Assassin of Chaos - Hollow

by Someone in the Background

After the Second Giant War, the Hero of Olympus, Percy Jackson, had everything he had ever wanted but unknown to anyone, a powerful being wanted him gone. Using a new camper, the being forced Percy to leave and after a thousand years, Chaos found him, and he became the most feared assassin in the universe. He has only gone back on a few occasions. Contains Violence

4. Chapter 4 - The Warning

Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series, all rights belong to Rick Riordan

Chapter 4 – The Warning

3 Months Later (6 Months after Percy Left for his Quest)

Percy's POV

Death Valley National Park, California

California, why do I always end up in stupid California? The fates must absolutely hate me for whatever reason, its not like I've saved the world twice, but they obviously don't care about that enough to give me any kind of break. I have been away from camp for about six months due to the quest from Athena, but it feels so much longer. I guess its probably because its been so long since I've seen or even talked to any of my friends, what I wouldn't give to be able to see even one of them but no, I can't use a phone because I'm a demigod and I lost all of my money when my backpack was ripped from my back by a Dracaena. Just my luck. I bet Nico and Thalia are using this time to train so that they can try beat me when I get back, that seems like something they'd do, and Annabeth… oh Annabeth… I miss her so much it is physically hurting my heart. I just hope that she isn't mad at me, I didn't think that this quest would take nearly this long, I probably should have told her why I was leaving. I just want to get this over and done with as soon as possible so that I can get back to them.

The annoying thing about this quest is that I might as well have had a phone with me because it seems like any monsters within a ten-mile radius have no problem finding me, its really strange how many of them I've met travelling here. I've been attacked by almost every single monster that you could ever think of; it feels like I've even killed some of them multiple times, but I knew that was highly unlikely, it must have just been my paranoia. What…? you would start to get paranoid too when you are attacked every other hour, I don't even have enough time to rest because every time I seem to be in the clear, another hellhound or another cyclops comes at me from out of nowhere.

Anyway, I might be closer to the end of this quest than I thought I was. I've been tracking a group of monsters that have grouped together for some reason, Athena seems to think that they could be a threat because these monsters are very powerful, so instead of notifying Artemis who should really be the one hunting them down, she told me to do it to prove myself, how fun. I just found a group of trees that have been snapped in half like toothpicks, I'm pretty sure that the only thing in this park strong enough to do that would be a monster.

I caught site of them once in Missouri but lost them just as quickly, they didn't even try to fight me which only caused me to be even more on guard than I previously was, this confusion is probably what allowed them to escape. I had a very good reason for reacting like that though, one of the monsters travelling in the group is my old friend the Minotaur and he attacks me every chance he gets, I don't blame him though, I have that effect on people… well monsters anyway. When I saw that he had no intention of attacking me, I became extremely suspicious and started looking everywhere I could to see if something else was about to ambush me, but nothing came, they just left for some reason, so I had to track them all the way to California. I managed to see some of the other monsters that were with him as well, but I didn't pay much attention to them, I saw the Nemean Lion and the Lernaean Hydra but there could have been more. I am not looking forward to fighting these lot, for all I care let them do whatever they want, but if I don't do it, I can't propose to Annabeth and that is not an option.

Quietly rummaging through some bushes, I came to the edge of a clearing that had a stream running through it, the trees around the edge weren't very tall but they were completely covered in leaves meaning that no one could see into the clearing if they weren't directly on the edge. The ground seemed to be relatively level which was good because I could see the entire clearing and there was only short grass, this area would be ideal for a fight, nothing can get in the way. As that thought came into mind, I looked towards the stream and saw the Minotaur and the Nemean Lion drinking while the Hydra stood about 100 metres away chasing birds that flew out of the nearby trees. Then I noticed another monster at the far side of the clearing, it was concealed behind the Nemean Lion and a few large bushes. When it moved I quickly identified the monster as the Lydian Drakon, I really need to discuss with the fates why they hate me so much.

Now that I've finally found the group, I need somewhat of a plan to take them down. I really wish Annabeth was here, she'd make a plan that would never fail unless I messed it up somehow where as my plan would normally include charging in and hoping for the best, but that would definitely not work in this situation. So, four very powerful monsters that can kill me almost instantly, the Minotaur will be relatively easy as he should charge me as soon as he sees me and get his horns stuck in a tree when I dodge, then I'll be able to kill him with no problems, he's not very smart, but the other monsters will be much harder. My advantage is the stream, I need the water to give me strength and even the slightest possibility of success against them, I might be able to take down both the Nemean Lion and the Drakon with the water because of how close they are but then again I might not. I think should prioritise the Lion because of his impenetrable pelt and deal with the Drakon later, if I don't take it out fast then the fight will be ten times harder. That leaves the Lydian Drakon and the Lernaean Hydra, but by this time they will have coordinated and will probably attack me together, I need to figure out a way to separate them and deal with them individually…

Shit! Guess I'll have to figure it out when I come to it, I can't let them escape again!

3rd Person POV

While Percy had been creating his plan in the bushes at the edge of the clearing, the Minotaur had finished drinking from the stream and it looked like the rest were almost finished as well, meaning that they were about to leave. Percy knew that he had to fight them here where he could use the stream to give him a much-needed advantage, so he quickly started his plan and it went without a problem, well the parts he planned did at least.

The water in the stream suddenly shot up into the Nemean Lions mouth and simultaneously froze into a long and very sharp spike. From Percy's previous encounter with the Lion, he knew that his mouth was one of his weak spots, so he had to make use of it being exposed while it was drinking. The spike quickly stabbed through the Lion's throat and it dissolved into golden dust after letting out an ear-piercing screech of pain, leaving behind a very familiar pelt that Percy had completely forgotten about. His plan developed as he knew that the pelt would be very useful against the remaining monsters.

The Drakon immediately stopped drinking and ran back to give itself some distance from the now evidently dangerous water, the Minotaur spun around so that it was now facing a figure that had just emerged from some bushes, recognising the male demigod instantly as the one who had just killed his companion and him multiple times before. The rage that he felt continuously grew as he relived those painful memories in his head and before he knew it, he was charging at Percy with everything he had, obviously forgetting how he had been beaten before and confirming Percy's thoughts about him not being very smart. Percy stood his ground and uncapped Riptide as well as his shield so that the Minotaur wouldn't figure out that it was running directly into a trap, then as it approached him, he rolled to the side with incredible speed causing the Minotaur to run head first into a tree, consequently getting stuck because his horn was firmly implanted within it.

Knowing that the Drakon and the Hydra would soon be upon him, Percy swiftly stabbed into the Minotaur's chest with Riptide causing the monster to evaporate into golden dust just like the Nemean Lion, but the difference was that the Minotaur left behind his horn which was still stuck in the tree.

With no time to pull out the horn, Percy turned to face the remaining monsters and was struck in the chest by the Drakon, but he managed to raise his shield so that it took the brunt of the blow, not his ribcage. The strike sent him flying about 200 metres towards the stream on the other side of the clearing however he didn't mind as it actually gave him much better positioning to fight off the Drakon and Hydra. Digging his sword into the ground to help himself up, Percy ran towards the stream and picked up the pelt left behind by the Nemean Lion, quickly rapping it around himself so that he would gain some much-needed protection against his enemies. After this, he took a few steps back and walked into the stream which instantly rejuvenated him and gave him the strength he needed to win the fight, unfortunately the Drakon and Hydra had remembered what the water had done to their companion and decided to keep their distance from the hero.

What followed was an intense stalemate in which neither side made any effort to approach each other, the two monsters being very cautious of the hero that had just killed two of their companions without gaining so much as a cut and said young hero waiting patiently for them to attack. Percy eventually decided that these two monsters had some intellect and that they wouldn't attack him, so he had to take the fight to them.

Percy willed the water around him to raise him up some 30 feet so that he could reach the monster's heads, in doing so he surprised said monsters, giving himself a very small window of opportunity to attack their weakest points. He launched himself towards the Drakon's head, its gaze had no effect on him as he wasn't afraid of the monster in the slightest and to prevent it or the Hydra from stopping him, he had the water that raised him up crash into their appendages and freeze to hold them in place. They would break out of these makeshift shackles very soon, but it widened his previously small window, so he stabbed the Drakon in its left eye with all of the power he had, the entire three-foot blade of Riptide penetrated the monster's head so that only the hilt could be seen. The result was expected and very appealing as the monster cried out due to the excruciating pain before its entire body slammed down onto the floor and it too erupted into golden dust.

Percy now stood over the remains of his latest victim, holding Riptide which was covered with the blood of both the Minotaur and the Drakon to the point where it dripped off the blade's tip to form a large pool of red liquid on the ground beneath him. The look a determination and surprise on his face displayed all of the emotion and thoughts within the young demigod. He couldn't believe that he was this close to defeating some of the strongest monsters in existence without even being touched, he was determined, maybe the most determined and motivated he had ever been. He wanted to finish the fight so that he could return and marry the girl he loved and start the life they always wanted. He wasn't going to let anything get in the way.

The Hydra who just broke out of the ice prison that was forced upon it had strategically positioned itself between the hero and the stream. Without the power of the water, Percy knew that defeating the monster would be difficult, but he had to find a way, he had the pelt of the Nemean Lion for protection as well as the horn of the Minotaur if he needs it, but he much preferred his own sword. There was also the newly gained skin of the Drakon that he just killed, he could use it for even more protection but that would just slow him down, the only way he was going to beat this thing was by being faster than it. Then a thought entered his mind, a stupid thought but so stupid that it might just work.

Percy ran at the Hydra, once again surprising it but the monster would not let itself be distracted so easily again so two of its nine heads bent down to Percy's level and breathed fire towards him. This attack would have surely killed him if it was for the pelt he was now using as a shield in front of him, instead of toasting every single part of him, the attack only burnt a section of his left hand and arm, not the worst thing that could've happened. He continued to run into the fire and quickly reached the heads that were breathing it but instead of cutting them off straight away, he used them to vault himself up onto the monsters back and then he stabbed Riptide deep into it. Everyone who has faced or even heard of the Lernaean Hydra knew that this attack wouldn't kill it but that wasn't the purpose for it. Just as Percy had expected, the monster tried to buck him off like one of those animatronic bulls, but he hung onto Riptide to keep himself on its back long enough for him to complete his plan. After a minute of the Hydra trying its hardest to get the hero off of its back, it stopped and instead had his heads try to rip him to shreds, this was the opening Percy was waiting for.

Now that he could steady himself and focus, he controlled the water from the stream that the Hydra had unknowingly stumbled into when it was trying to get him off its back. He made the water engulf himself and the Hydra and made it so that it raised them a few feet off the ground so that the monster couldn't get out. His plan was similar to what Hercules had done to the Nemean Lion when he was completing his labours, everything needs to breath so take away the air and it should die… right?

After about ten minutes of sustaining the floating mass of water by adding more water when some of it managed to fall, the last of the Hydra's head stopped struggling and the entire beast turned to dust just like its friends.

Exhausted, Percy dropped the water bubble and it washed away all of the dust in the clearing, he hoped that this would prevent them from reforming anytime soon. He then fell to his knees, unable to support himself anymore but extremely happy with himself for what he had just managed to accomplish but even more so for what it now allowed him to do.

Just as quickly as the happiest thought of his life entered the realm of possibilities, it was shattered.

The noise of a stick breaking might as well have thundered through the clearing because of how silent it was, and its effect struck shock and fear into Percy. He managed to leap to his feet with the little amount of adrenaline he had left but before he could turn, a whip struck across his back causing him to fall back to the floor. The strike went straight through the pelt of the Nemean Lion as if it was simple leather, meaning that whatever hit him must have been very powerful. He landed on his stomach, unable to move at all from his current position, the lash on his back burned more than anything he had ever experienced, then there was the laughing, the petrifying laughing of familiar presence.

As the laughing came closer to the incapacitated hero, he felt the rest of his skin start to burn but not in the same way as his back. His back burned and felt like it was blistering as if it was branded by a hot iron rod where as his skin felt like it was being melted off by acid but there was only air, sadly this detail allowed him to figure out what had attacked him and how he was helpless to stop it from killing him. With every ounce of strength left within his damaged body, Percy rolled onto his back so that he could look upon his attacker, he saw the head of medusa which would cause terror by itself but from the waist down there were no legs like you would expect, instead there was the body of a dragon. The scales laid across the entirety of its reptilian skin looked as strong or even stronger than any celestial bronze shield, but they were dark, as if they hadn't seen the light of day for thousands of years. A pair of gigantic wings sprouted from the monster's back that seemed to be larger than the wings of a plane and could easily block out the sun if the beast decided to do so, but it knew that it didn't need to instil any more fear than it already had. Looking towards the back of the monster, Percy saw that its tail was yet another appendage stolen from a different animal, where you would assume the tail of a dragon would be was instead a tail of a scorpion, its size up-scaled to match the rest of the monster's body as to not look out of place or just for decoration, and he could tell just from looking at it, that it wasn't for show. The end of the tail dripped much like Riptide did after he killed the Minotaur and Drakon except the liquid was black, so black that it could compete with the night sky, a poison so terrible that you would still feel its effect after death. Its satanic eyes bore a hole straight into the hero's soul, the only relief was in the brief moments when it blinked, closing its eyelids sideways like a reptile would.

Unfortunately, Percy's suspicion had been confirmed, there stood Kampȇ holding her fire covered whip, eagerly waiting to end his life

"Hello Perseus Jackson, how sad to see the Hero of Olympus in such a fragile and vulnerable state", her voice sounded very soft but that only caused more terror, what's worse than having an extremely calm and terrifying killer that makes it seem as if they are killing you for no reason or worse, because they are bored and find it fun to watch the life you've built and could build drain away to the underworld.

"Good job with killing those pathetic monsters by the way, I never really thought they were as strong as everyone thought they were. Even when they were grouped together they couldn't kill one little demigod, how disappointing"

Percy could only lay there and listen to the gloating from the hideous monster, he tried his hardest to move even a single muscle in his body or talk a single word, but nothing happened.

"Anyway, back on track. Someone wants to speak with you Perseus, someone who is quite angry with you"

Percy's heart raced about a million miles per hour, his mind flooded with thoughts and questions about the trap that he had so clearly walked straight into. The thoughts that reoccurred the most were the ones that had the worst answers.

Someone that's angry with me? That could be a very large list of people, but who on earth could send Kampȇ to do their bidding? The last time that happened was during the second titan war…

The young hero's mind stopped dead in its tracks, his heart rate increased even more, and his body started to sweat profusely. The answer to his thoughts had become clear to him but he was in no position to do anything about it, the fact was, he is at the mercy of the one being in the universe that wanted him dead more than anything, all because of what he had done to him, to Kronos.

Kampȇ moved over Percy, slowly stalking around him as if to admire her prey but she only administered a single cut down his right arm with one of her menacing scimitars, nothing more. She dug her sword into the middle of his forearm then slowly dragged it upwards towards his shoulder as she moved around him. The act was carried out with no effort, but the effect upon the hero was immeasurable, he could feel every slight movement of the blade as it separated the skin in his arm, shuddering as it crept further up his arm, only stopping a millimetre from his shoulder.

If Kronos wanted him dead, he would be by now, one swift movement from either of Kampȇ's scimitars would accomplish that, but there was only one non-lethal cut… then the poison entered his bloodstream and he drifted off into a dreamless sleep, or so he wished…

Percy opened his eyes, thinking that he was awake, but his surroundings telling him otherwise. He was no longer in the forest, probably not even in California anymore for all he knew but the place he found himself in was empty. Everywhere he looked there was only the black of night, but it had been the middle of the day not two minutes ago and this darkness… this darkness was not the night that he was used to, this darkness infiltrated his mind, reaching out for control while freezing his body in place. He couldn't move, but what use would that do anyway, in a place where there was nothing, a place where even the gods would have to fight to maintain their powerful and mighty appearances.

Percy's POV

Where am I? I was just in the clearing with… with Kampȇ but she did something to me, she cut me… then I came here but how? Her sword, it must have been her sword! It must have been coated with some type of poison…

No… I can't be dead… not yet…

"Oh, you're not dead just yet young hero. That would be way too easy for you, no, you need to suffer for everything that you did to me"

That voice… that cold, heartless voice…

"Yes Perseus, it's me, don't tell me that you've forgotten about me already? I'm hurt, I could never forget about you after what you did to me!"

The anger, all that rage… I can feel it penetrating me… no! I must fight it!

"Yes… good young hero… try fight my will, it will only cause you more pain in the end, after all, I've only brought you here to warn you…"

Brought me here? You're the reason those monsters were grouped together, you wanted me to hunt them… so that I could be brought here… but warn me? what does that mean. It's pretty clear that you're just going to kill me… ENOUGH! I WON'T JUST STAND HERE AND LET YOU READ MY THOUGHTS!

"JUST GET IT OVER AND DONE WITH KRONOS! ORDER YOUR LITTLE PET TO KILL ME ALREADY, AT LEAST THEN I WON'T HAVE TO LISTEN TO YOU!"

"Ahh ha ha, I'm not going to kill you Perseus, no… how could I kill you now when the fates have so much more planned for you"

The fates? What more could those meddling bitches do to me now; they've finally led me to my death.

"What do you mean? They've already managed to lead me to my death at the hands of you and Kampȇ. Unless they have something planned for me in the underworld, I don't think it will matter very much"

Well… I don't think he liked that very much…

"I HAVE ALREADY TOLD YOU SEA SPAWN THAT YOU WILL NOT DIE IN THIS PRESENT TIME! YOU WOULD DO WELL TO LISTEN TO ME INSTEAD OF ADAMANTLY INSISTING THAT YOU WILL BE KILLED OTHERWISE I MAY JUST FULFIL YOU'RE REQUEST!"

Yep… definitely didn't like that.

"Fine. If you're not going to kill me then get on with whatever you need to warn me about. I have much better things to be doing with my time"

"Ah yes, you wish to propose to that daughter of Athena… don't look shocked Perseus, your mind is an open book to me here. Anyway, I wouldn't get my hopes up if I were you… your future is somewhat clouded young hero, but I can tell you one thing… you will wish that you joined me when you had the chance"

"What does that mean! What have you done to Annabeth!"

"Ahh ah ah, I have done nothing Perseus, it is her that has done something to you, and the gods that will do something far worse. That is my warning young hero, I advise that you heed it before you find everything that you have ever known… destroyed"

"I DON'T BELIEVE YOU, TELL ME WHAT YOU HAVE DONE!"

"Well… now I'm just bored, leave me sea spawn, but don't forget what I have told you"

No! I can't wake up now! I need to find out what he's done to Annabeth… NO!

3rd Person POV

Percy slowly started to stir from his unconscious state, the light of the day blinded him as he tried to open his eyes. He found that his body no longer hurt like it previously had and quickly noticed that he was now laying in the stream that ran through the empty clearing. Kampȇ must have dragged him into it after the poison took effect so that he could heal himself, not like he could ask her, she was no where to be seen, it looked like she had never even been there but the mark on his back from her whip and the scar down his arm from her sword begged to differ.

At least it all made sense now, why all those monsters were travelling together, why he's been attacked by so many monsters over the past six months. It was all Kronos plan to kill him, yes kill him, Percy didn't care if the titan lord told him otherwise, he knew that the only reason he was still alive was because the titan probably wanted to do it himself.

Percy just laid in the stream allowing the water to flow over him, providing the must needed strength and rejuvenation that kept him alive through the entire ordeal however he couldn't stay there for much longer as he noticed a sinister cloud gathering above him. In the same moment, the sky erupted into a terrible sound and a bolt of lightning flew down towards the young hero. With almost no time to react, he willed the water around him to throw him out of the stream, he landed about 200 feet away on the other side of the clearing, facing the area he had recently left just in time to see the lightning strike.

He knew that Kronos would try kill him, he could see straight through the titan's lies. This act only worked to solidify the thoughts that everything he had been told was a lie, but there was something strange about this lightning. Instead of being one solid colour like they usually were, this one fluctuated between the regular colour of lightning and a sinister red. He guessed that it was due to the fact that the titan had to summon it all the way from Tartarus and then gave it no more thought.

Percy's mind now flooded with worry and anxiety concerning his friends and most importantly, Annabeth. He had to get back to Olympus and find out what Kronos has done, and whether all of his friends are ok. He quickly gather the rest of the spoils left over by the monster he killed and called for Blackjack. He wasn't allowed to use Blackjack previously as Athena wanted him to prove that he is strong enough to survive on his own, but now that his quest was complete he would need his friends help in carrying the evidence and himself back to his home.

After a short greeting between the hero and his faithful steed in which Percy explained his worry and need to get back as soon as possible, the two set of towards New York where Olympus resided so that he could show Athena that he had indeed completed his quest.

It didn't take very long at all for the two to reach New York, all together it took about 4 hours with a few breaks here and there so that Blackjack could rest. Percy guessed that since Blackjack hadn't been ridden in about six months, he must have had a lot of energy saved up. Now it would only be a few minutes before he reached Olympus and found out what the titan lord had done, he just hoped that it wasn't as bad as he feared.