Percy raised a brow as he saw Ariadnê and Apóllōn stroll through the kingdom. They had gotten abruptly close out of nowhere. Percy hadn't been able to believe his ears when he had heard his sister's twinkling laugh echo around the square only to turn to see her giggling at something Apóllōn had said.
He knew that the others were confused also, but Ariadnê waved away their concerns. They were building a friendship around their shared love of Hermês. He moved closer to the duo watching as Ariadnê was handed a treat and Apóllōn summoned his own food since gods could not consume mortal food.
(Which should have really been obvious to them from the beginning since they did eat in Castellan, though Katie and the cooks did use ingredients brought directly from Aunt Hestia who blessed their materials so that the food was always made to be consumed by the divine-born.)
The war was winding down; they were able to enjoy themselves more.
And sure, their lives were a bit more endangered from the gods that they were pissing off on a daily basis with their interference, but they were having too much fun to care. Percy had helped Katie and Nico just the other day build a jungle gym for the kids to play on with a full playground not too far away.
(He was sure that he saw Chris go at one of the swings with a makeshift chainsaw after Travis and Katie spent some time there during what was supposed to be their nightly patrol with something that Ariadnê made for Katie and way too many vine straps. On another note, Travis hadn't been able to walk the next morning.)
He watched as the two climbed atop of the wall, looking out to the people still fighting in the war. One of Katie's babies was cheerfully marching through the masses, tossing people up and around as if it were juggling.
Thalia was running a women's self-defense class with Annabeth's help that leaned more towards the fact that if the men wanted a woman, then he needed to work for it with some class and not thinking he could just take it.
(Ariadnê delivered one of the guards–Alas something—to them with an actual bow on top of his head as the first volunteer. Percy had never seen a man with that many holes in him.)
Percy climbed up after them, nodding his head when they turned to look at him. He turned back to the battlefield, not blinking when he saw Connor dragging a cackling Katie by her collar before depositing her in her boyfriend's arms.
His attention was grabbed though when he saw his sister metamorphosis a brush into her hand as she did her hair. The god raised a brow in interest before turning to let her do his own.
Ariadnê squealed, clapping her hands before gently taking the brush to his hair. Percy was a little confused because he knew from her hate-rants once upon a time, that the god rarely even let the Kharites touch his hair. Yet there she was carefully braiding the hair, weaving larkspur and laurel flowers into it alongside swan and raven feathers.
He blinked as he paid attention to the words that they were exchanging.
"But mi'lord, if Lêthê has the capability to wipe the minds of all that touch it, would it not be better to have the enemies of Olympos drink from its banks so that they may be more malleable and start anew?"
Percy winced because the conversation reminded him very much of Bob.
Apóllōn shook his head lightly from within her grasp, voice chiding as he said: "You know better, Ariadnê. While that is a choice to do, is it not monstrous of us to strip away their freewill and recreate them in our image?"
"But would that be so bad," she mused. The god, however, sounded almost amused as he answered her as if her more immoral and violent tendencies were mere jokes. "Tis a conversation that dwells heavily within the argument of nature versus nurture. We gods may be better than the Titanes before us as every god after the Kronidês have been raised in their image and glory. Yet if you were to strip us of our minds and remake us in your image... our divine natures still hold on to certain things. We are the celestial dust of the beginning and the end; bound tightly together by divinity that flows through us. Our true selves could vanquish mortals from the land above to reside with Háidēs, lord of the dead men. I am Phoibos Apóllōn. I am the heavenly light of Olympos. As I stand alongside the lordly sun-god Hêlios Hyperionides, my light covers the world and brings about both healings and plagues. You can strip me of all that makes me Apóllōn Latôios and tell me that I am a Titan, but it will not change the part of my essence that knows that I stand as Apóllōn Intonsus."
He turned with a wink as the braid moved from her hands to fall gracefully down his back. "Even my grandsire, Krónos, has the opportunity to change into a gentler being, but to use Lêthê against him and force him to be gentle? It would make us no better than him. If Atlas could no longer be condemned to carry the heavens upon his shoulder and be brought to bathe within the waters of Lêthê, he would not be Titanes tou Theoi who instructed mankind in the art of astronomy. Nothing more than a pale imitation of himself and yet, those that cleansed him with the waters would be worse than he."
Ariadnê hummed, eyes flickering over to him, no doubt sensing the turmoil he felt within himself. That dark, feral part of him... the part that he held back by the chains of his once-mortality... the Destroyer within him shrugged the words off. He was a warrior, but Percy— Percy was not cruel. He just knew how to make the most of the things around him. "There are also the victims to consider; just because the perpetrator does not remember their actions, does not mean that they were lost with the memories. They would be blamed for actions they could no longer remember."
Apóllōntilted his head, turning to look back at the battlefield. "While that is true, I was reasoning more that the action was more barbaric. We are not monsters, Ariadnê. No matter the stories that have been woven of us all. We are not monsters. Celestial beings far above the understanding of mere mortals, yes. But monsters? No."
"But you would change those into monsters for you," she replied calmly. She would know, Percy thought. They and their friends around them would be the victims of the vengeful.
"We would," the god stated with no hesitation. He turned to her once more, the blues of his eyes fading until they were glowing a familiar gleam of gold that Percy only saw on his own sister. "There is a difference between you and I. I am a god. And while you may be divine-born and now immortal, you will never be on the same caliber as I. Lykaôn, Ixion, Aktaion, Minyades, and Askalabos... mortals turned into animals and monsters for their slights against our honor. They will curse our names. Some would wish for the power to slay us where we stand; lending their strength to whomever would accept for the chance to take us down. But we are all forces of nature. Order. Chaos. Love. Hate. Thunder. Light. Shadows. We blend into each other in a way that the mortal mind will never be able to truly comprehend. We cannot be confined by your primal thoughts as your perceived notions attempt to chain us into one thing."
Percy couldn't deny that it sounded ominous, but Ariadnê didn't even blink. She had always known that after all. Percy always thought she was preaching to the choir, but it seemed that there was some merit in what she had been saying. The gods didn't view the world in the same way that they did.
Percy didn't think it excused everything that they did, but he could somewhat understand.
Apóllōn suddenly turned his gaze onto Percy, "You and your brothers may wield the power of storms, but you will never be storms. If you were to look at the gods in the same light that we see ourselves" — Ariadnê twitched. Percy remembered that she had once been granted the opportunity to see the world from the eyes of Hermês and it terrified her even if it been for nothing but a split second. Dionysos had to heal the tear in her mind. "Your mind would break. We take on these forms for your benefit; not ours. Mortals can make all the assumptions that they want; come up with all kinds of explanations to the things that they see, but at the core of it all... a deity stands in the middle of it. Hêlios and Selênê are the sun and the moon. And while mortals have now found new ways to make use of light in the dark mists of the netherworld, there will be nothing greater than their power for them to wield. They will grow and make artificial lighting to attempt to recreate the power of the gods, but they will not succeed where we already stand."
Gods, this was getting deep.
"I feel like I just witnessed three different conversations in the span of one," Percy groaned, leaning his head against the top of the wall.
The god and godling both laughed as they turned towards him. Before anything else could be said, Apóllōn's gaze flickered towards the heavens. He and Ariadnê raised a brow when he turned to look back at them. "Father is calling for the council to Olympos," he told them, body glowing as he began to assume his true form. They carefully turned their faces away, but Percy could still feel the weight of his gaze as he looked over them both. "I hope you heal from the things that no one ever apologized for."
Oh.
He could understand why she ached for him before.
Their attention was quickly drawn back to the battlefield as a giant poppy tree emerged from the ground. The flowers bloomed to show Katie standing atop of it in rage as Travis and Will held Connor in their arms behind her.
They didn't even bother to share looks before one of his sister's water whips was flying through the air and pulling them to stand at their side. Katie lifted her hands to the heavens as he and Ariadnê helped Will draw the poison out of Connor's body. The earth creaked ominous, vines as thick as tree trunks ripped through the ground and piercing the hearts of unlucky soldiers. Katie–Katharos–Khrysaoros as she was worshiped thrust her hands to the ground as a chasm that Percy just knew led directly to the netherworld opened beneath them.
The brown of her pupils slipped into her sclera as she exuded more and more power; her earth toned locks blowing gently through the air.
Her eyes snapped towards the ground when she felt something attacking her baby. Percy peeked over the petal to see two Argives soldiers attempting to cut it down. Katie hissed, a deadly thing.
"Surrender now," one of them yelled. "It does not have to come to this."
"Stand down, you foolish girl," the man's friend roared. Travis' head snapped up, a snarl on his face. Katie could take care of herself, but he didn't like anyone to speak to her in such a tone. "This is a man's war. You have no place on the battlefield."
Katie growled, thrusting her hands out. Percy could not help but to watch as their veins rose in their skin, metamorphosing into roots. And those same roots pierced their skin, circling their lungs and sucked life from their hearts. Their bodies fell to the ground slowly, shifting as it did before trees of pomegranates grew from their blood.
Katie jumped to the ground, a sickle made of wheat emerging in her hand not too similar to her mother's own weapon of power.
And then she cut down anyone that stood in her way.
"I love her so much," Travis declared.
"We know," Percy stated.
Will passed Connor to his older brother as he turned his gaze to the battlefield. "He's going to be on bedrest for at least two weeks. One teaspoon of nectar every six hours. He's going to lose motor function in one of his legs temporarily. Once you figure out which one, massage it and exercise it a bit for him so that it won't grow stiff. He may feel nauseated for a while... there should be some ginger juice in Ari's healing wing."
His sister raised a brow at the youngest one amongst them, "And what are you doing?"
The only blond amongst extended his hand; a bow and arrow made from pure light appeared in his hold. "Line them up and light them up."
He shot the arrow into the masses and it made an almost familiar screeching sound until it landed, sending a blast wave of sound and light that caused many to drop to the ground clawing at their eyes and ears.
Ariadnê smirked as Will jumped down from the tree, blue eyes glowing light flashlights. She waved her hand and a spinal board morphed under Connor. Percy placed his hand on the liquid figure, solidifying it as his sister summoned her swords. "Get him to safety," she ordered, leaning to press a comforting kiss onto the boy's forehead. "I'll cover you."
Percy and Travis nodded sharply. The prince of the sea waved his hand and a bridge of water appeared connecting to the border wall. Picking up the stretcher, he and Travis made their way over, not blinking when walls of stormy water appeared, throwing arrows that came near them with unnerving accuracy right back.
The water morphed again once they were safely behind the border wall until Percy was looking at a 20 ft. version of himself and Travis. There were screams coming from the people below as his sister floated in the air.
When the giantTravis pulled out a chainsaw, Percy pointedly kept walking into the castle.
The sound of Ariadnê cackling was the last thing he heard before he walked through the door.
Clarisse was overlooking the battlefield from atop the wall where Thalia and Katie set up a lightning gate with man-eating venus flytraps. She was really just sharpening her swords and taking a moment of rest.
The battles had been reduced to training sessions for her Family since the most famed fighters on the Argives side refused to join the battle. Though, Clarisse could admit that if she had been faced with Katie's babies and Ariadnê's clone giants that had been stimulated with Thalia's lightning even she would hesitate.
She looked up when footsteps neared her, taking sight of the women ogling the men fighting near the border wall. Ariadnê had pushed them further when the arrows started flying over the wall. She was surprised the other was there... she had plastered herself to Percy or Lord Apóllōn's side whenever she wasn't out fighting. It had been strange to see the girl and the god so close and then Clarisse had overheard them exchanging notes and letters to and from Hermês as the messenger continued his divine duties.
Helénē smiled at her, inclining her head in greeting before casting her glance over the battlefield. It was a shame that Menelaus hadn't appeared again as Ariadnê was willing to exchange the other queen— as long as she got Akhilleus' head on a platter.
One of the women whined as she glared at something below them. "I know the Queen promised it to be soon, but still I wonder when will these battles end?" Clarisse could feel her gaze move over her before she turned to look at Helénē. "Just tell your soldiers to stand down," the woman continued. "This battle is not good for my health. I cannot even get a full night of my beauty sleep."
Helénē sniffed disdainfully as she gave the woman a once-over, "You may want to try for a week, Agariste." She walked away, skin sparking to keep the angered woman at bay. Clarisse shook her head as she stifled a laugh because the girl definitely sounded like Ariadnê.
She sighed leaving the comfort of the wall to find something to do. She didn't necessarily feel like going back onto the field to absolve her boredom, but she would if she became desperate enough. Chris wasn't even around to distract her as he spent every moment at his brother's side, helping him regain strength. Clarisse didn't want to get in between that.
Sighing once more, Clarisse walked out of the gates and immediately charged into the battles. She somehow found her way at the side of Will and Ariadnê.
Will was smirking as he blocked attacks with his sword. Like Katie, Will had gained the epithet, Khrysaoros, that people called him when they were speaking of him and his lineage as the son of Apóllōn. She watched absently, lazily swinging her sword at the pitiful attacks as Will ducked under a dagger aimed for his head and rolled away from a swipe that had been waiting for him to stand back up.
Clarisse was proud to see that the training she put him through was put to good use. Good for him.
The warrior in front of her hissed backing up he stood with his friends that had been fighting Will. "What are you laughing at, boy," he snarled. "This is war. Take it seriously!"
"It is," Will blinked almost too innocently to be genuine as he nodded. And then a wicked smile that Clarisse had definitely seen Chris wear before crossed his face, "But if I took you seriously right now, you'd be dead. Which would you prefer?"
Clarisse huffed as she laughed. Those were Connor's words.
The warrior snarled, a gnarly thing as he charged forward. Clarisse had but a moment to look away as Will cracked his knuckles. She could feel the heat wafting from his direction like she was standing in the Ninth Cabin's forge to dry after Ariadnê got into an argument with Malcolm and Michael and flooded the entire training grounds.
Clarisse tuned out the following screams as she looked around, feeling the heat that Will was radiating move around at her back. She turned back around when she felt it settle to see a dagger flying between her and Will. It sank into an Agrives' shoulder, one that was smart enough to keep his eyes focused on the ground and away from the heavenly light that Will had exuded.
Ariadnê followed her weapon like a raging tornado, a kick to its hilt digging the weapon deeper into the man's shoulder. Her water whips flew around her like legs of an octopus, throwing anyone that ventured too close far away.
Her attention was focused fully on the man before her. Clarisse smirked, watching Ariadnê twisted her body in a move that she knew the other picked up from Sherman to kick at his shield arm, grabbing her dagger uncaringly as she pun once more to land a kick into his back. The warrior fell over as if she had ripped the tendons out of his body, but fortunately for him, all Ariadnê had done was remove her dagger lest it cleave his shoulder from his body from how hard he hit the ground.
She was smiling as she came to a rest, turning to them calmly. Will had never looked at a girl sexually—especially not the girl who had once been slated to become his stepmother despite being three years older than him—but he couldn't deny the way his heart skipped a beat at the excitement that radiated from her, blue eyes shining as if someone had taken the waters of Aigaiôn Sea and poured them into her pupils.
Clarisse and Will both had the image of a wide-eyed preteen that stepped into camp as if it were her long-lost home and turned it into her brother's personal kingdom with her as his shield and sword.
She gave them a small nod as she turned to stroll deeper into the masses, and Clarisse could hear her asking the Achaeans to pretty please show her the way to Akhilleus or Ajax.
Clarisse and Will barely shivered as they could feel the darkness latching onto their bodies as their shadows gained life. They disappeared from their spots near the walls and were transported deeper into the opposition formation. Nico appeared before them, shadows dripping off of him like water as his own moved around him as if he were Peter Pan.
Before either could open their mouth to question him, he waved his hand in front of them, watching as Odysseús and Αἴας and Teûkros chased someone down. The shadows wrapped around them tighter as Nico led them closer.
"Ariadnê asked me to keep watch of our spies," Nico muttered. "This one in particular. She wants his head on a pretty silver platter."
"Who is it," Clarisse asked, flicking blood off of her sword. Considering what her friend had to go through and knowing how much it had pained Prissy, she was willing to do whatever it took to see them smiling happily without the glints of bloodlust and rage in their eyes.
"His name is Dolon," Nico tells them just as the spy stopped, panting, and gripping his hands, as he cried: "Take me alive, and I will ransom myself, for within our house there is bronze, and gold, and smithied iron, wherefrom my father would do you grace with ransom untold, if he should learn that I am alive among the ships of the Achaians."
Will furrowed his brows before understanding shone over him. "I remember now. Hektōr promised him Akhilleus' armor and horses even though only Akhilleus could control them."
Clarisse grimaced, just knowing how the twins took that.
They scowled as they listened to Dolon, spilling secrets uncaringly. These men were ruthless killers and rapists. And none of them could forget the pain and shame that had crossed Ariadnê's face as she spoke to them in whispers of what Paris had done to her.
"But bring me now to the swift ships, or leave me here," Dolon pleaded. "When ye have bound me with a ruthless bond, that ye may go and make trial of me whether I have spoken to you truth, or lies."
Teûkros, looking grimly on him, said: "Put no thought of escape, Dolon, in thy heart, for all the good tidings thou hast brought, since once thou halt come into our hands. For if now we release thee or let thee go, on some later day wilt thou come to the swift ships of the Achaians, either to play the spy, or to fight in open war, but if subdued beneath my brother's hands thou lose thy life, never again wilt thou prove a bane to the Argives."
Before anything else could be said, Αἴας beheaded Dolon. The trio could only watch as the other three stripped him of the casque of ferret's skin from off his head, and of his wolf-skin, and his bended bow, and his long spear.
They felt nauseated at the sight. It was war, yes. It happened. Everyone was an enemy in the eyes of those from Castellan.
And—
Clarisse's face hardened; heavy with an ache that she thought she made peace with but... the only good spies were dead ones.
And then Odysseús prayed to Athênê.
"Rejoice, O goddess, in these, for to thee first of all the immortals in Olympos will we call for aid; nay, but yet again send us on against the horses and the sleeping places of the Thracian men."
The duo finished their prayers and headed off to the Trojan camps.
Unfortunately for those four idiots, Nico had the foresight to move the camps around. With one last look shared between them, they followed after the trio like thieves in the night.
WORD COUNT: 4067
WORDS TO KNOW:
Apóllōn Latôios - Apóllōn, the son of Lētṓ
Apóllōn Intonsus - unshorn Apóllōn (alluding to his eternal youth, as the Greek youths allowed their hair to grow until they attained the age of manhood, though it may also allude to his being the god of the sunlight, whence the long floating hair would indicate the rays of the sun.)
Titanes tou Theoi - The Titan gods
Hêlios Hyperionides - Hêlios, son of Hyperiôn
Katie Khrysaoros - Katie, The god with the golden sword or arms
And while Katie (and Will) are not gods in the typical sense, they are agents of inevitability, so in a sense, they would be worshipped as minor gods in this new timeline even if they loudly don't agree.
