Chapter XI
The Twenty Eighth of May
Twenty Two Days A.B.M
"HAIL!"
Percy walked up to the stage, looking over the royal guard barracks. They greeted him enthusiastically, at least those that were left.
Just over a hundred were left after the skirmish at the Pentagon. In hindsight, all the deaths hadn't been necessary. It had been a trial, yes, but perhaps he shouldn't have thrown them in so carelessly. The Pentagon had surrendered as soon as he had walked in, and his men hadn't needed to secure all those exits he had assigned them to.
But all the same, Percy could now look at the rows of men in front of him and know that they were battle tested. That they could be trusted to fight and die in his name.
Plus, Percy knew that there would be far, far more qualified and willing people to serve in his royal guard now that their annexation of America was complete.
Of course, Percy only had access to so much celestial bronze. So for now, the trimming of ranks would be to his advantage. Each soldier could be equipped with an alloy of both celestial bronze and mortal steel. After, he would need to take the Romans' supply of gold and they would not be very happy with that, but the Romans' ranks had been thinned as well.
It also might still be possible to make imperial gold. As far as Percy was aware it was just blessed gold, which Percy could get a lot of.
Sure, it wasn't quite as sturdy as celestial bronze, which was basically invincible, but short of hitting it with a tank shell, there wasn't much the mortals could do to break it. Percy looked forward to the possibilities, but he would deal with those later.
It was now many hours after Annabeth's funeral, and Percy had finally gotten over his moping, at least for the moment. He wasn't nearly optimistic enough to think he would be done grieving anytime soon.
That being said, he still wasn't in the mood for flashy speeches, so he had sent Nico ahead to do it for him. That's why Nico was already on the small stage, but he moved to the side when Percy came up.
Percy slowly walked to the center stage overlooking them, where he had given his speech to them before their takeover of Washington. It was dead silent, save the sound of his footsteps on the wooden stage.
And he waited.
As one, the hundred men in front of him knelt.
It was kind of weird, to be honest. Seeing a hundred people all kneeling at once, when they were all so close to each other. It must have been uncomfortable.
"I hereby swear upon the river Styx to serve His Majesty Perseus Jackson for all time. His will is my will. My life is forfeit before His Majesty."
The simple oath echoed from a hundred mouths in front of him, and as the pacts were sealed there was a deafening roar of thunder in the distance.
With this, he now could have complete faith in their loyalty. There would need to be a change in how he ran things, and this action would be the first in many reforms he will push to secure himself.
His guards hadn't killed Annabeth. They'd all be dead if they had, but the betrayal of someone in Sasha's section he just let run so autonomously without any oversight was a mistake he could not allow to be repeated.
If any of his guards had betrayed him, and they'd had ample opportunity to, it could've been just as bad. They'd done nothing, but he could no longer put blind trust in his guards any longer. He did not like forcing them to swear themselves. As far as Percy was concerned, it was a death sentence. They would no longer be allowed to have a will for themselves. If their intentions were to diverge for even a moment, their lives would be damned.
This was truly a cruel act, and Percy hoped to repeat it as few times as possible, but he knew he needed to know his guards were endlessly loyal.
"Rise." Percy said, simply, and as one they all rose. If they were expecting a speech, they didn't get one. Percy could have made a speech about how they were all truly brothers now, and how they would help carve the future into the earth, with their own nails if they needed to. But Percy was too tired to give a speech. He just wanted to sleep, and forget everything had happened.
He also needed a drink. He had never drank to escape in his life, but if there were ever a time to start, it would be now.
Turning, Percy walked off the stage, and after walking a fair distance, where there was nobody else in sight, he whistled.
Sure enough, in a few moments, his faithful steed Blackjack appeared on the horizon. He'd relied on Nico's shadow travel too much these days. It would do good to let Nico catch up on the array of responsibilities he'd pushed upon him in peace.
And as Blackjack's wings fluttered, hooves landing on the ground before him, Percy wondered where he would go next.
The Empire State Building was under construction and he needed a place to crash.
'Where to, boss?' Blackjack neighed. Percy smiled sadly.
"Mom and Paul's," he whispered.
The Twenty Ninth of May
Twenty Three Days A.B.M
Duck, pop up, swipe, step back, spin to block a strike, deliver a kick, spin back, swipe an enemy's head off.
Percy found himself again in the familiar situation of combat. The few dozen giants and hellhounds before him fell one by one. Percy had stopped deluding himself. He wasn't killing them with his sword because they deserved the dignity of being killed in combat, he was killing them with his sword because he enjoyed it far more than feeling a slight tug in his gut and watching them all pop.
He enjoyed the fighting, and he would take what he could get at the moment.
Percy had made sure he, and everything around him, was invisible to the eyes of the gods before he had even set off for Devil's Island. He wouldn't want anyone knowing he was here, much less why.
But soon enough, the beach was cleared and Percy was freely able to walk to the structure before him. The corpse of Meonitus, the titan of mortality and rage, lay a few feet down the shore, face down in the sand, ichor surrounding it. Percy presumed he was what was keeping the Elder Cyclopes here. The prison itself was mostly broken down, and far less well-kept than Alcatraz was. Percy guessed that was because it didn't have quite as much of an appeal to tourists, and didn't get the budget to keep itself running.
Percy paid this no mind, though, as he continued through the stone structures to where three individuals sat in small, stone cells. Percy could only imagine how cramped it was sitting in rooms that small for centuries—especially for beings of their size.
Moss and weeds grew at every corner, as nature struggled to overcome man's intrusion on it's territory. In the cells Percy passed, puddles of water lay on the floor from rains which had long since fell, and benches and stone beds lay in rubble.
Before long, though, Percy came upon the three Elder Cyclopes, all hunched in their cells, the ceilings many feet too short for them. Like Briaries, they looked a shadow of their former selves when Percy came across them. They were barely eight feet tall—still an enormous size for a human, granted, but nowhere near their true size—and looked as broken as Briaries had been when Percy first met him.
Percy was thankful that the three Elder Cyclopes were all alive, though. It would make crafting weapons much easier. It did make some sense. After all, many more people remembered the cyclopes that gave Zeus his bolt then remembered the Hekatonheires.
When Percy reached their adjacent cells, he cleared his throat, gathering attention from all three beings.
They all stared at him, with sleepy curiosity. He sighed. It seemed he would need to take the initiative on this one.
"Hi, I'm Percy. I'm here to free you," was his lackluster introduction.
They all stared at him incomprehensibly, and Percy bore witness to three single eyes all blinking at him, one after another.
Percy began to grow frustrated. "Well, do you want out, or not?"
The one furthest to the right from where Percy was standing was the one to speak up. "Ah yes, forgive us young king, it's just been so long since we had thought of the possibility of freedom, we feared the outside world had forgotten about us," he said. "I, am Brontes. The one to my right is Steropes, and the one on the end is Arges." He introduced.
Percy nodded. Sparing no more words, with three swift swipes, the bars holding the doors in place were all bisected, and with a slight tug, all three doors swung open, water moisture collecting on the other side and being pulled toward Percy, pushing the doors in the process.
Stepping out into the light, each cyclops marvelled at their new surroundings—at their first feeling the sunlight in eon. The middle one, Steropes, bowed. Brontes quickly followed, while Arges reluctantly lowered himself as well.
"If there is anything we can do to repay this kindness, young king, simply name it. We would not have seen the light of day if not for you." Arges thanked him, rising from his bow.
"There is something you could do for me," Percy agreed.
Arges bristled. Whether from surprise about how direct Percy was, or expectant, he couldn't decide. "Always something the young gods want, always something." he grumbled.
"Peace, brother. We would not have seen the light of day again if not for the young king. We owe him as we owed Zeus before him, and we shall repay our debt," chastised Steropes.
Percy, though, raised an eyebrow. "You guys think I'm a god?"
He almost wanted to laugh at the thought.
"Apologies, majesty. We did not wish to offend," spoke Steropes, turning to him now. "We assumed you were a god, as we had felt the power rolling off of you. Please enlighten us if you will though, majesty, if you are not a god, what are you? You feel as though you command the elements like a god, however you do not feel the primal, powerful force of a primordial. We remember our father's power quite well, and yourself, while mighty, are not nearly as powerful as a primordial. Are you some lesser primordial, or another race entirely, perhaps?" he questioned, genuine curiosity seeping through his tone.
Percy chuckled at that. "I'm a demigod." he revealed to Steropes, anticlimactically.
All of them raised their singular eyebrows at that. They exchanged glances amongst themselves before returning their dutiful attention to him. "Truly, your majesty?" Brontes murmured, with shocking amazement. "It seems history has repeated itself once more, and the new generation usurps the old. But I did not think it would be possible for a demigod to become so powerful."
Percy decided to dispel the idea, before he went further. "It is not like that. While I am emperor of Earth, I only rule at the behest of Zeus, who still reigns atop Olympus."
Steropes' eyes widened, and Arges' narrowed in anger.
"Zeus still rules on Olympus, and he left us here, then?!" demanded Arges. "We serve him for eight thousand years, and then he leaves us here for five thousand? He will pay, I'll-"
"You will do nothing," Steropes interrupted. "Unless something has drastically changed, Zeus is still the most powerful active being outside of Tartarus. We cannot and will not hope to challenge him. We can remember this slight, but do not dare to challenge him directly, or fear the consequences," he warned.
Arges mumbled a comeback, but it was clear he acknowledged that his brother was right.
The cyclops must've decided Percy was trustworthy, if they were openly dissenting against Zeus. Percy actually let out a small laugh at that. "We have… similar sentiments, then. Your brother is right. Zeus is too powerful to try to go against. Seeking out a fight would be infeasible and worthless."
Brontes eyes widen in relief at Percy's words. "Your majesty, you remind me. You mentioned we can repay you. How could we serve," Brontes spoke.
Here came the pitch. "What, unfortunately, everyone comes to you for. I need symbols of power crafted. More specifically, a symbol of power," he admitted, pulling out the tip of Erebus's sword. "I would like a sword forged around this, fused with the power of a friend of mine."
Brontes reached his hands out in a silent request, and Percy placed the blade in his hands. The cyclops took the sword, holding it to his eye and examining it closely. After a tense thirty seconds, he pulled the sword back from his eye and nodded. "A very good choice you've made to have this be the base of a symbol of power. I can feel primordial energies. I am not a shadow wielder, so I cannot feel it's full power, but I recognize the power of a primordial when I see it. It will be a powerful blade," he determined.
"Does that mean you can do it?" Percy asked.
Brontes nodded. "Indeed, we can. We will need some things from this friend of yours who you want to make this blade for, but we can make it," he confirmed.
Percy sighed, relieved, taking the blade back. He would be able to forge it for Nico, then. That was great news. Percy was also relieved they blamed Zeus for their imprisonment, as he had done nothing about it. Percy was bringing primordial artifacts to them, and it was his standing policy to have anyone that dealt with these very powerful objects be sworn to him.
But Percy couldn't possibly get that greedy. These things were siblings with the elder titans. Thinking he could bind them on the styx would just be… stupid. Maybe if he found something else to swear them on, something more binding, then it would work. But for now, Percy would have to trust their dislike of Zeus was enough to keep them from telling him anything.
Percy nodded. "I can make arrangements for you in Atlantis. If you'd prefer not to work near Poseidon, I can set something up for you on the surface as well." he offered. After all, Poseidon had also been around when they had been imprisoned oh so long ago. Percy figured they might have a grudge against him as well.
The brothers turned toward each other and began discussing. Percy listened in.
"We should go to Atlantis, we could get much help there from our descendants. You remember Zeus's bolt, creating a symbol of power is no small feat. It will go much better with helpers." Steropes advocated.
"No!" Arges disagreed. "Poseidon left us for rot like the other gods. I refuse to work in their forges again." he declared.
Brontes sighed. "Atlantis would have easy access to Greek fire as well, and some of the best forges known to god or man. But I am inclined to agree with Agres, I do not want to go back to working in a god's forge again."
Things seemed at an impasse, and Percy decided to speak up. "I can have cyclopes and Greek fire moved to the surface. If you could give me specifications for your ideal forge, I could also have it built." Percy purposely left out that he would likely have to go to Hephaestus for said forge. "So, whaddaya say?"
They looked at each other, before Brontes nodded. "We will gladly accept your offer to come work for you, young emperor."
Percy nodded, satisfied. After all, if they were in his forges, in his capital, it was likely they wouldn't leave. And Percy would have more than one use for a trio of the best forgers the world had seen.
Percy smiled. "Excellent. I'll send some hippocampi to retrieve you, if you wouldn't mind remaining in your smaller forms for now. In the meantime, however, I have some business to attend to."
Percy gave them a quick smile, turned towards the way he had come, and began walking.
"Wait, your majesty." called out one of the Elder Cyclopes. Percy turned back towards them and raised an eyebrow.
"We could also forge another symbol of power, if you would like. One for you," Brontes offered. "The item in your pocket, perhaps. Or even your crown. We know it is powerful enough on it's own. We are old enough to recognize the power of a primordial, well hidden or not. The fact that it is made out of a metal so old it doesn't have a name also helps."
Percy tensed for a moment. Percy had hoped they wouldn't know, or even broach the subject. Percy wasn't willing to let them mess with his crown, or his precious riptide.
"I'm fine for now, thank you." Percy replied teresely. He wanted to shut down that train of thought before it could take place.
Turning back, Percy continued his walk to the beach where his faithful pegasus waited for him.
HR
Percy flew back into New York on Blackjack about an hour later. On the way to his mother's, Blackjack didn't shut up about how many doughnuts and sugar cubes he could get now that his boss owned the planet. Percy found his steeds antics quite annoying, not for the first time, and yet that was the first time Blackjack had actually shut up once noticing Percy's annoyance.
Maybe it was Annabeth's death, removing the amusement he would normally have with his antics but his mood was more volatile these days. That being said however, Percy would make sure he was treated nice tonight, maybe introduced to a nice mare or two. After all, flying the fully armored emperor halfway across the planet twice in the span of an hour and a half had to be more exhausting than anything he'd done in a long time.
When Percy flew into New York this time, it was to a warm welcome. People that had been flooding the street buying things with the newly legalized US currency cheered at his arrival. New York had been under his rule for almost a month now, and a sense of normalcy had come over the people. They, as a mass, had decided that he had a right to rule as given to him by the gods.
They were already more or less content under his rule. Sure they liked their old freedoms, but not necessarily their old government. The overwhelming number of people in New York were already against their allegedly corrupt overlords. At least having a divine leader meant they didn't have a choice, and wasn't it so much easier to accept things when you didn't have a choice in the matter? Choices were so troublesome.
And besides, the city had been taught to worship him and his relatives, already. Devoted, unconditional worship.
So now, when the population who had already accepted his reign, worshipped him, had wealth, fresh food, and old family members flood their streets once again, their connection to the rest of the US restored, they adored him. And they made their pleasure known as he soared above them through the sky.
Deciding he didn't want to enter from the ground floor today, Percy landed on the roof, slightly startling the few of his royal guard and soldiers which had been keeping watch from the roof. All one hundred of his guards were stationed here, where they had their own floor now. Percy wanted this to be permanent, but with the expansions to the royal guard he had planned, he couldn't fit them all in one building. At least not if he also wanted it to function as his personal building.
Some veteran soldiers had also been brought in to supplement security. Percy only stationed those that had been fighting for him since before the battle of Brooklyn to be stationed here, to ensure their loyalty wasn't in question. Overall, the Empire State Building was now the most defended building in America. Hades, he could even see them starting to install guns and SAM stations on the roof. Between that, and two of the three most populated floors facing a significant drop in population, the guards now outnumbered the workers ten to one. Percy intended for that to change, but he would need to do all that paperwork first.
Reminded of his situation, Percy began to get off of Blackjack.
Percy would have to have some sort of platform installed on his floor where he could land Blackjack. The addition of a couple balconies wouldn't hurt either, to be honest. Fresh air was something he found himself greatly lacking on the days that he did shut himself in to do paperwork.
That reminded him of all the paperwork he would have to fill out when he got to his own floor. He tried to muffle the audible groan that begged to escape his lips. He hated paperwork.
Completing his dismount, he pat Blackjack on his flank. "Go back to your stable, I'll send someone to get you a few doughnuts and a mare or two." he promised.
Blackjack whinnied happily at this, before taking off into the sky. The heavily trained and disciplined soldiers around him stared at the majestic creature for several seconds before they were able to get their bearings. Percy didn't blame them. Pegasi truly were majestic creatures.
Percy paid them no mind as he continued to the roof elevator and pressed the button, before waiting for the elevator to go down.
Two of the three royal guards on the roof shook themselves from their reverie and formed up at the sight of him. They met him at his sides, slightly behind him to show their subservience. It was policy for at least two of them to be with him at all times when possible. Oftentimes, like when Percy went to take care of the more mythological side of his responsibilities, he ordered them to stay behind, not that they had much of a choice short of finding a Pegasus or Nico of their own.
Percy stepped in, and pushed a button which would go to his floor. Reconstruction was not finished on the Empire State Building, but it was deemed as safe as it had been. The explosion had blown some of the inner supports of the buildings, but the overall structure was still intact. All it took was a construction crew a few hours to restabilize the building, and it was once again safe for residence.
Percy walked over to his office and sat down in his rather luxurious chair, letting out a long sigh. The first thing he noticed was that… he basically didn't have any paperwork on his desk. He blinked.
Ah, right. The entire administration of his old empire had just been eradicated. Well, Percy was glad he was meeting with Reyna today at least. He could use an assistant, and more of a bureaucracy for himself.
Checking the digital clock towards the left of his desk, Percy noticed the time. Almost noon. The Romans would be here at one.
They would be aware of how to contact him, and send their own couriers. Percy once again let out a long suffering sigh. His new empire would be a mess for the foreseeable future, and now, he did not have Annabeth or her established administration. Now, Percy didn't even know where to find more administrators. Normally he could go to Annabeth or any one of her dozens of helpers for such a thing. Now, with her entire department gone, he was left to once again build an administration from scratch. He would have to borrow from the Romans. That would be annoying.
Pushing his thoughts aside, he got to work with the paperwork. Many of the new positions in the military had to officially be signed over by him, or with his royal stamp. The workers at the pentagon weren't exactly just going to take their word for it. So, Percy signed through papers, affirming their positions, reading through updates and such.
Moving on to the next, and the next, and the next, Percy became more stressed at more of the problems he would have to deal with. And Percy had given Darlton permission to deal with basically any problem the military had. He could only dread what he would have to deal with in the civilian section.
Approval for appointments to NORAD positions, his stance on all the foreign bases the US had, and many, many other problems. That brought him to another thing. Nukes.
Percy hadn't been under nuclear threat by the US because the only target they had was on US soil, but that wouldn't be the case for every other nuclear missile possessing nation on earth. Percy didn't fancy ruling over a radioactive wasteland, and mortals had yet to find a solution to nukes, so Percy would have to speak with the gods, or at least Zeus. He sure was looking forward to that conversation.
But Percy was eventually brought out of his paperwork by one of his royal guards peeking their head in. "Your majesty, the delegation from New Rome is here," he informed him.
"Send them in," Percy replied.
With all the added guards to the building, Percy's security was even more intense than it had been before. Two guards were directly outside his floor, while two were inside next to the door, and another two were standing behind him to his left and right, against the window that made up the entirety of his back wall. Even further two guards were permanently stationed outside his personal quarters — that was, his room — while twenty four others patrolled the rest of the floor.
The rest of the royal guard were scattered across the floors of the Empire State Building and the surrounding buildings, overseeing security wherever they were. Overall, it seemed a bit overkill to Percy, but he agreed that after the recent happenings, nothing seemed like too much at this point.
Percy was pulled out of his ADHD induced thoughts when the regally beautiful face of Reyna greeted him, walking through the door with her own escort.
She had no armed guards with her, that would be improper when coming to greet her ruler. But she did have a girl at her back that he vaguely recognized from his time in New Rome, yet he couldn't quite remember her name.
The next three were quite easy to recognize. Piper, Frank, and Hazel walked in behind Reyna, and Percy rose to greet them.
If this was open court, he would be expected to remain in his chair as they walked towards him, and knelt at his feet, waiting for his acknowledgement. Hades, if they were anyone else in his office then he would still have let them come to him, not bothering to rise and greet them, making it very clear who was in charge. He still had to cement his position, after all.
But he was not in open court, he was not sitting on his throne, and they were not anyone else.
So Percy rose, and strode across the room quickly to hug Reyna, who happened to be first.
The hug was awkward. Their armor clunked against one another, and she tensed up when he made it evident he was serious about hugging her. She wasn't exactly one for much physical affection, but nevertheless she let herself relax, and hugged him back.
Moving back, he gave her a smile, before moving on to Piper. He hugged her as well, his silent condolences going unsaid, as were hers. It was best not to bring it up, he had discovered after the umpteenth friend he had lost.
Moving on, he pulled Frank into a slightly manlier hug, grasping his wrist in one hand and pulling him in for a hug with the other.
Finally, he pulled the much smaller frame of Hazel into a hug. She hugged him the tightest, glad to see her second big brother.
As Percy detached himself from a reluctant Hazel, he moved back to his desk quickly, before noticing that he only had two chairs sitting before his desk.
His gaze found his guards that stood next to the door. "Please bring our guests three more chairs." he requested.
"Yes, your majesty." Both answered on reflex, as had been drilled into them, before succinctly moving out of the room to retrieve the requested chairs.
"You have them well trained, I see." Piper said, raising an eyebrow.
"Jealous?" he asked.
She laughed lightly, moving past the only girl he didn't recognize to sit next to Reyna, who had taken a seat in front of his desk. The unnamed girl seemed content to remain standing. "No, just curious. I didn't think a month was enough time to start your own cult. You really have em' convinced you're some god, don't you?" she asked casually.
Percy tensed slightly, but tried to wave it off. She was a friend, she could get away with things that would have most other people in a dark cell for the rest of their lives. That didn't mean Percy welcomed the challenge, though.
He could also feel his royal guard's grips tightening on their spears. They were more disciplined than to bristle in the face of her comments, but he could feel their hearts pumping faster, and knew they were just waiting for his signal.
A signal he didn't give.
Piper, not as experienced as he by a long shot, but still a warrior in her own right, noticed him tensing. She pursed her lips, deciding to limit further teasing on his follower's devotion to him.
And honestly she could see it. He had looked so comfortable in the luxurious office, when they'd walked in— sitting behind his big desk in his expensive chair, with half a dozen heavily armed men at his side and a nation at his beck and call. With his crown, he looked downright kingly. But he was her friend, and she wouldn't let him get away without some teasing of his new station.
Percy, however, desperately wanted to respond that he basically was a god at this point. That he had been told by some of the oldest beings currently on earth that he was essentially a deity without the immortality part. He wanted to point out that he had more people worshipping him than the gods had ever had before he had come around, by a factor of a few dozen. That he was capable of ending mortal civilization with a snap of his fingers and a tug in his gut.
But that would scare her, and convince her he had at least partially either deluded himself or gone insane. So, the better option was to let the conversation die to awkward silence. Let her win this battle, and let him keep a friend. He had been losing far too many of those lately.
"So." Reyna spoke up, clearing her throat. "What we're here to talk about—" she was interrupted by the two guards Percy had sent to gather chairs coming back in with luxurious cushioned chairs, similar to the ones already in front of his desk, before moving them just behind the two chairs in front of him, and moving back to their positions at the wall.
"As I was saying," she continued as the three who remained standing took their seats. "We are here to discuss the part of New Rome in the Gods' new empire, as well as who is to take my place as the consul of New Rome. You still have yet to relieve me of my duties."
Percy shrugged. "Consider yourself relieved."
She blinked. "And the replacement?"
"Nobody will take your place. The legion of New Rome is being disbanded."
"What?" she asked incredulously.
"The Twelfth Legion Fulminata is being disbanded. You're being relieved of your acting position of consul, as well as your official one of praetor."
She quickly stood up, and placed her hands on his desk. His guard quickly moved to defend him, but a raised hand halted their movements. She had been stripped of her weapon when she entered the building, but Percy was under no illusion that his four guards could defeat her, unarmed or not. Nor was he under the illusion that she could do anything to him he didn't want to happen.
"His Majesty Jupiter may have told you to do as you please, but that does not mean you can dissolve the Roman Legion. It's stood since the reign of Julius Caesar." she growled, showing a rare case of genuine anger towards Percy. "What is this? Some ploy for Greek domination?"
Percy sighed, leaning his face on his hand with annoyance. He didn't even bother meeting her eyes. "Yes, it does mean I can disband the Twelfth Legion. In fact, I already did, the orders were sent during your travels. As for your accusation that it's for Greek domination, basically every Greek I had planned to help run this country went up in a puff of smoke yesterday afternoon," he refuted, tone cold. He was honestly surprised she'd go as far as accuse him of such. She knew he had no interest in power politics.
A moment of silence waded in between them as he was forced to remember the tragedy that had struck him yesterday. It struck all of them — Annabeth was his best friend, yes, but she was a friend to all of them.
He moved on, with the steadiest voice he could muster. "Except for a select few, I had also dismissed the Greeks from their positions in the military before my march on Washington. I do not want more demigods dying for this cause, I had resolved to this since the night Jason died. I hope you can understand this."
At last, he tried to resume the battle of matching eyes. He couldn't read her expression. Was she overcome with remorse as he? Angered for the end of the legion? Distasteful of him for not showing enough emotion? Something else?
With a heavy breath, she eased back from his desk and slumped in her chair. With this, the next one to speak was Frank.
"If the Twelfth Legion was disbanded, what about New Rome?" he asked.
It was a fair question. "New Rome will be free to determine its own system of government. It'll be a sovereign nation, or at least as sovereign as one can be while still reporting to me. New Rome will be the smallest nation to receive this privilege, by far. You can decide on either a viceroy or a baron. That is, you can choose whether your leader will rule for life, or if them and their descendants will rule for life. Of course, whichever you choose I will be the one deciding who ends up being your leader. That being said, I have no reason to choose anyone but who you elect. So go choose a leader in whichever way you choose, and bring me their name. They will be the new baron or viceroy of New Rome."
Frank leaned back, taking in the info, and Piper was the one to speak up. "I see… Is it possible to elect someone every few years? That's what the people are used to, in basically every country, much less New Rome. Electing someone for life seems… extreme." she advocated.
Percy nodded. He saw her point, and it was even something he had argued against Annabeth on. But she had pointed out multiple issues with that. "Repeatedly elected officials are too easily corruptible. Besides, I'll be ruling over hundreds of nations, with hundreds of lords, and I don't have time to familiarize myself with dozens every year when a third of them get voted out of office. We also don't have time to familiarize them with the process every year. If they truly are bad or corrupt, the population can lobby for an impeachment, which congress can approve. A congress, by the way, that demigods and legacies will make up half of."
Piper sat back, recognizing the argument for what it was. And what it was was Annabeth's argument. While Piper knew that she might win this argument with Percy, Annabeth had thought it through more than any of them could. But she wasn't here now, and Piper had to trust that Annabeth knew what she was talking about.
"Anyway," Percy said, relieved that conversation was over. "There's something else I wanted to talk to you about, actually. My administration, after the events of yesterday, has been left nonexistent. I need help with administration. Do you have people that I can have faith in their loyalty?"
Hopefully, this would also help the Romans be less uneased about 'Greek domination;' a roman in charge of administration.
His friends all nodded in understanding. "I think Lacey would be the best one to help with this actually. I haven't introduced you yet, but this is Lacey Green. She's been acting as my adjutant, and officially my third in command. Essentially, she's been doing all of the paperwork." Reyna introduced.
Percy nodded, that made sense. He recognized the name from the letter informing him of Jason's fate.
The girl mentioned spoke up. "Yes, your majesty, I have been handling most of the paperwork in the Twelfth Legion, as well as acting as aide and adjutant to praetor Reyna." she affirmed, standing and giving a bow as deep as she could make it, it looked like.
Sitting back down, she continued. "I am available to your majesty if you require an assistant, or should you need it, an aide in forming your administration, seeing as how it appears I am currently without station."
Percy contemplated it for a moment, before deciding to consult Reyna first.
"Leave us." he commanded.
Without question Lacey stood up and turned around, walking out of the room to wait in the hallway.
"Is she good?" was Percy's only question to Reyna.
Reyna nodded. "She's good at her job. Quite the fanatic, as well. I was very surprised she wasn't protesting the abolishment of the Twelfth Legion more than I was. She's like Octavian, almost, without many of his less savory qualities."
Percy tensed at the mention of Octavian. Not as great as he had hoped then.
Reyna noticed his look and shook her head. "It's not like that. She's like Octavian in that she's fanatically devoted to Rome. The only thing above Rome is the gods. That being said, the gods themselves placed you above Rome in a way, didn't they? So I guess you were the higher authority, in her mind. Don't expect her to place her loyalty to you above that of the gods, they're who she values above all." she warned.
Percy nodded, that was expected for the vast majority of his subjects. That being said, a god had yet to speak to anyone other than himself, including Jason or Reyna, as far as he was aware. The chances of the gods speaking to Lacey were pretty out there. But still, Percy would be doing some pretty shady stuff, stuff the gods wouldn't approve of. It would only take one slip of the tongue for her loyalties to fly out the window. It was less than ideal for an assistant, but she would have to do for now.
Percy huffed "She'll have to do for now, at least while I'm still rebuilding," He gestured to one of the guards near the door. "Bring her back in."
The girl walked in the door and over to where she was previously sitting, bowing deeply before standing attentively.
"You'll be my aide. For now, at least. Return to your seat, I'll have arrangements made for you to stay here."
She looked downright giddy at the prospect. Too giddy for his comfort. "Of course, your majesty." she agreed, sitting down.
"Well, if there's no legion, then what are we going to do?" asked Piper. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I don't intend to sit around while all of this happens."
"You could become a member of the house of lords we have planned," Percy offered. "It's an option for all demigods and legacies, of age of course. With how popular you all are, I'd imagine you'd be able to wield quite a bit of influence," he pointed out. "That being said, I would recommend going back to New Rome, going to college. Try to live a normal life. Trust me, if I had that option, I'd take it."
Reyna frowned. "I agree with Piper, doing nothing during this crisis is like I'm shirking my responsibility. I need to be of use somehow."
"You don't have much going on with you here Percy, can we help you personally?" Hazel asked.
Percy pursed his lips. "Maybe. I'm sure I could find jobs for you, but I do not want you on the front lines. No more demigods will die in this war, I'm putting my foot down on that."
Reyna seemed a bit miffed, but Hazel just shrugged. "Fine by me. Just tell me what I'll be doing."
Percy had to consider that for a while. Reyna was an obvious choice, he wanted her in some capacity advising him militarily. She had enough of a sense of propriety that Percy was sure she wouldn't repeat Clarisse's mistakes. Piper was probably best as a diplomat of some sort. Sure they didn't exactly have existing diplomatic relations with other countries, but at the very least she could help make sure no nukes went flying, or help negotiate surrender for other nations down the road.
He had already decided Lacey was going to be his assistant, so what did he have left for Frank and Hazel? Percy considered making her the head of the country's bank for an amusing moment, before dismissing the thought.
"I'll let you guys all know individually what I have in mind in time. For now, seriously consider joining the house of lords. We need influential demigods there, and I could use some people I trust shaping the country." Percy implored. He'd let Reyna and Piper know what he had in mind for them later, but the house of lords might really be the best place for Hazel and Frank.
Hazel nodded.
"Well, then, we should get going," Reyna announced, standing up. Her entourage followed her example shortly after. "It's been nice talking to you, Percy, if nothing else." she shot him a small smile, before turning to leave.
"Likewise," Percy agreed.
Soon, it was just Percy, Lacey, and his guards in his room. "Well Lacey, time for you to see what you volunteered for." He shot her a sinister grin.
Happy Birthday Percy!
Next Chapter August 30
