Chapter 48 – Together

Percy couldn't meet the others' eyes when they returned to the Argo II, instead returning to his room and refusing to answer their questions. Percy was sure Jason would tell them what happened anyway. He hadn't even thought about what he was doing before he acted, doing something he'd never known he could do.

The man had been a mortal, even if Krios had resurrected him from the stars. All through the war with Kronos Percy had made an active effort to avoid killing mortals, even Ethan Nakamura despite everything that he'd done. Percy faintly wondered where the son of Nemesis was – he'd seen Alabaster while held captive but no other demigods, perhaps intentional from Kronos and Porphyrion.

The Argo II vibrated around him as Leo got the trireme on it's way again, the demigods slowly edging their way towards Athens once again. They were near the end of their journey but all Percy wanted as he collapsed onto the edge of his bed was to bury his head in the sand and forget the world was at stake. His hands trembled as Percy stared at them, recalling how it had felt as he'd made the mortal drown on his own blood.

Percy swore, leaning forward and resting his head in his hands. Why was everything falling apart? What was wrong with him?

He was a murderer.

"Hey."

Percy grunted, keeping his head in his hands. "Jason," he greeted tiredly. Percy forced a smile before he raised his head to look up at his cousin. "What's up?"

Jason didn't seem amused. "Thought you might like the company."

"I'm fine."

"We didn't tell them," Jason said to Percy after a few moments of silence. "What happened. I thought you wouldn't want them to know."

Percy blinked, eying Jason in surprise. "You didn't? Why not?"

Jason shrugged slightly, though he hesitated. "I figured it wouldn't help," he said finally. "You look like you need some time."

"Yeah, time would be nice," Percy agreed. He sighed heavily. "Everything sucks right now," he mumbled. "I'll be glad when this is over and I can just forget about all of this."

Jason nodded in agreement, making his way further into the room and shutting the door behind him since Percy didn't seem to be protesting his presence. "Yeah this isn't what I expected from this year. Losing my memory and being kidnapped by a goddess…"

Percy snorted. "Tell me about it," he grumbled. "Hate Hera."

Jason's lips twitched slightly. "Yeah, well. Frank thought it was a good idea to keep quiet about it too, so just a warning – they don't know. We're moving onto Athens," Jason added. "Probably be there in a few hours."

Percy slowly nodded, clenching his jaw. "Alright. Thanks." He sighed, taking a deep breath. "At least this'll all soon be over."

"A few more days," Jason muttered. His gaze lingered briefly on Percy. "So… honest opinion here, Percy. Will the Titans be moving on Olympus?"

Percy sighed again. "I don't know," he tiredly said. "I thought I knew him, but I guess I didn't. Not really."

"Rhea did say he's very good at making people believe what he wants them to."

"That's true," Percy muttered. "He's a manipulative bastard. It makes sense though, right? He wants Olympus, and Olympus will be undefended again for him. It's the obvious choice."

"But since when has he ever been obvious?" Jason mused.

"The Giants still have the Moly too," Percy groaned. "So we've got to try not to bleed anywhere."

Jason's lips twitched. "That sounds like a good idea. Difficult, but good."

"This is going to go terribly," Percy said.

"Looks like it," Jason agreed, holding a hand out towards Percy. "But if it does… we'll get through it. The seven of us – together."

Percy stared back at Jason, biting at his lip before he sighed and took Jason's hand in his and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. "Together," he agreed.

Percy pushed his own problems down once again. The world was at stake, that was more important than him.

It was dark by the time the Argo II arrived at Athens, though the large city bathed the surrounding countryside in light. The Parthenon sat at the top of the hill overlooking the city, a lasting symbol of the gods to remind the mortals of whom were their betters.

Privately, Percy thought that perhaps Luke and Alabaster had the right idea along with the other demigods who'd defected to Kronos' side in the war. Percy was sick and tired of crossing the world at the behest of the Olympians, just because they couldn't be asked to take their thumbs out of their asses. And in truth, Percy couldn't see how the world would get much worse if the Titans or Giants took over. At least then the demigods would know where they stand in relation to the immortals and didn't have to worry about a dagger in the back – unless Kronos was involved. But Percy had realised long ago now that the gods could reward him one moment, and try to kill him the next.

"Do we have a plan?" Percy finally asked to distract himself before he started to think that it was a good idea to help the Giants. These were his friends. They were relying on him here, as both a friend and as someone who could help them all get out of this alive. He had his mother and Paul back in Manhattan, he had his friends and he was still alive – if he had nothing else, at least he had that.

"Kill the Giants?" Leo offered.

Percy snorted. "Yeah. Good luck with that without an immortal. Unless you've all got one on call? I used to, but I'm afraid he's ran off."

Jason hesitated. "What's the chance of the gods helping?"

"Wouldn't count on it," Percy muttered. "They'll be quite happy to sit back and watch."

"They have to," Annabeth said sharply. "Else we haven't got a chance." She paused, digging into her pockets briefly before frowning. "Anyone have a drachma?"

Percy raised an eyebrow. "You're gonna try to IM them?"

"It's the best way to get their attention," Frank agreed, handing one over to Annabeth. "Here."

Percy shook his head slightly, kind of confused about where Frank had got a drachma in the first place. "They won't answer," he said firmly. "Why would they? They stay up on Olympus and they don't get hurt."

"The Giants are going for Olympus' roots," Hazel pointed out. "That could damage them."

"Yeah. Could, but we don't really know that," Percy said. "No one really knows."

"He has a point," Leo said. "Who really knows what will happen?"

"It doesn't matter," Jason said firmly. "We have a job to do. If not for the gods… then for each other," he added, glancing over to Percy.

Percy scowled back at him. "That's just not fair. Using my flaw against me."

"He's hardly the first," Annabeth muttered. "The Titans have many times before."

Kronos. The asshole. Percy sighed, leaning against the railings of the Argo II. "Alright, fine. Well I think we haven't got a chance of surprising them. A big flying trireme tends to draw attention, and their mother will know we're here the moment we set foot on the ground. So the only option for it is to hope we have some heavy firepower coming to help." He gestured towards Annabeth and her drachma. "Give it a shot."

Percy dragged some water up from the pipes of the Argo II to form a rainbow for Annabeth, and watched as she tossed the drachma. "Show me Zeus, on Mount Olympus." The air shimmered, and much to Percy's amusement the drachma was promptly spat back out of the rainbow and into Annabeth's hand.

"I won't say I told you so," Percy said in amusement.

Annabeth scowled, her grey eyes stormy. "Unbelievable," she muttered, before throwing the drachma back in. "Show me Rhea, in Crete."

Percy's eyes widened slightly. "Wait-"

The mist shimmered, and this time a woman took shape in the IM. Percy grunted. Jason smiled and bowed, along with the others. "Lady Rhea," Jason greeted.

"Heroes," Rhea greeted, an odd lilt to her voice that made Percy raise an eyebrow. And alright, Percy could see it – Rhea was stunning. Her dark hair and the way she held herself was similar to that of Hera and Demeter, but the softness yet intensity to her eyes reminded Percy of Hestia. Percy could see why Kronos might have been drawn to her – Rhea was easily the most beautiful woman he'd seen – but Percy couldn't stop his skin from crawling as he set eyes on Kronos' former wife. Rhea's forest-green eyes settled on Percy and her lips twisted slightly. "Percy Jackson, I presume? Poseidon's... my grandchild."

Percy nodded his head slightly. "Yes," he said. "But… no offence, the family relations make me a little squeamish."

Rhea's laughter was surprising. In the image behind her, one of the lions lazily dozing in the sun jerked upright and stared at her as if she'd gone mad before slowly settling again, though not without a wary glance back in her direction. "I'll never understand the horror of mortals at the thought of relationships within one's family."

Percy shifted slightly. He figured it was useless to argue with an immortal whom didn't have DNA, so simply let the matter drop. The less he thought about Kronos being his grandfather the better.

"Lady Rhea," Jason said to get the conversation back on track. "We've tried to contact Olympus to ask for help – we're at Athens but have no idea how to go about this and if we're going to get immortal help or not. If… Jupiter listened to you before," Jason added, wincing slightly as Rhea's form flickered at the mention of the Roman god. "We were hoping he would again."

The words which erupted from Rhea's mouth were sharp and near-guttural enough to make Percy jump. From their sharpness and Rhea's tone he could only assume that they were swear words directed towards her youngest son – clearly in the old tongue. It seemed even Rhea – the Great Mother – was tired of picking up after Zeus' messes. "I will deal with it," Rhea finally said, looking incredibly tired. "Failing Zeus, there are some other immortals I can call upon to assist you."

Jason bowed his head. "We are in your debt. Thank you."

Rhea's smile resembled that of one of her lions. Percy didn't like it one bit. "That you are," Rhea agreed before the message cut out.

Percy grunted. "Well that wasn't ominous at all," he said tiredly. "You know, Jason, you're a lot better at talking to immortals that I am."

"They deserve our respect."

"They're immortal assholes with egos as large as the universe, but yes. Absolutely. Respect them when they're just as likely to murder us as they are to thank us for saving their assholes." Annabeth looked completely scandalised, and several of them inhaled sharply at his words. Percy directed an apologetic glance in Hazel's direction, whom looked rather upset with his language. "Sorry," he muttered to her.

Frank was merely staring at him, as if trying to figure out his mind – Percy wished him luck, he couldn't even do that at the moment – and Leo was inordinately preoccupied with fiddling with pieces of metal in his hands.

Jason sighed, shaking his head. "Sometimes I wonder how you've lived this long, Perce."

"You and me both, bro," Percy said honestly. "You and me both," he repeated quietly, staring down at Athens glowing a few miles away from them. The lights lit up the sky, providing absolutely no cover for the demigods on their approach. Percy clapped his hands together, the sharp sound making everyone jump. Percy cackled, nodding his head down towards Athens. "So – assuming we're trusting the freaky Titaness who was his former wife – what's our plan?" He looked to Annabeth, always the one he could trust to come up with good battle plans when just charging in screaming and waving a sword was the worst option imaginable.

Annabeth was silent for several long minutes, staring down at Athens and Percy could practically see the gears turning in her mind.

"We also have the Moly to think about," Percy added for her. Annabeth nodded absently. "I was thinking we set Leo loose on the deadly plant and the crazy golden statue and see how much damage he can do."

Leo looked rather delighted with that plan, firmly nodding. "I'll burn them all," he promised.

Percy grinned. Perhaps this would be fun. It certainly beat waiting around for something to come and murder all of them. A sharp shriek overhead made his head snap up, eyes landing on the large eagle circling overhead. "Is that…"

"Aquila," Jason groaned.

"Not that damned thing again," Percy growled, glaring up at the eagle which had tried to carry him off. The eagle circled, higher even than the Argo II as it shrieked again. Frank knocked an arrow, releasing it in the eagle's direction but it was far too high and the arrow fell short, whistling back down past the Argo II. Percy hoped the wind took it back out to sea, lest it land on someone from above and the Greeks think Apollo or Artemis struck down some unlucky mortal. "Even if they didn't know we were here before, I think they do now," Percy said as Frank fired a second arrow..

Annabeth nodded. "Yes." She glanced up at the damned creature. "But you're right, there's no way of approaching without them knowing anyway. Leave him, Frank," she added when Frank knocked a third arrow.

"Does this mean the Titans are still here?" Piper asked, baffled as she stared up at the mythical eagle. "I thought they were the ones whom summoned Aquila."

"They did," Percy said, as confused as Piper was. Specifically, Krios did. Percy didn't understand why the eagle was in Athens, but he knew for sure that it couldn't have been good. "What in Tartarus are they planning?" He muttered, staring up at Aquila as he shrieked again and the pitch made Percy's ears ring.

What exactly was Kronos up to?

I apologise for my long absence! University was a pain in the ass, and I had a lot of coursework to catch up on etc with the covid infection I had in january-march time (two months unable to breathe properly, it SUCKED). University is however over for a few months so I have a lot more time to write and update - hopefully updates should be coming semi-regularly and faster for a while.

Unfortunately, speaking of covid I have once again managed to be in an enclosed space with someone for an hour or so and they've later tested positive... so yay. Work is dangerous during this pandemic guys XD. So we'll see - hopefully I've dodged the bullet this time and I have not managed to get covid for the 3rd time... as unlikely as that is.

Kushina101: Yup! I'm giving Percy so much shit in this. Don't worry - eventually it'll look up for him.

Hanae2132: thanks!

ghostfall: Not quite dead yet! Though COVID sure did it's best lol.

1234booklover: That's good! I try to make my writing style have a touch of humour in... even if it doesn't always work. But it's easier with the basis of show don't tell XD. Percy's temper is a sticking point yeah... it'll bring him some trouble later. Kronercy's awesome under the right circumstances! Ngl COVID sucked... I had a few days with a bad fever etc and then two long bloody months of being unable to breathe. It finally cleared up in mid-march time. Honestly, it's not a joke (the thought of getting it again since I was in contact with someone a few days ago honestly makes me feel sick)!

M: haha that will come to light later. I'm trying to avoid Kronos POV just because I don't want you guys in his head, I want to keep his thoughts his own at least for now (later on in this fic, yes, there will eventually be some Kronos POV chapters). The Seven don't yet know about Percy's murder thing bc Jason and Frank have kept it secret... how long that will last I won't say. How far into the story... well I'm finishing HoO, then I'll have probably 5 or so chapters between HoO and TOA, and I don't know how long the TOA arc will end up being chapter-wise. But I'd guess there will eventually be in the region of 70-80 chapters?

Alwaris: Thanks! Yeah I've hit a stumbling block with CbT series so I'm giving it a rest for now.

Guest: Percy's gonna go loco next chapter XD. As for Kronos' feelings, they will remain his own for now which is why I'm avoiding a Kronos POV chapter for now. Yes, Percy's control over blood will extend to ichor - to what point I won't say yet.

Thatgremlinbitch: Oh, don't worry - the giant will hurt by the time this is over!

BlueFireRunes: It was horrible! Don't get infected with COVID, it can knock you down for months.

guestttt: Yessss Kronercy OTP! Percy will definitely explore blood-bending in this! With no Annabeth to stop him from using it, and instead Kronos... well, this Percy's not going to be afraid to use it when he has to.

thegoldraven: Yup, blood-bending! Without Annabeth stopping him and appealing to him, there's nothing that's going to make him think twice about it. I'm trying to not make the demigods OP in this, like they're all gonna have their limits and yes - the immortals are ridiculously powerful as I intend to show next chapter XD. Ngl I model the relationship of Kronos and Hyperion after the one I have with my own siblings lol.

Welpisrigh: Thanks! Glad you're enjoying it!