Chapter 1: Origins
~August 18, 1993. New York~
3rd Person POV
A screeching cry pierced the silent air of the hospital in the middle of the night, welcoming the life of a newborn babe that would play an integral role in the world. Though most didn't know of the exact role, The Fates themselves knew that this boy was special. Yes, the Greeks are still around. So are the Romans, but that's just the opposite side of the same coin and a lesson for another day.
The boy was Perseus Jackson and he was born to the mortal woman Sally Jackson. After 16 hours of grueling labor, the new mother held her bundle of joy in her arms. He had a tuft of raven black hair atop his head and as he eagerly opened his eyes, Sally could see the swirling sea-green of the oceans, but with a ring of stormy gray that belonged only to the fiercest of thunderclouds around the outside of the iris.
He inherited both from his fathers; yes, fathers. Plural. That was where things got complicated because while in the United States where the Greek gods dominated over the flame of Western Civilization people would believe his "father" to be Poseidon, God of the Seas, the Earthshaker, and Lord of Horses. They would be half correct.
His true father was Susano'o, Shinto God of the Seas and Storms. Susano'o was a foreboding man appearing to be 6 feet 6 inches tall and muscled enough to beat anyone in anything though not overly so. His hair was blacker than the night sky like his son's and his eyes displayed unfathomable power to those who dared to hold his gaze. He was a strict god that commanded respect with his posture alone, be it from men, women, or children and cared little for mortals. Yet, he understood the necessity for them and respected the potential that few of them held. That was how he met Sally.
Perseus' mother, Sally was an undeniable beauty; a near goddess among women. She had sparkling sapphire eyes that held kindness and wavy deep brown hair. Those same eyes however, would flip on a dime for those she deemed unworthy and demanded a respect few dared to deny her. That was the reason she had attracted the Shinto god. Sally had met Susano'o on the West Coast in her early 20s while she lived in California.
The two had arrived at the beach, Sally with friends and Susano'o alone, curious about how the Greek Pantheon was operating. Sally had approached him after seeing he was alone and with a kind smile, asked if he would like to join them, thinking he wasn't on a scouting mission of sorts. He glanced at her impassively and returned his gaze to the oceans without a word. Sally's mood did a 180 and told him in an icy tone that her kindness was always offered firsthand, but she would not be dismissed without so much as a "No thank you."
Susano'o was a little caught off guard by the power she held in her voice, though the only inclination he showed was a ghost of a smile twitching the corners of his mouth that didn't go unnoticed by the mortal. "You are different," was all he said as he bowed his head minutely in apology and walked away. Over the next year, Susano'o took time to observe the woman and found himself more intrigued with her. Intrigue turned to meeting with her; meeting with her turned to infatuation, and infatuation turned to love.
Over the nearly three years since his interactions with her, she realized he was not a normal Japanese-America (at least what she had assumed) man. The ocean and weather seemed to respond to him and his moods and in time he told her who he was. Sally had blinked a few times, but thought nothing more of it and they soon conceived a child together.
However, in the latter years of wooing, Poseidon began to take notice of a presence in his domain that he had not felt since the days of old, so he spied on them. The moment he saw Sally, the Greek god, like many in his Pantheon, lusted after her. Mere days after Perseus was conceived (without Susano'o's nor Sally's nor Poseidon's knowledge) Poseidon employed his sister Hera to alter Sally's memories of Susano'o and replace them Susano'o with himself while Poseidon chased the Shinto god out of the Greek's territory by threatening both inter-Pantheonic war and Sally's life. The latter being a bluff.
Creating the false memories worked easy enough given the similarity in domains and Poseidon took Sally as Susano'o did. In a matter only The Fates themselves would deem merely theoretical, the two divine beings' essences merged within the growing fetus in her womb and both Poseidon and Sally were none the wiser. Sally moved across the country to Manhattan, Perseus was born - Susano'o entirely forgotten -, and Poseidon left under the guise of Ancient Law (though he had gotten what he wanted and he abandoned them).
Perseus grew up as a quiet and passive boy that everyone had mistook for shyness when in reality, he had inherited his true father's personality as well as his abilities. While he still had ADHD and Dyslexia like all Greek demigods did, he only spoke when spoken to and observed everything around him in an uncaring gaze. He only seemed to smile in three scenarios: when a thunderstorm brewed over their dingy apartment in Manhattan, when he was at the ocean, and when he was with his mother.
He loved his mother fiercely, confiding everything in her as both his mother and his best friend. It was Perseus and his mother against the world. He had no friends his age as no one cared to approach the boy with a critical, uninterested gaze. Parents and kids murmured and hurried past when they saw him, but Perseus couldn't have cared less.
Happiness quickly turned to misery for the boy and his mother however, when she married a mortal man named Gabe Ugliano. Poseidon had warned her that Perseus' demigod scent would attract all sorts of Greek monsters, but neither of them knew with his Shinto lineage that it would amplify it. Gabe was a horrible monster of man in Perseus' eyes that smelt so mortal, he masked both scents. He stole whatever money the diner waitress and candy store clerk made to settle his gambling debts and drinking problem, though not in that order. He berated the boy and his mother regularly and even worse so in his drunken stupor.
Until Perseus turned five, Sally endured Gabe yelling at the two of them for her son. Then came the day Perseus had enough. Perseus rose to his feet during one of Gabe's belligerent rants at his mother and Perseus screamed, "STOP!" at him. As he did, the temperature seemed to drop, enhancing the chilling presence of something merciless to the air. The ground seemed to shake and thunder was heard rumbling in the distance.
Gabe fell back on his ass from the vibe he was receiving from the five-year-old and his eyes widened with fear. Sally realized that her son was drawing on his "father's" abilities and quickly scooped Perseus up before anything further would happen. From that day until a year and a half later, Gabe avoided Perseus like the plague and never yelled at Sally again; at least, not when Perseus was near. Things got better for that year and a half, but The Fates demanded that it all come crashing down.
Months after Perseus turned six, Gabe came stumbling home completely wasted again and made too much noise, waking up Sally. Sally went to see what was happening and in his drunken rage, Gabe began yelling and screaming at the secret love of Susano'o. Perseus had woken up part of the way through the shouting and walked down stairs sleepily to see his "step-father" strike his mother. A slap, a punch, another punch, and Perseus exploded.
With the strength that no six-year-old should possess, Perseus charged the man and tipped him over. The apartment building was shaking violently and thunder rumbled directly overhead. Gabe was half-way into unconsciousness when Perseus hit his breaking point. "Percy!" Sally yelled only for lightning to strike the building as the boy brought down another hammer fist and the world turned to white.
Percy passed out for several minutes and when he came to he looked at the former bloody, and now charred corpse of Gabe Ugliano. He felt nothing for the man; no more rage, not even satisfaction with his death, as his signature uncaring gaze landed on the body. He got to his feet and turned around in panic, remembering his mother and his heart shattered. A few feet away from him, was the similarly charred corpse of his mother. His poor sweet mother.
Perseus shakily stood up and shuffled over to her as he began to sob. He collapsed to his knees and wept for what he had done. He pulled his hands from his face and stared at them as they shook in terror, sorrow, and regret. "I'm a monster," he whispered. Then he ran as fast as his legs would carry him as the rain poured down in sheets throughout the city. His legs carried him to Central Park where he disappeared in the trees and finally collapsed at the base of one; he cried his heart out against it as he drifted into sleep.
Artemis POV
The Hunt and I were in Central Park for the evening when a storm formed out of nowhere. 'Great. What's father angry about this time?' I thought and rolled my eyes. Then the wolves had picked up the scent of a monster nearby. The Hunt was sleeping, so I quickly dashed through the foliage until I came to a clearing where a lone hellhound was stalking toward the limp form of a boy that couldn't have been more than six years old. I notched and fired two arrows in rapid succession, piercing the beast's hide and head, sending it back to Tartarus.
I cautiously approached the boy and turned him on his back to see the rising and falling of his chest. 'What is a boy of his age doing out here alone at this hour?' I mused to myself before I noticed the puffy eyes and tear streaks from crying. I bent down and placed a hand on his forehead to peer into his memories and gasped at what I saw.
'He killed that vile man, but his mother as well. More importantly, is this another child of my father?' I thought and I nearly left the boy there when he whimpered and twitched in his sleep. I tried to force myself to leave, but a minute stirring in my chest prevailed. I gathered the boy and flashed to my tent to place him in the bed and let him sleep while I tried to wrap my brain around it.
~Dream Sequence~
3rd Person POV
Percy awoke in the eye of a giant storm and a brief sense of calm washed over him before the grief settled in once again for killing his own mother. "Finally. I found you," a voice boomed from the storm and into the eye walked a tall man that seemed familiar to Percy, though he was sure he had never met him.
"Who are you?" Percy asked curiously. "I am your first father; your true father," the man said and Percy felt anger crawl into his heart rather than distrust. "Where were you?!" Percy roared and received a swift backhand for his outburst. "I am your father and you will show me respect," the man's voice said as hard as steel. Percy clutched his stinging cheek and glared at the man for a second before cowering under the man's own glare.
"What's your name, boy?" he asked and Percy held his glare this time. "Perseus," he said and the man growled. "First he takes my love, then he names you after a Greek hero. Bastard," he spat and Percy was confused but defended his mother. "My mother named me," he growled back before the sorrow settled in again. The man's eyes softened at the mention of the boy's mother, but only a fraction.
"I have a lot to teach you. First, my name is Susano'o, Shinto God of the Seas and Storms, and I am your father. The Gods still exist in the world boy. Second, I was your mother's lover before the Greek bastard Poseidon threatened her life and replaced me in her memories with himself. Your mother was already pregnant with you as my son when he took her. It seems the two essences blended, making you biologically a son of both of us," Susano'o said, spitting at the mention of Poseidon.
"But make no mistake, boy. You are MY son," he finished and Percy sat there and thought about all he had just learned. "That's why the lightning struck," Percy said more of a statement than a question and Susano'o nodded. "Do not blame yourself, you are but a mere infant compared to me and this would never have happened if Poseidon hadn't driven me away. I would have been able to move you and Sally to Japan and trained you to control your powers," Susano'o said.
A new anger latched onto Percy's heart as he digested the words. 'Poseidon. This is all his fault,' echoed in his head. Percy looked up at his apparent father and asked, "What now?" Susano'o stopped pacing and looked at the boy. He hated that he resembled the Greek so much, but could see the hints of Sally's features. He didn't hate the boy; pitied him a little maybe, but his hatred was for Poseidon.
"You are with Artemis, Greek Goddess of the Moon, the Hunt, and Maidenhood. I'm surprised she didn't leave you to die or kill her yourself. When you wake up, pray you make it out alive and I will visit you in your dreams to train you," Susano'o said. "Train me? For what?" Percy asked, yet again confused. "You are a demigod, boy. The world is dangerous for your kind. You must be strong so survive and no son of mine will be called weak," Susano'o s said, but before Percy could ask anymore questions the dream faded out.
~Dream Sequence End~
Percy POV
I woke up from my dream in a silver tent and extreme confusion. The memories of the last night and the dream pounded at my psyche and I silently wept once more. While I was crying, I didn't notice three girls that entered the tent.
"Ahem," one of them coughed and my head whipped up and I wiped my eyes hurriedly. In front of me were the three girls: one of them was a little stalkier with curly brown hair like she could kick anyone's butt, the second looked like a princess with her long dark hair that was braided and a tiara on her head, and the third held the air of absolute confidence with her auburn hair and silver eyes.
I scrambled off the bed, causing the first two to draw their bows, but they backed off when I bowed to the third, remembering my father's words. "Lady Artemis," I said with my head down and that at least bought me some time. "Rise. What is your name, child?" she asked me and I picked my head up. "Perseus," I answered, still trying to figure out how I was going to get out of there alive.
"I saw your memories. I know what happened. What I want to know is how you did those things?" she quickly said and I almost cried and panicked all at once. 'Reveal yourself as a Son of Poseidon,' Susano'o said in my head and I mentally growled. 'They may not kill you if you reveal yourself as solely a Greek,' he said and vanished from my mind.
"I am a son of Poseidon," I told her and the other two gasped and drew their bows again.
Artemis POV
'A son of my uncle then? I can tell he isn't lying, but that isn't the full truth either. I'll play along for now,' I thought as I circled him to observe. "You aren't supposed to be alive. They had an oath," I said and was surprised by the hatred in his response. "I don't know any oath, but I didn't ask to be his son," he nearly spat at me.
"You'd do well to watch that tone when talking to a goddess," I said with narrowed eyes and he apologized quickly. "Are you going to kill me?" he asked, surprising me again. "Do you want me to kill you?" I asked and his eyes widened comically. "No," he managed to get out and I smirked, making him uneasy again.
"There is a camp for demigods in Long Island. You will likely head there to train. I can send for a satyr to come gather you," I told him and he frowned.
Percy POV
'No son of mine will be called weak,' echoed in my head as I made the dumbest move of my six years of life. "Could I stay with you and train instead?" I asked and the three deadpan stared at me before stares turned to glares. "I don't accept your kind in my Hunt, boy," Artemis growled at me, but I didn't flinch much to her surprise. "I want to get stronger and you are out there fighting the monsters that will hunt me. I want to be able to hunt the hunters, not sit at some camp," I almost growled back to her.
The two behind her were fuming while Artemis looked mildly impressed with me.
Artemis POV
'This boy is interesting. I had expected him to be broken after killing his own mother, but here he is challenging me. No… not challenging, but demanding respect without begging for it, nor undermining my authority,' I mused and thought on it.
"Very well, boy. We will pack up camp and you will stay here. You have three days to find us. If you do, I will allow you to travel with us and train," I told him and the determination in his eyes grew with a glint of hope as well. Admittedly, I warmed my heart to see that in his eyes, but only a little.
"B-But, Milady!" Zoe began to argue, but I cut her off. "This is a test for him and an order for you and the hunters, Zoe. I expect you to carry it out, as Lieutenant," I told her with finality and she begrudgingly dropped it.
3rd Person POV
Percy had wandered for two of the three days, seemingly lost and rapidly losing hope as well. He was fortunate enough to find their trail from the observations he made as they packed up camp, but then it had split off in several different directions and sometimes vanished completely. Percy's only saving grace was the soft spoken and highly observant nature he had as he took in his surroundings.
Luckily, he always seemed to find his way to some body of water so he could replenish his strength and keep moving. Whether The Fates had taken pity on him or Artemis had, he didn't know; but he was glad he also had encountered no monsters in those days.
Zoe POV
"Milady, a word?" I asked as I entered her tent at the end of the second day of the boy's test. She gestured to a seat and I took it. "Why are you even considering this boy to train with us? He's a male!" I argued and she looked away slightly wistfully.
"Truthfully Zoe, I am not entirely sure. He is a son of Poseidon; I can tell that much, but he didn't share the whole truth. Part of it is curiosity, but part of it…" she trailed off before she looked back to me. "When I found him, he was going to be eaten by a hellhound. I saved him and noticed he had cried himself to sleep. I took pity on him and saved him before I looked into his memories," she said and I was leaning forward, slightly frowning at Milady taking pity on a man.
"What did you see?" I asked. "He was a quiet child; didn't speak unless spoken too and people mistook it as shyness. What I saw was a boy who observed everything that was going on around him, like a hunter or a calculated warrior. All of the people's behaviors and how they moved, but he also has this air about him," she said and I furrowed my brow in confusion.
"In the tent two days ago, he knew who I was and showed respect, but still seemed to demand it be returned to him without begging me or undermining my authority. I think he has potential," she told me, but I could tell there was more.
"He adored his mother like she was a goddess and even set an abusive step-father straight. But the night I found him, his step-father came home drunk and started shouting at his mother and then he hit her three times before the boy's abilities developed in his rage," she told me and I growled at the part about abuse.
"Lightning struck the apartment from his uncontrolled power and killed the man and his own mother instantly. After I saw that… I… I felt the need to keep him safe," Artemis finished in a whisper. My emotions went from surprise at the powers to gratuitous at the death of the man to sadness and pity for the boy before back to surprise at Artemis' desire to protect him.
"But Milady, he is a male. He will end up just like all of the others," I argued and nearly pleaded for her to let this go, but she was stubborn. "But we can teach him to be better than them. With the entire Hunt as his big sisters to teach him how to respect women. He is already aware of the vileness of men," Artemis argued and I had to fold.
"That's why you made this so easy for him, isn't it?" I asked and she looked away quickly before muttering something about "just a child" under her breath. I took a deep breath. "Fine. I will… try to give him a chance IF he finds us," I said and Artemis smiled gratefully.
The next day just before the deadline, Percy stumbled into the hunters camp only to be held at arrow point by the 14 huntresses present; all but Zoe and Artemis. He was riddled with scrapes and cuts and had bags under his eyes and twigs in his hair. After a dip in the nearby pond and a change of clothes from Artemis, Percy was sound asleep in her tent again.
Artemis POV
"Girls!" I yelled over the protests of Perseus traveling and training with us and they quieted. "He is only a child," I started before a hunter cut in. "A male child!" she yelled to get roars of approval from the rest of them. "Yes, but we can teach him to be different from the rest of the vile creatures. We can raise him to be better. How to respect women," I argued back and got a lot of contemplative looks.
"It will not happen overnight, so I don't expect you to treat him like one of us right away. However, he is NOT to be harmed. Do I make myself clear?" I asked and got some quiet yes's. "Do. I make. Myself. Clear?" I asked again through clenched teeth and got furious head nods. "Good. Off to bed," I dismissed them only for Zoe and Phoebe to stick behind.
"'Raise him'? Don't think that went unnoticed, Milady," Phoebe said to me and I glared in response. Zoe just shook her head.
I retired for the evening and returned to my tent to see the six year old recruit sprawled on the bed snoring silently with drool hanging on the corner of his mouth. A small smile came across my face as I materialized a separate cot and drifted off into sleep.
3rd Person POV
Training came for Percy that next morning at first light and again that night in his dreams. At first light, he and Artemis set out to begin training with a bow. Most of the first two hours was simply getting Pery to stand in the correct stance, relax, and then repeat without firing a single arrow. Percy's muscles ached after just the two hours and then he spent the next three firing at the target. He didn't hit any bullseye, but he was hitting the target which was a miracle for a son of Poseidon.
They took breaks to eat and Percy splashed in the pond to regain some strength before they began training him through the forest; how to run in it and avoid tree roots and bushes. Percy wasn't particularly graceful - his steps were heavy and his breathing wasn't the quietest - but he was observant and hardly tripped over anything. His stamina was better for kids his age as well, but Artemis chalked that up to his lineage.
He finished the later afternoon with more bow training as Artemis wouldn't let him use the knives for now. After dinner and washing up, he collapsed on the bed and was asleep instantly, only to be visited by his father.
~Dream Sequence~
Percy POV
I woke up in the eye of the storm again and waited for Susano'o to show up. Once he did, I bowed and said, "Lord Susano'o." He frowned at me. "That is how the Greeks demand to be addressed. In Japan it is 'Susano'o-sama," he told me and I corrected my mistake. "I see you are traveling with the Hunters of Artemis. Good. You will have people to train against after I teach you in the dream realm," he said and I looked confused.
"I will teach you here where you will gain the knowledge, but you must put it into practice in the physical realm to develop," he said and I nodded. "Now, sit," Susano'o commanded and I did, mirroring his lotus position, as I would learn it was called later. "The Shinto Pantheon is made of various deities, but I will teach you the main ones," he began and dove into the history lesson.
I didn't know how long the history lesson lasted in the physical realm, but once it was over I looked at him expectedly. "Before I begin teaching you martial arts and weaponry, you must learn how to situate your aura," he said and I deadpanned.
"Close your eyes and look deep inside of yourself. There are three essences there; three auras. Your mortal aura, your Shinto aura, and your Greek aura; search for them," he told me and after several long minutes my eyes snapped open. "Focus, boy," he snapped and I closed my eyes again.
"What do they feel like?" he asked me and I frowned. "Like… separated yet somehow fighting one another," I replied and I felt him nod. "This is your first step. You must control them; blend them together like a mighty typhoon, yet keep them calm like the eye of the storm. Once you master this, you will be able to flare your aura, mask it, and sense other's aura around you," he told me and I nodded.
"You will meditate like this for three hours every morning before you train with Artemis and three hours before bed where I will then come to check your progress. I cannot come every night, so don't slack off," he said and the dream faded with new determination burning in my heart.
~Dream Sequence End~
3rd Person POV
That was how Percy's training went for his entire first two years with the Hunt. He would wake up and meditate for three hours before training with the bow and running through the forest with Artemis and then return to meditating.
Percy made fast progress with his endurance and moving through the forest due to his meditation. Artemis was exceedingly impressed and they moved swiftly from the forest floor to actually tracking animals that were nearby to leaping from tree to tree. At the age of eight, Percy moved as well as the hunters did, minus Zoe, Phoebe, and Artemis.
The Hunt was hellbent on getting him to quit when he first came around, so Percy kept his distance from them for the most part. Some of the younger ones that were near his age were kind enough to him when the older hunters weren't nearby, but he didn't let it bother him. He was there to get stronger; so he could learn control. That's exactly what happened.
His meditative training had allowed him to connect with his abilities more, allowing him to sense bodies of water if they were fairly close by (around a third of a mile) and people's auras to the same range. He could crudely feel the wind currents blowing around him and the potential energy of the storm overhead. Accessing the abilities however, was a different story.
As his lineage was composed of two sea deities, his water powers came the easiest. He could manipulate it to whatever shape he wanted as big as a stag (though something that big drained him quickly) and it worked wonders on his wounds and fatigue. His wind powers came a little less easily as his water ones did, but wind flowed similarly enough to water for him to do it. His lightning powers were the hardest and he could only manage electricity in his hands to shock someone fairly powerfully, but not enough to incapacitate. His earthquake powers were similar to his lightning ones.
Susano'o had also taught him martial arts which he began sparring with Artemis to train. He got his ass handed to him several times over, but just grit his teeth and trained more and more. While his newly increased physical strength from training still wasn't enough, his technique was near flawless at the end of those first two years. He had also mastered the bow for someone of his age and physical ability and that was without Artemis' blessing and Artemis had just barely given him his knives. Overall he was progressing far faster than she could have hoped, while she was growing more and more attached than she thought possible. She wasn't the only one either.
Phoebe and Percy bonded the fastest as Percy reminded Phoebe of her younger brother from the old days. They would constantly get into trouble together from pulling pranks on the rest of the Hunt who had come around and saw him as a younger brother after the two years. But Phoebe and Percy had something special and Percy was always smiling when he was around her.
Zoe was the other older sister that Percy absolutely adored; his best friend. She was incredibly weary of him at first, but after watching him train relentlessly (and how happy Artemis was with him) she came to respect him. Respect turned to love for her new little brother and they sparred and trained regularly together along with Phoebe. He had even nicknamed the two of them Zo and Pheebs.
But Artemis was his motherly figure. She had inklings of the motherly affection for the boy when she met him, but it came crashing to the surface over the two years she trained him. The first time he got a bullseye, his eyes sparkled with so much happiness that even Artemis picked him up in her 30 year old form and spun him around. Everytime he had the nightmare of killing his birth mother and woke up quietly sobbing, "I'm a monster," repeatedly, she was there to hold him as he cried himself to sleep and cuddled him into bed. He had her wrapped around his finger.
Percy POV
I was called into Artemis' tent to talk and I was freaking out. I had been with the Hunt for two years and I mastered the bow, at least for my physical capabilities as an eight-year-old. 'Maybe she's going to take me on missions now? No, she just gave me the knives a few weeks ago,' I thought as I knocked on her tent and heard her tell me to enter.
"Perseus," Artemis started. "You've been with us for two years now and you're making great progress… I was wondering… I've grown... fond of you and…" she tried to get it out, but couldn't. "What she's trying to ask, is if you'd let her adopt you," Zoe finished her thought for her and I gaped and stared at the three of them. Zoe and Phoebe were smiling proudly while Artemis was smiling sheepishly.
I looked down at my feet and whispered, "A-Are you sure you want me as a son?" Artemis was quick to wrap me into a hug and I felt the tears prick my eyes. "Of course. I couldn't have asked for a better one," Artemis whispered back but I took a step back out of her arms and she frowned.
"There's something I need to tell you three," I started and they gave me their attention but looked at me skeptically. "I-I haven't been e-entirely honest with you," I said and they all grew angry very quickly. "What haven't you told us?" Phoebe growled and I shuffled my feet nervously.
"Poseidon isn't my father," I said deathly quiet and they just stared at me confused. "But your water abilities," Zoe said. "He's not… the only one…" I said and they looked even more confused. I took a deep breath, "My true father is Susano'o, Shinto God of the Seas and Storms," I said and they all paled and went wide-eyed. "H-How?" Artemis asked and I took a shaky breath. I launched into the story of how my existence came to be and that I am both a Shinto and Greek demigod.
As I wrapped it up, all three of them had a look of disgust on their face toward Poseidon, but didn't know what to think of me. I looked back at the ground, unable to meet their eyes as they processed the information bomb I had dropped. "I-I understand if you don't want a monster like me in the Hunt anymore," I said quietly and turned to leave, but was quickly wrapped in a four-way watery deathlock
3rd Person POV
After that meeting, Percy was adopted by Artemis, much to the Hunt's approval and saw an increase in his stealth, hunting, and archery abilities. As well as his eyes added silver flecks to the sea-green.
For the next six years, Susano'o trained his son in tandem with the Hunt in his abilities through his dreams whenever he could. His aura sensing had spiked after the six years and Artemis' adoption and he could sense mortals, demigods, monsters, and gods up to a mile and a half in radius, as well as mask his own aura to that of a demigod of a minor god. His sense of water increased even more and he could sense it in everything around him; the air, the trees, the animals, and people. He could close his eyes and navigate himself perfectly through the disturbances in the ambient water vapor.
His other abilities began to bear the fruits of their training as well. For his water abilities other than sensory, he could manipulate mass volumes of it to any shape and formation he desired (an accurate measurement was never taken though he knew it was 250 gallons) and he could alter the temperature and pressure, making ice, steam, and vapor, yet.
His coolest and most useful ability with the water however, was vapor traveling. He could disassemble his body into molecules of water vapor to travel silently over great distances (a few miles) and to dodge attacks, and then reassemble his body back to normal.
His wind powers saw a similar increase in power, being able to manipulate them to exponentially increase his speed or redirect projectiles. He could even manipulate them underneath him to walk on the air as he did with water. His lightning abilities finally took hold and he was able to summon three massive strikes before he was exhausted as well as coating his weapons in electricity (that was particularly useful with his hand to hand combat). He also formulated his fastest method of travel, but could only use it once as it sapped two-thirds of his strength; Lightning travel.
His earthshaker abilities and thunder itself were his weakest powers, but could still cause devastation when used in the right scenario. Earthquakes were hard to employ as a hunter so he trained his precision with those the most with not much luck. Thunder-wise, (really just manipulated the air to enhance soundwaves, but thunder sounds cooler) he could create loud thunderclaps with his hands to deafen enemies. "Thundersnaps" as they were named by Phoebe were a fun enjoyable prank (Thunder powers channeled into snapping his fingers).
Percy's most devastating ability was his hurricane. At max power, he easily summoned a Category 5 and pushed a Category 6. The earth rumbled beneath him when he did so and the winds whipped viciously as lightning danced across the sky. It was truly terrifying.
Back when he turned 10 and Susano'o deemed his hand to hand combat sufficient to continue training it on his own, Percy was gifted his first weapons. Kurouzu or 'Maelstrom' was an elegant katana made from Othyratic Silver, Divine Irogane, and mortal steel so that he could fight against the monsters of both Pantheons and any unlucky mortals as well. Artemis also gifted him with a pair of personalized hunting knives rather than the standard Hunt's silver to train with as well.
From age 10 to the age of 14, Susano'o made sure he was taught thoroughly in his katana, while Artemis handled the training by just sparring with him, along with training him in hunting knives and a bow. He could stand toe-to-toe with any of the hunters in hand-to-hand, knives, and archery, but got the most enjoyment from challenging his sisters Zoe and Phoebe and his mother Artemis whom he still couldn't beat.
Kurouzu was kept in a scabbard on his back with the hilt peaking over his right shoulder. The scabbard itself was magnificent and was adorned with an elegant dragon wrapped around it, much like the hilt of Kurouzu. Susano'o also gifted him a handful of kunai, made of Stygian Iron and Divine Irogane at the end of his would-be first eight years of training (until he was 14) with his father, though Susano'o lectured him to learn as much as he could and increase his abilities even further with the Hunt.
Percy's existence had been kept entirely underwraps since he joined the Hunt. Only the Hunt knew he existed as the adopted Son of Artemis. Zoe, Phoebe, and Artemis were the only ones that knew of his Shinto descent. And Poseidon had assumed he died long ago with his mother. But at 14 and a mission to track the manticore, all of that was going to change rapidly.
AN: Chapter 1 and I really like this idea. I'll have to do some research on how to blend Shinto aspects in more, but so far so good. Divine Irogane is totally made up.