Disclaimer: I don't own either property. Rights go to their respective owners.
Chapter 2
Miracles? Did you think miracles were solely a feat Yahweh could perform? Didn't you know... even the saddest worm can realize miracles?
-Quote attributed to Dragon King Tiamat
Tiamat filled her lungs with rich Overworld air. Unlike the Underworld, Earth had such a delicate balance of magical energy mixed throughout its environments. From forests and mountains to jungles and seashores, everything on Earth felt so pleasantly correct.
It had always felt this way, thankfully.
So much more different than the Underworld's flavor, which was tinged with rot. At first, she'd hated the way Underworld air felt on her skin, so slick and oily, nauseating her with the scent of decay. But after spending some time there, she'd grown fond of the place.
However, nothing could compare to Earth. Neither Heaven nor Hell. It was why she spent more time on Earth rather than in the Underworld, even though she had homes in both places.
Every time she arrived back on Earth after a few days spent in the Underworld, Tiamat liked to take time to cleanse her palate, freeing herself from the feeling of decay that attached itself to her in the Underworld.
Today though, there was something else saturating the air. She could feel it rubbing like charcoal against her skin, abrasive, scratching.
This feeling… she doubted anybody else would be able to feel it. At least, nobody else in the immediate area.
Tiamat, like all primordials, was sensitive to the shifts of fate that continually plagued the world. The people around her wouldn't know anything was wrong. Humans were painfully dull in some regards. They would think this was a day like any other.
But she knew better, she knew something was wrong. The tapestry of destiny containing all possible threads for all possible futures had been changed. Something had been added to it — a variable with its own frayed threads.
An anomaly had suddenly appeared, one week ago, breaking destiny.
She'd ignored it at first. While she had been curious, she'd fully expected the niggling to stop after a few days. At first, she really had believed that. But with every passing day, the niggling became stronger, grew in its intensity.
Like claws, like hooks, the anomaly dug itself into her abdominal innards, pulling, pulling, taunting her with its mystery, insisting that she seek it out.
And so she had decided to do just that, which was why she'd deigned to visit this city in the first place.
Tiamat scanned her immediate surroundings. A smorgasbord of electric pulses traveled up her spine, each one signifying the presence of a non-human entity. There were hundreds in such a small radius, yet none of them drew her attention for long.
So, then, her target was further away.
How annoying. Big cities were always a nuisance to navigate, especially since they attracted so many kinds of inhuman creatures.
This place — New York City — was no exception.
In fact, along with Los Angeles and Chicago, New York City had a relatively large population of sedentary demons and monsters compared to the rest of the United States of America.
Of course, everybody knew that Rio de Janeiro was home to more non-humans than any other city in the Western Hemisphere, so Tiamat was at least glad she hadn't been forced to search there.
Still, why did it have to be New York? Tiamat felt like growling.
She was on the lower tip of Manhattan, specifically in Battery Park. Her search hadn't been a long one, and she doubted it would be, but traveling further into this den of humanity was not how she'd been hoping to start her day.
The jungle of a city loomed in front of her, made of concrete and metal and glass, only half-obfuscated by a line of frail trees.
She looked behind her, to where the giant green Statue of Liberty stood on its small island in the bay.
So, this is what freedom smells like. Again, she inhaled, flaring her nostrils wide. This time, she was assaulted by the thick aroma of… Processed meats?
The businessman sitting beside her took a bite of his hot dog.
Well… maybe freedom smells different in other parts of the country.
Tiamat stood from the bench. Eyes followed her, and she knew it. The weak were attracted to the strong. Sheep needed a shepherd.
Unfortunately for them, Tiamat had no interest in shepherding the insignificant.
Ancient power seeped out of her pores. A gust of wind from the bay sent her mild display of dominance sprawling over the city, smothering it with the essence of a peerless predator.
Her essence.
Eyes snapped away. The creatures that had been trying to pry finally realized how paltry their existence was when compared to hers.
None would try to approach her now, human or otherwise.
She had announced herself and sent her warning. There was little else to do but march into the heart of the city so she could continue her search. At the very least, she hoped to be done looking before the day was over.
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What was there to say about traveling through Manhattan on foot that hadn't already been said?
Tiamat thought it was a miserable way to spend her morning.
While the scent of car exhaust definitely filled her with a particular desire to hurry, the teeming horde of pedestrians only let her walk at their pace.
At least here in the city, people understood the concept of moving with a purpose. They had their own short lives to lead and seemed to be in a hurry to do precisely that, which she could appreciate for the irony if nothing else.
Maybe she pitied them. Poor humans with their pitifully fragile existences.
Humans only had two things certain in life: death and taxes.
If there was anything that Tiamat sincerely pitied humans for, it was their obligation to pay taxes. Gods didn't have to pay taxes. Neither did dragons. Being both god and dragon meant Tiamat was doubly immune to paying taxes.
There was no government fearsome enough to take away her accumulated wealth.
She pitied humans less for their propensity to die since everything had to die at some point. Gods died, though they could reform. But gods could die permanently too; sometimes dead gods would never return from the abyss, their consciousness having been lost to time, their thread in the tapestry finally ending.
In other words, nothing was immune to death. Humans only died faster than gods. That was the only difference. Death was everybody's final destination.
Ergo, why would she pity humans for that? Eventually, she would die too. Permanently. Just like Marduk. Just like Inanna. Just like El. Just like Yahweh.
Just like Abzu.
She would face that day with dignity. That much she had promised herself.
The scent of a nearby mobile kitchen preparing its wares made her pause. Ah, the smell of freedom really is processed meat. What are the odds?
This would be the umpteenth her stomach demanded something to fill it. Coincidentally, this was also the umpteenth mobile kitchen she'd passed.
It was a silly oversight that she hadn't brought any money with her.
She pursed her lips, dismayed and hungry, wondering how many people would notice if she were to hypnotize the street vendor.
None, probably.
She could easily persuade the vendor to give her a free sample of his wares. Nobody around would be any the wiser.
Just as she was about to carry out her plan, something else tickled her senses. She turned her head and was met by a building that stretched to the sky. The monolith towered over thirty stories, with tall windows cutting rectangles into its face.
Out of that building had just walked a boy.
And that boy was her target.
Found you.
Their eyes met from across the street. The boy watched her for a second, and Tiamat was left confused by his youth. While she couldn't determine his exact age, he must have been just exiting his adolescence.
Before she could observe him further, the boy raised an eyebrow at her, then walked away, hands in his pockets, countenance more buoyant than it should have been during a meeting with a Dragon King.
It was all Tiamat could do not to let her mouth hang open at the blatant disregard for her presence.
Only the gods would be so arrogant, and, from what she could tell, the boy was no god. At least, he was no true god. Inside of him smoldered the cinders of divinity, true, but they were not flames, and she doubted they would ever become flames.
God-born, she decided. The boy was the child of a god. What else could he be? His divinity, while weak, was undeniable. She had seen it, tasted it already, and with that one meeting, she knew he was god-born. Equally important was his mortality, which Tiamat could more easily discern, even from afar.
He was human, but also divine.
A demigod?
The anomaly was a demigod.
When had she last met a half-human demigod? Had it already been a few centuries? Had it been more?
So long ago that I can't even properly remember.
Tiamat followed him. When he turned the corner, she was forced to cross the street in a hurry.
While it was true that she'd be able to find him again fairly easily thanks to his unique flavor profile, the indignation of his dismissal kept her legs moving. The din of car engines and people speaking and nearby construction bounced off of the new age high-rises around her, layers of glass and steel forming great towers filled with thousands of lives.
It was the beating heart of a city laid open for anybody to see.
They kept moving through Midtown. She was only eighty paces behind him at any given time. As they passed city blocks, the architecture changed from contemporary office buildings to older stone tenements.
Soon they were crossing into Central Park, the boy still moving at a hard pace despite his otherwise lax posture. He walked under trees and past groups of people with equal amounts of poise. Wending his way on the paths didn't seem to bother him; he knew exactly where he was going.
He eventually came to a stop after leading Tiamat down a narrow trail, which took them right to the edge of a small lake.
The chase ends, the hunt begins. What will he do now?
The boy turned around, his shoes just a scant few inches from touching the lake water behind him. His face was torn between amusement and exasperation when he saw Tiamat standing ten paces away.
He pulled his hands from his pockets.
In his right hand, he held a pen. His left came out empty.
"Can I help you with something?" he asked.
It took her a few seconds to process the question. His voice was calm but not calming. In fact, there was something hidden in the pitch and timbre that made Tiamat puzzle.
Tiamat smoothed any wrinkles out of her blouse. The boy was just as impudent as he'd first impressed upon her. Annoying, but it told her something. She turned up her nose at him and fought to keep the tug in her gut from affecting her voice. "Is there another reason I would travel to this cesspit of a city?"
The boy frowned. "Let me stop you right there, dude — "
"Dude?"
"You can talk bad about me all you want," he said with a slight shrug, "but you can't talk bad about my city. Only I can call it a cesspit because I'd say it with love. Gods don't get that privilege. Sorry."
Though taken aback by the sheer insolence on display, Tiamat also couldn't stop herself from raising a curious eyebrow. "You know who I am? Yet you still chose to walk away from me?"
He smiled, confident and earnest. "I've got no clue who you are. I just know that you're a god. Or a demon. Or some kind of crazy-powerful spirit. I've gotten pretty good at trusting my gut instinct when it comes to this kind of stuff."
"Demon? Spirit?" She took a step. The boy didn't so much as twitch. "Do I look pathetic enough to be classified as a demon or a spirit to you?"
"No comment."
The gall almost made her snarl. "My name is Tiamat, and I am the greatest of the five Dragon Kings. Spirits and demons? Don't lower me to plains when I stand atop mountains."
With a slow, upward tilt of his head, the boy seemed to ponder what she'd just told him. "So that's how it is, huh? Funnily enough, I'm not even surprised."
She didn't see the humor he did. "Who are you?"
He offered her a smile vaguely verging on polite. "I'm Percy. Nice to meet you, I guess."
"Percy. Hmph." She tested the name to distract her from a growing desire to punch him. "So that's it. Do you know why I'm here, Percy?"
"The birds, bees, the flowers, and the trees?" His eyes wandered to either side, dipping to the lake and rising to the sky in quick succession. "I mean, Central Park is beautiful. Especially in the spring."
"I'm here because of you."
"Me? Wait, don't tell me I owe you money. I ha — "
"No. You know I'm not a loan shark."
"You're some kind of shark, that's for sure."
"I didn't come to hear your drivel."
"Then, why did you come?" His eyes roamed her body, showing the first signs of real, heated suspicion. "What do you want? I hope you aren't here to kill me. I've got bad news if that's the case: you can't kill me. Emphasis on can't."
"Kill you?" She shook her head. "That was never my intention. But now that I'm here speaking to you…"
He nodded. "I've been told I have a talent for riling people up. Gods and monsters more than anybody else, apparently. Personally, I think you guys are a bit too sensitive."
"What others have said about you doesn't mean anything to me. I can see who you are with my own two eyes, after all."
"I take it you don't like what you see? Sorry if that's the case. I forgot to freshen up before leaving the house today."
She took two steps forward. "You've definitely managed to polarize me. Before you opened your mouth, the thought of punching you hadn't even crossed my mind. But now I'm considering it."
"We just met, and this is the first impression I get? Deja vu."
"Maybe you forgot that I'm a god. I've dealt with your kind before."
"My kind?" He raised his eyebrows. The twitch near his lip said a lot. "And what kind would my kind be?"
"The brazen kind." Tiamat chose her words carefully. Her anger had abated quickly, especially now that she had gained some modicum of power in the conversation. But that left her vulnerable to the tug in her gut. She could handle the tug, though. It wasn't painful. It wasn't even uncomfortable anymore. "Usually, though, it only takes me introducing them to my fist for their impudence to ebb."
"By all means, give it a shot," he said. His body had shifted subtly, so subtly that Tiamat had almost missed it. But she noticed. "You'll reform if you die, so we can always continue this conversation later."
"I'm sorry," Tiamat couldn't stop the scoff that left her, "but did you just imply that you could kill me? Or that you would kill me?"
"I'm just warning you that anything is possible. Who knows? Maybe I'll get lucky. Are you really willing to risk it, though? Most gods I've met try to avoid being humiliated by mortals. High risk, low reward. Imagine the hit to your pride."
Tiamat shook her head and glanced at the sky. "Being talked down to by an anomaly. What a day. Well, we can argue this until we're blue in the face, but we can also argue it at any other point in time. Instead, let's talk about how we move forward from here."
Percy, apparently interested, shifted his weight a few times as he tried to measure her with a benign air of scrutiny. He scratched his chin, then said, "I'm not sure what you mean when you call me an anomaly. And what do you mean, 'we?' You don't strike me as a 'we' person. You've definitely got the 'me, me, me' vibe going on."
She reciprocated his scrutinizing gaze, adding only a bit of bite when she kept her eyes narrowed. "You and I both know that you don't belong here. This place — this reality — isn't your home. You know that. As soon as you arrived, everybody with a sensitivity to the changes of destiny knew. I may be the first to confront you about it, but I won't be the last."
Like that, he tensed, the lines of his face set into something close to a ponderous frown. "More? How many more? I've been around for a few days, but you're the only one who came knocking."
"Believe me, there will be others. You're about as far from discreet as I can imagine. It has nothing to do with your actions. Not yet, at least. Right now, it boils down to the unnatural kind of presence you carry. Gods can sense that. Some gods, such as myself, are sensitive to oddities like you from across worlds." She shook her head helplessly, chuckling with dry humor. "If they aren't already curious, well, it won't be long until they are. The more you interact with the world, the more you'll damage it. Not that you haven't already wrought damage."
"What kind of damage have I done?" he asked skeptically. "I think I'd remember breaking anything important… Which I haven't. Not here, anyway. And not yet."
She pointed at him, then at herself, then at the ground between them. "This. You and I were never meant to meet. Yet here we are — meeting as if it were meant. Let me disabuse you of something: if you don't watch your step, someone will kill you within the next two months. A god, likely."
He crossed his arms petulantly. "I'm not sure how our meeting is damaging."
"Just trust me that it is," she insisted.
The truth was actually embarrassing and straightforward: she wasn't sure about the specifics of the damage. All she knew was that he was damaging reality. She felt as much in her heart. If nothing else, she knew that.
If only she had some way of explaining it rationally.
How irritating.
"Trust you?" His foot slid back, just barely registering as movement in Tiamat's peripheral, just barely making a sound as the sole of his shoe scraped the pavement beneath. "Why should I trust you? We just met. You were ready to punch me. Punches from gods usually mean exploded heads. Doesn't sound like a great first impression we made on each other."
"I'm very trustworthy," she said, putting a hand to her chest. "Long-lived entities such as myself have our pride, and I personally pride myself on my honesty."
He flicked his pen into the air. "And how would I know that?"
"You'll just have to trust me, I suppose."
"So, we're back to square one again. The trust paradox." Percy sighed with false annoyance. "Even Einstein would have trouble figuring this out. To trust or not to trust... that is the question..."
"You're making me want to punch you again."
"Feel free to throw your best swing." Percy uncapped his pen, and suddenly he wasn't holding a pen anymore. In its stead was a bronze sword, perfectly contoured, polished to such an astonishing shine that it almost hurt to stare at. "But, I will be swinging back."
Though she hadn't noticed before, a flash of lightning drew her attention to the sky, which had been darkened by a wholly impregnable block of thick clouds. Shortly following the lightning rolled the thunder, booming, reverberating, shaking her very bones where they sat.
A drizzle started.
What is this? She felt torn between wondering at the bronze sword and the weather's sudden change. There was something eerily impressive about the storm, she thought, and that feeling gnawed at her as if her stomach had been filled with rats.
How had she not noticed the storm forming? How had her attention been so thoroughly stolen that something on this scale could escape her?
She looked back at the sword and found her answer there.
There was no way she could have fought the temptation to marvel at that sword. It was an impossible task to ask of her. It was just too… too…
Rain fell.
"You have a beautiful sword."
The glowing bronze drew her eye like almost nothing had before. In fact, the sword itself touched Tiamat, resonated with her, whispering wicked and specious promises in some unknown language, no doubt taunting her about the distance they held.
"Thanks…" Percy made a strange face. He opened his mouth, presumably to say something else, but closed it shortly afterward. "I guess."
Tiamat quickly took the lead when it became clear that he was at a loss. "What's her name?"
"Riptide."
A powerful name for a powerful sword. Very fitting. It made perfect sense.
The sword — Riptide — sang of her master's prowess. She sang of her many victories. She sang of her potency. She was grace and fury, both. What more could one ask for, more than a simultaneous work of art and practical instrument of war? There was nothing. Riptide was all her master would ever need.
And when she was in her master's hands, Riptide was truly peerless. None had wielded her like her current master. None would ever wield her in the same way. Riptide was at her best with Percy, not despite him nor because of him, but with him, acting as a single variable in a more complex system.
Together, they were invincible. Years of familiarity, years of care, years of dedication… all those years had culminated into Percy and Riptide being incomparable. They were practically extensions of each other.
All this, Tiamat could tell with one look. She'd always been able to estimate the value of items rather easily. It was just one of her many talents.
While she wasn't as obsessed with collecting rare and interesting items as some dragons, she could appreciate a worthy treasure when she saw one. And here, she most certainly saw one.
Riptide would have made a fine addition to her collection, but taking the beautiful blade away from Percy would have dulled her shine. Riptide was only one part of the equation. She flowered only in the presence of her master.
Still, Tiamat had to try. She glared at the boy in front of her. "How much?"
"What? How much what?" he asked.
"I have several tons of jewels and precious metals," Tiamat explained patiently. "You could become a very rich man in the next few minutes. How much would it take for you to part ways with Riptide?"
Rain continued to fall around them. Another flash of lightning was followed by more tooth-rattling thunder.
Percy shook his head and gestured sharply with his free hand. "It's not for sale. Sorry."
"Twenty million. No, no. Forty million." Everybody had a price. Sometimes it took time to get there, but Tiamat already knew that.
"You could offer me billions; Riptide isn't for sale," Percy reiterated.
"I have gold and silver; rubies, sapphires, lapis lazuli; artifacts made by the gods themselves that are practically priceless," she pushed on. "I can offer you much. Powerful shields and swords, tapestries with moving images made of the finest threads, accessories which can cure even the most dangerous diseases — you can have your pick."
"No."
"I have the necessary information to help you become immortal, even. It can be yours for the — " Tiamat said.
"No."
Again, Tiamat was forced to sigh. If immortality and riches couldn't sway the boy, nothing would. At least, nothing she could think of. "That's unfortunate, though perhaps for the best. Riptide would lose most of her luster if I took her off your hands. Treat her well. She's one of a kind."
"You're preaching to the choir here, lady. I can't even count how many times I would've died if Riptide hadn't been with me."
With that, they stood there, studying each other in the storm, like stone sentinels guarding against nothing. Tiamat wondered if he was arrogant enough to attack her without provocation. She also had to wonder what other abilities he had hidden in his pocket.
If her sense of smell hadn't yet failed her, then the boy was born of brine. As he stirred the storm, his primary essence inundated the atmosphere, thick like the pressure at the oceans' deepest ends, full of salt and mystery and life.
The sea filtered through his veins.
He was like Tiamat. Except he was human.
Or rather, he was half-human. The other half was divine.
The child of a sea god. So that's what he is. Tiamat continued to examine the boy. Or maybe he's some other mysterious force which I have yet to encounter. Since he's not from this reality, anything could be possible. This is way too novel.
The concept of alternate realities had never been far-fetched. Creation spanned a nigh-infinite number of possible universes. All primordials knew this to be true.
Still, Tiamat had never met someone from an alternate reality.
Not until now, which meant that she'd just been presented a unique opportunity. Letting it go would have been wasteful. After all, Riptide was only one part of a more fabulous treasure. If the boy were so agreeable as to her thoughts…
"So?" Percy tapped his shoe against the ground a few times.
Tiamat blinked, brought out of her personal musings. "So?"
"Are we gonna have a problem?" he asked.
"I don't see why we would," Tiamat said, quickly deciding on her course of action. "While there are quite a few things I have to ask you, I don't see why they need to be asked right here and now. Your little display has provided me with more insight than I'd hoped."
"Really?" Riptide never dropped. "But there's a catch. There's always a catch when it comes to dealing with gods." Percy flexed his wrist a few times. "No offense, but you guys are bad at letting sleeping dogs lie."
Tiamat crossed her arms and chuckled off to the side. "It's those kinds of comments that warrant a catch in the first place. Yes, there is a catch. But it's a simple one. And it doesn't even involve bloodshed."
Water ran down from the crown of his head and around his eyes. He sniffed as droplets trailed over his nostrils. "What's the catch, then?"
"You, being a fracture point, are likely to cause irreversible damage to this reality — my reality. I think I want to watch as that happens. Peace is all well and good, but maybe it's time for the world to be shaken up. Therefore, I'll accompany you as havoc is wreaked. I'd like to form… a partnership. You and I. A team, you might even call it."
His glazed over stare was almost enough to make her laugh. The storm seemed to strengthen as he locked eyes with her. Soon, though, the winds died down, the rain lessened, and the world no longer threatened to shake itself apart.
"Are you serious?" he asked.
"Yes."
She understood his reticence. To some extent, she wasn't sure that her decision was a good one. For all the time she'd been alive, Tiamat had never partnered up with a human. She'd never had the need or want. Most humans were short-lived and weak. If she wanted something like that, she would rather get some kind of pet animal, like a dog or cat.
Percy was different. He and destiny had clashed upon his arrival, and he had won. Destiny yielded, acceded to his existence, bowed and broke as he sat upon its corpse.
Well, that was a dramatic way of putting it, but it was practically the truth.
The world was going to change. It was definitely going to change.
Tiamat was sure that Percy would be one of the driving forces of that change, and she wanted to experience that change firsthand. It would be a valuable experience in its own right.
Moreover, Percy, himself, was a treasure. Not that Tiamat thought he even knew, but just because he was unable to see it didn't mean she was equally as blind.
"I don't usually work closely with gods," he said. "A lot of them end up wanting to kill me. Or they send me on quests that nearly kill me. Either way, I'm not of fan of the whole 'almost killing' thing."
Tiamat shrugged. "I'm not your biggest fan, true, but I can promise that I won't kill you without a good, rational reason."
"Our ideas of rational probably differ," Percy said.
"Maybe not so much," she retorted. "How rational was it when you drew a sword on a primordial? What kind of idiot are you, exactly?"
"The best idiot in all of New York."
"Hmph. I can see that." She stuck out her hand for him to shake. "Well? Let's shake on it."
"Why should I? Working with a god sounds like it would be bad for my health."
"I'll give you my word. On my pride."
"Why are you so set on this?" he asked. Riptide swayed from side to side in even intervals. "You don't strike me as the type to work with someone."
"You don't know me very well, clearly. Is it wrong for me to want this? Maybe your prejudice against the gods is coloring your perception of me."
Percy rubbed the side of his jaw pensively. Finally, he put his beautiful sword away, pressing the cap against the blade so that it shrank back into a pen.
She pushed her hand toward him. "Well? Truce?"
He gave her hand a wary look but reached out to shake it nonetheless.
Their skin made contact, and a bolt of blue hit Tiamat square in the chest. For a moment, it felt like her heart was being squeezed from all angles. The blood in her veins boiled. Then it froze. Pain swept through her, minute and negligible, but still there, where it hadn't been just a few seconds ago. Even the tug in her gut had returned, pulling at her entire essence.
Percy gave her hand a soft squeeze, moved it up and down, then let go. His eyes crinkled as the ghost of a smile crossed his face.
"Truce."
Tiamat stared at him for a few seconds.
What... had just happened? What had he done to her?
"You all right there, T? I think I see some green around your gills," Percy said.
Her eyebrow twitched. "You..."
Percy, apparently confused, asked, "Me? What?"
She gave him another searching glare before deciding he wasn't aware of why she was flustered. Whatever it was that he'd done, he hadn't done it purposefully. Or so it would seem.
Did that make him more dangerous, or less? She found it hard to decide. For now, she would leave it as another mystery to solve.
Tiamat smiled wryly. It had been a long time since she'd been put into such a novel situation. She was glad for it, all things considered.
Yes, the novelty would wear off eventually, but Percy would probably die before she got too bored with him. She'd seen his kind before; they lived and died by the sword. Eventually, he would insult the wrong person — just like he'd insulted her — and that person would kill Percy.
A banal tragedy, given that he was the child of a god. Few of those lived long, fruitful lives, after all, and most of them seemed to have a problem controlling their pride and using it to keep them alive. Too many let hubris cloud their better judgment.
From what she'd seen, the boy was straddling the wrong side of confidence and arrogance. It might very well be his downfall.
When he died, maybe she would take Riptide. The sword would be lonely without a master. It would be a shame if Riptide were lost. Yes, that wasn't a bad idea at all. This was already proving to be worthwhile.
"So, how is this partnership — team — gonna work, exactly? What's our mission statement? People usually partner up for a reason." Percy put his hands in his pockets. "Is there a reason for us to be partners instead of, like, friends?"
Tiamat gestured for him to follow her. "Let's discuss that later. I'm hungry, so let's go eat something before starting those kinds of talks."
Percy gave a cheeky half-smile despite the distrust still lingering in his eyes. "Food first, business second? This might be the start of a beautiful friendship, Dragon King Tiamat."
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For all that she could gripe about New York City, there was one thing Tiamat would never fail to appreciate — and that thing was the food. While processed meat was certainly the most potent scent associated with American freedom, the sheer diversity of cuisine one could find in New York City made the United States seem like some kind of ultimate, incomparable utopia.
Of course, that wasn't true. There were plenty of major cities around the world that had sizeable collections of cuisines, from Asia to Africa to Europe, people enjoyed eating something new every now and then. The only continent that couldn't boast this much was, unsurprisingly, Antarctica.
Maybe that would change if people learned how delicious penguins and seals were.
"It's funny."
Tiamat glanced at Percy out of the corner of her eye. They were walking down 6th Avenue, having just eaten a small breakfast at one of the many diners in Manhattan.
"What's funny?" she asked, playing along after he didn't continue his thought.
"This," he said. With a vague gesture, he indicated the short distance between them as they walked back to his apartment. "I've met dozens of gods. You're the only one who's ever actually wanted to team up with me. Usually, they have too much pride. Working with a mortal is practically taboo. It's weird."
"I thought it was 'funny?'"
He cracked a smile. "It is funny. But it's funny in a weird sort of way."
Tiamat couldn't help but sigh. "Was breakfast too quiet for you?"
They hadn't spoken much during their meal. Not that Tiamat wasn't interested in what Percy might have to say, but both of them had been more focused on filling their stomachs rather than hold a serious conversation.
"No. It wasn't that. Really, it's always been kind of weird." Percy squinted as more rain ran around his eyes. "I guess… you're an interesting god, is all. I mean, you're just as arrogant as the others I've met — "
Tiamat snorted. "Look who's talking."
"But gods don't seem to like me. So you're kind of different."
"You want to know why they don't like you?" She jabbed a finger at his face, sticking it near his nose so he could see it well. "I'll tell you why. It's because you go out of your way to provoke people. At least, that's my sentiment. And before you argue, yes, you were definitely provoking me earlier."
Percy frowned at her. "Was I? Really? Sorry, I guess."
"You really like to guess, don't you?" she said.
They rounded a corner and walked into the lobby of Percy's apartment building. Tiamat noted how luxurious it looked. Furniture and glass alike followed a dark color theme. Indecipherable art pieces hung on the walls, and the slate flooring had been cleaned thoroughly.
Percy lived on the 19th floor. The elevator upheld the luxurious tone set by the lobby, as did the hallways leading to his apartment.
"My place might be a bit messy," Percy warned once they came to a stop in front of what must have been his front door. He didn't wait for a response, entering without further preamble.
The apartment was modest in size, though she knew that "modest" carried different connotations depending on where one was.
While the size didn't impress her, the contents seemed much more in line with what had been presented downstairs. Likely, the apartment had come fully furnished, because pieces of adornment matched the necessities tastefully. Two sofas faced a large television in the living room, and a fully-equipped kitchen had been plotted near the entrance.
It all looked clean.
Nothing stood out to Tiamat as an obvious sign that the apartment was occupied.
Rain pattered against the windows. The clouds outside served to darken the apartment as well.
"Is this what you classify as messy?" she asked.
Percy closed the door behind him. "My room is worse."
She threw herself down onto the nearest sofa. It was very comfortable. "I now know why you didn't let me buy Riptide. If you can afford this apartment, then you must have more than enough money."
"Oh… uh…" Percy, flustered, shuffled awkwardly on his feet before he sat on the only chair in the living room. "I'm not paying… right now."
The reaction drew Tiamat's attention in full. It had been the first time she'd seen some kind of humility from him. He seemed embarrassed. "Did you hypnotize the property manager, then? Or maybe you just threatened them?"
"Hypnotize... ?" Percy cut himself off and gave her a strange look. "No. If you want specifics, direct your call to Heaven. They're the ones who set me up in this place." He leaned toward the low-rise coffee table in front of him and took hold of a remote control. The television turned on to the broadcast of a professional tennis match. "Don't get me wrong, it's nice and all, but… it's a little extravagant. Michael won't even tell me how much the rent is, which means it's probably too much."
"Wait, what's this talk about Heaven?" she asked.
"Well, I'm only living here thanks to Michael. He's helped me a lot for some reason." He looked away from the television and glanced around pensively. "I tried to tell him that I didn't need all this. It's too much. I haven't done anything to… Anyway, he didn't listen. So, yeah. That's that, I guess."
"And how did you happen to meet the prime angel in Heaven?" Tiamat asked.
Percy smiled dryly. "If you want a fast meeting with him, just crash through the gates of Zebel. Michael is probably gonna come running if you do that."
Tiamat returned his smile with one equally as dry. "I imagine that's a good way to draw his attention. How long ago was this?"
"A week. Not too long," he said.
"So it was when you first appeared in this reality." Tiamat gave him a pointed look. Of course, she didn't have any proof, but the time made sense. One week ago had been she'd first felt destiny's threads fray.
Percy stared at her blankly, silently. He muted the television. "How do you know that?"
Tiamat, again, matched his countenance. "I'm resourceful. Mind, I'm not accusing you of anything, so there's no need for you to get so tense. I doubt you wanted to break into Heaven. If you did, I doubt Michael would have let you leave with your life."
"I'm not sure about that," Percy said. "Michael is a good guy."
She nodded. "He is. But there are few angels left alive with clean consciences. Michael is old. Not as old as me, but still old. He took part in the various conquests set in motion by Yahweh. He was a leader in the Great Abrahamic War. In essence, Michael is an angel hanging on to his purity by a thread. The things he's done, the things he's allowed — those things will follow him till the end of his days; there are some things we can never absolve ourselves of, and I can say, without a doubt, Michael will never find absolution."
"Whatever happened in the past, he's been good to me."
"Right." Tiamat felt like arguing would be pointless. "Well, enough about Michael. Tell me about how you ended up here. It's not every day that someone arrives from an alternate reality. There must be a reason."
"Would you believe me if I told you it was dumb luck?" he asked.
"Would I have a choice?"
"Not really, no," he confirmed. His eyes searched hers for a long while. "Still, that's really the best I can offer." Apparently, he hadn't found whatever it was he'd been searching for. He stood up, grunting as if he were an old man, and waved his arm to the small hallway branching off of the living room. "Anyway, this place isn't too big. Not big enough to be our base of operations for whatever it is our 'team' will be doing."
Tiamat allowed him to change the subject. She had a feeling that Percy was actually more trusting than he acted. Sooner or later, he would tell her what had happened to him.
In the meantime, she would have to set him straight. "Doing? We're not really doing anything. Well, more to the point, I'm going to be watching you, experiencing the unraveling of reality firsthand. You can just do what you might normally do. That's all there is to it."
Percy scratched his head. "You made it sound different back in Central Park."
She shrugged. "This really is for my own benefit and entertainment. I can't even begin to tell you how stale things get after you live past your first few centuries."
"Believe me, I've heard it all before," he said, stifling a long yawn. "Man, I need a nap." He looked at her quizzically. "Are you gonna hang around for a while, or were you gonna head out?"
"If it's all the same to you, I'll stay for a bit longer."
"Sure. As long as you don't try to kill me, you're welcome to stay as long as you want."
She rolled her eyes at him. "I'll do my best to resist the overwhelming urge."
Percy nodded. "Great." He bonelessly sank further into the sofa. "Hey, why are you called 'Dragon King' anyway? I meant to ask, but it sorta slipped my mind through breakfast. It sounds pretty important."
"I'm a powerful dragon. One of the most powerful," she explained. "We're classified as Dragon Kings in order to show our importance. There's me, Yu-Long, Fafnir, Midgardsormr, and Vritra. I'm the strongest of the five. Above me are the Heavenly Dragons: Albion and… Ddraig. Above them are Ophis and Great Red, the Infinite Dragon and the True Dragon. I guess Tannin is also a strong dragon, used to be a Dragon King, though he's technically a devil now. Then again, he's not as strong as I am."
"Wait, you're literally a dragon?" Percy settled his attention on her. "Like, with scales and fire and stuff? Is that why you have so much money? Are you a hoarder?"
"Were you listening to me at all?"
Percy waved his hand playfully. "Yeah, I got it, I got it — dragon ranks, Ddraig, Tannin, got it, got it. But for real, are you a hoarder?"
Tiamat sighed. It was just her luck to have found the most ridiculous little anomaly out there. Still, part of her didn't mind educating him. He would hopefully make for an entertaining companion if nothing else.
Author Note: Thank you to all who showed their support by following/favoriting. Special thanks to those who reviewed.
Tiamat, Tiamat. Tough to write. Not much to go on in the novels, so I have to play it fast and loose here with her personality. Is she obsessed with treasure? An argument can be made. Do I think she'd admit it? No, I don't. That's the vibe I was going for.
Percy. My intention isn't to be perfectly accurate to where we last saw him in canon Riordanverse. Similar, yes. But not a 1-to-1 comparison. Things went a little different for him in this fic, which means he has his own backstory to unpack. I always liked to think that the faux-confidence he plays for his enemies could become innocent arrogance if he didn't come so close to losing on more than one occasion. But that's just my headcanon. Here, he has a reason to be confident.
Thanks for reading.