[Apollo]
I stood outside the council chamber doors.
I took a deep breath. I can do this. I can totally do this. Just go in and lie your ass off.
…
Nope, I can't do this.
"Is it too late for me to run away to Alaska?"
"Apollo," Artemis said sternly. "Get your butt into that room, right now."
Between my father and my sister, Artemis is the most terrifying one. Right, I totally have to go in.
"You'll be fine, 'Pol." Hermes soothes, "We'll be with you."
I nod, "Cool. I'm frozen in fear though, so someone else has to open the door."
Both of them give me a concerned glance, but Artemis moves to open the door.
It opens. I can see inside. Fuck, I want to throw myself off a cliff.
Walking inside, I can see my father sitting on his throne. He glares down at us, his stiff posture unyielding to all. Hera is sitting on her throne next to him, overseeing the entire council room. We are the last ones to enter, my entire family already seated. I gulp as I notice Hades is here too; Father must be truly thinking of this as serious if he let him into Olympus when it's not the Winter Solstice.
The Fates were standing in the middle of the chamber, their eyes not leaving me as I crossed the room.
"What took you all so long?" Ares calls. He's lounging on his throne in a way that I would've gotten hit by lightning for disrespect if I'd tried to copy him. He had a cigarette half hanging out of his mouth yet I could tell he was paying perfect attention to his surroundings.
" Apollo and I were just hanging out when Artemis found us, and she decided to yell at us first." Hermes answered, and Artemis glared at both of us to collaborate to his lie. "What's the disaster that we all have to gather for?"
We took our seats, me in between my sibling's thrones, as Father answered. "The Moirai have informed me that something has been interfering with their domain. Someone has been messing with the Great Prophecy."
There were gasps and murmurs. Nobody else had known about this beforehand.
Uncle P leaned forward, "The Great Prophecy? Has it changed?"
There was subtle glint in his eye, though his look of worry overshadowed it. I knew what he was thinking; Would this help or harm Percy?
"The Great Prophecy has been destroyed," The Fates proclaimed in unison. "All prophecies have been rendered null."
Artemis and Hermes stiffened beside me, they had no idea I had changed things so much. I could see Athena reel back in shock from the corner of my eye. Aphrodite messed up her eyeliner in shock. I closed my eyes; this is definitely not going to go well.
"NULL?!" My Father thundered. "Who dared do such a thing?"
Hera frowned, "If the prophecy has been destroyed, then surely there is no longer any danger to us."
Lachesis turned her head to face Hera, "No. Now there is the biggest danger. Prophecies guide heroes towards their fate, yet a hero can still achieve fate without one. But that is not what happened, someone has changed fate. We no longer have any hold over most things; our control is now little, like thin threads compared to our old chains. And yet it still slips."
Everyone's face is terrified and serious. Hermes is desperately trying to catch my eye, but I keep my stare straight ahead.
"Why?" It is Hestia who speaks, her face too pale next to her hearth.
"This morning, a wave of Free-Will washed over five heroes. Every single person who interacts with these heroes are also infected with Free-Will, as a consequence, it will continue to be spread like ripples in a pond. Fortune has already started to throw her lot, Free-Will is running wild." Clotho responded. She was staring straight at me.
Hades and Poseidon looked terrified, and I could tell that they wanted to grab their children and hide in their own domains. In fact, many of my fellow gods looked like they were about to seal Olympus up and lock themselves and their children in a bunker.
"Who are these five heroes?" Zeus asked, his hand tightening on his bolt. "We have to kill them; this cannot continue."
"You cannot kill them," Atropos commanded. "That will not stop Free-Will. In fact, it might spread more Free-Will as their already invalidated Fate is destroyed; it might just choose new champions."
"Then what do we do?" Athena asked. She was frowning, for once truly out of her depth.
"Let them act freely." Clotho began.
"They know their tasks, they shall achieve them." Atropos continued.
"Help them, learn from them, listen to them." Lachesis finished.
"Your heroes will guide you from darkness into the light." They said together.
"And how do you know this, since your own Fate has been rendered null?" Artemis queried. She met my gaze for a second and then turned back. She isn't doing this for malice, she will still help me, she is simply curious.
The Fates smile. "We know as we can sense the good in their hearts. They want to preserve Olympus and raise it to even higher glory."
My father seemed to accept this with a nod. "But who are these heroes? How will we know to follow them?" He pressed.
"You already have one of them in your midst."
Oh no. No, no, no, no. Please don't.
Everyone had stiffened and was now scanning their surroundings for the hidden hero. Hermes and Artemis were steadily avoiding looking at me.
"Why do you think your own god of prophecies didn't notify you as soon as he realised his own domain faded?"
Everyone turned to look at me. Athena's stare was nerve racking. Poseidon and Hades glared at me like I was the one who just thrust their children into danger. Dionysus and Aphrodite were looking at me with betrayal. Artemis and Hermes looked horrified and worried. And Father…
Father looked at me like he was about to smite me.
"Apollo. What is the meaning of this?!" He shouted.
I ignored him.
"Fuck." I said emphatically. Letting my head drop into my hands. "Fuck."
A/N
This story is directly from ao3, copy-and-pasted. Prewritten. Don't be an ass and complain about things in it.