Chapter 3- Meeting The Entity

"Destiny is what you're supposed to do in life. Fate is what kicks you in the ass to make you do it."

Henry Miller

Leo was getting sick of the hallucinations. That stupid sphere had been bugging him for ages now. It started around the time he had joined camp. Every time he was frustrated or annoyed, that glowing sphere kept coming to him, just floating a few feet ahead of him, almost tantalising him to take it. Yet, every time he reached forward to try and take it, it disappeared.

He was quite sure that he had taken some drugs or hallucinogen of some sorts and was considering going to the camp medic to get himself checked out. He hadn't told anyone what he had seen yet, not even Piper. He was sure that she would think him crazy, then fuss over him in worry. And while he appreciated that from her, he wanted to get to the bottom of this himself.

"You're not hallucinating," came a whisper in his head. Leo turned around immediately, holding a wrench in alarm.

"Who's there?" Leo looked around, but saw no-one. "Great, so not just seeing things, now I'm also hearing things."

"You're not seeing nor hearing things," came the same whisper. Leo whipped his head back around and let out a yelp, falling on the floor as he came face to face with a tall figure, just standing motionless.

"Dude, what the hell!" Leo brushed off the dirt from his trousers, getting back on his feet.
"Don't you know it's wrong to sneak up behind someone like that and give them a heart attack?"

The cloaked figure didn't respond nor move. He just stood still, watching Leo intently.

"Yeah, because it's not creepy to just stand there and watch someone huh. Feel free to say something buddy." Leo wondered if this mysterious person would do something. After a few moments, he raised his hands, pulling his black hood behind him, revealing a clean-shaven face with medium-length dark brown hair. He had a leather vest covering a dark gray shirt with black khaki pants and a pair of black boots. But what really drew Leo's attention was his eyes. They were crimson red, as though crystal vials holding blood in them. They radiated power. So much power. He looked to be in mid-twenties but Leo could tell that he was far older than that. A memory unlocked in him as he observed this new…being?

"I've…. I've seen you before." Leo held his head as he attempted to remember. "On my first day here, you were standing there for a sec, and then you, like, vanished."

The mysterious guy just nodded.

"Who are you?" Leo asked, still suspicious. "And what do you want?"

"Both very good questions Leo Valdez," he replied, wincing slightly. "Both questions that have very complicated answers, that'll lead to more questions, I'm afraid."

"Dude, all I asked was your name."

Leo looked around, just realising that everything was frozen around them. A leaf was floating mid-air, on its way to hit the ground. The machinery inside his cabin was frozen mid-process of cutting the wood he had set earlier.

"And that, is a far more complicated question than you realise," the mysterious guy finally spoke. Leo noted that his voice, though soft, was quite deep, but somewhat melodious, "But I shall indulge you. My name is Helix, but for the time being, I ask that you call me 'Entity'."

"Okay. I'm assuming you're a God? Based on—" Leo gestured to the leaf "— all this? But I thought you all had died out when the Assassin went on a killing spree to take you all out?"

"Well yes, that is true, Perseus Jackson did kill all the gods. But I'm not a God. I am something far, far more powerful, ancient and beyond comprehension, at least to you all for the time being."

"You know, these vague messages, aren't doing any favours, it's just confusing me more and more."

The Entity gave a small smile. "I've been told that many times. I don't expect you to understand, but giving you full answers will make those questions invalid, and lead to more confusion. Your path and destiny have already been laid out. I'm merely here to guide you. The rest is for you to discover."

"Oh yeah, you're definitely giving me the God vibes. Cryptic messages, talking about destiny and prophecy. All you need is a radiating glow around you and perhaps descending from the sky, and you complete the whole set."

"You remind me a lot of my last protégé. Around his friends, he was always sarcastic and liked to challenge those around him at times."

"Your…last protégé?"

"Indeed. I believe you know him as The Assassin, or Percy Jackson."

Leo's eyes widened. "Wait, the Assassin…. worked for you?"

"Well, I wouldn't say he worked for me. I delivered him his mission and the knowledge he needed to accomplish it, but everything else he did according to his own volition. He led Hades, Annabeth Chase, Zoe Nightshade, Bianca di Angelo and Nico di Angelo to rebel against the gods of Olympus and took them down. I gave him certain abilities and aid along the way, but the rest were his own accomplishments."

"Hang on another second. Annabeth Chase, Zoe Nightshade, Bianca, I've heard those names a few times before. Bianca is Nico's sister, but Zoe and Annabeth, what—"

"You'll have to ask Nico or Chiron about that. They're better suited to answer your questions for this. I've come here to talk to you about something else, something more important."

The sudden seriousness in the tone gained Leo's attention as he kept his mouth shut and focused on The Entity. The Entity flicked his wrist and suddenly they were no longer in Camp. Leo looked around in amazement. He wasn't entirely sure where they were, but it definitely wasn't Earth. They were floating in space— well not exactly floating. Leo looked under him and could still see the infinite depths of space underneath him, but there was an invisible floor on which he could walk. Above him were vast stars, all of them filled with different colours like dark red, purple, blue, turquoise, magenta. From the skies on Earth, they all appeared to be white, but having stood near them, they were filled with ranges of colours. For the first time in ages, Leo had no words to say. The depths of space around him were filled with strange purple and blue lines, just existing motionless but filling the darkness. Standing near them, he could feel power radiating from them.

"If you don't mind, I'd like for you to walk with me. It's been a while since I've had a nice stroll in this area," The Entity said as he began walking. How this man could so casually say he walked in this area of beauty so nonchalantly, Leo would never understand.

"This place is beautiful. There's nothing like this on Earth that could compare to this," Leo said after a few minutes.

"Indeed. This is a different galaxy, one not too far from yours by my means, but a considerable distance away nonetheless. I used to visit here frequently when I wished to clear my mind." They walked on for another minute in silence before Leo decided to talk.

"Alright, explain. What's going on, and why are you involved? And why did you want the Greek gods killed?" Leo asked.

"I had Perseus Jackson kill the Greek gods for two reasons. The first, to help your kind. Despite whatever the myths said, the gods weren't good deities. They abused their powers, had no regard for human life and took pleasure in destroying mortals for their entertainment. And while they were the reason for your very existence, they didn't evolve as you did, and let their abilities corrupt them. Had they continued on this path without someone able to stop them, they would've doomed this planet and the people along with them. I had them removed to save mankind, simply because I care about you all. The second reason is slightly more complex."

"It always is complex with you, huh?" Leo rolled his eyes.

"There is a far greater evil coming to threaten your planet and your people. Had the gods been involved in this war, the results would've been catastrophic. Their lust for power and disregard for any beings other than themselves, it could've been used to corrupt them to either fight for the enemy in return for unimaginable power, resources and large armies completely subservient to them. Or that same greed could've backfired on them, leading them to the wrong choices and dooming your planet. Their ideas on morality were far from what was right and that itself would've led your entire civilisation to their downfall. Hence, I tasked Percy Jackson to rid your kind of them. Your kind, while far younger, have a far better grasp on making the right decisions and staying true to your morals and that ultimately is what I believe is the key to your victory."

"You keep mentioning an evil. Who or what exactly is this evil?"

"My antithesis. His name is Dynamix, but we shall refer to him as The Dark One for now."

"Wait, why?"

"Names have power Leo Valdez. Saying his name too many times could alert him to this conversation and I'd prefer if this didn't reach his ears. Now as I was saying, The Dark One is my antithesis. He is the complete opposite of me. When I was born, the universe was in complete disarray. To bring order and balance, I created the Ancient Laws. But there was a side effect at that time that I did not foresee. By bringing balance, it caused the creation of another being. The Dark One. My opposite. While I was born to create, he was born to destroy."

"Let me guess. Typical movie scenario. Has a lot of powers. Gets corrupted by said powers. Goes all evil 'I want to kill everyone' and tries to destroy the universe."

"Essentially… yes. There was a war and due to certain events, we won and I trapped him. Now he is awakening, yet again. Intent on destruction of all life so he can remould it as he sees fit. Which is why I am here. I've spoken to your trainer Chiron and asked him to unite the demigods. If you are to have any hope of surviving what is to come, you'll need as many allies as you can get. For now, I want you to help in uniting the camps, explaining to them what I have to you. You, Piper McLean and Nico di Angelo are the main hopes in uniting all demigods. Now, for the last few things I have to say." He held his hand out to Leo and a blue marble appeared in it. "This will give you the answers you need, but you will not be able to eat it till the time is right."

"How will I know when the time is right?"

"You just will."

"Ugh, more cryptic messages," Leo muttered as he took the orb and pocketed it.

"Till that time, you won't be able to take the orb out of your pocket no matter what. If you switch clothes, it'll re-appear in those new ones. Now for my next gift," he continued. There was another flash of light and a familiar object appeared.

The Sphere.

"Treat this with care. It's the most powerful weapon in the universe and is capable of feats that you haven't dreamt of yet," He handed the object to Leo.

"What is this?" Leo asked earnestly, finally on the cusp of the answers to the visions he had been seeing for weeks now.

"At one time, it was a weapon of mass destruction, at another it was the trident that slew many gods. But right now, it's a tool meant to serve your purposes son of Hephaestus. It's the answer to many of your frustrations. Every time you've been annoyed, it has been because of a failed project. This sphere has presented itself in those times; it's the answer to succeeding in them. Its name is Corazon."

"Heart," Leo translated.

"Indeed. You will have more time to examine it later. I imagine you'll have a lot of fun tinkering with it. I have one last gift to give you." A knife appeared in his hand and he cut his other palm. The knife was replaced with a vial and he collected the blood. Leo noted that his blood wasn't red or gold but instead black, with white specks in them—almost like the colour of the universe.

"Drink it, and it'll give you the power you need for the upcoming war."

"Wait, you want me to drink your blood? Wont' that give me some kind of… I don't know, blood disease or something?" Leo backed away.

"Just drink it. This is a science that's beyond your understanding which I can't explain to you." He handed the vial to Leo.

Leo looked at the vial before shrugging. He had done far more idiotic things in his life, so why stop now? He closed his eyes and took the whole liquid in one gulp.

"Was I meant to feel something?" Leo said after a few seconds.

"Just give it a moment," was all The Entity said. A few moments later, Leo felt an immense rush of power flow through him.

"Woah!" He looked at his arms. They looked the exact same, but they didn't feel that way. It was like the entire universe had just been put inside his body.

"In time, you'll learn what powers have been given. Or, to be more exact, the powers I have rightfully returned to you." The Entity snapped his fingers and Leo felt his surroundings shift again. He looked around and found himself back at Camp, right where they had been some time ago. The floating leaf was still in the same position it had been when The Entity had appeared. "But for now, I'm afraid our time has come to a close."

"Wait! I have so many more questions!" Leo desperately cried out, sensing the abrupt end to the conversation. "How do I defeat…"

"All those questions will be answered by that orb. This isn't the last time we'll speak. I'll come to you and answer those questions after it has shown you what you need to know. Knowing too soon would only confuse you more. For now, your task is to aid in uniting the half-bloods. You'll know what to do next when it faces you. I'll see you very soon, Leo Valdez. We'll have much to discuss then." He turned around and then simply disappeared. No smoke, no trace of him ever being present—he just vanished into thin air.

Leo felt something shift in the atmosphere as he realised that the floating leaf began descending towards the ground. The sound of wood being cut filled the air as time resumed.

He glanced back at the mysterious object in his hand, his mind still spinning from what he had just gone through. If it wasn't for the sphere, he would've believed that he just had an extremely realistic, off-the-cuff hallucination. But it was real.

He had a war to prepare for.

Author's Note: So it's been a while. Sorry for the long wait, but life always gets in my way. Holidays began and I was just filled with one hell of a hectic schedule. But I made time and managed to get in this chapter. So hope you all enjoy it. This chapter has 2537 words, which is a decent amount. Not my usual but slowly getting into a continuous schedule and hopefully I'll be getting my word count up as well.

Hope you all enjoyed the chapter so far. Some déjà vu with Leo meeting Helix similar to Percy meeting Helix with getting the orb and vial of blood to drink. And some insight to the beginning of Leo's journey as they begin preparations for war. I hope to get out the next chapter a lot sooner but I don't want to make any certain promises, my life is one hell of a roller-coaster at the moment so it's hard to be certain about when I get time to write, especially since I need to update Guardian of Rome as soon as possible, but nonetheless, I'll get a chapter out soon enough.

As usual, thanks a lot to TheFire44 and TheGirlOfManyFloods for reviewing, I've always said it, reviews boost my motivation for writing so it's always nice to see people reading my works. A response to TheFire44, from this chapter, the aim is for the Romans to work alongside with the Greeks, and now it's up to Leo to make sure that it runs smoothly and they unite without issues.

Another huge thanks to Pterygio for beta reading this chapter for me. Picked up quite some mistakes that I made earlier on and helped improve my writing style to make my story seem easier to read so thanks a lot for that. Without him, these chapters would not be anywhere near the potential that they are currently.

That's about it from me, haven't got much else to say for the moment. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter and hope everyone is still keeping safe and healthy during these times.

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See you all in the next chapter

SpiritsOfTheWorld