Hello, people. am here. sorry for the update, been juggling a lot of stories and work in my head. Ill try harder i swear. Tell me what you think.
HellraiderS - Ill try, but thank you
RageSage - Thank you! ;)
Perseus Apollyon - Thanks!
weirdhead - Ill think about it, not sure if theres gonna be any shipping in this story tbh.
Enjoy!
He studied his reflection in the water, and watched the hand trace the raised skin along his chin and neck. He had never paid as much attention to his appearance before, instead watching his surroundings in an attempt to learn every bit of knowledge about the world he could.
These scars were… gross. He couldn't really find any words to describe it. How would he look without these, he mused to himself, slowly tilting his head and trying to examine every angle he could. He couldn't feel his own touch on the scars, just the rough skin on his fingertips.
His touch traced further down, where the burns were slowly replaced with far older scars. Lines that stretched this way and that, criss-crossing in gruesome reminders.
He quickly banished the thoughts, before his memories got the better of him. He wanted to find a good place to settle in, maybe make some form of a weapon for whenever these things wandering around decided he looked tasty.
He jumped slightly as a faint, powerful aura tickled his senses. In a flash, he dipped to grab one of the heavier stones on the forest floor. Whoever that was, he mused, wasn't someone he wanted to meet.
Lelantos watched the surrounding forest carefully, listening to the light breezes pushing through the domain surrounding him. Finding Perseus and strengthening his loyalties was the priority, and doing it quick.
His stride stayed even and quick, as the vestiges of Kronos' power led him towards the child. It was not the most glorious task, to hunt down some child, yet he enjoyed it all the same. A chance to explore what the Earth Mother may have been without Prometheus' creation wandering about. No, he never felt more in tune with his domains as he did now.
His instincts, far above even that of a god, pulled him from his thoughts and rescued him from the large rock that whistled by his head. His eyes easily found the culprit, one he almost mistook for Artemis at first glance. A closer inspection proved him wrong, however.
Perseus was… shorter than he had expected, just under half of his current form. His face was clearly scarred, raised and ugly burns that led down his neck and from view beneath his shirt. All of the boy's clothing hung rather loosely upon his frame, hiding a remarkable strength. His expression, however, was almost entirely the goddess. A sloppily cut mop of auburn hair atop his head fell just short of a pair of piercing silver eyes, expression full of suspicion and anger.
"I will not go back." The boy hissed. Lelantos placatingly raised his hands, and took a full stride away.
"Now who said anything about going back anywhere, lad?," Perseus only stared, "I am only here to help you train, and to fill in some gaps in your knowledge. So, how about you get down from there and we will start with the big things you need to know." He lingered for a moment, staring down at the Titan, then carefully worked his way down the tree. Lelantos' assumption about his height proved correct when the boy stood before him, neck craned to match the stare.
"Get talking." For a moment, he balked at the audacity of the child. Then, with a flick of the wrist, he summoned a small campsite and sat on one of the logs before the campfire. The boy followed only when he gestured to the log across from him.
"Ages ago, when Olympus still rested on its Mount, Artemis and her hunt had a companion in Orion, the mighty hunter." The boy's knuckles whitened and his expression tightened already. "What many of the mortal stories do not remember, is the true nature of Orion's birth. Orion is a Giant, born of Gaea and Tartarus, though his appearance is that of a regular man."
"A Giant? What is a Giant?" Perseus leaned forward as he spoke, intensely focused on his words.
"There are two kinds of Giant, those born of Echidna and those born of Gaea. After the defeat of the Titans Gaea gave birth to several of these Giants, each meant to be the bane of an Olympian," He paused for a second, and watched the boy's eyes widen, "Orion did not participate in the Gigantomachy, instead working as a royal hunter. When the princess fell for him, however, he was blinded and cast from the kingdom."
"Blinded? Then how did he remain such a hunter?"
"If you stop interrupting I will tell you." The boy's mouth snapped shut almost instantly.
"Hephaestus took mercy on Orion, and made him a new pair of eyes. Shortly after, Orion began his time alongside your mother and her handmaidens."
"She is not my MOTHER!" He leapt from his seat with a bark. Around them, the forest silenced, and the power that swirled around the child forced the moss at his feet to liven and burst with color.
"Fine, lad, calm yourself." The previously still air gusted around them as both of their powers flared, before Perseus flopped back onto the log with a huff.
"While amongst the Hunt, Orion fell for the goddess of the hunt, and she fell for him. It was during an Olympian party that Apollo had finally taken action to protect his sister and her oath, but it was too late. That night Artemis, drunk on Dionysus' wine, slept with her very bane. It was shortly after that Apollo drove him mad with the need to hunt every animal on Gaea, you see." The boy barely even breathed, eyes glossy as if he attempted to see the past himself.
"From what we know, Artemis delayed your birth with her domain of childbirth. Why, we do not know, that rests exclusively with her. What we do know is that when you were born, she delivered you to the doorstep of your previous 'prison'." Perseus' eyes grew haunted, before he jolted back to the present.
"Enough. You spoke of training, before this?" Lelantos gave a short nod, but cut the boy off.
"We will begin when you once more wake, lad. We will need as much uninterrupted time as we can get." This time, Perseus wandered into the tent beside him, sleep filled with days of old.
The whirlwind of events after finding her son was jarring, even for a goddess. Trying to visit her son, turned to hunting the Ophiotaurus, turned to being rescued from holding Ouranos, turned to being allowed to visit her son, turned to staring vacantly at an empty cell where he should have been.
Zoe was waiting for her outside, support for what was bound to be an emotional encounter. Much like the boy the guards were nowhere to be seen, seemingly maintaining the relative cleanliness of the rarely used prison.
She should go to the Council as soon as possible, and begin her search even before that. But, when her powers ran wild and she screamed to nothing, it felt like the only thing she could do.
