Chapter 7: Reappearance:

Disclaimer: the usual characters are Rick Riordan's plot mine. I don't own PJO or HoO

Last time: She closed her eyes and internally prayed. I'm sorry Lady Artemis, I failed the Hunt. Please come and save the rest of them.

A silver flash caught her attention. The manticore laughed and taunted the Goddess. "Come Artemis, watch as I kill your Lieutenant right in front of your eyes. Watch the light leave her eyes. I believe last time we met you lost your first Lieutenant now you will lose another."

Artemis' POV: (A/N: my first change of POV other than Percy and Narrator. Also I might change pairing-if there is one- to perzoe rather than pertemis. I'm still not sure-what do you guys think?)

The council meeting was dragging on. It had been the same thing repeated over and over again. Demigods turning up unnoticed, the strange man who was helping them, the monsters acting strangely and then finally Perseus Jackson and his disappearance. The demigod infuriated me. He had managed to go and stay away from everybody ad remain undetected-even from the hunt. And nothing escapes the hunt. (A/N: I've read a number of fanfics that have Artemis saying "that boy-no Man…" in the throne room etc. and then having like this massive internal struggle before reluctantly admitting she likes him. I just find it overdone and I feel like rolling my eyes at it and being like jheeez another one!?-no offence to anyone who uses this method but it's just my opinion. If it is gonna be pertemis, I'm gonna take my time with it but it's just gonna start as respect between friends-dunno if it's gonna be pertemis anyway enough with the rant-on with the story)

Hades had assured us that Perseus was still alive as his soul was yet uncollected by Thanatos. But I definitely had grudging respect for the son of Poseidon-to remain hidden for this amount of time without death was rare. But then again, he had this uncanny ability to do things no one else had the audacity to do. I looked up to find Athena talking to father about something he clearly didn't like if his facial expressions were anything to go by. Suddenly, Hades appeared in the throne room led by Hermes. I was surprised when Hades and Hestia received their thrones back-that must have been Athena's idea that father didn't like.

I suddenly felt a tingly feeling in the back of my head as I heard Thalia's voice. I'm sorry Lady Artemis, I failed the Hunt. Please come and save the rest of them. I tensed and I felt my eyes widen. I flashed out at once, barely acknowledging what Hades was saying.

I flashed into the clearing where I had left the girls to go to Olympus. I saw monster dust scattered on the floor as a battle raged. I scanned the field and saw a couple hunters passed out, but none dead. Then, my heart stopped as I saw Thalia spread eagle on the floor looking at the manticore about to shove a poison dart into her heart. I was too far to do anything. Thalia and Thorn noticed me. The beast laughed maniacally as he saw me. "Come Artemis, watch as I kill your Lieutenant right in front of your eyes. Watch the light leave her eyes. I believe last time we met you lost your first Lieutenant now you will lose another." I felt a pain in my heart as he brought up Zoe. I watched as he whipped his tail back to deliver the fatal blow and my heart clenched. I desperately cried out "Nooooo…"

Line Break-(god you must hate me-that's twice I cut it off at the same point. But I'm enjoying being a little evil.)

Narrator POV:

An 18 year old boy with dark black hair and pulsing red and green eyes sat cross-legged against a tree, pen in hand as he seemed to be scribbling something down on a piece of paper. A smile was present on his face as he wrote. As the finished writing, a flash of flames erupted a few feet beside him causing him to jump to his feet, the pen elongating into a gleaming bronze sword. The boy relaxed as he noticed the figure in front of him; an 8 year old girl with mousy brown hair looking at him with an amused expression. The boy bowed. "Lady Hestia," he said, "How do you always know when I am done writing my letters to mum?"

The Goddess smiled warmly. "You are my only champion Percy, I'm always watching you. But that's not the only reason I'm here. I have a new demigod for you to rescue. She is in Minnesota. A…interesting demigod to say the least. It seems you have family Percy." Percy's eyes widened as he heard Hestia's words. "Poseidon had another demigod?" Hestia shook her head resulting in a confused look from Percy. Hestia just smirked as Percy's eyes widened once more, this time in realisation. "Triton? I'm an uncle?" Hestia chuckled softly before her expression turned serious. "Percy, the uncles need to be dealt with." Percy's expression turned grim. If Hestia was calling for violence it must have been bad.

Hestia snapped her fingers as Percy's outfit changed. His casual jeans and shirt morphed into dark blue jeans. A black hoodie covered his body. The belt on his waist held 3 slots with knives on either side of the buckle. 3 were celestial bronze and 3 were Stygian iron. A simple watch with one button emerged on his left wrist. Instead of the time, a map could be seen. Hestia looked at Percy. "You know what to do." Percy closed his eyes. A warm feeling filled his body as Hestia flashed him away.

Percy appeared in an abandoned alley. He glanced at his watch. 2 dots popped up on the radar. The moving blue dot was Percy and the flashing red one was who he needed to rescue. He moved briskly following the map until the watch vibrated slightly, informing him that he had reached. He looked up to see an isolated, run down 2 bedroom apartment. The paint was peeling off and the smell of alcohol filled the air. Percy's eyes narrowed as he heard a crash, followed by a high pitched scream. He raced up the steps leading to the front door and propelled himself off the bannister as he leapt into the air, leading with his legs as he kicked the door open.

Percy's POV:

I looked around and my blood boiled. A young girl that looked around 10 was being cornered by two men who were clearly drunk. She was bleeding from a cut in her head; scratches and wounds covered her arms and her left hand was bent the wrong way. I could feel my eyes heating up and I knew they were flashing a dark red colour. The two men turned around and one of them growled "who are you? Mind your own business." I started untying my belt. I wasn't going to use any weapon other than my hands for this. I smiled evilly. "Step away from my niece. We can do this the easy way or the hard way."

The uglier one walked forward, and I couldn't help but smile. The hard way it is. Ugly tried to throw a right hand as I dodged and sent one of my own into his jaw. Then I let loose. Right hook, left hook, jab, uppercut, uppercut, all while dodging his flailing arms. I took a couple of steps back before striking him with a vicious roundhouse kick on the temple causing him to crumple to the ground. I looked round for ugly number 2 only to see him holding on to the young girl about to strike her with a broken beer bottle. I quickly picked up ugly number one and threw him into the other guy causing them to crash into the coffee table, which snapped under their combined weight. I crouched down next to ugly number 2 and lifted him up by his collar and then started pounding his face. "She's a little girl for Gods sakes." The man groaned as I let him go.

I turned to look for the heir of the seas daughter. She was cowering behind a chair as I approached. Before I could say anything, her eyes widened as she tried to say something. She pointed behind me. I turned only to get smashed in the face by a fist. I stumbled back a couple of steps as a little blood seeped out of a cut on my lip. I grinned as I saw both men standing. Ugly number ran towards me with the broken bottle. He went to swing as I caught his hand before I sent an elbow to his nose causing blood to gush from it. I then threw him into ugly number one who gasped in pain as the bottle pierced his abdomen.

Both men were on the floor. I slid on my knees towards number 2 and knocked him out with a forearm to the face before I picked up number 1. I removed the bottle from his abdomen. He grunted in pain. I leant in to his ear and whispered "no no no no. You don't get to die like that." I took the bottle and slashed his face and his arms as he screamed for mercy. "Did you give the little girl mercy? I didn't think so." I took the bottle and stabbed him through his throat as his eyes rolled into the back of his head. He fell down dead.

The other guy was slowly getting up. I grabbed his arm, twisting it until it snapped before propelling him into the wall where he crashed head first. I lifted him up by the throat as I dragged him towards the undamaged dining table before slamming him through it. I then remembered the girl was hurt and that I needed to tend to her injuries. It looked like playtime was over. I lifted him up before twisting his neck until it snapped. He fell to the ground in a heap.

I turned my attention to the small girl that was cowering in the corner. She had silky, raven black hair just like I used to before Hestia's transformation. Her eyes were a deep sea blue. She was definitely a child of the sea. As I approached her, she shrank away in fear and I frowned, maybe I had over done it with the violence. I knelt in front of her and she flinched. I sighed. "Hey, don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you. You're my niece. Uh…you're father's brother. What's your name?" She hesitated. "L…Lucy." I smiled. "That's a beautiful name. Look at me Lucy." She looked up and as our eyes met I felt my eyes heat up, except this heat was more tranquil and warm. She sighed in content as I filled her with hope and calmness and she relaxed a bit.

"Now I'm going to do something to make you feel better. Do you trust me?" She nodded shyly as I took her hand. With my other hand I summoned water from the taps in the house. She pulled her hand away as I assured her it was ok. My hand glowed a warm orange as I used Hestia's healing power with the power of the water. Water and fire worked in tandem as her wounds healed. Her eyes widened. "How did you do that?" I chuckled softly. "Well-you know the gods? The Greek ones? Well, my dad is the God of the seas-Poseidon and my Patron is Lady Hestia. They are real and your dad is a God too."

"My dad is dead. Both my parents are since I was 3." I shook my head. "Your dad is Triton, the sea messenger god." "If he's my dad then why didn't he come save me and take care of me?" I looked at her in sympathy. "Lucy, he wanted to be here, but he wasn't allowed to so he sent me to help you." Her deep sea blue eyes lit up like the reflection of the sun on a crystal blue ocean. "He does care?" I nodded. Her stomach grumbled and her cheeks turned red in embarrassment. "Hmm, hungry are you? What would you like to eat?" She thought for a second before saying "Macaroni and cheese." I closed my eyes and when I opened them a plate of mac and cheese was in front of her. I laughed at her shocked face. "My patron Hestia blessed me with these powers. Go on. Take a bite."

She cautiously took a bite and shouted "YUM!" After she had finished, the plate disappeared. She yawned. "Why don't you sleep for a while and then I will take you to the hunters camp." I explained about the hunters and camp heroes and she agreed to go to the hunters. I laid her down under a tree outside away from the remains of the house. The tree was on the outskirts of a river. I sat on the river bank and started skipping stones.

The river started bubbling. I jumped up ready with riptide drawn. A figure emerged. He was young, had green skin and black hair tied in a ponytail, and he wore armour studded with pearls. He also had 2 tails which changed to 2 feet and his green skin turned a tan colour like mine. Triton cleared his throat. I put riptide away.

We stood there awkwardly, neither of us talking. We weren't exactly best friends. I looked at him with an eyebrow raised. He looked nervous. "Thanks for uh saving Lucy. I know we started off on the wrong foot, it's just…I was jealous and angry. I was immature and forgot it wasn't even your fault. So…? Can we start over?"

He held out his hand for me to shake. After a few seconds I shook his hand with a smile on my face as a relieved look crossed his face. "So, Lucy huh? You're kid? She definitely looks like a child of the sea." Triton nodded. "Yeah, her mother died a few years when she was 3. Her uncles were fine until about 15 months ago when they lost most of their money when their business went bankrupt."

"So, what powers does she have? You don't really have demigod kids." He rubbed his hands together. "Well she will definitely be able to control the water. She will be able to talk to sea creatures and equestrians of course. As I'm a messenger I have to be fast so she might have the speed of a Hermes kid." I whistled appreciatively. I knew exactly how useful those powers were. They'd saved my life a number of times. That and the fact she was fast meant she could be one powerful demigod.

The sound of footsteps caught our attention. Lucy was looking wide-eyed at us; well more at Triton than me. "Are…are you my dad?" Triton aged to look around 30 as he scooped the young girl into his arms. "Yes Lucy I am. I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you." He put her back on the ground before pulling out a necklace with a small conch shell attached to it. He tied it around her neck. "This is for you to use in emergencies only. You will know when it's the right time to use it. All you have to do is pull the conch shell." He then pulled out 2 knives; one was celestial bronze and the other was silver. They had a smooth grip and they were just the right size when he gave them to Lucy. They suddenly changed into bracelets-one on each hand. "Now these are for when you come up against monsters. The hunt will teach you how to use them. When you think of them they will appear. Now I believe you have to get to the hunt. I will transport you there. I believe you are needed."

Before I had a chance to ask what he meant he had hugged Lucy, said goodbye and then waved his hand as they were transported away.

As we arrived into the hunter's campsite, we saw a battle taking place. I immediately picked up Lucy and hid her behind a small bush and told her to stay put while I dealt with the situation. I scoured the battlefield, there were no huge casualties on the hunter's side but I could tell that the monsters were starting to get the upper hand. I put my hood up-I wasn't quite ready to be recognised yet. I was about to run in to fight when something caught my eye; I did a double-take. Thalia was on the ground with Thorn about to let loose a poison dart. I heard someone shout "Nooooo…"

A/N: I was so so so tempted to leave it here but I felt really bad as I already did leave it there twice so I guess third time lucky for you guys.

Narrator's POV:

Thorn was ready to fire. Artemis's scream was music to his ears. He smiled maniacally. He was about to earn his revenge for all those years ago. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Artemis turn her head unable to watch her lieutenant fall. Suddenly Thorn felt excruciating pain as he yelped. He looked back to see what was hurting and his eyes widened. His tail had been sliced off by a bronze knife. He whirled around to see a man covered in a black hoodie twirling a small object in his right hand. His face was covered so and only 2 pulsing red and green orbs were visible. Thorn looked into his assailant's eyes and saw pure anger directed at him. The manticore faltered for a second before growling. The beast was weaponless as his tail was removed. He bent to pick up a sword from a fallen empousai before advancing towards the man.

Both hunters and monsters alike had stopped fighting when they heard Thorne yelp and watched closely as the manticore picked up the sword and slinked forward. Artemis had turned to see the beast's tail detached from the rest of him. She looked round to see a male in a black hoodie, twirling an unidentifiable object in his hands. She watched as the man did nothing as Thorn got closer and closer. Then, when Thorne was meters away from the man, the object in his hand elongated into a bronze blade covered with flames. The flames caused everybody to freeze from shock. Thorne's eyes were wide.

Percy knew he wasn't ready to reveal himself just yet and so he would have to use only the powers Hestia had given him and his skills with a sword; and his knives. He waited until Thorn was close then caused Riptide to emerge covered in fire. He waited until the manticore struck first before parrying the strike. But Percy wasn't in the mood to play. This monster was about to kill Thalia and that wasn't okay with him. Percy parried again before lunging forward with his own strike. He continued slashing at the beast, constantly moving around, jumping, whirling and striking. Finally, Percy found an opening in Thorn's defence. Feigning a strike he went to slash left before manoeuvring right and striking the sword out of Thorn's hands. Before the manticore could utter out a plea for mercy, Percy decapitated him, causing his body to thump to the ground before dissolving into monster dust.

The monsters were now wary of the new threat and charged at him together, abandoning their fight with the hunters. Percy withdrew Riptide back into pen form before quickly putting it away before someone recognised it. Then, he closed his eyes and concentrated. When he opened his eyes, his hands were on fire up to his shoulders. The monsters slowed down but they couldn't stop. Percy launched fireballs into the oncoming army. The army was decreasing. Percy started chucking knives causing monsters to vanquish, the slots on his belt kept refilling as he threw knife after knife.

Thalia stood up groggily. She shook it off as she looked up. Her eyes widened when she saw her saviour fighting all the monsters at once. She pulled back her bow and fired an arrow. The hunters were pulled out of their shock when their lieutenant re-entered the fight. Even Artemis started firing arrows until the army fell.

The hunt then turned their attention, and more importantly their bows towards the male.

Percy cursed under his breath. "Great!"

A/N: that's the end of that chapter. Hope you liked it. Was a nice long chapter. Please tell me what you think. See you next time.