Percy talking

Percy thoughts

Adamos talking

Adamos thoughts

Characters are owned by Rick

(Except Adamos he's mine)

Chapter 18

Working the Room

It didn't take long after the battle with Ares before the police and media swarmed the three of us. We were bombarded with so many questions that some of the officer's present had to push the reporters away so that the ambulances that arrived could look us over. The entire time I was a bit worried about the paramedics lifting up Grover's pants and finding out about his legs, but Adamos kept reassuring me that the mist would hide his legs. It helped my nerves, but I still felt a bit of worry. But it seems that the mist is much more powerful than I actually thought because after the paramedics were done looking us over, I managed to over hear from one of the news outlets as they were covering our story.

"That's right Michael." A female reporter began speaking. "On the Santa Monica beach, a major conflict broke out. It seems as if the young adolescent known as Percy Jackson, as well as two others, were seen at the beach as the young Mr. Jackson was reported to be fighting off a suspicious individual in melee combat while using, what we believe was a crowbar that he managed to procure. The one known as Percy Jackson has been the focus much coverage recently as the lead suspect in a string of disasters across the country. However now many are claiming that the man that Mr. Jackson was fighting of was also present during these events. One woman in Denver has even stepped forward with physical evidence of the suspected adult threatening the group of children outside of her workplace. It seems as if we have now found our real culprit all along while Mr. Jackson and his two associates are merely the victims of this story. This is Miranda Farmand going back to you."

I could barely hold back the smile that was threatening to split my face. The mist had basically cleared me of all the crimes and pinned them on Ares. In the back of my mind, Adamos was laughing in hysterics at the outcome.

It wasn't long after that the reporters were allowed to finally interview us. They told all of us what I heard, only reaffirming the story. Annabeth and Grover caught on pretty quick too as the were nodding and sniffling, playing the victims on camera. Although I think that I had a much better performance than them.

"All I want," I said as my eyes watered with fake tears, "is to see my loving stepfather again. Every time that I saw him on TV, I knew we would be okay. And I know that he'll want to reward each and every person that helped in this endeavor with a free appliance from his store. Here's the phone number." Needless to say, Adamos was laughing even harder after that, and I nearly started myself.

The reporters and police however ate it up as they passed a hat around to pay for three tickets back to New York.

I knew that flying was the best way for us to return on time, and Adamos said that Zeus wouldn't dare to damage his Masterbolt while we were returning it but that didn't stop me from tearing the seat cushion a little as the plane took off.

"Come on flying is not that bad." I felt Adamos rolling his eyes at me.

"Yeah well to me this just feels wrong. People weren't meant to be in the air, if they were, we would be born with wings." I shot back at him.

Adamos gave out a huff. "You think I didn't try to give you guys wings? I tried to get Prometheus to put animal traits on some humans, but he wasn't having it. That guy has one of those stuck up artist mentalities. I mean if satyrs can look like that why not make different kinds of humans."

"You actually tried?" I asked incredulously.

I could feel Adamos pouting at my question. "Damn straight I did. Imagine people with wings or tails and animal ears, or horns and claws walking around like normal. I already know that Japan's onboard, and about 20% of the US population would love it."

I had to bite back a groan and the urge to face palm. I really wanted to change the subject as I didn't want to delve to far into this topic. I mean the Greek monsters were already animalistic enough, but I didn't want to think about the confusion that would follow if Adamos had his way.

"Just…whatever. Can you at least tell me what Olympus is like?" I asked trying to steer the conversation into different territory, as well as have something to focus on other than my nerves at flying. I can't believe that I listened to Annabeth and sat in the window seat, because she thought that it would help like with people with motion sickness and cars.

"Olympus, huh?" Adamos mused. "Its…probably still one of the most amazing places I have seen. Easily on par with Asgard or the Heavenly Realms in Asia. The mountain itself seems to glow like an aurora borealis at night. And the gardens that are everywhere are so meticulously done that it looks like time has stopped at just the right moment. But I'm looking forward to seeing everyone even more." Adamos spoke as his voice became softer and fonder with each word. The feeling of nostalgia washed over me like a gentle wave, and I felt my nerves ease at the feeling. The calm settled over me and soon I felt the day catching up with me. Traversing the underworld, confronting Hades, fighting Ares, and getting on the plane. My eyes felt heavy as Adamos continued to talk and soon I found myself asleep.

Line Break

Happiness. If there is one way to describe the dream that I'm having it would be that. Everything around me was just grasslands overlook a cove, with a few sparse tropical trees here and there. It wasn't as exotic and tropical as the island that Adamos lives on but there was an overwhelming difference

This place just seemed so alive. The grass was a vibrant green and the water sparkled under the sun. The sound of birds chirping in harmony only completed the serene feeling.

"Is there a reason that you called me out here." A feminine voice said. Her tone seemed stiff as she spoke.

"Ahh come on. Do I really need a reason to want to spend time with you?" A very cheerful voice sounded out. I recognized this as Adamos as I had gotten better at recognizing him. He was standing a small way away from where I was, a basket in his hand as he talked to a beautiful looking dark-haired woman, her features were far more elegant than I had ever seen on any normal woman and she seemed to radiate a pressure so I assumed that she was a goddess. She was wearing a flowing chiton under a leather breastplate, and she carried a Greek hoplite helmet under one of her arms. Her eyes were a startlingly familiar grey, like cold steel, that stared with an intensity that seemed to make me squirm instinctively. Adamos didn't seemed to be affected at all from her stare, in fact he seemed to smile even wider as her gaze sharpened.

"It would be best if you gave an adequate reason for being here so as not to waste either of our time." She said in a neutral tone.

"But every single moment with you is never a waste." Adamos responded in a dramatic way as he held his hand over his heart in the sincerest way he could.

This however did nothing to impress the woman as she gave him an impassive stare. The silence seemed hang between the two. It was so quiet I could even hear a slight breeze roll through. The tenseness broke though when the woman let out a soft laugh.

"By Chaos, that was horrible, even for you." She said as a small smile graced her features. It was like a switch had been flipped and all of the intensity that her gaze carried was replaced with a warm gaze.

Adamos let out a huff as he seemed to relax. "I know, I know. But that doesn't change the fact that I made lunch for us to enjoy." Adamos said holding up the basket. The woman only gave him a raised brow in disbelief. "OK fine." Adamos broke down under her stare. "Hestia made most of it, but I did help." Adamos said adamantly.

"Well at least I'll know which part you made by whatever is inedible." She playfully says as he walks past him and towards the cove.

"I will have you know that I am fully capable as a cook." Adamos pouts as he follows after her.

"Please. The only cooking that you know how to do is roasting something over a fire." She retorts.

"That's still a form of cooking." Adamos says with pride.

I continue to watch as they sit down and begin to eat the food from the basket. Occasionally Adamos would say something that amuses her, or she would pull out a scroll or paper and show it to him. The entire thing seemed peaceful as they enjoyed each other's company. I had to admit that it was pleasant scene to watch.

Adamos then looked up at the sky and let out a soft sigh and stood up. "The stars are starting to appear. We're going to have to end it here." The way he spoke made him sound disappointed.

"We might as well." The woman said as her face shifted back into a neutral mask as she followed his example. "The food was quite good… even the part you tried to make."

"Yeah well I'll just have to get better for the nex—" Adamos spoke before stopping. He shifted himself and looked past the woman to further down the beach.

The woman turned to see what he was looking at. "What are you looking for." She asks as she turns back to face Adamos. "There is no one over the—" She was immediately cut off as she spoke when Adamos kissed her full on the lips. Her eyes widen at the sudden kiss but just as soon as it happened, Adamos pulled away.

Her expression set into one of anger as she attempted to swipe at him, only for Adamos to step out of her reach with a cheeky grin on his face and his laughter sounding out, before he disappeared in a flash of light.

The woman stood alone on the beach for a few moments more. Her furious expression faded as she was only left with a large blush. "Gods he's such a jerk." She said but the smile she had told a different story. Then like Adamos, she disappeared in a flash of light.

Then like that everything began to fade away.

Line Break

I began to open my eyes as I felt someone shaking my shoulder. With bleary eyes I look over to see that Annabeth was shaking me awake.

"Waa?" I moaned out as I slowly woke up.

"We landed in La Guardia." She said. "They are getting ready to let all the passengers exit."

"Oh," I said as I moved to stretch in what little space the seat provided me. I let out a small sigh. "Thank the gods we're on the ground."

"Oh, come on its not that bad." Annabeth said with an eye roll. "You were asleep for the whole flight."

"That doesn't change the fact that I would have been shot down immediately if I didn't have the bolt." I said as I felt a shiver go down my spine at the thought.

After that it didn't take very long until we were allowed off the plane. However, we almost ran into a problem when a bunch of reporters were swarming the baggage area in order to get an interview, but with some of Annabeth's quick thinking we managed to escape from them. After that I decided it was best for us to split up at the taxi stand and asked for them to return to camp while I went to Olympus. Of course, they refused and wanted to go with me, but I rebutted that it would be better if they returned to camp in case something goes wrong on Olympus. They still didn't let up until Adamos snapped my fingers in front of their faces and their eyes glazed over as they stepped into a cab without complaint and drove off. I asked what he did, but he only said that it was just something to make them go along with what we wanted.

As the cab got closer to the Empire State Building, I thought back to the dream. I could still feel the traces of happiness at returning for him, and him talking about his family, also I do remember him saying that he was married to someone when we were down in the Underworld, but I can't remember who he was talking about on account of Lord Hades trying to wipe us from existence.

After about a half hour passed before the cab stopped and I walked into the lobby of the Empire State Building. The room was mostly empty, the sole exception being a rather bored looking guard sitting at the front desk reading a book with a wizard on the cover.

I walked up to the guard at the front desk and said, "Six hundredth floor."

The guard was quiet for one moment, two, three, six, twelve moments, I was starting to get a little annoyed. I struggled to maintain a pleasant face as he lazily looked up from his book. "No such floor kid."

"I need an audience with Zeus."

"Sorry?" He said, but his smile seemed empty.

"I need an audience with Zeus." I said in a tense tone.

"No appointment, no audience kiddo. The Olympians are having the solstice meeting right now." The guard said blandly.

"This guy is really starting to irritate me."

"That makes two of us."

"I think they'll understand." I said as I slid my backpack off my shoulders and unzipped it.

The guard leaned over and looked inside the bag as I reached in. His face morphed into a nervous look as I pulled out a cylinder of celestial bronze and the air hummed in response. "That isn't…"

"Yes, it is." I said. "But if they are too busy…"

"No! No!" He scrambled out of his seat and began to rifle through a bunch of drawers until he found a golden card and gave it to me. "Insert this into the security slot, and make sure that no one is inside with you when you do."

I walked into the elevator and did as he told me. As soon as the doors closed, I slipped the key into the slot, and I big red button appeared. And when I mean big, it was the size of a soft ball.

I pressed the button and waited, as the digital numbers started to slowly go up. Rather bad music began to play on the speakers as it went up.

"So, what exactly are we going to do?" I asked, breaking the silence of the ride.

"Well, I'm gonna take control of your body and then I'm gonna own that entire council meeting."

"I seriously doubt your planning sometimes… and your sanity." I said.

"Just trust me Perce. I got everything under control." Adamos said, and just after he finished talking the elevator dinged and the doors opened. I almost took a step forward before I pulled back. Just outside of the elevator door was a pathway in the middle of the air. The steps seemed to just be suspended in mid air which did nothing to reassure me that I wouldn't fall to my death on the first step.

"Quit being such a baby and get moving." Adamos said and I could feel him rolling his eyes at my caution.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know that my instinct for self-preservation is bothering you." I say as sarcastically as I can.

"It really is. Now get a move on we need to get there before the meeting ends."

I rolled my eyes and slowly reached a foot out to tap the first of the stone steps a few times before I put one foot fully on it. Now confident that it wasn't going to fall if I stepped on it, I took cautious steps up the walkway. My eyes followed the steps as I walked forward until they seemed to reach the end. However, it seems as if my brain had short circuited for a moment as I found myself unable to form a proper sentence to describe what I was looking at.

From the top of the clouds, a massive mountain peak rested. Snow covered the summit, despite it being summer. Clinging to different parts of the mountain were dozens of multi leveled palaces, all of them sculpted from the finest marble and decorated with different metals that seemed to glow. Bronze braziers were everywhere on the mountain and they each flickered a different color, causing an iridescent glow to cover the mountain. Gardens littered different areas and seemed to be a wash of different colors from the flowers. I could make out an open-air market filled with tents, and an amphitheater built into the mountain side.

Suddenly my feet started moving again and it completely caught me off guard. "Come on. You can stare at the mountain when we leave. We got places to go, people to meet." Adamos said as he took control of me.

"But…how is this even here? It's a mountain in the sky! This shouldn't be possible."

I could feel Adamos rolling his eyes at me. "It is possible. Believe it. Now I could tell you the actual reason of how it exists, but I know that you won't understand in the slightest, so instead I'll just say we gods, are awesome."

"This is… I don't even know how to process this into words." I said as I looked around as Adamos came closer to Olympus.

"Beautiful. Splendiferous. Magical. Disney land 5.0." Adamos started off. "I think that those are adequate words."

"Yeah…" I absent mindedly said as we passed through a gate and into Olympus. The buildings looked even more impressive up closely as the marble in the buildings seemed to be made from a single stone rather than multiple pieces. The open-air market was bustling as merchants offered to sell me ambrosia-on-a-stick, a shield, and golden replicas of the apple of discord and the golden fleece, but Adamos didn't stop as he walked right past them with out even looking at their products.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a group of women setting up a stage of instruments in a park, and I could only guess that they were the muses. A small crowd was even gathering in front of them. Overall the entire place looked festive and joyful, and not at all like a major theft and near civil war just occurred.

Adamos walked down a road that was wider than the others and as we got closer to the peak, the amount of people present began to thin out until there was no one left but us. This part of the mountain was lit up like the rest, however it was intricately different. Gone were the stores and the parks and public gardens. This street only housed some of the grandest looking temples that one could imagine. Further up ahead I could even see two that resembled cabins eight and seven back at camp. One being made of intricate silver and marble that glowed in the moonlight, and one that seemed to be made entirely out of gold.

Adamos stopped in front of a vacant space that looked completely out of place on the street. This was the only vacant spot, there was no palace that stood there. Instead all that stood in a large lot of grass was a single fountain, a few benches and archways covered in flowers and a tree that looked to be in perpetual bloom. Even with these it just felt…empty, like something was meant to be here but wasn't. I wasn't able to think too long on this as Adamos immediately left and walked over to what looked like the most modest looking building in the entire area. It wasn't very large or as lavish as the others, though it was still made of marble like the rest.

Adamos walked up to the door of the temple and knocked on it in a musical rhythm. It didn't take long before the door opened, and a flood of comfort hit me. Standing in the doorway was a smiling Hestia in her thirty-year-old form.

"So, what may I do for you fine young gentlemen?" She asked.

Adamos smiled at the goddess. "Sorry, but I have a favor to ask of you."

Line Break

"So why did we have to see her?" I asked.

Adamos rolled my own eyes at me and I found it a bit annoying. "I literally just explained it to her and you. What don't you get?"

"Just why we need her."

"It never hurts to have a back up plan or a contingency in case things go south." Adamos mentally spoke.

After the brief visit to Hestia's temple he set off once more, climbing the main road. As we made it closer to the top I was taken back by the largest building present. Not because of how impressive it was, I mean it was probably the most impressive building present, but rather at how strikingly similar it was to Hades palace down in the underworld. The only real difference that I could see, aside from the lack of skeletons and this one had an actual ceiling, was the inversion of color. Where Hades had black and bronze, the Olympians had white and silver. It only took me a moment before I realized that Hades must have copied the designs since he wasn't allowed on Olympus unless it was during the winter solstice. If he couldn't go to Olympus himself, then he would bring Olympus to him.

Heck even the layout was the same as Adamos climbed the steps and walked into a courtyard and making his way into the building and towards a massive set of golden doors. Like the ones that lead to Hades in the underworld, these doors were carved with images in it. However, where Hades had scenes of death and misery, these doors held scenes of heroism. I could see Hercules facing the Nemean lion near the center, Odysseus sailing the oceans, and even the original Perseus killing Medusa.

Adamos walked closer to the massive set of doors and the quietness stopped as I swore, I could hear the sound of…arguing? Grow a bit louder. When he stopped in front of the door, he shifted the backpack on his shoulders ever so slightly. I took that as even he was nervous about what would come next. I myself would be on the edge of my seat if I had one in my own mind.

"Are you sure you can do what ever it is your planning?" I ask. "I mean, we could just give the bolt back and leave."

"No," Adamos let out a deep breath. "For things to work out, this needs to happen."

Adamos tentatively reached out and knocked on the golden doors. The faint sounds of arguing ceased.

"Enter." A voice boomed from within.

Adamos pushed against the door with some effort as this thing was obviously meant to be used by beings much larger than my twelve-year-old body. As soon as there was a large enough entrance, he stepped through the crack of the door and entered the room.

Actually, room seemed to be a rather weak description to use. This place was larger than grand central station and at the very least it was fifty times as grand. Marble pillars stretched upwards to meet a domed ceiling that was littered with constellations that moved as if they had wills of their own.

Twelve thrones, each the size of what Hades had in his home, were arranged in an inverted U shape just like the cabins back at camp. And just like the cabins these thrones were in the same sort of style as them or at least something related.

As soon as the door closed with a loud clang, I noticed that twelve sets of eyes were staring directly at us. The only one not looking at us was the little girl, who I made out to be Hestia, that was sitting next to a massive brazier, simply tending to the fire.

Internally I gulped as I felt the raw amount of power that they were exuding. Even if I wasn't in control of my body, I could still feel the pressure and the way my skin felt like it was burning. If Adamos was nervous he didn't show it as he walked straight up to the two thrones that sat at the head of the U. His goal was the man that sat in a throne of solid platinum. Arcs of electricity seemed to travel from the base to its peak and back down his seat. He wore an impeccable blue pinstriped suit. His face was proud and handsome, and his beard was a marbled mix of black and grey that reminded me of a storm cloud. However, what set me most off were his eyes, as the seemed to be a mixture of blue and grey, like a thunderstorm where lightning was about to strike.

"Zeus." I internally recognize.

"Lord Zeus." Adamos said as respectively as he could as he bowed in front of the massive being. But I had a feeling he was forcing himself to be respectful and pleasant by the traces of tenseness he had in the movement.

Zeus looked down at us with cold eyes, like he was measuring us up before he spoke. "It seems the spawn has at least some form of manners." He mumbled. "So, boy." He spoke louder and his voice seemed to echo throughout the chamber. "Have you come to turn yourself in and confess to stealing my bolt?"

"Brother." The man that sat next to Zeus spoke. His voice sounded familiar to my ears and I felt old memories of a smile surface. I got a good look at him as Adamos turned his head slightly. The man wore a tacky beach get up with sandals, khaki shorts, and a Hawaiian shirt. His skin was deeply tanned yet he had a weathered look to him that showed he was someone that worked in the sun for long periods of time. He had the same black hair as me and his eyes were the same shade of green as well. This was the first time that I had ever actually met the man known as my father, and I felt any words I might have said catch in my throat.

"No, my lord," Adamos said a bit loudly so that his voice carried to everyone present, gathering all attention to him. "I have come here to personally deliver your bolt to you."

One of Zeus's eyebrows rose. "So, you acknowledge that you are the one that has my bolt?"

That sentence… it sounded wrong in my head. Like a simple statement that held immense weight to it.

"Currently yes. I am the latest person to have acquired your bolt."

"The latest?" Zeus inquired. At this now all eyes were on Adamos as he stood from his bowing position and took off the backpack and reached in and pulled out the Masterbolt. As soon as it was out in the open the weapon flared to life and the air began to hum. The power it was emitting was far more than what I had felt at the beach. Suddenly the smell of ozone wafted around as the bolt glowed brightly, as if it was reacting to its true owners' presence. Adamos stepped forward and presented the bolt, which flew out of his hands and straight into Zeus's grasp where it elongated to match his towering size.

"Yes sir. The bolt was found to be in the possession of some random minor god." Adamos easily lied as he stepped back to his original spot. I didn't know why he was lying but in the corner of my eyes I could see that a few of the gods and goddesses were now looking at us with analytical gazes, while others didn't seem to care. However, the one that seemed most baffled by this was Ares, who until now was glaring directly at us, but his face morphed in to one of confusion before settling on a stone like gaze that showed hardly any emotions. Although I could still see the faintest traces of Ichor where I wounded him.

"A minor god had my bolt?" Zeus asked rhetorically. "Tell me the name of this traitor now! They shall face dire punishments for laying their hands on my weapon." Zeus growled.

"I'm afraid I can't do that lord Zeus." Adamos said, and Zeus's face contorted to one of anger, but Adamos continued, cutting off whatever he was about to say. "It is not that I am unwilling to but rather that I don't recognize the god that helped steal your bolt as he teleported himself away before I could, however he did give away the person that handed him the weapon after they stole it."

At this Zeus's angered face eased up, but it still held underlying tones of anger. "Then tell me who this supposed thief is." He demanded.

"He said that the one that gave it to him was Luke Castellan. Son of Hermes." At the mention of the name a gasp sounded out and Adamos turned to its source. A tall man with elfish features, sandy blonde hair, and wearing a track suit sat at the edge of his seat. In his hand he held a caduceus so tightly that I could see that his knuckles were white. I could only assume that this was Hermes from the striking resemblance to the kids in Cabin eleven.

"Are you sure?" He asked, almost pleaded. Adamos just sadly nodded his head and the elfish man looked to a man who sat in a golden throne. This man had golden blond hair that shimmered like sunlight and could only be described as hot. The two seemed to be having a silent conversation with their looks alone and it wasn't long until Hermes slouched in his throne, a grim acceptance on his face.

Adamos turned back to Zeus and began to tell him about the quest, all though he left out bits and pieces and replaced Ares some faceless figure and expectantly he left out his own involvement. Once he was finished a silence hung in the air, and only the crackling of the hearth broke it.

"You used my bolt?" Zeus said with a glare. Internally I was in disbelief that he focused on only that out of the entire story.

"Yes lord." Adamos admitted casually. "In order for me to properly make sure that the bolt was at no risk of being taken I used it to defeat the minor god. Without such a mighty weapon as it, I would have never been able to survive the confrontation with the unknown god." Adamos began to speak, laying the praise on thick. "Such a powerful weapon was able to allow me to best an immortal being. It is truly a magnificent weapon of the highest caliber." He praised but internally I could tell he was trying really hard not to grit his teeth as he spoke.

Zeus however seemed to suck up the praise like a sponge to water as he broke out into a smile. "Hmm. It seems as if your spawn has an eye for true weaponry." He said with a mocking grin to my father, who just rolled his eyes in response and began to fiddle with the massive trident that sat in a holder on his throne, which resembled a fisherman's chair. Zeus then looked back at Adamos. "Very well boy, I sense that you are telling the truth so I shall excuse your use of my weapon and your invasion of my domain as you were using it to return it to me. However," His tone then took a serious turn. "I do not like what your existence means for Olympus and should I find you in my domain again then I will smite you, are we clear?"

"Of course, Lord Zeus." Adamos said without flinching. "But if I may lord Zeus, I also have another reason to be here."

Zeus didn't seem all to pleased at my continued presence and probably wanted us gone now that we weren't needed. "What is it?"

"Why, I bring you all gifts of course!" Adamos said in a delighted tone as a smile adorned his face. This seemed to bring a major mood shift in the room.

"Gifts! Did I hear someone say gifts!" The blonde on the gold throne shouted as he looked at Adamos with his full attention, he was smiling so brightly that Adamos had to squint.

"Calm down you idiot." A short, compared to the other immortals, auburn haired girl said as she threw a knife that missed the blonde by a few inches. But that didn't stop the girlish yelp he let out.

"Artemis and Apollo never change." Adamos inwardly chuckled at the two now named gods.

"Oh, relax Artemis," A feminine voice spoke out. Her voice sounded as smooth as silk. Adamos turned to the voice and I couldn't bring myself to look away. Olympus itself was breathtaking but this woman could stop a person's heart with how beautiful she was. Her features seemed to be in a constant shift, going from one style, color, and feature to another. She was filing her nails as she spoke. "I for one am looking forward to what the little cutie brought for us." She said as she looked at me and gave me a smile that can only be described as angelic. I felt myself blush at the praise.

I felt Adamos mentally slap me in the back of the head. "Stop staring at Aphrodite. I can feel your lust from here."

"Shut up Aphrodite." Artemis growled. "You'd just drag him off to your bedroom as soon as physically possible, whore."

Aphrodite hummed a bit, obviously not bothered in the least by the last comment. "Hmm, maybe in a few years." She says while looking me over. Internally I squirm as she looks me over but Adamos doesn't seem to mind in the slightest. "He looks like he has potential."

"Must you two squabbles over something so needlessly." A stern voice said. The voice belonged to the dark haired woman from my dream. Her grey eyes cut like steel as she looked between the other council members. I felt Adamos's breath hitch slightly and heat spread through my checks as he looked at her. Her gaze shifted over to me and her eyes seemed to bore into my very soul, like they were digging and dissecting everything about me, but at the same time they had a hollowness to them for the briefest moment. Then it hit me why she looked so familiar. She had the same eyes as Annabeth, so that must mean that this is her mother Athena, who is also Adamos's wife.

"Yeah she's right." Apollo yelled after collecting himself. "If you two keep arguing I'll never get my presents."

"Fine." Artemis and Aphrodite both said, though Artemis seemed to be speaking more to Athena than Apollo.

"I think it would be best to go in random order by what I pick out." Adamos said, as if he weren't the least bit fazed by the argument that almost broke out for the pettiest reason. This idea earned an energetic nodding from Apollo and a grin from Aphrodite. Zeus however just huffed and frowned as he realized that he wouldn't be getting his gift soon.

A small sacrificial fire shimmered into existence in front of Adamos, he sent a grateful smile to Hestia, who smiled in return as he took the backpack and started digging around in it. "Let's see, I know I put it in here. Grenades, hand gun, sword, spear…" Adamos started listing off as he began pulling said objects from out of the backpack, making a small pile that only began to grow bigger. He didn't seem to notice like I did how all of the god's eyes seemed to widen at the ever-increasing pile of weapons that was next to us. "Ah here it is!" Adamos exclaims as he begins to pull something pink out of the bag, but it seems to be stuck. He digs deeper and pulls. "And your gift Lady Aphrodite is your scarf, which we…retrieved?" Adamos blinks as he also pulls out…a rabbit?

"Ok, I swear I had nothing to do with the rabbit." Adamos says quizzically as he looks at the pink scarf in his hands as a small white rabbit clung to the end of the clothing.

"EEEEEE," A squeal broke through the room as Aphrodite hopped off her throne and shrunk down and rushed over and picked the rabbit up and cradled it in her arms like a baby, as she barely gave the scarf a second thought as she tossed it onto her shoulder. "Oh, you are just so cute!" she fawned over the small animal as she made her way back to her throne. Adamos just shrugged and didn't pay it much mind as he began to dig again.

"For Hephaestus, I give you the skin of the chimera I slayed in St. Louis." Adamos dropped the pelt in the fire and a second later it appeared in Hephaestus's hand. The forge god had a much more subdued response, giving only a grunt and nod in response.

"For Apollo and Hermes," Adamos grunts as he pulls out two large objects. Apollo seems hop up and down in his seat, although Hermes barely reacts, probably still depressed over the fact that his son was the thief. "I…have…a nacho machine and a soda machine that I took from Medusa's lair." Adamos pulls out the two massive machines from the confines of the backpack. "Which one you want?" Adamos asked.

Apollo began to elbow Hermes. "So, which one you want?" He asks.

"Oh, uh… I'll take the soda dispenser, I guess." Hermes responded but his voice wasn't completely cheery.

"I guess the nacho machine is for me." Apollo says excitedly. Probably at the idea that he can add some more gold to his temple.

Adamos lifts the machines one at a time and put them into the fire where they disappear. He reaches into the bag and pulls out a glowing flower.

"For Demeter, I have a flower from Persephone's garden." Adamos sacrifices the plant and Demeter beams at the relation to her daughter.

"For Mr. D I have a pomegranate from the underworld." Adamos smiles a little evilly. "Try to purify it before you drink it. We wouldn't want you to stay in the Underworld. God's know I'll miss you." Adamos tosses the fruit into the fire, some of the laxer gods gave a chuckle when it appeared over Mr. D's head and fell on him since he was asleep up until now.

"Now whose next? Oh, its Artemis." Adamos says as he looks over to the auburn-haired goddess whose eyes were focused like a hawk on its prey. She looked like she was just waiting for us to screw up. "We have the wings of a gryphon." Adamos pulls out the well-maintained wings and tosses them into the fire. Artemis her focus for a moment before giving nod out of courtesy only.

"Next up is Ares." Adamos said and the god of war's brows furrowed in concentration, probably in trying to figure out what Adamos was up to. Adamos pulls out an ornate revolver and gives it a spin in his fingers. He holds it over the fire but hesitates for a second, and I feel his hands clench for a moment before he lets the gun go into the fire. It immediately disappears and ends up in Ares's hands.

Adamos takes a deep breath to relax, but the smile he wore never left his face. "Zeus and Hera's gift are a matching set so I'll just get both of them." At that he pulls out two golden crowns with large jewels that he got from Hades. He drops both of them into the fire and they reappear on Zeus and Hera's head. Something happens and the jewels begin to glow. For the one on Hera's head the gem glows in a rainbow of colors like a peacock feather. Hera gave a regal smile that only a queen could give and a nod of acknowledgment. The diamond in the middle of Zeus's crown began to light up as if lightning itself was trapped in the gemstone. He summoned a mirror and began to look over himself at different angles, the smile he wore was from him internally complimenting himself.

"For my father I have these cards from the Lotus Hotel and Casino. They have no limit so you can have a Vegas night." Adamos tossed the cards into the fire and our father smiled gratefully.

"Finally, Athena." Adamos turned to the aforementioned goddess who seemed to be glaring at him with a scrutinizing gaze. "I have two magical artifacts made from a monster." Adamos reaches into the back pack and pulls out the Medusa eye amulet and a dual sided dagger that held a green slit eye in the center of the guard. It actually reminded me of that one sword from the show with the cat people. "Made with the eyes of Medusa, each one has a paralytic effect." He drops both the amulet and the dagger into the fire where they disappear. Her response was a nod of acknowledgment at the gift before settling on an impassive look.

"This kid is awesome!" Apollo shouted out as he was already snacking on nachos in his throne.

"It must be because he eats his cereal." Demeter said, which only got an eye roll from every god in the room.

"well now that that's over," Zeus said as he was looking over his new crown. "Seeing as there is nothing left for us to discuss. I pronounce this council meeting over." And with a thundering flash he and Hera both disappeared. This was followed by Hephaestus, Demeter, Mr. D. and Aphrodite. Athena, Artemis, Hermes, and Apollo stuck around for a second longer, passing barely noticeable glances before flashing out together. Ares glared at Adamos and I, which Adamos responded with a smirk before the war god flashed away as well.

This left only me, Adamos, Hestia, and Poseidon in the room.

"Percy." Poseidon said in a neutral tone as he stepped from his throne and shrunk down to a mortal height. As I got a closer look, I could notice the physical resemblance that he had with Adamos and even myself when I look in a mirror.

A felt Adamos give up control. "Go on Percy. This is your chance." He said.

I had no idea what to do. Do I hug him, do I start a conversation? My mind was a jumble of what to do so I just did what felt right.

I punched him in the gut.

"Oof," Poseidon let out a grunt as I cradled my hand. He was only a bit hunched over a bit and straightened himself up almost immediately, his hand rubbing his gut absentmindedly. "I… probably deserved that."

"Damn straight." I muttered. Adamos has started to become a bad influence with his free use of curse words. An awkward silence fell between us as we shifted on our feet as neither of us seemed to know what to say. At least until Poseidon decided to speak.

"I'm…sorry that you had to go through all of this. I never wished to drag you into my problems." He said.

"I—I get it." I reluctantly say. "A World War III isn't exactly something you can ignore."

Poseidon nodded. "For what it's worth I wished I could have taken you and your mother to Atlantis with me when you were born, but your mother's refusal along with ancient laws as well as Amphitrite and Triton kept that from happening. I just want you to know that I'm sorry for the hardships that you have faced."

"Thanks…dad." I hesitantly said before giving him a hug. The surprised look on his face shifted into a grin as he returned the embrace.

"Percy, I just want you to know that I am proud of you. You have become a fine young man." He spoke as the embrace ended. "I know that you are meant for great things." And with one last smile he faded away, the smell of a sea breeze hung in the air.

I then walked over to the only other occupant in the room and gave her a hug, which she returned. "That went better than expected." I said. Hestia giggled at my blatant summarization. I then began to put all of the random stuff Adamos pulled out into the back pack. I grumbled at him leaving a mess for me to pick up.

"Yep and now we get to the hard part." Adamos said after i picked up all of the items and put the backpack on my back.

"The hard part?" I asked as I made my way to the golden doors.

"The godly interrogation." Adamos said and I could feel him smirking. I gulped at the idea, not finding it nearly as amusing as him.

Line Break

Adamos directed me out of the throne room and back down the path that was lined with godly residences and made me sit in the one vacant lot with the fountain, trees and benches. The only sources of light being the torches around the garden.

"You know this used to be where my temple was when I lived up here." Adamos spoke as I sat on one of the benches that surrounded the fountain. The garden was surrounded by walls on all sides with arches as doorways leading inwards to the fountain. "I'm glad that they did something with it at least."

"What was your temple like?"

"It was…" Adamos pondered over his next words. "Different to say least. I used dark colored stones to build my temple and it was surrounded by a garden with a stream. At night the building would glitter like stars. Internally the place held just about everything from books to treasure."

"Sounds like a nice place."

"Yeah," Adamos said. "It definitely held a lot of memories. But enough on the past. Let's focus on the new visitor we have." Adamos said as I looked up. Standing in the archway with a nasty glare was none other than the war god himself.

"Hello there Ares." Adamos said with a smile to the war god.

"Alright punk," Ares growled. "Spill it. Why did you lie about the quest?"

Adamos tilted his head in thought, this only furthered to anger the god of war. "Why did I? Why did I? I guess I just need the rest of the Olympians to be on their toes."

"Why would you lie for tha—" Ares began to speak only for Adamos to cut him off.

"Because now you owe me." Adamos said with a smirk.

Ares scoffed. "I don't owe you anything punk."

"Oh, but you do," Adamos said as he rested his chin on his hand. "I mean imagine what would happen if they all found out what really happened. I mean you saw how angry your father was when he heard some mere minor god had it. He locked your mother over the edge of chaos when she forced him to be a better ruler." He said that last part with a hint of bitterness, but hid it well enough. Imagine what would happen if he found out that you helped the thief."

Ares face paled at the thought, the flames that mad up his eyes dimmed in fear before reigniting. "And what stopping me from just killing you right here, right now? There's no bolt you can use to save you." Ares said

"Because I have backup to protect me." Adamos said and his smirk grew. "Isn't that right Hestia." In response the torches around the area flared at the name of the Hearth goddess, showing that she was indeed listening. Ares was baffled by the display. "Face it Ares. You now owe me. Even if you kill me Hestia will still tell the other gods what you did and there is no way you'll be allowed on Olympus for your treason."

Ares grit his teeth, his fists opened and closed tensely. "And what exactly do I owe you."

"That…will be settled at a latter date. But don't you worry. You'll get that war that you wanted." Adamos said and Ares only looked confused at the mysterious statement. "Now you'd better leave. I don't know if you'd want to stick around any longer than you have too."

Ares began to breathe deeply, trying to calm himself, and clearly not liking being indebted to a twelve-year-old.

"You know you remind me of someone punk. The guy was irritatingly happy, but at the same time he was like a snake in the grass. I respected his skill, but I hated everything about him." Adamos just full blown grinned at Ares.

"Oh Ares?" Adamos called out and Ares turned back, a vein visible on his forehead. "I want my gift back."

I thought that Ares was going to blow a blood vessel as he snapped his fingers and the revolver appeared in front of Adamos, who put into the back pack. "Thank you Ares." He said cheerily as the god of war disappeared in a flash of blood red light.

"Oh, my gods that was tense." I said as I felt on the verge of mentally collapsing.

"If you think that that's bad wait till you see who's next."

"There's more?!"

"Well its been nice but I think that it would be best if you say whatever you want to say… Artemis, Hermes." Adamos said. I was looking around but couldn't find anyone only for said god and goddess to walk out form the shadows and grass in mortal height.

"How long did you know we were here?" Hermes asked.

"Depends on how much you heard." Adamos said cheekily as he began to draw absent mindedly on the bench.

"It would do well for you to speak respectfully in front of an Olympian boy." Artemis spat the word like it was an insult as she glared at Adamos.

"Of course lady Artemis. And is it right for me to guess that you're all here for answers."

"That would be correct sea spawn." Another voice said as Athena walked into the garden with Apollo closely behind.

"Do we really have to do this?" Apollo complained. "The kid seems cool and I really want to go to bed."

"Get over it you idiot." Artemis snapped. "His story was filled with half truths and those presents were definitely bribes. Just shows how manipulative males are."

Adamos rolled his eyes at the statement about males. "You call it manipulative I call it being clever." Adamos stood up from the bench and stretched. "I mean the presents were to get on everyone's good side true and I'm guessing that most of you here saw past the surface level." The gods present all nodded, well except for Apollo but his sister smacked his arm when he was about to speak. "There are many reasons for the gifts. One was to get you all to pay more attention to me AND," Adamos spoke loudly as Artemis looked like she was about to say something. "by extension the demigods at camp and the mortal world."

"So, you just wanted us to pay attention to our kids?" Hermes asked.

"Well that is a plus, but not necessarily." Adamos shrugged.

"Than what?" Apollo said as he clearly looked upset at the vague answers. I internally almost laughed at how the gods looked trying to decipher Adamos's vague answers despite the gods themselves never being straight forward themselves in their answers.

"You all already know that it wasn't some minor god that had the bolt," Each god nodded. "And even if he is a meat headed idiot, he is still an Olympian god. His mind isn't easily influenced unless by something powerful."

"And you're implying that something is strong enough to oppose Olympus's rule." Athena said coldly.

"I'm pretty sure that you've already figured it out lady Athena. But for the sake of the slower kid," Apollo and Hermes looked at each other confused. "Why don't you share it with the class."

"Based on your story and testament the only possible one to achieve such a feat is…" Athena hesitates. "Kronos." She whispers and suddenly the torches dim in response to the name, any warmth in the air is replaced by a chilling cold and darkness seeps from everywhere. The other gods tense at the name ant the reaction it has on the world around them. I feel a chill go down my spine, Adamos is the only one that acts unfazed as he gains a serious look, but I know how tense he is as I feel him clenching my hands. Then just like it appeared the world suddenly returned to normal.

"Sister," Artemis says looking at Athena. "You can't be taking this males words seriously?"

"Oh, but she can lady Artemis," Adamos said, dropping all playfulness from his tone. "Surely, you've seen it right, or felt it in your domains. You've seen the monsters start to group together, become more organized. The fact that something just seems, although barely noticeable, off with the world."

"And just how is it that you know all of this." Athena glares at Adamos.

"Because I pay attention. Medusa knew mine and your daughter's name before we even introduced ourselves, almost as if she knew we were coming. And Echidna said she was sent by your father, but I doubt that he would impede a quest for the retrieval of his own weapon. Its pretty easy to put the dots together when you think about it. And Hermes," The messenger god looked into Adamos's eyes. "You son Luke gave me a pair of flying shoes that were cursed to drag their wearer into Tartarus." Hermes began to get a defeated look in his eyes. "For what it's worth I'm sorry about him."

Hermes just nodded but didn't seem to into it.

"I have no doubt that you all have thought of this in some way. You all are the ones that interact most closely with the mortal world and should be able to see the signs. Things are stirring and it would be best to prepare."

"And what would we do? Its not like we can just prepare for war when we don't even know there's a threat." Apollo asked incredulously. "If our father found out we were going behind his back than he'd surely blow a fuse."

"Not out in open you can't." Adamos supplied. "But there are plenty of things that you can do. Run inventory and stock on your weapons. Find out your allies. Make sure that your enemies are still locked up, terminate the truly dangerous monsters."

Athena nodded at the list. "Indeed, all of these things can be done under the guise of daily duties. Preparation is one of the first steps to winning a war. However, that only applies if what you say is true."

"Whether its true or not is completely up to you as no one has any concrete proof." Adamos said lackadaisically before turning a serious eye to the gods. "However, lack of proof does not mean that it doesn't exist. I suggest you start looking for it as soon as you can." He then walked right out of the garden and out down the main street of Olympus. This act of walking away earned him a glare from the goddesses and a quizzical look from the gods, but none moved to stop him.

"Did you really need to draw so much attention to us?" I ask nervously. "I mean now we got five gods with their eyes on us. And not to mention provoking Ares"

"That was the point." Adamos spoke but I guess he could tell I still didn't get it. "Ares won't be able to do anything with Hestia in on the truth, and it won't matter if those four also know. Also, with so many eyes on us it will reduce the number of attempts at us by other gods for a while as we are the ones in the spotlight. As for those four, that entire meeting was planned out."

"How did you know that they were going to confront you?"

"Simple. Athena is far to smart to not be able to see through the bribes on some level, and her lack of care for children of Poseidon only furthers her suspicions. Hermes is a master liar and thief, he basically helped invent bribery and manipulation. Artemis's observation skills are some of the best on Olympus and her inherent distrust for males wouldn't allow for her to let this attempt pass. And Apollo is the god of truth. Even if he didn't understand fully like the others he could tell when we were lying. In fact,…" Adamos said and drew something in the air and a magic symbol formed that he put close to his ear.

"What are you—"

"Shhh, just listen."

At first all I heard was static before voices began to play. "…can't believe that male has the gall to order us around." A female voice said.

"I don't know, I like the kid, although he does seem to be really intense when he wants baby sis." A male voice said.

"How many times must I tell you that I'm older Apollo!" The female voice said. So that must mean that she is Artemis if the other is Apollo.

"Either way the kid knows things. From what I heard he's barely been at camp for more than a week and it seems like he was able to piece together so much from just one quest. Makes me think that he's smarter than your kids Athena." A different male voice said, which I now knew as Hermes.

Athena didn't even respond to what Hermes said.

"Doesn't change the fact that the boy clearly lied before the council and hid the truth about the quest. I say we punish him. I bet he would make a cute jackalope."

"Not happening Artemis. The kids got more eyes on him than anyone else at the moment." Hermes said. "You try anything than it'll get back to Poseidon immediately. And I'm pretty sure he'll drown your hunt as soon as they get close to the nearest river."

Artemis began to grumble something that I wasn't able to pick up.

"Yo, 'thena? You there? You've been awfully quiet. I thought that you would have the most to say about the Jackson kid." Apollo asked.

"The boy is smart. He was able to gain the attention of the rest of the council even if it was through bribery. He even knew that we knew what he was doing." Athena's voice sounded more frustrated as she spoke. "And now he has us right where he needs us."

"You can't seriously be thinking of listening to that garbage the male was spewing Athena?" Artemis asked in disbelief.

"Nothing that that boy said was false. I know that you each have felt strange things occurring in world."

"Couldn't it just be a string of coincidences?" Apollo asked.

"And if it wasn't?" Athena retorted which shut the sun god up. "We have little choice than to find out for ourselves what is going on and hope that the brat is actually lying. Then we can punish him for it."

"I can't believe the male tries to manipulate the council like this." Artemis spat.

"This has nothing to do with him being a male Artemis." Athena said, and I can only guess that the silence is from Artemis's disbelief at Athena defending us. "That boy is intelligent. Far more than his years imply. It would be best for us to watch him if he does anything as well as look into these claims." After that it was only silence. Adamos took the magic symbol from his ear and crushed it into motes of light.

"How did you—"

"I drew a rune back when we were talking, they didn't even notice it." Adamos smirked.

"And all of this? Did you plan all of it?"

"Not all of it some parts I had to change, or even drop completely but more or less this is exactly how I wanted it to go. For the gods to enter the field and to find out just how much of a threat this war truly is for themselves. And I knew that Athena was smart enough to realize this and be able to convince the others as well as not turn in Ares since being down an Olympian when a war is coming is a stupid move." Adamos spoke as we finally left Olympus and he made his way to the elevator. "The Olympians would never believe the word of a mortal, but one of their own would get their attention. Four of them would certainly cause a stir. Add Hades into the mix during the Winter Solstice meeting and now you have five gods all arguing for the same thing. Now say we were to present evidence on the war to the council during the winter solstice."

"We'd have almost half the council on our side." I thought before quickly realizing. "And since Ares owes us a debt that makes six members!" I exclaim.

"Correct. And if we were able to convince father."

"That'd be a majority of the council." I spoke in a whisper of realization and then the elevator dinged as the doors opened.

Adamos walked in with a broad smile. "With a majority of the council potentially in the palm of my hand. Oh, I can't help but feel ecstatic when the pieces all fall into place."Adamos spoke aloud in a whispered tone. The doors began to close, and the last images of Olympus were seen through the cracks as Adamos began to chuckle darkly.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"Adamos? Are you secretly a super villain?"

A/N: Hello all you sexy beasts. This is your captain Momentei speaking. Congrats to me and all of you. I got over 100 views in my story. I feel like I'm gonna cry. But damn boy this chapter is long. I'm really sorry for not posting sooner but with the holidays as family I was ripped away from my computer. Anyways I really hope that you enjoy the chapter I've been going over how I want this to play out and I think I did a good job. Anyways this means that the first book is over, and we can get to some other stuff.

Also, to answer some of the questions. THERE IS NO HAREM! I just want to say that to me harems in stories are often shallow. That's not to say that there aren't good ones like Nutsofchest's stories, but more often than not the relationship is just shallow and trying to balance the romance between so many characters just seems painful.

Secondly to Jason wu, Percy might tell Sally in the future, but I must remind you that the amount of time Percy and Sally have been together while Percy hosts Adamos is like maybe 6-7 hours. Not really enough time for her to pick up on any changes or for Percy to feel guilty in my opinion.

Also, I need to get a pet peeve out there and vent. There are a few stories that are a turn off for me as a reader when they make Percy someone whose been around since ancient Greece and the literally give him the same DAMN NAME! I mean seriously if he's been around since Athens and Sparta don't go around calling him Percy Jackson. It works even less so if they make him a god. I mean seriously no other god has a last name or a middle one.

All right I think I'm done venting. I need to get a Dr. Pepper and huddle on my couch and think of Percy's next adventure. It will take place between the first and second book so there's that.

Any who, all you sexy beast have a wonder full new year.

Momentei, Over and out.