Chapter 21:

Wall of Flesh


The sun was blood red when Percy saw it.

While the sun was casting an eerie glow behind the horizon and dark clouds blanketed the entire sky he saw a figure move across the horizon.

It was unlike anything Percy had ever seen. Even when he compared it to the likes of Typhoon and Tartarus it fell short of them. Even when he focused on it he had the idea the mist was still covering it up. Protecting him from the monster's true face. Whether it climbed out of the unholy pit itself or descended from the mad skies. Something in his brain failed to properly place this creature he saw.

It was far away. Somewhere at the edge of the horizon, near the cliff the sun dipped below each night. It was humanoid. Or atleast, the vague shape of the thing was.

The entire thing was too tall to fit his view. The legs were only visible as a shadow cast upon the horizon. The rest of its body was cast in clouds. Reaching far above the dark blankets that covered the sky.

It was a giant of some sort. Most likely. But it was far bigger than anything Percy had ever seen. And something about it was off. In the worst ways a creature could be.

Everything inside Percy screamed that this was something he shouldn't even be looking at.

That he should run.

Besides him Kampê swallowed silently. The heads around her waist shrunk back like scared animals. The tail behind her nervously moved back and forth. The dragoness gazed at the horizon, her face turned ashen.

The creature in the distance terrified the jailer of Tartarus. It was something Percy hadn't seen before.

But as Fate would have it. The giant creature was slowly heading in the general direction of Camp Jupiter. Blocking Percy's only hope of getting answers.

Percy held his breath as he watched the living mountain move across the skyline of Sacramento. Slowly trudging through the landscape as each step shattered the earth he stepped on. Even if the thing was miles away Percy still feared that any sound he made would draw its unseen eyes towards them.

The thing in the distance knelt down in the middle of his rampage. His torso was pulled from the clouds as it buried its legs in the freshly created ruins. Enormous hands reached from above and started to dig. Like a kid it excitedly began to push away the buildings in its way.

"It is feasting." Kampê spoke.

A gleeful howl thundered through the sky. A hungry wail that couldn't have been made by anything resembling a human.

The giant began to pick through the rubble and clutched something between his fingers. He brought them up to the sky. To wherever its head was.

"What even is that?" Percy asked.

"It's not Greek," Kampê whispered.

"Then what is it?" Percy felt a shiver run across his spine as a second wail came from the heavens.

Kampê put away her blades. She pulled her eyes away from the creature. "The Olympians started messing with things they shouldn't have. The ancient laws are there for a reason."

She nervously moved her broken wings. "I can't fly us over it. I don't want to cross its path."

"We need to go that way." Percy murmured. "Every moment we delay our journey Camp Jupiter might be destroyed."

"Because it isn't already." Kampê scoffed. She shot Percy a grin before spotting the grave expression on his face. She gave him a look of pity. "Give up. We are not killing that thing."

She didn't wait for Percy's response. Instead she turned away from the thing. Shivered one last time before following the trail back. Away from that thing in the distance.

Percy stayed and stared at the wall of flesh in the distance. Somewhere out of sight, in that direction was Camp Jupiter. The place that he once considered a home from home.

He grasped his head. You are being delusional. He told himself. There was no way the demigods of Camp Jupiter survived.

But you can not be completely sure. Maybe one of your friends from there is still alive. Maybe they know why the Gods started doing this. If only you could see Camp Jupiter with your own eyes.

Percy despised that voice inside his head.

He turned to follow Kampê, trailing behind her as the howls of hunger echoed in the distance.

Turning away from Camp Jupiter felt wrong. It felt like he turned his back on his friends.

The soft wailing continued. The giant kept feasting.

Ahead of Percy awaited another starless night sky.

"We'll need to find shelter," Kampê said. "I think I saw a safe spot a couple miles back."

"Y-yeah," Percy answered. "Although, we have some time left before it gets completely dark."

"Wait-" Kampê slowly halted in her tracks. She stared at the sky. She murmured something.

"What?" Percy asked.

"It should be nighttime already."

Percy looked up at the sky. Above him the sky changed. The blackness of the night sky started to fade. As if the sun was rising but that was impossible. It was way too late.

He looked over his shoulder and confirmed that the sun was indeed still lowering itself behind the monstrous giant. Yet the sky was getting brighter, as if dawn was about to break any moment.

"What-"

An explosion erupted at the Eastern horizon. Percy's world was suddenly assaulted by rays of light. Percy had to avert his eyes as the sun started to rise beyond the horizon.

"It's him!" Kampê cried out. "Run!"

Him?

Percy tried to open his eyes but the sunlight was blinding him. Not just physically. It was drowning out all sense of self, consciousness and thought. Every sense was burned away by the light. He was unable to even exist in the sheer presence of the radiant star approaching him.

The cells in his body. They were melting. His soul h- B̵͖̀̑̊̈́͝u̸̫͜͠t̶̹̭́ ̵̹̰̈́P̷̡̰͈͓̒̇ė̶̩͌̽r̶͔̬͓̪͆͆͋ĉ̸̯̫̰̝ͅÿ̷̗̲́̍ ̸̤̟̳̳̍̅̾̾̔r̷͕̦͠͝ḛ̸͙̌̍̑̎͠f̵͉́̀̑ư̴̖̪͍̟͊̅̔s̵͓̽ȩ̸̟̣̤̈́͜ḑ̵̦̩̍͒́ ̶͔̥͉͈̏t̴̢͚̺̯͕͐o̷̲̰̖̽͛͛̇͝ ̵̧͓̱̬̀̊̀͂̇die

The harsh sunlight faded as rapidly as it came. The heat died down and his skin touched once more the cool evening air.

Hesitantly Percy opened his eyes.

There was no sun. What he had thought to be a sun was something else. A Greek chariot.

It was a snowwhite chariot laced with rich gold. Beautifully designed railings and depictions covered the chariot like tattoos. The chariot was spearheaded by 4 horses. Each a shade of white so pure it felt like they were burning the air around them.

The smell of ozone hit Percy's nostrils. The earth around the chariot had been singed and scorched flat.

A man held the reins of the chariot. A familiar face. But like everything he had changed as well. His usually blond locks looked faded, his tanned and perfectly muscled skin looked fragile and sickly. As if he was wearing his own skin but what had changed the most were his eyes.

Percy had seen Apollo both as an Olympian and as a powerless human. Both times his eyes were still the same. They held a certain warmth to them. A soothing calmness.

But now his eyes were dull. Devoid of anything resembling the brilliance they once held.

Percy unsheeted Riptide and sighed.

Behind them, past the horizon, the mad giant wailed as it continued its march across the land.

Ahead, the mad God notched an arrow on his bow.

Everywhere the sky turned dark as the sun fell.

Above them in the sky the moon glared down.


A/N Circus in Town!

Thanks to Delta, 00031267, ThunderBasilis, SilverJojo, mewingdog and Darth Kyuubi kurama for the reviews.

Slowly but surely we are reaching the end of the beginning.

-CaptainMoonShine-