I know, I know; I'm absolutely terrible...But I have a good excuse! My laptop decided to practically quit on me in october- some days it connected to the internet, some days it didn't. And even when connected to the internet, it was incredibly slow and annoying. Then in November it gave up and stopped connecting to the internet. And since I keep all my stories online, I wasn't able to get to any of them. All the drafts I have on my computer are old and outdated and missing a lot of things. The only way I was able to upload 'White Christmas' and 'The Mysterious Painter' was because they were short stories I had as drafts. So I wrote them on microsoft word, then put them on a flash drive, and quickly used my mom's computer to upload them(which is usually unavailable). Plus, life has been absolutely crazy lately with jobs, family visiting, holidays, etc.
READ THIS: So, I spent that last little bit going through this story. I fixed chapters 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 11, and 12. Most were just small plot holes that annoyed me. There were two major ones(well, depends on your perspective). One, I added a scene onto the end of Kiani's flashback in chapter 11. I started with a plan and got distracted by flowing ideas, forgetting the end goal. So, if you want to read it, it's there! The second, will be brought up in the next chapter when she comes up. But here is the next chapter; I hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: Nope, Percy Jackson is still not mine…
Song I'm listening to right now: 'Hook and Emma's theme(piano cover)' from Once Upon A Time(I absolutely love the soundtrack to this show- especially all the couples unique songs…)
Chapter 13
Narrator's(my) P.O.V.
~After the Olympus Council meeting with Poseidon's backstory~~~
-Corina arrived at camp
-looked back at the loss of her family that led her to Chaos
-She left to the meeting
Corina sighed as she returned back from the council meeting. Walking towards the pavilion for dinner, Corina was suddenly stopped by someone.
"Hi! You're Corina right?" The girl questioned, "I'm Annabeth Chase, Athena Camp Counselor." Corina froze at that; Percy had told her his story enough times that she knew exactly who this was. But, not wanting to give anything away, she immediately relaxed and smiled, shaking Annabeth's outstretched hand.
"Yes. It's nice to finally meet you." At her confused look, Corina smiled, "We have many demi-gods in our army that knew you or knew of you."
"Oh." She stated, surprised.
"I'm actually glad you stopped me. I need you to tell the other Camp Counselors that they are to join the Daily Olympian Council meetings." Corina remembered. Annabeth was surprised, but nodded.
"Ok. Also, Chiron and I wanted to make you feel more comfortable around camp, so we were wondering if you would like a partner of sorts." At Corina's confused look, Annabeth explained, "You know, someone who you can go to for information about camp or to show you around." Corina paused for a few moments, thinking over the request.
"Sure; it'd be nice to see and learn more about camp. I never really had the opportunity to come here as a demi-god." Corina admitted.
"I believe the person we chose is already at the pavilion for dinner." With that, the two headed over there to find him. The pavilion was loud and crowded as people grabbed their food, called out the drink the drink they wanted, and talked back and forth about some situation or other. Annabeth stopped at a table near the Chaos table.
"Hey Andrew!" At that, a boy with shaggy blond hair looked over. Seeing up two, he smiled.
"Hey Annabeth." He greeted, standing up from his seat and facing us.
"This is Corina, one of the Guardians of Chaos' army." She introduced, gesturing to me. He turned and smiled. His blue eyes were were a mixture of shades of blues, ranging from dark to light. White and black flecks swirled in them as well. I felt a slight blush rise, unbidden, to my cheeks.
"Hello Corina; Chiron had said that you may need a guide, or well partner, here from camp. So you accepted?" He wondered.
"Uh, yes I did." I quickly stated, getting rid of the blush and hoping no one noticed.
"Andrew here is the Janus Camp Counselor." Annabeth added, which Andrew smiled at, "It's usually either him or one of the counselors from the Hermes Cabin that welcome anyone new to camp- as Hermes is the god of travellers and Janus is the god of beginnings and transitions. But I figured you would want someone more...serious than one of the Stolls." She admitted which Andrew laughed at. The three looked over to see both Stolls currently trying(and failing) to balance spoons on their noses, as they tilted side to side.
"I can guess why." Corina stated, chuckling. Her eyebrows crinkled in confusion here though, "I thought Janus was Roman god." She wondered.
"Oh, he is. But he often likes to get involved in Greek Business, helping on many quests. A few centuries back, we spoke with the Romans and decided to put Janus campers here instead of at Camp Jupiter." Annabeth explained, "He's often in between both camps, even though he only has a Roman form."
"Oh." Corina stated, nodding.
"We even have some Greek gods with no Roman form staying over at Camp Jupiter is the opposite position as Janus." Andrew added.
"I can definitely see that things have changed between Romans and Greeks." Corina remarked. Andrew chuckled, making Corina blush.
"Yeah; it used to be nothing but blood and war between them. But since the Second Giant War; they've all learned to come together." Andrew smiled here, a look of pride, wisdom, and love shining in his eyes. Shaking his head, as if to get rid of old memories.
"Well, I better head to my table- it seems like they need me." Annabeth stated. With a quick glance, the Athenian Campers seemed to be in a heated debate between one another.
"So, are you one of the immortal camp Counselors?" Corina wondered, turning back to Andrew.
"No; only the heroes from the Second Giant and Titan Wars are." He answered. Corina snapped out of her daze as she heard her name being yelled. Looking over, she saw one of the Chaos soldiers waving.
"I'm guessing your soldier need you over there." I looked back over to him to see a tightening in his expression, and a shine of hesitation. But that quickly disappeared. He smiled at her, and to her annoyance she felt another blush rise to her cheeks, but she quickly pushed it down, "Why don't we meet up after dinner- We could sit together at the campfire." Andrew suggested. And the blush is back, Corina thought to herself.
"Yeah; that'd be nice." With that, she went to her table and got her dinner ready, excited for the campfire later.
~~~~~~Back to the present~~~~~~
"Mom?" He whispered.
Zayden couldn't believe what he was seeing. She hadn't changed a bit in the five hundred years since he had last seen her. Her hair was still black, with grey stripes streaming through it. She still had the same smile, the same kind eyes, and the same hospitality as she greeted each camper who were excited at her return.
"My mom's still alive?" Zayden whispered to himself in shock. He had always wondered what happened to her. According to History, she had Paul had one day disappeared, about a year after Percy had...well, you know. Percy never knew what had happened, and had assumed that she and Paul had died. It was a great part of the pain he carried with him over the centuries since. Wondering if he should've tried harder to fight back against the God's decree; to find some ally to help him show the gods that he was not the enemy. Maybe if he had, he would've been found innocent and would've been there for his mom and Paul- maybe he could have saved their lives. So, it was quite the shock for Percy to see his mom, alive and well five hundred years after he thought she had died. If she's here, does that mean Paul's still alive too? Percy suddenly realized.
"Zayden...Are you…" Ayla trailed off, not quite sure what to say. Shaking the memories and questions from his head, Zayden took a step back.
"I-I..." Zayden tried to say that he was fine, but he couldn't. Not while his mom stood across the way from him for the first time in so many years.
"You can head back to the hunters if you want. You don't have to go to this meeting with me." Ayla softly stated. Zayden sucked in a deep breath, held it, and then let it out.
"No. I need to face my past at some point; pushing it off won't get me anywhere." He admitted. Ayla gave him a concerned look, but nodded in understanding.
"Just prepare yourself. You won't just be dealing with your mom, but also with your old friends from camp." She reminded him. Zayden showed no other sign that he heard her, other than nodding and walking towards the Big House. His mother had since disappeared inside and the crowd of campers had dwindled as they all went back to the activities they were doing before they saw Sally had returned. Suddenly, Ayla took a sharp breath as they were about to step onto the porch.
"Zayden, there's something you need to know. Your mom-" She was interrupted though as Corina walked up to them, a camper quickly following after her.
"Zayden!" She exclaimed, hugging him tightly, "Are you going to the meeting as well?"
"Yeah. I thought I'd join since I was here anyway." He stated, only a little offset now.
"This is Andrew; he's the Janus Camp Counselor and my guide here at camp." Corina introduced. Zayden raised an eyebrow; though he was caught up in the reveal of his mother, he wasn't so out of it to not notice corina's blush when she brought up Andrew. Does Corina finally like someone? He wondered to himself. In the five hundred years Percy had known Corina, he had never seen her so much as even show interest towards a guy, and according to the other guardians, she hadn't before she met Percy either. Looking over, Zayden grinned.
"It's nice to meet you, Andrew." He greeted, shaking Andrew's hand. Andrew grinned as well.
"Likewise. You're the leader of Chaos' Army, right?" He tried to recalled.
"Well, Lord Chaos is, but I am his right hand, though Corina did start this whole thing before me." Zayden stated. Something passed through Andrew's gaze at that; a...curiosity of sorts?
"You guys coming?" Someone called from the door. Looking up, Zayden stiffened as he saw Connor Stoll standing in the doorway. Taking a deep breath as everyone gave their confirmation, he followed them up the steps of a building so prevalent in all his childhood memories. Walking inside, he sighed as he saw the familiar ping-pong table that had been in all of their meetings, though it had been enlargened to fit all the cabin counselors, chaos soldiers, chaos leaders, and camp leaders. Sally was talking animatedly with Chiron in a corner of the room. Trying not to look at the campers, Zayden walked over towards the soldiers that were sitting down. He was shocked though as his mom looked over and beamed.
"Ayla!" She exclaimed, rushing over and pulling the Daughter of Poseidon into a hug. Percy quickly hid his hands behind his back, clenching them as he resisted the urge to wrap both of them in a hug: his mother and his new little sister.
"Uh, hi!" She exclaimed, casting an unsure look Percy's way as she hugged Sally back. Pushing his conflicting emotions away, he smiled happily at Ayla, which caused her to relax and hug Sally back. After a minute, Sally pulled back with a stern look on her face.
"You, young lady, forgot to I.M. me yesterday and today!" She scolded, finger raised.
"Uhh...sorry?" She answered, running a hand through her hair.
"You're lucky I'm a good enough mother not to ground you!" Sally joked. Percy froze at that. Mother? Sharing a glance with Ayla, who had an 'I'll explain later' look on her face, he nodded before sitting down. Corina was sitting on his left, and once Ayla had extracted herself away from Sally, she sat down on Zayden's right. The talking slowly dwindled down as everyone finally took their seats. Clearing his throat, Chiron spoke.
"Welcome everyone to our Camp Meeting, the first with Chaos' army joining us." He announced. "Now I know not many of you know each other as the soldiers have only been at camp a few days, so why don't we each introduce ourselves." He took a deep breath before starting, "Now I'm Chiron; I'm the activities director here at camp and have been since Ancient Greece." He looked at Sally to continue. Standing up, she started.
"Hello everyone, I'm Sally Jackson-" There were startled looks at that. One soldier, Alex Duncan, blurted out:
"Sally Jackson? As in, Percy Jackson's mom?" He exclaimed. The campers froze at that, as did Sally.
"Y-yes. Yes, as in Percy Jackson's mom." She answered.
"How do you know about Percy?" Chiron wondered.
"Oh, I was a demi-god at camp when Percy was." He stated, pulling off his hood. Will gasped, standing up.
"A-Alex?" He whispered. Looking up, Alex grinned.
"Hey little brother." He greeted, giving Will a big hug before they both sat back down.
"We've had many a demi-god come into our army in the past five hundred years and tell us about Percy Jackson." Zayden carefully stated, trying hard to ignore all the concerned gazes that were being sent at him from the soldiers and Corina.
"Oh. W-well, after Percy…" She paused here, a flash of pain going through her eyes, "Well, the gods wanted to find a way to make things better, so they hired me and my husband, Paul," She gestured to the corner of the room where, to Zayden's surprise, Paul was standing, "Here at camp. I am the God's advisor; I give them advice and help keep them in touch with demi-gods and mortals in the world. Paul is my assistant and helps me with everything. Though we stay here at camp often and help the campers come to terms with their parentage and the new world around them." She stated. With that, she sat down. Zayden tensed as the next one stood.
"Hello, I'm Annabeth Chase," More looks were sent at Zayden; at this rate they would be staring at him for the rest of the night, "I'm the Camp Counselor for Athena's Cabin." She sat down at that."
"Hi, I'm Jason Grace. I'm the Camp Counselor for Zeus' Cabin." He stated.
"Hey, I'm Leo Valdez; I'm the leader of Hephaestus' Cabin." He greeted, grinning.
"Well, I'm not one for these...dumb things. But, I'm Clarisse La Rue- In charge of the Ares Cabin." She grumbled.
"Hi we're Travis-"
"And Connor-"
"Stoll. And were Hermes Camp Counselors." With that, the two twins sat down.
"I'm Chris Rodriguez and I'm also a Hermes Cabin Counselor." He quickly stated.
"Hey, I'm Piper McLean, and I'm in charge of Aphrodite's cabin." She sweetly stated.
"I'm Miranda Gardener. I'm the Demeter Camp Counselor." She greeted.
"I'm Will Solace. I'm in charge of Apollo Cabin." He stated, still grinning at his older brother.
"I'm Nico Di Angelo. I'm head of Hades Cabin." He muttered before sitting down.
"Lou Ellen; I'm the Hecate Camp Counselor."
"I'm Andrew Ordos, and I'm in charge of Janus' Cabin." He stated, "Yes a Roman god, but he likes to focus more on Greek business." He added at the soldiers confusion.
"I'm Pollux and I'm in charge of Dionysus' Cabin." He introduced.
"I'm Butch. I'm head of Iris' Cabin." He grumbled. It was silent for a few seconds before Butch reached over and slapped the shoulder of the person next to him.
"H-huh?" Clovis started, blinking sleep out of his eyes.
"Introduce yourself." Chiron prompted.
"Oh…*yawn* I'm Clovis- in charge of Hypnos' Cabin." With that, he went back to sleep.
"I'm Hannah Garrett. I'm in charge of Nemesis' Cabin." She stated.
"Hello everyone. I'm Morgan Malon. I'm head of Nike's Cabin." The next girl spoke.
"Name's Derrek Hansen. Tyche's Cabin Counselor." He mumbled.
"Hi. I'm Carla Gunther. I'm the cabin counselor for Hebe." She kindly introduced.
"I'm Timothy Kidder and I'm the head of Morpheus' cabin." He stated.
"Uh, Hi. I'm Ayla...Jackson." There were startled looks from the soldiers at that, "And I'm head of the Poseidon Cabin." Some of the soldiers looked like they were about to speak up, to question her on her last name, but with a stern look from Zayden, they decided not to.
"If you noticed; we also have a cabin for unclaimed demi-gods- which the Hermes Counselors are in charge of. If you are new to camp or unclaimed, you are sent there until your parent claims you. Or, if your parent has yet to gain a cabin, you are sent there until one is built." Paul added. It's about time they stopped pushing them into the Hermes cabin, Zayden thought.. Clearing his throat, Zayden stood.
"Hello. I'm Zayden Blaze. I'm first Guardian in Chaos' Army." He formally stated.
"What brings you away from the Hunters, Zayden?" Chiron wondered.
"I was visiting some...friends here and, when I heard the meeting was happening, I decided to come along as well." Zayden explained before sitting down.
"I'm Corina Nicona and am the Sixth Guardian of Chaos' Army." She politely added. Andrew smiled at her at that.
"Like I said before, I'm Alex Matthews. I was a demi-god son of Apollo five hundred years ago, but was killed during the Battle of the Labyrinth." He explained, "When my soul was travelling down to the underworld, Chaos stopped me and I joined his army." The demi-gods nodded in respect. The next person sighed and stood up, pulling off his hood.
"I'm Ethan Nakamura. I was a Son of Nemesis five hundred years ago. I fought on Kronos' side though and was killed during the Battle on Olympus that ended the Second Titan War." He introduced. The campers that were there at that time tensed, but nodded.
"Before we continue; we have many people in our army who fought for both sides of a war. Chaos firmly believes in a second chance for everyone. So, I give my word that if anyone else reveals themselves and were enemies once- they are no longer enemies now. They are close friends and allies who made bad decisions once because they were angry or frustrated, but have since come to terms." Zayden added, feeling it was necessary. Seeing some campers still leveling glares at Ethan, he continued in a hard tone.
"And for the few of you who are still hung up on the fact that you fought against Ethan in the war, remember that if it wasn't for Ethan; Percy Jackson would've never made his decree to honor the minor gods at camp by giving them cabins for their children. So, all the cabins we have built now, may not have ever happened if it wasn't for Ethan." The campers relaxed at that, feeling properly scolded. Ethan smiled gratefully at Zayden which was quite a change from how he used to act. When Percy had first been inducted in the army, Ethan had avoided him like the plaque.
~~~~~~Start of Flashback~~~~~~
It has been a month since Percy was inducted into Chaos' Army and already it felt just like home. He missed his family and his friends, but he knew that they were happy. He found out during his first week that Chaos had a room in his castle whose walls allowed you to look anywhere in the Universe for a person. It, of course, had limitations. If Fate doesn't allow you to see someone then they won't appear, for fear of seeing them changing the future. But, you could come and look at your family.
It took a while for Percy to pluck up the courage to actually ask for someone, and when he did it was him mom and Paul. He didn't know if he would be able to ever look at camp again. They were still his friends when everything was going on, but there were distrustful glances, hushed conversations when he walked by, strange behaviors, and unsurity whenever Percy ran into people or talked to someone; all because of the accusations that were laid against him by Daniel.
They were never outright cruel or mean to him, but it still hurt that their trust in him could've turned so easily. He knew his friends at camp were happy; he did once look in on Chiron. Chiron, out of all the people at camp, was the only one who never gave him such looks. Chiron never once doubted Percy; he never even allowed the thought of Percy being a traitor to cross his mind. Life was easier for Percy because of the gods who supported him- Artemis, Aphrodite, Poseidon, Hestia, Hermes, and Apollo.
They often visited him at camp, to let him know he still had people who believed in him. He looked at them too- to see what they were doing at the moment. Dad was often in Atlantis mourning over his death. Percy wished he could visit him to tell him he was alright, but all soldiers had to keep their existence a secret from Earth. Earth had never had a reason to need the Army before, as usually the demi-gods took care of everything, so they stayed out of Earth's affairs.
Apollo was usually in his temple writing hiaku's or songs, or flying the sun around the world- though he often visited his sister. Hermes was often playing pranks around Olympus, or watching over his children. Percy was happy to see that all his pranks so far were geared towards Zeus, Ares, Hera, Dionysus, Hades, Hephaestus, Athena, and Demeter for voting for Percy's death. Athena had already confessed that she never believed Percy was guilty of the crime. But all her children demanded of her in their prayers to vote against Percy, and the other gods demanded it of her as well.
Hestia soon got Hermes to stop pranking Athena, by revealing that Athena was telling the truth and that she did what she had to for her children, especially Annabeth. Percy understood that, as Athena had actually visited him at Camp Half-Blood one day, apologizing for what she was going to do and explained why. The others though, mostly ignored the pranks. Some, like Hades and Hephaestus, apologized for their actions to Hermes, while others just glared and walked away from Hermes, either because of their pride or something else.
He was heading their now, planning to check on someone else. Stepping inside, he froze as he saw someone else in the room. The person looked up and seemed to still at Percy's appearance. Percy raised his eyebrows in surprise: It was Ethan. It was quite a shock for Percy when he first found out that Ethan Nakamura had made it into the army, but he was glad the demi-god had gotten a second chance to make the right decisions. He had run into other demi-gods as well; some who he knew well, and others he'd only knew a little.
They had all died in battle, but been brought here by Chaos like Percy had. Percy had, luckily, been able to talk with all of them and settle any differences or guilt between them. But Ethan, Ethan had been avoiding him. Anytime Percy stepped into a room he was in, He would quickly make an excuse to leave the room. Percy had been trying to find him, to talk to him and stop the look of guilt that Ethan had in his eyes whenever he saw Percy. But, after awhile of this game of chase, Percy decided to leave it be and let things happen. Well, this seems as good a time as any, Percy thought to himself.
"Oh! Sorry; I guess I've been taking up too much time in here. I'll leave." He spoke before quickly making his way towards the exit.
"No, it's ok. I was just walking around. We're you looking at camp?" Percy wondered, smiling. Ethan fidgeted, looking uncomfortable.
"Uh...well yes, I was." He admitted.
"I haven't really looked at camp yet. I've mostly been looking at my mom and Paul. And a few of the gods that I was friends with. Dad too. Have you looked at your mother?" Percy wondered. Ethan sighed, his shoulders dropping.
"No, I haven't." He confessed.
"I wish we could talk to them; tell them we're alright. I'm sure your mom would want to hear that. My dad's not really...in a good place right now- I wish I could tell him that I'm alright; that I'm happy." Percy stated, conjuring a chair next to the one Ethan had previously been sitting in, sitting down. Ethan hesitated before sitting down again.
"Yeah...I try to come into here as often as I can." He paused here, seeming to contemplate on whether or not he should say something, "I wanted to thank you...Percy. For using your wish to give my mother a cabin. I mean, after how many times we came to blows, you still listened to my wish and used it."
"Well, you were right. If the gods had paid attention to their children and the minor gods, Kronos wouldn't have had so many followers." Percy concluded, making Ethan smile, "I'm glad so many of your get a second chance now."
"Y-You are?" Ethan stated, shocked at that.
"Of course! Despite the war we went through, and the fact that god's don't really have DNA- we're family. And like I was once told, 'you can never give up on family'." Percy stated, grinning as he remembered that conversation with Hermes so many years ago. Ethan grinned at that, a realization in his gaze.
"Yeah- I guess you can't." He grinned and sat up, looking like a weight had been taken off his shoulders," Thanks for that Percy- I really needed to hear that." Percy nodded, patting Ethan on the shoulder.
"Anytime Ethan." With that, Ethan said goodbye and left to go spend time with his group. Shaking his head, Percy turned back to the screen and took a deep breath. The wall had changed from camp into just a swirling screen of mist.
"Show me Lily." Percy ordered, picturing his first and oldest friend that he hadn't seen in so long. Percy furrowed his eyebrows though as the screen didn't change. Clearing his throat, he spoke louder- firmer, "Show me Lily." Focusing more on the appearance of his old friend. But the screen just continued to swirl. What was going on? Why was fate not allowing him to see his old friend? Percy stayed in that room for a while longer, debating over it, before he stood and left to meet up with his group: lunch was going to start soon.
~~~~~~End of Flashback~~~~~~
Ethan and Zayden had actually become really close since then- they had a lot in common and the things they didn't- just made competitions even more fun. Zayden zoned into the introductions to see that most had introduced themselves; the Vipengele group didn't have as many demi-gods in it as the rest of the groups did. Most were from the other main planets. Some were even from smaller planets around the universe, though Chaos mostly stuck to the main planets. Percy had a lot of fun with them; since he still had his Son of Poseidon powers he played games with the Vipegele's as they controlled water as well. When the last person, Alyss Termuen, sat down, Chiron spoke again.
"If you haven't been told yet, all camp counselors, including the Vipengele and Cambiare groups, will be joining the Daily Olympus Counsel Meetings." The people who didn't know started at that.
"So we'll be going to Olympus?" Timothy wondered; sure they definitely had a better relationship with the gods than they did before, but Olympus was still a rarity, except for a few special occasions a year.
"Will the rest of the army be there?" Butch questioned.
"...Will Lord Chaos be there with them?" Andrew wondered.
"No. They're busy on Moaverra right now, defending other planets around the galaxy, so it'll just be the gods, all of us, a few leaders from Camp Jupiter, the Queen of the Amazons, and the rest of the guardians." Corina explained.
"There is a council meeting tonight; but as we already had this meeting planned, we will all join the meetings beginning tomorrow night at six- along with the counselors from Camp Jupiter, the Amazon queen, the other members of Chaos' Army, and the hunters." Chiron announced. Some of the demi-gods wilted, having been looking forward to going to Olympus so quickly, "Now, onto camp information?" The meeting moved from there, each cabin talking about what was going on in their own group. Sally and Paul gave updates on all the new cabins that were being processed. Soon, the meeting came to a close and everyone separated, going to activities they had been doing before the meeting, or starting on new things. Sharing a look with Ayla, The two children of Poseidon headed back to their cabin to have the 'later' conversation. Sitting down in their respective beds, Percy pulled back his hood and prompted Ayla with a look. Sighing, she slumped.
"I guess I should tell you everything. You see Percy, I…" She hesitated here, biting her lip, "I had a little different coming into this world than most would think. I didn't find this out until I was older- Instead I was told that my birth mother passed when I was a baby and Sally and Paul took me in raising me as their own." At Percy's shocked look, Ayla grinned, "That's why she said she was my mother and why my last name is Jackson."
"So what's the truth? What did you find out later?" Percy wondered.
"Well, mom and dad said that that was the story everyone else knew, but that I would learn the truth when I was older. Thinking back, I wouldn't have understood it if they had told me then." She stated. She was silent for a while, seemingly lost in thought, "When I was seven, mom and dad pulled me aside and told me about everything. About the gods; about my birth; about their actual jobs." Ayla looked at Percy and smiled a sad smile, "After you were killed, father went through a rough patch."
"Yeah; In Chaos' palace, we have this room that lets us peek in on whoever we want to. I often checked in on dad over the years." Percy added.
"Mom said he spent most of his time locked in his room in his palace. Soon, Amphitrite had had enough of him ignoring her and she left." Ayla's sad look soon disappeared as a smile took over, "But, Athena had grown worried and started to visit father. She was the only one he would open his door to and slowly, she brought him out of his shell until he had gotten over his grief and went on his life." She explained.
"I remember seeing dad so hurt back then and wishing I could visit. But, to Earth, our army has always been a secret- well, until now…" Percy remembered.
"Well, according to mom, father and Athena slowly fell in love." Ayla laughed at the incredulous look Percy gave her, "I know, I was shocked too. But, they did. And, because of that, father promised Athena that he would never again have another demi-god child with another woman." Percy's eyebrows shot up at that; that was quite the hefty oath to make, especially for a god.
"Wait, so how do you come into this? I mean, did father break his promise? He had to have had you with a mortal woman." Percy inquired, making Ayla grin.
"Not exactly. Apparently, Athena kept trying to convince father to have a demi-god, but he didn't want to break him promise to her." Ayla slowly began to smile here, "So he came up with a solution. One day, he went to a deserted beach. Standing there, he created me just as he created the first pegasus: out of sea foam, and some of his godly power." Ayla giggled at the absolutely astonished and disbelieving look Percy was giving her.
"So...You were created like the first Pegasus." Percy tried to connect that all together, but seemed to not be able to.
"Yes, I was. I even got a gift of sorts from my birth." She hinted at. She stared at Zayden for a bit, as if wondering if he could take this before deciding. "I gained wings, just like a Pegasus." And wit that, two purely white feathers wings grew out of Ayla's back. Percy slowly stood, walked over towards his little sister, and sat down. Fingering her soft wings as she continued, "So, I have no actual mother. Father brought me to Athena and from there they thought and planned on who would raise me. Of course, their was only one real option." She joked here, beaming at Percy.
"My mom…" He seemed to smile bittersweetly here, "Does she still make her blue chocolate chip cookies?"
"Yup! The rest of the campers have taken to flooding the pavilion even friday after capture the flag as that is when mom decides to bake her blue cookies and treats." Ayla confirmed.
"It'd be great to have some of those cookies; I've missed them so much." Percy muttered.
"I'll try to see if I can get her to make an early batch for you." Ayla decided, making Percy smile at her in thanks. Suddenly, the two children of Poseidon heard the conch shell sound.
"Seems it's time for you to go to dinner." Percy stated.
"And it seems it's time for you to go to your council meeting." Ayla countered back. Making her wings disappear and Zayden pulling his hood back up, the two children stood and hugged.
"I'll see you tomorrow sis; there's still someone I want you to meet- she's become like a little sister to me recently as well." He added.
"Well, I'm excited to meet this 'new sister' of mine." With that, the two separated two where they needed to go.
~~~~~~Olympus Throne Room- Still Narrator's P.O.V.~~~~~~
As everyone got settled, Zeus cleared his throat.
"Welcome back everyone to our daily Olympian Council Meeting. Now, are there any updates on plans or…" Zeus started. The meetings continued on from that, and honestly the Narrator did not want to bore anyone with such details about raising security and training that were spoke about in the last council meeting just yesterday.
The real interesting council meeting would be the next days, as everyone in the room knew. The demi-gods leaders from both Camps would be joining them, as would Queen Hylla, the two Chaos groups at the Camps, and the hunters. Plus, a secret annoucement that a certain King of the Gods was debating back and forth, one he didn't know if he should go with, or not. Would it help, or just create more chaos(not the god)?
But, despite all the boredom being passed between each member's mind(especially two pranking childish gods, not mentioning any names…), this meeting suddenly became interesting as they all gained a special guest. Sophia stopped mid-sentence at the newest arrival.
"Lord Chaos." Zeus exclaimed in surprise, "What brings you here to Olympus today?"
"It has come to my attention that I didn't include something in my war plans. Lord Poseidon," The God of the Seas sat up at the fact that Chaos was addressing him directly, "It is my understanding that, other than your own warriors, you have not protection down in Atlantis?" He wondered.
"Yes, Lord Chaos. Other than my cyclops army and my warriors, Atlantis is defenseless." Poseidon admitted.
"Now, when creating my plans, I did not pull in Atlantis, as I did not believe my brother would attack it. But, after the attack on the hunters, I believe that he is trying to find our weakest link. And, because of that, he may see Atlantis as his next target." Chaos estimated.
"That is a strong conclusion, Lord Chaos." Athena complimented. Lord chaos smiled at that, losing all seriousness for a moment.
"Thank you Lady Athena for such a compliment." Turning serious again, he continued, "If you would allow, Lord Poseidon, I would like to station the Iuominen group in Atlantis. Their second in command is practically my unofficial eighth guardian, if I had ever had such a position in mind. They would be quite the force to go against." He offered.
"I would be honored to have their help in protecting Atlantis, Lord Chaos." Poseidon accepted. Nodding, Chaos stepped back.
"Well, that was all that I needed to bring up; I will head back to my planet and tell the Iuominen group of their newest mission. They will arrive here tomorrow and get straight to work in Atlantis." And with that, Chaos disappeared into a black portal of sorts and the meeting continued. After everything was talked over, the meeting was dismissed, with a reminder about the next meeting tomorrow, and all who would be joining them. All decided that they would let the Iuominen group get settled in for a few days before bringing them into the meetings; Zayden assuring them that the guardians would relay any important information to them between now and then. With that, everyone headed back to their respective places...
Song I'm listening to now: 'Two New Alphas' from HTTYD2 Soundtrack(I absolutely love the HTTYD Soundtracks; me and my younger siblings like to play them, and narrate each scene like, "at this point in the song, they're doing this…")
YES! I finally got to introduce Andrew! I have been so excited to bring him in, but I kept pushing it off. I wasn't planning on bringing him in yet, but when starting this chapter, the idea came to me and it just wouldn't go away! And it's about time Corina gained a love interest-every other Guardian has one!
Anyway, I'm so glad I was finally able to finish this chapter! Now, I wasn't completely slacking these past few months. Other than editing the story, I have been trying to rekindle my love of this story. I realized that writing this had started to become a chore to me; another thing on the list of what I needed to do. I lost all the fun- so lately I have reread and reread through this story, slowly rebuilding to love I once had for it.
I spent as much time as I could reflecting on ideas for his story, on the scenes I had once been excited about, and the scenes to come that I was excited about. So, my lost for this story is back! And hopefully because of that, I will start updating more frequently. Well, good luck in life till next time...