Chapter Fourteen: A Vengeful Reunion
Comment Responses:
Chimera629: I toiled over that decision a little bit myself, but I feel like at this point Percy knows she hasn't accomplished any of the things she has told him she wants to. But he has faith she would get in regardless of the situation as he knows it's what she deserves. So Imagine having to make that choice for someone, if you give them Elysium and they are unhappy you not only took away their chance to live again, but sent them to a place full of worthy heroes who earned it. Annabeth's pride wouldn't have survived that and I feel personally like she would have chosen reincarnation over being made to feel inferior every day of her afterlife. Thus Percy decided to bring her back.
Meryfcuckery: Wow this one was long, but thanks for the awesome review and critique! I appreciate the hell out of it as it really gave me a different view which I think helped me with this chapter a lot. I'm glad that the questions you asked were some of the things I was covering in this chapter. I literally read our comment and grinned a little because it means I've got the pacing maybe a little slower than it should be but not far off. Hopefully this chapter answers a few of those questions you had, but i don't wanna spoil anything that's coming up in the next chapter.
In regards to the curse, even Percy doesn't fully understand it still, but for the sake of clarity no he's not immortal per say. He just cant die, That's the only distinction. I envision it kind of like a wolverine type healing factor, if you like comics or cartoons haha. I promise we will delve into this next chapter! I swear the slow burn on this story will be worth the wait!
Anyways, I just wanted to say thanks for the review and the tips, I really appreciate it! Enjoy the chapter mate!
Wowowubzy: That's high praise mate, thanks! As for the whole Percabeth Situation, guess you'll have to keep reading and find out ;D
Pronunciation: Λήθη (Lethe) (Le-Thay)
Percy: Day Seventeen In Tartarus
Like a rocket he sped forwards, the sword Nyx had given him flashing through a series of slashes as he leapt to intercept Hades. The ring of metal on metal as their swords clashed turned into one long screech as Percy fought like a dozen men, glad to once more have a weapon in his hands and not to be reliant solely on his fists and feet.
After Several quick blows, Percy took a defensive posture and was ready when Hades launched his counter attack. Attempting to overpower and kill Percy in one fell swoop, Hades hammered away, his sword practically singing as it swung through the air. However the sword struck repeatedly against Percy's shield, as the demigod took measured steps backwards, only lifting his shield or parrying with his sword as he evaluated his uncle's skill.
Hades was a God, and as such, underestimating his uncle could be fatal, at least temporarily Percy thought to himself grimly. Having been on the defensive for roughly a minute he decided to change the pace, Stepping forwards past a particularly wild blow and slamming the rim of his shield off of Hades' knee. Right above the joint, causing the God to jerk forwards in pain as Percy raised his shield back upwards quickly. Slamming it into the lower face of his opponent's face, a healthy crunch and a spray of Ichor telling him that his effort had been successful.
Hades stumbled backwards as Percy pressed the attack, aiming to avoid fatally injuring or Gods forbid killing his uncle. Like a viper his sword lashed out several times, leaving long shallow cuts along Hades arms and legs. Anywhere his armor left skin exposed Percy aimed at. Even with his speed, and Godly stamina, Hades was overwhelmed. Stumbling backwards as he frantically worked his shield back and forth across his body, trying to block the seemingly endless rain of blows Percy was delivering.
At first Percy thought his uncle was already outmatched, which seemed funny. Then Percy realized Hades was setting up a classic counter, a roman combination; it involved Hades dropping his shoulder in behind his shield and rushing forwards. Driving his shield into Percy's chest in the process and shoving him back enough to provide an opening to step in and stab with his sword.
Percy had drilled that formation for hours with the Legion, he saw the setup coming, which was disappointing as it was rapidly becoming clear Hades was not much of a swordsman per say. Strong and fast yes, but Percy was reading him like a book. Drawing the enemy into chasing you so you can turn the tables on them with a quick shove, was a great option. But not against someone of Percy's caliber.
Percy went with the flow of the battle, allowing Hades to think he had the trap set. Percy charged up as much energy as he could channeling it into his legs as he waited for Hades to try and spring his trap. Even going so far as to intentionally overcommit to several swings as he tried to get his uncle to rise to the bait.
Finally he "pretended" to stumble forwards, his eyes cast towards the ground as he waited for his other senses, most noticeably the countless particles of water in the air to tell him when Hades finally took the bait. He could clearly see within his mind's eye, as his uncle flexed his grip around his sword and pulled the shield closer to his body.
Percy's eyes snapped up to lock with Hades in an instant as he turned his stumble into a jump, up and backwards right as Hades stepped forwards to shove Percy backwards with his shield. Hades looked upwards in confusion as Percy coiled his legs underneath him and flashed a grin at the God through his helmet.
Rolling his shoulders back as he did so leveled him out in the air, so much so that he was parallel with the ground below him. Then he kicked out with both legs, impacting the shield Hades held, practically against his chest.
With a bang like a gunshot going off Hades was launched off his feet, The force of the kick was so strong that the God flew nearly forty feet towards Lady Styx, slamming into the ground as his impact dug a small trench at the feet of the river goddess. Meanwhile Percy landed slightly roughly on his back and quickly scrambled to his feet.
Styx and Eko had been fighting just as hard, Styx however was not looking good. She was breathing hard and covered in cuts and other small wounds. Meanwhile Eko looked like she was ready for brunch or a stroll in the park, Save for the chains at her wrists and ankles.
Eko was in the midst of summoning a withering hailstorm of water projectiles from the Tartarean, launching them at Hades and Styx with incredible speed and force. The aquamarine jets of water seemed to materialize around her at a moment's notice, before rocketing away in a blur of motion.
The force with which they were impacting the ground around Hades was terrifying, booms echoed across the open plains of Tartarus, and off the towering mountains. The jets of water detonating like miniature bombs as they slammed into the ground and Hades' shield at harrowing speeds. Spraying blasts of rock and debris everywhere as Hades desperately tried to keep Lady Styx protected.
Her hair fanned out about her, held aloft as if by some invisible wind, Eko looked enraged. Her iris swirled, a mixture of green and black so dark it was like looking into a midnight ocean. Her black dress hugged her curves tightly, if only for a few minor tears the dress was in perfect condition. If anything she looked slightly annoyed, the curve of her upper lip and the slight sneer on her face as she looked at Hades showed that emotion quite clearly. The chains attached to the manacles on her wrists and ankles jangled as did the one around her neck, filling the air with a harsh metallic sound as she stalked towards her sister.
"WHY HELLO SISTER DEAR, IT'S ONLY BEEN A FEW THOUSAND YEARS, STILL PRETENDING AT OWNING MY RIVER?!" Screamed Eko as a surge of water roared out of the Tartarean behind them. The wave of water at least thirty feet off the ground as it surged towards Hades and Styx.
Styx still behind Hades, tried to raise her own wall of water, the blackish waters of the Styx feebly appearing in the air and forming a thin barrier. One which Eko swept aside with her bare hands, ripping her sister's grip on the water from her as easily as one might take candy from a child.
A wave of flaming superheated water from the Tartarean surged forwards at Styx who screamed as she threw up her hands in front of her face.
With a flick of Hades' wrist, a massive series of bone and flesh constructs rose to block the wave of water, which started to eat away at the barrier almost instantly. Eko howled in rage, once more denied a chance to kill her sister by the God of Death.
Clearly whatever battle was going on between the two river goddesses had not been going well for Lady Styx. Who's chiton resembled a ratty and torn piece of cloth, so stained in ichor it was nearly unrecognizable as a gods attire. Evidently only the timely arrival of Hades had saved the Goddess from whatever fate her sister had in store for her.
Even at that, he was pretty sure if Eko had been given a minute or two longer alone with Styx; Percy and Hades would have turned up to a murder scene instead of a battle he thought to himself.
"YOU WOULD DARE TO THINK YOU COULD TAKE THE TARTAREAN FROM ME SISTER!?" Eko howled from behind the barrier as she blasted at the constructs around Hades and Styx with even more summoned water from the Tartarean. Styx was cowering behind the God of the Dead, Hades however, kept summoning walls of bones and other constructs to block the enraged goddesses path, however the barrage from Eko continued.
Percy had to note it was working to a certain extent, at the very least it was slowing her down. The waters which swirled around Eko were filled with bones, some of which literally burned as they swirled in the water. However she refused to take her eyes off Styx and Hades, watching her younger sister with hateful eyes as she launched a new barrage of water at Hades, the resulting explosion shattered his shield bits and pieces of the Stygian iron crumbling away under Eko's assault.
The God looked at the mangled mess attached to his arm, and snorted in disgust before he practically ripped the shield off and threw it on the ground, taking a grip on his sword with both hands Hades looked ready to fight once more.
Styx however looked like a trapped animal, as she shook her head piteously and grabbed at Hades leg, screaming out something to him in panic. "My Lord, we need to leave! I did not realize my Sister had risen or else I would never have come down here! Please my lord she will kill me if she gets the chance" Styx wailed in terror
Hades just shot her a glare before another wall of bone and flesh this time reinforced with shadow tendrils erupted around Styx, shielding her and Hades from a blast of flaming water that hit the barrier moments after it was erected.
Percy had met Lady Styx several times, but he had never seen her so clearly terrified, the goddess was physically attempting to put as much space and as many obstacles between herself and her sister as possible. Which would have been great, if Eko hadn't been a cruise missile of vengeance pointed at her sister.
Hades had a look of concern on his face as it became evident that even chained as she was, Eko had real power at her fingertips. Worse so for Hades he wasn't able to get anywhere near the furious goddess, mostly due to Percy.
Percy and Hades watched each other from a short distance, before suddenly Hades twitched and the fight was back on. With both of them exploding into movement and crashing together, blades crossed.
A long steel screech rang out as Percy and Hades locked blades once more, The God of the Underworld trying to wear him down with heavy handed blows which Percy was avoiding with ease. Watching the God of death with a slight grin on his face as Hades began to get frustrated.
Percy had to give it to him, Styx was more of a hindrance at this point, Hades couldn't get at Eko without getting past Percy, and he couldn't fully focus on Percy otherwise Eko would be free to kill Nyx. So Hades only choice was to get past him or kill him and get to Eko, Spinning his sword over once he grinned, that wasn't going to happen any time soon, Eko saved his life and as far as he could tell Styx had started this, so he wasn't about to let his Uncle kill her.
Taking a quick step inside Hades' guard Percy threw his shield high, intercepting Hades' strike midway, causing the pommel of the Gods sword to bang off the rim of the shield. Instantly, Percy drove the shield forwards with everything he had, the blast of air Hades expelled from his lungs as the shield crushed his chest was audible.
Percy followed Hades backwards as he stumbled, his sword whirling around him as he forced Hades to work his sword back and forth furiously just to avoid being gutted. He was trying not to kill his uncle, but he also couldn't hold back, he needed this to be as real as possible or Hades would suspect something was wrong.
Hades began summoning shadows to attack Percy, dozens of small tendrils raced towards him as Percy let loose, calling all the water in the air to him in an instant as both he and Hades were drenched when the dozen tendrils of shadow smashed into a shield of water that Percy had created around himself. Several tendrils got through however, one pierced his forearm and the other glanced off his helmet, leaving a deep scar in the metal.
The explosion as Hades' shadow spears slammed into the water was horrifying, an ear piercing crash followed by water sent in every direction, nearly blinding both of them. The downside for Hades was that Percy didn't need to open his eyes to see the God. He was absolutely soaked and Percy could make out every minute move Hades made. Hades for his part swung blindly several times with one arm as he used the other to fire off a series of bolt-like projectiles made of shadow.
They raced across the ground towards Styx and Eko, homing in on the enraged goddess as Percy called out her name "EKO!". The Goddess didn't even flinch as the blasts of energy slammed into her, blasting her off her feet as Hades raised his hand to summon more projectiles, firing them into the already massive cloud of dust and debris where Eko had been standing.
A withering volley of water from the Tartarean flew out in response as a roar of anger from Eko sounded out and she exploded past the cloud of debris. Running straight at Hades, her talons glinting in the green light cast by Percy's aura. A wall of shadow tendrils sprung into existence in front of Eko, the shadows forming deadly spear like proectviles as they attempted to skewer the goddess, who merely summoned water in front of herself to absorb the blow. Which meant she was launched backwards like an arrow from a bow and slammed into the water somewhere a hundred feet or so away from the shore. Hades then immediately erected another massive wall of bones blocking the shore from sight.
Percy lunged forwards pressing hades from his left and apologizing internally, stepping back and blocking a combination of thrusts and slashes from Hades as he waited for the right moment. Which presented itself in the form of a perfect thrust from Hades, one which Percy faked stepping in to block. However at the last second he turned, allowing the blade to skid along the front of his shield instead of deflecting it.
With a steely rasp, the sword left a deep gouge in Percy's shield before it slid along the surface. However the trap was set, with a shove the sword went wide, swinging away from Hades, Percy followed in behind that. His sword worked its way through an upwards swing, and with just the slightest resistance at the end of which, right as Percy's sword struck home.
Slicing clean through the wrist of Hades' sword arm, between the bracer he wore to cover his wrist and his hand. Hades' mouth opened as he screamed out in pain briefly, his face twisted in agony as he dropped to one knee, clutching at the stump of his now missing hand. Nearly doubling over, as a series of resounding booms and cracks let him know that Eko had shattered the wall of bones Hades had summoned finally.
A scream of rage came from her direction as a deluge of water raced forwards to slam into the Gods, Styx barely got her own shield of water up, the swirling darkness of the Styx fighting to hold back the aquamarine waters of the Tartarean. A battle Styx was rapidly and clearly losing as the flames of the Tartarean licked at the water's Styx summoned.
With a boom, almost as if lighting had struck the waters they exploded, sending a spray of mist flying in every direction. Styx was knelt on the ground, drenched in sweat as she trembled, her pale body clearly exhausted by the effort of trying to hold off Eko.
"You fight well, but this is foolish" Hades said through gritted teeth as a skeletal hand shot out of his wrist, rather sickeningly. Before it was wrapped in shadow tendrils, allowing Hades to bend down and retrieve his sword rather calmly. Admittedly he seemed to be in pain, as the simple task of fetching a sword took him far too long.
"Oh come on, as if that's fair…." Percy said quietly to himself as he watched his uncle warily.
"Any chance you're going to give up and head home? You aren't welcome down here Hades." Percy asked, returning once more to a more combat oriented stance, ready to leap back at his uncle, sword slashing at a moment's notice.
"You may be talented, but I have yet to see your mistress, which tells me she either doesn't care or doesn't know I'm here. As such, this is a chance I will not allow to escape me, I cannot allow the Tartarii to align themselves with the Primordial's against us!" Hades declared with venom in his voice.
"So….. I take it that's a no, to the whole leaving peacefully thing?" Percy inquired, his voice laden with sarcasm as he prepared himself to start fighting again. "Because you aren't going to win with that" Percy said nonchalantly as he gestured to the sword hades held in his hand.
Hades let out a short mirthless laugh, then rushed forwards, his sword already swinging down to chop Percy in half. However Percy had to note with slight satisfaction that his Uncle was fast, but Tartarus had been faster.
Sidestepping his uncle, Percy lashed out, throwing a kick at Hades, imbued with the powers of the Earth Shaker, Percy grinned in satisfaction as his foot made contact with Hades' knee. It let off a snap like a gunshot before Hades stumbled to the side, trying in vain to get his sword to his side to block the series of slashes Percy had started the moment Hades stumbled.
Almost like it was as easy as taking a breath in, Percy charged Hades, drawing moisture from the air to coat his sword, forcing the water to run up and down the blade at insane speeds. Then Percy proceeded to launch attacks all about him with the sword, trying to slash apart Hades under the onslaught.
Hades for his part was maintaining some sort of shield made of shadows, the darkness literally flowed from his hand in a sort of wave, covering most of the Gods body as he stumbled about, launched from one side to the other by the rain of blows from Percy.
The explosions created by the impact of the highly pressurized water Percy was manipulating were, interesting, to say the least. The water ripped through stone like it was tissue paper, gouging it away and leaving a broken mess of rock shards and dust wherever he hit.
Somehow Hades had managed to use his shield to prevent a direct hit, the strange wave of darkness seemingly capable of holding back the waters of the Tartarean if only temporarily.
However Hades was rapidly going from an offensive position to a defensive one as Percy was almost lost in the heat of battle. His sword flowed around him like water as he moved from position to position, his sword twirling around him as he went through dozens of sets taught to him over the years. Moving faster and faster with each series of blows he launched, a wild grin plastered across his face as he almost forgot who it was he was fighting.
However he was constantly met by Hades and his damn shadow shield magic, whatever the hell it was Percy thought angrily and every time he was he would remember that his uncle was a god, and a powerful one at that. Trying to cut through that shield was like trying to push a butter knife through a steel beam.
He needed a new strategy and he had learned time and time again, that if you can't cut something you just need to hit it really really hard.
"This needs to end soon Perseus, Eko won't be able to keep this up forever, and if help from the other Olympians arrives you will both end up dead or worse…. Imprisoned again" a young childlike voice called out in his mind as he spun and rolled away from Hades, taking a few quick steps backwards after regaining his feet to put some distance between himself and Hades.
"You wont hit or hurt him like that Perseus, fighting a God isn't like fighting a monster. Hades is controlling the Aetherium to protect himself, using it to create shadows and reinforce them to keep you at bay." The voice continued, almost sounding bored.
"Break his hold on the magic, feel for where he is focusing the Aetherium energy and find a way to disrupt it, and then do as you please. Show me that my sister was right to save you Perseus." The voice called out once more in his mind as he resumed the fight.
Stepping into Hades Percy spun to his left, attacking with a slash from his right hand, trying to drive Hades backwards farther from Eko and Styx, The now familiar feeling of his sword sinking into molasses telling him Hades had yet again blocked with magic.
The sea green aura flared up around him as he let loose a snort of anger, spinning on the spot as he called on all the water around him to solidify around his weapon. However, instead of extending the reach of his sword, he had the water form what was effectively a massive hammer head.
Almost like time had slowed down for him he tried to focus on the feeling he had whenever he manipulated the Aetherium. For a split second he felt nothing and then it was like he had dropped acid. The world was wavy around him, everything moving in slow motion as he reached out and felt for Hades' connection to the Aetherium, which he found almost instantly.
Percy could feel the focus point that voice talked about, he couldn't see anything per say but it was like a small fire, flickering around Hades hand as the shadows swirled across his skin and armor. He wasn't exactly sure what to do, the voice wasn't very specific, but it felt like a flame so he went with his gut.
Reaching out and grabbing ahold of the flame like he had with Umbra, however instead of holding it in place, or attempting to interfere with it in any way. He simply smothered it, envisioning the little flame guttering as he felt the link Hades had between himself and the Aetherium stutter. Percy pouring all the energy he could muster into it as he ironed his resolve and willed Hades link with the Aetherium to shatter.
This all happened in almost an instant as Percy spun about and his reversal of direction caused Hades to stumble forwards for a second. Then Percy swung the water hammer with all his might, the construct slammed into Hades' back. The force drove him onto his stomach instantly. The ground cracking all around him like a spider web. His shield of shadows had completely gutted out a second before Percy's hammer had struck home, but it didn't really matter given the force behind the blow.
In the same motion Percy dropped to one knee and reversed his swing back around the other way, wincing slightly as Hades tried to get up, only to take the hammer head of the side of his face as a bell like peal rang out, the result of Percy slamming the hammer off of Hades helm of Darkness.
The God whipped away from him like a bullet, flying backwards and slamming into the cliff with crash as a groan escaped his lips. Then he slowly fell forwards and landed on his knees, Ichor flooded down his side and chest from his mouth onto the floor. Hades coughed weakly, one of his lungs clearly ruptured by the force of the impact as more Ichor leaked from his nose.
Percy let out a short breath, admittedly the constant water manipulation was hard, it no longer felt exhausting, something was going on though, Percy didn't just feel good, he felt fucking great. Meanwhile, when he had fought the gorgons the simple act of controlling the water in such a way had left him tired and sweat covered after less than five minutes.
Percy had to admit that ever since Umbra had died, faded, whatever you want to call what the Tartarean did to him. Or rather what Percy had made the ocean to do; Percy had felt great. He had already used his powers more than he had in the last few weeks, barring his fight with Tartarus.
But Percy still had questions, mostly he wanted to know what the Domain of the Tartarean was, obviously it was an ocean. But clearly it was something more than that at the same time, however he also wanted to know more about the curse. Nyx had mentioned something about Tartarus cursing him in an old speech. As far as he could tell Eko knew something about it, she had guided him and given him the words he needed to speak to save Annabeth. Percy wasn't going to wait any longer to know what the hell the Primordial of the pit actually did to him. After this it was time for a real talk with Eko, he needed to know what exactly was going on before his own ignorance of this domain he was set to inherit, and the curse laid on him killed him.
However his moment of thought nearly cost him dearly, he almost didn't notice as Hades raised his hand weakly. Bones exploding from the ground all around him, the tops of which were as sharp as any spear. The surge of bone spikes raced towards Percy in an instant and he had jumped to avoid the initial blast and was now in danger of falling backwards into the spikes.
However at the last second a wave of aquamarine water shot out underneath him, ripping everything in its path apart as Eko channeled the waters of the Tartarean to slam into Hades. Who for the first time in the encounter was too blinded by pain and his own concentration to raise one of his bone constructs to block it.
The wave of water hit Hades like a mac truck, picking him up like a ragdoll and throwing him into the cliff again with a resounding boom. Afterwards Hades was left laying on the ground groaning as his armor steamed, barely holding itself together after the assault by the waters of the Tartarean
Styx once more tried to raise a barrier against her sister, seeing how Hades had already been dropped. However it wavered and faded almost instantly as Percy watched in shock, Styx looked like someone had grabbed a marionette by its strings. "FUNNY HOW YOU CLAIM TO BE A GODDESS OF VENGEANCE, LITTLE SISTER. LET ME SHOW YOU WHAT THAT REALLY MEANS!" Eko cried out as she moved her hand, and Styx flew backwards through the air towards the waters of the Tartarean and away from Hades.
An almost imperceptible nod of Eko's head changed Styx's course, slamming her into the ground with an explosion that sent off shockwaves, cracking the ground around her like glass.
With a primal scream Eko launched herself at Styx, who was struggling to get to her feet, her eyes glazed in confusion. Eko hit her like a train, bowling over the other goddess and beginning the process of what was essentially flaying Styx alive. Eko's razor sharp talons ripping apart flesh as easily as one might tear paper.
Percy watched in morbid fascination as Eko began to dismantle Styx, her claws ripping the goddess apart as Ichor and Styx's screams filled the air. Eko had literally, launched herself at the other Goddess, and Percy couldn't deny that 'Goddess of Vengeance' fit Eko pretty fucking well.
"YOU CONSPIRED TO TEAR MY DOMAINS FROM ME, TO CAGE ME LIKE AN ANIMAL! TIME FOR SOME LESSONS IN PAIN LITTLE SISTER, I LEARNED A FEW WHEN YOU TOOK MY RIVER FROM ME.." Eko growled out, grabbing Styx by the head as she slammed her face off the ground several times. Then Eko lifted Styx up and summoned a blast of water, which crashed right into her gut, launching Styx away as ichor and spittle flew out of her open mouth, the goddess plowing into the ground roughly before rolling her to a stop.
Percy was forced to look away from the battle between the sisters as he felt Hades stirring from his position a few dozen feet away.
A roar of anger sounded from behind him as he turned to see Hades stumbling to his feet, his side and chest stained gold from where Ichor had run down his armor. The armor itself was starting to look rather sad, most of it looked like acid had been dripped all over it, the once exquisite designs and linework now melted into a slag like mess.
"You will pay for that, you little hell spawn, once I'm done with you and Εκδίκηση is imprisoned once more I will torture you in the fields of punishment until you tell me how you freed her and where the hell you hid for the last millennia!." Hades spat, as he drew his sword in both hands and moved forwards, his stance steady and his eyes like miniature inferno's promising endless torture once he won.
If he won, Percy thought dryly. "Once again Lord Hades, simply leave and we can call it a draw. I have no interest in fighting you but Εκδίκηση is off limits…. Take your river goddess and leave me and mine." Percy responded calmly, watching as Hades' face contorted in a scowl before the God rushed forwards.
Once more a clash of swords resumed, Percy had to give it to his uncle, he might have been lackluster with a sword, but what he could do with his powers was beginning to worry Percy. Hades was radiating malice, the terror inspired by his helm was barely countered by the song of the Tartarii. Which raged in his ears as he pulled the waters about him, the start of a small maelstrom forming around him as the flaming waters began to swirl in the air.
In response Hades waved his arm and the ground seemed to be covered with a black liquid as the shadows pulled together, pooling around Hades as dozens of shadow tendrils rose from the ground around him and the lord of the dead.
Almost like they were waiting for a signal nothing moved for a moment, then everything exploded into motion all at once. Percy was a whirlwind of sword strokes, slashing and parrying his way through the withering storm of blows, all the while a maelstrom of flaming water swirled around him, invigorating him and filling him with more energy than he thought possible.
The water was following Percy's sword as he swung, swirling about his armor and running across his skin, almost like a living shield; he didn't have to will it to protect him, it just did. Countless blasts of shadow magic or bone constructs were smashed apart before Percy even consciously realized what was going on.
Percy was wreathed in a green light, his eyes crackling with power as he lost himself in the utter Joy of channeling the Tartarean. The song of the Tartarii drowned out everything else as he continued to make his way towards his uncle, whose face was rapidly moving from a triumphant grin to a concerned glare as Percy seemed to be unaffected by Hades' magic.
Finally Percy burst clear of the field of shadow tendrils, blasts of water flying towards Hades in an instant, a half dozen at least. Battering the God as he lacked a shield to block them, instead he simply braced himself as the flaming projectiles slammed into his chest and head. Wreathing them in liquid fire as he shouted in fury. Swinging his sword blindly in Percy's direction as the demigod leapt at him, lifting his shield as he did so.
The clang of metal on his shield was the signal Percy had been waiting patiently for, specifically the flatter ring when a sword strikes the rim. With a grunt, Percy shoved his shield upwards and then rolled his shoulder towards Hades, yanking the shield away in an instant as the God, now unbalanced, stumbled forwards.
Percy smashed shoulder first into Hades' chest the god was mid stride already stumbling backwards off balance. The impact blasted the God off his feet as Percy released the strap on his shield and landed with a roll in one smooth motion.
Spinning around faster than Hades who was still laying on his back, somewhat confused and trying to figure out what had hit him. Percy lifted his shield and slammed the crescent shaped cut out into the ground on either side of Hades' left arm, right above the elbow.. Trapping the Gods arm as Percy channeled the powers of the Earth Shaker and sank it at least fourteen or fifteen inches into the ground and several into Hades' bicep, cleanly severing the tendons.
Hades howled in pain as Percy exploded into movement, surging forwards and thrusting his sword forwards he ran his uncle clean through the thigh, yet another non-lethal wound as he drove the sword Nyx had given him a foot or more into the ground.
"AGGGHHHHHHH!" Hades screamed in pain as Percy winced internally, taking a step back as he did so. This whole situation felt surreal to him, he could feel the same anger and hatred for Hades as he had felt for Umbra, fighting against the emotions he already had for his uncle. He could feel that same connection to his essence and it was growing stronger every minute.
Percy didn't particularly want to fight Hades, but he had sworn an oath to follow Nyx's directions without question. Revealing himself would be against her orders as such, nothing doing in that regard. Not to mention if he didn't fight back Hades would suspect something.
This left him without many options as he knew his uncle was proud, and his pride would prevent him from seeing the reason behind backing away from this fight.
Percy's eyes glowed bright green under the helmet as he walked towards Hades, channeling all the energy of the earth shaker he could handle into his foot as he felt the ground rumble and quake with each step. He wanted this over and done with before he lost control and did something he would regret.
Hades turned to look at him, opening his mouth as if to say something, Percy however, responded by kicking him in the face as he lay on the ground. A bang like a gunshot rang out as Hades struggled to stay conscious, shaking his head like a dog as Percy lashed out a few more times. Bludgeoning his uncle into the realm of unconsciousness. Retrieving his weapons quickly he turned to look for Eko.
The waters of the Tartarean were practically boiling, the sea roaring in anger, caught in the throes of a storm unlike any Percy had ever seen. The waves appeared to be literally vertical cliffs made of water, huge swells slammed into the shore and in the middle of it all were Eko and Styx.
Styx for her part seemed to be attempting to summon water to protect herself, but the Styx itself was very far away, and within the Domain of the Tartarean it appeared that Eko was the stronger of the two, even restrained as she was by the spell that sealed her and her sisters.
Styx was summoning ever smaller globes of black water, which were not doing particularly well against Eko. Who could seemingly reach out to tear her sisters shields apart with a simple gesture.
Styx wailed in agony as a fresh wave of water from the Tartarean slammed into her, knocking her onto her back where she lay for a moment, before she feebly rolled over and attempted to crawl away from Eko, sobbing while she did so.
"Finished so soon sister? I had expected better of you… to think that you have claimed ownership over my river in my absence. It's shameful." Eko said with fury, her slight form trembling as she looked down on the broken Goddess. The sight of the five foot six goddess with her hair flared out about her head and hands clenched her side might have been funny in most circumstances Percy noted. However at this moment it was downright terrifying, as Eko was almost painted gold in his sister's Ichor, wearing a bright smile as she approached the wounded goddess.
"S-sister, p-please I'm-" Styx started to beg as she looked up at Eko, whose eyes seemed to explode into miniature balls of black fire as she watched Styx beg. Styx was cut off mid speech as she suddenly began to spasm, clutching at her chest and gouging the skin with her nails as she writhed in pain.
"Beg all you want sister, You brought this upon yourself by daring to think you could claim the Tartarean and I would be too weak to respond." Eko replied with a grim note in her voice. "Lets see which of us is truly weak Styx, does the river listen to you? Or does it listen to its true mistress!?"
Eko threw both her hands out and Styx howled in pain, black water leaching from her skin and mouth as the ear piercing shriek she was letting out continued, the agony she was experiencing was on clear display in her voice.
Styx raised both arms, a look of terror on her face as all around her a surge of black water raced towards Eko, a last ditch effort by Styx to incapacitate Eko and free herself.
She should have known better, Percy thought with a shake of his head as Eko lashed out with her hand. The water Styx had summoned simply dissolved in a burst of fine mist as Styx cried out in frustration. This was followed by a second wave of water from the Tartarean slamming into the ground where Styx lay, the force of which actually cracked the ground around the Goddess.
"I had thought, you would cower and hide like you did when the Gods betrayed us, instead you were foolish enough to come here, to me. My river will be mine again soon Styx, and the same can be said for my sisters and theirs when they wake. Your days are numbered naiad."Eko snarled as Styx was jerked into the air, her limbs twisting strangely as she writhed in pain. Eko walked up and slashed at her broken and battered form with her talons several times before releasing what had held her and throwing the non responsive body several feet away into a large boulder.
Percy was confused because he felt like part of him should be against this, it should be hard to watch, yet he found himself grinning slightly, almost happily as he watched Eko literally rip Styx apart.
He could feel the domain of Vengeance that Eko possessed screaming out in joy as Styx cried out in pain. It was just like when he had fought Umbra, voices called out for the oath breakers to be punished. Dozens of them all at once, screaming in his mind making it nearly impossible to focus. They cried out that Styx was a Traitor, Betrayer, Snake and a Liar, Hades on the other hand had broken oaths, Percy could literally feel them like thorns under his skin, irritating him as he tried to focus on what was going on around him.
It left him feeling as best as he could describe it; 'hazy'.
He knew that he should react differently, he had tortured Umbra, he was watching Eko torture Styx. Like it was the most normal thing in the world, something that, two weeks prior would have driven him mad with guilt and remorse. 'Funny what hell can do to a person' Percy thought darkly as he watched the gruesome display.
However there was this voice at the back of his mind, so quiet he almost couldn't hear it, telling him this was wrong, telling him that he should stop this, it was pestering him almost as much as the other voices in his head. Yet, between the Tartarii, the Angry voices calling for vengeance which numbered in the Gods know how many, and the Gods actually talking in his head. At this point he was sure he was bound to go mad sooner or later.
The insanity of his whole situation brought a small giggle forth from his lips before he quickly regained his composure. This was temporary, he reminded himself, Eko promised a cure and he had a goal in mind, one he was fighting towards.
He pictured his friends, constructing them all with vivid detail in his mind as he focused on who he was fighting for. Annabeth, Piper, Jason, Leo, Hazel, Frank, Nico, Thalia, his friends at camp half blood, his Mom, his dad as well as a dozen others.
It slowly forced the other voices from his mind, as he repeated his mantra again and again, Enjoying the blessed silence that it brought with it. A moment's freedom from a thousand voices whispering in his ears at all times, something that had gotten worse and worse the stronger his connection with Eko had gotten.
What had been a whisper a week ago, was now a full blown roar and he suspected it had something to do with the god level ass whooping Eko was handing her sister, and the fate of Umbra just an hour previously. He could feel Eko getting stronger by the second as he turned to watch the battle, taking his eyes off the prone form of Hades for a few moments.
Eko currently had the broken and battered form of Styx held aloft with one hand, which was wrapped about the Goddesses throat. Even from this distance Percy could tell the force that Eko was exerting with that grasp would have shattered steel.
"Pathetic. When it answered my call I was nearly unstoppable, only the treachery of one of my own was able to finally strike me down. Perhaps it is only right that I do this then, an eye for an eye sister" Eko all but snarled as she reached out laying her free hand on Styx's forehead as Eko's eyes flared with power, a dark green aura flickering to life around the Goddesses as black water poured out of Styx like a leaky pipe.
Styx was frozen once more, her limbs twitching as her mouth opened in a wordless scream. Her eyes rolling back in her head as arcane energy started to crackle around the two sisters. Bolts of green energy arcing off their bodies and slamming into the ground, tearing small trenches in the earth.
A raspy groan notified Percy that Hades was once more rejoining the fight, the God in question stumbling to his feet as Ichor poured down his side. However the God of Death said nothing, instead raising his hands at Percy and Eko as an aura of blackness swarmed around him.
Hundreds of spikes of bone, some the size of houses erupted from the ground in an instant, all facing away from Styx and Hades. Forcing Eko and Percy to retreat back in rapid fashion, Percy almost got impaled several times as he ran through the growing forest of bone pillars and walls of rock and flesh. The maelstrom protected him as best it could, his sword slicing through pillars of bone several feet thick or more with ease. Yet for every pillar or spike he cut through two more were torn apart by his personal storm, and a dozen more rose to block his path.
Finally breaking free of the forest of bone, Percy turned around just in time to hear a roar from Hades, as his aura surged, the weight of it felt somewhat oppressive, but nowhere near the power that Tartarus had displayed.
He could feel his uncle charging something up as the shadows around the God pulsed and writhed. Eko had already dashed off to the side a roar of anger escaping her lips as she watched Styx limp back towards Hades, who had somehow remained standing as he expelled an enormous amount of energy, attempting to crush Eko and Percy under the sheer weight of bones, flesh and shadow tendrils he was sending towards them.
Almost without thinking Percy raised his hands and the Tartarean responded, the sea surging over his head and crashing into the oncoming bone construct. A roar like thunder echoed out into the gloom as the two forces collided in front of Percy.
The shockwave from the collision ruffled his hair and blew Eko's dress around her, snapping in the breeze as thousands of Gallons of water raced overhead to slam into the magical constructions Hades had made.
He grit his teeth as he could feel his skin starting to get incredibly hot, the same feeling of too much energy bottled up inside began to become clear as the weight settled in his chest. It was infinitely worse than before, his entire body felt like it was submerged in lava and the pain came and went in waves.
He had Hades locked at a standstill, the God of the Underworld unable to push his powers any farther towards Percy, but at the same time unable to stop or Percy could very easily crush them under the weight of the water he was currently controlling.
He distantly heard the clang as he dropped his sword, sweat rolling down his face as he bent the sea to his will, pummeling Styx and Hades with a nearly endless assault of water. The two Gods were locked where they stood, unable to move as both Percy and Eko began to hurl the raw strength of the Tartarean against them.
Finally a boom shook the ground and skies as Hades' constructs finally collapsed under the sheer fury of the assault led against them. Bones and flesh falling into the waters only to burn faster and dissolve rapidly.
The wave of water slammed into the two Gods, driving Hades to his knees and slamming Styx off the ground where she lay motionless, barely even breathing. An explosion of rock and debris followed the water hitting the ground as the two gods were lost to sight for a moment.
"Well done my champion" Eko said as she looked at Percy with a grin, her teeth flashing white against the darkness as she turned back towards Hades and Styx, who were somewhere behind Percy. He had turned to take a look at Eko, her hair wreathed about her face as she panted slightly, her eyes shining with excitement as she clenched and unclenched her hands.
She was stunning, he had to admit, her features were every bit as royal as some of the Olympian goddesses, but she had a wild streak evident in her looks and attitude, something Percy could identify with. But more importantly right now, she was the only person that Percy had dealt with since his oath to Nyx, who seemed to care about him in any way beyond using him as a weapon.
Eko genuinely seemed to want him to escape the fate that Tartarus had set for him, and likewise he wanted to free her and her sisters. He couldn't fathom why his father was involved in this mess, but he could completely understand why Zeus and Hades were afraid of the Tartarii. If the power Eko was displaying was anything to go by, then the Tartarean and the Tartarii could very well number among the strongest domains and goddesses in the Greek pantheon.
"Your power grows and your claim on the domain grows stronger…"Eko said a coy grin on her face as she looked at him, she walked up and placed a free hand on his chest as she looked him in the eyes. "You continue to surprise me Percy, soon the Tartarean and more will be yours…" she stopped suddenly, having clearly been about to say more, however the look on her face quickly morphed to one of horror as she moved past Percy and shoved him out of the way, only for a sickening squelch to be heard as Percy slammed off the rocks below.
Whipping over he looked up in horror at Eko, who currently had Hades' sword protruding from her stomach as she looked at it half in fear, half in curiosity. The four foot long blade stuck out her lower back, Ichor already pooling around her feet on the ground. Then she stumbled backwards and fell over.
It was like someone had unleashed a fire breathing dragon in his chest, he could feel the anger bubbling away as he looked through the dust and debris to see Hades standing there triumphant as his arm was extended still, having been left so after he threw his sword.
Percy's eyes narrowed to slits, his only friend for the next seven years…someone who could actually know who he really was, and Hades had taken her away just like Tartarus had taken Annabeth. He wasn't even thinking rationally anymore as he extended his arm out, palm open in Hades direction.
Hades and Styx stood breathing heavily as they leaned on each other, Hades eyes wide with shock as he looked at Percy, the air around him crackling and sparking with arance energy as the aura surrounding him went into overdrive, roaring to life and casting a green glow over everything nearby.
His aura flared exponentially as the dust cloud around him was blasted back by the magical pressure he was exerting. The green aura he was emitting was intense, the glare was blinding and made worse as it reflected off the water of the Tartarean, which swirled about him in the air and was snaking up his arms and legs, wrapping about him like a second skin. The water ignited with white flames as he finally felt the rage in his chest burst, like a dam giving way.
It was a feeling he recognized, he had felt the same way when he was fighting Tartarus, right after Annabeth had died. It felt like a superheated anvil was sitting on his chest. His breathing was erratic as arcs of arcane energy leapt off his skin into the air.
Behind him he could hear the Tartarean churning itself into a frenzy, whirlpools and waterspouts forming by the dozen. The wave of sound that crashed over Percy and the present Gods, was that of a massive snarling beast, waiting for them just below the surface as the Tartarean sprayed high into the air.
The singing of the Tartarii came back and with it was a single voice, quiet, almost childlike and full of innocence and grief. "The oath breaker strikes down Εκδίκηση! Show them what it is to fight against the primal sea and their champion. Show them why you are the Last Ardwyr Perseus, Prove that we chose right!" The voice called out in his mind as he gritted his teeth.
Almost as if someone else spoke it, he could feel the word before he said it "IGNARI" He all but roared out as a familiar feeling overwhelmed him. Like someone had just played a magic trick the air and space around Percy seemed to fold in on itself, before exploding back outwards like a rubber band.
However what came with it was a blast of heat so intense Percy actually could feel his skin searing, even with his resistance to fire already he could feel the blisters forming on his hand. But the power that came with this, by the Gods the power that was at his fingertips when he called on the Aetherium.
It was incredible.
Percy watched in awe, his teeth clenched as a massive column of fire roared out away from him, he caught the briefest glimpse of some sort of shadowy orb appearing around Hades and Styx for moments before the wall of flames hit them and engulfed the spot where they had stood.
It was all consuming, as everything caught fire. The ground, the air, fuck even the rocks were on fire. Everything Hades had summoned and everything for at least a hundred feet in front of Percy was engulfed in flames.
He could feel it again, that vast power, more energy than he thought possible or could convey in words. It was just outside his grasp, and again for an instant he felt the desire to use that power, to let loose the flames he was commanding for real and feed it from that endless reserve.
However he hesitated for a moment, a mental image entered his head unbidden.
He could almost see her, the fear in her stormy gray eyes as she watched him "some things aren't meant to be controlled".
Just like that his concentration snapped and the flames roaring from his hand sputtered out and died, leaving the entire area covered in a haze of smoke and ash. What followed was a wave of exhaustion as he released his hold on the Tartarean and the Aetherium.
His skin was steaming, his body giving off a strange glow as he felt like he was going to explode into a thousand different directions. Squinting his eyes, he peered into the haze, searching desperately for a trace and saw no sign of Hades or Styx, noticing at the same time that he could no longer feel their presence.
So either they ran, or Percy incinerated them. He was going to choose to believe that they ran, because killing his uncle wasn't exactly a good way to start his quest to save Olympus and the Gods.
Percy wasn't sure if he was glad or furious that his uncle ran. On one hand, Percy probably would have actually tried to kill Hades if he had stayed, but on the other hand now he could make sure Eko was looked after properly.
"FUCK, EKO!" Percy exclaimed in shock, realizing the Goddess was still likely in serious condition from the wound hades had given her.
Turning around he rushed back towards Eko, who laid on the ground her face scrunched up in pain as the wound on her stomach already appeared blackened, as if it had spent a week or more open and uncleaned.
"Eko what the hell is happening?!" Percy cried out as he dropped to his knees, grabbing Eko by the shoulders and ignoring the pain that was wracking his body. Her eyes were fluttering weakly as she took short shallow breaths.
"Quickly Perseus, the blade is Stygian Iron. You need to remove it, it's attacking her essence and she wont have the strength to remove it herself, then you need to heal the wound." That same childlike voice called out to him.
Without hesitation he reached out grabbing the handle of the sword, hissing as he felt the sword burn like he had plunged his hand into ice water as he grabbed the blade and ripped it free of Eko's stomach.
The Goddess screamed in pain as Percy threw the sword off to the side, his eyes glowing, body sparking with arcane energy as he called upon the Aetherium. Each time he did so it had been easier, this was no different. The air around him crackled with energy as he began to draw on the power he would need.
He placed both hands on her chest as he closed his eyes, feeling the power building around him as he whispered "Lyracaus" feeling the world warp around him as he surge of magical energy coursed through him, directly into Eko. He didn't know how to say heal, or fix, but he knew what he wanted to happen. Gods be damned he would make it happen.
He felt sweat break out on his forehead as he focused, he could feel the way her wound was stitching itself back together. Opening his eyes to watch as the black coloration around the wound slowly faded. Eko's face relaxed as the pain she was suffering began to disappear.
The song of the Tartari was roaring in his mind as behind him, the Tartarean sea churned itself into a frenzy, the air practically humming with energy as he looked around him, It was like he was looking through one of those funhouse mirrors.
Everything around him was warped, like reality had tied itself into a knot, he could feel it straining to spring back into place and the only thing keeping things as they were, was Percy and the iron will he possessed, forcing the Atherium to do as he wanted, no as he commanded.
After nearly two painstaking minutes, sweat drenching Percy's body as he felt dark spots enter his vision. However he was suddenly rewarded by Eko opening her eyes and looking up at him. That is before he felt everything he had in the tank drain in an instant. Causing him to sway on his knees before crashing onto his side as darkness swept across his vision as a wave of exhaustion set in and he fell over face first.
Some Time Later
Percy's head was swimming, he felt like someone had taken a sledgehammer to his temples but he was alive. His curse mark wasn't burning his chest so either he was fine, or it had already happened and he was fine.
He felt a flicker of annoyance at the thought as he struggled to open his eyes, which felt incredibly heavy as he laid there.
That's when he heard the voices talking.
"He's incredible Εκδίκηση, already he can command the Aetherium, and with a strength to rival some of the eldest and most skilled Ardwyr at that, he isn't even marked. Just imagine what he could do if given the time, training and resources" The childlike voice called out, their voice filled with awe.
Eko's voice called out in response, it was filled with pride and a little smugness "Let's at least remember who first noticed him, because without me you would still be chained. He is my champion, I have no doubt in my mind that he will free the rest of our sisters as well" He could practically feel the smug smile Eko was no doubt directing at the other person as he slowly started to get feeling back in his legs and arms.
That's when Percy felt a hand run through his hair, brushing it clear of his face as he opened his eyes, and looked up, right into Eko's obsidian orbs, which were watching him closely, a look of relief evident on her features when her eyes locked with his. His head was resting in her lap as she sat several feet from the shore, not having moved from where Percy had healed her.
He looked up at her in shock, his brain not processing what was going on as he felt a surge of heat in his cheeks.
"Welcome back to the land of the living Percy…" Eko said as she watched him, smiling slightly.. "You healed me but it appears that channeling that much Aetherium did not agree with your mortal body" Eko finished as she looked down at the ground, refusing to meet Percy's eyes.
".T-that didn't happen last time, W-Why now?" Percy asked in shock, his teeth chattering as the shock set in.
"Because you called on the power this time, you didn't have us acting as a medium. Last time we all consciously aided you, funneling a small portion of the power so your body wouldn't be overwhelmed,…. It appears my sister is taking her sweet time explaining what is happening to you, huh Perseus?" The younger voice asked as Percy's head whipped to the side, his hands already scrabbling for a weapon as he looked for the speaker.
His eyes settled on what appeared to be a young girl, sitting cross legged on top of a medium sized pile of rocks and slag by the waters edge. She wore a white chiton, the edges trimmed in the palest of blues. Her pale blue hair reached mid back and she wore it in a braided coil which she currently held close to her chest as she fiddled with the end of the braid. Her skin radiated cold, like an aura, he could see the frost forming on the pile of rocks anywhere her body touched.
Her eyes were a magnificent white color, so bright they seemed like miniature moons. Her face was set into a passive emotionless mask. Yet he could see the excitement in the young girl, the way her foot tapped impatiently, and how she was constantly moving something.
Eko sighed above him and turned to look at the other girl. "You try explaining everything to the first champion in millennia. Forgive me if I forgot to mention something, and it's not like you can talk Λήθη. You've forgotten more than all of us combined" Eko finished by leveling a glare at the younger girl.
"Always so pleasant Εκδίκηση, it's a wonder I didn't grow sick of your company in two thousand years. Oh wait. I did." Λήθη said, her face splitting into a cheeky grin as she looked at Eko who was caught somewhere between laughter and rage.
"Oh fuck off you forgetful bitch, you wouldn't even be out here without me, Percy is MY champion." Eko snarled as she looked at the younger girl, who simply smiled, showing her razor sharp teeth in a wicked grin.
Mental note to self, the fangs were apparently a Tartarii thing, not just an Eko thing.
"Under normal circumstances I might agree sister, but a champion like this? Not since Aerion's day have we seen an Ardwyr who could bend the Aetherium to his will so easily." Λήθη said casually, gesturing to the field behind Percy, who craned his neck to get a look. "I don't think any of our sisters are going to let you keep this one all to yourself." She finished as she looked at Percy with interest.
The beach around them was a mess, huge trenches dug in the soil still smoked and glowed, the raw power he had unleashed was astounding to him. A section of the cliff looked like someone had poured liquid glass over it, the fire having burned the impurities out of the rock. All of the piles of rocks and rubble from the battle had been melted down into a slag-like magma that oozed across the ground and puddled in some of the craters as it cooled.
Eko and Λήθη seemed impressed and perhaps slightly shocked by what Percy had done, however Percy was shocked for another reason. The spectators, hundreds, perhaps thousands of them. They were perched on every available space, some high up on the mountain side others right down on ground level.
Thousands of pairs of red eyes looked at him from the darkness as he rolled off Eko's lap in one clean move, already preparing to draw on the Tartarean to smash apart the literal army of Hellhounds.
However Eko and Λήθηwere just as fast, literally appearing at his side and grabbing his arms to stop him before he could channel any more of the Aetherium.
"Wait Percy, they aren't here to fight you." Eko said clearly, as she looked at him. "They started showing up a little while ago, they have been waiting for you" Eko finished, her eyes still locked with his as he turned towards her in shock.
"What?" Percy asked in confusion, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end as he looked around, noticing the ever present red glow of far too many sets of eyes for his liking, all locked on his position..
"You challenged Umbra for the pack, Umbra is gone and you aren't, so they can only make one conclusion from that." Λήθη said casually. "The pack follows the strongest and as of right now you are the strongest"
Percy stood slowly as he looked around, his eyes wide as he saw how many of them there actually were. They came in all shapes and sizes, everything from mastiffs, to Pitbull's and actual wolves. The sizes varied too, some were the size of normal wolves, others were the size of small cars.
"I am sorry by the way… Percy, for starting this, I felt Styx go after the Tartarean, trying to lay claim on it. I lost it, just the thought of her taking anything more from me" Eko finished miserably as he looked at her with his mouth open.
He couldn't believe Eko, She had continued to surprise him at every turn. An immortal who had been imprisoned for several thousand years, gave up her chance at vengeance, and risked her life for him when revenge had been just feet from her. All In order to save Percy, and not from death, from the curse which he bore, then apologized for causing him trouble.
He stared at her in shock as she regarded him with curiosity, a slight tilt to her head as she watched him.
"If the Ichor is bothering you I can get rid of it…?" Eko asked as she waved her hand, her black robe cleaning itself instantly as the ichor disappeared from her body without a trace.
"Why did you save me? Hades wouldn't have killed me... well not for long anyway" Percy asked cautiously, watching Eko's face, the midnight black orbs streaked with the faintest of green looked back into his as she looked at him strangely.
"I've waited several thousand years for Vengeance on my younger sister, I can wait a little longer. You are my champion, I will not allow Hades to take your memories from you because your loyalty to those Gods seems to know no bounds. I know you held back, hoping not to injure him too severely." Eko replied darkly, "You are everything I could hope for in a Champion, you are brave and selfless, you seek justice for those who can't find it themselves. You have a good heart Perseus, I will not let the Olympians destroy that." She finished with a slight smile.
"Perhaps if you hadn't been here the pair could have overwhelmed me in my current state. Luckily my champion, you were. You did everything in your power to protect me, even going so far as to fight your uncle when you could have run." She added sadly while looking at him. "Even if they had 'killed me' it would have made little difference, they would need to end this entire ocean and all five of us at once. Something that is beyond even the powers they once held combined." Eko finished angrily as she looked into the distance. "
"Why do you think your Olympian Gods and their allies betrayed us rather than risk all out war?" Λήθη asked, looking at her feet as she tapped them rhythmically off the stone she sat on.
"Oh…." Percy said as he felt the flush of heat rush to his face, he had very much just gone ballistic thinking Eko was dead or dying, failing to consider that she was in fact a goddess and a powerful one at that. His cheeks glowing even brighter red under his helmet as he felt Ekos mind touch his briefly before she raised an eyebrow at him.
"Don't be embarrassed, it was cute." Eko said with a slight giggle as she looked around at the absolute destruction Percy had wrought, her eyes twinkling merrily.. "That aside…. You are quickly getting stronger, much faster than I had anticipated to be honest." Eko admitted as she gestured to their surroundings, Λήθη just nodded quietly in agreement.
Percy looked at the two Goddesses questioningly, "I want answers, Eko you and Λήθη seem to know a fair amount about whatever is going on with me and my life and these powers." Percy looked back and forth between the two of them, who looked at him and nodded.
"If we can answer it, then we will. It's only fair Percy, what did you want to know?" Eko asked as she sat down by the waters edge, looking out over the much calmer Tartarean.
"Let's start with the big one… Why does the curse keep acting up when I use my powers? I thought it was supposed to keep me from dying, which it has done for sure, but it's also left me exhausted and half dead from just using my powers." Percy almost cried out in frustration as he looked at the two. "What the fuck did he do to me?" He finished quietly.
Eko looked at him with concern evident on her face meanwhile Λήθη just started talking. "It's not so much what Tartarus did to you, it's what you woke up within yourself that has caused this issue." She yawned, stretching out lazily as the chains she wore, nearly identical to Eko, rattled across the surface of the ground. "The Ardwyr were feared by the gods because they are capable of channeling the Aetherium, but more specifically so, in many cases they were better at it than the Gods themselves. Which was because of one key factor, the blood of the Ardwyr, the blood of primordial's flowed in the veins of the first Ardwyr to the last. Blood which flows in your veins, Perseus." Λήθη finished, by looking up at him, her white eyes wide and her face lacking emotion as she stared at him.
Eko picked up from where her sister left off, speaking up as hundreds of the wolves slowly began to walk forwards to get closer to Percy. "Your blood is teeming with power, untapped potential that your body itself isn't capable of harnessing. The ancient Ardwyr used to have special ceremonies and rituals as well as marks they bore on their skin to allow them to survive channeling Aetherium" Eko said as she summoned a small globe of water from the Tartarean, twirling it between her fingers.
"Aetherium is dangerous to even immortals, however to mortals it is normally deadly. The problem is that the power literally burns away your body, much like too much ambrosia or nectar would." Eko concluded as she fired the water into the air, watching it lazily as it caught fire and spread out into a fine mist above her head. "However, because you can't simply die, the curse will keep bringing you back, repeating the cycle again and again. You have already achieved what few have ever done before. No mortal has ever held claim over the Tartarean and few have ever held a claim at all." Λήθη said as Percy kept shifting his gaze back and forth between the two of them. "The trickle of power you are receiving from them now will be nothing compared to the energy you would have at your fingertips if you have taken control over them." The little girl finished with a grin.
"The energy you can summon as it is, is too much for your body to handle, imagine filling a glass with two glasses worth of water. That's the situation you are in now Percy" Eko finished as she stood up, gently dusting the dirt from her dress.
Percy glanced around and noticed the hellhounds were crowding in closer, he could feel their gazes on him yet whenever he turned around every one of the hellhounds he could see had their eyes cast to the ground, their heads turned to one side exposing their necks.
"Your demigod powers were already enhanced by the dormant power in your blood, it explains why you were much stronger than the other demigods" Λήθη said cheerfully, a strange look crossing her face as she looked into the sky. "The problem was made more obvious when you awoke that latent power fully, and started the channel Aetherium. Then to make matters worse you took on one of the worst possible domains for your current situation." she finished.
"What? Why?" Percy asked half in a panic.
"The Tartarean is a primal sea, it's a reflection, a darker version of the real world oceans, and it's fed entirely by magical waters as old as the primordial's themselves. It acts somewhat like a giant repository of magical energy displaced by the rivers. So needless to say for someone who needs to avoid excess power in their system… you get the picture" Eko finished sadly, not really looking at Percy as she spoke.
"So I'm doomed then? That's it? This fucking thing is going to kill me at random if i ever end up too 'Juiced up" on magical energy?…. What a load of fucking shit!" Percy shouted out in anger.
"Why the fuck would you bless me if you knew that this was what was going to happen!" He screamed at Eko, who looked him straight in the face without flinching
"Because it was the only way to ensure you would have a chance, Percy. Without the powers granted to you by the Tartarean you would have died a dozen, if not a hundred times over, you might not even remember who you were at this point without our aid." Eko said angrily.
"We are not trying to trick you, or deceive you. We chose to save you, the last Ardwyr because you of all people have a right to be angry, you don't deserve to die down here, you deserve vengeance for your people. We simply want vengeance for what the gods did to us, and then to those we claimed as our protectorates." Eko added more calmly as she looked into Percy's eyes.
He could feel the anger bubbling in his chest as the Tartarean began to boil slightly, responding to his every whim in an instant. Already he felt like he could fight an entire army again, as the energy of the Tartarean began to seep into his body, restoring his energy.
"So even if I believe that you did this with my best interest at heart, what do I do now? I'm supposed to go fight a literal army of titans shortly and I can't drop dead half a dozen times during that!" Percy shouted out angrily.
"He could be marked, it would greatly increase his ability to channel Aetherium." Λήθη said as she turned to look at, "That or he could claim the domain, he's about as close to a godling as a mortal can get. It would only be a small step to claim the domain, and once it stabilizes it would counteract the curse easily enough, not to mention he wouldn't have to worry about overusing his powers." she finished with a yawn as she looked back at Percy. Jumping off her boulder pile and walking right up to stand in front of him.
He Physically towered over the diminutive Goddess, but she seemed unfazed and if anything she was bored. As she stood in front of him he could feel the cold emanating off of her, it was so fierce he actually felt himself losing focus. The anger and frustration he was feeling just melted away under the intense freezing aura the goddess displaced.
Percy obviously started to wonder what would be involved but before he could open his mouth to ask the question Λήθη spoke, ""It would kill you, several times. It's why no mortal has ever ascended alone, the body breaks down under the strain before the claimant can stabilize the domain enough for it to begin to repair the damage it's causing."
"...stay out of my head Λήθη …." Percy all but growled in warning.
"If only I could, you don't quite get it yet do you? We are the Goddesses of the Rivers that feed into the Tartarean and we all share it as a domain." Λήθη back to look at Ekowho responded with a withering glare. Λήθη waited a moment, looking at Percy and waiting for him to finish whatever thought she evidently had running through her head.
"He's not the brightest is he? You ripped the domain from Tartarus, who had taken control of it from us after the Gods chained us. He spent Millenia restraining the sea and using the energy of our rivers and our ocean to fuel his own personal agenda. Now the domain is without a host and it is actively looking for one" Λήθη added with a small grin on her face.
Percy paled slightly, as the sudden realization set in, they were the naiads of the river and the ocean was formed from their combined waters and powers. If he was the rightful heir to that it would mean that he would share a similar relationship with the five Tartarii that his brother Triton shared with countless river naiads in the real world.
"Ahhhhh, he made the connection to his brother…. Maybe he's not as slow as I Thought" Λήθη giggled and reached out to lay her hand on Percy's chest, the presence that filled his mind was numbing as Λήθη shattered any attempt he made at sealing his thoughts off from her. Eko had tried something similar and Percy had held her off but Λήθη was something else entirely.
"Relax Perseus, this is harder than it looks when you struggle like that" Λήθη said through gritted teeth.
He could feel her power, like ice clogging his veins as an icy mist began to roll off his and Λήθη's bodies. The surge of energy was incredible and suddenly the fog seemed to lift from his mind slightly just as the mark on the back of his hand seared against his skin briefly. One of the lines changed from black to a brilliant stark white.
Just as he thought his heart would stop beating from the intense cold, everything changed. His mind which had been fuzzy, filled with the voices of the Tartarii and others grew calm. The Tartarean itself grew quiet, almost peaceful as Percy let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding.
"I Λήθη, Goddess of Memory, bless Perseus Achilles Jackson, Herald of Nyx, Heir to the Tartarean, may he rise as my champion" Λήθη said firmly as an explosion of frost roared out from Percy, covering the ground around him in a fine mist as the moist warm air met the ice.
His mind felt stronger than before, less clouded and his thoughts were clear. The surge of energy which had accompanied the blessing was intense,
"Your name is oblivion… Lethe.. Well I guess that shouldn't have taken so long to figure out" Percy gasped out sheepishly as he backed away from the Goddess. Looking at the mark on his hand he now bore the blessing of two of the Five Tartarii, a dark green for Ekko and a White for Λήθη.
"It should help stabilize your hold on the Tartarean for now, but we don't have time to waste, there are only two of us and we need to get you marked before you go back to Nyx." Λήθηadded hastily as she looked at Eko who immediately walked over.
"So first you tell me more power is bad and then you bless me… forgive me if I'm having a hard time following your thought process here…" Percy said quietly "and not to sound negative or anything but you made that whole there are only two of us sound pretty bad. But I'm guessing since you just added even more strain to this I really don't have much of a choice do I?" he asked as anger clouded his features.
"Think of the blessing as a connection Percy, I've been feeding you energy from the Tartarean ever since I blessed you, even when you were far beyond its direct reach. Now my sister can do the same, and you will have access to some of the powers she will wield once she reclaims her river." Eko added quickly, obviously noticing the angry expression on Percy's face as he had rounded on Λήθη.
"Well now that we have clarified you all get an unwelcome invitation to jump into my head at any moment is there anything else i should know about before we move onto whatever this Marking process is, and if possible can we speed it up because I'd really like to not feel like my blood is on fire and I'm being ripped apart from the inside when I go to deal with Gaea's army." Percy said in an exhausted voice, he could tell this wasn't malicious on their part, but Eko had withheld some small bits of information from him and he disliked that kind of behavior, especially if they would have to rely on each other in the future.
"Not that I can think of," Λήθη said with a slight giggle before she stepped away from Percy and gestured towards the waters of the Tartarean. Before simply walking into the sea, without even looking back.
Percy took a quick worried glance over his shoulder at the hundreds of hellhounds gathered about, trying to decide what he should do. "I'm quite positive they will be here when you get back Percy, this is somewhat important. Let's go." Eko said impatiently as she grabbed his hand and started dragging him towards the water.
"This is my fault, I should have thought about this sooner…." Eko said meekly as she half dragged Percy to the edge of the water and stopped, turning to look at him. "But since my sister hasn't said it yet, thank you… for everything you have done for us so far Percy." Her eyes were practically glowing with admiration as she looked at him.
Percy found it hard to stay irritated and angry at her when she was looking at him like that. Λήθη on the other hand, he wasn't sure how he felt about the Goddess. She seemed to lack any kind of social skills, or she just didn't care he wasn't entirely sure he thought to himself as he watched her head disappear underneath the waves of the Tartarean.
But he couldn't turn back now, his course was set so to speak and now he needed the Tartaii's help if he was ever going to see his friends again, even more important he needed their help to ensure he would still remember who they were when he did finally get out.
So with that thought at the forefront of his mind, Percy let go of Eko's hand and strode past her, following Λήθη into the Tartarean and beneath the waves.
Authors Note:
Wow sorry for how late this one dropped, it was a long chapter (For me at least) and it took a while to edit. But I hope you all enjoyed reading it! Also more than 100k words finally, I feel pretty good about that milestone haha!
I hope to get one more Percy chapter dropped (possibly this weekend depending on how much writing I get done tomorrow haha) before we take a trip back to see what's going on with the rest of our favorite demigods.
As always, thanks to anyone who reads, and anyone who chooses to leave a review. I read every single one and love to hear from you guys. As always, until next time!
**PS** I will be updating some of the formatting in old chapters so the titles (bold and italics etc) are consistent across all the chapters. But I won't be adding any new info or material so nothing beyond the things listed above will be changed. Just to avoid any confusion.