Chapter 6

Greetings readers! I would like to thank SpartanBoi for his continued support. It is much appreciated. I want to incorporate your corrections but for some reason I cannot edit my chapters after 12 hours of posting it, I have sought help and will re-edit once that is fixed. Also, a thank you to DragonEmperor01 for his review. It means a lot to me that you liked my story.

I gave this story a rating of M because even though I'm not going to write torture or depict sexually illicit scenes, this story is going to be centered on violence. The first few chapters are just a background, the later chapters may contain large parts of violence along with the story. It may pass off as a T, still, I would rather be on the safe side. But I assure all of you that this story will not have any sexually illicit scenes just because it is rated M. I will give the rating another thought after a few more chapters and I would like your suggestions then.

Also this story has amassed a thousand views, a shout-out to all of you who took an interest and made this possible. I thank all of you who are following this story or have it as a favourite.

All credit for the characters goes exclusively to Rick Riordan.

Situated in the heart of the Greek civilization, Mount Olympus was a majestic and tall mountain that towered over all of Greece. The defining quality of the mountain though was the floating city above its peak, which put to shame even the greatest structures mankind had built.

Floating leagues above the ground in a metaphysical plane, Olympus truly was a city of the Gods; it was filled with gilded palaces, gleaming statues and marvellous temples dedicated to various deities. The city was constructed in a pattern of concentric circles and right in the middle of the city lay a structure that outshined everything else that the city had to offer.

The throne room of Olympus was a sight that would burn itself into the minds of all those who beheld it. Constructed with twelve different pillars, each of a different colour and style, the spaces between the pillars were filled with murals that had been excellently painted on tainted glass. At the place where the last two pillars converged, there was a pair of large celestial bronze doors with carvings of the sacred animals and the symbols of every Olympian. The ceiling was made of gold and the victory of the Gods over the Titans had been ornately carved on it. The inside of the throne room was filled with twelve huge thrones, each of them magnificent and unique, arranged in a U-shape.

Sitting on one of the two thrones that were present in the centre of the throne room and with a solemn expression on his face was Zeus, King of the Gods and God of the Sky.

She was on the rise and Zeus was terrified of that. They had barely won the titanomachy and even that had taken them ten years, three of the most powerful weapons ever made and the support of the Hekatonkheires and the Elder Cyclopes. Only with these advantages and the arrogance of the Titans causing them to lose some of their good supporting fighters early in the war, the Gods had managed to defeat them.

She on the other hand, was in a league of her own. Even with the help the new generation of Olympians and the huge armies of Olympus, Atlantis and the Underworld, the Gods would be hard pressed to defeat just her. But that did not scare him; if it was her and her armies alone, they could do what the Titans had done to Ouranos. What really scared Zeus was another one of them fighting on her side. She was not foolish like the Titans. She would rally all the support she could muster and would attack them at a time when they least expected. So, Zeus had tried to rally all the minor Gods behind Olympus and was going to use this solstice meeting to get the full support of his brothers. He could not even hope to fight whatever she threw at them without his siblings. While his children were powerful, they would not be enough. For the sake of Olympus, he would have to swallow his pride and ask his brothers for their help in exchange for his own support. Zeus' thoughts shifted to his brothers.

The three of them together had once upon a time struck terror into the hearts of the Titans of Mount Othrys. After they freed the Elder Cyclopes and they built the symbols of power for the brothers, the Gods had stormed the mountain along with the rest of their allies. They had been greeted by the sight of the Titan Lords, The General and their monster armies. Zeus fought Atlas, Poseidon took on Hyperion and Hades had engaged Iapetus in a fierce duel. His other siblings and his allies had fought the other two Titan Lords and their armies. It was a gruelling fight before they eventually managed to subdue the Titans. In the end, the brothers had fought their accursed father in his throne room. While individually, the King of the Titans was stronger than them, even he was no match for their combined force.

Zeus had delivered the killing blow and had sheared off the top of Mount Othrys along with destroying the black throne of Kronos. His brothers had given him the honour of cutting their father into a thousand pieces with his own scythe and Zeus had gladly acquiesced. Everyone had rejoiced about the defeat of the titans and the Age of the Olympians had begun.

That had been a thousand years ago and, as the time passed, gradually a rivalry and mutual dislike had been developed between them. Zeus would never admit it out loud, but he had always been jealous of the relationship his brothers had with their demigod children. They had always spent as much time as possible with their demigod children and had showcased their love openly. Zeus on the other hand, was chained by his own decree. He could never directly contact his children and defy his ruling, since that would make opposition towards him grow; thus he was forced to only watch from afar and do nothing as his children struggled. In his bitterness, he tried to force this decree on all the Olympians - a few listened to him, a few did not.

Zeus' thoughts were interrupted by Hermes, his youngest immortal son. The divine messenger entered the room and bowed in front of his father's throne.

"Rise Hermes. What is the message you bear for me?" Zeus questioned.

"Father, Uncle Poseidon has coronated another son as a Prince of Atlantis and as second in line to the throne of Atlantis." Hermes told Zeus.

"We may not like each other much, but still, I'm his brother, rather rude of him to not even let me know." Zeus mused.

"That's not what you need to hear, father. The boy… he is a demigod." Hermes nervously continued in a low voice, in fear of his father's anger. Immediately a smell of ozone enveloped the entire throne room.

"What?!" Zeus bellowed, rising from his throne in fury, his electric blue eyes violently flashing like a thunderstorm.

"Yes father, the boy is a demigod, albeit an unusually powerful one. Uncle Poseidon has also claimed that he will personally bestow the wrath of the sea on anyone who shows any aggression towards the boy. Additionally, it appears that he has the support of both Amphitrite and Triton in this endeavour." Hermes quickly conveyed before teleporting out of the throne room.

Hearing this, Zeus forced himself to calm a little. He was still silently seething, but he knew that any threat that Poseidon delivered would be followed up by his trident. If he had Amphitrite and Triton backing him, it meant he had the complete support of Atlantis. Zeus had to tread cautiously; he would force Poseidon to part with his son, but he would wait until tomorrow and would make use of the Olympian council's strength in numbers to do so. With these thoughts, Zeus teleported out of the throne room in a blinding flash of lightning. Little did he know, a certain brown eyed goddess of the hearth was going to use the same power of numbers to make him submit.

Hestia was completely exhausted. She had tirelessly pulled all strings and had made sure her plan went perfectly. Convincing her siblings and keeping the attention of the younger Olympians away from the matter at the same time had been extremely taxing. Convincing Demeter had been fairly simple; based on their mutual goodwill, Demeter's positive relationship with Poseidon and her genuine compassion, Hestia had ensured that the elder goddess was going to be firmly supportive of their cause in this meeting. The fact that Percy was adorable had also been of considerable help. Convincing Hera and Hades, on the other hand, had not been so easy.

Hades had been very defensive and sceptical of her plan and did not want to participate in this conflict in fear attracting her attention to his domain. Thankfully, Poseidon had listened to her prior instruction and had convinced his brother to support them, even though it had actually been little Percy who had charmed Hades and brought him onto their side. Nonetheless, they now had their biggest deterrent after Poseidon. The four of them would have been enough to force the younger Olympians to understand the logic behind their argument, but they needed someone whose support could convince Zeus. For that reason, Hestia had sought the support of Hera.

When she had told Hades that she had convinced Hera, she was only trying to lure him onto their side - in reality, convincing Hera had been the hardest ordeal. It was only her oath on the River Styx that she would not reveal anything Hestia told her that prevented her from informing Zeus immediately. It had taken her a week to convince the goddess. Hera had been very adamant about not allowing a demigod child to directly interact with the godly world.

It had taken a secret iris message that showcased Poseidon, Triton and Amphitrite playing a game of hide and seek with Percy to break through her bitter exterior. In that message, Hera had seen Percy for the innocent toddler he was instead of seeing him as a bastard son of Poseidon.

Hestia knew Hera was a kind-hearted goddess deep down, it was only the constant cheating that she had endured by Zeus that had turned her into a scornful and bitter woman. Percy had also helped in bringing down Hera's unreasonable hate of demigods. Hestia was convinced that Percy's innocence would crumble any last trace of Hera's hateful resolve once they met.

With five of the children of Kronos and Rhea on their side, they surely had nothing to worry about, although Hestia knew first-hand how stubborn Zeus could be. He would eventually accept their argument but would try to either have Percy raised on Olympus or try to place an unwanted informer in Atlantis. In the event that Zeus would not relent, Hestia had a trump card that would effectively shut down his or anyone else's opposition on this matter.

The stage had been set, all the players had assembled and all the strings had been drawn. There was only one move left now and that was the checkmate. In a majestic flash of searing white flames, Hestia teleported out of her palace.

Upon his arrival in front of the throne room Poseidon was greeted by Hades, patiently waiting for the arrival of his siblings at their agreed upon rendezvous point.

"Barnacle Beard, you took longer than expected." Hades coolly commented.

"I had to secretly escape while Amphitrite and Triton distracted Percy. He wanted to come here and meet the rest of his family." Poseidon groaned and replied.

Hades snickered at this; only mini Barnacle beard had the innocent audacity to attempt something like that. He would pay to watch the shocked look on Zeus' face in his first interaction with the boy that was so similar to his father.

Their attention was diverted to the three goddesses who had simultaneously materialised in front of the throne room. For a minute all of them just stared at each other, the atmosphere tense. Surprisingly, Hestia was not the one to break the ice.

"Before we go in, I would like to thank all of you for your support." Poseidon earnestly said.

"You are family, brother, and family sticks together." came the soft reply. Surprisingly, it came from Hera.

Galvanized by this simple, yet, meaningful statement, the siblings just nodded at each other and Hestia pushed the large gleaming doors as the siblings walked in, united and determined.

The moment all his siblings and his wife walked in together, Zeus knew he had been outwitted. In detail, they would have planned whatever they wanted to convey in the meeting and an argument by him against any proposition the siblings had in mind would only be viewed as a reflection of his bitterness by the rest of the council. He would not give up without a fight though. He caught Poseidon's fierce gaze, slightly flinching before he steeled his nerves. He observed all his children; by now, they all had realised the message behind this stunt and some of them even seemed nervous.

"Greetings, my fellow Olympians and Hades. Welcome to the annual winter solstice meeting. Before we start, I believe Poseidon has to explain his recent actions to the Council of Olympus." Zeus said narrowing his eyes at Poseidon. By now, the entirety of Olympus had heard of the infamous coronation and of Poseidon's threat. All the younger Olympians leaned in, interested to know the reason behind their Uncle's dangerous manoeuvre.

"I have not done anything that needs to be explained, Zeus. I have done what I needed to do, to ensure the safety of both my son and my domain." Poseidon coldly remarked.

"You have not only broken an Ancient Law and interacted with your son but you have the audacity to place him on the throne of Atlantis?" Zeus angry voice boomed across the throne room, the smell of ozone following it.

"I have broken no law, brother; the Ancient Law of limiting mortal and divine interaction is just one of your many silly decrees. My son needs me and I will not desert him for a reason as silly as your bitterness." Poseidon shot back with even more ferocity, his eyes swirling and the winds picking up around him.

Before Zeus could respond, a new voice entered the conversation "Poseidon's right, little brother, similar to me, he is completely out of your control and has no incentive to follow any childish decree of yours and if you think your lightning scares anyone older than five, you must be severely deluded." Hades smirked and taunted Zeus in a condescending voice. This raised a number of snickers in the throne room and Zeus seethed at this snarky remark but other than that, he did not respond.

"I will give you one day Poseidon, one day for you to get the demigod out of Atlantis. After that, I will order the entirety of Olympus to hunt him down." Zeus declared after his turning his attention back to Poseidon.

In an instant, Poseidon shot up from his throne and slammed his trident on the floor so hard that it cracked the marble. Immediately a wave of raw power hit all the Gods present in the throne room.

"Hunt him down? Touch even a hair on his head, Zeus, and I shall tear you to shreds!" Poseidon bellowed with so much power that the glass in the throne room shattered. Everyone in the room flinched, they knew he really would follow through with that threat if provoked.

In response, Zeus got up from his throne, Master bolt in hand and with sparks of electricity rolling off of him. To back Poseidon, Hades rose from his temporary throne with the helmet of darkness on his head, the artefact radiating such fear that everyone who made the mistake of looking at him saw horrifying scenes playing in their heads. For a moment, no one moved; all the gods were terrified that even a small action would cause a catastrophic fight to break out. Suddenly, the hearth erupted, and a wave of heat crashed into them.

"All of you, sit down. Now." Hestia commanded with a edge to her voice that reminded everyone of the reason due to which, she was called the last Olympian. Heeding the words of their sister, the three brothers sat back down on their thrones. A tense silence enveloped the throne room as no one dared to speak.

Finally, Athena managed to gather the courage to ask. "There is some other reason Uncle Poseidon is raising his son on Atlantis or else all of you would not have supported it so unequivocally." She deduced. Her aforementioned Uncle turned his attention to her and she wanted to crawl into her throne at the terrifying sight of his swirling eyes.

Thankfully Hestia replied before Poseidon could flare up again. "You are right, Athena. Protecting him is only one side of the coin. As you know she is rising and we are afraid that she won't be alone. For that reason, we need all the help that we can muster to fight her. Before any of you make any judgement, let me tell you his story. The boy's name is Perseus and his mother gave up her life protecting him from hellhounds who were lured in by his scent. You see, he is unusually powerful for a demigod. Even as a son of Poseidon, his power should not rival that of a God's and yet, it does. Do you see the advantage behind raising and training such a powerful demigod? He is not bound by any Ancient Laws and could prove to be crucial in the upcoming conflict against her. Thus, all of us made the decision of saving the life of a toddler, in the process gaining us an extremely powerful and important future ally. We now stand at the crossroads of our destiny, my young nephews and nieces, this decision that we will make, will be the one to flip the course of history onto our side and we need to choose the right option." Hestia passionately conveyed. She smirked internally, Athena had taken the bait and now she could see the gears turning in the minds of all the younger Olympians.

"You jest. Aunt Hestia, a mere demigod cannot rival the power of a God even if he is grown up, how is it possible for a toddler demigod to emit that much power?" Apollo sceptically questioned.

"You better believe her, nephew. I noticed the demigod from an Iris message and, even from such a distance, I could feel the power rolling off of him in waves. If he is trained properly, I believe he may even be able to challenge one of you when he becomes old enough to do so." This time it was Demeter who chipped in. At Demeter's verification, everyone's jaw dropped. This piece of information was both shocking and exciting. If such a powerful demigod really existed, he could turn the tables to their favour and could wreak havoc on enemy forces and morale.

"That makes him even more of a threat - what if all of a sudden, the demigod decides that he does not like the Gods and shifts sides to join her?" Zeus harshly questioned.

This time it was Hera who defended Percy. "He will do no such thing. I have observed the boy and he is as kind-hearted and innocent as they get. Hestia can verify as much; in his heart I see a flame of kindness that burns bright. Let us not forget, he is also a son of Poseidon. His fatal flaw is personal loyalty, do you really think he will betray his father, the father who has loved and protected him his entire life? I am more afraid that he will sacrifice himself for the sake of others." She said looking directly into Zeus' eyes. This was the final nail in the coffin. Five of the children of Kronos and Rhea rarely ever agreed on something. If all of them were defending the boy, that meant that he truly was special. All the Olympians were now convinced of the plan. All except one.

"Fine. I accept that he may be an important ally against her. Who is to say he will stop there though? By all your accounts, his personal loyalty to his father may make him want to overthrow me and replace me with him. For that reason, I will accept this only on one condition. I want him here on Olympus where I can always keep a watch on him and drill into him loyalty to me and Olympus." Zeus stated, glaring fiercely at Poseidon.

"Absolutely not! I will not let my son come under your hateful gaze. I will train my son to help us, but his safety and happiness is much more important to me than your paranoia." Poseidon shot back, meeting Zeus' glare with his own.

Before another round of arguments could begin, the sudden arrival of someone very powerful and ancient into the throne room silenced everyone. In anger at the intruder for disturbing such an important council meeting, all the Olympians turned their attention towards them and everyone, except Hestia, was astounded by this arrival.

Standing in the centre of the Olympian throne with a neutral expression on her face and in all her glory was Rhea, the Titaness of Fertility and Mother of the Elder Olympians.

Hey guys! I bet none of you saw that coming. To be honest, I didn't either. It was just a spur of the moment thing. I hinted at this in the beginning and I wanted to include a surprise in this chapter. I know that sometimes it may feel repetitive but I really enjoy foreshadowing. Also you may be surprised at the lack of hostility between Poseidon and Athena. This is because this story is set much before the formation of Athens. While I know this isn't true as Athens was already a sprawling city-state by the time of Hercules came around and by extension the setting of the Gigantomachy, I have taken some creative freedom and may have twisted the myths a bit, including the myths of the titanomachy. But then again, this is fanfiction. I just want to portray a younger Olympian council and build off from there.

These changes may stray from the actual facts, but they are important to prevent plot holes. Also I have a pairing in mind, but it will take quite a bit of time for it to materialise and I would certainly like to hear out your suggestions. I am a hopeless romantic at heart and that trait of mine is balanced only by my stubbornness of wanting independent character development and a good story with a decent plot. So rest assured, I'm not going to fluff it up.

Also I'm still looking for a beta reader and anyone interested can PM me. Anyways, read and review, hope all of your enjoyed this chapter. Have a great day!