AN: I appreciate all the support I got on the prologue chapter you guys. I also want to thank everyone who joined the discord server. It was such a refreshing sight to see new people arriving. I doubt many chapters will be as long as the prologue, since I basically condensed 2 or 3 chapters worth of information into one so I could get the majority of the setup done. I also want to remind everyone that the harem votes will not be concrete. You are more than welcome to vote for any and all characters you want, but at the end of the day I will decide what pairs would fit best for this type of story.
[Harem]
Artemis- 6
Nyx- 4
Thalia- 4
Zoe- 4
Hestia- 3
Diana- 2
Chaos- 2
Piper- 2
Calypso- 2
Vesta- 1
Athena- 1
Annabeth- 1
Aphrodite- 1
Leto- 1
Selene- 1
Rhea- 1
Hemera- 1
Lupa- 1
Last Vote Counted: Nyx's Shade
Percy P.O.V
Even with the electricity flowing through my body, breaking down the molecular bonds that held my mortal form together, the pain itself was drowned out by the intense hate. Not once in my life had I thought I would feel hatred this pure, nor did I think such immense pain could be drowned out by sorrow and self loathing. I had beaten a primordial, fought against titans and giants. Yet I was killed by a fucking curse. I am sure Zeus would try to pressure Hades into dumping my soul into Tartarus. I could only hope he would feel indebted enough to let me rest with my love and daughter.
Everything around me was black. Or maybe I was blind. I turned my head, or at least I thought I did. None of my senses were working. Why wasn't I in the underworld? Where were the judges and Cerberus. Where was uncle Hades. Where was my wife and daughter! Questions rapidly passed through my mind, if I even still had one since I was dead. In an instance a bright light illuminated the space around me. I now stood on a black marble floor, with pillars made of some unidentified metal soaring into the air until they faded out of viewing distance. The pillars themselves were probably a few meters thick as well. I placed a hand on them, somehow I still had a body, and it was cold. Almost freezing cold. How the Hades can I feel the temperature? I thought to myself and looked around more.
"Well, well. It has been eons since I last had a visitor." A dark voice echoed throughout the massive space. I turned towards the direction the sound came from, to see a throne had suddenly appeared. The throne was large, not as large as the thrones of the Olympians, but larger than a normal one. The man who sat atop it was not quite normal either. He was decked out in a rich black armor that looked like it could easily tank a blast from Zeus' electric dildo. From his neck down not an inch of skin was visible. The armor was thick but form fitting, with massive shoulder pauldrons and armored gloves that ended in sharp claws. He was pale, not like Nico levels of pale, but paler than a normal person. I could not really determine his ethnicity either. He was definitely male, judging by his cheekbones and chiseled jaw. He had gleaming silver hair that nearly glowed as bright as the light illuminating the Area. His eyes were golden and shone with incomparable power. While I could not feel any aura, whether that be because he was not releasing any, or it was just so vast my senses could not comprehend it I do not know. I did realize from his eyes and the way he sat, that this man was far more dangerous than even Tartarus or Nyx.
He wore a kind smile and his pure golden eyes shone with compassion. A crown made of the same metal as his armor sat atop his head, and massive black wings stuck out of his back, curling around him slightly. He stretched out a hand and beckoned me forwards. I unconsciously walked forwards, stopping about 10 feet in front of his throne.
"Speak child." His voice echoed out. Despite the darkness in his voice, it did not alarm me. Instead of anxiety it felt as if a blanket was wrapped around me, calming my nerves and causing both grief and hatred to settle momentarily. It was like being near Hestia, except the feeling was even stronger.
"Who are you? Where are we? Why am I not dead? Where are Rias and Elisa?" I fired off questions one after another. Causing the man to chuckle and rest his chin on his knuckles.
"Firstly, we are inside of my domain. A realm outside both time and space. I guess you could consider this similar to the 4th dimension. We are outside 3rd dimensional space, the only reason you can even maintain both your thoughts and body are because I am supplying the necessary energy to maintain a corporeal form outside your native dimension. Anyways I am sure that is hard to understand. Essentially we are beyond the confines of your universe." The mysterious man said. It was hard to comprehend, just like he said. Honestly the majority of it went inside one ear and out the other, I was never the best at science. "You are not dead because I reconstituted your body. Well.. you might not know what that means. Basically I recreated your body from scratch to be exactly the same as your previous body. As for where your wife and daughter are, they are currently in elysium, as per your agreement with Hades. Now as to who I am… I am an existence that is hard to explain within your knowledge. I have gone by many names in a nigh infinite amount of languages, within an infinite amount of religions. I am a concept while also being an entity separate from concepts." he tried to explain. Honestly, I could not understand a single word.
"Can you explain it in simple terms?" I asked impatiently. He chuckled and nodded.
"Yes yes, of course. I am sure you are anxious to know why you are here. To put it simply like you said, I am a form of immortal. There is no true definition for my type of immortality, like how your kind defines gods, Titans, and Primordials. You could say I am a god of gods. A creator of creators." He tried once more to explain.
"So you are… like the Creator of the universe Chaos?" I asked, still somewhat confused. He smiled.
"Sort of. She is more like a… nurturer. She is someone who takes care of the way things work and makes sure things operate smoothly. While she is admittedly powerful… She still falls short of many other existences. Of course, you shouldn't have to worry about them. They are confined to their own realms and as such cannot leave." He explained. It was honestly hard to believe. After all, in front of me was a man I had never heard of, essentially claiming he was far above even Chaos, who was exponentially stronger than even Tartarus!
"So why did you bring me here? When can I see Rias and Elisa?" I asked worriedly. There was nothing I wanted more than to hold them in my arms.
"Now you are getting to the important questions. Both answers to those questions rely on the decision I am giving you. Firstly, I am more than happy to send you to Elysium to live out the rest of eternity with your lover and child. I will even protect you from Zeus' wrath and I will shield the entirety of the underworld from his intrusion… or… I can give you another chance." He explained. The idea of spending the rest of eternity with the two girls I loved more than the universe itself without having to worry about that bastard Zeus sounded amazing. But I was also curious what he meant by another chance.
"What do you mean by another chance? Something like that is not possible unless you send me back in time." I said, almost jokingly. He just responded by smiling.
"That is what I intended. Of course if I really do send you back there will be consequences, the likes of which I cannot foresee. Breaking the space time continuum is something even Chaos does not do, as the backlash is far too great. None of that matters to me though, since I know just how capable you are. If you choose to accept my second offer, not only will you be able to grow much stronger than you were before you died, you would also be able to save everyone you could not before. I swear on my own name I will make it possible for you to accomplish anything you desire." The man's promise caused a glow to envelop both our bodies as a string of energy connected us. I could feel his words cement themselves into both of our souls.
"What exactly… was that?" I asked him, having some idea but wanting a clearer picture.
"Well, you could think of swearing on my name as a near infinitely more powerful version of the styx. If I break this promise, I will be destroyed and you will gain all of my powers. That is the power of my name. If you make a promise with another being in my name and break it, your soul will be destroyed and all of your powers and abilities will be passed on to the person you made the promise with. This is the only way I can let you know I am serious about this." he replied simply. As if he did not just bet his entire existence on something I did not know was possible. It definitely made me intrigued though. The thought of being able to save the people I couldn't because I was too weak or inexperienced. It meant giving up on Rias and Elisa… but Rias would definitely still be alive. That meant… I could save her too. And Elisa who would be born in the future. That thought alone solidified my decision.
"If you really can send me back… I will choose that. To be able to save my friends and my love.. And to stop that bastard Zeus. I am willing to do anything." I told him, resolve building up inside me. He smiled and sat up straight.
"I was hoping you would choose that. Alright then first come closer." He said and closed his hand as I walked up to him. He opened his hand and sitting in the palm of his armored hand was a necklace made of the same black material as his armor, with a pendant hanging off. The pendant looked like a cage with swirling bars, with a familiar looking pearl in the center.
"I-is that?" I asked, my voice breaking up part way through speaking. He nodded.
"A reminder. Something to give you motivation. The last thing your daughter tried to give you. Do not worry about losing it. I enchanted it so that nobody but yourself can ever take it off. Even if you took it off and someone put it on without your permission, they would get an electric shock equivalent to that child Zeus' bolt. It also has some other.. Functions let's say. You will find out more with time." he said, smirking. I took the necklace out of his hand and cradled it in my own. I felt a tear slide down my face as I stared at the pearl. It was only a moment before I hardened my resolve and placed the necklace around my neck. It changed to fit me perfectly, the pearl sitting just above my sternum.
"Why are you doing this? What do you gain out of this?" I asked him.
"Really, I guess I gain entertainment. I want to see this world corrected. Even Zoe nightshade, to whom countless innocent men had fallen, was going to be given a second chance. Before those bitches The Fates intervened. They use mortals, gods, and titans alike as pawns in their never ending game of chess. The only ones who could truly challenge them do not care, as Ananke and Chronos both are currently asleep. Chaos is overseeing other parts of your universe as she has been for a few thousand years now. So I figured it was high time I intervened to stop this madness. Due to their own corruption the gods and titans have become corrupt. Gaia was corrupted as well. I would send you back to the beginning of time and make you into a god to fix this messed up shit, but that would have universal levels of consequences even I could not stop. I am not omnipotent after all. Just damn near close to it. Do not worry about those old hags though. I will shield you from their power." He said smugly.
"What do you mean by shielding me from their power? I thought they controlled everything?" I asked, confused.
"Well, they don't. They have the power to influence decisions based on circumstances, but they cannot force people to take actions. After all every living being has free will. They can nudge people in a certain direction but that is all. Why do you think they hated you so much? You are even harder to control than your father and he is a god." He said smiling. I smirked a little as well, knowing full well what he spoke of. My unpredictable nature saved my life many times.
"Thank you. I swear I will not disappoint you." I told him, already running plans through my head.
"I know you will not now.." He said and placed his one clawed finger against my forehead and I felt a strange and subtle energy flowing into me. I looked at him questioningly.
"A second gift. You will find out what it is once you go back. And a third gift will appear in the future. You will know it when it happens. Now…" He said and tapped the air. Space rippled and distorted, forming a seemingly unstable portal. Purple electricity sparked from it as it shook violently.
"Hurry! This portal will not last long. And Remember boy, doing this will have potentially dire circumstances. If anything too irregular happens it is most likely due to me tearing up the space-time continuum like this. Who knows, it could even result in your earth being connected to an entirely different dimension! So I will entrust you with dealing with the aftermath of this decision." He said over the roaring portal. I nodded and began walking towards the portal. When I was just one step away I turned to look at him.
"What should I call you?" I asked him, barely able to hear my own voice over the screaming of space.
"As I said, I have gone by many names. But you may call me Anias, A lord of creation!" He replied. I nodded and steeled my nerves. I stepped through the portal and my entire world went black.
AN: Hey everyone. I know nothing really exciting happened in this chapter but I wanted to get some more plot points out of the way. Next chapter will also be an introductory chapter as well, since there is much to start. I tried dropping some hints towards future plots. I hope you guys can pick up on them ;).
