Night had finally encompassed the valley after such a long day. The sounds of nightly creatures filled the air along with the howl of the wind. In the dimly lit Camp Freedom, however, there were only sounds of agony.

"Get me more ambrosia!" Will Solace could be heard yelling as he tended to the critically wounded. His white gown was covered in red as he along with anyone else knowledgeable in the medical field tried their best to keep demigods alive. But there were just too many. There was only so much he could do before his mind snapped.

"We're out, Will!" Abby ran up to her brother, her face holding fearful features. The son of Apollo held his bloody hands on top of his hands as he tried to control his breathing. Tears pricked his eyes as he looked out at the swathes of people who needed him. But there was nothing he could do and that was a feeling he had never felt before. Breathing in such quick motions, he realized he was having a panic attack. Stumbling over the tray of medical utensils that fell to the floor, he did his best to get himself under control. Leaning against one of the blood-soaked beds, he felt Abby next to him trying to tell him something. But his ears were muffled by the pumping of his own blood. It seemed even they were tired of hearing the sounds of the dying.

"W…Will…Will!" He could hear her voice start to come back. Softly turning to her, he could see his sister's own terrified eyes. He could see that she was on the verge too.

"They need you! We need you!" Abby cried out to him, startling him back to his senses. That's right. They needed him. He couldn't leave Abby or the others to do this alone. What type of man would he be if he let that happen? Getting up, he looked out at the rows of demigods begging for help. Blood trailed down the aisle, pooling around his feet. Now was not the time to feel sorry for himself. These people needed him.

"Find what you can and bring it here. We got work to do." He said, stepping into the thick blood once more.

On the other side of the mountains, things weren't much better. Thousands of the dead littered the ground, their bodies strewn about across two miles of the empty plain. The air was rich with the thick metallic smell of blood and the ground was soaked with it. One lone figure could be seen standing in the middle of it. His head was lowered, presumably looking down at one of the recently departed.

Staring down at his pale, cold body. Dried blood trailed down his cheek, the arrow still lodged in his eye socket. Around him laid at least a dozen more of the dead but this one hurt Percy more than he cared to admit. Malcolm, a man who he had grown up and had fought two wars with, was someone the son of Poseidon wished hadn't met the fate he did.

Looking at the one lone gray eye lifelessly gazing back up at him, he couldn't help but think of Annabeth. His eye along with his facial features were eerily similar to hers. Kneeling down next to him, Percy softly closed Malcolm's eye for one last time, hoping that in death he would find peace. Looking around at the countless bodies, he realized that although the battle was over, there was still much to do. The dead needed to be buried. Their armor and weapons needed to be stripped so that way they would have more supplies. But perhaps the most important, at least for Percy, was to look for Annabeth in this field of death.

He didn't see her before the battle began nor when they engaged in close combat. But that still didn't stop the voice in his head saying that she could be out here among the dead. So that's why he was the only one out here, the only living one that is. The son of Poseidon scoured the miles of land, in search of the one thing that he held near and dear in his heart. The one person he truly ever loved. The person that might've died on this battlefield and he didn't even know it.

He searched endlessly for hours, turning over dead demigods that held any resemblance to Annabeth. Was it unhealthy for him to do this? To look at all his friends who had just died. The friends he had killed. Probably but he had to know if Annabeth was here. The dead already haunted him. What would a little more do to his already shattered mind?

This obsession continued throughout the night. The moonlight and stars reflected across the bronze armor the dead still adorned, giving the field a shimmering light to it. To the distant eye, it would've perhaps been a beautiful sight to enjoy. But it was anything but. After hours of searching but no sight of Annabeth, the son of Poseidon finally decided to give up. He was covered in dried blood from head to toe. He could feel it cake the inside of his shoes. If Annabeth was really here among the dead, someone would come across her eventually but his gut was telling him she wasn't dead. She would've made sure that he saw her before the battle began if she truly was here.

So repeating that hopeful guess in his head to keep himself from breaking down, he returned to camp. Things had thankfully calmed down due to Will's and the other medics' actions. It seemed they had managed to save whoever they could but obviously, there were still some where that just wasn't possible. The evidence being the rows of dead columned together outside of the hospital.

Stepping inside, he was immediately greeted by the stench. Blood, burnt flesh, and whatever horrid smells the human body could produce were in this hospital. But he was used to it by now. Two wars and Tartarus could make even the queasiest this way. Immediately, the son of Poseidon began to console those who were confined to their beds. He greeted those who wanted to see him and let the others who just wanted to be alone on their own.

All that mattered was that his people saw him. Saw just how much he cared for them. That he was there for them, he wanted them to know that he wouldn't just cast them aside after fighting this war like the Gods would. But it wasn't just his own people that he was seeing. There were also those who were allied with Olympus here in the hospital. They too wanted to glance at the legendary demigod who walked before them. Percy didn't really know how to react to them. On one hand, these were his family. People whom he had fought alongside before. But on the other, these were the people that destroyed his home. Killed his friends and family. He couldn't forgive them for that and never would. The hate in his heart for their actions was too great to overcome.

But as one demigod, a person he had just fought on the battlefield today, knelt down before him, hugged his waist like a toddler, and begged for mercy, he realized that although he couldn't forget or forgive, he could move on. Maybe that way they could stop killing each other.

"I'm sorry, Percy! I'm so sorry!" The boy, no older than fifteen, cried out. The son of Poseidon patted his head as he helped him back to his seat.

"I know. It's been a shitty day for us all." Percy replied with a sigh. "Just know that you'll be treated fairly during your time here at camp. Although you are prisoners of war, we won't treat you as such."

He looked at the other demigods of Olympus who wore a mixture of emotions on their faces but the one thing he could see in all of them was relief. Although some of them didn't know Percy well, they'd heard stories about him, both good and bad. They thought more on the bad side of him rather than the good which was why they were apprehensive about being here. But seeing the son of Poseidon treat them like how he treated his own, they at least felt some relief that they wouldn't be executed on sight.

Percy gave a nod to his enemies before walking out back towards his room. There was still one more person that he needed to check on. Softly stepping into his dimly lit room, he watched the slow rise and fall of the sheets. Sitting down in a chair next to the bed, he did his best to relax and enjoy this little moment of silence. Something he rarely got nowadays.

He couldn't fall asleep. Not after what he'd been through today. Not after all he'd seen. But this was enough. He didn't know how long he stayed in that chair, just watching the rise and fall of his sheets. Before he knew it, it was already early in the morning. The sun was just beginning to peak above the horizon. He was about to get up to get the day started but the rustling of sheets cemented him right back down. He watched as the girl awoken, trying to lift her body but immediately went back down after the pain flared in her stomach. Instead, she looked around the room with her weary eyes, trying to figure out where she was. Her vision landed on Percy's figure half hidden by the shadows. She could see his sea-green eyes practically glow in the darkness, causing her heart to immediately race.

"You're not dead." Percy answered her fears to which she sighed in relief. For a second she thought she was in the underworld being tortured by the image of the man she admired.

"Hi, Reyna." He said, giving her one of his signature smirks.

"H-How? W-Where am I?" The daughter of Bellona asked, her voice dry and raspy. Percy handed her a bottle of water before answering her questions.

"You're in my camp. It's been a day since the battle."

Reyna slowly nodded her head as she made sense of things. Rubbing her hand over the bandages wrapped around her stomach, she looked over to Percy with slitted eyes.

"You stabbed me." She said it more as a statement rather than a question.

"I did." He answered swiftly.

"Why am I not dead then? If I remember correctly, you stabbed me deep."

"I did." He said once more but seeing Reyna's reaction, he knew she wanted more of an answer than just that. Clearing his throat he continued.

"Once your soldiers saw you fall, they surrendered. They knew it was over once they thought you were dead. That gave me time to stop the bleeding." Percy said, pointing to her wound. "I took you back to camp where Will Solace patched you up. We used up a lot of ambrosia on you." He said pointedly.

"Why?" Reyna fired back immediately. "Why'd you save me? I led an attack against your camp! I killed your people! Why would you save someone that did that to you?"

"To be honest I don't know why I did it." The son of Poseidon sighed as he leaned back in his chair. "If I had run off my emotions once that battle was over, I would've let you rot in the dirt along with the rest of your army. I wouldn't have taken any prisoners either. They would be hanging on a branch over by that forest."

"Then why?! Why am I sitting in this bed alive and not in the dirt?!"

"Because I have to be better than that." Percy said, staring directly at her with resolve written across his face. Reyna was taken aback by that but she had no time to interject as he continued to speak.

"I-We…have to be better than the Gods. They would send you Tartarus without a second thought. But I don't want it to be like that. We have to be different from them. We can't create this new world if we're still resorting to the old ways."

The room went silent as both demigods contemplated those words. Reyna could see what he meant but she couldn't really fathom it. She was a Roman. They didn't do those things. It was either submit to Rome or die. What Percy was saying contradicted her entire ideology.

"Don't mistake this for weakness, Reyna." He said, his voice taking on a rougher tone. "I won't forget or forgive what your people have done to mine. And I won't hesitate to kill more of you if you take advantage of my mercy."

She shuddered as she remembered just how dangerous the son of Poseidon was. How demonic he was when he fought. The images of all those demigods suddenly collapsing around him in an instant flashed in her mind. He wasn't bluffing when he said he would kill them all. He could do it with a snap of his fingers and they wouldn't even know until it was too late.

"What happens now?" She asked, causing Percy to shrug his shoulders.

"I really don't know. I suppose I'll give an ultimatum to your troops tonight at the pavilion. Join us or leave."

"Join you?" She said incredulously.

"Why not? Most of the survivors on both sides know each other. The rest of them don't but I'm sure they can get acclimated quickly. Remember Reyna, even though we're on opposite sides of the field, we're still cut from the same cloth."

Already Reyna could feel the butterflies flutter in her stomach. This was exactly what she had wanted before she had "died". This situation was like a second chance for her. A chance for her to do what she wanted. Not what the Gods or Rome wanted. She could finally have a sense of freedom. And perhaps even a chance at love. Looking at Percy slyly, trying not to show just how happy she was, she turned her head back.

"I'll think about it. Don't expect an answer tonight." She said. The son of Poseidon could see that she wanted some time alone, presumably to think over his offer.

"If you need anything, just call out. I'll be close by." She could hear him say before getting up and walking out. Without so much as a chance to breathe, he was immediately brought into another conversation once he closed the door.

"Seems like you're all happy and cheery." Artemis greeted him, her arms crossed over her chest and her face clouded with anger.

"Far from it actually." Percy said monotone as he pushed past her. Artemis, however, grabbed his arm and forced him to face her. The two were closer than expected, their noses almost touching. They could feel each other's intoxicating breath brush their face and could feel the warmth radiate from their bodies. Artemis suppressed a shudder as she felt Percy's body tower over her, his eyes unflinchingly gazing upon her.

"Then why are you doing this? Why are you letting in these people? We can't trust them."

"I'll tell you what I told Reyna but I'm pretty sure you already know what I'm about to say since you were listening in."

"Percy-I"

"No. You might not understand what I'm doing since you're a God and anything you do is ok but demigods like me aren't like that. We can't just kill because something annoys us. Our actions, right or wrong, have consequences. And I'm trying to limit those consequences by bringing in these people…our people in case you forgot."

Artemis stayed silent as Percy berated her. She could understand his anger towards her words. She was a Goddess and as such was guilty of such things as not caring about the consequences of her actions. She admitted that she had killed her fair share of mortals just because she could. But that didn't mean she was wrong about this. There was still a danger in bringing in these people. They could spy on the camp and take valuable information back to Olympus. They could sabotage everything Percy had built in an instant. Which was why she was so adamant about this. She didn't want him to lose everything again.

"I'm being smart about this, Artemis." He said, seeing the doubt on her face. "I'll make sure they swear on the Styx if they want to stay at this camp but I need you to trust me on this."

That eased her worry somewhat but that didn't mean she liked it. Rushing past him, she needed some time to think. She needed time to organize her thoughts and get her emotions -emotions she hadn't felt in a long, long, time- about the son of Poseidon under control.

"Yeah, well, while you bring in these people who had just killed some of your friends, my hunters are still waiting to be found. So thanks for having your priorities straight!"

Percy could only let out a sigh of indignation as he watched the Goddess stomp away, his eyes landing on her enticingly swaying backside. Immediately, he snapped back to reality, clearing his throat. He guessed his time without Annabeth was starting to get to him in more ways than one. Deciding that a cold bath in the river could help both his heads, he trekked his way over. He greeted those who were already up and eating their breakfast at the pavilion. Most were taking a day off to relax after the events of yesterday and he couldn't blame them. He too was exhausted. But sooner than later they would have to get back to the grind and prepare for the next battle whenever that may be.

Stripping off his clothes, Percy stepped into the cold, rushing water and let it soak his skin. He sighed in relief as he felt his body begin to rejuvenate in the element. He wished he could just stay in here and not worry about a damn thing. But that sort of peace would never grace him. Nor would his mind let him. Even when in the water, away from all the chaos the battlefield and camp wrought, his mind still wouldn't let up. The voices were still there. The dark thoughts were still there. And the problems that needed to be solved were definitely still there. Problems such as the hunters. Groaning, he rubbed his face tiredly, the water not offering any comfort now. He felt bad about the hunters. Artemis was right in that regard. He had promised her to go looking for them but there's been so much that has happened the last few months that he hadn't had time to go look.

Promising himself that he would as soon as he could, he was about to hop out of the water but an arm on his shoulder stopped him from doing so. Opening his eyes, he was greeted by the sight of a blushing Thetis.

"Let me guess. He wants to see me, doesn't he?" Percy stated without any emotion. The Goddess could only nod her head before disappearing back beneath the waves in embarrassment. Groaning, the demigod put back on his clothes before mist traveling to Atlantis. He didn't want to waste any more time than necessary down there. There was much that needed to be done in Camp. Reappearing in front of the palace doors, bypassing all the Atlantean guards, he swung them open only to be greeted by the sight of his father and his generals surrounding a table in the middle of the room.

The generals quickly bowed to the prince once alerted to his presence. His father only gave him a swift nod before returning to the conversation he was having. Percy silently walked up to the table, peering down at a map he was all too familiar with.

"New York." The demigod exclaimed, looking down at the familiar names of streets and buildings. A feeling he hadn't felt in a long time bubbled in his chest as he looked at the city he had grown up in. Homesickness. He missed the smells, the sights, the people. He missed it all so much. Searching through the vast layout, he found that the apartment he had grown up in, although now destroyed, was still listed. But the one thing he missed the most was his mother.

"Percy?" Poseidon interrupted his thoughts, patting his shoulder.

"Sorry, what?" The demigod said, shaking the feeling off. There was no need to be reminiscing now. Looking back at the past would only hinder him in the present.

"I asked what your thoughts were on an invasion of New York. You know the city best out of everyone here." Poseidon repeated, causing Percy's eyes to widen slightly. He knew this was coming at some point. His father had declared war on Olympus after all. Getting to it would mean New York was the key to opening that door. He just didn't realize it would be happening so soon.

"Well, we're going to have to do a waterfront invasion. That much is clear." Percy said, leaning over the table.

"How many troops does Atlantis have for the invasion?"

"Fifty thousand." Poseidon replied without batting an eye, causing Percy to slightly choke. That was a lot, definitely more than the demigods he had under his command. If his father's realm had that many troops he couldn't imagine just how many Zeus had. But that large of an army had drawbacks to it. They couldn't simply invade New York from one location. It would be too crowded and chaotic. They would practically be fish in a barrel.

"Ok, well, with a force that large we're going to have to land our troops on different spots of the island. My suggestion would be we land from the Upper Bay, the East River, and the Hudson."

The generals leaned down as they watched their prince point out the rivers. They seemed to like the idea. If they could get their troops into those three areas, they would effectively be squeezing Manhattan like a ball. Slowly encompassing the area until they had control of the Empire State Building and thus access to Olympus.

"What are we going to do about the mortals though? They'd only be in the way." Percy asked them, causing Poseidon to laugh.

"I'll scare them off with the greatest hurricane that state has ever seen. That should drive them out for us to attack."

That relaxed Percy somewhat. He didn't want those people, innocent people, getting hurt just because Olympus was having a squabble. But there were still problems with this plan. It wasn't as simple as just invading New York en masse. What about Camp Half-blood and Jupiter? What do they do about them? How could he get his army of demigods over to New York? They couldn't fly due to the risk of Zeus shooting them down. They couldn't drive across the continent because they had too many troops. The only possible way was by ship. But where in the world would they get ships?

"Son, when do you believe we should attack?" Poseidon asked, disrupting the countless questions racing throughout his mind

"Well, it's close to Christmas so it'll have to wait until the rivers are unfrozen. So three months at the earliest but my suggestion would be to wait till summer."

"Hmmm, when can you have your troops in New York if we attack in summer?" Poseidon asked, rubbing his chin.

"That's the problem. We're going to need ships to transport them. Suppose you wouldn't have any to spare would you?"

"I'm sorry, Percy, but we need all the resources we can spare. You know I would if I could."

Percy clicked his tongue but didn't fight it. He knew that was going to happen. His father had already helped him out so much, offering whatever supplies were available. He supposed they would have to do it the old-fashioned way. Perhaps he could get an audience with one famous blacksmith God who owed him a few favors.

"No worries, I'll figure it out but summer is definitely going to have to be the time to invade. I need time to get a lot of things situated." He answered to which the high-ranking Atlanteans had no quarrel. They didn't want to rush into this. It needed to be concise and coordinated if they wanted to win. This wouldn't be like what Kronos did those years back with his sloppy "invasion".

"Then it's decided. We'll launch our attack next summer. In the meantime, I want our forces to train every day. Am I understood?" Poseidon stated, directing it at his generals.

"Yes, my lord." They replied in unison before leaving the father-son duo alone in the throne room. The two stayed standing over the table in silence, the map offering some sort of glimpse of what was to come in the near future. Both felt scared about what was going to happen in the next months. This was something that was unprecedented in all of Olympus's history. There were close calls but this…this was actually happening now. The next age was coming and they didn't know if they were truly ready for it yet.

"I'm sorry." Poseidon broke the silence, his voice somber and soft.

"For what?" Percy asked, turning to him.

"In all my years, I've never seen a demigod have such a life as yours, Percy. From taking on the Lord of the Titans to fighting Primordials. Countless quests, wars, and Tartarus. You've endured it all." Poseidon put his hand on Percy's shoulder as he tried to hold in the tears that were threatening to leak.

"Now you're in a civil war. I'm-I'm just so sorry for what has befallen upon your shoulders."

Percy turned away from his father's watery eyes, not used to seeing him, a God no less, cry. But maybe that was a good thing. It meant that although he was immortal with countless years already under his belt, he still felt emotion. He still felt sadness, compassion, and empathy. Those traits weren't really evident in Gods but he was glad his father did. It made him seem human.

"Remember the first time I was on Olympus when I returned Zeus's lightning bolt?" The demigod asked.

"Of course. It was one of the first times I could ever interact with you." Poseidon immediately said.

"Well, I remember what you said to me that day. You said that you were sorry for bringing me into this world. That my future was bleak and I would probably die a horrible death. But do you remember what I said?"

"You said you weren't sorry for who you are." Poseidon said, softly laughing at the memory.

"I still stand by that, dad." The demigod said, his tone suddenly serious. "I'm not sorry for who I am. If I was, who would take my place and deal with the things I have going on? I can't in good conscience let anyone take my place. Nor would I want to trade places with anyone."

"I don't think anyone could anyway, son." Poseidon said. "Who would dare take on Olympus by themselves? What demigod would dare fight Kronos or for that matter venture into Tartarus."

Percy smirked as he turned back towards the map of New York. He believed in what he said, he truly did. He's the man he is today because of what he's done. He's the man he is because of all that had befallen upon his shoulders. Were most of those things good? No, not in the slightest. But there were still some things that were good. His family, his friends, Annabeth. That's why he was still fighting on. That's why he doesn't just put a bullet in his head. It's because of them. And even though his mother was dead and Annabeth wasn't with him, he still fought on only to keep the good memories of them alive. That's why he wouldn't want to be anyone else.

With the meeting over and the date set for the invasion, it was time for him to set back to Camp. He said his goodbyes to Poseidon before mist-traveling away. Reappearing inside of camp, he realized that it was just past lunchtime. He was glad the meeting hadn't taken too long. There were still things he would've liked to get done. Walking towards his office, he noticed a commotion in the middle of the campgrounds. Fearing the worst, he ran over in a hurry, his hand gripping his pen tightly in case there was an attack. But as he got closer, he noticed the campers surrounding something that seemed to glow in the sunlight. It was a dragon. A dragon that he was all too familiar with.

The campers were delighted to see the bronze automation that looked more than pleased to be petted. And on top of it was none other than Leo Valdez himself, along with someone Percy hadn't expected to see ever again in his life. But seeing the son of Hephaestus smiling and waving caused a blind fury to make its way into Percy. Walking over with his fist tightly balled up, he watched as Leo hopped down and greeted everyone.

"That's right, I'm back, people! Sorry, it took so long, got caught up." He said without a care in the world before noticing the son of Poseidon approaching.

"Yo, Aquaman! Guess who I brought back!"

Percy, in a blind rage, didn't hear his words before throwing a haymaker right into Leo's jaw. The crunch of bone could be heard once contact was made, sending the small man flying backward. The son of Hephaestus was out, his eyes rolled back and blood dripping out his mouth profusely.

"You piece of shit!" Percy yelled down at the incapacitated demigod. "You left us! You left your cohort. Your friends! Your family! You left us to fight the battle all so you could bring back a girl!"

The crowd of campers could only watch as their leader heaved in a rage they had rarely seen him take on before. They were scared to see him this way but didn't dare intervene. This was Leo's own doing.

"And you!" Percy turned to the girl in question. The girl that was one of his first loves. The girl that he always second-guessed himself about. The girl that cursed him and Annabeth in Tartarus. Calypso. She had a terrified look on her. Her eyes were as wide as a cornered animal as she looked at the son of Poseidon whose aura was suffocating those around him. His green eyes she reminisced about every day peered into her own with such anger. Such unfiltered hatred. He looked like a God. That was the only way she could describe him.

"I want you gone." He spat, his words coming out as poison. "You're not welcome here. You'll be gone by tonight or I swear…" He let the threat hang in the air, staring at her unflinchingly before walking away. The setting was still as everyone watched. Once he was out of view that was when they released a breath of air they didn't realize they were still holding in.

"Take Leo to the infirmary." Butch was the first to break the silence before turning to Calypso.

"And um, you…"

"Calypso." The former Titaness finished.

"Yeah, Calypso. Sorry, but you're absolutely fucked."