn't what I came here for," Irene said stoically.

The Hunter's eyes twitched. "Did you expect me to come out and meet you so that I could tell you all about the Hunters' whereabouts? Are you going to relay that information to Percy so that he can plan to avoid us?"

"Maybe your antagonistic behavior is what's driving Percy further into the dark," Irene said coldly. She looked up with a harsh expression. "Have you ever thought about how you might be the only one in this world capable of stopping him?"

Zoë narrowed her eyes. "That's unlikely."

"My charmspeak doesn't work on him anymore," Irene continued. She looked almost frustrated. "He's gone too far into his magic. Ever since we took the brunt of the trauma-inducing memories out of his mind, he's become increasingly methodical and destructive. You have no idea how many sleeper agents he has across the Empire. Even I don't know the full extent of it all. He doesn't trust me enough to reveal everything. While he goes around hunting the legions, he has people in every nook and cranny of the Empire, feeding him information and tracking down independent Roman scouts. I can try hunting them down, but I'm not quick enough. By the time I take down even a tenth of his network, he'll have destroyed all the remaining legions. Especially now that he's met the Trio."

"Who's the Trio?"

"Three children of the Big Three. They're... they're the most powerful demigods I've ever seen. I don't know what happened to them during childhood, but they are all capable of becoming elite warriors. The son of Hades is already powerful enough to summon a small army of undead warriors without expunging his essence. That's unheard of."

"Is that some sort of sick coincidence? Why now?"

Irene shook her head and sighed, leaning back and staring up at the sky. "I don't know. I wish I did. A part of me wonders if Percy planned it all. He's been able to orchestrate and control so much. I haven't seen him have a human conversation in... centuries. Not since Trajan."

"That's because he's gone mad," Zoë muttered.

"Emotion is the only way to get to him," Irene said. She leaned forward and gave her an intense look. "Percy's biggest weakness is his ability to empathize."

"His biggest weakness is his arrogance," Zoë countered. "He thinks he's powerful enough that he can control fate."

Irene pursed her lips. "Yes, that's true. But what I'm talking about is that he's easily susceptible to human emotion. When he genuinely cares about something, he reaches out. But it's been a long time since I've seen him react with any sort of authenticity. He bottles up any of that care and just feeds his hatred and anger."

"Does Percy genuinely care about anything anymore?" Zoë closed her eyes as she remembered how he'd ordered the senators to stab Caesar to death and the cold, callous look in his eyes. "Other than utter destruction?"

"You."

Zoë stared at her incredulously. But Irene's gaze was firm. The immortal hero wasn't one to bluff. She was usually secretive and guarded, so when she spoke with any level of certainty, Zoë was safe to assume that she truly meant it.

"The Trio might be able to do it. But you are the only certainty."

Zoë glanced up at the sky. She wondered what Artemis would've thought about that.

"Zoë..." Irene hesitated, looking down as if guilty. "I'm guessing I'm not far off the mark to assume that you lost contact with your other Hunters because the gods are in a sticky situation. In that period, Olympus has blocked connections between us because I was working with Percy. Now that I've changed my strategy, or maybe because Lady Athena has shifted her own plans, I was able to contact you through Iris-message. We need to work together in order to solve this problem."

"So what do you propose?"

"Your main goal, at the moment, is to find your Hunters. My main goal is to mitigate the damages Percy will cause and is causing right at this very moment. We need to save him before he destroys everyone. First, we find your Hunters. Then, we deal with Percy's network. We pick it apart, piece by piece, until he's cornered. In that moment, you break him out of his rage. Show him that there's something worth protecting, worth living for."

She wasn't sure if that last part would work. It had been a long time since she'd faced Percy, and she wasn't sure how she would react to seeing him again. Thinking about him gave her a headache. And she was also certain of the fact that Irene wasn't divulging her whole plan. Breaking Percy out of his rage wasn't going to be as easy and simple as it sounded.

But Zoë felt compelled to try.

Irene stared at her expectantly. In that moment, with the way the sun filtered down on her features, and the background of the glittering sea, Zoë could distinguish Irene as a true daughter of Aphrodite. Despite her intense expression and rough looks, she was stunningly beautiful. Even with the scar across her right eyebrow, everything about her appearance was perfect. She could understand why she could so easily charm men. But, moreover, she was always genuine. She hid her feelings intentionally, showing the world that she didn't want people to know what was going on underneath her mask. When she did show her honest feelings, they were always authentic. It almost made Zoë want to believe her. Almost.

"We go separately," Zoë told her. "First, we find my Hunters. Then, you deal with Percy's network. I work on hunting him down with the other Hunters. We corner him, and if he tries anything, we subdue him and bring him to Olympus. So long as he's not continuing forward with fighting anyone, we leave him be."

Irene didn't look like she liked the idea.

"Percy's gone too far, Irene. We need to be cautious."

Irene closed her eyes in thought. She made a few different facial expressions. After a moment of silence, she opened her eyes and sighed in resignation. Extending an arm, she offered a handshake.

"Deal."

I know it's been a while, eh? As we continue to move along, please let me know if things become more and more confusing, if the characters are suddenly acting differently than they were before, if the story seems to have suddenly shifted, if there are inconsistencies. Since I'm always saying quite far ahead of what I'm posting, the new ideas I write have come to my mind long after I write these chapters I'm posting, and so the world might be twisting and turning as to how I suddenly see the story.

Anyway, I hope you all have a great weekend!

- Sharky