A/N I aim to show a slightly more reluctant and at the same time stern and responsible side to the Greek Olympian Gods. If it helps you any to visualize what I'm talking about, I suggest you watch the movie Immortals that came out back in 2011
'thoughts or flashback'
"normal speech"
Disclaimer: I own nothing of PJO or HoO, though I wish I did
Chapter Three: The Storm
"Halt!" Astinos cried out to warn his comrades. "King Leonidas. We have company."
The son of Captain Artemis, the one sent ahead to scout had returned with news. He'd been scouting ahead for any dangers or Persian scouting parties. Astinos was the first to climb one of the hills they needed to cross and get a good view of what lay ahead.
As the rest of the 300 ascended the hill, they were greeted by the sight of several hundred Arcadians. Also intermixed among them were a few men who wore the armor and colors of Athens.
Out of all the new men gathered there one in particular stood out to both Perseus and Leonidas.
Perseus grinned as he ran forward to greet one of his former teachers. "Daxos! You got my message." He frowned as he noticed the numbers of the soldiers behind Daxos. "Where is the rest of the army?"
Now Daxos frowned in confusion. "The rest? You only sent word that you would come to the Hot Gates along with the Spartans. You weren't very specific in your message and the King had no idea what you were planning."
Percy was surprised. "But he said that he only needed to know when we were leaving to mobilize the army. He did not ask for anything else!"
Daxos worded his reply carefully. "No offense to King Leonidas," Leonidas only waited for him to continue before doing anything rash, "but King Theseus expected Sparta to mobilize their entire army as well. He said that he wouldn't needlessly send soldiers to their deaths if the rest of Greece didn't commit."
Perseus' face lit with anger. "He lied to me!" He growled, "He said everything was already planned and accounted for because of her. Now I find out that he hadn't finalized everything already? That he was waiting for another city state to act before Athens?!"
Daxos frowned. It was known by very few but recently Perseus and Theseus held animosity towards each other. A few of the men around them grew slightly worried that Theseus had apparently not committed as much as his own brother hoped.
Leonidas dismissed it as he assumed Theseus had similar problems to his own. A council full of idiots to be precise. "Worry not young Perseus. I'm sure King Theseus would have sent more men if he could. What we have here is more than enough to whip those sorry Persians and boot them off our country."
Behind him all the Spartan soldiers erupted in laughter and agreement.
Daxos placed a hand on his former pupil's shoulder in an effort to calm him. "Perhaps there is more to our Kings plan than we can glean right now. All we can do is march forward. I very much doubt King Theseus would order you to battle without some sort of back-up plan to ensure your safety."
Perseus nodded grimly and only hoped he was right.
Many of the Arcadians looked slightly uneasy though, at the idea of marching against the vast army of Xerxes with only a few hundred soldiers. Yet they were ready to defend their country and protect their families no matter the cost.
Besides, it was well known that Sparta and Athens had the strongest of Kings. To know that Leonidas marched to war alongside them calmed a great many heads, and they also had Perseus, the brother of Theseus to boot!
That night as they finally reached the Thermoplyae Pass, Leonidas, Perseus, Daxos and Captain Artemis went out to see if they could get a rough count of the Persian soldiers. They had the high ground and looked out to the Gulf of Malia where it was assumed the Persian Warships would soon appear.
What they saw made their blood run cold. Even in the dim light of the waxing crescent moon, they saw a near solid fleet of ships blanket the gulf. There was so little room between ships you could practically cross from one end of the gulf to the other without ever setting foot in the water.
"Athena almighty." Daxos whispered, "How are we supposed to defend against that?"
Even Leonidas grew concerned at the mighty fleet. "Perhaps praying to the gods wouldn't be such a bad idea this time Athenian. Though as a Spartan I think I'll stick to praying to our patron Ares. Any favor we can win from them would be extremely helpful against an army of this size."
Despite himself, Perseus couldn't stop the grim chuckle that escaped into the air.
"We shall pray tonight my friends. We shall also feast and be merry, for tomorrow the battle begins." Perseus added.
Captain Artemis looked to Perseus, a slight widening of his eyes in surprise. "Well said young Perseus. Well said. For tomorrow, we shall push these motherless dogs out of the arms of Greece herself! They will rue the day they set foot on this land."
With slightly renewed vigor, the leaders of the Greek strike force left their outpost and returned to their men. Leonidas informed the Spartans of their enemies and advised eating and drinking plenty to prepare for the next day.
Daxos went to the Athenians to try and settle their nerves, the men not quite as fond of war as Sparta. Arcadians and Athenians alike were somber for a time before also preparing a large meal for the night. Perhaps their last night for more than a few.
Perseus however, went off on his own to gather some things he needed for that night.
He alone knew that while praying to the gods was fine and settled your nerves, without the proper sacrifice and arrangements the gods wouldn't life a finger to help. It didn't matter that he was a son of Poseidon. He knew that to even catch the attention of a god he had to burn something that would distinguish him from the countless other Greeks across the lands no doubt doing the same thing.
Perseus went to his pack and brought out the few supplies he'd dragged all the way from Athens. Things that he knew would be essential if only because they might, just might raise their chance of success.
As everyone around him built their fires and cooked meals, Perseus went to the highest cliff overlooking the Gulf of Malia. He gathered enough wood for a fire and kindling and set things up.
He worked at it for a time before he had a healthy blaze going in front of him. One that would suit his purposes perfectly.
From his pack he pulled out a long bundle of cloth wrapped around some very special plants. Not special in the conventional sense that they were worth a lot of monetary value, no, but special in how if used properly they could change the tides of any war.
Ash, and the sap within commonly known as manna. Celery, great bundles of it adorned into a crown usually worn by the champion of the Isthmian Games. From the food set apart by the Spartans to cook, Perseus had also taken the choice cuts of ram.
After he had all the things he was set to burn laid out before him, Perseus offered a prayer to the gods as he tossed everything in.
Ash and manna, both sacred and favorites to gain the attention of Ares the god of war and Zeus the king of all the Olympians. Celery, a plant held in high regard by Poseidon and would also surely gather his focus on Perseus.
"My Lords, please, we do not ask for much. We do not ask for you to interfere directly, we do not ask for you to do our work for us, we ask only for the smallest sign of approval. Please, send us a sign, anything that you favor us, that you favor Greece in the upcoming war. The mortal king Xerxes, who dares to call himself a god, must be pushed out. So please, Lords, rulers of man, send us a sign." Perseus asked. He wasn't going to expect the gods to come down themselves and slay the Persian army, but even a small sign would be good for morale.
If Zeus sent an eagle to watch over them, if Poseidon shook the earth before the enemy marched to scare them, if Ares sent a woodpecker to appear before the king of his city, any one of those signs would boost the morale of the Greeks immensely. The Spartans might even be emboldened enough to hold the entire Persian army off by themselves.
So Perseus asked his favor and then left the fire burning. Leonidas arrived soon after and also sacrificed his entire meal to Ares the god of War. Daxos came up next to sacrifice his meal to Athena the patron of Athens.
Once everything was said and done, the three most visible leaders took up the first watch over their men. Each hoped that their prayers would be answered. Even a small acknowledgement of their requests would be great.
"Huh. Will you look at that… my son's pretty clever isn't he? Most would just expect us to help or listen to their prayers without thinking to catch our attention." Poseidon, earth shaker, storm bringer and lord of the oceans commented humorously to his brother.
Zeus too watched the events unfold beneath him. Unlike his children though, who all tried to hide their interest in the upcoming war by watching things in their own personal temples on Olympus, Zeus watched everything from his throne.
Poseidon who had a somewhat personal stake in things joined him.
Zeus cut an imposing figure sitting there on his throne, the scowl on his face only aiding his image. "He is reckless brother. Bringing such a small force to face the army that the Persians have gathered. Then again, perhaps he takes strongly after us. We did much the same against our own father."
Poseidon laughed at the reminder. Those were dark times but in the end the gods had won out, led by the elder three sons of Kronos. "I wonder what your kids will do brother? You know they are watching this and listening as well. Though how they thought they were being discreet about it is beyond me."
Zeus smiled wryly, "Yes, it's not like all of them gathering in Artemis' temple while she is out isn't suspicious."
Poseidon laughed again.
"Although," Zeus continued, "I cannot in good conscious allow a mere mortal to proclaim himself the god-king and remain unscathed."
Poseidon looked like he expected that sort of response as he got to his feet. "That is true. No mere mortal can pretend to be on the same level as us when not even our children dare defy us. Let us show him the error of his ways shall we brother?"
Zeus nodded reluctantly as he added, "I will admit, if I did not owe young Perseus a favor for what he did for me I wouldn't be so generous."
The lord of the seas looked towards the lord of the skies as he quirked a brow in confusion. "Do you speak of Hebe?" Zeus nodded. "Ah I remember now. He did help her out did he not? Well I owe my son a favor as well. I can't say I've been his favorite ever since that whole Hippolytus fiasco."
Both Olympian kings were now on their feet, weapons in hand. "Let us help the young hero then. I can tell that if he lives he will grow to be one of the greatest of heroes. It would only do Olympus good to have him in our favor."
An excited grin grew on Poseidon's face. "We do not normally meddle in mortal affairs brother. What excuse is there for this?" He asked somewhat mockingly.
Zeus ignored the tone. "I am only clearing any and all debts to the one that helped my daughter. Nothing more than that. I believe he asked for a sign to be sent. A small storm should suffice to boost their morale. What is your excuse brother?"
Poseidon smirked. "That is true. I don't fight my children's battles for them but… the sea has forever been an unpredictable domain."
Both Olympian gods eyes met one another. In silent agreement each shed their forms and burst into blinding white light.
One light crackled and hissed as it traveled to the ozone where it set to work.
Another bubbled and swirled before dissolving into mist and heading to the earth.
Down at the Thermoplyae Pass, a storm was brewing. All the soldiers noticed how the wind picked up and the pressure dropped drastically.
Without warning lightning split the sky.
A cheer went up from the Spartan and Arcadian soldiers, those that knew what Leonidas, Perseus and Daxos had done.
"HA! Let those worthless Persians fear the power of Greece. Surely this is the will of the gods, a sign that they approve our cause. Zeus stabs the sky with thunderbolts! No one but the true gods of Greece would affect our weather so easily and fast." Dilos, another of Leonidas most loyal men shouted out.
Hurricane winds battered the ships in the gulf.
All of the soldiers jumped to their feet and rushed to the edges of the pass to look out to the waters.
Every vessel on the gulf was battered to and fro, each blow from the wind ripping and damaging the sails to shreds.
Every soldier cheered and grew excited at what was happening below.
The seas swirled, rain fell in torrents, the waves crashed again and again against the wooden hulls. With every crash of water, with every flash of lightning, with every crack and boom of thunder, Spartan, Arcadian and Athenian alike cheered.
Only one among the men kept his Spartan reserve.
Only he, only King Leonidas.
Consequently he was the only one to notice the absence of a certain raven haired demigod. One whom he was sure was the sole reason for the gods reacting so favorably to their cause.
After all, when he and Daxos had fought side by side before in other battles, their prayers to the gods weren't answered in this manner. No, Leonidas knew that Perseus somehow was the one responsible for this. Especially since the King of Sparta knew that the young warrior was already favored by Artemis of the hunt, and possibly Apollo of healing, both children of Zeus.
Combined with being the son of Poseidon the storm bringer and it was fairly obvious whose prayers were the ones answered.
He kept his composure though. If Perseus was not celebrating with the rest of the soldiers he had his reasons. What they were he couldn't guess, but at the moment the King of Sparta only watched in satisfaction as Xerxes fleet of warships was smashed to bits on the rocks.
A/N Sorry for the long absence but… FREE NETFLIX!
I'll try and keep things going now that I'm fairly certain Netflix regrets giving me a free trial that I will cancel as soon as the month is up so I don't have to pay. Hope you liked the chapter. Things will start heating up soon. Though I'm not sure if I'll update this next or perhaps my other story. Whichever one of the other 3 catches my interest.
As always, please leave all questions, comments, and concerns on your way out. But seriously, watch Immortals. It might actually help when I describe things and situations further down the road.