[ AN: Hey, I realize that this is a cliche Chaos story. Yes, I know there are many like it. Thank you, readers, few though you are right now, for taking the time to look at this. It means a lot to me. And this is kinda a strange chapter, I don't know what drove me to write it. Enjoy! ]
Chapter 6: The Training Ground
"Where are we going?" asked Percy.
Shanti still didn't reply. Percy guessed he had asked at least a million times, and she still wouldn't say. He was beginning to get annoyed.
"Hey! Are you even listening to me?"
There was an oddly serious look on Shanti's face. They walked to the end of a hallway in Chaos' castle, finally reaching a set of plain dark doors.
"Are we there yet?"
She kicked the door open, and Percy was shocked speechless. He stepped through the door, and found himself on a grassy meadow, high up at the foot of a mountain range. The air was crisp, the wind was cool, and the sunshine bathed his vision like liquid gold. It wasn't anywhere familiar, but it was Earth.
It was home.
Percy turned to her. Only one word seemed to come to mind. "How?"
She shrugged, her dark brown curls bouncing around her face. It reminded him of Annabeth. So many things about her reminded him of Annabeth. He tried not to think about it too much.
"This isn't Earth," she said. "It's not what you think. This is a pocket realm, a tiny figment of Chaos' imagination. We call it the training ground."
"The training ground?"
"You're not ready to take up your position as commander," she said simply. "You need more training. And that starts now."
"What—"
Percy could barely jump backward as Shanti's trident, Snakebite, shot toward him, barely missing his head. He rocked on his heels, one hand on the hilt of Riptide, but he forced himself not to draw it.
"What are you doing, Shanti?" he cried.
She raised Snakebite at him in challenge. "Fight me."
"What? Why?"
Shanti didn't answer, instead stabbing him again, aiming for his ribs. He rolled to the side, drawing Riptide and baring his teeth. "Fine. You asked for it."
To his surprise, her serious expression cracked, and a grin shone through. "Bring it on, Seaweed Brain."
He lunged forward, mock-growling. "Oh no you didn't! Now it's personal."
Thirty minutes into the fight, Shanti finally got an edge on him, kicking under him and sweeping him off his feet. His head hit the ground with a thud, but he was already rolling backward, to a more balanced position. But she was on him in a split-second, with Snakebite's three sharp spearpoints at his throat.
She grinned down at him. "Do you know why I asked you to do this, Percy?"
He stared up at her steel-gray eyes. "To train me?"
"Yes and no," she replied. "I wanted to see who you are. Who you really are. You understand?"
Percy blinked. In fact, he did. Combat revealed identity more than anything else could. He knew that from experience.
"I used to be the leader of the Champions, Percy." Shanti sat beside him on the grass.
Percy was slick with sweat, his muscles burning lightly, but she seemed perfectly fine.
"Why are you telling me this?" he asked.
"I . . . wanted to be honest with you." She looked down sheepishly. "I was a bit jealous of you for a long time. Every since Chaos saw you, she's adored you. Since your birth, she knew you would be the one to take this place at her side. And that . . . that made me angry. But that's why I wanted you to fight me. I want to know who you are, why she chose you. Words aren't enough. Words are never the truth."
Percy nodded in understanding. "Combat is truth for you, isn't it?"
She grit her teeth. Percy could tell something was bothering her, something she had been waiting to tell someone, anyone. He waited a moment. She was silent.
He decided to force her hand. "Shanti, who are you?"
There was a short silence. She burst out laughing. "You really know exactly what to say at just the right moment, don't you?" Her smile faded as quickly as it had come. "Who am I? I am Shanti, an orphan of war. I am the last partial incarnation of Durga, Hindu goddess of warriors. The funny thing is, my name means peace."
Percy listened silently.
"I've lived thousands of lives, Percy. The memories of every single incarnation of Durga live inside my head. And you know what scares me? Every single one was a warrior. A killer. It's what I was, too, when I lived on Earth, decades ago. War is the only truth I know. Even after death, after I joined Chaos, I've been fighting evil. I'm the best there is, the most brilliant, the most ruthless. But I can't do the one duty Chaos gave me."
"What?"
"I'm supposed to be Champion of Love, Percy. It's the one thing I've never been able to do. It's the same for all of the Champions. Erik, for all his courage, he's scared of a lot of things. His father's disappointment, his own weaknesses. Hanu endures death because he thinks he failed to act honorably in life. Leviathan, though Champion of Kindness, has a wild, animalistic side that she can't control. Anansi's wisdom makes him sad, depressed to the point that he wastes away for months on end. Zoe is afraid her sacrifices were worthless, or weren't enough."
Percy stared at her. "What are you saying?"
"I know why Chaos chose you now, Percy. All of us, we have flaws. But the way you fight, you fight with love and courage and honor and kindness and wisdom and sacrifice. You fight with everything you are, protecting everything and everyone at any cost to yourself. Like a mother defending her children. Even when you fought me just now."
"What? Who was I defending when I fought you?"
"You were defending me, Percy. From you. I could tell. You pulled half your strikes, you slipped up a few times, to keep me from getting hurt. If you had fought me honestly, you could have beat me. I know it."
"What? No, Shanti, you're more skilled than me! You hardly even broke a sweat!"
"I'm more experienced, Percy. But you have oceans of raw talent. And a perfect heart to balance your sword. Something none of us have. That's why Chaos chose you."
Percy frowned. "You think I'm perfect? You can add me to that list of failed Champions, Shanti. Champion of Humanity? I killed Gaea in cold blood. I nearly made her fade! The world! I nearly destroyed the planet! Where was my humanity when I needed it?"
He paused, trying not to remember the power flowing through his veins. He could almost hear Order's voice even now.
"The truth is, Shanti," he continued, "we all have faults. We're all still human. Well, mostly. But the thing about humans is, we're living beings. Yeah, we make mistakes, we don't live up to what our loved ones deserve, we fall from the pedestals people put us on. But we get up every time. We grow."
Shanti gazed at him for a long time.
Then she burst into laughter, collapsing onto the ground.
Percy glared at her. "What?"
"That was...that was..." She rolled over, still clutching her stomach. "Hahaha! My gods! That was the cheesiest thing I've ever heard, in all two thousand years of my life!" Percy's glare sharpened. She only laughed even more, poking his nose. "My gods. Wittle Percy Jackson has a squishy feelings side!"
"Enough," he growled. "And why does your breath stink? It smells like metal."
"Really?" she asked. "That's your best comeback?"
He glared at her again.
They sat in silence for a while. Eventually, she jumped to her feet and offered him a hand.
"Thanks," he said, getting up.
"No," she replied, her face suddenly serious. "Thank you. I was almost as depressed as Anansi right there. Now, get ready."
"For what?"
She grinned wickedly. "Training. I was going easy on you the first time. I've got thousands of years of Durga's battle experience in me, and I intend to beat every second of that into you. You need to be a lot better than you are if you're gonna face the armies of Order on Judgement Day."
Percy grinned, raising Riptide in challenge. "Are you calling me weak, Metal Mouth?"
She shot the grin right back. "You bet I am, Jellyfish!"
"Jellyfish?" Percy growled, dashing forward in a slash. "I'm insulted!"
And they were at it again. Percy knew, somehow, that this would be the first of many more duels to come.
[ AN: What did you think? Let me know! ]