"There's this party." Annabeth said, straddling Percy in the backseat of his car. He grumbled, a very loose 'elaborate.'
"I want you to come with me, to try and make some friends." Percy stopped kissing her neck, and looked up at her.
"When is it?"
"Sunday. 29Th, at this frat-house type of thing. It's a masquerade, so be ready." She said, smirking down at him.
"I get a sneaking suspicion I don't have a say in this."
"You would be correct." she said, and she lifted his shirt up.
"I don't think we've done it in here." she laughed.
X
Percy didn't know what he was expecting when he pulled up to the frat house. There was clearly very loud music playing, and Percy parked, stepping out of his car, and there were beer cans and a bunch of stereotypical dude-bros outside. Annabeth stepped out, and they walked in together.
"Thalia's in the backyard somewhere, with Luke and some of their friends." Annabeth said, and Percy followed her. She was correct, Thalia and Luke sat around a fire with a brunette girl, a blonde boy, and some short, Mexican kid, none of whom Percy recognized. Annabeth got a big hug from Thalia, and Luke shook Percy's hand.
"So, that's Jason," the blonde boy raised his hand, "His girlfriend Piper," the girl nodded, "and their friend Leo."
Through the night, Jason and Percy hit it off. Jason was a kid from a more rich family, but he matched Percy's energy perfectly. Piper was super cool as well, and didn't pry at much. Leo was sort of annoying, but Percy could deal.
The major surprise was Luke, who warmed up to Percy real quick. Luke, Jason and Percy kicked it off really well, and they all seemed like best friends.
The only thing that they didn't truly know was Percy, who just said he was a student at Columbia majoring in Architecture alongside Annabeth, and they didn't try to get more out of him.
"Has anyone seen Annabeth? She went to the bathroom, like thirty minutes ago." Percy said, looking around. Everyone else was basically hammered drunk, or really high, and Percy didn't let the alcohol effect him. "I'm gonna go look for her." he stood up, and walked into the house. He assumed she was in a line, but when he looked to where the bathrooms were, there was no line. He looked around, and didn't see a trace of the blonde hair anywhere. He walked to the front of the house, budging his way through people, she wasn't in his car. He walked back to the bathrooms, and the door was unlocked, and he kind of had to pee anyways, so he opened it.
Inside, Jack Flaherty was kissing on a blonde girl. Percy scowled, thinking nothing of it, until he noticed the black of the hoodie on the blonde girl, and realized.
It was Annabeth.
Percy's scowl faded, and he just stood there stone faced, almost snarling, staring at the two. Annabeth pulled away from the boy, realizing who had walked in, and shoved him off her. Percy closed the door.
"Percy! Holy-" He shook his head at her, and turned to Jack, who was smugly smirking at him. He growled, and punched Jack in the ribs, walking to him, almost hugging him, and kneeing him in the ribs more. He released Jack, and punched him in the nose, and he fell back, leaning on the wall.
"Fucking bitch!" Jack spat at Percy. "The Olympians get whatever they want! Never forget that, fucker! Easy ass girlfriend, too! If you hadn't walked in, I would've fu-" Percy kicked him in the face, staring at the unconscious body he just beat to death.
He turned to Annabeth, who was crying, and didn't say a word.
"I swear, Percy. It's not what it looks like! I was really drunk, I couldn't control myself, I just wanted normalcy for once! He was normal!" She begged him.
"You wanted… normalcy?" He almost whispered. Annabeth's eyes widened even more, if it was possible.
"NORMALCY?" he growled angrily, and he opened the door, and walked out. He walked to his car, and got in, getting out his phone, dialing a certain number.
"Perseus?" Poseidon answered.
"I'm fucking in. Fuck your family. I want to kill them all." Percy growled, and he heard Poseidon laugh. Percy slammed the gas, driving back to his penthouse.
"Are you back then?"
"Yeah. I'm fucking back. Tell the fucking world, Perseus Fucking Jackson is back, and I've got fifty billion fucking dollars to make."
X
Thalia knew something was wrong when Annabeth came back crying, and Percy was not there. She'd heard some screams from the house, but…
"Annabeth?" Thalia asked, and Annabeth fell into her arms.
"I fucked up…" she said through sobs. "So badly." she cried. "I kissed- Jack, that asshole, and Percy saw, holy-" she was still crying. Thalia's eyes widened.
"You cheated on him?" Annabeth gave a weak nod, and Thalia groaned. "You fucking moron." Luke came running from the house, wanting to inspect what was going on.
"Holy shit, Percy just beat this guy to a fucking pulp in the bathroom." Then he noticed Annabeth crying, and connected the dots.
"No… fucking… way…" Luke said, and Thalia's phone rang, Nico.
"Nico?"
"What the fuck did you guys do to Percy?" He asked angrily.
"Annabeth cheated on him at a party. Why?"
"He's fucking psycho, like the old Percy. The killer Percy, Perseus." Nico said, and Thalia almost dropped her phone. "My dad called, Percy accepted the deal, to try and overthrow Zeus. He said that Percy was more than willing, almost sounding like he wanted it done tonight."
Thalia's eyes were wide. "Like nineteen year old Percy? Pre-rich Percy?"
"Yes, Thalia. He's fucking insane. Prime Percy is back, and I don't think he'll have mercy for anyone."
X
Percy walked into the backroom of the suit shop, where a middle-aged man nodded to him, and a metal door swung open, like a vault, into a room where a suitcase lay on a coffee table in front of him. Percy swung the door closed, and opened the suitcase. There was a bulletproof suit in the case, and fifty drachmas, the currency of the underworld, the life he left behind. There was another Glock-19, silenced, of course, with around fifty spare bullets. Percy let out a blood-curling scream, and slammed his hand on the fucking desk, screaming out a 'FUCK!' along with it. He was where he never wanted to be again- his old life. His phone rang, and he looked at it. Nico. He answered.
"Dude. Calm down, please, try and be reasonable."
"I want that fucker's head." and he hung up.
X
Percy entered the church without stealth, preferring to walk right in. His hair had grown longer, and was almost covering his eyes, which brewed anger. He entered the main space, and shot the two people sitting on the benches, turning to the priest.
"Get me to the fucking basement. Now."
The priest knew better than to disobey, so he led Percy to the basement, and to a caged door.
"Open it."
"Zeus will have my head-" Percy kicked the guy.
"You'll have no head to give if you don't fucking open it." The priest opened the gate, and Percy walked in. There was stacks of cash, so much money in front of Percy. He brought out the box of matches he had in his back pocket, and lit one up.
"Fuck you." He whispered, and threw the match on the money. The paper ignited, and Percy walked out, shooting the priest in the head.
X
Zeus sat in his office, and his assistant ran in.
"Sir, we've received word from the North Hill Chapel-"
"My stash?"
"It's been burnt to the ground!"
Zeus growled.
"FUCK!"
X
It had been a week since the party, and Percy had burnt a stash of money, and killed over forty men. He still looked out his window at night, thinking that somewhere, she was looking back at him.
Annabeth had never been so depressed. Thalia, Luke, and them tried their hardest to cheer her up, but she stayed in her room, only coming out for food and drink. She'd sent him over fifty texts in five days, and he hadn't read a single one. She could only imagine the danger he was in, the anger running through his body. She didn't think of others, not even Jack, who was in the hospital for a broken Femur and nose, she only thought of him.
Percy wanted her back. The temptation was great, but his will was greater. He wouldn't trust her. Not again. He'd learned his lesson. There was a reason he avoided feelings like that, or relationships in general. Too much con, not enough pro. Percy growled in his bed, thinking about the boy that was kissing her. He should've killed him right then and there, ended his whole fiasco. He was probably a rapist and sex offender, just by his ego. Percy's anger came back.
X
It was cold in New York, but warm in the poker room that Percy walked in to. He was immediately met with the sight of guards, and he groaned, not wanting to fight a lot today. He was in a bad mood.
It got eternally worse when Nico Di Angelo walked beside him, entering the casino-like environment.
"Percy." Nico said quietly, and Percy grunted in response. "Don't try what I know you're going to try. I don't want to fight you." Percy rolled his eyes. He knew he'd beat Nico's ass. Nico knew it too.
"I don't intend on fighting, but if it is what I must do, I'll do it." Percy said, and Nico sighed, leading Percy into a back kitchen, where Nico wrapped his legs around Percy's leg, flipping him over, and trying to break it, but Percy managed to kick Nico off him, and stood.
"Bitch." Percy spat, and he ran at Nico, shoulder-checking Nico's torso, and leading him into a wall. Nico landed with a crack and a groan, and punched Percy's back, who picked Nico up and threw him on the floor. Percy kicked Nico in the ribs. Percy was caught off-guard by the other person entering the kitchen, immediately charging Percy, knocking him down. He felt another pair of hands wrap around his neck, and he was being choked. Percy's hands were subdued by the new person. Percy let out a grunt, and that grunt became a scream.
Then he roared, of anger, of anguish, everything. All the emotion he'd built up over the past few days was coming out. His hands were separating, but Percy was pissed. He screamed louder, and his hands flew apart, he was free. He reached for his gun, and got it, shooting the person choking him in the arm. He stood quickly, shooting the new guy in the head twice, before turning to the other person, who was Nico, clutching his arm.
"Fuck you." Percy said, turning, and running out to the main room, where nobody was. They'd gotten away. Percy screamed again.
"FUCK!"
X
Yes, he was spending Thanksgiving alone. Yes, he was stalking them on Thanksgiving. Yes, he had seen the guys lurking around their apartment for Thanksgiving. He the window one more time, and his suspicions confirmed the worse; Nico was out, his arm was still recovering from the bullet wound. Percy put down the binoculars, and worked his way down his building, and up theirs. He put on the black ski mask, and readied his gun. He was walking down the hallway when he saw them enter the apartment, and he heard the screams as they were subdued. He walked to the front door, and opened his phone, swiping a button, and the power for the level went out. Percy walked in slowly, and heard the confused voices of the men who were attacking.
"Where the fuck is the power at?"
"This isn't how Zeus said it'd go." Bingo. Percy had his reasoning, so he was good to go. He initially saw six, and he killed the first guy by slitting his throat in the dark, and shot the second guy in the head, before sweeping the feet out from a third, and shooting him. He was tackled by a fourth, and a fifth shot him in the ribs. It hurt like shit, but the bullet deflected. He hit the guy tackling him on the head, and shot the dude who shot him in he collarbone, who dropped with a scream. His gun got knocked from his hand by the sixth, and he reached for the knife, grabbing it, and stabbing it down the man's chest, and he swore he felt the knife prick his leg. He quickly got up, shaking the body off him, and dodged a swing from the sixth, before tackling the sixth, and the dude shot Percy four times in the chest. Again, painful, but no major damage. Percy unarmed the man, and brought him into an armlock, squeezing all his power into it, breaking his arm. The man screamed, and Percy flipped them, and stabbed him in the heart. The power in the floor came back on, and he counted six dead, and eight more pairs of eyes on him from the people who were subdued. He grumbled about inconvenience, and walked up to Annabeth, cutting the zip-ties around her wrists, and removing the duct tape from her lips. Just seeing her again made him want to pick her up and whisk her away, but he knew better. He threw the knife down, and she caught a glimpse of his eyes.
"Percy?"
"Don't talk about it." He said, leaving the apartment.
X
Annabeth looked around, and everyone was shocked.
"That might be the most Percy thing that I've ever seen Percy do." Nico said, and Thalia laughed. Annabeth frowned
"What are we laughing about?" Luke asked.
"Percy stalks his friends for Thanksgiving because he's so alone," Annabeth's heart cringed, "and he just came in and save our asses."
Annabeth brought out her phone and texted him.
I love you, Percy. Please let me come back to you.
Thank you for what you did. I love you.
X
Percy was tired. Very tired. He hadn't gotten a full nights sleep since that party, and he'd been working overtime the entire time. The leads he'd gotten, and the setup he'd created for this Christmas event was amazing, everything according to Athena's plan. He was laying in bed, trying to sleep, but everything about this place reminded him of her. All the nights they'd spent together here, it was all coming back to him quickly. He stared into the night sky, eyes wide open. Another night of no sleep. He heard the door open before he realized it, and he jumped out of bed and grabbed his gun, which rested on the bedside table conveniently. The person crept through his living room, and Percy was ready, waiting on his side of the door, for them to enter. The door cracked open, before they swung it, and Percy immediately bursted through, tackling the woman, flipping her so he was on top. He punched her ribs, and got ready to shoot her, when he felt a sharp pain in his side. She'd stabbed him with a knife in her free hand, and Percy cried in pain, before shooting. His arm was heavy, so it didn't kill her, but it hit her shoulder area. Percy growled angrily, picking her up, the knife still in his side, slamming her against the wall, dropping her, and kicking her in the skull. He grabbed his gun and shot her four more times for good measure.
All he saw was the name "NICO" on his phone before he blacked out.
X
Annabeth woke up to commotion, and walked out of her room, to Nico and Thalia in the living room.
"Please, he wouldn't call me at this time for nothing, Thalia. You have to have keys somewhere?" Nico asked, and Thalia sighed.
"I don't have keys to his apartment. Didn't he shoot you, like a week ago?" Thalia asked, and Nico noticed Annabeth.
"Annabeth! Do you have keys to Percy's apartment?" her blood froze.
"Which one?"
X
She unlocked the door, and Nico led them in, his gun ready. The room was dark, and it was around 5-A.M. Eastern time. They walked through the main room, and then Nico walked into the living room, where he gasped. The sight was worse than she'd expected. He was laying in a pool of blood, and there was a knife in his side. He was unconscious, and there was a black-haired woman dead next to him.
"Can't stay out of trouble, can you, Percy?" Nico grumbled. He nodded to the two.
"Help me pick him up." Nico grumbled, and Thalia helped him. They dragged him to the car, and Nico tossed him in the backseat, and Annabeth got into the driver's seat.
"Hospital. Now." Annabeth started the car, and began driving. Nico growled.
"Fuck the laws, Annabeth, if the cops see me or him in the backseat, they'll let us go. Drive!"
X
They arrived to the hospital, and Nico and Thalia dragged him in. The hospital was near empty, but the woman working the desk saw Percy, and her eyes widened. Nico whispered something quietly to her, and she led them to a back room, through a metal door, leading to a very special-looking room, with a working bench and a table of tools. Nico set Percy down, and an old(er) looking Asian man walked in. The man looked at Percy, and cringed.
"That doesn't look too good, Perseus." he turned, and saw Nico, and gave a warm smile.
"Good morning, Nicholas. Long night?"
"Not for me." Nico laughed, and the man put on gloves, smiling. He walked to Percy, and inspected the wound.
"Too deep… I recognize this knife." he said, and Nico sighed.
"Angela Black… I think was her name. She was the person that had a four-million bounty on her head.
"And she attacked… Perseus?" The man frowned. "Doesn't add up. Is she…" Nico nodded.
"Percy broke her spinal cord in a few places and shot her four times. She broke into his place. No idea what she was thinking." The man nodded.
"Give me a few hours. I'll see what I can do."
X
Percy awoke with a headache. He slept well, but he was lightheaded. He must've lost a lot of blood. He recognized Dr. Yun immediately, whose eyebrows shot up on sight of Percy.
"You're awake early." Yun said. Percy groaned. "The blade punctured a lung, and did minor bone damage. A lot of internal bleeding. You're lucky you're not in a coma."
"Am I fine?"
"You're never fine, Perseus, but I believe it'll get better very soon, but you must be warned. There are people after you." Nico walked in the room, and saw Percy's state.
"Have you told him?" Nico asked. Yun shook his head.
"Zeus and the Council put five million on your head, Percy. Open contract." Percy sighed, swinging his feet to the left side of the bed, that's when everyone else came in. Thalia, Luke and Annabeth, rushing in at once, and Percy looked away. His shirt was off, and the shorts he was in weren't covering much. He looked over, and there was a bandage in his side.
"I probably can't just go home, can I?" Percy asked Nico, who shook his head and laughed. Thalia frowned.
"Why can't he just go home?"
"There's a worldwide contract on his head for five million dollars. Zeus and the Council put it there. He'd be grateful if there's only fifty of the world's best assassins coming after him." Nico said, and Percy stood, coughing once, and looking to Yun.
"Thank you, Doctor. I'll pay you back when I see you again." Yun nodded, and reached behind him, giving Percy a shirt.
"Safe travels, Perseus."
He lead the walk out, and everyone else followed. Nico on his side, and Percy knew Nico's hand was on his gun.
They got to the car, and Nico sat in the drivers seat, Percy in the passengers, and everyone else awkwardly crammed in the back. Nico didn't start it, instead turned to Percy.
"What are you going to do now?"
"I'm going to finish what he started."
X
Percy arrived at the Continental, a hotel specifically for people like him, living a life like him, where the only rule was that you could not kill someone on hotel grounds. Percy walked in, shoeless, and to the front desk. He reached in his pocket, and threw a drachma on the desk, handing it to Charon, the man working the desk.
"A room, please." Percy asked, and Charon nodded.
"Would you like a tasting, as well?" Percy thought about it.
"Yes, please."
He walked into the smaller room, where an Asian woman was waiting for him, escorting through long hallways to a suit-tailoring room, with wine. Percy nodded to her, and looked ahead, shaking the hand of the man in front of him.
"Perseus." the man said with a smile. Percy nodded back.
"Dalton. I need a suit."
"For a social occasion? Or formal?"
"Social."
"Jacket?
"Black."
"Pants?"
"Tailored."
"Shirt? Tie?"
"Contrasting. Classical." Percy said, and another man got his measurements.
"Would you like me to send it to your room?"
"Yes, please."
X
Nico and Percy ate in his hotel room, across from one another.
"What's bothering you, Percy?" Nico asked, biting his duck fat.
"Annabeth told me I should attempt at living a normal life, away from… this." he gestured around them. "And I've been thinking about it, and it seems like a good choice." Nico laughed.
"Percy, you're never going to be out of this game. Accept it. Even if you pull this off, Zeus's death won't stop everything. The council will come for you."
"You think I can never get out?" Percy asked. Nico shook his head.
"You're Percy, but there will always be Perseus, the legend, of the best hitman in the world, at such a young age, making a fortune on the blood of his enemies. The man who nobody bested, who destroyed everything in his path to dominance. You have to decide, are you going to be Percy? Or are you going to embrace your legend, embrace your identity, your notoriety, and be Perseus?" Nico asked. Percy looked down.
"Does she still love me?"
"She'll never not love you, Percy."
"Can she wait?" Nico thought.
"A couple weeks, or a month." Percy nodded.
"Will you do it with me? The Christmas ball?" Percy asked, and Nico spit out his food.
"You want me to help you, with that?" Percy nodded once. Nico shook his head.
"I believe that if I die, I'd love to die alongside my family. You are my family, Perseus. I'll accompany you on your journey."
more2come.