Disclaimer – I do not own Claymore or anything from the PJO universe!

New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings.

Third Person POV:

The Olympians were seated on their thrones with grim, worried faces as they listened to Artemis' story. She had become a crying, weeping mess on the floor of the throne room as her brother tended to her wounds while she recalled the day's events.

Athena was currently deep in thought about this new powerful individual. He had single-handedly destroyed the Hunters by dropping a dozen buildings on them. All done in the wave of a hand. The more she thought about it, the more her brain pointed her to an unwelcome answer. If it really was who she thought it was… then Olympus never truly stood a chance in this war.

She decided to push her thoughts away and keep a more… positive outlook. Listening to Artemis again, she heard the once-proud, man-hating goddess say, or rather stutter out, "The-n, t-th-the man t-turned around and I s-saw a symbol on the back of his cloak."

Athena was now intrigued because she knew that the symbol could tell a lot… most Gods, or immortals for that matter, had only one symbol. She listened carefully to Artemis' description of the symbol and was frankly terrified by what she concluded from it… her fears had come true, and Olympus didn't stand a chance.

"I couldn't get a good look at it… But it looked like a s-sun with an eye in the center. On b-both sides of the eye, th-there was a hand, and there were two l-legs below it." Artemis stuttered out, slowly regaining her breath, and her confidence.

Zeus, at this point, looked around his council, checking to see whether any of the other Olympians – or Hestia and Hades, who were also present – recognized this symbol. If anyone knew the symbol, then there was a high probability that the council would soon know who they were fighting. And that was good. The more they know about their opponent, the easier the war would be. Or so he thought.

He stopped searching for recognition on their faces when he saw Athena – she looked downright terrified, which was entirely abnormal for her, since she was practically scared of nothing. He could reckon that Poseidon, his brother, was absolutely terrifying at times, and Athena fought with him as if he were a child, with no regard to the difference in power level. That was why she was called the 'level-headed one.'

Then, suddenly, he was broken out of his thoughts by a bright flash in the middle of the throne room. Three women, who look to be in their late 20s stood there, and though their appearance was different than the last time he had seen them, he knew that these were the Fates – the 3 Moirai – Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos.

The Fates first turned to address him, and spoke in a creepy unified voice, "Lord Zeus, we come here with a message… or rather… a warning." Then they turned to look into the eyes of all the assembled immortals, and said, "The power over Fate itself… and thus the power to shape mortal lives… has been lost by us. Our grandfather attempted to seize the power by snatching it from us, but we could not allow that to happen. So, we let it go free. However, since he has interfered with the natural course of Fate, he must be punished."

They paused, looking around at the faces of the Gods and Goddesses. Then Atropos, the 'Inflexible', continued, "It is important to mention, at this point, that we, by which I mean all of us present in this room, do not have the power to defeat Chaos. The future that he threatens to paint is not just bleak, it is blank. Chaos seeks to avenge – and maybe even revive – his daughter, and so, he will destroy the humans for what they have done to her, after he finishes pulling down Olympus. And yet, we cannot stop him from doing either of these things."

She paused to catch her breath, and turned to face Zeus once more. Then she continued her monologue, "Back to the point… we were forced to let go of our powers, to let Fate run wild. But it must be controlled, and so, it has chosen for itself, a worthy successor." At this, 14 breaths hitched. A successor for Fate. Those words rang through the minds of all the immortals present, and the only thought they all shared at that moment was, 'Who could be worthy of such a title?'

Finally, after a few minutes of silence, Ares gathered up enough courage to ask the question on all their minds. The Fate then looked at him incredulously, and said, "Who could it possibly be? It's Perseus Jackson, of course. He is the only living person that could both be worthy and powerful enough to receive the domain."

"It's quite depressing, the condition of this world. To only have one single living hero. There are so many people that are powerful and so few that are worthy, but only one man shows both those traits. Anyone on this council could be considered powerful enough, but you all are still bound to the Ancient Laws, - which puts you at a disadvantage against Chaos – and none of you are really worthy. On the other hand, mortals like Sally Jackson are worthy, but they simply do not hold the kind of power and resilience that is required." Lachesis informed them.

"Yes, that is true, sister. And the only other heroes that could have received the title in the past five centuries, was Jason Grace… and maybe even his sister. But that is mostly our fault for shaping such cruel lives for those mortals, for making their threads with crude materials." Clotho finished

As they finished, the entire council was left stunned. They had mostly understood what the Fates meant, but to be disqualified from receiving such power because one was supposedly 'unworthy', and being called so right in front of their faces… that hurt their pride.

Seeing this reaction, the Fates quickly explained their meaning to the council, not because they were afraid of what the Olympians would do, but because they needed the co-operation of this council if their plan was to work. "You should all know that we did not mean that as an insult. But you should also know why we called you so. Over the past three millennia alone, the members of this council have committed an endless list of sins." Atropos said.

Then, looking at each of their faces, she started adding, "Artemis and her band of hunters is the most prominent on this list, for the things they do to men, even to innocent men, who have never harmed another in any way. Apollo, Zeus and Hermes – your debauchery is your greatest sin. However, for Zeus, your actions against your nephews and nieces, along with your failures as king of this council are also counted as great sins, with the most prominent example being your ruthlessness, and your initial reaction to the Giant War." She then moved on quickly to the rest of the gods before the aforementioned immortals had a chance to react.

"Hera – your actions against Zeus' children, and against his lovers, have been too harsh, with Leto proving a fine example. Aphrodite's unfaithfulness to Hephaestus, his hatred for Ares, Ares' arrogance, Hades' impatience and his inability to forgive his brothers, Dionysus' campaigns – especially the one to India, Athena's curses – specifically Arachne and Medusa, and Poseidon's temper – with the kingdom of Aethiopia proving an example – are also prime examples of this council's past sins."

As they finished speaking, none of the mentioned immortals – that is, all the immortals except Hestia, who had a small smile on her face – could find it in themselves to object to the point the Fates had just made. They all knew that the Fates were speaking the truth and not even Zeus would dare to threaten the Fates, powers or no powers, because they had all been present when the Fates were beating Thoon into the ground, and it had terrified them.

"However, we did not come here to argue over trivial matters such as these," The Fates informed the Gods. "No, we came here to ask for your co-operation in our plans to defeat Chaos." Atropos said, adding a long pause for dramatic effect.

Clotho then turned to Zeus, and started explaining, in a rather quick fashion, "Lord Zeus, this upcoming battle against Chaos cannot be won. Before we were forced to let Fate run free, we looked through it, and tweaked it a bit, just one last time. There were many possibilities that Fate suggested… in the long run. All the possible futures start when Olympus loses this following fight. However, the only futures where we win in the end, are the ones where we co-operate."

She paused for a moment to catch her breath, and Lachesis took that as a cue to continue, "No matter what we do, or what you do, we cannot defeat Chaos as he is now. Moreover, since he has broken the Laws set by Fate, Fate must be the one to deal the punishment." She paused and looked around, before asking an important question, "Do you all understand what this means?"

In the meantime, Atropos had been counting the time that had passed on Earth as it rotated below them. It had been three hours since the Artemis incident already, which would mean that Chaos had already started his attack on the demigod camp. They no longer had time to waste. If they waited too long to enact her plan, a different future would be set into action, and that couldn't possibly be good for anyone.

So, she interrupted the silence that had settled in the room, "It means that only Perseus Jackson, who has now become the successor of Fate can kill Chaos." Before silence could settle again, she continued, "However, from this arises a new problem. Currently, as I'm sure you're all aware, he is in no state, either in mind or in body, to defeat the Creator. Nor will this mortal body of his ever be able to hold the power required to do so."

Sensing that she had caused a wave of panic in the throne room of Olympus, she clarified, "To solve that problem, we have managed to enlist the help of a certain primordial god, whose respect Perseus currently holds and some of the people who… uh… work under him. We have come here, to your city, to enlist your help in our plans as well, and particularly, the help of Hades.

This caused a wave of surprise to wash over the gathered Olympians, which in turn allowed Athena to break the one-sided streak of the conversation. "We would gladly enlist our help in your plans, so long as they could help us defeat Chaos. After all that he has done to us, to me, I will do anything to make him suffer." She announced, her voice dripping with venom towards the end.

The other Olympians all nodded their agreement, still in a rather dazed state from the Fates' words. Then Zeus asked, "Who is the primordial? Should we not know of our allies? And why do you only require Hades' help?"

The Fate, or ex-Fate, rather, was quick to respond, "Said Primordial had chosen to keep his identity a secret, both because it would greatly trouble him if Chaos knew that he was directly in alliance with us, and because he hasn't exactly been an ally…. of anyone before, especially not of Olympus."

"But, like we said, Perseus stands no chance of winning with the mortal body he currently possesses. Which would mean that we either make him an immortal, which would then tie him to the Ancient Laws, removing his control over Fate, or we give the boy a new body. That is why we need the help of Hades." She finished

"I would be glad to help there… but transferring his soul – doesn't that mean that Percy would have to die first?" He asked in a curious tone, and received an ominous response from Clotho, "Unfortunately, there is no other way. We need your help, and your blessings, because to defeat Chaos, Perseus will have to use everything that he's got, and more."

Pausing for a bit, she continued, "He must be reborn on a new world, in a place where Chaos cannot find him as he builds up his power. Unfortunately for him, we need this world to be a cruel one, one where power emerges from pain and hate, or this plan will not succeed."

The Olympians were all shocked, but Athena, being naturally curious, asked, "What world would this be?" to which Clotho replied, "That… we cannot tell anyone… because Chaos has his ways of getting information out of people", in a very dark and serious tone.

"But, before we put our plans into action, we must ask you all, even you, Zeus, to bless the successor of Fate, so that whenever he beats our enemy, we can all take up a small part in it, by lending him our powers and our strengths."

-Linebreak-

Percy had been fighting for two whole hours now, but it was nothing new for him, or for most of the other campers who were still alive. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw another camper falling, and for the first time, Perseus didn't care anymore. All he wanted was to get out of this mess alive, with all his friends and family – those who were alive anyway.

He had simply experienced too much loss. So much so that the feeling had started to become natural to him. As soon as he had seen the endless horde of monsters coming, he knew that the camp stood no chance.

And then, out of the blue, a cloaked, hooded man stepped into his field of vision. That… now that enraged him. The man was walking slowly, and all Percy could see under the guy's hood was a wide grin that indicated madness. It was as if the man just enjoyed walking through a warzone, as if the man loved the sight of the red plastered everywhere – on the trees, the rocks… even the grass was painted red.

Percy, who was currently out of his mind in rage, charged at the man. The black and red spots that danced in his eyes did absolutely nothing to help his vision, and the man was able to sidestep the incoming blow easily. In a momentary loss of balance, Percy fell to his knees as his sword connected with the ground.

The man's smile turned into a frown, as if his world of satisfaction and enjoyment had been shattered by the arrival of Percy Jackson. Evidently displeased at having his thoughts interrupted, he kicked Percy in the back while he was still down, making him fly backwards.

"This is the hero of Olympus? This is all the bane of Kronos can do? How did he ever manage to defeat anyone?" the cloaked man asked cynically. 'Then again, maybe it's his opponent that's too strong' Chaos thought as he removed his hood while chuckling.

As Percy looked up, he saw a handsome face, with high cheekbones, pale skin and pure black eyes, staring back at him from where a hood once was. Looking at the face both calmed him down, and enraged him further. How could this murderer be beautiful? No, Percy would change that. He would hack that face apart just to wipe the beauty off of it, and he would have no regrets, because he had never hated anyone in existence this much before.

He stood up, and managed to form three words, "Who are you?" The man's response to that question, naturally, shocked Percy to the core. "But that doesn't matter, does it, Hero of Olympus? You won't stop fighting just because you know who I am… hmm… right?"

-Linebreak-

Three hours had passed since the battle for the last stand of the demigod children of Olympus began. Camp Half-Blood was now a burning wreck, with nearly every part covered and coated in either blood, guts or fire. Their last fighting force, consisting of around 10 campers – including Nico, Leo, Clarisse, Chris and some other demigods from the Ares cabin – had gathered in a circle. They would NOT go down without a fight.

Unfortunately for them, Chaos had other plans. He had been fighting Percy for about an hour now, and had been astonished by the power and precision behind the boy's strikes, and by the resilience of the boy's spirit. No matter how hard he was hit, he would get up again and start venting out his anger on his opponent.

Chaos, being himself, hadn't had the need to hold a blade for so long, that he had forgotten how to do it. Now, this match with Perseus had allowed him to re-learn those skills. He could always just smite the boy, but that wouldn't be nearly as much fun, now would it? This way, the boy would – Chaos hoped – also be defeated in spirit, and for Chaos, that was the ultimate endgame.

Chaos' chain of thought was broken by a scream – Percy's scream. Suddenly, every molecule in Percy's body felt like it was being burned and turned to dust. When he had taken a dip in the Styx, he could've sworn that there was nothing else more painful that could happen to a person. The pain had been so bad back then, that Percy hadn't been able to wish it on Kronos. But this new sensation made that pain PALE in comparison. That's how strong this was.

Percy couldn't stop screaming and writhing around… because the pain just refused to stop. It was as if his body was made up of matches on a cellular level, and someone had aimed a flamethrower at him while screaming, "LET IT LIGHT!" The pain was so much that Percy's sensory equipment was getting destroyed. Slowly, his hearing and his smell started to dissipate and fade away.

Nevertheless, even as the sounds were fading, he didn't fail to see his friends be killed at the hands of Chaos, one by one, until the only demigods left alive on the field were himself, Leo and Nico.

Chaos, meanwhile, was surprised. He couldn't think of any explanation to the boy's actions, but he also knew that it wasn't just a façade. It was too good… too real to be an act. Plus, he could see that the boy's body had visibly started to disintegrate. As Perseus lay writhing on the floor and screaming curses at him, his body was crumbling and turning to dust.

However, this new occurrence was perfect for Chaos. He got to enjoy watching Perseus writhe around. He didn't even have to care about the reason behind it, because it didn't matter to him. It was quite likely that Gaia had intervened in their fight using whatever influence she had left over her planet. That conclusion was even ideal for Chaos. After all, he could feel that the power radiating from the boy had increased by a LOT. The only way to suddenly get such a boost would be to gain a Primordial's powers. So, it was quite likely that Gaia had infused her power into the boy's body as a method of torture.

Nevertheless, Chaos had two other so-called 'heroes' to deal with apart from Percy, and he didn't want to wait anymore. He had already waited long enough, even though he didn't need to, and it had cost him heavily. He had lost the opportunity to kill off those useless hags and gain control over Fate, which was obviously a big loss.

Percy, while Chaos was thinking to himself, had stopped screaming and writhing. The pain had come to a rather abrupt end, and now, with his eyes open, he could see that his body was slowly degenerating and turning into dust. 'Is this it? Is this the way I'm going to die?... huh. I never thought I'd become the dust that other people would step on… and my body won't even move…'

Then, a voice that sounded feminine, with an ancient tone to it, whispered in his head, 'This is not the end, Perseus.' Perseus would've laughed, but his body was just dead from pain. He couldn't even stretch his face muscles into a smile. Nevertheless, he replied to the voice through his thoughts, 'Yes, it isn't, is it? I'll finally get peace in the Underworld. I'll be with Annabeth again. This is not the end.'

'Do not give up your hope yet. You will get another chance to defeat him. Trust us on that.' The voice sounded ancient, and powerful, so he decided to listen to it, even though he knew that the 'second chance' would not allow him to be with Annabeth again. His main priority now, was to avenge the deaths of his friends and comrades, because he knew that being reunited with them in Elysium would only be a cause for momentary happiness. That happiness would be destroyed when Chaos would come to reclaim (destroy) the Underworld.

Percy then returned to reality to see another horrifying sight. All he could do was feel outraged and pathetic, as he watched Chaos kill his last two friends – Leo and Nico. Just as was expected of the heroes of Olympus, they had gone down fighting, and Chaos himself had chosen to intervene in their battle and kill them off.

Percy's mind now began to race at a million miles an hour. The voices he had heard… they had sounded… real. He knew that he had heard two different voices, and both had sounded ancient, powerful, and feminine. He could only think of a few people who would have enough power to pass undetected by Chaos, and that helped him narrow down the answer to 3 people. The Fates. Who else would have such… powerful voices, and who else would be able to directly interfere in a mortal's battle?

But why would the Fates help him? They had given him tons of trouble in the past… and they had even cut a string in front of his eyes. The only reason to help him fight Chaos… would be that they held a grudge against Chaos, and sincerely believed that he could defeat the Creator. But that was a delusional thought. After all, Percy was currently lying flat on the ground, turning to dust – most probably because Chaos found it a reasonable method of torture – as Chaos walked towards him in slow steps.

Then could he really trust the Fates? They could be playing him… Or was it someone else entirely who had spoken in his mind? His thoughts provoked a response, 'You were correct, demigod. It is indeed us, the Moirai, who spoke with you earlier. However, we cannot prolong our conversation, or Chaos may notice us.' Percy was surprised that he received any response, but before he could counter, another voice spoke to him.

'Perseus, we have no proof to show that we are on your side, and we cannot tell you what we are trying to do, but we need your consent for it. I just hope that you understand that we are simply trying to help you get revenge on Chaos, because everyone's fates are riding on you. I know that making this decision under such pressure is hard… but you should rest assured that Chaos' death is what we all want.'

Percy was left speechless – well, he was speechless in real life because he had lost all control over his muscles, but now he was also speechless in his thoughts. If he trusted the Fates, and they turned coat on him, then that could lead to a nasty demise, but on the other hand, if they were truly trying to help him, then they would give him a second chance to kill Chaos.

Now, he finally came to understand what this decision was about. Regardless of whether he consented to the Fates' plans, – since when did gods and goddesses ask for consent anyway? – he would meet a nasty end. Chaos was slowly walking up to him, and even in the unlikely scenario that Chaos left him there, he would die because of the pitiful way his body was turning to dust. The only chance he had left to destroy the Creator and avenge everyone that he had lost was being offered to him on a silver platter. All he could do was take it. 'I consent to your plans, and to whatever they may entail, so that I can kill Chaos.'

-Linebreak-

Chaos sat peacefully on a rock, as he wiped off the blood on his hands, on a rock. He had just ended the reign of Olympus a few minutes back. He had choked the "greatest" demigod of the age to death and relished in the feeling he felt as his life faded from his eyes.

Believing that all of Olympus' supporters and believers were now dead forever, he set out to reinstate natural order on Earth. He had already planned this – he would destroy mankind part by part until enough of the pollution had been cleared to allow his daughter to wake, and then his revenge would be complete. He would then, once again, fall into the deep slumber he had been in before Gaia's prayers had woken him.

However, he did not know all that which the Moirai had planned, and that allowed the Olympians to escape and hide, in the deepest, darkest corners of Hades, before Chaos could get to them.

-Linebreak-

A decade's worth of action had taken place in that single day:

Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon and Sally Jackson – the greatest mortal hero to ever live – along with the last of the infamous heroes of Olympus – had died.

Chaos had won the first fight against Olympus.

And a new being was born, in another world.

This being held a grand title, and consequently, a grand destiny.

The ancient saying had come true… With great power came great responsibility, and for this boy, ignoring it was not an option.

But his name was the hidden jewel… because it showed his true ambition.

He would become the destroyer one day,

Because he -

He

Was

Perseus.

AN – Wow… I had a HARDD time finding a good title for this chapter… and I seriously don't think it's good enough... If you guys have got anything good, please put it in a review… and I'll edit the name out afterwards….

AND OOOF… the amount of plot development in this one single chapter is just amazing.

On an entirely different note… what do you guys want the pairing for this story to be?

I know it's probably WAYY too early to make a pairing but still…

Also we got 12 favs and 17 follows! Wow, thanks guys!

Anyway… Follow, fav and review!