Chapter 7: A Little Revelation
"Are you comfortable?"
"Yes, thanks," Annabeth replied, looking around her tent. It sure was cozy. "By the way," she added, and her fellow hunter raised an eyebrow. "Is Thalia out yet? We've been here for quite a while, and she still hasn't come out."
The hunter blinked twice and poked her head outside, before turning back to her and shaking her head. "No, not yet. You talked to her earlier, right?" she inquired. "Didn't she tell you why she ran off like that?"
The daughter of Athena shrugged. "She didn't want to tell me. I guess she needed her time to think."
The girl in front of her nodded. "Well then, I'll leave you now." She made to get out of the tent when someone else ducked in before she could. It was the moon goddess, Artemis.
Annabeth stood up and both of them bowed respectfully. "Milady," they greeted. She nodded and waved them off. "I wish to talk to you, Annabeth. Alone," she added, seeing as the other hunter made no move to get out. She smiled sheepishly and left the tent. The daughter of Athena faced her mistress nervously.
"What do you want to talk about, Lady Artemis?"
The goddess smiled gently, sensing her edginess. "You need not to be nervous around me, dear Annabeth," she soothed, which made the girl calm down a little. "My hunters are my companions, sisters-in-arms, my adoptive daughters. They should feel at ease with me, and not to worry, you would soon feel the same." The girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath, nodding.
"So what do you want to talk about, milady?" she asked once she'd opened her eyes.
"Have the hunters told you of the practices that we do?"
She thought about it for a while. "Actually, no. They only showed me around and introduced themselves."
Artemis nodded in approval. "That's good, because it's better if I'm going to tell you myself," she said as they walked out of the tent and went around the camp. "By the way, where is Thalia?"
Annabeth shrugged. "She's been in her tent after she went out of yours. It's something that you talked about, I guess," she replied, looking at her mistress curiously. "Is it really?"
The goddess frowned. "I don't think so," she said, her mind making up a good story to cover whatever they had talked about. She certainly didn't want to tell his girlfriend that they were talking about him. "She was... telling me something and I was listening when she just excused herself out."
The daughter of Athena frowned with her. "That's weird. But I guess with all that's happening, she's bound to be like that," she remarked thoughtfully. "Was it about.. Percy?"
The name made her stop in her tracks, which automatically had the new hunter stop as well. Ugh, Artemis thought tiredly, sometimes I really hate smart people. They figure out all the hidden junk so fast without even realizing it.
"Yes it was," she found herself saying, before cursing herself for the slip. She added before the daughter of Athena thought of something else and unwanted, "She was really saddened of her cousin's death. Guess I couldn't blame her," she mumbled to herself as an afterthought, thinking that the hunter didn't hear her, which she did. She just looked at her mistress oddly before drifting her eyes to the ground, obviously thinking of her late boyfriend.
Her train of thought crashed when Artemis cleared her throat. She gestured around the dining area, which consisted of a large wooden table and tree logs as seats. "Every day, there are different hunters who will cook, hunt, and clean," she began explaining. "For example; two or three hunters will hunt for the food, then give it to three more who will prepare and cook it, and then finally when all of us are finished eating, we'll give it to the one who is responsible for washing."
Annabeth was nodding in understanding. The goddess continued, "Since you are our latest addition, you will get to do your turns between the three last—after all the others. Ensured it is that you won't have two tasks in the same day."
After that, she led her to the nearby river. "Right here, four of the hunters will wash and hang the clothes on those cords," she pointed to the cords tied taut around the branches of the trees surrounding them. "They're also responsible for folding them properly and dropping them by the owner's tent."
As they were going to the training area, they passed by the armory. "This is where the hunters will sharpen dull arrows, knives, and if some have, spears and swords. They usually do that after training." They arrived at the training area. There were dummies huddled onto one side, and more dummies arranged in a row on the other side.
"Those," Artemis pointed to the huddle of dummies. "Are used for melee combat. Replacements are in the armory in case some get too... used." She sent Annabeth a wry smile. "And those," pointing to the row of dummies, "Are used for archery training. Two of the hunters will collect all the arrows left out, and drop them at the armory."
Finally, she led the new hunter to the borders. "Only one hunter is responsible for night watch, since we have our falcons and wolves around," she explained. "Usually, volunteers are the one to watch, whether you've done any work throughout the day or not. That's why it's voluntary."
The goddess turned to her, and raised an eyebrow inquisitively. "Any questions?"
Not much, Annabeth thought, but she said, "Yes. A lot."
Nico once again came into the throne room, looking pleased with himself. Without bothering to even glance at his father, he ran to the opposite side of the room, and vanished into the shadows, where he immediately became sober.
A shadow materialized in an alley in New York, forming a young man with its dark ropes. The teen, now identified as the son of Hades, looked around at his surroundings curiously. With his dead serious expression, his gothic looks and his sword at his side, even the gangs lurking around at that place avoided him. He wasn't sure what they saw though.
But he was sure that he was at the right place.
He emerged from the shadows and stood before a door. The front door of Sally Jackson's apartment. He knew this would take a while as mothers would usually go into hysterics over their sons. He steeled his nerves and knocked on the door, confidently.
"Coming!" came a muffled voice from the inside. The sound of footsteps shuffled through the thin gap between the floor and the door. The door swung open. It was Paul Blofis, Percy's stepfather.
A spark of recognition reached his eyes. "You're.. Nico, right?" he asked him, still unsure. "You'd come here with Percy and his hell dog.. If I'm correct?"
Nico nodded. "Yes, Mr. Blofis," he confirmed. "May I come in? I need to talk to both you and Mrs. Blofis."
Percy's stepfather looked at him quizzically, but widened the door and stepped aside, shouting, "Sally! Nico's here to see us!"
In a blur, she already caught hold of him, hugging tight. The son of Hades has to admit, she was unlike any other woman he'd met before (especially his stepmom). She treats everyone of Percy's friends like her own children, and that's probably the best about her. Not to mention the blue cookies. She pulled away then. "Nico! How are you? I haven't seen you in a year!"
The son of Hades nodded grimly. "Yeah. A lot had happened on that year," he replied before noticing a little girl that looked to be two years old hugging the mother's leg. He furrowed his eyebrows at her in confusion, to which she reacted by hiding herself behind Sally's legs. "Who's the little girl?" he asked, looking back up at them.
Sally saw where he'd been looking, and smiled. "Her name's Andromeda. Andy for short. Percy's little sister," she stated proudly, picking up her little girl as Paul came to her other side. They made her face him, and it struck him like a blow of hard bricks.
The child was beautiful. She had her mother's slightly kaleidoscopic eyes, and her father's hair. Most of her features came from her mother, which made him look a little like his brother, Percy, whom she hasn't, and never will meet.
He felt pity for the little girl. Although it seemed better that she didn't get to meet her brother, because that will probably make her sadder. But still, it's painful that someone of your blood doesn't even know you exist. He felt for his cousin, remembering the look on Hazel's face when he came to rescue her from Asphodel. She looked extremely overjoyed back then.
Nico blinked back unshed tears and looked up at the parents, who noticed the look on his face. "What's wrong, Nico?" Paul asked, concern evident in his voice.
He shook his head and looked at them in the eye seriously. "We really need to talk."
Sally, although confused, led him to the kitchen for some beverages. After handing Andy to her husband, she poured the son of Hades a glass of coke that was left over in the fridge. It was blue. He stared at it uncomprehendingly, choosing the best words to say. The blue coke just made the damn thing harder.
"Well, Nico? What do you want to talk about?" Paul pressed as he avoided little Andy's hands, which were trying to reach for his nose. The son of Hades eerily noted that the girl was always squirming and moving in her father's hold, almost as if she had ADHD herself. He had a feeling that she'd be as energetic as—as him, when he was still the small Mythomagic-loving kid. Percy would surely love her, if only he didn't..
"It's about Percy," he replied quietly, after a few moments of silence.
The family stopped their actions at the name. Even their girl, who didn't even recognize the name, looked at him innocently, completely still except for her eyes. Sally raised a worried eyebrow. "Is it about why he isn't here with you?"
She didn't know how right she was. "Yes," was his simple reply.
Sally leaned forward in anxiousness. "How is he?" she asked him frantically. "Is he in trouble again? Danger?"
If only he could still wish he was. "No he isn't," he denied.
The mother sighed, and Nico could see the weary lines tracing her face. Shadows were under her sunken eyes, the result of the obvious lack of sleep. From caring for her baby girl in sleepless nights, or staying up all night worrying for her only son, he didn't know.
"What is it then? Where is he?"
He hung his head, letting his shaggy hair fall over his eyes. "He's... not with you anymore.." he replied subtly. "He's not with me. He's with my father. In his realm." He looked up only to see the mother's eyes widen in realization. "He's dead."
Malcolm was having a bad day. To put it lightly.
Well, you could count out the problem with the Romans. But that was the least of his worries; and besides, it wasn't one anymore.
After knowing that his leader had died saving his younger sister, it had considerably ruined his day. Even if his mother didn't like him for dating her daughter, Malcolm did, because when they started dating his sister had been one of the happiest he'd ever seen. The guy was cool and modest, and was probably the only one that could calm his sister down when she was on one of her moody days.
And then she leaves to be with the hunters.
Personally, he'd no problem with that, so he won't have to bother beating off guys who tried to hit on her. But it seemed... cruel, that she'd spend eternity with man-hating, adolescent girls having fun when your boyfriend just died for you. If he put Percy to be the one who lived by her sacrifice, he thought that the guy would probably commit suicide.
Then there was the problem in the Hephaestus cabin. Or bunch, as they have no cabin for the meantime. They were having a hard time deciding who was the best candidate for a counselor that they figured would make Leo proud. So of course, it led to arguments.
All he needed was a team, one who'd be willing to start some work and finish it off, no sweat (not literally). He didn't really need a leader as of now, since they were still rebuilding the camp. And for gods' sake, the Big House itself was to be completed in a month, when work was started and done swiftly without any issues coming up. If they continue arguing like that, an age would go by before the camp will be completely repaired.
The Romans have burnt everything in the Athena cabin from books to feathers, scrolls to blueprints, plans to papers. Summer schoolwork, crazy invention blueprints, Harry Potter books: all reduced to ashes. So they'd have to start over making the blueprints for the cabins. And without Annabeth with them, the job won't be as easy. Why didn't she help them with the architecture before she left them?
And that was all before the strange monster attack that chose the very ideal moment to strike when everything was going smooth and normal. Or at least, as normal as a hundred or so kids ranging from ten to twenty years old was repairing a whole summer camp which was once attacked by their mortal enemies. If ever summer camps have enemies.
But the strange thing about the monster attack was that no one knew what the monsters were. If ever they were in ancient Greek history, then the Athena kids haven't read about them. And they always have the biggest knowledge about Greek monsters. So everyone pretty much panicked because even the brains didn't know where the weak spot of what monster was.
Lady Tyche seemed to be on their side for once, and they obliterated the monster force without much damage. Oh, and did he mention that the Athena cabin was the most damaged?
Gods damn it! Thunder rumbled in the distance.
Dionysus had left immediately to report what happened to the king of the gods. Hopefully they'd get some help.
Hopefully.
Artemis sighed tiredly, retiring to her tent. Surely she was new, and still almost clueless to what happens in the hunt, but being a daughter of Athena made it worse. She had so many questions that it almost made the goddess pop. Most were related to the hunt thankfully, and the rest few were... of unrelated concerns that she didn't want to repeat.
She sat on her bed, staring at the sword leaning on the tent wall. It was a good thing that the daughter of Athena hadn't seen this, or else she would've questioned her about it too. And of all the things she didn't want to share, this was the most she was unwilling to.
Well, aside from Percy's existence haunting her in her dreams, of course.
She'd started to learn the art of the sword once she'd admired his skill in using it. She taught herself hidden from the eyes of the public, knowing that they'd view her differently if they found out. Of course, she used a dull, practice sword for starters. And then when she deemed herself ready, she approached Hephaestus for the sword.
"Why do you need a sword?" he asked. "Don't you already have your hunting knives? Or were they broken? I could always fix them for you."
She wanted to snap at him for questioning her, but he was no slave. Heck, he could create anything he wanted, including something that might haunt you in your nightmares. So she just answered calmly, "I wanted to be skilled in different weapons," she replied, "I figured that I'd start with a sword; 'tis most common."
He said nothing, staring at the piece of paper, his forehead creased in concentration. Finally, he looked up. "What do you wish to engrave upon it?"
"Its name," she answered, and for a while there was a pause. She didn't know back then, but it was a name related to both the inspiration and the wielder. "Moonshade."
And now, as she ran her fingers along the Greek Σκιάσελήνη, she couldn't help but think. Did it really coincide that she was the one to find out about Percy, not Annabeth? Was it destined for him to become the heir to Chaos? Were they fated to meet on that dream?
Suddenly, she felt more tired and sleepy. The bed underneath her was tempting. As she made to lie down, a bright light flashed through the narrow gap at the bottom of the tent flap, startling her. And then came knocking.
Artemis stood up, straightening her clothes. It could only be Apollo or Hermes, as her brother usually flashes in without warning while Hermes.. Well, he pretty much does the same thing. Sometimes his schedules are so hectic that there were two consecutive flashes with a millisecond interval. Either way, both was what a messenger god was expected to do.
She pushed open the tent flap, annoyance clear on her face. The drowsiness was gone momentarily, and she wondered why. Maybe it was because of her half-brother's presence. It makes sense. She saw who it was. "Hermes," she began, allowing irritation to coat her words. "What are you doing here?"
The god shrugged. "Business," he answered distractedly, spotting one of her daughters walking around. He smiled and waved at her lazily. "Hello, Katrina. How are you doing?" The hunter daughter of Hermes waved back. "Hi Dad. Life's treating me well so far."
"Done any major pranks?" The hunter grinned mischievously and winked. "You know better than to doubt me," she responded with a smirk, before chattering away with her friends. Hermes watched her go with a proud smile. "I'm so proud of her."
Artemis cleared her throat, and the god turned back to her. "What business?"
"Oh yeah, Dad has called for a meeting. He didn't tell what about."
The goddess regarded him testily as he shrugged. Finally she nodded. "I'll be there in a minute."
The god of travelers grumbled, "Minutes are hours for you girls." Artemis glared at him, and he raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay! I'll be going."
He flashed out. The goddess of the hunt looked around for her lieutenant, before deciding to go to her tent, seeing as she was nowhere around the camp. The moment she knocked, the flap opened up as quick as lightning, and out jumped Thalia, barely evading her mistress which was practically in front of the door. The moon goddess narrowed her eyes in suspicion.
"What were you doing? I haven't seen you around the camp since you went out of my tent," Artemis stated, feeling a little left out. Thalia pursed her lips ever so slightly that it almost went unnoticed by the goddess.
"I was thinking," she replied shortly, not keen on saying any more. She'd continued before her mistress could make a retort. "What do you need, milady?"
The moon goddess blinked, and made a mental note to ask her later. "You are in charge of the camp while I have a meeting with the gods. I fear that this may take a while," she murmured as an afterthought, before nodding to her lieutenant and flashing away. Thalia closed her eyes as she did.
When the light went out, Thalia sighed and opened her eyes again. She returned to her tent, sure that her fellow hunters would be responsible enough to take care of themselves. She sat back on her bed, looking sideways to a picture by her bed. It was a photo taken the night when she became the lieutenant of the hunters. By the steps of Olympus, it showed herself, Annabeth, Percy, and Grover, looking content and smiling at the camera.
She was beside Annabeth, grinning with her new silvery hunter's aura. Percy was placed in between Grover and Annabeth, an arm around each of them, a grin and a slight blush on his face. The satyr looked like he just chewed some cans, his mouth all ballooned up. The daughter of Athena had a smile and a proud look on her face, as if she'd just designed the best thing ever.
And then slowly, Percy's figure faded away, leaving only the three of them. She deflated and stared at the ceiling, lost in thought. If only Annabeth had known what she'd heard.. Well, she didn't want to imagine it. So this is how hard Percy feels it, she thought, remembering that her cousin always keeps his troubles to himself.
It was just, impossible. He was impossible. Is he even a human being? Does he even exist? She rolled her eyes at herself, feeling ridiculous. Of course he does. He was just... unbelievable—yeah that's the word—but so believable at the same time. A thought struck her.
Unbelievable yet believable.. It was hard to understand, but Thalia was getting something out of it. Maybe Percy was... dead; that's the unbelievable thing.. Yet he was... somehow, alive? She didn't know if that made any sense whatsoever. But because him dying was an unbelievable thing, and him managing to survive impossibly every time, which was.. Absurd, she wanted to laugh at herself; but still, it could be possible, right?
She needed to visit a certain son of Hades, right away. Her last thought drifted away in the low currents of her memories as her being was whisked away into Morpheus' realm.
Once she opened the doors to the throne room, she was met with a rather unfamiliar sight. Note the sarcasm applied by the serious goddess of the hunt to that statement. It was as quiet as ever; no wonder there are a lot of loud voices were floating down to her as she walked up to the throne room.
She sighed; as always meetings didn't leave out all the fighting. Of course, any time now she'd get to join the shouting when Apollo—
"Hey little sis!" Speak of the devil and the devil shall come. "You're late!"
She didn't believe him, yet her eyes darted absentmindedly around the throne room, looking if she was really. As usual, the love goddess was still not here, as she likes to be 'fashionably late', as she calls it. As far as Artemis was concerned, once the other gods arrive they spend the rest of their time arguing non-stop, until either Zeus orders them to quiet down (which was unlikely, since he was one of the suspects) or everyone has arrived for the meeting.
"I am not, Apollo," she retorted calmly, sitting down on her silver throne. "And I am older than you."
The sun god snorted. "Of course, that's what you always say," he mused loudly. "But we both know that you do that just to spite me, hmm?"
Artemis gritted her teeth. "Shut up, Apollo."
"Nah," her brother grinned cheekily. "Way too much energy to spend."
Before she could respond, Zeus, turning away from Hera, slammed his master bolt to the ground, apparently having enough. The room was silenced immediately. He cleared his throat. "The meeting shall commence," he began, turning to his son. "Now, explain what happened."
Dionysus ran a hand over his face and nodded. He stood up and addressed the council. "As the brats were rebuilding the camp," he started, and Zeus tried not to show his annoyance. "A strange monster attack happened."
Athena frowned at him. "These are normal occurrences to the demigods," she reasoned before he could continue, "Unless it is about the monsters?"
The wine god glared at her. "I was getting to that," he responded, and the wisdom goddess leaned back to her seat in slight embarrassment. "The monsters were not yet seen before by the demigods. Even your children have not yet heard of it," he continued, directing the last part at Athena.
Demeter raised an eyebrow at him. "Well have you?"
He rolled his eyes. "Obviously. Those monsters were Ordians."
Simultaneous gasps came from the majority of the Olympians, Artemis included. Hephaestus asked, shocked, "Haven't they faded long ago?" There was a murmur of agreement between them, until Hermes raised his hand.
"Um, what are Ordians?" he asked, and everyone turned to Athena.
She took a deep breath. "Ordians are the mortals, demigods, and monsters with enhanced strength and powers under their master's command, thus the name."
"Who's the master?" Most of the council seemed to wonder this too. The wisdom goddess opened her mouth to speak, but then suddenly the room dimmed, and all of the Olympians slumped down their thrones at the sheer power emanating from the center of the room. All of their strength seemed to drain out of them at the very moment.
"I am." A sinister, ancient voice came loudly from everywhere. The gods, feeling like mere ants, shrank back to their seats. Artemis refused to close her eyes despite the fear she was feeling. She gripped the armrest tightly that her knuckles turned white and just glared at the floor. She thought helplessly, Percy help me.
Her father didn't have the guts and strength to go all mighty king of the gods on... the source of the voice, whoever or whatever it was. He just sat in his throne cowering as a portal appeared in front of them, closed. It opened and they didn't get to see what was in it when it released so much light that it made their eyes burn even though averted. The sound of someone stepping out of the portal echoed in the room. The voice came chuckling darkly.
"Feeling puny now, are we?" it mocked, and was more clearly heard and identified as male. They still couldn't look as the light was blinding. He chuckled some more. "Yet it is just a fraction of my power. I can't say I'm surprised."
The king of the gods gulped and regained his prideful voice. "W-who are you?" His voice cracked as he dared not look at the blinding light. "The gods will d-destroy you!"
The male barked out a laugh, which pushed the gods more forcefully into their seats. It was a powerful dark energy wave. By now, even Zeus knew (even with his galaxy-sized ego) that the so-called 'most powerful beings on Earth' couldn't defeat this threat. Well, he was the master of those monsters that attacked Camp Half-Blood, so automatically, he was a threat.
"Your arrogance will be your doom," the man mused, a hint of a smirk to his voice, "as if it would affect me. You demand who I am?" He cleared his throat, and released another energy wave which threw them back again as they were starting to regain their bearings. "I am the Creator of the Universe."
Most of the gods' eyes widened. Chaos, they, save Athena, mouthed, as they were too scared to speak out loud. 'Chaos', however, saw this and scowled.
"Chaos, Chaos, Chaos; always Chaos!" he growled angrily, subconsciously stomping his feet. The room shook with a mighty tremble that left the gods clutching their seats for dear immortal life. "What did Chaos do so great that she is the one you insects remember?"
He roared again before any of them could speak (not that they had any intention to) and blasted a random god which—fortunately or unfortunately—was Ares. The war god flew off his throne to the far wall, where he leaned there, pale and unconscious. His throne was damaged and searing, which probably explains his weakened state.
"I'd make you fade now if I wanted to," he declared, his voice muffled through his teeth. "But it is not part of my visit. This is a visit I shall soon regret letting you live." Another angry tremor hit the throne room, before it halted and it was almost peaceful. The light was still there.
"I am Order," he said again, his voice more calm and professional-like. This time, no one moved a muscle in fear of being blasted by the ancient being now identified as Order. "I am here to say goodbye. I will be obliterating your planet until it is nothing but a pint of stardust."
The gods' eyes widened. "Yes. As Creator of the Universe, I monitor every single planet, and I am not happy with your rule, Olympians." He spat the last word venomously. It continued on, "Through my minions, I will slay each and every mortal, demigod, god, and titan out of this world, and replace them with my own creations." He then snorted. "My creations always rule better than hers. It is not mistaken."
Forgetting the fear he was feeling, Zeus yelled. "No! You can't kill us because we are gods!" He stood up outrageously. "And we do not fade if the demigods—agh!"
The king of the gods glared at where Order was supposed to be—a big mistake. The light was too much for his eyes and blinded him, his irises paling into a dull grey. He slumped back on his throne, his eyes glazed over. Smoke came out of his eye sockets, as if his very eyes were burnt to the core.
Order chuckled. "Foolish god. It's a shame that you won't see your little world end, as you know it," he mused, feigning sympathy. "But of course, I will mark the elimination of your illegitimate spawns as the start of my conquer. Your imperfect creation kind will soon die out—"
An explosion from above cut him off. The portal closed, cutting off the light that passes through. It then faded into space. Another one appeared, this time it was already open and the gods could see the outer space and heavenly objects: the moon, the other planets, comets and black holes, and billions and billions of stars, in and out of the Milky Way Galaxy.
The view was soon blocked when another being, this time a female, stepped out of the portal. Then, like the other portal, it faded into space (as in empty space, not outer). Clad in a black silk dress that flowed down her flawless, mile-long legs, her beautiful face expressed nothing but stern regality, a firm expression that made you crap your pants with one look. But in her eyes, they could see, it betrayed many emotions and the turmoil within her. Anger, betrayal, despair, pain; and now some acceptance.
However, Order was a different story. His face was twisted in disgust. He was facing the woman with visible hatred in his eyes—or lack thereof. Now that the light was gone, the gods could see him perfectly clear. He was in the form of a tall, muscular young man in his mid-twenties. He wore an all-white suit over his naturally pale skin. Blondish white hair topped his pale head, sweeping and curling attractively around his pointed chin. His face was void—void of the essential organs that made him look like a shorter, leaner, and more attractive Slenderman.
"Chaos," he spat at the woman, who was now identified as the creator of the universe. But bewilderment was evident on the gods' faces; who is the real creator?
Artemis, however, was staring at the woman in wonder. This woman was the Chaos? The Creator of the Universe? The woman who has him with her? If she was here, would there be a chance that she took him with her? She glanced around, not turning her head in the slightest. It was not possible. She vaguely remembered hearing from him that he wouldn't be coming back until he was fully trained, and was a fully capable heir of Chaos. She cut herself out of her thinking stream and watched.
"Order," she spat back, though it was evident that her heart was not in it. "Leave. Now. You have made your point. They've gotten your message. Now leave!"
Order's face twisted into what looked like smug satisfaction and lifted his hands in mock surrender. "That's not the right way to treat your long lost brother," he chided derisively.
Cue gasps. Apparently it wasn't common to everyone that Chaos had a brother. Now, Chaos did glare at him. "I do not have a brother," she said, though everyone could tell that she forced the words out. "He faded with the very first planet he destroyed!"
The only sign that it affected her brother was that he stiffened almost unnoticeably. All the playfulness left him. "I knew I should have just destroyed you with it."
"They worship you even more than me," Chaos remarked. "They just didn't show it. They were afraid of you."
Her brother scoffed. "Fear. Who told them to fear me? I bet you did," he accused. "I did not want them to fear me. I never did."
"And I encouraged them not to," she replied, trying to talk her brother some sense. "They did of their own accord."
"They were your creations. They should fear you," he spat angrily. "I should have known that you are claiming the universe as your own. Yet we made it together. Why did I even call you a sister?"
"I am not claiming it as my own!" Chaos shouted, suddenly angry. "The universe is still your creations, but it gives you no right to play with it like life is worthless!"
He went up to her face. "See? Now I have no right with my own creations?"
To his surprise, she closed her eyes and calmed herself down, taking deep breaths. "Leave, Order." He was about to protest when his sister shouted, "I said leave! Before I change my mind and battle you right here and now. This planet will be destroyed with us."
He regarded her resentfully, before turning to the gods around them. "Be prepared, Olympians. Be prepared to meet your doom with this pitiful world." His skin started to glow, up to the point that the light was as blinding as the previous. With a mighty flash, he vanished.
As soon as he was out of sight, the Olympians dropped into deep bows. "Lady Chaos, thank you for coming for us."
At this, the creator only nodded. "Rise, Olympians."
As they took their seats, Artemis couldn't help but think of the creator's similarity to herself. The way she and her brother argued was like two children arguing over a toy. Just like how she and Apollo argue about who was the better archer, or who was the older twin. She couldn't deny that she had felt what the creator was feeling, when she'd half the mind to disown this 'stupid disgusting pig' also called Apollo.
"As you have known," Chaos started, crashing her train of thought. "That was my brother, Order. We share the title of Creator of the Universe."
"But, Lady Chaos, why did he want to destroy this planet?" Athena asked, being the ever so curious one.
The creator sighed wearily. "He thinks that you do not rule this planet very good according to his standards. And mostly, the planets are my creations." She looked them in the eyes before turning away. "So he plans to destroy you and replace you with his own."
"Is there any way we could prevent that, Lady Chaos?" Hera inquired warily.
Chaos nodded. "There is. You need to change your ways, and prove to him that the gods are not only mighty and powerful, but fair and just as well," she replied, staring pointedly at a certain god of thunder. "That includes fair counseling. No tyranny."
Zeus was oblivious to the stare, but heard the t-word and started squirming uncomfortably in his seat, feeling the stares of his fellow Olympians. "But.. Does that stop him from slaughtering this planet?"
The creator raised an eyebrow at him. Artemis stifled a laugh, realizing that her father just asked an oh-so stupid question.
"Of course not!" Chaos exclaimed. Her tone made it clear that she thought the inquiry was ridiculous. Some gods let out quiet snickers. "I said: prove that the gods are mighty and powerful. You need to defend yourself from him."
His jaw dropped. "But, Lady Chaos.." He looked like he was trying to swallow his glowing electric cylinder. Maybe it was pride, Artemis thought snidely. "He said that.. That was only a fraction of his power! Even then, we felt... weak."
Chaos seemed to think about it for a moment. "I will help you."
Almost everyone perked up. "W-what?" they asked stupidly.
The creator rolled her eyes. "I will send help," she said again. "But it will not be arriving very soon. Until then, you would have to stand for yourselves."
Still shocked, and thinking what help it would be, Artemis took her turn to ask. "Until when? And what kind of help?"
"You will have to wait for one, to two decades or so," she replied, and everyone looked at her like she was crazy. Could they have held out for so long? "I will send my most powerful: my son and heir. Although he is still in training; it is his choice if he is to go or not."
The moon goddess's heart jumped. Heir.. There could only be one heir, isn't there? The son part is completely understandable; if Percy was to be the next creator of the universe, he should be the son first, having similar powers but to an extent. And surely, he would choose to go and save the world he used to live in. She would soon get to see him personally in about a decade or so! Even if it was a long way to go, she was willing to wait.
Zeus stood up before bowing to the ancient being, his brothers, sisters, and children following suit. "Thank you for lending us your aid, Lady Chaos," he sincerely expressed his gratitude on behalf of the council. "We are forever in your debt."
"If you get to survive, of course," Chaos murmured jokingly, a ghost of a smile on her face. She nodded to them. "Farewell, Olympians. Good luck." And with that happy note, she summoned another portal and stepped through, before both disappeared altogether.
Her father turned to where her twin should have been, his expression irritated. "Apollo! Get your butt moving and heal my eyes, dammit!"
Percy groaned, clutching his head. He surveyed his surroundings, and soon he found himself in a forest, moonlight shining through the umbrella of leaves. He stood up, dusting off the imaginary dust on his clothes, still studying his surroundings.
"Weird," he muttered to himself. "I didn't think of anything—"
He stopped himself. I didn't think of anything, his own voice echoed in his head.
He panicked, looking around for anyone in the place. "Crap," he murmured as he pinched himself hard, but felt nothing. He was now certain it was a dream.
Percy started pacing, trying to get rid of the jumpiness. He was muttering a string of curses, his hands around his head muffling the words even more. "If anyone, by chance, got into this freaking dream that isn't Artemis.. I will.." His words broke off, resuming into the foul words he was speaking earlier.
A sharp snap of a twig alerted him of another's presence. He jumped, "Holy Chaos!" before he slapped his hand to his mouth. He breathed in and out, attempting feebly to calm himself. If it were Artemis, she would've told him of her presence already. Muttering, crap, crap, crap, he quickly spared a glance at the intruder.
Well, he thought sarcastically. There goes that only-one-will-know plan.
Sighing, he decided to face his doom. Her face contorted into shock. He had the decency to smile weakly. "Hello, Thalia."
AN: Reading my previous ANs amuses me. You won't have to bother reading those, as I have deleted every single AN from the time I posted the original chapters. Thank you for reading, have a nice day! ~SmartzyFan