"My name is Styx. We need to talk."
Percy hastily stumbled to his knees, a reverent gesture to recognize the deity in front of him, hoping she wasn't here for potentially dangerous reasons. "My apologies, Lady Styx."
Styx was unperturbed, face stoic. "Rise, Perseus."
He stood, examining her once more. She hovered ahead of him in the unblinking world, the odd blackness surrounding them without need for shadows. He knew there were no walls, and yet it looked as if he wouldn't be able to move more than a few feet in each direction. It was an unending void of a hallway, darkness the only companion to the two.
Styx hung in the air, obsidian hair floating as if underwater. Her purple-black dress too seemed to forgo the normal gravitational pull, weightless in the air. Percy couldn't tell whether or not they really were surrounded by air or water - he couldn't sense either.
She stared at him, an unworldly expression on her face. Still, there was no emotion. Well, that wasn't entirely correct; the hatred in her eyes was certainly an emotion. But it didn't seem targeted at him, or anyone - just a cruel genetic trick that induced her features to appear a certain way. Like she was programmed to have hateful eyes, just as she was programmed to have the most delicate skin. It was a fascinating and terrifying contrast to Percy.
"Why am I here?"
Styx began to float closer to Percy, slowly, deliberately. "You have come in contact with my water, once again. I have pulled you into my realm, for I have yet to see a being survive contact twice. It is… unusual."
He winced at her tone when she said 'unusual,' one that was more displeased than anything else. "I… I'm sorry?"
She had neared him enough to slap his head. His ears rang with the impact.
"No, Perseus. I come not to seek apologies. I come to investigate. And to learn."
"To learn?" Percy shivered at the coldness of her breath.
"Yes. To learn." She slowly drifted away, and he took a deep gulp of air, or whatever it may be he was breathing. "I may be old, but for many, many years, I was simply the Mavroneri. Some sought me out, but many avoided me. Now, in my old age, I can finally discover."
She paused, staring out at the blackness, before continuing. "None dared cross my waters, no matter where. Only three men have bathed in my water to survive, including yourself. And fewer have survived direct contact away from my domain."
"Direct contact? What do you mean?"
Styx looked down, seemingly out of frustration. "Many have forgotten. When an oath on the water of the Mavroneri is broken, it is my duty to pour my Stygian water on them. It is punishment by death."
"...Oh."
She hadn't moved in nearly a minute, still entranced by the dark walls of wherever they may have been.
"My waters have been diluted. The empty promises… fewer oaths… I am no longer the arbiter of justice in our world. I can no longer hold the Gods to their word. Or anyone." She turned towards Percy.
"My role has elapsed. Past its sunset. Now, I am just a relic, like so much of Olympus. None remember the old ones… I am close to joining them in the Realm of the Faded." She looked forlorn, as forlorn as she could become.
"But everyone swears their oaths on you! They remember you!"
"Not like it was, Perseus. None fear me anymore - it is not enough to simply know the name. You know the name Helios, and yet he is long gone." She sounded spiteful. "If I still mattered, you would not be alive. Simply a product of a broken oath."
That struck a chord within Percy. "If I'm a broken oath… maybe that's why I survived the river?"
Styx looked deep into Percy, staring not at his eyes, but his soul. He shrunk into himself slightly, the intensity of her glare overpowering his base instincts. Or perhaps it was just her domain's influence making itself known.
"...Perhaps, Perseus. Perhaps."
Percy didn't dare speak again unprompted. The silence hung once more, like heavy droplets in the humid summer air. The air was cold on his skin, clinical, like a hospital emergency room.
"I may be learning, but I must also do my job. You have broken your own oath, child," Styx said, her voice like distorted nails on a chalkboard.
"What?"
She floated forwards, her presence more menacing than earlier. "You made an oath, Perseus. And you broke it."
"I, I don't remember. I… I barely remember anything. I woke up a week ago with amnesia, I've only recovered bits and pieces. I don't know what oath you're talking about."
She looked at him, before turning away. "Swear on me you don't remember your oath."
"Huh?" Percy's eyes were wide.
"Swear, and I won't kill you."
"I, uh, yeah, yeah, I swear! I swear on the Styx I don't remember my oath."
He expected a rumble of thunder or some other phenomenon, but he got nothing in return. All he got was a nod of acknowledgement from Styx.
"I see."
The darkness around them swirled. Percy racked his brain, trying to think of a way to get back to his friends.
"Is there a way to prevent you from fading? Could I… I don't know, bring you back from the brink?"
Styx stared at Percy, hair and dress floating amidst the Stygian water, cold eyes boring into him. She regarded him with a mild curiosity. She spoke as she turned away, voice cold in his ears.
"You will be permitted to continue your journey, as long as you survive this. And do not dare try it a third time. I will be in touch, Perseus."
The goddess floated once more, heading off into the distance of the void-world he still found himself in. An ethereal goodbye.
"When? What? Styx!" Percy called after her. "What does survive mean!"
The walls cracked open, and water crashed down around him.
He screamed once more, the million needles piercing a million spots on Percy's body. His muscles felt like they were being liquified. His body felt like it had been thrown into the Sun.
It was pain unlike anything he had felt. Percy swore, clenching his jaw tighter than a shark, clenching his eyelids together while wincing. His body shut down.
So this is what Styx meant by 'survive.'
Survive her.
As he writhed in pain, a series of images flashed across his eyesight, against his eyelids. That girl, Annabeth, appeared, blonde hair bouncing as she reached down for him. "Come on, Seaweed Brain!"
She faded away.
The chubby face of Frank took center stage, smiling nervously, reaching out. "You alright, Perce? Come on."
But he too faded away.
Hazel appeared, brown eyes shining with kindness and good intentions as she lay out her hands. "Percy, it's time to get up!"
But as Percy tried to reach, her image rippled in the water, disappearing.
Once more, a face formed above the water, Zoë's shining black eyes boring into his own. "Come on, Perseus. Time to come help."
Percy tried to jump, arm outstretched, but his fingers just barely missed hers, millimeters the only separation. She too faded. Percy started to panic.
A fifth face. It was Aika - her blue eyes and black hair complimenting her angular features perfectly. She had a smirk on her face, arm lazily outstretched towards him. "Come on, Percy. Don't just sit there."
Percy frantically kicked upwards, desperate to reach her hand.
"Take my hand!"
He lunged, fingers curling around Aika's, grip tighter than ever. The son of Poseidon stopped dissolving, coalescing once more into the full demigod he was. He saw Aika smile in his vision, before she seemed to fade away. He felt a tug, like an invisible cord attached to Percy's lower back. It yanked him backwards with a force he didn't expect.
Percy found himself thrown upwards, away from the water that had engulfed and tortured him. He gulped down air as the pain slowly dulled, a process that took far too long. It sank from the pain of fifty suns, to the pain of forty-nine suns, then forty-eight, and so on and so forth. He screamed in agony, but slowly, and slowly it may have been, his pain subsided.
His screaming had attracted attention, it seemed. As his senses returned, his hearing began to return, far earlier than his vision.
"PERCY! WAKE UP!"
"Percy, what - what is happening?! Gods, what is this?"
"Oh shit, oh shit, My Lady! Help!"
"Perseus? What in the - Apollo!"
"Hey sis, what's the occasi - what the hell is happening!"
"I don't know, you're the doctor!"
"God of Healing, mind you. Heh. Alrighty, what is going on with you…"
Percy gasped.
He shot up, panting, stumbling to his feet. The light was blinding, and his arm instantly shot up to protect his vision. He felt for the wall, leaning against it, breathing heavily. Straightening up, Percy slowly opened his eyes, the light dimming as his eyes adjusted.
He stood against the stone-bricked wall, the bedroom unfolding as he remembered. This was where he, Zoë, and Aika had rested, the night after their journey with Artemis.
The foot of Olympus.
They hadn't climbed the mountain fully - they had camped at the base, where the rest of the Hunt had waited for their patron.
As his eyes adjusted, he scanned the room. To the right of his bed was his friends. Aika and Zoë both looked incredibly concerned - the former dominated by worry, the latter by both worry and pity. Aura stood there too, knife in hand, as if she had worried about a monster possibly having invaded their camp.
Among the mortals stood Artemis, unchanged from her appearance yesterday. But next to her stood a being Percy hadn't yet interacted with - Apollo. He stood tall and confident, blonde hair spiked up and bright eyes shining with curiosity. He had on what Percy had to assume was his 'doctor's gear,' a stethoscope and other instruments slung about his body and in various pockets of a sort-of hospital tunic. Percy imagined his teeth were a blinding white, but he wasn't showing them off - instead, his jaw was set in determination amidst a kind countenance.
Percy took a deep breath, sagging against the wall. "Hey, guys. Milord, milady."
His throat was dry as a bone, and his voice came out incredibly scratchy. Aika breathed a sigh of relief, before handing him a cup of water that had been sitting on his bedside table. "Percy, thank the Gods. What happened?"
He greedily gulped down the cooling liquid. As he lowered the cup, he got a good look at his skin - it was red. Bright red, like a cooked lobster after being boiled. He was peeling already.
"Agh."
Apollo stepped forward, doctor persona in full force. "Sit down, Perseus - may I call you Percy?"
Percy nodded. "Sure, Lord Apollo."
He waved that away. "Please, just Apollo, Percy."
"Uh, sure." Percy was a bit taken aback by the serious manner Apollo was conveying - he didn't know exactly, but he was pretty sure Apollo was a bit goofier. Maybe. He took a seat.
"Your friends tell me you were screaming in your sleep. And it seems you're blistered beyond belief, which seems new." Apollo sat in a swivel chair he had conjured at the edge of the bed. He took a stethoscope from around his shoulders, putting the earpieces in his ears and the chest piece up against Percy's chest.
"Uh, yeah. I guess."
Apollo listened for a moment, before switching stethoscope locations. "Do you know what happened?"
Percy opened his mouth, but paused.
Do not draw divine attention.
That mantra had defined his first days, but he had become lazy about it. But while he had drawn a bit of attention, revealing he had the Curse of the Styx would draw the attention of the entire pantheon above his head. And Aika couldn't afford that attention.
He shook his head. "Not at all."
Apollo nodded his head assuredly. He looked around at the other occupants, before placing the stethoscope back around his shoulders.
"Can I ask all of you to wait outside for a bit? I'd like to talk with the patient one-on-one."
"Is he alright?" Aika asked, concerned.
"Yes, he is, and will be. But with the practice of patient-doctor confidentiality, I'd like to speak to him alone."
"The what?"
Apollo swiveled around to face Aika, a slight smirk on his face. "Get out."
As Percy's friends filed out, Apollo turned back to the demigod, face serious. His eyes flashed golden, and a protective bubble seemed to form around them.
"So what did you not want to tell me?"
Right. God of -
"God of Truth, yes." The god had a bit of a smirk on his face as he delivered that nugget of information.
Percy facepalmed and groaned. "Right."
Apollo waited for Percy to talk.
"Well, uh… swear not to tell anyone. Please."
The god sent a suspicious look at him, before standing up, his swivel chair melting into nothingness. "You have my word."
Percy shook his head. "On the river. That still matters nowadays, right?"
"Ah, a smart kid, heh. Alright, Percy - I swear on the river Styx not to disclose whatever it may be you are about to tell me."
Percy nodded, satisfied. He reached into his pocket, unsheathing and uncapping Anaklusmos, the xiphos springing forth in all its glory. And with that, he slashed downwards, towards his quad.
The sword bounced off.
Percy let out a half breath of relief. "Ok, I'm glad that actually worked."
Apollo looked with wide eyes, before nearly rushing to grab a scalpel from his breast pocket. Within moments, he was getting stabbed on his arm and leg.
"Fascinating." Apollo spoke with a reverent tone, wonder seeping into his voice. "The blessing of the Styx, I assume?"
Percy nodded. "Blessing, curse, whichever you pick."
The god hummed under his breath. "I must ask - you were here overnight, I've been told. How did you… heh. Teleport, maybe?"
Percy shook his head. "It's a bit more complicated than that."
"I presume, I presume," the god murmured. "Painful?"
"Oh, gods, the worst pain I've ever felt."
Apollo manifested a notebook and pen in his hands, a pair of glasses also appearing on his face. Percy assumed the god had perfect vision, so maybe he just liked the aesthetic.
"Describe it. In detail, please."
"Uh… like a million spear tips digging into me. Worse than acid, honestly. If I stayed in there even ten seconds longer, I might not have made it out at all."
The glasses sat on the bridge of Apollo's nose, and he pushed them up for dramatic effect. "You controlled whether you made it out? Achilles was held under by Thetis; he didn't have much of a choice."
"Yeah, I guess I did. I saw visions of people I cared about until I got yanked out by something. I didn't really choose to go in the water either, the water was in the horn of a…"
"...the horn of a Scythian Donkey?" Apollo interrupted, jotting furiously. "Now why would you have been fighting a Scythian Donkey in Thessaly?"
"Uh… it was in Canada?"
The god peered over his glasses once more. "What's Canada?"
Percy wilted right then and there. "Uh, well…"
He awkwardly shifted his vision to the side, hoping for any respite or miracle to save him from his current predicament. Luckily, the Moirai came to his aid.
A knock sounded on the door to the bedroom. It was Aika, peeking her head in. "Is he alright, My Lord?"
Apollo regarded Percy with a suspicious look, before turning to Aika. "Yes, young one. Percy will be just fine. Better than that, to be honest. He'll fill you in."
He stood, notepad and pen disappearing. In fact, all of his Doctor's attire was gone - it was replaced by a gaudy golden robe, a shiny bow slung across his back, and a lyre attached to his hip. He was as bright as the damned sun, which wasn't particularly surprising, but it was tough to look at.
"I have duties to attend to. We'll talk again, Percy. Wish Arty a happy half-birthday for me!"
Percy and Aika hastily covered their eyes as Apollo flashed away, the brightness leaving spots in Percy's vision. That flash might have given him a headache, honestly.
So much for the God of Healing.
Percy's skin had cooled down, and now looked much more flesh-colored, something that Percy enjoyed greatly. He was engulfed in a hug by Aika, one closer to desperation than anything.
She spoke, muffled by the crook on his shoulder. "Gods, I was scared."
"I'm sorry. I promise I'm alright."
She held him for a moment, before stepping back. "Don't you fucking dare go crazy on me."
He smiled. "Deal."
Aika hesitated, before going back for another hug. Percy chuckled a little bit, his cheeks growing slightly warm.
They stood there in each other's company, breathing slowly, eyes shut. With how crazy the world had gotten, a moment of peace was all the more cherished. Percy tried to take in the moment, take in how she felt in his arms.
In this world, nothing was guaranteed.
A cool breeze filtered in through the small window, a ray of warm sunlight capturing their embrace. Percy smiled into Aika's hair.
Thank gods he found her.
He wouldn't know what to do without her.
She mumbled into his chest. "What happened in the future?"
Percy's eyes shot open. Goddamn. With all the constant fighting and information getting dumped on his head, he sometimes forgot what other people knew.
"I was fighting some donkeys and accidentally wound up in the River Styx."
She separated, something Percy really didn't want to happen. He missed her warmth already.
She fixed him with an incredulous look. "I - what the - the Styx?"
He nodded. "Just like Achilles."
"So… what exactly does that do?"
Percy once more uncapped Anaklusmos, demonstrating just as he did for Apollo. Aika's eyes grew wide. "Holy shit."
"Can you keep it a secret? I don't need a target on my back."
Aika nodded hastily. "Yeah, yeah, I will… holy shit, Percy."
"I'm going to do whatever it takes, Aika. I promise."
She chuckled, before walking to the chair in the corner, where her quiver lay. She slung it over her shoulder, locking it in place.
"Any other surprises?"
Oh. Right.
"Uh… in the future, I have your powers."
Aika froze, before turning to him. "My powers?"
He nodded. "The air blasts, yeah."
Percy shaped his hand into a fist, lightly jabbing out towards the wall, thinking of the feeling he channeled when he experimented the first time. The wall was his target.
Nothing happened.
He frowned. Jabbing once more, taking aim this time at a smaller target - a ceramic jar, crooked upon the windowsill. No luck.
Percy looked at his hands. "I guess I only have them in the future."
"Huh. I… I wonder what happens in the future to get you there."
He shrugged.
Aika slapped on her vambraces. "So, what's the plan?"
Percy broke out of his staring, grabbing his bag. "Aura has a theory about your father."
"Really?"
He nodded. "She told me to take you to Meteora. That we might find him there."
Aika stood, stunned, before grabbing her bow. Her eyes had lit up, a fiery resolve once more behind them. She moved with fierce determination, prepared to give her heart and soul for answers that have haunted the entirety of her life.
"Then let's get going."
Once again, the trio faced the world alone.
Percy, Zoë, and Aika rode along the rocky path, shrubbery and short trees lining the road to Meteora. The sun was hidden behind some storm clouds, although no rain had fallen - a cool gust front had rolled into the valley, and Percy looked warily to the sky. He hoped the weather would hold.
The trio rode quickly, a hasty Aika setting a quicker pace than Percy or Zoë had expected. Percy was worried their horses would tire before reaching the rocks.
As Aika forged ahead, determination guiding her resolve, Percy fell back to talk to Zoë. He was worried she was feeling left out.
"How ya feeling? "
"Me? I am good. More than that, really." A grin adorned her face. "I finally found somewhere to be."
"I'm a little surprised, to be honest," Percy confessed. "I know that was a big decision."
She looked down, albeit still smiling slightly. " I… I really didn't know what to make of the whole situation. It was a tempting offer, but… but I think I made the right call."
Percy smiled. "Me too."
"Yeah?"
He nodded. "Definitely."
They rode side-by-side, enjoying the cool weather. It was that wonderful pre-storm chill in the air, where the world seems to come alive in preparation. The trees swayed in the wind, gusts blowing the grass and the flowers. The shadows of the clouds danced on the mountainsides. Percy smiled at the sight.
"Hey, Zoë, I had a question for you. About Anaklusmos."
The copper-skinned girl smiled. "Go ahead. "
"Does it have any special properties?"
She cocked her head. "Well, it is an old sword. My mother wielded it, long before I did. I can only wonder what it went through beforehand." She looked off into the valley, the dark sky a creeping darkness over Thessaly. "I know it holds a particular affinity for water - that's probably why you took to it so easily. I'm not sure what else though."
"Huh."
"What kind are you thinking of?"
Percy shrugged. "In my future, I was given a message from someone. All it said was 'listen to the sword.' I haven't had any time to really think about what that could mean, but… I thought you might have an idea."
Zoë hesitated. Percy could tell she was battling with her consciousness as to whether to say something.
"My… mother. When she gave me that sword, she did tell me one thing. I always thought it was silly."
"What's that?"
"If I die, to make sure I stab myself with Anaklusmos before I pass."
Percy raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "Really?"
"Yeah." Zoë snorted through her nostrils out of spite. "That was half my childhood. That damn instruction getting drilled into me. None of my sisters got the same deal." She closed her eyes, shutting out the world for a moment. "I wanted to love my mother, but… she was a goddess, you know? There wasn't much time for her to be around me. And most of that time was training me."
The clouds opened up, and the rain started to fall. A drizzle, gray and unassuming, but certainly there. Drop by drop, rain touching Percy's hair and hands and legs. His senses seemed to dial to eleven with the water refreshment, but it wasn't through an aesthetically pleasing lens.
"I'm sorry, Zoë."
She shook her head. "It is fine. That was many years ago. But our experiences shape us, you know? I'm not in a rush to relive my past." She finished on a somber note, one Percy nearly flinched at.
"Do you have any idea what would happen afterwards?"
"Nothing."
"Could it help you?"
"I'm not sure I care."
Percy turned to her. "Why not?"
"I…" Zoë steeled her eyes. "To me, that sword has hurt me more than it helped me. It led to me being neglected as a child and abused as an adult. When you told me about your future with it, I was more than happy to give it up."
Percy eyed Anaklusmos. The innocent sword seemed a bit bloodied with the reveal. "I'm sorry, Zoë. Truly."
She looked back to the road. She hadn't acknowledged the rain.
"It's alright."
They rode in silence. Aika pressed on ahead of them, a steely visage stable above her horse. Their horses plodded along, Percy's complaining about the rain. He promised them he'd find a few apples for their troubles.
They might have run with that idea, and Percy thought he might now owe a fortune to his steed.
Zoë reached up, grasping her hood and throwing it over her head. The rain continued to drizzle down, not picking up in intensity but being a nuisance nonetheless. Zoë looked over at Percy, before speaking up once more.
"So when are you going to tell Aika about your feelings?"
Percy practically yelped. "What?!"
Zoë smirked. "Oh, come on, Percy. What, do you think I'm blind?"
"What do you mean?" Percy was panicking slightly.
Zoë laughed. "Come on! You two are constantly making lovey-dovey faces at each other, you're almost on top of each other. It's impossible to miss the attraction."
Percy wilted in the face of Zoë's chuckles. "Am I that easy to read?"
"I'm afraid so!" Zoë barely got the words out between laughs.
"Damn. You got me."
"Well…" Zoë caught her breath, wheezing her final chuckles as she held her chest. "What's stopping you?"
"I mean, a few things."
"Like what?"
Percy sighed. "I mean… how do I know she doesn't feel the same?"
Zoë stared at him in disbelief. "Percy, for everyone on the outside, it's incredibly obvious that the two of you like each other. Don't pretend like you haven't noticed entirely."
He thought back to that hug early that morning. She made a good point.
"Still…" Percy struggled to think of the right words.
Zoë looked at him questioningly. She seemed to scan him, like a security worker at an airport.
"Is there someone in the future?"
Percy took a deep breath. "I honestly don't know."
"What does that mean?"
He shrugged. "I mean… as I'm getting my memories back, slowly might I add, I feel like I had someone. Like, before I lost my memories. But that doesn't feel like my past, it feels like this… other Percy's." He stared at the horse underneath him. "I don't want to betray Percy. Or her, whoever she is. Some girl named Annabeth, I think. But I just don't feel any attachment to her at all."
Zoë was quiet a moment, before pinching her nose. "Damn. That's messed up."
"Yeah." He clicked his tongue in disappointment.
"Well, I can only tell you one thing. Follow your gut. It's a tough situation, but… you can only serve yourself, right? Do what you feel is right."
"But what if…"
Zoë cut him off. "Who cares, what if. What if you don't really have anyone? Then you'll be kicking yourself for years. Just don't be an asshole to her."
"I guess, yeah."
"Percy, it might be difficult. But that's all love is. Difficult. You just have to learn to follow your gut."
Percy mulled it over. It just sucked, really. Aika was amazing, but… what if his memories revealed he had truly loved Annabeth? He didn't know her, really, but… did he? Percy simply did not know.
And did he really want to lose out on Aika for a possibility from his past?
"Are you alright, Percy?"
No. No way in hell was Percy letting Aika go.
He gave a soft smile."Yeah. Thanks, Zoë."
She leaned over, putting her hand on his shoulder. "Brighten up, friend. I think many would find themselves jealous of your situation."
That drew a chuckle out of him."Right, right."
They were nearing Meteora. Percy could see the outlines of the natural pillars in the distance, piercing into the sky, jagged and stocky. The tallest poked into the clouds.
All the closer to answers.
Who Aika's dad was.
What he had done.
Why Percy had, presumably, his powers in the future.
Finally.
"Guys!"
The shout echoed over the low din of the drizzling rain. Percy and Zoë looked forwards, catching a glimpse of Aika, waving towards them. She had stopped her horse near the treeline, turned back to face her friends, knife drawn.
She wasn't alone anymore.
Standing next to Aika's horse was a mysterious woman, a recurring trend at this point. She stood with a stagger, white hair falling out of her head, wispy. But juxtaposing the hair falling out was a seemingly unblemished face, pure and smooth and fresh.
She was dressed in an unreal cloak, shifting gold designs on a deep black cloth that seemed to emulate the fabric of the universe, somehow. The cloak covered nearly her entire body, with only her face and hands sticking out - the hands, unlike her face, were incredibly wrinkled. A gold ring shone prominently on her left ring finger, catching the light of a sun still hidden behind the clouds.
She leaned heavily against a cane she held. A walking staff, made of two materials twisting amongst one another, one that emanated an aura more imposing than any Percy remembered seeing.
Of horn and ivory.
"Who are you?" Percy asked, out of confidence and out of fear. He remembered the horn and ivory gates he had seen as he initially woke - his first memory. He doubted it was a coincidence, and it scared him.
How powerful was this lady?
"Perseus, how lovely it is to finally meet you. Lovely, and a bit bittersweet, if I do say so."
Her voice echoed. It sounded like it came from around them, not from her mouth. Like thunder rolling over the hills, bouncing off the trees and the earth as it heralded the arrival of the lightning blasts. It was ominous.
"My name is Qerasia. Goddess of Fate."
The horses skittered nervously.
Percy patted his horse, trying to calm him down, hiding his own panic.
"Fate? Isn't that the Moirai?"
She laughed, a creaking laugh that seemed to suck the air out of their surroundings momentarily.
"Ah, I forgot you would have met Lachesis. Although… I don't believe you remember that, do you?"
Percy's grip on Anaklusmos tightened. "What?"
"Are you Mycenaean?" Zoë interjected.
Qerasia nodded her head, black cloth hiding most of her expression. "Indeed. The last of my kind."
His grip on Anaklusmos loosened. "What do you mean? We fought Dipsioi like a week ago."
"And we saw Komawenteia," Aika supplied.
Qerasia sank to a seating position, a large rock behind her acting as a chair. She rested her cane across her lap, old hands running across it as if it was a work of art.
"Those were the final ones. Other than me."
Percy hopped off his horse, Zoë and Aika following suit. "But… some of the Olympians used to be Mycenaeans, right?"
Qerasia continued to examine her staff. "You are right, yes. When I speak of my 'kind,' I speak of those who have not discovered a Greek persona. Those who have not adapted, choosing to cling to tradition instead of being transformed."
Blank stares greeted her explanation.
"You all saw Artemis show her Mycenaean aspect, but she developed a dominant Greek aspect a long time ago. That is who the modern day people believe in - they don't remember the full-blooded Mycenaeans. Thus, we grow weaker and weaker until we fade." She wiped at her face, but Percy couldn't make out the exact gesture. "Koma hung on to meet her final believers. Dipsioi hung on by feasting on souls to extend his life, until you two ended it. And I will pass after fulfilling my final obligation."
"Your final obligation?" Aika asked.
She nodded. "Speaking to you three. It's not often a trio has a greater impact on the future than the three of you. It's an honor."
Percy and Aika locked eyes. "What?"
Zoë looked shell shocked. "The pantheon dies with you?"
Qerasia waved her bony hand in dismissal, the ring flashing. "No matter, children. It is just the cycle of life. But those are not the important things to focus on."
She turned to Aika, pointing her horn-and-ivory staff towards her. "Aikaterina Zenais, you have a long road ahead. One of trials, of the body and of the mind. You may not survive, but you will find the answers you seek."
Aika looked nervously at Percy, who gave her a comforting smile. They'd get through it.
She turned back to Qerasia, shuffling. "Will I find answers at Meteora?"
Qerasia lowered the staff once more. "That is not for me to tell."
The goddess turned towards Zoë, whose bow was out, arrow drawn. "Zoë Hes-"
Zoë cut her off. "No. I don't want to hear from you."
"Oh?"
"I want to live my life, not have your damned words hanging over me the whole time!" Zoë was pissed. "I want to live by my own merits."
Qerasia smiled. "Very well. But I must give you one instruction, and one only."
Zoë's fingers trembled around the bowstring. "What."
"You must wait here for your friends. The journey to Meteora is meant only for Perseus and Aikaterina. It is not for your eyes."
"What?!" Percy stepped forward to protest, as did Zoë.
Percy marched towards Qerasia. "That is our good friend, my good friend, and I'll be damned if anything separates us! You don't get to say that! She stays with us, damnit!"
Aika grabbed Percy's arm, pulling him back. He had been practically shouting directly into Qerasia's ears in frustration.
Aika pulled Percy back towards their horses, before turning back to Qerasia. "What happens if she comes?"
Qerasia gave her a forlorn look. "Then the world changes completely. The future is sent into a paradoxical, apocalyptic loop. The timeline would be beyond repair."
"The timeline damaged?" Percy exclaimed. "I have power over time, I can change it back!"
Qerasia shook her head, pointing her staff towards Percy, "Perseus Achilles Jackson… you still have much to learn. Fate is ultimate, young one. Nobody can change fate. Not even the time-travelers. Anything you've done has always been done."
"But, Zoë - "
"Everything," Qerasia shot him a pointed look, "is always as it has been. Even if you don't think it has been."
A sinking feeling erupted within Percy's stomach.
"That isn't true. It can't be."
"Perseus, Perseus… everything you've seen since awaking was by fate's design. You recognize my staff, yes? The horn and the ivory?"
Percy nodded.
"Horn and ivory is often described as being a way to differentiate true and false dreams. But that is not all the combination can do - in fact, they can tap directly into dreams. Dreams are not random occurrences, child."
"What are they?"
"Dreams are fate, Perseus. Just another cog. You sleep, you dream, and you wake up and act on that dream. Without those dreams, you might never fulfill your fate. Thus, we can induce dreams within you."
"So what, fate is everything? Everyone succumbs under fate? Even the gods?"
Qerasia stood once more, her staff digging once more into the soft earth. "Fate is the truth. None can run or hide from it - it is as inevitable as the sun rising in the morning and setting in the evening."
She fixed him with a pointed look. "Fate may not always be all-telling, though. There are choices made at certain times that can split the world between two different possibilities. They are rare, but they happen." She raised her skeletal hand towards Percy, the ring flashing once more. "I sense you will make one of those choices. I wonder what you will choose."
Qerasia looked down at the earth suddenly, although her expression didn't change. "My time is up, children. Good luck on your endeavors. I hope you make the right choices."
And with a clap of thunder, she was gone.
Vanished.
The trio stood in a semi-circle, eyeing each other with a bit of shock. Percy lowered Anaklusmos, before turning back to Aika.
"What did you want to do?"
She was quiet for a moment, before speaking. "I think Zoë should stay here. Watch the horses. We'll make our way up to Meteora on foot."
Zoë nodded, cool and collected.
Percy was not; rather, he was a bit panicked. "Are you sure, Zoë? Positive?"
The Hesperid scowled at him. "Don't think I can defend myself, Perseus?"
"Oh, come on, you know that's not what I said!"
She smirked. "I know, I'm just messing with you." She punched Percy's shoulder in a playful manner. "Seriously, I'll be alright. I'll call for Artemis if I wind up in any danger."
Percy took a deep breath. "Ok. Tie up the horses, we'll probably need them later. See you soon, yeah?"
Zoë gave him a quick hug, like a friendly sibling slap more than anything. "Yeah. See you soon, Perce." She called out to Aika, who was already near the treeline. "See you soon Aika!"
"You too!" Aika called back, buzzing with anticipation.
Percy came up to Aika's side. He could clearly see her excitement, and it was bleeding over to him as well. He was ready for this saga to start coming to an end. For answers to finally make their presence known.
He looked over at Aika, and took the time to really just… appreciate her. Her blue eyes, opened wide with eagerness. Her smile, of appreciation and kindness. Her black hair just seemed perfect on her. Her armor and outfit looked stunning.
She was beautiful. In every sense of the word.
You just have to learn to follow your gut.
Percy offered his hand to her.
And she took it with a smile.
The two clasped hands, and headed up to Meteora.
Up to solve the mysteries.
Together.
A/N: Hey guys. Sorry for the wait. I wound up taking a brief hiatus, giving myself a bit of time just to focus on my life aside from writing. But we are back! No matter what, I will finish this work, so don't worry about it going unfinished. I've gone too far to end now. But I want to give y'all quality work as well, and that's the goal.
As always, shoutout to those of you leaving comments on the last chapter - Emerald Alex, surya25addanki, skotos07, Walter Ha, HecticHylian, Dethcat, EldritchTerror, thelordoptimus, Le Connoisseur, Bobthebuilder. It's great to see y'all keep coming back and formulate your own theories. It's awesome to see as a writer. Thanks y'all.