A BLACK HEART Chapter 15
A/N:- So, my battery has been changed and uh I'm happy to say that I'm back for now! Also…. I know I haven't been really regular with the updates at all… in fact, I didn't update at all…. The thing is that I am just trying to figure things out with personal relationships and other things… so it is actually complicated… but yeah, let's get on with the chapter… I'll try to update more and more frequently! So, the new chapter's here as well!
"Alright… let me get this straight… you weren't lying about the whole 'Romans living and training here' thing?" Percy asked.
"Nope, not at all, the people ahead are pure Romans, born a Roman, live a roman, die a roman," Apollo said. "Oh, and also, after we cross this gate, I might look a little different, but don't worry, that is just my Roman version, alright?"
"Uh… ok?"
Apollo smiled and walked through the barrier with ease. Percy's eyes were wide but he followed as well.
The wall shimmered and disappeared as they appeared in a garden with the fresh scent of rain. Everything looked different from the outside. Exotic plants were growing and some deers and horses and pegasi feeding on them. And there was a strange ethereal light shining on them, with fireflies buzzing around.
"Wow," Percy exclaimed. "I didn't think it would look this good."
Apollo smiled, he looked different now. Wearing a wreath of gold leaves on his head, and a white toga with purple highlights and gold accents, he looked more godly than ever before.
He walked forward and the son of Poseidon followed him until they reached the large bronze doors.
"This is—" Percy was cut off by a low growl coming from behind them.
The growling continued but it got closer and deeper, like whoever was causing this sound was really angry.
Both Percy and Apollo turned around to look at the person, as two sharp, angry, and yellow eyes were visible in the darkness, looking at them with disapproval.
The figure, a wolf, came forward, snarling at Percy.
"Lupa… it's a pleasure to meet you again," Apollo greeted the wolf as it growled at him, which was probably 'Fuck off' in wolf language.
Then suddenly, it spoke in their minds, in an angry, deep, female voice. "Apollo, why have you brought a Graecus within our midst?"
"Lupa, he's not a threat," Apollo replied pointing to Percy who was watching the whole scene, wide-eyed. "And as for why I brought him here… it's an order by Lord Jupiter and Lady Juno themselves. They wished me to escort him to Camp Jupiter."
"But—"
Apollo glared at her for some time and she finally sighed, "Fine, I'll allow him to cross the Tiber. Only if the graecus proves he's worthy will he be allowed to stay at camp."
"Great, I knew you would understand!" Apollo said, returning to his cheerful demeanor.
Lupa walked forward and went towards Percy, raising her snout. "Come on, Perseus, follow me."
-TIME-SKIP-
Soon they reached what they called Camp Jupiter. A majestic place across a river through which they just swam. Huge buildings were rising on both sides and it was actually really lonely.
'Huh… is there anyone here?' Percy thought to himself.
Lupa growled, "It's night time dumbass."
"You read my thoughts!" Percy said out loud.
"I'm a god."
"Shit. Ok, Ms. Xavier, where do we go?"
The wolf didn't say anything and just led Percy to a huge tree. It branched out in all directions with green leaves hanging to them in such a frail manner that they looked like they were going to get blown away with just a gust of wind.
Speaking of the wind, it was not there. Not a single straw of grass was moving. The entire environment was still and not a sound was coming.
"Rest here… once day breaks, you'll be tested, so be prepared. Although a Graecus like you wouldn't be able to pass our 'tests'…"
"Look, lady, I'll pass your tests, alright? You don't need to worry about that. But, I have one condition. If I win, you respect me, if I lose, you throw me out. Alright?"
"Fine."
Percy sighed and ran his hair through his messy hair. He had opened the bun and now his long, black hair reached his shoulders.
Lupa came and sat next to him. "You'll have to go forward on your own. When the sun rises, you shall ask the guards to take you to the praetors. They will decide what to do with you."
"Uh, alright… does that mean, we are not yet in Camp Jupiter?"
"Oh, we are in camp alright… it's just that we entered from the back gate, a gate that's only accessible by gods… now, you'll exit from this door, run to the front and talk to the guards… alright?"
"Yeah… understood," Percy said and tied his hair back up.
"Good, now go."
"NOW?" Percy asked.
"Yes, now… run!" Lupa said and the Son of Poseidon sprinted.
He ran out of the gate and around the walls until he reached the actual borders of Camp Jupiter. The sun was near the horizon, rising in the sky.
Suddenly two people in full armor came out, leveling their spears at him.
"Halt! Identify yourself!" The first guard exclaimed in a deep, masculine voice.
Percy stopped, raising his arms. "I'm Percy?"
"You asking us or telling us?" The second guard asked in an annoying feminine voice.
"I'm Percy."
"Good, why are you here?" Guard 1 asked.
"Uh, a wolf told me to come here," Percy said.
Both the guards suddenly relaxed, lowering their weapons.
"So you're one of us, huh?" Guard 2 said. "C'mon, let's take you to Thomas and Christa."
Percy nodded and followed them into the city of Paradise.
His mouth was hung open when he saw it. It looked like a full-fledged city instead of a camp. It was golden bathed in the sunlight as the campers emerged from their individual… houses? No, barracks.
The guards led him straight through a cluster of demigods and then around a replica of the colosseum until they finally reached a building that was decorated with the letters 'SPQR' in gold.
The first guard knocked and waited for a response. The doors opened and Percy saw a group of 4 demigods standing in front of two older demigods, all of them wearing purple t-shirts. The older ones wore purple capes in addition.
"Who is this?" One of the praetors with brown hair and hazel eyes asked.
"He's a demigod, we found him at the camp borders. Says Lupa sent him here," The first guard said.
The two praetors nodded as the rest of the demigods put their eyes on Percy.
The second guard nudged him and he understood what to say.
"Uh, I'm Percy Jackson, Son of Apollo," He said as he saw the glint of hope in Thomas and Christa's eyes fade away.
The rest of the people started laughing, except for two, a boy with blond hair and a girl with black hair.
"Wait, what's so funny?" Percy asked naively.
"You Apollo children are good at nothing except for healing and making music! We wanted someone who would be able to fight but… oh well," A burly guy exclaimed.
"Mark!" Christa shouted like she was a mother.
"Wha—" Mark was cut off as Percy grabbed his head and slammed him into the floor so hard that the tiles cracked.
"You think that just because my father is Apollo… I cannot fight?" Percy asked innocently as he picked Mark up by the hair and threw him back, his face a bloody mess.
The other two demigods surged forward with weapons in their hands, screaming. Percy just grabbed their blades in his hand and broke them. Then he turned around and kicked one of them in the chest, and punched the other in the forehead, knocking them out.
Everyone was looking at the newcomer in awe.
"Guards, please escort them to the infirmary," Thomas said as he got up and put his hand on Percy's shoulder, the glint appearing in his eyes again. "Mark was right, Percy, we need a fighter, and I think we have one here, right Christa?"
"Yep, we do indeed have one right here," Christa said. "You'll be having a test later this evening, it'll be a battle between the centurions, and then you'll decide which cohort you want to join."
"So quick? You don't want to do any background checks on me?" Percy asked to which he received a head shake.
"We trust Lupa's choice. If she has deemed you worthy of entering, then you are worthy, no need to do any further checks."
Percy just shrugged. "Fine, What do I do till then?"
"You'll be given a tour of the city by our centurions! Maybe Centurion Reyna or Centurion Grace could show you around?" Thomas said, pointing towards the two demigods left in the room.
"I'll show him around!" The blonde boy, Jason, said enthusiastically. He came forward and shook Percy's hand. "I'm Jason! Nice to meet you! C'mon, follow me!"
"That's great! Jason, show him around, and Reyna, make the proper arrangements for tonight's tournament!" Christa said.
"Uh, all right!" Percy said. "Well, I w—"
Percy was cut off by Jason pushing him outside.
"Come on now, we don't want to be late right?" Jason said cheerfully as he grabbed a startled Percy by the shoulders.
-TIME-SKIP-
"Hey Jason, I wanted to ask you about something," Percy asked after the entire tour was finished and they sat down on the lawn looking at the setting sun. "What happened on Mount Othrys?"
Jason's eyes widened. The expedition on the mountain was one of the few dark spots in Roman history. "How…. How do you know about it?"
"Apollo was talking about it," Percy lied easily.
Jason sighed and reluctantly started his tale. "I was there. I was leading it. We were there expecting Saturn but found only his throne and his right-hand man, Krios, and a whole horde of monsters. When we reached there, a strange girl wearing an orange T-shirt met us. We teamed up against the assailants but in the end, miraculously and without a scratch, only I survived."
Percy didn't say anything and patted the son of Jupiter's back.
-TIME-SKIP-
In the evening, everyone was seated in the colosseum, and Percy himself was standing in the center with all eyes on him.
He had been given a Roman sword, called a gladius, and some armor, but he had refused, saying that he wanted to show off a bit, so Christa and Jason agreed.
"Just remember that first, you're going to be fighting against the best legionnaires and then you'll be fighting each centurion. Alright, so be prepared?" Jason said.
To this Percy simply replied, "Do I look like I fucking care? I am just going to go with the flow, nothing more, nothing less."
"Fine…" Jason said, a little taken aback by Percy's reply.
So now, Percy was standing unarmed in the middle of what was going to be a gladiator match.
All the People of New Rome had been seated in rows, buzzing with excitement. Few people were even placing bets, and most of those were that the newbie would lose.
Percy smirked to himself, thinking how wrong those kids were. Suddenly he heard the praetors clear their throats, and the entire place quietened down.
"We have a recruit for our legion!" Christa shouted, loud and clear. "His name is Percy Jackson and he's the son of Apollo! We shall test him tonight to see if he's worthy of the cohorts or not!"
There were several boos from the third and fourth rows, while the first row cheered for Percy. The second row seated the Centurions and the Praetors.
Jason looked at Percy and mouthed, 'Best of Luck.'
Seeing that the Son of Poseidon smiled and got ready.
"Our first challenger!" Thomas Shouted. "Marco, Son Of Mars!"
With that, the steel gate rose, and a bulky guy came out. His eyes were flaming red. He snorted and screamed, "I'll destroy you so badly, puny child! That you won't be able to see the light of day again!"
Percy laughed out loud, not a happy laugh, but a psychotic laugh that echoed through the silent colosseum. "You…. you… destroy me? Hahahaha!"
Saying that He lunged forward as Marco ran forward as well, enraged.
The son of Mars threw his spear at Percy but he simply dodged it and grabbed Marco's hand and judo-flipped him to the ground.
Percy then picked him up by his legs and slammed him onto the ground.
Marco groaned and tried to stand up. "Oh! You can't stand up?" Percy asked mockingly. "Let me help you with that!"
He picked the son of Mars' and kicked him straight in the stomach, then he kicked him again in the chest and then in the head. Then Percy turned around and punched him, making him fly backward.
Marco's head hit the wall and he collapsed unconscious.
"That's the best you guys have?" Percy shouted, with a smirk on his face.
The entire Colosseum was silent, no one uttering a single word.
Thomas cleared his throat. "Legionnaires take Marco to the Infirmary! Percy wins! Next up, we have Lola daughter of Apollo!"
The steel gates rose once again and this time a sleek girl appeared in front of Percy, a bow slung on her back.
They were about 15 feet apart from each other and as soon as Thomas gave the signal to fight, Lola notched an arrow and shot it straight at Percy's head.
Percy just stood there and swatted it aside, with a smile on his face. "That all you got?" He said and ran forward, ducking under, jumping over, and dodging the volleys of arrows coming at him.
He flipped over one and then grabbed one of the arrows and threw it back at the daughter of Apollo with immense accuracy to cut the string of her bow, and not harm her at all.
"What?" Lola asked herself as Percy suddenly came behind her and kicked her to the ground, his foot at her neck.
"Yield?" Percy asked.
"Yield," Lola said and got up. "You're good."
Percy smirked. "Thanks, sis."
Christa smiled and shouted, "Percy wins yet again! Our next challenger is Jack, son of Mercury!"
The steel gates rose and Jack, a slender boy with blonde hair and blue eyes came forward. He was holding a gladius and a shield.
Percy smirked. "This is going to end soon!"
He cracked his knuckles as the son of Mercury stayed on the defensive. Percy studied his opponent and after a second, he jumped forward and grabbed Jack's head, and slammed his head, followed by his entire body into the ground.
"Yield?" Percy asked.
"Y-i-ld," Jack croaked out and Percy grabbed him up.
"Percy wins!" Thomas cried. "It's a flawless victory!"
"Now, which centurion wants to come first?" Christa asked.
Mark raised his hand, seething with rage, his nose bent at a weird angle.
"Alright, you can go down, Mark—" Thomas started but Mark roared, "I'm gonna destroy you bitch!"
"You guys really are fixed on destroying me, aren't you?" He said. "Well, bad luck, cause this baby isn't going down today!"
Mark growled and jumped from his seat, straight at Percy. Thomas reached out to stop him, but the son of Mars was already down.
When Mark landed, he landed with so much force that it created a shockwave, and dust rose from the ground, covering them.
Everyone was coughing and when finally the dust wave dissipated, everyone was shocked to see a smug Percy sitting on top of Mark's back, who was all on his fours, as confused as the spectators.
"You know the dudes at my gym have better asses than you do," Percy said raising a hand and hitting Mark's behind.
Mark roared and got out from underneath Percy and lunged at him again, while Percy just moved from his place so quickly it looked like he was teleporting.
Mark came back and did a 540 kick at Percy who, with his hands in his pockets, just dodged it smugly, appearing next to the son of Mars.
Mark lunged at him and Percy disappeared and appeared again and again.
Soon a really tired Mark and a smug Percy were back to back with each other.
Percy whispered to Mark, "You're weak."
The son of Mars got furious and tried to backhand Percy, but he just ducked under it, grabbed Mark's arm, spun him around, and then slammed him in the chest, making him fly back and hit the wall.
"Yield?" Percy shouted from across the arena but got no response, so everyone took the answer as yes.
Two legionnaires had to come and pull Mark out of the wall and put him on a stretcher.
Almost every other centurion was visibly scared of Percy except for Reyna and Jason.
Reyna actually wasn't, but Jason was… He was only hiding it.
"Who'll go next?" Christa asked.
"It seems the other praetors are chickening out, so I'll go… one fight with me will determine if he is worthy or not," Reyna said calmly.
Jason quickly responded. "I'll go too, after you of course, but I want my fight to be with our powers."
"Really?" Thomas asked and Jason nodded. "Fine, so it shall be. The next opponent is Reyna!"
Percy looked at the girl as he heard the name, Reyna. Something about her was familiar to Percy like he had seen her before.
Soon, Percy's opponent was in front of him, weapons out.
"Let's get this over with quickly," Reyna said and Percy couldn't agree more.
They both lunged at each other, Reyna quickly taking the offensive, trying to stab at Percy with her gladius.
Percy, of course, dodged every attack of hers. He just moved around, sidestepping, and jumping around Reyna's blade, which made her madder and madder.
She suddenly feinted a strike upwards and Percy tried to dodge that as Reyna did a leg sweep, making Percy fall down.
"That was a dirty trick, Centurion," Percy said getting up and dodging a downward strike by Reyna.
Percy grabbed the gladius in his hand, shocking the daughter of Bellona. Drops of red liquid slid from the blade and fell onto the ground.
The son of Poseidon pushed the startled Reyna with his bloody hand and snatched her weapon from her.
He then went down and sent a kick straight to her head, knocking her helmet off her head, and revealing her face.
Black hair, a chiseled face, and two colored eyes, one brown and one black shining in the moonlight described her visage.
Percy gasped and it was as if time froze as they looked at each other, a familiar face, someone Percy had seen before, and at that moment Reyna punched his face, but Percy rolled to the side and kicked her legs making her fall down as well.
Percy got up, and Reyna did as well, and they engaged in hand-to-hand combat. One punching, the other blocking, and vice-versa.
This continued until both of them got tired. Reyna's attacks were getting slower and Percy's were getting sloppy.
Finally, with every bit of energy left, Percy brought his face near Reyna's till the point where they were only a few inches apart. He smiled and touched his lips to Reyna's.
Yes, he kissed her.
He fucking kissed her.
He fucking kissed Reyna in the middle of the arena with thousands watching.
Reyna was so startled that she couldn't move, and Percy used the advantage of that to push her backward, making her fall.
With his knee on her chest, Percy brought his face near and asked a blushing Reyna in a seductive tone, "Do you yield?"
Reyna's cheeks only grew pinker as she nodded. Percy removed his leg and picked her up.
"You should consider yourself lucky that I didn't kill you for that," Reyna said and walked away blushing. "But I respect your fighting skills."
"Thanks," Percy said. "You're a good fighter as well."
"Well, Percy wins again, in the most surprising way, of course!" Christa yelled. "Now our final contender, Jason Grace!"
"So Jason, I heard it was going to be a fight of powers?" Percy asked once the son of Jupiter was in front of him.
Jason nodded.
"Fine then, I guess I'll have to tell you my secret," Percy sighed. "I have the blessings of the god of the dead and the god of the seas as well."
"What?" Jason asked and the Praetors had the same reaction as everyone was on the edge of their seats. "Really?"
Percy smirked and said, "Nah, just kidding."
Jason breathed a sigh of relief and his eyes glowed blue.
Black storm clouds gathered in the sky and started to thunder as he directed his gladius toward Percy, who smirked.
A bolt of lightning fell directly on top of the son of Apollo, and everyone was shocked, leaning forward in their seats waiting for something to happen.
"Well, this was easier than I expected," Jason said and started to descend.
"Who are you calling easy?" Percy asked, emerging from the shadows behind the son of Jupiter, his hair now a mess reaching his shoulders.
Jason turned around shocked, and the entire crowd started to lose their minds.
Percy smiled and then opened his mouth, gold marks appearing on his cheeks and tongue.
Jason got even more shocked when he yelled, "Fly!" his voice having a special kind of reverb to it.
Without wanting to, Jason was pushed back as he hit the walls of the arena, his eyes wide like saucers.
The marks started to disappear as Percy came forward, walking smugly.
"So, I guess you yield?" He asked lending Jason his hand.
Jason nodded and grabbed Percy's hand, and there wasn't any anger on his face, just pure awe and fear.
The entire crowd started cheering for the new recruit.
"You're good! I didn't know a son of Apollo could do that!" Someone shouted from the rows.
"I didn't either!" Percy shouted back.
Thomas cleared his throat, "Well, we have a winner!"
"Centurions, would you please come forward?" Christa asked as everyone came and stood next to her.
"Let's just hope he doesn't choose your cohort, eh?" A burly dude with one eye whispered to Jason, who just ignored him.
Percy overheard and smirked, tying his hair back up.
"We could use a legionnaire like you," Reyna said, her face still red.
"Well… I'm flattered, but I'd rather choose Centurion Jason in the fifth," Percy smiled.
Everyone was shocked, including the praetors. All the talking went silent.
"Why would you want to join those misfits!?" Mark yelled.
Percy punched him in the face. "Shut up, my life, my choice."
"Good, Jason Grace, do you accept Percy Jackson into your cohort?" Thomas asked.
Jason grinned and shook hands with Percy. "Of course!"
Percy grinned as well, as Christa announced, "Percy will be welcomed into the legion tonight in the senate-house! Bring your cohorts to the mess hall for dinner, centurions."
Everyone started to walk away. As she walked by Percy, Reyna told him, "I want a word with you, follow me."
Percy grinned. "Of course!"
They walked for a while in uncomfortable silence until they reached a huge tree, one that reminded Percy of Thalia.
"So, what did—" Percy started but was cut off by Reyna.
"What were you thinking about when you kissed me-!"
Percy smirked and got close and pressed his lips to hers. After a second of shock, Reyna responded as well, although involuntarily. They broke apart after a few seconds, with the daughter of Bellona blushing furiously.
"I was thinking that you're a pretty good kisser," Percy said. "If you want, take me to a restaurant in the city tomorrow for breakfast."
He walked forward smirking and then suddenly vanished from sight, leaving Reyna dumbfounded and open-mouthed still comprehending what happened.
****TIME-SKIP*****
Percy was gloriously accepted into the legion during the senate meeting, and now he had a tattoo on his arm. He had asked Jason what it meant, and he said that it was a sign of the demigod's parentage. So Percy's arm showed a lyre with one line underneath it representing one year of service.
He also had many fans inside the cohort. They all were thinking that he would be the one who'll bring the glory back to the fifth cohort and that they would learn a lot from him.
Percy also found that he had a brother, technically. He was also a son of Apollo who was a healer and an archer and he wanted to know how to fight like Percy.
And Percy handled him like a champ.
"You must just lie on the couch and have a good night's sleep. That helps a lot!" Percy said, a guy who never slept for more than 2-3 hours.
"That'd be great!" Tsubasa Tomuna beamed, and that's how Percy Jackson gained an apprentice.
Later that day, he talked to Jason who talked to Reyna, who talked to Thomas, who talked to Octavian, who talked to Percy.
About what? You might be asking.
The question was if Percy was allowed to use the premium bath soap. And the answer was no.
With a sad face, Percy walked, his shoulders drooped and his back hunched, his messy hair all over his face.
And that's how he remained the entire day, depressed until Reyna asked him out.
Instead of breakfast, she took him out to dinner.
"So, is this like a date?" Percy asked, with a root beer in his hand. "Have you finally realized how awesome I am?"
Reyna rolled her eyes. "You really are your father's son. Just eat up."
"As you say, your highness," Percy smirked and sipped his drink up seductively, making Reyna blush.
Then he dug into the Pasta Alla Carbonara. "Hmm! Tasty! Why don't you try some?"
"No thanks," Reyna said. "I have ordered something else."
A waiter came in and set down a platter of Cicoria passata.
"Ew, that looks healthy," Percy said with disgust.
Reyna smirked and began to eat.
After some time, Percy finished eating, and said, "Listen, Reyna, I want to tell you something. Ar-Mars came into my dreams yesterday, he said that he has an important announcement tonight… so I think we should go back."
Reyna choked on her passata. "You fucking piece of shit! You couldn't tell me that before!" She drank down her root beer and put her dinner into her mouth.
Percy smirked and followed Reyna out of the restaurant, putting the money on the table.
He grinned and grabbed her waist and they flashed away using light from the aesthetic lamps hanging in the restaurant.
"How did you do that?" Reyna asked, after reappearing back in Camp.
"Oh, nothing just some son of apollo stuff."
They walked forward to see Mars waiting for them, everyone bowing down on their knee. Reyna quickly ran forward and bowed down as well.
Percy remained standing, smirking. "Long time no see Mars!"
The god of war turned towards him with flames in his eyes.
"Nice to see you too, Punk!" Mars replied, with a sneer wearing full battle armor with the helmet in his hand.
"So I believe you were telling them about something?" Percy asked, hands in his pockets.
The god of war cleared his throat and said, "So…. As I was saying, there'll be a quest with Perseus leading it!"
Hearing this, there was a huge uproar, shouting protest.
"SHUT UP!" Mars yelled and everyone slowly quieted down, their shouts reduced to murmurs.
"My Lord! How do we know that that newbie is even suitable for a quest?" A voice came from the back of the crowd.
"Oh, he's more than suitable for the task," The God Of War said.
At this Percy smirked even wider.
Another rookie raised his hand and asked, "But, Lord Mars! What is this quest about?"
"Good question, it's just to take down some old geezers who have been creating…. Erm…. Problems for us." Mars said and then pointed to Percy. "And, I believe our friend here is quite familiar with them."
A huge number of hands rose in the air hoping that Percy would pick them for the quest.
"So. do you mind telling us who's going to be your companions for this quest?" The god of war asked.
"Of course not, my lord," Percy said and dropped into a mock bow. "I will be choosing Jason Grace and Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arellano." He smirked at the last part.
Jason just looked plain shocked and Reyna furious.
Mars smirked and said, "Very well…. Dismissed! I would like to talk to Perseus in private to brief him about the details of the quest."
As the rest of the crowd shuffled off murmuring quietly, Reyna and Jason stood there, and Percy walked off with Mars into the darkness.
They reached a place in the dark night with not many people around. Mars, who had transformed into Ares and was now wearing a biker's jacket with fingerless gloves, sat down on a bench.
Percy followed him and sat down on the other bench.
"I take it you know which old geezers I was talking about, Jackson?" Ares asked him, lighting a cigarette. "Care for a smoke?"
Percy nodded and grabbed the cigarette offered by Ares, and lit it, running his hand through his hair. "Tsukasa Shinobu, Ernesto Miranda, and Assunta Maresca."
Ares nodded and took a long drag, releasing a puff of smoke. "Terrorized the world those bitches… until you put an end to their rein. Care for a smoke?"
Percy looked shocked.
"Oh please, it was all over the news, a 13-year-old boy kills the heads of the oldest and most ancient Mafias," Ares said. "Quite the feat you achieved. But what you killed, was the leader, not the spirit. The gang continued and expanded until today, the day when those monsters returned."
"That should be impossible. They were mortals, not actual monsters…. When I killed them…" Percy said, shocked.
"That's right… but the giants are rising, the Earth Mother is rising…. And she's opened the doors of death and let those monsters loose again. And this time they are immortal, blessed by Gaia herself."
The name of the primordial of the Earth darkened the already dark atmosphere considerably.
"Well, fine…. I'll see what I can do," Percy said, releasing a puff of smoke of his own.
"Good," Ares said. "Now, I guess you'll have to tell your quest members the truth of your heritage?"
Percy nodded.
"All right, until next time Jackson," The god of war said, before flashing away. "And remember, you have my respect, punk."
Percy smirked and got up, walking back raising his hood, back to camp.
That's when the first ambush happened. It was a pair of Laestrygonians, wielding nasty swords.
Percy instinctively sidestepped and dodged the attack that threatened to split him into two.
He looked to his sides and saw both giants ambushing him from both sides.
"Hmm… smart move," He told them, then smirked.
The second one aimed for where he was standing, as Percy jumped up and drop kicked it in the chest and flipped off, onto the first giant.
He punched its throat, while in the air, and that was enough to make it disintegrate into dust as Percy went for the dazed second Laestrygonian and kicked its head cleanly off its shoulders.
With that Percy resumed his walking, and this time decided to just jump into a shadow.
He appeared behind Jason and Reyna, who were in a heated discussion of whether a car was good transport or a plane.
"Uh, what are you guys doing?" Percy asked, amused.
Seeing him both Jason and Reyna jumped, Jason a little more than Reyna.
"When did you arrive?" Reyna asked.
"Right now," Percy said, nonchalantly, then turned serious. "I got to tell you guys something. I am not actually the son of Apollo… I'm actually the son of Neptune and Pluto."
Jason and Reyna were shocked, then they started laughing.
"I'm not kidding guys, look," Percy said and made a water ball out of thin air, then stretched it out to form a long spaghetti, then compressed it to form a sword, and then threw it away.
Then he stomped his foot on the ground, and it cracked, as skeleton hands got out of the fissure and rose to reveal full-fledged skeletons.
And with another stomp, they disintegrated and the crevice closed.
Reyna and Jason were watching the scene wide-eyed as Percy finally tapped into the 'Apollo' powers residing within him and created a ball of pure bright light and slammed it into the ground, brightening the atmosphere.
"I know you guys need explanations," Percy said watching the bewildered expressions on his friend's faces. "Basically, I'm organically Neptune's son, and then Pluto found me and adopted me, and then Apollo gave me his blessing… So yeah."
"All right…" Jason said, still unable to comprehend what had happened.
Though Reyna looked at it in a more positive way and said, "That's good, we'll have a wider arsenal at our side…. Now mind telling us what the threat actually is?"
"Yeah… I was just getting to that…" Percy said and explained the whole fiasco to them.
And to say that the two demigods were shocked was an understatement.
"So… we'll have to put down the gang in the US, then go to Italy, and then to Japan? In just 14 days?" Jason asked, expecting something along the lines of 'Oh no, that was all just a joke, all of the gangs are gathering in one place and we just have to blow their lair up.'
"Yeah, I guess so," Was Percy's only response.
"So I guess, going to Japan first would be best, right?" Reyna asked and Percy nodded. "So then, how in hell are we going to reach there?"
"I'll book the tickets for the planes," Percy said and went off.
"Well shit," Jason muttered. "What have we gotten ourselves into?"
****TIME*SKIP****
Percy, a well-dressed, extremely powerful, extremely handsome, and 6 feet tall man being afraid of planes was extremely shocking and funny to both Jason and Reyna.
The demigod, dressed in a blue hoodie with a silver trident in the middle and black cargo pants, was not having the time of his life, as his nails dug deep into the armrest, his heart beating loudly.
Jason and Reyna sitting on either side of him laughed at Percy's condition.
He glared at them as his teeth were chattering, and this caused them to laugh even more.
His heart beat faster and faster as the plane started to rise when suddenly Reyna put her hand on his, which effectively relaxed him.
Percy gripped her hand tightly and didn't let go until the plane leveled off.
Finally, Percy relaxed and got up and started walking up and down the aisle of the plane, helping the air hostesses occasionally.
He towered over the seats and helped put people's luggage up. Occasionally he would start stretching saying his back was hurting.
It had taken them almost 12 hours to go from San Francisco International Airport to Haneda Airport.
And while Jason and Reyna were completely exhausted, Percy was full of energy.
"So where do we go now?" Reyna asked picking up the luggage from the belt.
Percy hadn't noticed what she had been wearing because of the fear of getting the entire plane blasted out of the sky, but now he properly looked at her and took in her appearance.
She was wearing entirely casual clothes, a black turtle neck tank top with a short leather jacket on top of it and black jeans on the bottom with combat boots.
"You look good today," Percy said, running a hand through his hair in the large mirror behind him.
Reyna blushed and replied, "You too." And now it was Percy's turn to blush.
Jason was confused as he looked at both of them blushing at each other.
He himself was wearing a full sleeve blue shirt combined with blue jeans as he drank an entire bottle of water.
"So, where are we going to stay?" Jason asked as they exited the airport.
"I booked a hotel room," Percy said nonchalantly as he turned around to look at their faces. "We'll have to share the bed."
Then he laughed loudly at their flushed faces.
"Just kidding… I booked three." Percy said and called a taxi.
The driver asked them where to go and Percy replied, in pure Japanese, "Shinjuku Prince Hotel."
"How can you speak Japanese?" Reyna whispered, bewildered.
Percy smirked and whispered back, "I've been here before."
It was a 2-hour trip and Artemis had begun her chariot riding as the night came along.
Soon the trio entered the lodge and a beautiful receptionist came and hugged Percy tightly, who returned the hug with the same vigor.
"Oh, it's so nice to see you again, Percy!" She said with an accent in her English.
"It's nice to see you too, Momo!" Percy said in Japanese.
"I see your Japanese has gotten better!" Momo replied in the same language.
Percy nodded, smiling. "What can I say? I'm awesome!"
Reyna and Jason were watching the scene bewildered as Momo turned towards them and spoke in english. "And who might you be?"
"I'm Reyna, and this is my friend Jason," The daughter of Bellona replied and pointed to the blonde in the room.
"I don't think you guys treat each other like this in Japan, right? I mean I haven't seen many people hug each other…. Like you guys bow down, right?" Jason asked nervously.
Hearing this Momo laughed. "Oh, Percy is an old friend and I must have gotten 'Americanised' by him!"
Percy laughed at that, loudly.
"So, I take it you guys are demigods like him?" The receptionist asked.
Jason looked at Percy with a questioning look and mouthed, 'She knows?'
"Don't worry," Momo said, reassuringly. "Only I know his true identity."
"Yes, miss…." Reyna asked.
"Takahashi," Percy supplied.
"Miss Takahashi," Reyna said. "We are demigods, Bellona and Jupiter."
"So, roman?"
Jason and Reyna nodded.
Takahashi gestured for Percy to come closer and whispered something.
'What have you gotten yourself into?'
'Nothing much'
'It's not gonna destroy the hotel again, is it?'
'No! Of course not…'
Momo shot a glare at Percy who just shrugged and then smiled warmly at the demigods and said, "Well, then I guess Percy could show you to your rooms."
After they had shifted all of their things in the rooms and made themselves comfortable, Jason fell asleep, Reyna watched some television, and Percy went for a walk.
He had some research to do.
-TIME-SKIP-
No place at night was dark in Tokyo.
Percy had pulled his hood up and had shadow-traveled to Arakawa city to visit Susanoo's shrine.
It was in the northern outskirts of the city, and it was just like any other Shinto shrine Percy had seen.
Three sacred gates guarded the outer wall and several small walkways meandered around a beautiful garden in the center of the compound.
The flag of the Rising sun marked the boundaries of the compound, and in the small temple at the end of the compound, a larger flag flew from a point on the building's roof.
Tugging the hood, he stepped inside and suddenly felt a strange sensation pass over him. It felt like he was taking a shower. Percy shuddered involuntarily and walked forward.
The inside was immensely beautiful, and nothing like what it looked 4 years ago.
Ornate wooden floors, and walls covered with beautiful murals. They depicted important moments in Susanoo's mythological history. One typical mural caught his eye.
It was of the sea god battling an enormous multi-headed snake in the ocean.
"Hello, how may I assist you?"
Percy was shaken from his stupor as he turned around to look at an aged man, in his eighties or more. His bald head glimmered in the light. And he was dressed in navy blue robes that complimented his long white beard.
Given a pointed hat and some glasses, he could look like a Japanese Dumbledore.
"Hey," Percy said cheerfully. "I wish to talk with your boss."
"If you mean the priest… then I am he."
"Nope," Percy replied and looked at the ceiling. "Not you."
He shouted. "Hey, Susanoo, you shit! Come out here!"
The old man squawked at Percy's utter disrespect.
He stammered, trying to find words, but then fell silent.
A strange presence entered the room and everything froze. Percy turned and saw that the old man was silent, his mouth open as if trying to speak something, but no words came out. He even stopped breathing.
Percy turned around and saw that the candle flames were completely still, not flickering at all.
The sounds of the city's hustle-bustle had stopped completely, and the entire city fell silent.
Percy turned back and saw another man, much younger than the Shrine-keeper. In his twenties at most. He was dressed in a navy blue three-piece suit and a white tie.
He radiated an aura of power, much more power than Percy had ever felt from the Olympians.
"Hey Percy," He said cheerfully with a smirk that the son of the sea could never forget. "Long time."
"Yeah, yeah, good to see you too," Percy stepped forward. "I need to talk to you."
-TIME-SKIP-
Percy was back at the hotel by the time it was daybreak. He took a shower and dressed in another hoodie, this time a black one with a skull in the middle teamed with black cargo pants and combat boots.
He then went on to wake up the others. First, Reyna's room.
The door was open and Reyna was sitting there on the bed dressed in a crop top with a black blazer on top of it and black pants.
"What do you want?" She asked, annoyed.
"Nothing just came to wake you up," Percy said. "I don't think that was necessary though."
Reyna took out a cigarette from her pocket, and held another in her hand, and asked, "You smoke?"
Percy nodded and took the cigarette between his fingers, and pressed it to his lips.
Reyna brought out a lighter and Percy brought his mouth closer to hers until the ends of cancer sticks were touching.
She was flustered but she lit both cigarettes at once and they pulled their heads away.
"Where were you last night?" Reyna asked, taking the cig out of her mouth and exhaling smoke.
"You noticed?" Percy asked sitting on the chair in front of her.
"Of course, I came to your room to talk about something and saw you weren't there." Another exhale.
"I was searching for info," Percy said, exhaling the smoke and sighing. "I didn't know you smoked."
Reyna shrugged and extinguished the cigarette on the ashtray. "I didn't know you smoked either."
Percy smirked and his cigarette extinguished itself. "Well, let's go find Jason! We need to go to the entertainment district today!"
A/N:- This is the end of the fourteenth chapter! Yay! Anyway, these guys are going to wreak havoc in the entertainment district. And like I included some Shinto gods, like the Japanese gods. I figured if Greek gods, Roman gods, and Norse gods exist, then why not Japanese gods? So yeah! Anyway, bye! Have a nice day! Do leave reviews down below! Bye!