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The Last Spartan
Chapter One
Ghosts of the Past
A tall, lean, man in a well-fitting suit had stopped dead in his tracks, in the middle of the hotel room simply to take a moment to look around.
This place? No, surely no, it wouldn't have made any sense that she would send him here, there was absolutely nothing of interest. This was the kind of hotel that people stopped in just to be hidden away for a little while.
"She's usually… Much better than this when it comes to intel," he muttered slowly with a sigh before reaching up to rub his eyes. He couldn't remember the last time he'd slept, not that he wanted to let himself succumb to Morpheus' realm much these days.
He let the minutes dwindle, simply standing amid the room right up until another heavy sigh escaped from his lips. Giving up on banality, he moved over to the large wing-back chair, perching on the arm while he focused instead on his weapon of choice.
A gleamingly polished black 1911 model handgun, forged in a mixture of celestial bronze for the housing, and olympian gold for the pins and moving parts, all powder coated black as per his request. The gun had been crafted to an incredibly precise specification, the likes of which had never been seen before. Chambered to hold nine-millimetre rounds made of a compound mixture of celestial bronze and stygian iron to ensure that the jacket wouldn't tear apart from the firing velocity.
There was a small, compact chamber attached underneath the barrel, holding only a single fifty calibre bullet, held in place by an almost impossibly intricate nitrous powered firing system, capable of only the singular round before the weapon needed to be calibrated and rechambered, a process that could not be done on the move. It was a last resort, in case he'd find himself up against something that he couldn't take down, the round was meant to stun an enemy to give him enough time to either escape or figure out how he was going to solve the problem.
It was a monumentally deadly weapon, especially in the hands of a man who loathed the use of bows and arrows.
The life choices that had led him to this moment weren't good ones, and it came as no surprise to anyone that knew him that he had left their world behind, only occasionally being pulled back in by special requests from the higher authorities that he didn't hate.
As a younger man, he'd been trained almost nonstop to be proficient with all manner of arms, fighting against odds that people like him weren't ever supposed to be able to succeed in, yet, he did, time and time again, toppling the likes of legendary monsters, Gods and Titans.
In a world filled with mythical creatures that mortals couldn't even see, there was never any time for an interest in firearms, not in the wars that he had fought.
He couldn't wait around any longer, it wasn't going to help him. What he needed to do was to recount his steps to figure out exactly where they had gone wrong. This was why he hated working joint ops, the intel was never a guarantee.
Mission: Hunt the monster that had abducted a special girl, a huntress belonging to the patronage of the Goddess Artemis.
A huntress that had been trained to defend and exterminate the manner of creature that had taken her, which was why he'd been called in to help, because whatever had managed to steal this girl away from the midst of the hunter's camp, had to be something powerful.
The journey: He'd been all over the southern end of the country, trying to catch up to a trail that was rapidly growing colder.
They'd finally managed to catch wind of something that Thalia had believed to be a hot lead, but, there he was, sat in a musky hotel room staring nonchalantly at his gun, mindlessly playing around with the firing chamber.
The result: Boredom.
Boredom. Until he'd felt an unnatural shift in the air. He could physically feel the other occupiers of the hotel rooms on the same floor as him, most of them not worth a second glance, but, somewhere further down the long, ugly wallpapered walls, someone was running their hand across it rhythmically.
Slowly, bit by bit, he could hear soft fingertips morph into sharp talons as the slow movement of flesh turned into the sound of razors cutting through the wallpaper of the walls as the creature continued to move toward his room.
He moved silently, clinging to the shadows as if cloaked by Nyx herself. He opened the door just a crack to see who, or what, the slow-moving footsteps belonged to. Lo and behold, it was not a human, or at least it wasn't a human anymore.
It was a young woman with long blonde hair and a pale complexion which seemed to split at her forearms to reveal snakelike skin, rough and slick hands that were tipped by slender yet deadly talons. The thing that identified her the easiest was the fact that one of her legs was shining through the rips and tears of her jeans. The texture underneath seemed to gleam every so often when the light caught it. A metal leg, which meant that it was none other than an Empousa, which wasn't too difficult to deal with if there was just one, yet they rarely stalked a location alone, they were all too aware that their strength multiplied in numbers.
Thalia's voice sparked into existence in his earpiece from one of the other rooms two floors above him. They had no escape plan, which they were starting to need more and more as time went on. With each passing moment, he could feel a multitude of other people on this floor all change in the same way as the Empousa in the hallway. Great, so the hotel seemed to be a trap set for unknowing humans to walk in to become dinner for the creatures running the show.
"You still there?" Thalia asked through the tiny earpiece. He had of course gotten lost in thought once again. Silently closing the door once the monster had passed without conflict he went over to his window. The lights were all off but he could see their surroundings as clear as day.
"Yeah?" He responded, hoping that Thalia would repeat whatever it was that she had asked him. He casually pushed some of his long raven hair to the back of his head and scanned the strip of buildings outside. The night sky was a deep black with the moon beaming down with a healthy silver glow. Artemis and her hunters must have been fresh on the trail for the moon to have been glaring down so vibrantly.
Down in the streets below him, he could almost smell the fresh scent of the foods being cooked so heartily. The hotel was on a strip that flowed with nightlife, clubs and restaurants, right over to buildings of a more adult nature. He shivered at the thought of a monster stripper, acting their case in order to earn dinner.
"You aren't listening to me are you?" He heard Thalia ask him calmly, but he also heard the forced breath from her side. He contemplated making up a lie, but he'd never get away with it. Thalia knew him too well. His older cousin let out a sigh at the silence.
"Nope. Ask again." He told her casually. He tore himself away from the window as he awaited to hear whatever it was that Thalia had wanted to either ask or say.
She was talking about their situation, it seemed that she too had realized that there were far more monsters in this hotel than either of them had initially thought. "I said that there are more monsters with each passing moment, this whole hotel is basically an abattoir." She told him in disgust.
"Yeah, that's actually a pretty good way to put it. So shall we put a pin in this particularly bloody balloon today? Or are you not feeling up to the challenge of fighting for your life in a hotel from Hades?" He asked with a grin, knowing full well that Thalia would never back down from the challenge, especially one from Perseus Jackson of all people. The legendary saviour of Olympus.
Thalia scoffed, "Of course I am, I can kill more monsters than you can. Don't think that you're better than me just because you've killed a Titan." She told him incredulously.
"A couple of Titans actually. And a Primordial Goddess of the Earth itself come to think of it. Hey, Thalia, how many Titans have you defeated? Any Primordials under your belt?" He asked her in the most neutral tone he could muster. He stood there with a huge grin plastered across his face as he listened to the silence he received.
"Fuck off." Thalia finally told him before the earpiece shut out back to silence.
"Alright, alright." he laughed, "Look, I've got a plan, but it doesn't leave much in the way of keeping you safe, and I know that you're very capable and all that but this plan of mine might not be all that safe for me to achieve either, so, I'm going to create a distraction, and you need to get out of this hellhole. Might be worth getting some help from Artemis if she's in the mood to save me." he explained, pulling the magazine out of his gun to check that everything was loaded correctly. He had a finite supply of bullets, but he hopefully wouldn't need to use that many at all.
"I hate it when you come up with these plans, it always ends up with something blowing up." Thalia sighed before the line went dead for no longer than a second or two, "Are you about to blow this building up?" she asked.
"I dunno, I haven't thought THAT far ahead yet," he answered her honestly with a mild shrug.
So he was going to have to fight his way out. That was the preferred method of ex-filtration in his opinion, that way he didn't have to worry about looking over his shoulder because he already knew that everyone and everything was trying to kill him.
His past experiences working in conjunction with the Hunters of Artemis had given him an edge with his already impressive reflexes. After the multiple battles for Olympus, he'd come to the realization that after years of fighting he'd seen too much in his time at Camp Half-Blood to go back, much to the disappointment of Annabeth who had opted to become an immortal camp counsellor. That had put a splinter in their relationship.
A splinter the size of a tree.
Percy had of course refused Godhood once again but instead had come to a compromise and received the gift of immortality towards the currents of time, and moreover had become recognized as the only male that the majority of Artemis' Hunters were quite happy to cooperate with. Their repertoire grew with each mission, and the bonds they formed were great through their understanding of the kind of man that he was. It also didn't hurt that he answered the call to help them find their missing hunter almost immediately.
Percy Jackson was by no means a member of the Hunt, nor did he particularly want to be, but he found that now that he'd saved Olympus multiple times, he was running out of uses for himself in a world like theirs, but with the Hunt? His sole purpose was to aid and assist in the destruction of impressively powerful monsters, and occasionally special missions like the one they were on.
He did often find himself questioning whether he'd been born at the right time. Ancient Greece seemed like a nice place this time of year, or so he thought to himself.
"How many bullets have you got? And did you remember to bring Riptide?" Thalia asked him patiently. A number of times he'd been empty-pocketed when he needed Anaklusmos the most. The pen was magically enchanted to return to his pocket at all times, but more than once he'd managed to lose it and be caught out unarmed in the almost minuscule time frame where the pen wouldn't have appeared.
He subconsciously brushed his hand against the right back pocket of his tailor-made suit trousers. The suit had been a gift from Aphrodite herself, something for his contributions to the war. He'd only wanted a simple suit that he'd be comfortable in while he did his thing, but of course, Aphrodite's gift had come with a lynchpin, an unseen blessing woven into the fabrics that meant no man or woman was able to take their eyes off him when he wore it save for Artemis.
The trousers were a smooth grey that clung to his well-muscled legs. The trousers were only complimented further by the smooth-point black Italian shoes that had a certain shine to them like perfectly polished boots. He was particularly fond of his vest however as it revealed his prominent muscular arms that bulged underneath the tight white shirt that he constantly rolled the sleeves up on.
Since the events of Kronos' attack on Olympus, he'd decided on a number of tattoos so that if he was ever killed in action, it would be easier to identify his body. The tattoos could be seen clearly from underneath the shirt, which only added to his image. The entire suit was topped off with a sea green and black tie that wasn't too thin, and yet didn't take up all of the space underneath. In short; it was the perfect suit. He never wore the jacket, it slowed him down too much or made him too hot whenever he had actually to run.
"Yes, I have Anaklusmos." He replied instantly. He was calm, but he hated it when anyone called his sword Riptide. It had a long history that started out with Zoe Nightshade, and it deserved the proper respect of its true name, which admittedly was a reverse translation of 'Riptide' but the sword wasn't English, it was Greek, so the name would remain Greek.
"Good, I have a feeling these tightly confined hallways are going to restrict your use with that hand cannon," Thalia responded after a moment. She knew too well that Percy would use his gun right down to the last bullet if he had to, before switching to a more space-appropriate weapon. He'd grown so very attached to his weapon that he'd preferred it over his prized sword when it came to combat.
"How many bullets do you have left? It might be wise to save some for later." She quickly told him. There was a buzz of interference following her words, it made it sound like she was already on the move. He wondered exactly how he'd play things, the moment that he let his gunfire off, all of the monsters on this floor were bound to be on him in a heartbeat.
"That might be a good idea. I have four fully loaded magazines left and about thirteen loose rounds in my pocket that I've clipped up. It's not a fast reload, but it'll do." He told her. He heard an audible sigh of relief, she was expecting him to have been much more trigger-happy on their ride up to the hotel. She knew he only ever brought a certain amount of ammunition with him, despite how long or dangerous the trip could potentially be.
"OK, I count thirty-eight arrows left. I've got my hunting knives but if we can avoid an all-out fight that might be good. I can't use any of my powers inside the hotel." Thalia told him. She sucked her lip at that last part. The only bad part about being a daughter of Zeus; is that indoors sucked for storms.
"I'd say that we could ask Blackjack but sadly I'm fresh out of donuts." Percy dead-panned. He wasn't really going to call Blackjack, because he knew that Blackjack would definitely come, it was more that; once Blackjack arrived, he had to worry about Thalia's ironic fear of heights.
"It's fine. Try and get to my room and I'll Iris Artemis to ask for her progress, maybe they've already found the girl and we can ask Nico to get us out of here or something." Thalia sounded unconvinced, she knew as well as Percy did that they were going to have to fight to escape this wretched hotel. Percy grunted and did a quick check. Back pocket, Anaklusmos was present. He checked his gun out, it truly was the most beautiful weapon he'd ever seen.
"The Judge," Percy whispered to himself. "You beauty." He cracked a wide smile. Not even the thickest of Titan armour would be able to withstand the overwhelming force from his last resort nitrous round.
He'd considered trying to formulate some kind of unnecessarily complicated escape plan but he soon figured that the best plan would be the most straightforward one, which was always going to be to tackle it head-on.
With another heavy sigh, he pulled the gun up high, getting ready for what was going to be a tight escape no matter what. From the moment he first pulled the trigger, everything divine was going to swarm to his location, and he could only ever be SO confident in his ability to kill the neverending masses of monsters.
He lifted a knee-high, bursting through the door, ready to go full war mode at the first monster that his eyes would find, but, the hallway was empty…
"Hmm, a little anticlimactic," he muttered quietly before straightening himself up, and adjusting his tie. He holstered his weapon behind his back and began to stroll down the corridor.
"Despite this being a hotel run by monsters, the place has some nice decor if you pretend that the wallpaper doesn't exist," Percy stated over the earpiece, not expecting an answer.
"What are you doing? I thought you were going to make a distraction." Thalia asked impatiently.
"Relax Joan Jett, I was, but there isn't anyone here to distract just yet," he answered with an honest shrug, "I'm not wasting a bullet firing at nothing, They'll start coming to find me any minute now, and I think I've just found a way to get them here faster," he said with a quiet giggle in his tone as he spied a vending machine at the corner of the hallway.
With a quick flick of the wrist, all of the drinks inside the plastic window had exploded outward with an impressive show of force. There was a shift in the air followed by an irritated hiss. He could have sworn that he'd also heard someone sniff at the air ever so slightly.
All of his suspicions had only been confirmed as he watched a woman turn the corner, a half-transformed hand still trailing along the wall. There was an extraordinarily excited glint in her eyes.
"I'd like to speak to a manager please," he said, waiting for the pin to drop.
She opened her maw, a fraction of a second away from screaming in what would only have been a battle cry before a bronze jacketed bullet went tearing through her mouth, blowing a gaping hole out of the back of her head, turning her into dust.
"Ah, it's ok, it wasn't that important anyway," he added before changing course at the intersection behind him, finding the closes stairwell where he clung to the shadows.
When it came down to it, he was one of the stealthiest in his line of work, with only Artemis able to find or catch him with any real consistency, and even then it was a question as to whether or not it was actually 'consistent'. Whatever the case was, he was quite happy taking second place to the Goddess of the Hunt.
A group of Empousa had come scrambling into the stairwell in the hopes that Percy was still in range and hadn't fled. After a moment of visible confusion on one of their faces, she cursed in ancient Greek before going back into the hallway she came from. It took a lot of control for Percy to stop himself from laughing at her.
Once he was on the correct floor he internally groaned. Right outside Thalia's door were three Empousa, all eagerly awaiting the one crouching down to pick the lock on the door. Percy only just managed to duck into another hallway to avoid being seen. He picked up the volume on his earpiece, making the microphone highly sensitive.
"Thalia, three Empousa outside your door. One of them is trying to pick the lock. Electrocute the handle, I'll deal with the other two." Percy told her almost silently. He got a quick confirmation and readied his gun. When he heard the first one scream and turn into dust, he rounded the corner with a huge grin on his face and plastered the other two women into a similar shower of dry golden specks.
Thalia opened the door with a disproving face. That gun was only going to attract more monsters. She quickly pulled him inside where there was an Iris call happening at that moment.
Percy walked over to the ongoing call and silently nodded.
"Jackson," Artemis said disapprovingly, obviously having heard the gunshots. "You put my huntress in a great deal of danger by using that uncivilized weapon," she added, chastising him evermore.
"I would argue that all weapons are uncivilized, and more to the point, that I would put anyone in danger just by being there. These women just can't keep their hands off me," he said, shrugging like there was nothing he could do about it.
"Because they want to kill you, I might add." Thalia butted in.
There was a loud crash out in the hallway that pulled his attention away.
"They got here faster than I thought they would." he muttered, glaring at the wall, "My lady, apologies but our time here has come to an end so we need to make haste," Percy told the Goddess of the Hunt with an ever so slightly sarcastic bow to his strut before turning heel and facing Thalia once again.
"Are you ready to go?" He asked with a neutral smile on show. He had only respect for Artemis, and possibly quite an admiration that he hid very well, but he knew that he had a tiny amount of leeway with winding her up.
"Just about. We'll see you shortly, Lady Artemis." Thalia bowed before wiping through the Iris message and turning back to her bigger cousin.
"There are more coming in from the Eastern stairwell. I've managed to locate the water mains for this floor. Close the door, I'll flood them out. We can make our escape out of the widow of the room across the hall, it faces the pool at the front entrance, either that or we fight them head on for thirteen floors straight down." Percy's plan wasn't flawless, and it included Thalia jumping out of a thirteenth-floor window, but it did have them surviving with relative ease.
"Thirteen horrible waves of monsters in a terribly confined space, or, heights and water…" she mulled it over, eventually closing her eyes, "Fine, let's do it," she said, mentally psyching herself up for the drop that was inevitable.
Percy gave a quick nod in response and walked over to the comfy armchair in the middle of Thalia's room. A few months ago she would have questioned it, but now she knew for the better exactly what he was doing.
He didn't use his powers much these days, and while he was still exceptionally powerful, it definitely took its toll on him a lot more than it used to.
He pushed his fingers gently into his temples. A moment later Thalia could hear the pipes burst open, then a huge surge rocked the entire hotel from the ground floor upwards. She could feel the water around her ankles within a few seconds. He'd ruptured the pipes flowing throughout the entire building.
She couldn't help but wonder exactly how many of the rooms were soon to be flooded, it was quite the increase in power since the last time he'd tried anything like that.
Percy opened his eyes, the once solid but calm green was now glowing vibrantly as the power he'd used ebbed and flowed out of his body. He had a grin on his face and nodded to the window. Thalia looked out at the carnage he had caused. "Looks like we won't have to wait for that ground floor pool anymore. We can escape from this one." He laughed as they watched small tides of water rushing out of the ground floor and onto the strip below.
"Fine, let's get this over with," Thalia said, reaching for the window.
"Not yet, we want this to go smoothly and that means I have to have more water than this. Give me your hand," he told her, holding his own out toward her. She obediently took it and held it tight, moving closer to him in order to feel safer with the rising water level in the room.
Once the water had risen to chest height, Percy forced the room door open and literal tons of water rushed in. It would have engulfed them completely had Percy not been the strongest son of Poseidon for a great many centuries.
The water rushed straight past them and out through the window. Together they gently glided down through the enormous stream until they touched the ground, thirteen floors below their starting point.
Thalia had never been so relieved in her entire life. They hadn't exactly been going slow, but it was a lot calmer than if they'd relied on her powers of the wind. They quickly left the hotel grounds without any more monster occurrences and disappeared into the strip of clubs and fast food shops.
"Where are we going now? Artemis must be near, but even she cannot hide herself and her Hunters for long in a city like this. No plants in sight, let alone a forest. I can imagine that only the beach would suffice." Percy looked hopeful.
Thalia sighed, knowing that this was exactly what he'd wanted to hear, "Yes we're going to the beach, now hurry, Artemis doesn't want to be kept waiting. They've found Karina which means that we must get going." Thalia sounded off to Percy.
"They found her already? Why the Hades did I need to come here if they found her without my help?" He asked sceptically. His entire presence was pointless and in the end, he'd only managed to kill a boring couple of Empousa, plus whatever causalities were caused by rupturing the entire plumbing system of the hotel.
"They found the monsters not long after we arrived at the Hotel, by the sounds of what Lady Artemis told me, the monsters were on their way to us because of a massive beacon of power, sound familiar?" She asked him with a raised brow as she looked over her shoulder at him.
"Hey, don't blame me! I'm pretty sure that I'm the only person able to hide their power, which means I never had anyone teach me how to do it, it's really hard to hide it completely." He told her defensively, "Not all of us get a natural handicap in the form of the silver Goddesses' blessing." He continued before laughing slightly.
"Blessings aside, it sounds like you didn't even try to hide your power, the Empousa outside my door had already gone insane by the ramblings they were spouting. Only much stronger monsters will be able to stand your presence." Thalia reasoned. She went silent after that but kept glancing back at Percy with an uncomfortable expression.
"There's something else." Percy deadpanned. They kept their pace high, as soon as they were out of sight of the mortals, Percy led Thalia to the edge of the seas, they could move so much faster from there on out.
"Yes." Thalia admitted after a moment of silence, "Artemis has received word from Olympus. It's dire and you're the only one that my father has asked for. Artemis will take you with her once we have all returned to New York." Thalia told him, now avoiding making eye contact altogether.
Camp Half-Blood, and the Hunters as well, always seemed to gain an air of tension whenever Olympus asked for Percy specifically, because that meant that undoubtedly something huge was going down.
Since becoming an immortal hunter of monsters, he'd become so much stronger. He was free of the council but if the threat was great enough, everyone knew that Percy would always fight for them, his loyalty knew no bounds. It had become a crux for him in the past but he'd overcome it by becoming a man living for himself, choosing loyalty as a brilliant primary trait rather than having it as a flaw leading him into danger.
He was stronger than anyone realized, especially mentally. His willpower was unending, and a true testament to the physical strength housed in his body.
"Shit." Percy said casually as ever.
The moment they had both stepped onto the surface of the water, they shot forwards at insane speeds, skirting along the seafront watching out for the silver hint that Artemis always left behind. After five minutes of searching, Percy was getting restless and slowed to a halt. He conjured some mist and threw a drachma into it. After requesting his vision he was put through to the silver Goddess.
"Lady Artemis, where have you set up camp?" He got straight to the point. Artemis looked up for a second of confusion as to where the voice had come from.
"This far down the line and I'll still never get used to that." She muttered quietly before looking through the Iris. She always found herself pleasantly surprised when she was speaking to Perseus Jackson.
Any man that had gone through as many trials and tribulations as he had would have been broken apart and filtered down to a torn soul, but Perseus Jackson was more than just a man, he was a being so full of the hopes of other people that they were still to meet a threat that could tear him down. He no longer just held the fire of hope for all of the Demigods out there, he was starting to become a beacon to those that would call themselves his peers out of the Gods.
"Perseus, we are on the southern shoreline, where are you?" She asked him incredulously, watching with mild entertainment as his features crumpled for a moment as the realization hit that he had either got the wrong location, or they had gone in the wrong direction after leaving the hotel.
Percy did a double take, "The southern shoreline?" He asked out loud but he was swearing internally. He thought they were on the western shoreline, luckily for him, they were getting closer and closer to the pinnacle of the southwestern point of the coast, which gave him an idea.
"That's what I said," Artemis mused with a mild smile. Percy thought about it for a moment, it should definitely work, especially for someone like Artemis, she'd be able to spot a wave in the darkness of night with ease, hopefully.
"Lady Artemis, tell me when, IF, you see the wave going sideways instead of inland," Percy said as he concentrated for a moment and sent a thirty-foot wave careering across the shoreline until it finally reached the southern shore. After another moment Artemis told him that she could see it. He instantly knew where they had to go in order to regroup, unfortunately, it would be quite the run if they decided to hoof it along the beach.
"Come, we can move a lot faster underwater." Percy took Thalia by the hand despite her cries that the water was Poseidon's domain. Thalia knew for a fact that Poseidon would never harm her, he was fully aware of how close they were and after Kronos' attempt on Olympus, he even personally appraised her for her war efforts, but she still didn't like it.
A few minutes into their forced swim a giant watery face appeared out of nowhere in front of them, gliding along the currents in front of them as Percy effortlessly swam forwards, bringing Thalia along with him in stride.
"Perseus." Poseidon's voice boomed underwater. Thalia gulped, that was it, she'd gone too far now. Poseidon was about to kill her and Percy for this unforgivable act! Or at least, that was how her overactions were running around inside her brain.
"Good to see you, sorry I missed our last check-in, there was some trouble involving a Titan in Boston that didn't know he was a Titan." Percy waved slightly, acknowledging the fact that Poseidon was at least there in a watery visage.
"Yes, so I heard. It was unfortunate but by the sounds of it he has been taken to a special area of Tartarus to undergo some, what did Hades call it? Memory jogging or something awful like that. Once he fully understands and knows who and what he is, we will be doing some extensive investigation as to whether or not he can live peacefully with us." Poseidon explained. Percy wasn't sure quite what the extent of living peacefully involved but he doubted a Titan of all people would be willing to do it after being subjected to 'memory jogging' in Tartarus.
"You're needed on Olympus. Artemis has already been informed. What the council are going to ask of you is greater than anything someone should have to face. I want you to know right now that you don't have to accept it, you are free to walk out of the throne room at any time. Now go, Lady Artemis is waiting for you." Poseidon disappeared without waiting for Percy to say any form of goodbye. Thalia looked at Percy's face expectantly. He only had a frown that didn't stay around for long as they had resurfaced, still as dry as the moment they left the beach.
Percy willed a stream of water to constantly follow his feet so that the sand stayed off of his beloved shoes. Such a woman, Thalia thought before grinning about it.
"Lady Artemis." Percy kneeled, again, in the water that stopped the sand from getting on his prized trousers. Artemis was tolerant of Percy because truth be told he was completely different from the males that her hunters had come to hate. He was kind and caring, respectful and loyal.
"We must leave now. Thalia, you are in charge. Percy let's go." Artemis issued her orders and everyone reacted straight away, Percy simply nodded and held out his hand casually. Artemis shook her head and grabbed him by the shoulder. There was no way she'd teleport herself into the throne room holding a man's hand in full view of the other eleven Olympians, she knew when Percy was playing tricks, even in a serious situation he always found time to pick at her in good-natured jest. No chance Jackson, not today.
They were on Olympus within the blink of an eye and Percy was delighted to see that he was easily the most fashionable man in the grand throne room. He walked confidently through the vast space until he was dead centre in the room. He'd been through this enough to know generally how it went. He would be addressed by Zeus and after all of the formalities were done with he would finally be told exactly what was going on.
Apollo flashed him an approving grin towards Percy's attire to which the young immortal nodded in acknowledgement. He knew he was well dressed but this was just his work suit, this was the one that occasionally would get a sword or a couple of arrows go through it. He kept meaning to wear his nicer suits on occasion when going to Olympus but always forgot last minute. That being said, this was the only suit that Aphrodite had woven her charm into, or at least he thought it was.
As he glanced around to take note of what Gods were in attendance, he saw Ares grin with a huge curve of mischief on his face, but Percy knew that was only because of the Hephaestus-made armament. The God of War couldn't help but be impressed by the kilo of celestial death that Percy carried.
"Perseus Jackson." Zeus' voice boomed out to the throne room. Percy frowned, he hated being called Perseus. He was tempted to tell Zeus to get with the times but wasn't certain that his revolver matched up to that master bolt, which he knew could deliver a nasty punch. He was strong but ultimately he wasn't sure if he could survive a blast from an angry King of Olympus, not just yet at least.
"Lord Zeus. You have summoned me?" He projected himself so well, the confidence in his voice was higher than anything else, even Aphrodite was impressed, Aphrodite is the goddess who could charm-speak almost anything or anyone she wanted.
"I have. Tell me, what do you know of the Primordial Gods?" Zeus' question threw Percy right off, he truly did not know how to answer that question.
"I, uh... What?" He asked again, just to make sure he hadn't misheard.
"The primordial Gods, my son." Poseidon confirmed the question.
"You mean like Gaia, Ouranos, that one for night, Nyx. Those Gods?" Percy responded calmly. He knew a little about them, but not enough to understand the relevance of them in conjunction with him being summoned to Olympus. Maybe he'd angered one of them at some point?
"The very same. Olympus is on the brink of war again Perseus, this threat is so much larger than Kronos. The Primordial Gaia is on the rise. Mother Earth is stirring and with the help of Tartarus, she is rising to take Olympus down." Zeus' words fell heavily to Percy's ears, the weight of understanding was heavy but not something that Percy would falter under.
Zeus grumbled slightly before continuing with his explanation, "We simply cannot hold off against the two of them. Primordials are almost limitless in power. But they also all tend to slumber for aeons save for very small parts of their conscious. Gaia and Tartarus are rising with plans to build an army, they are led by a Demigod son of Tartarus."
Hades twitched slightly at the mention of this but otherwise remained silent while Zeus continued to speak, "We've never seen a Demigod from a Primordial before so we don't know exactly how powerful he is but it would be lethal to assume anything other than that he is extremely dangerous." Zeus told him. That was a lot to take in. Percy wasn't sure how he could help Olympus but he knew that whatever Zeus asked of him he was damn well going to try, this was too big for him of all people to sit out.
"We have been contacted by another Primordial. Chronos, who claims to be present on behalf of someone known only as Chaos. Chronos is not to be confused with the Titan you killed, this Primordial is the sheer fabric of time itself and as such has remained the most constant variable in the moving world. With this being the case he is quite possibly the strongest representation of his true self and has actually appeared to us." That was quite interesting to hear, not that Zeus was being particularly clear about it.
"Chaos cannot directly interfere for it is weak in its slumber, but has foreseen a great battle. Between many Demigods and the army, Gaia assembles. Chronos while powerful and able to manifest himself even whilst in deep slumber is tied to neutrality, as he is an essential force of reality. Which means that he can help us but cannot fight. We believe that only you can successfully pull off what we have planned. Do you wish to hear more?" Zeus reclined in his throne ever so slightly. The grin on Percy's face told him all he needed, he was up for anything.
"Let's hear it." He shifted his posture slightly, but that was the only thing that reminded the Gods that he wasn't a machine, that his patience had its limits and he would eventually fidget in such a meeting.
Zeus waved slightly and Athena spoke up, of course, she was the one with the plan, "When the central civilisation moved west we went through a phase in Rome. It changed us, we Gods took on different aspects. Those Gods are still around today, we are they, and they are us. Zeus demonstrated her words by changing into Jupiter and back. The colour scheme alone was obnoxiously gold, but that hair of his was just ridiculous. How he was not sponsored by Head 'N' Shoulders for such locks was beyond Percy, however, it was best not to make such comments out loud or he'd probably be murdered.
"Right, I get it, so you're obviously about to turn around and say that there is an entire Demigod camp full of Roman children, right? I'm not wrong am I?" Percy asked, his expression ever unchanging. Athena was momentarily taken by surprise by his show of intelligence in the matter. She quickly found her words once she metaphorically picked her jaw up off the floor.
"That is correct. There is an old, almost lost prophecy that goes back to things that we thought were over for good, but now? We're starting to believe that it was never meant to have been finished back then, but rather in a time not far from now. We believe you are directly entwined within it. A certain line references old foes baring arms at death's door. The Greeks and Romans have never gotten along with each other and if that is in fact what the line refers to then we could break this prophecy by uniting the two factions." Athena explained, looking thrilled by having such a mental challenge after what had to have been quite a few years of not really having that much mental stimulation.
"Right, but my lady, if I may?" Percy gestured with his hand. Athena looked puzzled but nodded to him slowly before the young immortal walked forwards towards her ever so slightly.
"Prophecies are… Well, I highly expect that you of all people can see through utter bullshit, and, well, prophecies? I'm sorry Apollo but prophecies are never, EVER, that clear. To believe that a line from this one that you guys have found would be so simple as to refer to two factions of Demigods would be idiotic." He told them. They all looked slightly deflated with how quickly he had shot them down. He turned around the throne room slowly, looking at them all. They had all held such hope that they could stop this rising threat so easily.
"I can see it in your face." He said, looking up at Athena once again, "You know as well as I do that this isn't what the prophecy is referring to, you're just as hopeful as them and that has caused you to be misguided in your wisdom, if only for a fraction of a second. Think about this from a fresh perspective, or understand that at this current moment in time, you do not know what the prophecy refers to." Percy told her in the most respectful way that someone could turn around and say to a God 'Sorry, you're wrong.'
"But right now, it is the only thing we have, which is better than to move forwards with absolutely nothing in mind," Athena told him after a few seconds of silence.
"Hera has a plan. A rather controversial plan, but one nonetheless. You are going to be sent to the Roman camp, and a Roman is to have his mind wiped and sent to Camp Half-Blood. The two of you will bridge the gap and bring about the greatest truce we have ever seen." Athena explained. The room went silent while Percy stood there staring at her, processing this in his mind. It could in theory work but the scale was far too big for just a singular Demigod swap.
"And are you planning on wiping my memory as well?" He asked after a minute of silence. Contemplating this plan of theirs, he had nothing to lose by going to a Roman Camp, but what of the boy to be taken from them? He'd have to pretty much be their strongest Demigod for this to have a chance of working.
"No, that would be unfair to you after everything you've done for us. We figured that if you are to succeed there is one major thing you need to do. You need to lessen the conflict between the two groups." Hera joined in with the briefing. Percy looked up at the Goddess who hated him the most.
"How can I do that? The groups are unaware of each other, it surely can't be down to me and one other to complete this task on our own?" He asked, a tiny bit of anger seeping into his words, they were asking a lot of him, and he was unsure of whether he could even succeed with it or not, not that it was changing his answer at all.
He was definitely going to at least try, but the odds of success?
"You need to lessen their conflict in the past. Chronos will send you back through time, and into Greece as it once was, back when it was our home. He will go with you and explain to our past selves what is going on." Athena explained
"The Primordials that have decided to aid us are willing to give you full immortality, a level far beyond what you perceive as immortality. You will train from the moment you arrive and secretly aid our society through time, preferably from the shadows however I don't see that being the case with you. Once you complete your task, if everything has gone right we will see you again very soon from this point and you will be ready to go to camp Jupiter to stop the greatest war the Olympus has ever seen." Zeus finished. Percy's jaw must have hit the floor because he was truly lost for words.
This was not what he was expecting at all. Bridge the gap? Yeah, that might just be possible after thousands of years of training.
After what seemed like an eternity, he spoke out.
"Let me get this straight. You want to send me to Ancient Greece and from the start you want me to train and prevent the Greeks and Romans from getting into a conflict that will prevent the truce from being possible. But you don't want me to prevent the actual conflicts, they are obviously too greater a part of our history to cut out completely." Percy took a breath, calculating everything that was going on at this moment.
"I am to ride out the civilizations as they come and go and continue with the God's right up until this point in time where you will recall me. Have I got that correct?" Percy turned and looked from god to god. No one disputed his words. "OK then, just so that we're clear on that. How far back do you want to send me?" He asked again.
"You need to be in Greece from the beginning. Chronos can only make one trip, any mistakes and we've blown it out of the water. We cannot risk messing up our one chance." Poseidon told his son. There was a sad glint in his eyes at what was happing.
"That's five thousand years of solid training. I'll become the most powerful Demigod in history, although I suppose it's been a little while since I was really a Demigod." Percy stated casually, still mulling their plan over in his mind.
"There's no doubt about that. You'll be with us from the beginning Perseus. There's no one better suited to this quest back through time than you." Artemis told him from his throne.
"Yeah, besides, dude you're already the strongest anyway, I don't see any change." Apollo grinned like a child.
"OK, I'll take this quest. But I do have one request to aid me in my journey." Percy told them. The council looked relieved beyond words at his acceptance of this quest. They were sentencing him to five thousand years of training for yet another great war. Time wasn't on their side, but it would be on his.
"Of course, anything," Zeus told him instantly.
Percy thought about the best way to ask for this before the courage came out. "Respectfully Zeus, it isn't your place to decide on this one. I have to ask Hephaestus for the final word. I will need a new set of armour to carry me through the ages. And while I always carry Anaklusmos with me with pride, some events in our history would be catastrophic if that sword fell into the wrong hands again." Percy explained, hoping that he didn't offend anyone. Artemis nodded knowingly.
"I already had created such a suit for you Perseus, we Gods ask much but we aren't as unforgivably expectant as some may think." Hephaestus let out a hearty chuckle as he clicked his fingers, Percy's suit was replaced by an ancient Greek battle armour. It was an amazing white that had a sea green trim along the edges. Percy had to hand it to the God, he really knew how to create some amazing things.
The pen in his hand extended into Anaklusmos for one final time before it too had glowed and changed. The blade was long, narrow, and incredibly sharp with a silver glint on one side. He knew this was a different metal, but not of Stygian Iron. The rest of the blade itself was completely black and oozed power. He felt a lot stronger just holding it. There was something familiar about it that he couldn't place no matter how hard he tried.
"That sword is extremely powerful and I expect that only you will ever wield it. It's extremely loyal which is fitting for a person such as you. Cherish it, Percy Jackson, it will be your closest friend." Percy put the sword in the scabbard that came with it and smiled gratefully.
"As the central civilisation advances, so will that armour, it will change to reflect the time period, the same goes with the sword. I'd have made a shield but it is not your style is it?" Hephaestus asked, knowing Percy already. Percy shook his head. He wasn't big on defence. A sword and his gun were more than enough for him, though that reminded him. He already knew where his holster was, on the side of his hip.
"What about this? Would this be cheating? I've only got a few rounds left for it anyway. It would become dead weight before long." Percy said, looking at his gun lovingly. Hephaestus grumbled something when Zeus gave him a knowing look.
"The lad may take the firearm, but be warned, it may cause more bother than it prevents. Hephaestus, fix his limited munitions problem but do not turn it into a ticking time bomb." Zeus told him. Hephaestus looked up with glee before he shrunk and took the gun from Percy before vanishing.
Literally, three seconds later he returned with a broad smile on his face. "The barrel will restore its lost bullets on its return to the chamber. Push that little green button until it turns red and you'll have one of those nasty little nitrous rounds. Have fun with that. Don't use it too much though, you'll get rusty on your other skills." Hephaestus announced after returning to his throne.
"Somehow after five thousand years of training, I doubt I will. I might even be able to shoot an arrow in the right direction for more than six paces." Percy told them which earned a few laughs from the Olympians.
"Let's face it, Percy, you really won't, even with five thousand years of archery practice, which is why, after your decision to undertake this gruelling quest without so much as a moment's hesitation, I've decided to give you my blessing," Apollo told him. The council looked on with a wave of mumbles and general murmurs of agreement.
Hephaestus spoke up once again after seeing his brother give Percy his blessing, "Agreed. The armour was a formality that I was happy to oblige with but a blessing would be my faith in you above all else. There was a lot of fire in battles back in the day and being a son of Poseidon that won't be easy for you lad. Take my blessing, and never fear the fire again. You'll also probably be able to tinker with your weapons and armour better than almost anyone else." Hephaestus told him after Percy glowed a brief red. He couldn't believe it, blessed by two Gods in five minutes.
The day was definitely proving to have its ups and downs.
"Well, seeing as they're doing it, I can hardly let you go without my own. It was my plan and if you're to respond to the rigorous training then you'll need my blessing." Athena's eyes found his own and he was unable to fathom any words. Percy glowed bright grey before it dulled again.
"Thank you, all of you." He said at last.
"Hang on, I can't have my smelly husband beat me especially when he got rid of your sexy suit," Aphrodite said out loud, casting her own blessing with the accentuated wave of the hand.
The women of the room began to curse Aphrodite's antics before they saw what it was doing to Percy. His battle armour briefly dissolved revealing his immaculately toned chest. The light faded and the suit returned.
"My blessing might not help you in combat, but some things require a retinue of tact every now and then." she said with a squeal of joy, "My blessing will allow you to call upon any clothing that you desire, even the likes of armour." Her added statement seemed to have appeased Hephaestus' irritated look.
Percy liked how that one worked, that would definitely come in handy. He nodded his gratitude to the Gods, he was just about to turn and say that he was ready to go when his father spoke up.
"Hold on," Poseidon stated, pushing his hand out towards Percy, "We're in a momentous turning point in our lives, no one has ever received the blessing of two Gods, let alone four. I can't have you garner favour with the rest of them, not to mention bird brain over there, and not bestow a little gift upon you myself." The God of the seas let out a wicked grin as the hue of power surrounding Percy grew to an astonishing level.
The once Demigod who had fought for the world was brimming with strength so unfathomably large that it was almost manifesting around them in a tangible substance.
"I must agree with you, brother," Zeus stated, causing a few quiet murmurs as to what they could see coming next, "It is unheard of that I would bless the child of any other, however, I think that we have, as a council, come to the understanding that Perseus deserves everything we can offer him to make his journey an easier one."
"With this, you will have partial control of the winds. I wouldn't advise you to rely on it in the same manner that one of my children would, but you may find it advantageous when you need it. Additionally, you'll also be very hard to kill with anything originating from lighting, which I'm sure that Thalia will be displeased about." Zeus almost whispered the last part with a small wink that garnered a few laughs.
Percy opened his mouth to offer his thanks when Hades too had spoken up.
"Boy, you are responsible for the return of my throne, I'd say you deserve a blessing after just that act. Here, you'll receive similar invulnerability that you did from the river Styx, except no vital spot and none of the other drawbacks that shady Nymph hit you with last time." Hades chuckled evilly.
"Can you do that?" Both Zeus and Poseidon asked at the same time with incredible synchronisation.
"Who knows? It'll be fun to see her try and stop me though." Hades laughed once again as he felt himself being summoned from the Underworld, no doubt Styx herself.
"And that would be her now. If that is everything, good luck on your journey, Percy Jackson. I will no doubt see you in the next couple of days in my time, but for you, I wish you the best of luck for the next five thousand years." Hades said before he melted into a black pool of smoke and fell through the floor.
The room fell silent before Apollo spoke up, "Out of everyone, I expected you to be the first to throw a blessing his way." he said, looking at Artemis who had been engrossed by the generosity of them all.
"Yes," she said slowly, "I apologize, I've been… Surprised, by what has happened here today," she admitted, pulling her focus back to the room.
"He's hardly wrong, you have proven yourself time and time again, rising above and beyond what had been asked of you, and you have thrown yourself into the firing line to save my hunters on dozens of occasions," she said, her voice casting well across the throne room.
"Thank you, Perseus Jackson, for the service you have given me, and for the actions, you're about to take. I will forever owe you a debt of gratitude," she admitted, stunning the other Gods with how upfront she was being with the ex-Demigod.
"I will gladly announce that I have watched you rise as you grew into a man amongst a peer of idiotic boys, but then once again as a God among men. You really do your gender a justice that it simply does not deserve, just as we don't deserve you. Despite all of your strength, skills, talents, and power, it's going to take mine and my brother's blessing to make you even somewhat passable with a bow, so, perhaps save the ranged fights for when you can get away with firing that uncivilized pistol of yours." Artemis added, giving him a wink as she too raised her hand and covered him in a silvery light.
"Damn, Arty, tell us how you really feel. I'm getting hot under the collar just watching this." Aphrodite teased, fanning her face to try and hide the extraordinary grin plastered across her features.
"Look, I'm not in love with him. He deserves to be acknowledged for who he really is, and if no one else is going to say it then I'll take great satisfaction in making it clear that I truly believe that he is a peer in this room." Artemis shot back, not interesting in arguing with Aphrodite.
"Thank you," he said, watching Artemis' reaction, "All of you, this is incredibly overwhelming and I'm grateful for everything you've all done, but I think it's probably best that I get myself ready for this trip through time," he told them all, holding his hands up to stop their blessings from going too far and making him a ticking time bomb of unrelenting power.
"We're not done quite yet, punk," Ares stated as he got up and shrunk down, standing quite a bit shorter than Percy remembered his human form. It took a moment for him to realize, but the inherent power had caused him to grow even taller, standing ever so slightly toward seven feet instead of six.
"What, you wanna make it two for two, give me a good warm-up before I go back and humiliate you for the entirety of your life?" Percy asked with a raised brow and a challenging grin.
"Not quite," Ares laughed, appreciating the boldness of the man before him, "You stepped toe to toe with me on that beach when you could hardly even hold a sword. You've come a very long way since then and it would be a flat-out lie if I were to claim that I didn't respect your strength and abilities, even if you are still just a punk. So, here you are!" Ares bellowed with a grin as he struck Percy across the face.
Percy glowed bright red as he stood, withstanding the might of Ares. The God grinned even further before returning to his throne. The punch had hurt, and he expected it might have even done an incurable amount of damage if not for Hade's blessing of invulnerability.
"Thanks, but I think you're going soft in your old age," Percy said with a nod, acknowledging the God of War.
"Whatever punk, be glad your other blessings worked the way they were meant to, I didn't pull that punch," Ares responded, looking away from him. The Gods were silent, all smiling and grinning away at the powerhouse they had created.
A flash of light appeared in his periphery, alerting him to the presence of two beings behind him. In an instant, he had spun, drawing a sword that wasn't there, and holding his empty hand out toward the new appearances.
"Going on the offensive with nothing but thin air, impressive." A beautiful woman stated with a mild smile, a quirk on the end of her lip that implied she was amused by this. She was astoundingly beautiful, casting a shadow over Aphrodite herself.
She had creamy white skin and long obsidian black hair that flowed down her back, appearing like it was flowing against the currents of the air. She had a dress that shifted like the stars themselves, with planets all around them. It was a dress of creation itself.
Percy linked the pieces and with his now somewhat advanced cognitive abilities, he realized that this woman had to have been a Primordial, and since he already knew that Chronos was coming, that must have been the man at her side.
Chronos wore an immaculate suit that matched his slightly tan skin perfectly. He had a single watch on his left wrist and a pocket watch in his suit's front-facing pouch where the pocket square should have been. Apart from that, they both looked as casual as ever. Chronos took off his sunglasses and looked around the room at the Olympians.
"In my defence, up until about five minutes ago, there would have been a sword there but said weapon now exists in a different form, one that my reflexes haven't quite gotten used to yet, so, yes, I was about to go on the offensive with nothing but thin air. You'd be surprised just how well the element of idiocracy works for confusing the opponent." Percy replied, never letting his gaze fall from the swirling purple iris' that looked like they held a constant cycle of creation and destruction.
"We ready to rock?" Chronos asked with a smirk. Percy was at first taken back by the simplicity of it all but got over that pretty quickly.
"I'm ready," Percy nodded before dropping his combat stance and turning back to the council. "Thank you all, I'll see you in five thousand years slash whenever I rock up here," Percy told them. Poseidon's eyes were brimming with pride.
Chronos nodded and suddenly they simply were no longer there. Percy felt the need to force his eyes shut and when he reopened them, they were on Olympus outside the throne room, the outside view no longer spanning the width of Manhattan but the side of a huge mountain, they really were on THE mount Olympus.
The Olympus that he once knew was no more, instead there was a grand hall made from mighty pillars of carved stone. The floor looked like it was etched from pure marble slabs. The beauty of the temple sat in it's simplicity for that all it was, the temple of the Gods that sat atop Mount Olympus. Little could compare to the breathtaking views surrounding the terrain that was to become his home for at least the next few thousand years.
He was going to have to be careful with whom he made an enemy of here because he knew only what he'd been taught about the history of Ancient Greece, but now, as opposed to Demigod history books and mortal mythology, he was going to have to live through everything that happened. He had a vague idea of where he was going to go. There was a lot more to Greece's mainland that he could see.
"Pre-Minoan Age kid, we're sitting somewhere between three thousand and two-seven thousand years before all that son of God stuff kicked off. If I was a betting man-God-Lord of Time, I'd say we're approx two-nine-forty BCE." Chronos announced with a heavy sigh. Going this far back with a passenger no less was taxing to the God who was in deep slumber.
After everything was said and done, they both walked into the grand open throne room of the temple like they owned the place, the council was already in a session and arguing about something. They all stopped and stared at the newcomers as they walked right into the centre. Both of them were rolling in waves of power. It was clear to them that these were no ordinary mortals that had tried to pilgrimage to the home of the Gods, not that anyone had managed it before.
"Olympians. I am Chronos, Primordial of Time. And this," He pointed to Percy, "Is Percy Jackson." He grinned as the council began its uproar of arguing.