Chapter 6: Long Island.
Either way, I hope that whatever it is that's happening out there can be avoided without much bloodshed. For now, I only have one piece of the great puzzle, and its tied to Amphitrite. So, dear old dad, if you read this, put your anger aside for a single moment, and pay attention.
Poseidon's notes, Page 1.
Percy woke up for the second time that day in the infirmary. The difference between the first and the second time, however, was stark clear. Before, he had woken up confused, in a new place. He had been scared yet strangely excited at the prospect of discovering a new place where he had felt…free. For a single moment Percy had actually felt something other than the darkness in his mind, something other than the abyss. Yet now…he felt numb.
He had let the rush consume him. He had felt the bloodlust again, lost the feeble control that he had worked so hard to maintain. The voices returned, they rushed into his mind.
"Well done. Let it consume you! Give in!" The voice said in his head. He then began to hear the screams, began to smell the blood. "Percy! What have you done? PERCY!"
"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" Percy yelled as he slammed his head against the wall.
"Percy! PERCY! Calm down!" he heard someone holding him down, but the voices were too much. They screamed at him, they cursed at him. Percy saw it, Seven bodies. So much water. So much BLOOD!
"Make it stop, please." Percy said, beginning to calm down.
"Make what stop, Percy?" he recognized Wills voice now, he held Percy down, looking at him through worried eyes.
"The voices, Will. They are too loud." Percy said. "Drugs, alcohol, get me anything to stop them."
"Voices?" Will asked, "Percy, you're alone here."
"Will…please…!" Percy began to feel himself losing control again, the rush fuelling him.
"Get me Morphine!" Will yelled.
"How much?" Another voice said.
"Does it look like I care? Bring me MORPHINE!" Will yelled. Percy herd shuffling and something poking him in the arm. The voices immediately receded, and he felt the familiar sense of weightless freedom that came with being high on painkillers. He had felt it more than once.
"T-thanks…" Percy said as he began to calm down. The bliss of the drug helping him relax. He then turned to Will, who was looking at him strangely. "What?"
"You really want to go there, huh? Aside from the fact that you're setting a record by waking up twice in here in the same day, that you seem to need drugs to function, and that you beat the crap out of three people that are considered to be top Hunters in Olympus? Oh, how about the fact that you're a BLOODY HEIR?!"
"Um…what?" Percy asked.
"Didn't you hear what Chiron said?" Will said.
"Say about what?" Percy was begging to feel uneasy now.
"About who your father was?"
"What is it with you people and that asshole?" Percy said suddenly enraged, "Annabeth also mentioned him, what does he have to do with this?"
"Your name is Perseus Jackson." A voice said in coming from the entrance. Percy turned to see a middle-aged man in a wheelchair. He had a kind face, with thin brown hair and bushy brown eyebrows. His eyes stared at him intensely, and Percy could tell he had trimmed his beard recently.
"What's it to you?" Percy asked suspiciously.
"My name is Chiron, the director of Olympus. It is my duty to ensure that every person within these walls is safe, receives appropriate training, and is formed into a true Hunter of Olympus." Chiron said. "You are a very interesting man, Percy Jackson. Annabeth speaks highly of you."
"S-she does?" Percy stammered, and Chiron smiled.
"Yes. She did mention that she was looking forward to training with you." Chiron said. "Now, there is something we must discuss. Has Annabeth explained how we work in Olympus? About the twelve houses?"
"Yeah, she mentioned it." Percy said, scratching the back of his neck. "She said something about Great houses and Twelve houses…"
"Good." Chiron said, "You see, everyone here is a member of one or another house. Will here is a member of the House of the Sun, I am part of the House of the Hearth, and you, Percy, are part of a very special house."
"Does this have to do with the asshole?" Percy asked angrily.
"T-the who?" Chiron stammered.
"My father. He abandoned my mother and I, and thanks to him my mother…my mother…" Percy began to heave in anger, and Chiron placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Your father was a good man, Percy." Chiron said, infuriating Percy.
"What good man abandons his wife and child? Do you know what happened to my mother after he left? What that bastard Gabe did to her?" Tears began to fill Percy's eyes, the morphine making it worse.
"No, but if you wish to speak about it…"
Percy shook his head.
"No." Percy said, "Just say what you were going to say…"
"Well Percy," Chiron said, "as you know, there are three Great Houses. The house of Skies, led by Lord Zeus, The House of the Dead, led by Lord Hades, and the House of Seas.
"It is this last one that brings us to you." Chiron said, "The house of seas has gone through a rather…complicated process. The heir, the true heir, defied his Lord father for love, and was banished for refusing to marry a woman of his father's choice. Long story short, the current holder of the Seastone Chair, the throne of the House of Seas in the Pantheon, is Triton, the second son of the late Lord Pontus, who in spite married the woman that he was saving for his son."
"What are you trying to say?" Percy asked apprehensible. Truth be told, he was beginning to piece together what it all meant, and those thoughts terrified Percy.
"The legitimate head of the House of seas is your father, Poseidon." Chiron said, "And that makes you the heir, Percy."
"So, you're trying to say that I have some sort of political power or something?" Percy asked. "Can I give it to someone else?"
"I am afraid that is not possible." Chiron said, "the three Great Houses, Skies, Dead and Seas, are Aristocratic. They are ruled by the eldest son of the previous heir. Currently, Triton is that person, yet only because your father is not around."
"So? Let him keep it. I don't want anything from my father." Percy spat.
"There are bigger things at work, Percy. There are laws that are beyond your comprehension, one of them ensuring that the three Great Thrones are filled with the legitimate Lord. If that doesn't happen…well…"
"Then what does it mean for me?" Percy asked.
"From this day forward, you are a Hunter of the House of Seas, Percy. The first one since your father, and one of three." Chiron said, "You are also an heir of a Great House, meaning that you will have more responsibilities than others here in Olympus."
"I don't want them." Percy said, and he saw sadness crossing Chiron's face.
"I'm afraid it's not a choice anymore." Chiron said, "You see, your father was a powerful man. And like any powerful man, he had powerful enemies. Some of those enemies are the leaders of Olympus themselves, the Heads of Houses. When word gets out that you are here…well…I am afraid that enmity will fall to you. Especially after what happened to Clarisse, her father Ares, Head of the House of War, will want revenge."
Percy simply sighed and hung his head.
"Of course, my life can never be easy, can it?"
"I apologize, Percy." Chiron said. "However, I wish to extend an olive branch if you may."
Chiron looked at Percy and smiled a kind smile.
"Train here, Percy. Let us teach you to harness that darkness that you carry. You are a very powerful young man, as powerful as your father. Lend us your strength and I promise you that I will do everything in my power to help you in whatever you need."
Percy and Chiron shared a look. If he was completely honest, Percy knew he had no choice at this point. He had stumbled into a hidden world, and he had made too many ripples in the water for him to leave unnoticed. If what Chiron was saying was true, then he had some sort of reputation to uphold. Percy Jackson was many things, but a coward he was not.
"You ran away once, though…" The voice spoke in his mind, "You will run away again…these people don't deserve you, Percy…take what is yours…unleash your power…fulfil…your…DESTINY"
"I will do it." Percy said, ignoring the voice. "However, I want something in return."
"And what may that be?" Chiron asked.
"want you to tell me where my bastard of a father is."
Percy left the infirmary rubbing his arm. Will was not happy when he had pushed to be released, but he had managed to convince him to let him go.
Chiron had left a few minutes early, promising that if he heard from his father, he would let him know. With that, Percy had something to look forward too. The man had not said it explicitly, but he had implied that Percy's father was powerful. Very powerful. He would train his body and mind enough so when he faced him, he would be able to beat the living crap out of him for what he did to his mother.
Some nights he still heard the screams and the sounds of flesh hitting flesh.
He walked down the hallway alone, not having a particular destination in mind. He saw a few other students staring at him and whispering amongst themselves. Some looked at him in fear, others in hatred. Percy didn't mind. He was used to those stares; stares of hatred and dismissal. Living in the streets hardened you.
He spotted Annabeth chatting to a tall blonde guy, built like your average football player. He had sky blue eyes and short blonde hair, military style. He wore strange glasses made from some shiny substance, and Percy noticed a small scar on his lip.
"…she will be fine, Jason. It's mostly her pride that's hurt."
"She better be." The boy, Jason said. "I haven't been able to see her the entire day."
"Like I said Jason, her pride is wounded." Annabeth noticed Percy walking towards them, making the tall blond guy turn towards him and scowl. He stared at Percy with hatred, his electric blue eyes narrowed and sharp.
"Hey Annabeth…" Percy said shyly.
"Out of bed I see." Annabeth noted, "I should beat you for what happened in that arena, you know that, right? Not only you ignored me when I told you to stay put, you also went and nearly killed Clarisse, injured Nico, and broke Thalia's arms. Although I cannot punish you much for the last one."
"Hey!" the blonde boy said.
"Oh, come on, Jason." Annabeth rolled her eyes, "It was time someone knocked Thalia a few pegs down. Admit it."
Jason grumbled something under his breath, and then returned to glare at Percy.
"Let me introduce you." Annabeth said, "Percy Jackson, heir to the House of Seas, this is Jason Grace, Heir to the House of Skies."
"Um…hi." Percy raised a hand, and Jason merely stared at it in something close to disgust.
"I should kill you for what you did to my sister." He said, "Our father will not be happy when he hears what happened in the Arena, so I will give you a warning." He got close to Percy, whispering in his ears. "If you do anything to hurt any vassal of the House of Skies, you will find yourself fried on the spot and chopped into so many pieces not even the fish will want you. Clear?"
"Um…sure?" Percy said.
Jason stared at him one last time before he walked away. Annabeth merely sighed and spoke to Percy.
"Ignore him." She said, "He and Thalia don't have much in common, but their pride is one of the few things that they do share. You beat up Thalia well, and that stained the honour of the House of Skies, what used to be the strongest House in Olympus.
"Come. We never did get to finish that tour."
Annabeth led Percy through several hallways. She showed him the different classrooms, where they learned about the different dangers and monsters that exists. She showed him the smaller training rooms, where Percy saw a few people training much like he had in the Gym. Eventually, Annabeth led him to the rooms, where Percy saw several different doors with strange symbols on the doors.
"These are the dorms." Annabeth said, pointing to the hallways that resembled college dorms. "Each hallway is a house. There are twelve hallways, six on each side. If you keep walking straight you will reach Chiron's office. Walk back from here and you reach the gym and infirmary. Here." She led him to a hallway close to the end, strange symbols lining the walls. "This is the hallway belonging to your house. As you are the only heir, the master room is yours. It's that door at the end of the hallway."
"Thanks, Annabeth." Percy said, turning to her.
"No problem." She said, staring at him. They held each other's gazes for a moment, a silent conversation passing between their stares. Annabeth was the first to break eye contact, and Percy couldn't help to feel a little saddened by it.
"Tomorrow we begin with training." She said, "Make sure that you're at the first class. Chiron has a few announcements to make, then he will teach scouting and recognition. After that I think there's combat training, both hand to hand and weapons. And because you're an heir you have to attend a basic politics class after lunch."
"Basic politics?" Percy asked.
"Well yeah." Annabeth said, "It will be just you, Bianca, and Jason. As the three heirs of Great Houses you are supposed to learn how to deal with the matters of the Hunters and all that. Because the other heirs are democratically chosen, its only you three unless the vote has already been casted for the next heir of a house."
"Anything else I should know before I leave?" Percy asked with a grin.
"Um…oh! Because of who you are, some people will be openly hostile to you. Do not antagonize them further. Your father is not well liked in the Pantheon, the ruling council of the Hunters, he is considered dangerous if I'm honest with you. However, some people do hold him in high esteem. The house of Thieves, for example, has always had a close relationship with the House of Seas, and the House of Sun doesn't care for squabbles. The house of Fires can also be a potential ally. All I'm saying is trying to be friendly to those houses may be for the best."
"I will keep it in mind." Percy said. "Thanks again. I will leave now; it's been a long day."
Percy and Annabeth stared at each other for another moment once more, yet again Annabeth was the first to turn around and leave. Percy sighed and made his way through to the room, noticing for the first time that the morphine injection he had been given had worn off. He felt lucid, completely lucid for the first time in…how long was it?
Percy had not spent more than a few hours without drugs. They kept the voices down, and although they made him slow most of the times, he'd rather sacrifice his awareness than being tortured by them.
He began to hear whispers in his mind, but they seemed…muted. Something seemed to be pushing them back, and it made Percy sigh in relief.
He reached the door, and when he placed his hand on the pommel of the large dark-blue door with a golden trident painted on it, he felt something pass within him. A heat, a shock, a moment of bliss. The pommel was a deep bronze colour, almost shining with an inner light. Percy stared at it questioningly, but he shrugged the strange feeling off and pushed the door open.
Percy's eyes widened.
The room was made from rough sea stone and abalone, and Percy could see some beautiful decorations made from corals and seashells. There was a large bed to one side of the room with neat blue sheets, several empty shelves presumably for clothing, and a large grey-black stone water fountain.
On the other side of the room, there was a cosy corner that served as a study. There was an empty desk with a large table, and empty bookshelves aside from one small black notebook. Percy also noticed an Armor-stand, and he instinctively approached it.
There was a strangely crafted armour displayed. It was not made from bronze, but a deep blue metal that seemed to shine with an ethereal light. Percy placed his hand on it, tracing the several engravings in the shape of waves on the breastplate, and at its centre, a large trident. He noticed it was quite thin, and when Percy poked it with a finger noting that if he pressed hard enough it would slightly bend.
The helmet reminded Percy of a roman gladiator, with a large blue plume that flowed behind it. The shoulder pads were also artistically crafted, with one side showing a snarling horse head and the other showing a beautifully crafted dolphin.
He noticed the long blue cape, and he couldn't help but snort.
He would look ridiculous in that thing.
Then he noticed the window.
For some reason, Percy had assumed they were underground. Yet now that he thought about it, he never had asked where exactly he was. He walked towards the dark window, night-time having arrived, and Percy gasped when he realized where he was.
He was in New York, more specifically, he was right in the outskirts of town on a nearby hill. From his large window he could see the night-time lights of the city in the distance, and far in the horizon he could see the sea.
"I'm in long island…" Percy muttered, feeling his heart clench. Last time he was in New York was when…when…
He closed the blinds and walked towards his bed. He quickly stripped and got into bed, ignoring his tears and the thoughts of his mother showing him love before she was dead.
Evening my people.
This weeks chapters aren't the best, I know, however they serve the purpose that they were intended for: Filler and Exposition.
This weeks little chat will be based on the connection of this Fanfic and the original PJO Series written by Master Rick Riordan. I haven't said it before, but all names, characters and references belong with the man himself, and while I have spent considerable time working on a (mostly) original plot, as you can see there are several key elements that are similar or the same as in the original series.
While many elements of this work are, again, mostly original, there will be other elements that will be lifted directly from the source. Such as Characters, for example. Next week I want to talk a little about storytelling and writing fan fiction vs original fiction and how to differentiate them, however for this weeks discussion all I will say is that Characters are lifted from the Source, while recycling plot elements from the entire series.
As you can see, the whole 'prophecy' is a direct nod to the original series, as will other things be familiar such as some character's fates. Yet there will also be some changes too, maybe characters that are dead in the Source Material will stay alive in this fic, or Characters that are alive in the SM die here, who knows! (You in a few weeks, but uwu to that). Anyway, what i'm trying to get at is that while many things in this fic will be similar or the same as in the SM, do not think that everything will be. There will be some surprises along the way which I hope will, well, surprise you.
As for the reason why this week is mostly filler, well. I needed to deliver the Prophecy and foreshadow some events in the future somehow, and you will find that in Chapter 5 and 6 there are several nuggets of foreshadowing that will be very important in a few chapters down the line. Next two chapters will also be heavy in exposition and more things about the workings of Enlightenment and the politics of the world will be explained.
I have written down chapter 20 and finished Part II and currently am working on the Interludes between parts II and III. I can say that one will be written from Dionysus' perspective, which is fun since I think he's an underrated character in the few fics he appears. I have decided that there will be one repeated character per Interlude, meaning that one Character's story will be explained solely through his/her 4 interlude chapters and I have decided that that character will be Artemis, so look forward to that. Give me ideas on what characters POV I should write Interludes about. I know its quite early into the story but I hope that you guys are liking it so far, I certainly am having fun writing it.
Anyways, thats too much words for an A/N. Leave your comment and/or review on whats going on so far. Drop a fav and list the story so you get updated every week. Treat each other with respect, stay safe in these uncertain times and for those of us in the northern hemisphere I hope that the beginning of summer catches y'all well.
As always, Happy Reading.
~ CallMeLatino