I drew from my previous story for this chapter, but I won't be doing that much... there is no point, but it was so well written I had to honor it once.
Aaron quickly grew some hatred for the demigods, their treatment of Percy after the revelation that he was the son of Posiden was nasty. They avoided him at all costs, barely spoke to him, isolated him... Aaron was disgusted by it. Percy had done nothing wrong, and yet there were treating him like crap... to make matters worse, he started hearing whispers about himself, mostly in jealousy...
'Why would the gods care about him, even Persephone, he's mortal?'
"My mom won't even contact me, claim me, but a Goddess claims a weak, worthless mortal?"
'He's too ugly to matter, why would the gods care about him, even if he is a weak witch?'
That last one really caught in Aaron's throat, he hated that he was being judged for something as paltry as his looks, especially when he was really smart, determined, and hard-working. Other things mattered more, far more than just looks.
He spent a good deal of his time with Percy when he could, educating him on how magic worked. Sadly Percy's lack of focus made it really hard for him to cast spells, but Aaron was determined to get him to at least control the Mist or even just see through it easier.
In fact, Aaron was so annoyed by everyone else, he cast a prayer spell and requested that Posiden let him stay in his cabin as to be closer to Percy who by gods deserved to not be so isolated. A blue aura coated him immediately afterward and he knew he got his answer. He was there for the stupid paper someone planted in the cabin, and he helped Percy plan his revenge by means of a spell to cause horrible itching if they ever found the culprit.
"""
Aaron rarely remembered his dreams, for as long as he could remember that was just a fact. The few he could remember were weird, disjointed and strange... hence why he was so freaked out when, the moment he fell asleep, his vision focused with razor-sharp focus. He was running along the beach in a storm. This time, there was a city behind Him. Not New York. The sprawl was different: buildings spread farther apart, palm trees and low hills in the distance. Percy was ahead of him, looking worn down and wet, the crust of salt in his hair.
About a hundred yards down the surf, two men were fighting. They looked like TV wrestlers, muscular, with beards and long hair. Both wore flowing Greek tunics, one trimmed in blue, the other in green. They grappled with each other, wrestled, kicked and head-butted, and every time they connected, lightning flashed, the sky grew darker, and the wind rose.
Aaron didn't know why, but something in him screamed at the sight. It felt wrong, seeing them fight, as if the world itself was at odds with itself. He ran towards them, just as Percy did, only for the winds to blow him back. Percy was only running in place but for Aaron the winds actually carried him away, like he weighed no more than a dried leaf. Over the roar of the storm, struggling in the clouds, he could hear the blue-robed one yelling at the green-robed one,
'Give it back! Give it back!' Like a kindergartner fighting over a toy.
The waves got bigger, crashing into the beach with hate and power, almost high enough to smash into Aaron even in his position near the clouds.
"Stop it! Stop fighting!" Percy's voice somehow reached where he was, his friend desperately trying to make his way toward the fighting men.
The ground shook. the sand dancing mockingly. Laughter came from somewhere under the earth, and a voice so deep and evil Aaron felt nauseous. The urge to flee was impossibly strong.
'Come down, little hero,' the voice crooned. 'Come down!'
The sand split beneath Percy, opening up a crevice straight down to the center of the earth. He tumbled forward while Aaron's essence screamed, weakened by the strain of such potent astral projection to an unprepared vessel.
"Why am I seeing this, what's the point? I am just a human, what can I do that makes this matter? I can sense their power, these are top tier beings, what am I to do that would make a real difference?"
Persephone's sharp, dark and lively presence echoed around him literally like the breath of spring, filling him with strength. "Go with him, guide him, only you can. Only you are unbiased enough to save the souls you will find on your way. Use your unclaimed heart to make a true difference and show the world the power you hold, the powers of humanity." With that knowledge, that divine command, the winds swirled around him and he flew away, flying farther and farther at blinding speeds, so fast in fact that he couldn't tell landmarks or make a guess where he was going. All he knew was that he had no control, someone else was in charge of this flight and it wasn't him.
Then he stopped, suddenly as he moved, the world collided with itself and he saw a familiar set of Cabins, one silver and one gold and he knew where he was. "Why am I at Camp... and why is it so cloudy, I thought bad weather just ignore this pla-WOAH!" The winds shot back up and he was sent flying fast towards the Big House, smashing through it until finally, he was floating over his own body, only something was wrong. He looked pale, and there was blood dripping from his eyes. "What is happening to me?"
'Mortal minds... bound more purely to flesh than not, your body cannot handle astral projection so purely as a demigod, at least not yet.'
The voice echoed once more in his mind as slowly he was lowered into his body.
"A warning next time, then, cause I would rather-" Darkness, a sensation of being squeezed into a led suit, and then his eyes opened. Pain was everywhere, mostly in his head. " Ow... hmmm. Okay, so that wasn't fun..." Turning he saw Percy, who was flailing. "Percy!"
The boy turned, shaking. "I... That... your eyes!"
"I saw your dream, my body can't handle projection since I am mortal... I am tied to you, to your quest... Persephone has ordered it."
They both jumped as they heard a clopping sound at the door, a hoof knocking on the threshold.
"Come in?" Percy said.
Grover trotted inside, looking worried. "Mr. D wants to see you."
"Why?"
"He wants to kill... I mean, I'd better let him tell you and what happened Aaron?."
They both got dressed, with Aaron cleaning his face of blood, and followed Grover out.
Aaron, fond of Percy and his cool, powerful aura, grabbed his arm. "They aren't here to kill you, I just know it Percy."
Percy smiled. "Let's hope so."
Over Long Island Sound, the sky looked like ink soup coming to a boil. A hazy curtain of rain was coming in their direction, dark intentions filled the cloud. Percy asked Grover if they needed an umbrella.
"No," he said. "It never rains here unless we want it to."
Percy pointed at the storm. "What the heck is that, then?"
He glanced uneasily at the sky. "It'll pass around us. Bad weather always does."
Aaron lowered his vision into the veils of magic, he flinched at the tremendous power filling the cloud. "It holds power like in the Tree, that is the mark of Zeus I think... it will hit us."
Grover looked horrified and close to fainting.
Chapter end, tell me what you think in the reviews.
This was a joy to write and I loved it.
Love, your Ninja Overlord,
Mika.
