Chapter Nine

It had been four months since he had reluctantly joined the war against Erebus and he had yet to actually fight the Primordial. Hundreds if not thousands of monsters had been vanquished by his hands. The Gods had kept their word and had not interfered with him or his actions. The campers learnt to ONLY call upon him if the need was dire and Annabeth had finally got the message that approaching him would only get her injured. Clarisse and several campers whom he parted with at least neutral terms were afforded a chance to actually talk to him, something that they appreciated immensely. Hestia visited him often, something that although he refused to admit, was forever thankful far. And the most astonishing thing yet was that he had yet to kill anyone other than monsters. Granted that was probably because of Hestia's influence, but still it was an accomplishment on his part.

Perseus was once again in the thralls of battle, fighting against a legion of monsters, including hellhounds, empousai's and the manticore. More often than not, he was seen fighting side by side with Artemis herself, her being the only one able to keep up with him when fighting. That was unless he was storming ahead by himself. Growing frustrated with the length of the battle, Perseus stamped his foot, making the earth tremble beneath the monsters before the ground split and hundreds of monsters fell into the chasm below. Stomping once more closed the gap up, leaving an empty field in front of him. Everyone surrounding him looked stunned at the sheer power that he had displayed.

"Question Perseus" Artemis started. He looked at her with an eyebrow raised, which no one could see under his helmet, "Why in my Uncle's name did you not start with that!?" she asked in frustration.

"Because one it leaves me quite drained, and two I'm not the only one who is meant to fight. I'm not going to do everything on my own" she rolled her eyes,

"We know that, but that trick of yours would save a hell of a lot of lives!" she snapped angrily. Perseus stared in the distance and felt a flicker of shame within him; he knew that he had not even shown an eighth of his power, he knew that he could be doing a lot more than he was to save the lives of the demi-gods and Hunters that were being lost in each battle.

He sighed, a hero. That's what Hestia wanted him to be. Somehow he had to push away all animosity that he felt towards everyone around and be the man he was before all the shit happened. To do that he actually had to give a damn about the campers. He huffed inwardly, 'as though my life didn't suck enough already' he thought wryly. He turned back to Artemis who was still looking at him with a stony expression on her face. He bowed his head to her,

"You are right Lady Artemis, I will endeavor to do what I can to minimize causalities in the future" he admitted quietly. Artemis was quite surprised that he had even admitted being wrong that all she could do was nod sharply before walking away to check on her hunters. Perseus sighed tiredly before flaming away.

"That was well done my Champion" greeted him as he reappeared in his campsite. Hestia, it appeared had been waiting for him.

"I should have done it sooner" he replied, "That's what a hero would have done" he replied bitterly. Hestia took his helmet off gently before placing a hand on his shoulder,

"You are trying Perseus, that's all anyone can ask of you"

"But I should have done more!" he snapped, walking away from her, "Fifteen years ago, I would not have even thought about prolonging a fight just because I was doing everything"

"Fifteen years ago, you trusted and loved those campers with everything you had. Now, none of them have gained your respect nor do you trust them. It is no wonder that you reacted differently" she comforted him. Perseus opened his mouth to respond but was not given a chance as Hestia pushed forward,

"And in the future, you will do better" Perseus ducked his head,

"Just remember that even though I will do better, does not mean I will like or trust them anymore that I already do, which means fairly little" he muttered. Hestia chuckled in response,

"Get some rest my champion, tomorrow will dawn soon enough, and you will have another battle to fight" he sighed in response. Hestia kissed his cheek gently before flashing out. Perseus stared at the spot where she vanished for a moment before heading inside his tent and settled down on his cot for the night.

The next morning, he awoke at dawn with an uneasy feeling in his stomach. Sometime today, he knew that he would be facing Erebus. Grimacing at the thought, he got ready for the day before exiting the tent. Letting loose a piercing whistle, he waited a minute before shadows around him exploded as a dozen hellhounds appeared before him.

"Hey girl" he whispered as he stroked Mrs. O'Leary. Mrs. O'Leary woofed happily as her favorite human petted her.

"Stay with me girl, I have a bad feeling about today" she gave an answering woof before he swung himself onto her back before they all disappeared into the shadows again.

Camp was barely awake when he appeared. He rolled his eyes at their lack of discipline; you would have thought that nearly a year at war would be good incentive to being alert at all times. He couldn't see more than two campers on guard duty. He got off Mrs. O'Leary before making his way to the Big House, hoping that at least Chiron would be up.

His prayers were answered as he saw the centaur in the War Room, pouring over maps and strategies.

"I must admit being disappointed at the lack of security the camp upholds Chiron" he informed the man as he leaned against the door frame. Chiron jumped slightly, having not heard Perseus approaching. He glanced up and found his favorite student standing there.

"Perseus my dear boy" he hugged him before turning back to his maps, "I know there are not many guards but the wards have been updated by the Gods themselves, nothing can get through them." Perseus huffed at that in disbelief but let it go.

"Today's the day Chiron" Chiron glanced at him sharply,

"What?" he asked,

"Erebus will be making an appearance. Whether I fight him today and end the war or not is something that is unknown but the next stage of the war will be entered"

"Is this one of your famous gut instincts Perseus?" Chiron asked worriedly. Perseus nodded.

"In that case, why don't you help an old man to try and come up with a strategy that will give us an advantage?" Perseus nodded and joined his old mentor over by the table.

"This is good Chiron" Perseus informed him. Chiron looked at him curiously, "It means that the war is another step closer to ending" he elaborated. Chiron nodded,

"That's one way of looking at it. However it also means that it is escalating which means more deaths" a sombre silence filled between them as they both though of the events that will shortly come about.

The mood was tense as the campers stood in silence in formation as they waited for the order to attack. They had been told what they should expect today and they were not disappointed. In front of them, outnumbering them by at least two to one was a giant army of monsters. But they were nothing compared to who led them. Erebus. 'So Perseus was right' Chiron thought as he looked at the rouge Primordial. Perseus stood beside him staring at the enemy silently.

Erebus was tall in his human form, standing at 6'4 with broad shoulders and long dark hair. His face held a maniacal expression of glee as he looked at the only force that stood against.

'Finally.' He thought, 'The Earth shall be mine'.

A/N OOOH CLIFFHANGER. YOU'LL HAVE TO WAIT FOR NEXT CHAPTER TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS.

STAYED TUNED