Chapter 12
Disclaimer: I own precisely ZIP.
5 years later
Percy was sitting with Chaos in her office, rolling his eyes.
"Is this really necessary?" he all but whined.
Chaos just rolled her eyes.
"Yes, Percy, It's absolutely necessary."
"Oh, come on! I don't need to talk to a shrink. You know I'm fine."
She raised an eyebrow at him from across her desk.
"Oh, really? You're 'fine'? You were extensively abused as a child, your mother and fiancee were murdered by your brother, who then almost killed you too, and to top it all off, you assassinated someone. What part of that would equate to you being 'fine'?"
Percy didn't speak for a while. The mere mention of his mother and Annabeth was enough to set him on edge. He decided to respond by deflecting the matter entirely.
"Well, I suppose when you lay it all out like that..." he trailed off.
"Look, I'm sorry to put it that way, "she said apologetically, "But you need to speak to someone more than most. And anyway, it's not just you. It's mandatory for everyone."
She had a point, he supposed. It was a policy in Chaos' army to have all recruits go through a psychological evaluation once they had been in training for 50 years. Percy had skipped 40 of those 50 years, but he was still at that level. And he was going to have to endure it regardless.
"I just don't get why we all need to do it."
"Oh, you don't, do you?" she asked with a curious eyebrow raised.
"No, I really don't."
"You remember that girl you had me expel? The one that was sleeping with the instructor?"
"Psycho girl, yeah, I remember."
Chaos smiled at him.
"Yes, 'psycho girl', as you called her. The psychological evaluation is in place to make sure that people like her are bottlenecked. Even if you hadn't gotten her kicked out, she would have been expelled as soon as we got the results anyway."
That made enough sense to him. Chaos' army wasn't the friendliest bunch, but they still had to be decent people at least. They were no boy scouts, but they would need some basic empathy at the bare minimum.
"Alright, I guess I see your point." he sighed.
"That's the spirit! "she told him with a dry cheeriness, "It'll be quick and painless. I'm sure you'll be fine."
"Yeah, we'll see. When's my appointment?"
"You're due in 30 minutes. Please be on time."
"I will be."
He got up and left her office. He wasn't thrilled about talking to a shrink. He agreed with the process, he just didn't want it applied to him. He viewed his psyche as a house of cards, and if someone fucked with it in just the right way, it would all come crashing down.
He decided to go straight there. There was a small building near the outskirts of Chaos' city, which was known as the psych building. There weren't many visitors, and it was often empty, but it was there. He stopped at a cafe and picked up a coffee to go. Armed with caffeine, he strolled toward the Psych building's general direction.
He walked through the doors and quickly found the room that was set up for his interview. He could sense the psychiatrist in there, waiting for him. He paused at the door. His evaluation wasn't scheduled to start for another 2 minutes. He stood at the doorway, waiting. He wasn't going in a second before he had to. He had promised Chaos that he would be on time. Not late, not early. He stared at the clock mounted to one of the walls. 120 seconds rolled by, and he walked through the door. Not early, not late. The psychiatrist looked up at him as he entered the room, and nodded once. No smile.
"Sit." he said, indicating toward a chair opposite him.
Apparently, the shrinks in Chaos' realm were as friendly as everyone else there. Percy sat in the chair and stared at his evaluator. The psychiatrist pulled out a recorder and set it to begin.
"Psychological exam of Perseus Jackson conducted due to a completion of the first 50 years of cadet training. Subject arrived punctually."
"Subject, eh? You fucking prick." Percy thought.
"Jackson, we're going to start with a few basic questions. Where were you born?"
"Manhattan, New York, USA, Earth." he sighed.
"Right. And when you think of that place, "the shrink coughed out, "what emotions are brought to the surface?"
The way the shrink said 'place' made Percy want to smash his teeth down his throat. He said it with such disdain. Like he was talking about a porta-potty. Percy hadn't even seen New York in a decade, but he had grown up there. It carried some sentimental value to him. And this asshole making it sound as if Percy had grown up in a swamp.
"It's a mixed bag."
"And what emotions are within this, so-called, 'mixed bag' of yours?"
Percy took a deep breath.
"Quick and painless my ass, Chaos," he thought, "I'm gonna be here all day at this rate."
"Nostalgia. Grief. Some happiness."
"Why?" the shrink asked stupidly.
"Why what?" Percy said irritably.
"Why does the thought of that place bring such emotions to the surface?"
"Nostalgia, because I sometimes miss it. Grief, because my mother and fiancee were murdered there. Some happiness, because I have a lot of good memories there, with both of them."
"I see." the shrink said snootily and jotted something down on a notepad.
The guy was starting to annoy him. The way he spoke, was as if Percy's emotions were far beneath him. Like Percy was some caveman that was crying because he lost his favorite rock.
"And this fiancee of yours, "the shrink began, "I believe her name was Ann-"
Percy cut him off.
"Speak her name, and you'll never speak again." he said.
The psychiatrist stared at him in shock. One look into Percy's eyes told him he wasn't kidding. Rightly so.
"Um. We'll refer to her as your fiance for the duration of this interview, shall we?" he asked nervously.
"That would be in your best interest." Percy nodded.
"You met your fiancee, at your summer camp, correct?"
"Yes."
"How old were you?"
"We were both 12."
"Did you begin to date then?"
"No. We started when we were 16. We were friends until then."
The psychiatrist nodded and took another note.
"You proposed when you were how old?"
"18."
"And she accepted?"
"You've been calling her my fiancee, hasn't that tipped you off?"
"Sometimes a girl can reject the first proposal, and accept the second. Or the third, perhaps."
"Well, not in this case. I proposed once, she accepted once."
"I see. The two of you had plans to move away, correct?"
"Yes, we were going to move to a city specifically built for demigods."
Percy was starting to have a tough time. It was difficult to answer questions about what his plans had been with her. It just reminded him about the reality of what had happened. What his scumbag brother had done.
"Whose idea was the move?"
"Mine."
"And she liked the idea?"
"Yes."
"Ok, "he said, taking yet another note, "Now, I would like to fast forward to the day they died. Describe to me, what happened that day."
Percy stared at him. He stared for a long time. Several minutes went by.
"Move on." he said slowly.
The shrink shook his head.
"This is important, we cannot simply-"
"Move. The fuck. On."
Percy had learned to become quite menacing. To be fair, it didn't take much learning. He was a monstrous figure, standing at 6'7, built from pure muscle. Percy had found that people were generally eager not to upset him, for that alone. But he had learned to take it to other levels. He was able to control his voice perfectly. He could make it the most terrifying sound anyone had ever heard. When Percy said something in that tone, people listened.
The psychiatrist stared at him. He must have been weighing up his options. He was trying to decide if he wanted to risk it. Eventually, he must have decided to relent. A wise move.
"Ok. We'll circle back to that."
"No, we won't." Percy said in the same tone.
The shrink stared at him some more. But he came to the same conclusion. Pushing for an answer, wasn't worth it. Percy mentally applauded his decision.
"Ok. Let's talk about your earlier childhood. How would you describe it? In one word?"
Percy didn't want to talk about that either, but he knew he had to give the guy something. Talking about Gabe beating the shit out of him was the preferable option.
"In one word? Abusive."
"Abusive, "the shrink made another note, "Ok. Why?"
"Because I was abused."
"Well, yes, but how? Emotionally? Psychologically? Physically?"
"Physically."
"By whom?"
"Stepfather."
"For how long?"
"It started when I was 4. Ended when I was 12."
Another note.
"Alright. How was it done?"
"Usually beatings. Sometimes he would cut me."
"With regularity?"
"Virtually every night."
"How did your mother react to this?"
"She never knew."
Another note.
"Where was she?"
"At work."
Another note.
"Ok. I think I have all of the background I need. I want to move on to something more recent. You were sent on a mission 5 years ago, correct?"
"Yes."
"What was involved in this mission?"
"I can't go into specifics."
"So boil it down for me."
"I was sent to kill someone."
"And you did?"
"Yes, I did."
"And how did that make you feel?"
Percy rolled his eyes. Classic shrink response.
"It didn't make me feel like anything. I took care of a bad person, and I helped some good people. It was a good day."
Another note.
"So you felt nothing? No remorse? No guilt?"
"Why would I feel remorseful or guilty?"
"Most people do, after taking a life."
"Well, I'm not most people. He deserved it."
Another note.
"Is that your view on the matter? The man you killed deserved to die?"
"Yes, he did. If you saw the way his people lived, you would agree."
"I'm sure I would. I know Lady Chaos wouldn't have anyone killed unless they deserved it. I'm not questioning the morality of the situation, I'm questioning your reaction to it. I'll ask you again. Is that your view on the matter? Bad people get what's coming to them, no questions asked?"
"Depends on the person."
"But in general, you have no problem with taking a life."
"I don't have a problem with taking a bad person's life, no."
"What about an innocent person? Could you kill an innocent person?"
"No. Never."
"Are you sure about that?"
"I'm fucking positive."
"If I wasn't, you'd be fucking dead by now, that's for sure." he thought.
"Ok. How would you describe your emotional state since the mission?"
"My what?"
"Your emotional state. Have you been experiencing trouble sleeping? Have you been jumpy, or stressed?"
"No, I haven't. I'm fine. Like I told you, I did what I had to, and I helped a lot of people in the process."
"Alright. Now, let's talk about your training."
The interview went on for hours. They kept going back and forth, talking about every aspect of Percy's life. Luckily for him, Percy didn't have much of a life. He spent all of his time either training or sleeping. There wasn't very much else he did. There wasn't very much else that he had time for.
Eventually, they wrapped it up. Percy was exhausted by the end. He truly hated talking about himself, so he was glad that the ordeal was over. He wasn't totally sure what to do with the rest of his day. He had been excused from training for the entire day because of his psych eval. He decided to take a little time for himself. He went back to his favorite cafe, intent on getting himself more coffee. He'd become quite addicted to the stuff ever since he had arrived.
When he was just about to walk into the cafe, he saw someone. He saw the most beautiful someone that he had ever seen. There was a fountain right in front of his cafe, which did wonders for the atmosphere. And there was a girl sitting on the edge of it. She had her feet in the water, and she was resting a book in her lap, which she wasn't reading. She had golden blonde hair, which went halfway down her back. Her bright blue eyes were looking at the clear, mid-day sky. She had the most beautiful smile on her face. It was the type of smile that could make someone's knees go weak. She was wearing a simple yellow T-Shirt and a matching yellow skirt. Stunning wasn't the word. Not even close.
He must have stared too long. Her eyes snapped away from the sky and locked straight onto his. He couldn't make himself look away. The beautiful smile melted away into something more curious. She was watching him like he was a puzzle of some kind. Like he confused her. He wasn't sure how long they stayed like that, but he eventually managed to demonstrate some control over himself. He tore his eyes away from her, walked into the cafe, ordered a coffee, and then sat down at a table inside. He would have preferred to sit outside, but she was out there, directly in front of the cafe. He made sure to sit with his back to her.
"There. Out of sight, out of mind." he thought.
The door to the cafe opened. Percy didn't need his enhanced senses to know it was her. She picked up a chair from another table and brought it to his. She sat down directly opposite him.
"Well, shit." he thought smartly.
There was a silence for a few moments when she sat down. They were the only two people in the cafe, so it was kind of overbearing. The only audible sound was the coffee machine working. Percy knew from experience that the waitress was reading in the back. It was just him and the blonde.
"You wanna explain why you were staring at me?" she said.
Dear Chaos, her voice. It was something out of a fairy tale. It was a throaty sound, and it felt like caramel dripping over his skin. She could have pulled out a phone book and started to read it out loud, he would have been enthralled. She sounded like she could make people do her bidding, by simply asking them.
-"Do me a favor darling, and chop off your arm."
-"Absolutely. Whatever you want. You can have it."
It took Percy a second to register the fact that she had asked him a question. He had been too distracted by her voice, to realize that he would need to speak to her. Conversation was a two-way street, after all.
"You were staring at me too, you know? You wanna give me your excuse first?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, I asked you first."
"Shit. That's a fair point. I guess I don't really know what to tell you."
She raised an eyebrow.
"You were staring at a total stranger, and you don't even know why?"
"That's not what I said. I know exactly why I was staring at you, I just don't know what to tell you."
She snorted at him.
"Well, I suggest you come up with something pretty quickly, otherwise I'm just gonna leave."
"We can't have that now, can we?"
"It would be a damn shame." she said agreeably.
"Ok, how about this? I was watching you because you have the most beautiful smile I've ever seen."
The blonde nodded and pretended to think it over. She cocked her head to the side as if she were considering what he had told her. It made all of her hair sweep to the side, nearly touching the ground. She had pretty long hair. It was nice.
"I suppose that's not the worst line I've ever heard."
"Thanks, I'm flattered. Now, what's your excuse?"
"My excuse for what?"
"Staring at me!"
"Oh, that! Well, some hot guy was staring at me." she said teasingly.
He decided he liked her. She reached a hand over the table.
"I'm Sara."
He took her hand and shook it.
"Percy. You new around here?"
"Sort of. I've been here before, but not in a while. I was doing some undercover work, but I just finished. I've got to go to a psych eval in 2 hours."
"Ouch. I just came from one, it was pretty brutal. Make sure you go in prepared for a lot of dumb questions."
She laughed.
"Thanks for the tip."
"Anytime. What was your undercover stuff?"
"It's all a very long story."
"I've got time."
She smiled at him. She thought about it for a few seconds and decided she might as well.
"I was deep cover with this tyrant. Whole thing lasted 25 years from beginning to end. This real scumbag. The things he made his people go through, it was insane. Lady Chaos had me infiltrate his network, and plant the seeds of rebellion within the people. The interesting thing is, the tyrant guy was assassinated around 5 years ago. Get this, right; some crazy motherfucker snipes him from over 12 thousand meters away! It was insane. Easily one of the best shots I've ever seen. I just spend the last 5 years making sure the people get their democracy up and running."
Percy blinked. Then he started to laugh.
"Uhm, are you ok? Laughter doesn't seem like the typical response to that story." she said questioningly.
"Sorry, it's just funny."
"How so?"
"Well, I was that crazy motherfucker." he said, chuckling. It felt good to laugh.
Sara's eyes went wide.
"Holy shit! That was you? Man, awesome shot! I just wish I could have been the one to do it."
"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll kill a lot of tyrants in the future."
"Yeah, I guess. So, how did you get to be such a good sniper?"
"Natural talent, I guess. I put a lot of practice into it, but I guess I'm kind of a natural."
"That's great. Good for you. Mind if I ask you a question?"
"Shoot."
"Where did you go after? I spent a lot of time looking for you, but I could never find you. Not that I would have done anything to you if I'd found you. I would have helped you escape, but I guess you were ok on that front."
"I just hid at the bottom of the ocean. I'm from Earth, a demigod. Son of Poseidon, he's the God of the seas."
He expected her to react with some measure of disdain. He knew demigods weren't well-liked in Chaos' realm. But there was nothing like that. Instead, she just nodded, clearly deep in thought.
"That makes a lot of sense. Kill the tyrant, sit at the bottom of the ocean for a few hours, and then resurface when the dropship gets close. Nice one."
"Thanks, I thought it went well. I'm guessing you guys managed to install some kind of democratic system over there?"
"Yeah, the civilian population is thriving. I had to take care of a lot of the tyrant's right hands, but I think the pool has been cleansed enough now."
"I'm glad. I wasn't there for very long, but I couldn't believe what I saw."
"It was pretty gruesome." she agreed.
"You wanna talk about something more cheery?" he asked.
She gave him another spectacular smile.
"Sounds great. So, how are you managing in the army?"
"Honestly? Pretty shitty. I know it's good work, but 99% of the people here suck. Aside from Chaos, you're the first person I've had a decent conversation with, in a very long time."
She laughed at him.
"I know what you mean. I love being part of the army, but my comrades are so shitty."
Then she looked at him again.
"Well, "she said, "I guess some of them are ok."
He smiled at her. It felt nice to talk to someone that didn't treat him like dirt. That had become quite a rarity for him.
They spent a long time talking. They were cut short because she had to go for her psych eval. He was happy enough to have spent 2 hours making pleasant conversation with someone, but apparently, she saw it differently.
"You know, if you want, we could meet up here once I'm done? I'll probably be a few hours, but I wanna keep talking to you. You're pretty interesting."
He was a little bit shocked. Here was this gorgeous woman, who was smart, funny, and deadly, and she wanted to spend more time with him. He wasn't sure what he had done to deserve that, but he wasn't going to question it. He was just going to embrace the opportunity with both arms.
"Sure. I'll probably go hang around for a couple hours, and then we can meet up at the fountain outside?"
She gave him a megawatt grin.
"Perfect. See you in a few."
And with that, she was gone. Percy was left smiling slightly. It was good to smile again. He left too, deciding to head to one of the gyms in the training building. As he walked, he thought about the conversation he had just had with Sara. He really liked her, he knew that much. It made him a little bit scared. And slightly guilty. It had been a decade, but it still felt wrong to move on. He knew what she would have wanted though. She would have wanted him to be happy. But it felt so... foreign. Like he had forgotten how to enjoy his life ever since she had died. Like he wasn't supposed to. But in spite of that, he felt good around Sara. It was almost like she made him forget.
He decided not to let himself overthink it. They had spoken for 2 hours, that was all. They weren't going out. They weren't getting married. They'd had a cup of coffee. Sure, they had flirted with each other, but that didn't mean anything, did it? Flirting was just flirting.
He resolved to put her out of his mind for the time being. He reached the gym and started working out. He ran through a few of his favorite exercises, but he didn't push himself too hard. He was really just working out to burn some energy. He'd been sitting still for far too long that day.
Eventually, he finished. He was a little bit sweaty, so he went for a shower, redressed, and walked back to the fountain. The sun had gone down while he'd been exercising, and the city lights had come on. They gave the city a great atmosphere. He arrived at roughly the same time as Sara. She looked a little bit more tired, and a little bit pissed off, but she was still gorgeous. She gave him a tired smile as they met.
"Hey, good to see you again. Those things are exhausting, aren't they?"
He nodded.
"Tell me about it. It's like they're trying to push buttons."
"Exactly! Anyway, what do you wanna do?"
He froze. He actually hadn't even thought of that. He had no idea if there was anything to do for fun in the city. He had never really cared to find out.
"Um. You chose."
She raised an eyebrow.
"You have no idea what to do in the city, do you?"
"Not a clue."
She thought for a moment.
"You wanna go back to my place? We can open a bottle of whiskey and chat for a while?"
He blinked. A bottle of whiskey and a chat with a pretty woman, in her apartment, just the two of them, at night? Yeah, fuck it.
"Sounds good. Whereabouts do you live?"
"I've got a place up the road. Let's go."
They started walking. They made easy conversation as they went. She was pretty easy to talk to. He told her about some of his experiences in the wars he had been in. She seemed fascinated about it all. She, in turn, told him stories about her time in the army. She told him about a few of her missions. She was captivating. And she had a remarkable penchant for storytelling.
They reached her apartment and went inside. It was a nice place. Spartan, as most of Chaos' accommodations, were, but it was comfortable enough.
"Go ahead and take a seat, and I'll see about that whiskey." she told him with a grin.
He sat down on her couch. It was nice. Sara disappeared into the kitchen for a few moments, before she came back with a bottle and 2 glasses. She poured some of the amber liquid into the glasses and gave him one. They shared a toast, and then each took a sip. It was good whiskey.
She sat down next to him in that way attractive women do. She folded one leg underneath her body and outstretched the other one. One arm was draped over the back of the couch, and the other was holding her drink, resting against her thigh. Her head was leaning against the shoulder of the arm that was draped along the couch. Her body was half-turned toward him. Her yellow skirt left her legs plainly visible for the most part. She looked very casual in her home. And she looked good enough to eat. She was watching him curiously.
"What?" he asked softly. It didn't seem right to speak too loudly. Like it would ruin the atmosphere.
"Were you really watching me because you liked my smile?" she asked softly. Not quite timidly, just softly. Like she was matching his tone.
"Of course I was. You have the most amazing smile."
She smiled softly.
"Thanks. I haven't heard that in a long time."
"You haven't?"
"I was undercover with some pretty shitty people. I just had 25 years of 'Nice tits!' an 'What an ass!'. I guess 'You have the most amazing smile' makes for a great change of pace."
He wasn't entirely sure what to say in response to that.
"Well, I was gonna wait until I used those, you know?" he said jokingly.
She snorted and lightly shoved his shoulder.
"I'm serious! I figured I'd lower your guard with the thing about the smile, and then go right for the tits!"
She laughed at that and shoved him again.
"Fuck off!" she laughed.
"I'm not fucking off! You want me fucked off, you gotta do it yourself." he joked.
Sara bit her lip and looked him up and down.
"I could fuck you off." she said in a low voice.
His eyes widened a fraction. He hadn't been expecting that. He'd only been joking really.
"I was kidding."
"I wasn't."
He stared at her. He could see that she was serious. She had this look in her eyes. Without intending to, he leaned in a little bit. He saw her do the same. He leaned in further. Her lips parted. His did too. She closed the distance. They kissed for a few moments before he pulled back.
"You sure you wanna do this?"
Her only response was to put both of their drinks on the coffee table and straddle his lap. She leaned in again, and they went back to kissing. She was a remarkable kisser. Soft, but not too soft. Eager, but not too eager. Self-assured, but not demanding. She was great.
A few minutes went by before she pulled away again.
"You know, I'm sure I've got a bed somewhere around here." she said jokingly.
"A bed? Fancy." he teased.
She laughed lightly before she got out of his lap and took his hand. She led him through her apartment before they ended up in her bedroom. She tugged at the hem of his T-Shirt, and he lifted his arms to make it easier for her to pull it off. It still took some effort, since he was a lot taller than her, but they managed. As soon as his shirt was off, she threw it to the ground and pushed him onto her bed. He let himself fall and lay flat against her comfortable mattress. She climbed onto him so that she had her knees on either side of his hips, and her back was up straight. Her skirt was already on its way off, but not quite gone.
She pulled her T-Shirt over her head and threw it to the ground. She was left in her skirt and a sheer black bra. He had no idea that an agent of Chaos would own lingerie. He wasn't complaining. She ran her hands over his chest, taking care to give extra attention to all of his scars. Her hands were so gentle as they ran over all of the sensitive scar tissue. She was almost reverent in how she touched them.
After a few moments, her bra came off. Then her skirt joined the collection of clothes on the floor. His jeans followed briefly after. Her panties were sent flying across the room. His boxers joined them. And the rest of the night went by in hot, breathy moans, grunts, squeals, and muffled screams. It was a very good night. And Percy confirmed that he really liked Sara.
A/N: Alright, that's the end of that one. I'm glad that I finally added Sara into the story. She's gonna be a mainstay. And I'll put it here; Percy and Sara won't end up together long-term. The main pairing for this fic will be Percy/Artemis. Sara is gonna start as something romantic, and evolve from there. But anyway, let me know if any of you have questions or something. Stay safe.