Disclaimer – I do not own this, or these characters. These are by Hans50 and Uncle Rick.
I'M BACK! Please, vote in my profile – who should Percy end up with in my story? Annabeth? Artemis? Other? OC? REVIEW! VOTE! BE FREE – but please, accept my eternal cliff hangers.
Anyway - he's Back and a Proposition
Previously…
"Call a council meeting. Dad will probably want to know that you found him and Uncle P will definitely want to know. I'll inform the council when he is stable."
Artemis nodded as Apollo flashed out with the unconscious demigod. She turned to look at Thalia, who had a look of shock on her face.
"Stay her and set up camp, I'll be back as soon as I can." Artemis said.
Thalia looked like she wanted to protest but closed her mouth at the look Artemis gave her. She reluctantly nodded her head but gave her look that said to tell her everything when she gets back. She then turned around and left to go set up camp.
With that out of the way, Artemis closed her eyes and disappeared in a silvery light with one thought on her mind. This is definitely going to be interesting.
Now…
Artemis reappeared inside the throne room of Olympus. She was still amazed at how Annabeth, the Architect of Olympus, had been able to remodel the throne room to make it look better. The columns were made of pure white marble with gold and sliver trimming in the cracks and along the edges, giving them a ethereal quality. The walls were covered with the history of the gods, pictures depicting their triumph over Kronos in the First Titan War, the Big Three drawing lots and showing their respective symbols of power and going down to recent events with Percy and the camp defending Olympus from Kronos and his forces and the massive battle that took place at the base of the Original Mount Olympus, with Percy standing over Gaea victoriously, with all the other gods standing over their fallen banes.
The colors made them look so life-like that it looked like she could reach out and touch the history. The floor was covered in the designs and symbols of the Olympians, each of their symbols arranged in a circle on the floor in the middle of the throne room. The ceiling overhead was open-roofed and depicted the stars and constellations and she caught sight of her favorite; The Huntress, her former lieutenant Zoe Nightshade, running across the sky in search of prey.
She pulled out her bow and shot a silver arrow up into the sky, where it exploded in a silver shower, signaling she was calling an emergency meeting.
Within a few seconds, the gods began to flash in. Athena flashed in with a flurry of owls while Aphrodite and Ares appeared in a pink puff of perfume and a flash of blood red light. The love and war god looked like they were just together by the state of their rumpled clothes and flushed faces.
Hephaestus appeared in a flash of fire, Hestia stepped out of the hearth, and Hades appeared in a swirl of shadows. Hermes flew in down from the ceiling, his winged shoes fluttering erratically.
Demeter and Dionysus just flashed in with no special entrance while Hera and Zeus arrived in a massive bolt of lightning and thunder.
All the gods took their seats and waited on Poseidon. They were all a little worried about the sea god as they saw the state of the sea. He finally arrived in a fine sea mist and winced at the look of depression on his face. He made his way to his throne as all the gods looked on worried at the state of their brother and uncle. Percy's disappearance and the death of Sally really hit him hard.
"Why have you called this meeting, daughter? And where is Apollo? Why isn't he here?" Zeus questioned as they looked at the moon goddess.
Artemis looked at her father with a look mixed with seriousness and a little apprehension.
"We found Perseus, father." Artemis said.
The affect on the throne room was immediate. All their eyes widened and jaws dropped before shouts broke out throughout the room. Questions were flying right at her, but it was all silenced as Poseidon leapt off his throne and crossed over to Artemis who stepped back in surprise.
"Where is he niece? Is he all right? Is he hurt? How did you find him? Please tell me where he is. I need to see if he is fine." Poseidon pleaded with hope in his eyes.
"He is fine uncle. Or, he will be fine. It's a complicated story but he is safe now and being taken care of by Apollo." Artemis assured the distressed sea god.
"What do you mean 'he will be'?" Poseidon growled out as she paled.
"He was shot with an arrow in the back by a monster and in the stomach by Thalia. It was an accident! She didn't know it was him!" She quickly defended her lieutenant and sister.
Poseidon seemed satisfied with that answer but still angry that his son was injured and looked like he still wanted to flash to his son's side immediately. He forced himself to sit back in his throne and motioned for her to tale the tale.
Artemis looked around at the council and saw Hestia looked like a truck hit her. She had a look of intense worry and concern on her face, more than what was suppose to be on her face even if Percy was her favorite demigod. Artemis narrowed her eyes in suspicion at the Hearth Goddess as an idea began to form in her head. She shook her head and turned back to the curious council members.
"We were tracking down the large group of monsters that you assigned us father. We were closing in on the trail when the group ambushed us and there was far more monsters than we anticipated. It was like…they were waiting for us." She stated.
The gods had uneasy looks on their faces at this information. Monsters coordinating coherent strikes and attacks on demigods? That does not bode well. And most of them had demigod children in the Hunt, so that made them really uneasy.
"We fought them but coupled with the surprise attack and their numbers, we were slowly being pushed back as they formed a circle around us. One particular Cyclops managed to catch Thalia off-guard and was about to kill her when something unexpected happened." She continued.
The gods were leaning forward in their seats now, all anxious to her what happened. Zeus was gripping his throne's armrest very tightly, scared for his daughter.
"A fireball blasted his club out of his hands before he could bring down on her and another fire blast took his head clean off his shoulders. We turned and saw a mystery man with his hands ablaze on the edge of the clearing."
"He then took out his sword and knife, set them on fire, and began to kill all the monsters quite brutally. He finished up with creating a fire wall and burning them all alive." Artemis said with just a hint of disbelief in her eyes as even she was having trouble comprehending what she saw.
"We approached him, but he tensed and lunged towards Thalia, startling her into shooting him in the stomach, and pushed her out of the way as a black arrow imbedded itself into his back. He pulled his dagger and threw it at the assailant, which was a dracaena, and killed her. He then collapsed and we found out that the man was none other than Perseus." Artemis completed her report.
Stunned silence rang throughout the throne room.
"Fireballs? Lighting his weapons on fire? How can he do that? The only gods with a fire domain are Hestia and Hephaestus." Athena questioned, her mind going a million miles a minute.
"I think someone may have an explanation, isn't that right Hestia?" Artemis looked accusingly at her aunt.
Hestia met the incredulous gaze of the council before nodding her head. "I think it's time I told the truth. I have known where Percy has been for the past three years ever since his mother died." Hestia said calmly.
"You knew where my son was and you never told me?!" Poseidon yelled at his sister in anger and hurt in his voice.
"Sister, why haven't you old us where he was? Couldn't you tell that everyone was worried sick about him, not knowing if he was alive or dead?" Hera asked much to the council's surprise.
Hestia met their angry glares with her own before they all turned away.
"The reason why I didn't you all is because he didn't want to be found. I found him after he witnessed his parent's murders right in front of his eyes and he was incredible distraught. I looked into his memories and saw what all the campers did to him and how it affected him. Never before had I seen so little hope in such a great hero before." She growled. They had never seen her look so angry before.
At that moment Apollo flashed in.
"He's awake!" Apollo exclaimed with his usual sunny smile.
"Bring him here Apollo. We would like to ask him some questions." Zeus told his son who nodded and flashed away.
A few moments later, he flashed back in, supporting a tired and slightly angry looking Percy.
The council stared at the son of Poseidon in shocked silence. These past three years have been very kind to him physically. He was a towering 6'3' in height with a powerful build, built for strength and speed. He looked as handsome as ever with his unruly raven black hair and his sea green eyes. They did a double take as they saw the ring of orange and red around the pupil that swirled like actual flames.
All the goddesses blushed at his appearance while Aphrodite was flat out staring and drooling at Percy's physique.
Poseidon wasted no time in bounding off his throne and wrapping Percy up in a tight embrace with tears in his eyes. The slight anger in Percy's eyes melted away as he hugged his father back just as tightly.
"My son, where have you been these past few years?" Poseidon asked as he pulled away to look at his son. He was shocked to see that the usual joy and mirth that once sparkled in his eyes was no longer there.
Percy looked at his dad sadly. "I've been here and there. Had a lot on my mind after what happened at…camp." He winced at the word camp like it hurt him to say it.
"Why didn't you come to me? I would have gladly allowed you to stay with me in Atlantis." Poseidon asked.
Percy only shook his head. "I didn't want to be a burden on you and your family. While I know you would have let me stay with you, I was pretty sure Amphitrite and Triton wouldn't have liked my presence and I didn't want to cause strife for one of the few people who still cared about me."
Poseidon was saddened that his son thought that he would be a cause of conflict at his home but he understood that at the time, it was probably for the best.
"Percy, no matter what, know that you can always find comfort and solace in the sea. Actually Amphitrite and Triton have turned over a new leaf and have actually been helping me look for you these past few years." Poseidon said sincerely.
Percy actually looked shocked. "You're kidding right? How did that happen?"
Poseidon smiled. "You seem to have a knack for doing the impossible my boy." He laughed slightly at the look on his son's face.
"Perseus!" Zeus called from his throne after he gotten over his shock. "I hate to interrupt the father son moment but we have some questions for you."
Poseidon just rolled his eyes at his brother though he knew his words to be true. He gave his son one last meaningful look before he walked back to his throne.
Zeus cleared his throat. "So Perseus, would you care to tell us what you have been up to these past few years after you…left camp?" He asked hesitantly.
Percy's eyes darkened slightly and his clothes began to smoke. Hestia got up from her throne and crossed over to Percy, placing a calming hand on his shoulder.
"I have been traveling across the country, living in the forests and helping demigods get to there respective camps with the help of my patron Hestia." He said emotionlessly.
The gods looked looked shocked but smiled gratefully at him and Hestia that he was helping their children, but were a little surprised when he didn't even smile. The campers and the daughter of Athena really hurt him.
"How did Hestia become your patron?" Athena asked. She really wanted to know and she hated not knowing.
Pain flashed briefly in Percy's eyes as he looked at Athena, the mother of the girl who betrayed him, before he wiped his face of emotion.
"After I saw my parents get…killed, she arrived and comforted me. She transported us to the cabin in Montauk, where we gave them the last rites. She then offered to make me her champion and…" He stopped at looked at Hestia for moment before she nodded he head. He took a deep breath and continued. "…and her son."
The gods lost count of how many times they were shocked by this demigod. He almost smiled at the looks on all their faces. It was quite comical.
"She…you…adopted...son…what?" Hermes and Apollo were stuttering.
"You adopted my son without my permission?" Poseidon bellowed at Hestia.
Percy immediately stepped in front of his dad with fire in his eyes.
"Do not shout at her." He said in a deathly calm voice. Poseidon just looked at his son in confusion.
"She has helped me through so much in the past few years and I am proud to be her son. While mom will always be my mom and will always have a place in my heart, Hestia has filled the void since her death and I am forever grateful to her." He explained.
Poseidon just looked between his son and his sister before crossing over to her and pulling her into a hug.
"Thank you sister. While I wish you had told me, I'm grateful you helped my son. I'm sorry for yelling at you, i was just surprised." Poseidon said in gratitude. Hestia nodded smiling and returned the hug.
"So Perseus, how did you know we were in trouble with that group of monsters? I'm sure you weren't in the area by coincidence." Artemis said suspiciously as she glared at him. She quickly stopped at the glares she was getting from Hestia, Poseidon, and half the council.
Percy didn't even flinch at her accusation. "You're right. Mom told me about the group of monsters you were hunting and sent me as insurance to make sure they all were killed and to shadow the hunters to make sure they weren't hurt. And I'm glad she did, it looked like you needed my help." He said a little cheekily, some of the old Percy was shining through for a moment.
Artemis bristled at needing help from a man, but she knew he was right. If he wasn't there she would have lost a lot of her hunters and Thalia, who means as much to her as Zoe did. So she just settled for fuming in silence with a red face.
"So Percy, now that you are back, would you be returning to Camp Half-Blood?" Zeus asked. He knew he asked a stupid question by the look of anger and pain on Percy's face.
Percy's eyes darkened and burst into flame, He had a ring of fire surrounding him as he struggled to control his emotions. The throne room shook slightly before Hestia wrapped Percy up in a hug, sending calming pulses into his body before the fire went away and the room stopped shaking.
He took a deep breathe before looking at Zeus. "Sorry about that, but I would rather not return there ever." He said in a frosty tone.
Zeus nodded his head slowly, a little unnerved at Percy's display of power.
"Well then, if you won't be going to camp, then I would like to offer you a proposition." He said slowly.
All the council and Percy looked at Zeus curiously. What was he about to offer him?
"Because of the recent wars, Kronos and Gaea's armies have fractured into smaller groups and it won't wind down for a while. And as evidence to today's attack on Artemis and her hunt, they are getting smarter. What I'm about to offer you won't be easy and Artemis will hate it, but I trust only you will be able to do this."
Percy's eyes widened. How much did he miss in the past few years that Zeus was being kind to him and not blasting him out of existence for his little display of power?
"If you are willing, I would like to offer you the position of Guardian of the Hunt." Zeus said seriously.
Everyone's eyes nearly pooped out of their skulls at Zeus's declaration, none more so than Percy's and Artemis's.
"ABSOULUTELY NOT!" Artemis screamed, "I WILL ALLOW A MALE TO BE GUARDION OF HUNT! NO MATTER WHO HE IS!"
"Now daughter, be reasonable-" Zeus tried to calm his irate daughter.
"Be REASONABLE? My Hunters will NEVER accept this! This idea of yours is insane and I DON"T NEED PROTECTING!" Artemis yelled indignantly.
"Not according to what happened today." Zeus replied with a little steel in his voice.
"If not for my nephew, some of your hunters would be dead at this moment, including my own daughter."
"Are you saying that I am unable to take care of my own hunters?" She hissed out.
"Not at all. But this will put my mind at ease and will help exponentially with the elimination of the remaining monster forces. Plus he is a capable warrior, having defeated both Kronos AND Gaea, so I would feel much better if he was looking after our most elite fighting force." He persuaded, laying it on a little thick at the end.
'But still, he is a male." She spat the word as if it's the worst insult in the word. "He would never be loyal to his duties and would hit on my hunters!"
Percy's eyes flared in anger as his hands burst into flames. How dare she say that he would never be loyal and that he would hit on her hunters! He is still not recovered from what happened three years ago and doesn't even want a girlfriend for the foreseeable future. And his fatal flaw is loyalty, if anyone would stick to an oath of loyalty, it would be him.
He looked at Zeus who caught his eye and gave him a nod. Then he walked over to Artemis's throne, knelt down, and bowed his head.
"If Lady Artemis and the council should accept this oath, I, Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, adopted son of Hestia, swear upon the River Styx to be forever loyal to her, the Hunt, and Olympus as long as I live. I will protect her, the Hunt and Olympus to the best of my abilities from any threat should they need me and will serve them faithfully for all eternity until they give me a reason not to." Percy swore, his voice amplified as he made his oath, reverberating throughout the room.
The Artemis and the Olympians were stunned while Hestia and Poseidon looked at their son in pride. They just gained a very powerful and skilled warrior at their disposal, not to mention said warrior is the best and most loyal demigod in history.
Artemis was stunned at what this boy…no, man just did. He swore upon the River Styx to protect her and her hunt. If she denied his oath then it would make her look prideful and childish.
Her face burning red she replied begrudgingly, "I accept your oath."
Lightening flashed and thunder boomed throughout the room, sealing the oath. The Olympians, still a little stunned looked at Percy before looking at Zeus, who was smiling a little smugly.
"Very well then nephew, then as the newly christened Guardian of the Hunt, me and the council will bestow upon you the Blessing of Olympus. The blessing will read your heart, soul, intentions, and task you are to perform, and choose a special ability that will be best suited to you. Are you ready Perseus?" Zeus asked.
Percy nodded his head. "I am uncle. And could you please call me Percy? Perseus feels too formal for my taste."
The council chuckled at Percy's attitude. Even though he has been hurt and betrayed, he is still the same, sarcastic upstart that they all know and have grown to love.
"Very well Perse…I mean Percy." Zeus caught himself, before he became serious.
He and the council stood up and Zeus began to chant in Ancient Greek. The throne room began to darken as the gods began to glow a golden color. They all lifted their hands, palms pointing at Percy, light gathering in their hands.
Streams of multicolored light streamed from their hands, sea green for Poseidon, electric blue for Zeus, Onyx black for Hades, reddish-orange for Hestia, Vibrant forest green for Demeter, chocolate brown for Hera, blood red for Ares, moon silver for Artemis, bright gold for Apollo, striking gray for Athena, light blue for Hermes, fire red for Hephaestus, hot pink for Aphrodite, and a deep purple for Dionysus.
All the colored streams of light collected into a glowing multicolored ball in front of Percy before it shot forward and enveloped him in glowing light.
When the ball of light hit him, he felt a rush of power roll through him. Then the pain started. It flowed through him like a rushing river as he screamed in pain. He felt the majority of the pain collect in his back, right in between his shoulder blades. It felt like something was pushing it's way out through his skin. It kept pushing and pulsing before his skin gave way, a massive rip was heard, and something sprang out of his back.
He felt immense relief as soon as he felt whatever it was sprang from his back. It felt like another limb was growing from his back and he shrugged his shoulders, rustling his new appendages. He felt something soft brush his shoulders and he heard a bunch of gasps come from the gods.
He looked at their shocked and awed faces before looking over his shoulders to see what it was that got such a reaction from them. There, attached to his back, was a massive set of midnight black raven wings.
The wings stretched to a wingspan of 15 feet and were the most beautiful things he had ever seen in his life. Midnight black was the predominant color, but he caught flashes of silver, grey, and some gold feathers all interlocked with each other and shimmered as he stretched the wings out.
He gave an experimental flap and he rose off the ground about a foot before settling back to the ground. He had a dumbstruck look on his face before a massive smile lit up his face.
"Wings…of course it had to be wings." Zeus muttered to himself.
"I have WINGS!" Percy shouted elated. He stretched them out to their fullest limits and it made him look like an avenging angel.
"Why do I have wings?" Percy asked as he looked at the gods. He saw his dad looking smugly at Zeus, probably thinking about how funny it is that a son of his has wings and can fly in the domain of his brother.
"This has never happened before." Hermes said looking shell-shocked.
"What do you mean? I mean, having wings is awesome but what's the big deal? You guys are acting like this is a miracle or something." Percy said
"That's because no one who has ever has ever received the Blessing of Olympus has ever received wings before." Athena stated.
"When someone receives wings, it means that that person is a true hero and is of pure heart and soul. Not to mention they are indestructible and cannot break." Hades said.
"Not to mention it makes you look HOT!" Aphrodite squealed, looking at Percy seductively.
Percy said something really smart along the lines of…
"Oh."
They all laughed at his sharp wit.
"Now before you go off on your new job, I give you permission to freely fly in my domain. Kind of have to now that you got wings." Zeus muttered. His brothers and children snickered at his expression. No matter how much he had changed, Zeus was still having a difficult time with letting a son of his brother, fly in his domain.
Zeus shook himself out of his thoughts. "Does anyone wish to bless Percy before we adjourn?"
Athena raised her hand and approached Percy.
"Perseus…Percy, I know what my daughter has done to you, you did not deserve that and I am so sorry." Athena said swallowing her pride, obviously upset about what her daughter did.
Athena felt a hand on her shoulder and she looked into Percy's eyes. "Do not apologize Lady Athena. You do not control your…daughter's actions, so there is nothing to forgive from you. It was her decision and hers alone." Percy said seriously with a slightly pained tone.
Athena looked at him gratefully before placing a on his shoulder. He glowed grey for a moment before it disappeared. His mind felt like it had opened up. He was analyzing the room for strategic points, exits, entrances, forming a battle plan should a battle break out.
"With my blessing, you will be able to analyze any area and find the strategic weak points and form battle plans much quicker than normal. I have also lessened you ADHD and dyslexia." Athena explained.
Percy bowed to her. "Thank you Lady Athena."
Athena smiled. "You're welcome Percy. And please, just Athena."
Percy returned the smile. Athena walked back to her throne and sat down avoiding the incredulous looks of the council. Athena apologized! And to a son of Poseidon! What was the world coming to?!
"Anyone else?" Zeus asked.
"Oohhh! ME! ME! I give you my blessing too!" Aphrodite squealed out.
The smile on Percy's face shifted into one of horror.
"What? NO!" Too late. Pink perfume covered Percy and when it cleared, it showed him looking pissed off with flames in his eyes.
"Are you SERIOUS?" He screeched. "I'm going to be guarding the biggest man-haters on the PLANET and you do THIS? I'll be lucky if I survive the first week! No, I'll be luck if I survive the first DAY!" He ranted glaring at a staring Aphrodite.
She didn't even hear his rant because she and all the other gods were looking at his new form.
He stood there with his impressive height of 6'3', wearing a tight, form fitting black t-shirt that seemed to straining against the muscles in his arms and chest. On the t-shirt were silver lines forming into the shapes of a full moon with wolves on either side, heads lifted up, howling. He had on black pants with black hunting boots that had silver steel and celestial bronze toes on the ends. Over the shirt, he was wearing a black hoodie with a green trident one his left side and red flame patterns on the right. There were slits in the back of the hoodie where his winds stood proudly against all the black and silver.
All of his features seemed to be enhanced; his black hair looked even blacker, like deep space, and looked soft and silky, making the goddesses want to run their fingers through it. His face had no blemishes and it looked sculpted and defined. His eyes seemed to glow from within, power swirling in their depths.
He looked like a god in mortal form and the look just screamed 'BADASS!'
The gods had slightly jealous looks on their faces, mainly Apollo, and the goddesses were blushing a mixture of red and gold. Aphrodite was down right drooling at the sight of him and the look in her eyes said it all, 'I'm going to make him mine!'
Artemis quickly covered up her blush and an evil smirk adorned her features.
"This is perfect!" She said happily. Everyone turned to her with incredulous looks on their faces.
She just looked at them with an evil smile as her eyes twinkled evilly.
"The Hunters will make his life even worse now. Oh this is gonna be fun." She said with sadistic glee.
Percy paled at her tone, but recovered and wiped his face clean of emotion.
Hades stood up. "Nephew, I would like to give you something as well."
Shadows collected in his outstretched hands before a dozen Stygian Iron throwing knives were revealed. The looked beautiful, with their craftsmanship and smooth black iron look. They looked beautiful, lethal, and deadly.
Hades looked over at Hephaestus.
"Hephaestus could you summon a throwing knife belt with a dozen sheaths please?" He requested of the forge god.
Hephaestus nodded and summoned to his hand a full body sheath. This sheath has made so one strap would go over one shoulder, the other strap would go over the other shoulder, and the belt would go around his waist.
Hades took it with a nod of thanks, placed the throwing knives in the sheaths, and flashed it over onto Percy.
Percy had three knives positioned on his right shoulder, three positioned on his left shoulder, three on his right hip, and three on his left hip. All within easy grabbing distance.
'Those knives were forged by my master forgers and were cooled in the River Styx. Like your sword, they will return to you if you should lose them within the hour. They are lethal to both monsters and mortals alike, so be careful." Hades said.
Percy was in awe of the knives and turned to Hades and bowed.
"Thank you Uncle. And if it isn't too much to ask, if I ever get some free time from my duties, would it be all right if I visited Nico? I missed my cousin a lot over the years." He asked while looking at Artemis to see if she would allow it. She had her hunter mask on but gave a imperceptible nod of her head.
Hades smiled at the care his nephew he had for his son.
"Of course. You are welcome into my domain at any time. Nico has missed you a lot too. He hasn't stopped searching for you. I do have to warn you though, there will be hell to pay from him." He warned with a small laugh as he saw his face pale.
Percy sighed. "Had a feeling that would be the case. When I have the time, I will visit as soon as I can. I promise."
Hades nodded and sat back down in his throne. Poseidon stood up from his throne and walked over to his son.
"I'm so glad you are back Percy. I have something I have been meaning to give you since the end of the Second Giant War." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a sea green pen.
Uncapping it, a beautiful sword sprang forth. It looked like an exact replica of Riptide except that it's blade was made of a blue and green metal. The handle was Celestial Bronze with a black leather grip, with a small, black pearl imbedded in the middle.
"This sword's name is Typhoon. That metal is Atlantian Steel, mined if the caves outside of my kingdom. It is incredibly resilient and you can summon blasts of water with it if there is none nearby. It is like your other sword Riptide. It is imbued with the power osf the sea." Poseidon explained.
Percy reached out and gripped the handle. He felt a rush of power go through him as the sword started to hum, almost in glee. It was perfectly balanced and fit in his hand like it was made for him, which it was.
Poseidon smiled in pride. "What this sword also represents is that it marks you as a True Prince of the Seas, second in line for the throne of Atlantis after Triton. It is your inheritance, my son. Wield it with pride."
Percy was stunned. He never thought he would get this many gifts and blessings ever. Frankly, he thought that they would all still hate him, since he does tend to speak without thinking first. But they all seem to have genuinely missed him.
Percy capped his new sword and hugged his father.
"Thank you dad. This means a lot." He whispered in his dad's ear.
"Your welcome son. Remember, what belongs to the sea shall always return to the sea." He said with a mischievous glint in his eye.
"Alright, well if that's all the gifts and blessings, then meeting adjourned! It is good to have you back Percy." Zeus boomed as he and Hera flashed out in a bolt of thunder and lightning.
The rest of the gods flashed out leaving Percy with just Artemis, Apollo, and Hestia.
Hestia crossed over and pulled her son into a hug.
"I'm so proud of you Percy and I am so glad you are all right. Thank you for healing you Apollo." She said gratefully at the sun god, who gave her a blinding smile and thumbs up.
"Don't you scare me like that again do you understand me young man?" She scolded in her protective motherly voice.
Percy nodded his head vigorously not wanting to get grounded for a century. Hestia smiled at the effect she still had on her son.
"Like what you father said, if you ever need to talk, come to the Hearth." She gave him one last hug before disappearing in a flash of flames.
Apollo was next to approach Percy.
"Glad to have you back cousin. Make sure that you don't get too shot up with arrows from those babes, alright?" He joked before getting serious.
"Listen bro, I know that I act immature at times, but please promise me you will look after my baby sis ok? I love her a lot and don't want anything to happen to her." He said in a hushed voice, making sure Artemis didn't hear him.
Percy nodded. "I'll do everything I can to make sure she stays safe."
Apollo smiled "If you ever want a ride in the Sun Chariot, send me an IM. We'll have a guys day out." He laughed before, he too, flashed out.
Artemis walked over with a suspicious look on her face. "What did Apollo talk to you about?"
Percy froze but used his new Athena blessed brain to come up with a quick excuse.
"Offered me to drive the Sun Chariot and hang out some time." He said quickly.
She narrowed her sliver eyes at him before accepting his answer. Her face then shifted to one of anger.
"Know this boy, while I am not happy about this, father apparently thinks that I need a guardian for my hunt and because of that oath, I'm stuck with you. So I'm gonna give you fair warning, your life will not be easy in the Hunt. You will follow my rules and do everything I say to the letter. Got it?" She glared at him.
"Got it, milady." He said as he bowed to her. He got smacked upside the head.
"Don't bow! I don't like it and it feels like you don't mean it." She grumbled.
Percy grinned. She really looked beautiful when she was angry, the way her silver eyes light up.
"Ok then, I'll figure something else out for you then. Something just for you." He said cheekily as her face grew even redder.
She then gave a sly grin. "Meet us at our camp site in Wisconsin. You have six hours to be there." She then disappeared in a flash of light.
Percy thought she was insane. How the heck was he going to get to Wisconsin in six hours?
Percy felt like slapping his head. He has wings for gods sakes. I am still such a Seaweed Brain. He thought. He felt a brief flash of hurt as he remembered the nickname Annabeth gave him but he pushed it down.
He left the throne room and walked the streets of Olympus. Many of the minor goddesses and female nature spirits were looking at him, blushing and giggling. He made it to the edge of Olympus and did something really crazy
He jumped off of Olympus.
Percy plummeted down like a rock, feeling the wind whipping through his hair, the familiar rush of adrenaline in his veins. As he got closer to the ground, he suddenly whipped out his wings and he was soaring through the sky.
He flapped them a few times, taking in the feeling of having new appendages flapping on his back and it was incredible. He let out a whoop of elation as he soared through the sky. Taking in the landscape that ran beneath him, he marveled at the beauty of the city below him and the sunset in the distance.
Feeling a slight tugging in his mind that he somehow knew was Artemis, he angled his body in that direction, flying towards his destination.
He had no idea what was in store for him, but he was ready for it and would face it head on.
And there is Chapter 6!
So what do you guys think? How do you like the gifts? And Percy has WINGS! Don't worry there will be plenty in store for our favorite hero.
Next chapter deals with the Hunt and how they will tortu-I mean, welcome Percy to the Hunt. The big reunion between Thalia and Percy is coming up! We will see some healing from the betrayal from Percy and some relationship development between him and Artemis!
Anyway, Hope you enjoyed this chapter and if you liked it, please leave a review! Tell your friends!