Ok! Percy Jackson and company belong to Rick Riordan. The plot belongs to me! Me! ME!
St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Lorain Cty, Ohio is real. Sorry guys, but yer famous now!
By the way, the story about drinking olive oil to ward off the effects of alcohol by partisans in Eastern Europe is true. My late Uncle Al told me about his life in Lithuania and how he spent World War 2 fighting off both the Red Army as well as the 3rd Reich's forces. May God bless all those who perished fighting for The Right, especially those who, within their own homelands showed extraordinary courage in that they all refused to knuckle down and bend the knee to two of the worst tyrants in human history, Hitler and Stalin.
May we NEVER forget any one of them. Amen
One quick note; I am NOT preaching a Faith here. I am NOT proselytizing either for or against Christianity, or any one of it's multitude of communions. This is more about Percy's affinity for the Hellenic culture, it's history and the evolution of the Christian Faith and it's possible meaning for a young man forced to be a warrior, but who only begs for peace.
Chapter 7
In a limousine cruising thru Athens...
SMACK! "LORD TRITON! WHAT THE HADES DO YOU THINK YOU THINK YOU'RE TRYING HERE?!"
The Messenger god of the Seas was holding the right side of his head. This woman had a helluva left hook!
"I-I-I was just trying to put on your safety belt, Annabeth!" The Merman god's skull HURT!
"Oh? Is that all?"
WHACK!
(Ohhh shit! One more time!)
"WITH YOUR MEATHOOKS UNDER MY SKIRT? I DIDN'T BUY THIS OUTFIT SO YOU COULD TAKE IT OFF!"
Triton sat back in amazement! Annabeth had consumed half the bottle of champagne; how was it she wasn't drunk? What the by now thoroughly stunned deity did NOT know was that Annabeth had drunk something prior to landing: A half-pint of olive oil.
Back in World War 2, Eastern European partisans fighting either Soviet troops and/or Nazi troops (sometimes both) would frequently pay for copious amounts of alcohol which their targets would then consume at local bars. The partiszanis would also drink a fair amount of olive oil first, which admittedly did take some getting used to.
The oil left them able to go shot for shot, but they remained much more sober and for much longer than their hapless targets. The stuporous "other guys" always gave up loads of gossip and sometimes actual valuable Intel which the native freedom fighters used against them, often BOTH Nazis and the Soviets. That way, the locals disposed of lots of BOTH of them, and all of the invaders were less able to exert their force against the captive populations.
The olive oil took a look time to digest, as it was very thick and viscous. The alcohol… mmm, not so much. But! The olive oil got through the digestive tract first, and the alcohol took a long time to "burn through".
Annabeth had been getting careless on the aircraft with all the champagne she'd consumed, and so she asked for the pint of oil. Just on the principle of "Constant Vigilance". She really loved that story, and particularly that character. Too bad magicals like them were just a story. How cool would that be?
"Look, my loooord, I love, LOVE your brother. And I will not betray him by engaging in drunkenly stuporous sex with you, or with anyone for that matter! I mean what the hell! You're like, my adoptive grandfather here! First on the plane across to Europe I hadda contend with "The Wingmen". And now it's you?!"
"You… you "love" my brother?" He said with a sneer; "If, as you claim you "love" my brother then WHY HAVE YOU LEFT HIM?!"
Back on Olympus, they were falling around on the floor at Triton's predicament. A lotta gold was changing hands, and Hestia was busy smiling at Annabeth's strength. And so was Artemis as well as Aphrodite. Thalia was hooting up a storm and the Hunters were laughing their bits off. Ares, Dionysus and Zeus had lost a boatload of gold here, Poseidon being the big winner. And Athena, confused at her daughter's resolve concerning her love, was very proud of her most favored daughter.
That Hephaestus TV, boy!
While Back in the Limo...
Annabeth bowed her head and her facial expression deepened to a truly sorrowful one. She regarded the by-now exposed pervert god sadly.
"He has nightmares, you know? Every night. And when he sleeps alone he always wakes up screaming".
Annabeth sighed and sat back into the seat. She looked back at Triton and continued, "And so do I. Look, I didn't want to leave; I HAD to leave! Even your father agreed. Ask him! Percy wasn't getting better staying with me. He was getting completely dependent on my being there. He's at the point where he can't even sleep unless I'm there in bed with him. Even Chiron stopped trying to keep us apart at night and you know how straight-laced he is!"
Triton sat back and considered her words. He looked at her sidelong and asked, "So why did you leave him? What could have been your motivation for abandoning him?"
"Because his deepening crisis was pulling me in even deeper. Tartarus really did a bad number on us both. His post traumatic stress syndrome is the worst that even Dionysus has ever seen and he has to deal with his psychopathic brother Ares every day!"
Back on Olympus, even the Wingmen were rolling around at that crack at Ares. Everybody BUT the by-now very irritated war God was in hysterics!
Back in Athens...
The by now distraught young woman had started shedding tears freely. This entire situation was kiling her; she was actually fearful for Percy's sake. His fragile psyche might not survive their forced separation. Hers wouldn't, couldn't survive staying with him.
"Hestia, Hera, my mother, Percy's own mother Sally and your own father sat with Dionysus at camp for nearly seven hours one day trying to figure out what to do for us. Percy and I shared a very tenuous psychic bond when we slept together. It's thought that my proximity made him feel reassured that I was 'all right', so he wouldn't wake up in a blind panic that he had to get to me or kill someone if he thought they were stopping us somehow. He nearly killed my brother one night. And even Dionysus' best attempts to ease Percy out of his near-fugue state via the psycho-traditional therapeutic approach hasn't worked.
Your dad has bound Percy's powers over the domains he'd given him so he wouldn't damage anything just in case things didn't go so well".
She looked up at Triton this time, right in his eyes and said, "Percy is so very powerful that many lesser gods are actually afraid of him. Ares tried sparring with him after this last war and Percy knocked him out cold! Didn't even use Riptide! Did you know about that?"
Triton just sat there with an uncomprehending look on his face. He was stunned. Percy, his mortal brother defeated, beat, VANQUISHED ARES?! AGAIN!?
HOW?
Good GODS! It was almost as if the world just lurched under his feet! He looked searchingly at Annabeth, his face screwed up while trying to formulate the right question;
"Whaaa…?"
Annabeth just looked at him and tapped the privacy screen. Karkarsh rolled down the barrier and Annabeth just asked him to get it in gear and take her wherever she was supposedly going. She just wanted nothing so much as a long hot bath and a good nap.
Maybe she'd sleep peacefully?
Triton just sat in shock until they arrived. He then headed right for the house's bar and he sat drinking slowly but steadily until Annabeth woke up about 10pm.
She'd slept okay. For once.
Dinner at the Blofis'...
"Father! Thank you for coming so quickly! You got here so quickly!"
"Sally! It's so good to see you again! Yes, the trip was quick and very comfortable! Thanks for calling that car service, 'Uber' was it? The drive was very nice and we had a great chat on the way in. Mmmmm! That's dinner?"
The aroma of pot roast with all the trimmings pervaded the warm, well lit apartment.
The priest was in his trademark black cassock, kamilavka (hat) and pectoral cross. He looked like he was still "on duty" and that fact was noticed first by Sally and her reaction was then picked up on by the priest. Stavros, or Papas Stavriou to his flock, was a pretty traditional priest. He always dressed traditionally. His clerical dress was distinctive, but what really stuck out was "Great hat!"
The priest and and Percy's mother both turned to the originator of that voice.
"Hi! I'm Percy! I'm sorry Mom, I had no idea we were having company".
His mother turned and smiled. How Percy loved her smile. It was so full of love, and he always felt safe whenever Sally was near.
"Yes! I'm sorry I didn't mention it before, but I invited Papas Stavrious here to join us. He's a very old friend of mine from when I was a young woman growing up in Ohio. The Father here was the local Greek parish priest in my aunt's church and he and I had good conversations".
Papas Stavrious held out his hand to shake Percy's and he said, "Your mother is clear sighted and I am a son of Apollo. And the last time I saw you was back when you were still in your stroller in Astoria! Your mama was shopping and we met by accident. Has she ever told you of this, Percy?"
Percy was silently evaluating this man. He'd never knowingly met this… priest?... but the man was actually seemingly familiar to the demigod. And he was also a demigod? A son of Apollo?
"No, mom never did. But I'd like to hear about it."
They'd all moved into the living room, and Paul came outside. "Hi! Your Father Stavrious, right? I'm Paul Blofis, Father and welcome to our home."
Paul's hand was out instantly, his smile genuine and wide-open friendly. The priest took a gut-feeling liking to this man.
This was a home with love suffusing it. Sally was healthy and smiling, although worried for this son of hers. Her husband's handshake and smile were hearty and immediate, fullsome and genuine.
Papas Stavrious relaxed and everyone sat down on a couch or chair in the open and comfortable living room. The apartment was huge! It was amazing that the family's circumstances were such that a multi-million dollar apartment in a skyscraper luxury Upper East Side apartment building was all theirs.
And Sally obviously still did her own cooking, thank God! He well remembered her roast beef from back in Ohio; it had won prizes at the County Fair cook-offs, and Sally's Chili con carne was just heavenly! And then there was her baking… cakes, pies, COOKIES! The stuff of LEGENDS!
"Sally, can I ask if you are still baking those delicious cookies of yours?"
Sally was surprised at the question; Papas remembered THAT? He remembered her cookies? Percy and Paul just grinned from ear to ear. And Stavrious saw the grins, and they caused him to smile as well.
"Percy, Paul, Sally was a champion chef back in Lorain County when she was just fourteen! She had everybody literally 'eating out of her hand'. Percy, your mother was sponsored by our church, St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church. She won some nice prizes and your mother very generously donated half of her share back to our church, on top of our share for sponsoring her. We really needed a new roof and air conditioning, and your mama gave us a nice chunk of money that helped us a great deal in this. I've ever been very grateful to Sally for her incredible generosity".
Paul smiled at this revelation. "That's my wife," he said softly, smiling as he praised her. He was sitting on her right hand side, while Percy sat on her left. Paul's large hands sought out Sally's smaller ones and they smiled at each other as their hands joined lovingly.
Papas Stavrious smiled and remembered; he had so many wonderful memories of this lovely woman. He made up his mind to help this family, no matter their religious choices. He could do no less.
Sally's thinking right then was along just that line. But she got creative and decided to "make an end run" around Percy here.
"Papa, I asked you here for help in something, although having dinner and seeing you again is a big plus. I wondered if you could help me in joining the Church; could you please help me arrange for instruction for myself as a Catechistos?"
Stavrious was dumbstruck! The BOTH of them? God was truly good! To bring this wonderful woman into Mother Church would be a great thing! AND her son as well?!…
"Of COURSE, Sally! I'd be honored! And I teach such a class at our Cathedral in Astoria once a week on Thursday nights. A new class is starting shortly and I will enroll you immediately!"
"So, Mom? You got religion all of a sudden?"
"Well Percy, I've sort of been affiliated with the Church all my life. And you remember we prayed "Grace" before meals and all, and didn't we say prayers before bed when you were still so young?"
Percy screwed up his face for a few seconds and then smiled; "Oh yeahhh, I remember now! 'Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep'; we used to pray that together every night when I was little!"
Sally smiled and asked, "Do you remember the other one? The one your aunt taught me, that I taught to you?"
Percy sat back for a moment, his face screwed up in memories. It had been years, but…
"Lord, Jesus Christ, You received the children who came to You. Receive also from Your child this evening prayer. Shelter me under the protection of Your wings that I may lie down in peace and sleep. Awaken me in due time that I may glorify You, for You alone are good and love all people.
Into Your hands, O Lord Jesus Christ, I commend my spirit and body; bless me, save me, and grant me eternal life.
The Father is my hope, the Son is my refuge, the Holy Spirit is my shelter. Holy Trinity, glory to You. Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me."
Sally smiled broadly at her son; Percy had a wonderful mind, and he smiled back at her. Papas Stavrious sat there taking in this warm and wonderful interplay between mother and son. They were so loving and easily comfortable together. It warmed the priest's heart and he was filled with hope that Percy would rise to the challenge of learning a new way, the Right Way.
"I can say it in Greek also, Father! I bet you didn't know I could speak the language that well, did you?"
This surprised Stavrious greatly. Seeing a chance to build a bridge with Percy, he launched into his own mother tongue.
{"*No! I didn't know this, Perseus! Your mother hasn't told me this yet, but if you can reply to me in Hellene, I would very much like to speak with you! I was raised in Greece, in a small village some miles distant from the original Mt Olympus. My brother and I emigrated here when we were old enough to travel on our own to this wonderful country. I attended my religious school here, in upstate Roscoe. My brother was killed there in a monster attack. I know some things about you as your wonderful mother has told me about you, and also about your brother Tyson. Is he here right now? I'd very much like to meet him*"}.
Percy had tilted his head at a slight angle, as if to hear the priest a little better, although he heard him perfectly well. It just took a second for it all to make sense, as Percy was seriously out of practice. But he made do just fine, responding respectfully as he'd been taught to do as a small child. His mother had taken him to a Greek Orthodox church in Manhattan, near where they'd lived around the time Sally had married Gabe Ugliano.
Percy had been fascinated and delighted by the sense of peace and sanctity, not to mention the singing and chanting in old Greek, called 'Koine'. It was a form of the language spoken commonly in the Middle East around the time of Alexander of Macedon and his conquests.
Koine Greek served as a lingua franca or common tongue in the Eastern Roman Empire and most 'educated Romans' learned to speak it well. Latin was also spoken, but Koine Greek was already well established as an accepted "all-purpose language" by pretty much anyone who had learned to read and write in that part of the world in those days.
And there were never ever any monsters in aà church.
{"*He's asleep, and has been napping for a few hours. I will go get him. I think he'd like to meet you. But Father, you DO know he's a Cyclope don't you?*"}
The priest smiled; {*"Yes, I was told by your mother before I came over. And did you know I am a son of Apollo?*"}
Percy smiled softly. His godly cousin held a good place in his heart. His haikus sucked, but his singing… Percy loved his music.
{*"Yes, my mother did tell me. If you are soft and easy with him, he'll warm up to you quickly*"}.
Percy went down the hall and entered his and Tyson's shared bedroom. It was a large, spacious room with an en suite bathroom that had both a very large shower with a "rainfall" style shower setup (from all angles) and a huge custom-built tub big enough for a young Cyclope wanting to just relax and kick back in the warm water and Jacuzzi style water jets.
In short, it was a small pool.
"Hey, big guy! We have company!"
Tyson stirred and looked up through heavily lidded eyes at his brother, who he loved so very much.
"Really, Big Brother? Company? Who is it?"
Percy smiled and gave Tyson a hug.
"C'mon, get up lazybones! Mama's friend is here. Do you remember what she told you about him? That he's a priest?"
Tyson, still a bit sleepy and looking appropriately muzzily up at his "big brother", did recall what his 'new' and for real Mama had told him.
"Yes; and Mama and Papa said to be extra 'special polite to him. He's like a holy man and he's nice, and his name is 'Papa Stavrious'. That's what Mama said. I remember. Is all that right, Percy?"
Percy smiled and couldn't help himself. He leaned down and cuddled the huge boy. He loved Tyson so very much! What an absolute gift his younger brother was.
"Yep! You got it all right, all right! Mom is gonna be proud of you!"
Tyson smiled as he got up out of his bed; the brand new 15 inch thick pillow top was the single most comfortable thing he'd ever slept on. And as thick as it was, it supported him well. Paul had picked it out. It was a special extra long mattress in Queen size, and it was 90 inches in length. It had been a special order and the Blofis' had needed to search for it. But they'd found it and had told Tyson all about the process.
Tyson smiled thinking about it all. It made him feel so very loved here. And while he really loved his daddy Poseidon, he secretly wanted to stay right here forever. Tyson felt warm, comfortable, wanted and safe.
And loved, he knew he was loved here. He didn't feel really loved anywhere else, not like his Big Brother and his new Mama and Papa made him feel.
And now he was going to meet his new Mama's friend! She WANTED Tyson to meet her friend! He was happy at that, so he got up, splashed some water on his face and combed his thick and wavy brown hair. He wanted to look good for his family's company, especially for his Mama.
The two young men went into the living room and the three adults turned their heads as one to the two young men who had just entered.
"Father, this is my brother Tyson. Tyson, this is Papa Stavrious. He's Mom's friend from when she was very young and lived in Ohio. Father, this is my brother, Tyson".
The Priest got up from his seat on the very comfortable sofa and extended his hand to Tyson. Tyson looked surprised but took the man's hand and shook it gently.
"Hello sir, my name is Tyson and I am very happy to meet you".
The son of Apollo returned Tyson's somewhat tentative smile and handshake with a broad smile and a manly grip of his own.
"Hello Tyson! I've been looking forward to meeting you! Do you speak Greek like Percy here?"
"{*Yes sir, I do. My daddy always talks with me in the old tongue, as he calls it. I'm happy that you speak it also!*}".
The older Priest smiled broadly. They all had so much in common! This would be a good first meeting. The men could listen as he counseled Sally in her first steps into Mother Church.
He went on ahead; "{*I'm here tonight because your wonderful Mama here asked me to have dinner with you. That and she would like to talk to me about coming to my church. I was her aunt and uncle's local church priest back in Ohio, maybe twenty years ago. So we have known each other as friends for a long time now. I would like to encourage you all to ask me any questions about my Church, my Faith at all. Anything that you'd like to know, please do ask. Is that okay by you, Tyson? Percy?*}"
Both young men looked at each other and then turned back to their elders; "Yes, sure. We'll do that".
Percy spoke for them both in English. Then he turned to his stepfather and filled Paul in on what was said. Paul could speak a little Greek, but nowhere nearly as fluently as the other three.
Plus theirs was an older dialect. They spoke in older Koine Greek, similar to Attic and very much unlike modern Greek. This was due to their godly heritage, although the priest spoke both due to his upbringing.
Sally smiled and then said, "Well! I think it's time for dinner. Let's go guys; Percy, Tyson? Are your hands washed?"
The two looked at their mother and said, "Yes Mom. All washed up".
Smiling, Sally led her family to dinner.
Two Hours and Seven Courses Later…
"Percy, that is hysterical! Zeus had cookie crumbs in his beard and a milk mustache?! Ohhh, what I'd give to have seen that! And Hera wiping him up like a little kid!"
A peal of thunder rolled down the sky outside. It kind of hitched and stuttered, and sounded almost like laughter...
"Mom! Ya know what this means, right?"
Sally looked up from her sip of coffee with the question in her eyes.
Percy answered; "You gotta make more cookies for Uncle Zeus! That was him laughing at my story!"
Stavros looked over pensively at Percy. "Do you mean he's actually listening in on our conversation right now, Percy?"
Percy looked thoughtfully over at the middle-aged priest and said, "Well, not all the time. But when he hears his name… he pays attention that way. Sometimes I have to remember to take care in what I say, and who I'm speaking about".
Paul, who'd been quiet for most of the meal except for some small talk broke in at this point. "We often speak in a kind of code. We know who we're speaking about. We pantomime and use euphemisms, as well as similes regarding 'them folk'. As long as we stay away from proper names, it doesn't seem to be a problem".
Papa Stavrious looked up and nodded at them. "I can well understand. I come from a very similar background, and I spent four, almost five years at the Camp. Even after I entered the Seminary, I was still cautious. I was even warned not to use names, as it sort of invokes "demonic influences", as it was put to me. It was our school's Rector who told me to take special care after I told him the truth about myself".
Percy seemed curious. How had this simple priest managed to keep the Olympian Pantheon away from him? He wanted to understand better. Just how powerful was the priest?
"Papa Stavrious, could you please tell me what power you have that keeps your father Apollo away, for instance? And does it work with all of the 'Upstairs Neighbors'?"
Stavrious smiled. Tyson nodded his head as if agreeing that he'd also like to know. Sally and Paul were also interested, although Sally had a vague idea as to the answer.
"I like that; 'Upstairs Neighbors'. Good one! Well. To answer your question Percy and Tyson, I have no "powers" whatsoever. None. At… ALL".
Even Paul frowned at that. Nothing? Did that mean that all the gods could see and hear Priests all the time?
"But Father," asked Tyson; "Isn't that.. well, kind of dangerous for you?"
The priest looked over and said simply, "No".
Now EVERYONE was looking at him. You could have heard a sliver of baklava falling!
"Okay, here's how this works. I was consecrated as a priest. That means that I was specially blessed, blessed in a very formal ceremony when I was made a priest. A bishop consecrated my hands and my head and my lips and my eyes and my heart so that I would always eat, breathe, sleep and my heart will always beat for God. My hands are specially %%consecrated so I may consecrate the sacred elements of the Eucharistos, the bread and wine that represents the Last Supper that The Son spent with his Apostles.
"Do you have any questions right now for me?"
Tyson raised his hand like a very large child in a schoolroom.
"Yes, Father. How is it that the Pantheon doesn't attack you or any other priests? It's very mysterious to me!"
Father Stavros looked at Percy and then Tyson. He sighed, for he absolutely knew, he KNEW that someone was about to be left behind.
Tyson was a Cyclope, a general of the Olympian Armies. And Tyson… Didn't have a soul. Not like the others
Ohh, he had an 'anima', a created spirit of sorts. But he had no Immortal Soul. That was within the province of human beings ONLY. Stavros knew that for a fact. And his Faith was explicit on this very subject. Only those created through the act of human genesis in the line of Adam and Eve, and that by the command of Almighty God could be granted a soul.
And that left out beings such as many merfolk of the lower evolutionary orders (SharkMen and such), satyrs, nymphs, sprites, monsters (ALL Monsters), and Cyclopes. The "higher levels" of merfolk such as your average Atlantean in particular were actually of actual human descendancy. Poseidon had altered their physiology to keep their race from drowning altogether when he and Zeus destroyed the city and sank the huge island it sat on to keep the Earth from destruction by the ancient Atlanteans' ruling caste. Those ones had been killed.
Gods such as Poseidon, Zeus and the rest of all their kin were "Celestial Beings", and as such quite literally transcended mortality; they were almost completely immortal so long as they decided to continue to exist. But all the gods had a definite beginning… they all had a beginning, so they would all, ALL have an END.
And their children had all been gifted with a true human soul, an Animus and all their very own souls, not communally shared such as with dogs and cats… and Cyclopes. This was due to their mortal parent
And Papa knew this. He was going to have to explain this, along with so much more. There were days that he was grateful for his sire, Apollo. But never enough to call upon him for help. To do so would be to reject his adopted Faith, his Father in Heaven and that… THAT was completely unacceptable. He was on his own in this.
Papa Stavrious had found true immortality. He would need to die as a human being in order for his soul to achieve Immortality through being perfected by God, by the Father in Heaven. But in living his life, Stavros knew that he would live forever in utter bliss. And he wouldn't have to live and die and live again in order to achieve Elysium three times and only then in order to be placed among those who enjoyed their eternity in the Isles of the Blest. That was the closest thing the Greeks had to such complete perfection as was already attainable by accepting Baptism and the Sacraments as visible Acts of Faith in God and in His Word; the LOGOS.
He would try to explain all this now, as best as he could.
"What if I told you both that there was a way for Percy to end his suffering and to begin his life, in a fashion, all over again? No more monsters, no more temperamental "gods and goddesses", no more of ANY of that! And this way is right… THERE… ", and Stavrious pointed a slender but strong finger right at Percy's heart… "and ripe for the asking! And all you need to do is to listen to what I am already teaching your mom, and when I am done teaching you, all you need to do IF!... IF!... you believe in what I have taught is permit me to Baptize you in water and in the Holy Spirit. What do you think of that, Percy? No more pain from the antics of the 'upstairs neighbors' anymore. No more doubt or ancient feuds, wondering who you've insulted or not sacrificed properly to or running for your LIFE"!
Papa said this last louder so as to emphasize the point he was trying to make. The resulting silence was thick enough to cut it with a knife… Percy looked at Tyson and Tyson looked at Percy. They both looked at their mother and they all looked at Paul, at their dad.
Then they all looked at Papa Stavroius.
Percy smiled at the older priest and said, "Ok Father. We're all down for this. If it will help me get past my problems…"
The older priest felt an enormous sense of holiness wash over him. He sensed the presence of… something… relaxing and strengthening him. He knew, absolutely KNEW that he had been given this incredible thing to do, to teach and baptize this entire family.
And maybe… just "maybe even this young and very good-hearted Cyclope? Could there be hope for him too? Father, I beg You to guide me in this great undertaking."
As soon as that thought made it into his psyche, his consciousness, Stavros KNEW that it was right. The incredible feeling of strength and purpose he had just been blest with told him that Tyson was "not out-of-bounds". But much depended on Tyson.
"Well, why don't I start here and now, and tell you all about our Faith and how the Church came to be, two thousand years ago? And while I'm at it, why don't I tell you a story about three pagan 'gods' who thought they could threaten these early Christian evengelists who 'offended' these pagan beings by teaching our Faith to Greeks who wanted to learn about the "Better Way"? Believe me, you'll understand the ending of THIS story!"
And so it began.
Time Skip: 2030; Olympus, The Central Hearth of Hestia (from ch 2), the events of one month later...
And Hestia remembered it all...
…"What point did it serve, my helping Olympus and protecting it when Olympus won't protect me now that I need it"?
And Athena just shrugged and turned away from Percy. Hestia thought that made up Percy's mind for him. She remembered he had come up to Olympus a few days later and looked around for her at her hearth. When he came in he didn't see her right away, so he just sat and waited. And finally he called for her by name, and so she came to him and sat next to him. She wasn't sure what to expect.
Percy had come to talk with his Aunt. He'd come to a decision and this was something he wanted, needed to share with the one goddess who'd actually stood by his side through his anguish and troubles. She had come to love this amazing young man, first as a nephew and now? Something… more.
But his heart was still connected to Annabeth Chase, even though she had left Percy. She had never considered 'making a play' for Percy; as handsome as he was with the physique of a well-muscled athlete, his body hardened by years of heavy training and combat; she would still NEVER make the first move.
Hestia had perfect recall; she could still remember the events of that fateful afternoon as if it were yesterday. She couldn't have believed it, but even her heart was broken by what Percy said next.
"Auntie, I wanted to be the one to tell you something, something big, something… amazing! I don't want you hear about this second or third hand or even in Council.
"I owe you just so very much. You've always been here for me; you've been my strong shoulder and always gave me your ear despite your responsibilities and domain to take care of.
"Thank you for that. You are truly my family. And that's what makes this hurt all the more…"
Hestia's heart took a lurch. Where was Percy going with this? What was this all about?
"Percy, does your father know about this… whatever it is? I so hope you aren't planning to harm yourself?!"
"NONONO! NEVER THAT! NEVER! I PROMISE YOU!"
Hestia let out a long, deep breath and gave a sigh, her small right hand placed across her childish breast. She suddenly took her form as an adult woman with her age about in her late twenties. If he was stressing their family relationship as aunt and nephew, she decided to give herself a few years on him so she would seem to be a bit more authoritative in her demeanor.
Percy kept on with what he'd come to say.
"I've been talking to an Orthodox Catholic Priest for a few weeks. He's known my Mom since she was a young girl living with her aunt and uncle back in Ohio"...
Percy told Hestia the story, told her of the message of love, peace, living his own life in a Real Faith based system that worshipped just one God; the Creator of EVERYTHING.
Hestia knew of this Faith. She'd always paid attention to what went on in the world, and she knew of the Faith at it's start. She knew that when the Hellenic Assyrian kings had corrupted this God's temple in Jerusalem, He had wreaked vengeance upon them with a string of military defeats using the family of the Maccabees to lead Israel in revolt while the Assyrians had to contend with several other enemies in battle.
Hestia knew how furious "He Whose Name is I AM" had been when the statues of Zeus and Apollo and all the others had been placed in the Jewish Holy of Holies. Chaos herself had called upon Hestia to communicate this to the pagan king, one named Antiochus IV Epiphanes and tell him that he needed to call off this "Hellenization" of Jerusalem and remove the gross insults to "I AM".
Hestia attempted this through dreams given to the man. Epiphanes, never the sharpest tool in the box took the dreams to be a challenge to further Hellenize all Israel and Judea. He would show this God just "who was who"!
Yeahhhh, he showed God alright.
The Parthian Empire invaded his kingdom from the north and west, taking Armenia away and necessitating the king split his forces, and his kingdom as well. He did get Armenia back and reunited both halves of his kingdom, but he lived to hear his own name made a thing of ridicule and he died of an ignominious illness, possibly a "social disease".
"I AM" made a new covenant with His people and as a sign caused a small jar of holy oil found in the Temple storage rooms that was meant to burn for one day to burn for 8 days! The people of Israel called this "Chanukkah", the Festival of Light.
True, they still fell away. God truly wasn't easy to follow; all those Mosaic Laws and such. Christ had made it much easier.
Love. That was the answer.
He taught that the Heavenly Father truly did love us all. And if we loved and trusted Him in return, then all was well. It was the path to "salvation", the path to peace.
Percy did his level best to "explain" all this to Hestia. But she knew it already. She hadn't been born yesterday. She remembered when all of a sudden the Greek gods could no longer get into either Israel or Judea. All their followers among the ethnic Jewish folk (and there were many) were declared "off-limits" to the Olympians and they could no longer answer any prayers, even those directed to them.
Lady Chaos had explained to Hestia that "I AM is 'paving a path' for "Him Who Is Yet To Come". And when 'He' did come, the world would change irrevocably.
And it most surely did.
Hestia tried explaining all this to her youngest brother, to the Council, but to no avail. They were all too thickheaded to understand the importance of all this, and the Council had finally decided to just let their few thousand Hellenized Jewish followers slide away. Yahweh had always "interfered" in their lives at various times anyway, so why put up a fuss?
In the end, these events spelled an enormous lessening in the importance and suzereinty of the Greek gods. First the Romans forced changes on them that very nearly crippled them and almost lost them all of Greece, and then this newest appearance of Yahweh in the Middle East stripped away the Jewish peoples, many of whom had willingly converted to the Greek way of life.
The Oracles had made various prophecies about "days of change' and the "fall of Pan-Hellenic civilization" as it was set up by Alexander of Macedon. No one had ever really listened.
All she could do was just sigh; they were losing Perseus, the greatest and most powerful demigod ever to live. She was at her wits end. What the hell should she do now?
The one man in all the world she felt safe in giving herself to in love and in marriage had decided to lock himself away from his own godly family, to deny his actual origins and his pagan heritage. And he was going to embrace the one Deity in all the universe… or beyond it… who could actually keep the gods away and quite effectively.
She had to speak with Sally. Someone had to stop him. Someone had to try!