Rambo
Ch. 1 A Secret revealed
I do not own Percy Jackson or Rambo
Rick Riordan, David Morrell, and Sylvester Stallone do.
Positive reviews are welcome.
Ch. 1 A Secret revealed
The golden doors of Olympus was opened as the Goddess Artemis carried within her arms the shrouded body of Charles Jones, son of Poseidon. The shroud was blue and green and had a depiction of Poseidon's trident upon it. The Goddess had tears upon her eyes as she walked up to her uncle while the other Demi-Goddesses Annabeth Chase and Thalia Grace followed behind barely holding one another up due to emotional trauma at the loss of Charles. Both girls were in tears at having lost not just one, but three friendsin a matter of days.
Bianca was the first to fall due to an automaton created by the Smith God Hephaestus, the second was Zoe Nightshade due to the poison of the Dragon Ladon, and finally Charley, who took the spear to the chest meant for Lady Artemis. When they had left Mount Othrys, a rogue spear flew from nowhere and as Charley saw it coming, not wanting anybody getting hit by it, he placed himself behind Artemis as the spear connected with his chest and into his lungs. He held on long after Zoe's body dematerialized into the stars, but the moment they all landed on Olympus, he had already passed in Annabeths arms.
His last words were to his father to tell his brothers Triton and Tyson that he was sorry, that he loved Annabeth very much and that he always had and always will, and to tell his father and brothers that he died with honor. His final whisper was for Artemis to not blame herself and to stay the course. To have his father find his elder brother John.
As Artemis knelt and gently laid Charles to the floor at his fathers feet, Poseidon's form shifted until he was human sized as he fell to his knees and began breathing in agony as he pulled back the shroud that concealed his sons face. Charles was a handsome young man with a tan skin tone and a black mess of hair. And like his father, had eyes that were sea green, as if they came from the ocean itself. Poseidon grabbed Charles head and and upper body into his arms and wept. He swayed back and forth on his knees for several minutes until Zeus and the recently arrived Hades, swept their brother into their arms and held him. Hades promised that Charles would be permitted into Elysium, the Greek equivalent of Heaven.
An hour later, after the remains of Charles Jones was cremated and the other Demi-Gods were permitted to return to Camp Half-Blood after the rewards were handed out and the Sea Calf was to be left on Olympus in a tank created by Hephaestus with Zeus and Poseidon watching over it, Zeus thought it necessary to call on a private meeting with the other Olympians on what to do next. The war was about to begin, and they needed a new champion since Thalia had joined Artemis. Zeus didn't know what to do and Poseidon was in too much pain to talk to any of them. It was then that Triton made an appearance and made a suggestion. When Artemis relayed Charles last words of a brother named 'John', which Triton reminded his father, Poseidon snapped his head back and though his eyes still held falling tears, he was shocked that anyone would speak of his eldest mortal son 'John'.
Zeus was curious yet not angered that there was another Demi-God son of Poseidon since his brother suffered enough, he just couldn't bring himself to care right now. Nico was age wise, too old for the prophecy, and Thalia refused it saying that she didn't want the responsibility.
Hera leaned forward and asked who this John was. Poseidon, seeing all eyes on him began his tell of a child born in the late forties to him and a mortal woman, Sally Jackson, a boy child named Percy Jackson. He explained how Sally fled when she listened to Poseidon reveal Percy's possible destiny. To protect Percy, he secretly came upon his son one night and bound his powers after sensing where Sally fled to.
He then explained how Sally changed her name to Maria Drago and met and fell in love with a Legacy of his named Richard Rambo. Upon hearing the name Rambo, Ares spat out his beer that he was drinking and began coughing as Athena paled alongside Hermes and Hades, though for Hades, his look was one of astonishment as he felt, that if this was the same John Rambo that he knew, then the Gods were in for one hell of a shock.
Getting his coughing under control, Ares asked, "Not John, not my John. Please say you didn't spawn him." Ares asked between huge gulps of breath.
"Who is this John Rambo?", Zeus thundered as he looked upon Poseidon, Ares, Athena, Hermes, and Hades differing looks.
"John Rambo is a Vietnam War Veteran.", Hermes replied with a sigh as he sat back in his throne and looked up and cursing his luck.
"A winner of the Congressional Medal of Honor. A War hero.", Athena spoke up next as she remembered when Rambo buried her human body when she was Agent Co Bau and literally wiped out two battalions of Russian and Vietnamese troops single handedly and went on to bring American POW's to an American base via a damaged chopper where Colonel Sam Troutman waited with soldiers to aid the weak and wounded men. He then entered the base with Troutman behind him and destroyed the computers with a sub-machine gun, found the man who set him up to be captured by the Vietnamese and threatened him to find the other POW's or he was gonna find him. Suffice to say, the base commander pissed himself when John slammed the tip of his knife near the mans head. He was also the only man she ever loved. Even now, she knew where he was as she watched him just weeks ago save a bunch of Missionaries in Burma and finally returned home after being away for so long.
"Wait a minute, wasn't there a John Rambo who nearly destroyed the town of Hope, Washington?", Apollo asked as Ares nodded.
"Yeah, after Vietnam, John went to find a friend from Vietnam named Delmar, but upon finding out his friend was dead, John nearly lost himself in depression. Upon entering Hope, Washington, a punk-ass Sheriff wanna-be named William Teasel pushed John. His men pushed harder. John had just wandered into town when Teasel started on him, claiming John as a vagrant. When John wouldn't be bowed, Teasel had him arrested and his men assaulted him. Let's just say, John left a reminder to not fuck with a Vietnam Veteran or any men I personally trained."
"What do you mean?", Hera asked.
"When I took the form of Samuel Troutman, I trained many men within the U. S. Army. John I recruited and handpicked to be part of a special group of soldiers. And he's also the last of the said special group. John Rambo is the best combat soldier I ever trained. I commanded him in Vietnam for three years. John is an expert in guerrilla warfare. A man who's the best, with guns, with knives, with his bare hands. A man who's been trained to ignore pain, to ignore weather. To live off the land, to eat things that would make a Billy-goat puke. In Vietnam, his job was to dispose of enemy personnel. To kill, Period! Win by attrition. Well, Rambo was the best.", Ares said with a faraway look in his eyes, and smiled in fondness of what John accomplished. John may have not been one of his, but he loved John nonetheless.
Aphrodite turned green at the billy-goat remark.
Seeing Athena with tears in her eyes and her head down, Zeus asked, "Athena, what's wrong my daughter? What else do you know of John?" Athena looked upon her father and the her brother Ares and within a second took on a form Ares had not seen in a long time, "Agent Co Bau. I can't believe it? My own sister."
"The mortal shell I took in that period died due to extensive gunshot wounds I sustained from a Vietnamese Captain. I...had fallen in love with John and would have broken my oath of chastity to become his wife. He brought out the best in my humanity and my emotions. I...I still love him and have watched over him since long before he decided to return to Thailand after Afghanistan.", She admitted to her father.
With pride in his eyes about the fondness Athena had for John, Ares told them about John's return after getting him out of prison and told him the same thing he told the base commander responsible for John nearly getting killed, "John's a pure fighting machine with only the desire to win a war someone else has already lost. If winning means he has to die, he'll die. No fear, no regrets. What we choose to call hell, he calls home."
"How old is John now?", Hephaestus asked.
"Sixty-two. As for where he is, he just re-entered the country and has returned to Arizona." Poseidon answered. Though he had pride for what his son had done for his country, and yet saddened for how much John has gone through and lost, he was skeptical of whether or not John was up to and or willing to fight for the Gods.
Ares began to chuckle and when Hera asked why he was laughing, Ares told him how when the Afghanistan mission happened, that John refused to go claiming his war was over. Troutman gave them the same speech he gave John that day. John still refused saying that it had to end for him sometime. But the moment his human form of Col. Troutman was captured behind enemy lines by the Russians, Rambo became a one man army and rescued him while driving a tank right upside the Russian commanders ass. The commander thought he could go one-on-one with John. Tank vs. a gunship chopper. The chopper lost. John survived, battered, bruised, and bleeding, but alive.
Athena then explained what she had seen in Burma weeks ago. How against John's pleading and better judgment, a woman Missionary managed to convince John to take her and her fellow Missionaries to Burma, claiming to have done it before.
John turned her down several times, but she found John's weak spot and exploited it. When Burmese troops captured them, killing one of the missionaries along with the villagers they tried to help, and feeding another missionary to the Burmese commanders pigs, that the head of the church sought out John and told him what happened. The pastor of the church hired Mercenaries to get his people back. They were being led by an incompetent Brit with an ego despite being SAS. When all seemed lost, John turned it around and led the men when the Mercenary leader went to leave. During the mission, John got the woman last while the sniper of the mercenary group had grown fond of John and would not leave him behind.
When the Burmese troops awoke and began tracking them, John used a 'Tall-Boy' bomb from WW2 and obliterated half the jungles of Burma.
Hades began chuckling darkly as he remembered that day from weeks ago when John sent many a Burmese souls to him. He made sure those men got what was coming to them as the Hell hounds used those souls for chew toys while the others were enduring more cruel methods of punishments.
Athena finished as she spoke about how when the mercenaries were caught, it was John who once again turned the tide and wiped out more than half the battalion single handedly with the Burmese armies own gun, a Fifty Caliber Circa, and tore the Burmese Army apart. The Burmese General then got a taste of Rambo's bizarre looking knife that he forged himself by hand before going to rescue the missionaries. The knife split the bastard in half and then as Rambo kicked him down a hill, his body almost separated in two as it rolled. The Rebels had done their fair share as did the newly freed mercenaries, but John is the true hero of that battle. Even the fiance/pastor of the woman got a kill in to make sure the British mercenary leader survived.", Athena spoke with passion in her eyes and voice.
"Seeing the dead and dying around her, the female missionary finally understood why John did not want to take her to Burma."
"Did John ever win any Medals?" Aphrodite asked, making some of the men and equally some of the women groan as they guessed where that information could go.
"2 Silver Stars, 2 Bronze Stars, 1 Distinguished Service, 2 Purple Hearts, and 2 Congressional Medals of Honor.", Ares stated proudly.
"What about weapons?" the Smith God asked.
"Rambo is known for creating his own knives. The first one he had was military issued, the others he made himself. He's more than qualified when it comes to driving various tanks and choppers. He wields and uses guns like no one else can. But his real mastery outside of knife forging, is the Bow. He uses two different forms on his arrows, standard and explosive rounds. Believe me, he could give both Apollo and Artemis a run for their money.", Ares said proudly.
"HEY!" the twins cried out.
"It's true sister. John is that good.", Athena said while watching Artemis glare at her. "The man who destroyed my human body, John turned him into red paint from over sixty yards with an explosive-tipped arrow."
While Artemis's eyes widened and her mouth forming an 'O' in shock, Apollo could only smile and say, "Sweet.", He'd like to see exactly how good John really was. Artemis secretly thought the same of course, though she'd never be caught dead saying it. She didn't think her pride could take that kind of beating.
"Would John fight for us, and if so, what would be required to convince him?", Zeus asked leaning back and looking from his brother, to Ares, and finally Athena.
It was Athena who answered, "His youth, give him his youth back."
"Ares?", Zeus called out.
"I'll talk to him."
"I'll join you.", Poseidon said.
"I don't think that's such a good idea uncle. After all, you did bind his powers. And never had anything to do with him throughout his life.", Athena said.
"That was because of his mother, and besides, he's still my son."
"What about telling him the truth? Has anybody thought of that?", Demeter asked as she gazed at the Gods all around her.
"There may be one more thing, husband.", Hera said bringing everyone to hear her speak. "Give him Athena in return for his services. Make him one of us. After all, if any Demi-God deserves it for his service to this country and others, including those...Missionaries" she said in disgust. "It's John Rambo."
"Hephaestus, make the weapons John will need.", The Smith God nodded as he flashed out. "Ares, you will meet with John first. Athena and Poseidon will wait until called by Ares. See if Richard can help convince John of the truth. We will meet back here if and when John agrees to return with Ares to Olympus. Dismissed."
Before Athena and Poseidon could flash out, Zeus called out to them to wait. Pulling Athena aside, he asked, "Athena, my daughter, do you love him?"
She couldn't reply verbally as she was too emotional, so she nodded, though Zeus saw the tear tracks on her face as it ruined her makeup somewhat. He pulled her into his arms and held her close. "Very well, should he accept, he is yours. I will relieve you of your vow should he agree to fight beside us and join with you." At those words, Athena held her father tighter and kissed his right cheek.
Once she was gone, Zeus turned to his brother who could not look him in the eyes. "Brother, before you sa...'augh'." Poseidon flew onto his back until he eventually skidded and stopped sliding on the floor. He rose his back from the floor, holding his left jaw.
Zeus rubbed his right fist, "That's for breaking your oath and making me and Hades look like fools." Zeus then helped Poseidon up to stand only to knock him back down again, "That's for withholding information from us about your son and binding his powers." Zeus watched and waited till after Poseidon managed to stand on his own for him to hug his brother, "This is for Charles and his passing. I'm so sorry Brother. Charles was a good and noble Demi-God warrior. Come, let us drink to his memory." Zeus said as he led his now grieving brother to the room where only the strongest of Olympian alcohol resided.
The next day
Bowie, Arizona
Rambo Ranch 1:30pm
Ares was nervous as he pulled into the ranch. He knew he shouldn't be, he was Ares, the God of War, for crying out loud. Stopping in what seemed like a suitable parking space, the War God was having second thoughts for a few moments until he decided to suck it up and assumed his human form of the former Colonel that he was, though in civilian clothing of blue jeans, a black T-shirt, and a lightweight winter blue jean style jacket. Exiting the Jeep Cherokee that he drove in, he started walking towards the white two story house in front of him until his hearing picked out a sound of hammering.
Curious, Ares walked towards the barn next to the house that was several feet away. Seeing the barn door open, Ares looked in to find a man that he barely recognized, hammering a horseshoe into a beautiful brown stallions hoof. His hair was wild, untamed, and shoulder length and a deep shade of black with a touch of gray on the sides, even messier due to sweat and hard work. Though he was wearing dark blue jeans, a light blue T-shirt, and black boot-like shoes, the skin tone on the former soldiers body was still dark due to hard labor under the sun, and just as ripped when Ares last saw him, if the veins popping out in his arms was anything to go by.
The man must have seen Ares shadow as he stopped what he was doing and turned to look at the War God with a squint, since the afternoon sky had shadowed the former colonel, but Ares could see the man that was John Rambo as clear as day from his point of view.
John Rambo had looked as if he had seen better days as the fighting had taken its toll on his body. Though he was still big and well built, the fighting in the wars and Burma had taken its price as John had a look of tiredness and resignation.
Ridding himself of his nervousness by inhaling and exhaling the clean air, Ares said, "Hello John."