Percy
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Thunder boomed on Olympus and a bright flashed lit up the throne room. Zoe and I glanced at each other worriedly before we began running for the hall. Every demigod, Hunter, satyr, and risen warrior that could run followed us.
When we arrived, it was to a very strange sight. Zeus trying to defend himself from Hades and Poseidon as he was beaten with black and green energy. Further inside the hall, Apollo stood in front of Killian and Alex, who's left side was covered in blood but looked alive. Artemis and Michael were bent over Bianca's limp body in front of Hera's throne.
Katie immediately ran over to Bianca, tears already streaming down her face. Lee followed her, muttering something about tearing her ACL again.
"Hey!" I shouted at the three fighting gods who were nearly blasting a hole in the room. "HEY! Calm down!" Hades and Poseidon both turned to me and if I wasn't mistaken, Zeus shot me a grateful look. "Why're you both trying to kill Zeus?"
"He shot my daughter with his Master Bolt!" Hades shouted.
"And the only reason she was hit was because she protected my son when Zeus aimed his Master Bolt at him!" Poseidon added angrily.
"I'm okay," came Bianca's crackly voice. We all turned to see her being supported by Michael and Lee while Katie was attached to Michael at the hip, sobbing hysterically. "I didn't bathe in the Styx for its warm waters."
Hades grinned at his daughter. I swear I saw a single tear fall from his face. "My daughter, I knew you would make me proud. You and Nico have brought glory to our house."
Bianca hung her head in embarrassment. "Thanks, dad." She cleared her throat. "Now, it's been a very long couple days, and I would like it if everyone kept their cool." She yelped and glared at Michael. "Not what I meant."
He grinned mischievously at her. "I don't know what you meant."
Everyone laughed, some in relief, some going into hysterics. The gods took their thrones and the demigods sorted themselves out. Zeus then went on a long spiel about the bravery of the gods in their epic clash with Typhon.
"And, of course," Zeus continued, though he looked like his pants were smoldering, "we must . . . um . . . thank Poseidon."
"I'm sorry, brother," Poseidon said. "What was that?"
"We must thank Poseidon," Zeus growled. "Without whom . . . it would've been difficult—"
"Difficult?" Poseidon asked innocently.
"Impossible," Zeus said. "Impossible to defeat Typhon."
The gods murmured agreement and pounded their weapons in approval.
"And we are thankful"—he cleared his throat like the words were hard to get out—"erm, thankful for the aid of Hades."
The lord of the dead nodded. He had a smug look on his face, but I figure he'd earned the right. He patted his son Nico on the shoulders, and Nico looked happier than I'd seen him in a long time.
"Which leaves us," Zeus said, "only the matter of thanking our young demigod heroes, who defended Olympus so well—even if there are a few dents in my throne."
He called Thalia forward first, since she was his daughter, and promised her help in filling the Hunters' ranks.
Artemis smiled. "You have done well, my lieutenant. You have made me proud, and all those Hunters who perished in my service will never be forgotten. They will achieve Elysium, I am sure."
She glared pointedly at Hades.
He shrugged. "Probably."
Artemis glared at him some more.
"Okay," Hades grumbled. "I'll streamline their application process."
Thalia beamed with pride. "Thank you, my lady." She bowed to the gods, even Hades, and then limped over to stand by Artemis's side.
"Zoe Nightshade, daughter of Atlas!" Zeus called. Zoe limped forward, bowing before Artemis, then Zeus. He looked disgruntled by the action but let it slide. "For your bravery in service of Olympus, we will spare you from imprisonment like the rest of the Titans! We will also grant you one, small wish."
"My sister," she stated. She looked to Artemis, then to Aphrodite. "I would like to see Calypso again. It would be nice to talk to her again. I wish her to be freed from her island, for she did nothing wrong, and for her to be transported to the Artemis cabin in Camp Half-Blood."
Zeus grumbled, "As you wish, Miss Nightshade." He snapped his fingers and thunder sounded.
Zoe grinned widely and bowed again before returning to my side. She gave me a side glare.
"You and I are going to talk later," she hissed quietly. I nodded quickly.
"Perseus Jackson!" Zeus said. "Come forward, son of Ouranos!"
Demigods murmured and whispered at the mention of my new father. It was still pretty surreal to hear, but I believed it after these last couple days. The wind, the lightning...It just made sense, especially since I was sure as hell not a child of Zeus.
"For your bravery and leadership in service of Olympus, we will also spare you and grant you one small wish! What will it be?"
"Lord Zeus," I started out politely, "I wish that cabins be made for the children of the minor gods, and one for the Titan borns as well. It is no good to stick them in the Hermes cabin and expect them to like it. Many of the demigods rebelled because they felt rejected, unseen, and unloved. If we can change that, we can prevent anything like this from ever happening again."
"As you wish, Perseus." He snapped his fingers. Thunder again. Drama queen.
As I walked back, a lot of demigods smiled at me. My wish was obviously appreciated by the majority.
"Lee Fletcher!" Apollo shouted joyously. "Come forward, my son!"
Lee, nervous as ever, stepped forward. He bowed before all the gods before kneeling before Apollo.
"Stand, my son, Lead Healer of Camp Half-Blood!" Apollo told him with a radiant smile. Lee stood shakily. "For your bravery these last few days and determination to save every demigod you can, ally or enemy, we gods have decided to bestow a gift and wish upon you! Our gift is an upgrade to the infirmary in Camp Half-Blood! You will find it bigger and with state of the art equipment, befit of my halls here on Olympus! Your stocks of ambrosia and nectar shall be filled to the brim and be forever restocked from my stores! And your wish? What shall it be, son?"
Lee swallowed. He opened his mouth but nothing came out. He closed it before opening it again. This time, he said, "Father, I wish nothing more than to be seen for my intelligence, not just my gifts from you. Truly, I love you, father, and would be nowhere without the gifts you bestowed upon me, but I am more than that, as are many demigods. I love to create, to design. I wish to design a place in Camp Half-Blood; a city. One to rival Olympus, though I doubt I will come close to its glory and splendor."
Several of the gods snickered.
"Sure knows how to flatter, doesn't he?" Demeter murmured.
Apollo seemed to be the happiest I'd ever seen him. "Easy as done, my son!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands. "You shall be our Chief Designer in your new city! Your structures will be the most marvelous and stand for millenia! We will support you in its creation, lend you materials and workers! Would you mind lending a few Cyclopes, Uncle P?"
Poseidon shrugged. "They will not have as much to do anymore with the war over. I do not see why not. I am sure they will enjoy being able to build something other than weapons for a few years."
Lee shook with what I assumed was gratefulness. Or he just pissed his pants. Either way, he quickly bowed to his father and Poseidon.
"Thank you, father and Lord Poseidon. I will not forget your kindness."
He quickly walked over to where Will and Michael were and nearly collapsed. The two laughed as they helped him sit down.
"Killian Vixon, son of Hyperion!" Zeus called.
Killian stepped forward, bowing to Hestia before Zeus. I could see that the god of the sky was a little miffed about that, but let it slide.
"For your bravery in defending Olympus and defeating Kronos," Zeus said, "we have deigned to let you live, and will even grant you one small wish."
"Spare the demigods who fought against you," he said. "They were hurt and felt unloved, like Percy said. And Kronos warped their minds, used their hate and bitterness against them. They are not at fault."
"Are you suggesting we are?" Zeus asked dangerously.
Most demigods would've paled and backed down, but Killian didn't.
"Perhaps partly," he answered. "But loving others is something we can all improve on. God, mortal, and Titan alike. I am sure you can improve, as well, Lord Zeus. Your marriage seems in desperate need of it."
Zeus flushed and looked to find a flaw in his argument, but Athena spoke up. "Father, he is correct. We all have room to grow, and perhaps then we will be more united."
Zeus huffed. "Fine. We will spare the demigods, but I am putting it on you to watch over them, son of Hyperion."
Killian bowed. "It will be my pleasure, Lord Zeus. I will watch over their loyalties." He straightened and walked back like a boss.
"Michaela Gardner!" Artemis called since Zeus was still sore from Killian's burn. "Son of Selene, my predecessor. Wielder of Ice. We applaud your bravery and fighting spirit in the face of defeat. We, as the council, have agreed that for your service to Olympus these past few years, we will award you a wish. You may wish for anything, granting it is reasonable and within our power."
Michael smiled at Artemis and bowed to her, then bowed to all the gods. "I am most honored to receive such a gift," he said, facing Artemis once again. "And while Killian stole what I had in mind like a bastard," a few people chuckled, "I have another in mind, but I will need you to swear on the River Styx that you will carry out my wish."
"We swear on the River Styx to do what you wish," Artemis told him. All the other gods muttered something similar and thunder boomed.
Michael grinned. "My mother. My uncle. Your mother. The peaceful Titans. I wish for them to be released from captivity and be able to roam the world. I was told to mention the time my mother helped you fight Typhon." He eyed Zeus, who rolled his eyes but nodded. Michael seemed satisfied by that. "Hold no ill intentions towards them and let them roam free and I will hold your oath fulfilled."
"As you wish, Michaela," Artemis agreed, smiling widely. She seemed rather ecstatic that her mother was being freed. Apollo was beside himself, glowing brightly. Poseidon doused him in some water, dulling the shine and making everyone laugh, including Apollo himself.
"BIANCA DI ANGELO GARDNER!" Hades thundered, standing to his feet. "Come forward, my daughter!"
All talking died down. The room was silent except for the crackle of the hearth fire. Everyone's eyes were on Bianca—all the gods, the demigods, the Cyclopes, the spirits. She walked into the middle of the throne room. Hestia smiled at her reassuringly. She was in the form of a girl now, and she seemed happy and content to be sitting by her fire again.
Bianca walked to her father, bowing to all the gods in the process. She stopped in front of her father, who was smiling widely.
"You have brought honor to the House of Hades!" he announced. "You defeated Kronos and saved us all! For that, we gift you the highest honor we gods can bestow upon anyone! If you wish, we will make you a god!"
"A god," Bianca repeated to herself.
She glanced behind her. She looked at all the demigods and Hunters. She looked at Lilly and Killian and Zoe and me. She looked at Michael and Katie, both who were smiling big.
"A god," she said again. She looked up at Hades. "No thank you, father."
"No?" Zeus said. "You are . . . turning down our generous gift?"
There was a dangerous edge to his voice, like a thunderstorm about to erupt.
"I am honored, Signore Zeus," she said. "But I would like to use my wish for something else."
"What would you have us do?" Hades asked.
"Several things," Bianca said. "I want my father and Signora Hestia to be returned their thrones on the Olympian Council. They are both wise and share a different perspective than what you are used to and will prove useful."
Zeus grunted but snapped his fingers. Two new thrones rose up from the ground at the end of the rows of thrones. One was black and inlaid with obsidian and gold. The other was a soft orange and looked like it was made of flames.
Bianca bowed. "Thank you, Lord Zeus. I have two more things I would like to ask of you. One is that you allow my children to live freely and not under threat from you gods. I understand that a child of two demigods can be dangerous, but I promise I will raise them right. They will not threaten you as long as I am loyal to you. And my final wish is for Alex. I wish that he is allowed to live at Camp Half-Blood with us. He understands that what he did was wrong and regrets it. He feels sorrow for every demigod that died in this war. But in the end, he defeated Kronos. Dispelled him from his body and sent him back to Tartarus. He is as much a hero as he is a villain, but now, he will remain a hero. We will watch him at Camp Half-Blood closely, we promise. All he wishes to see are demigods loved by their parents and not forgotten and pushed to the side. Can you do that?"
Poseidon smiled at his son, who was standing behind Killian as if trying to hide. "I believe we can, Mrs. Gardner. I believe we can."
"All in favor?" Zeus asked.
Ten hands went up.
"So be it," Zeus grumbled, upset he'd been outvoted. "Your children shall live freely, as will Alex Mare." He snapped his fingers and thunder sounded.
"I believe this ceremony is now complete. New cabins will be built at Camp Half Blood and the peaceful Titans shall be released as soon as possible. Now, we shall celebrate our victory with a party on Olympus!" Zeus thundered.
