Perseus: Protector of Demigods

Chapter 4

Summary: It has been a year since Kronos was defeated. Percy was excited to get back to camp and spend time with Annabeth, but when he is betrayed by the one he loves Percy must leave camp and find a new purpose.

Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson.

Author's Note: Hi everyone! I told you I was going to be better at posting. Here is the next chapter.

Words: 1970

Percy and Blackjack were sharing a box of donuts as they relaxed on a small hill outside a small town in Maine. Percy hadn't really had a set destination in mind when he left New York so he just decided to let Blackjack fly where he wanted. They had been sticking to the countryside and small towns which was a welcome change of pace for Percy having grown up in the city.

Percy had been making ends meet by taking on small jobs in the small towns they stopped in. Usually home repairs for little old ladies. If money was low Percy would have Blackjack find a lake or river to go fishing for dinner. It wasn't much, but no one from Olympus or camp had found him yet and that was all that mattered.

"Boss, can I have the last donut," Blackjack said.

"Knock yourself out."

Blackjack eagerly devoured the rainbow sprinkle donut leaving Percy to his thoughts. It had been nearly a month since he left home. The time away was slowly healing him, but he knew he and Blackjack couldn't just keep flying around the country forever. He had spent time going over different options, he could go back to camp, but then he would have to face everyone again. Their looks of pity for him. He could just join Mom and Paul in the mortal world, but he would put them in danger with all the monsters looking to challenge the Hero of Olympus. He also just didn't feel like he belonged in the mortal world for a few years now. He could just head into the ocean and see about joining his father's realm, but that would mean dealing with Triton and Amphitrite regularly. Not an attractive option. He couldn't help but feel like there was nowhere left for him to go, nothing to do now that he saved Olympus.

Fates, Percy called out in his head. He didn't dare try asking any of the gods for help as he wasn't ready to be found. If there is anywhere left for me or something I'm supposed to do please give me a sign.

He didn't expect to get an answer. Least of all for that answer to be a high pitched scream somewhere in the distance.

He and Blackjack immediately stood at attention, "What was that Boss?"

Percy quickly uncapped Riptide and hopped on to Blackjack, "Let's find out."

The duo didn't have to fly long till they found the source of the scream. A small girl was running from a very familiar foe, "How many times do I have to kill this guy?" Percy sighed.

The Minitour was chasing the girl through the woods and gaining closer with each passing second.

"Ready to go Blackjack?"

"Born ready Boss."

Blackjack immediately swooped down towards the Minitour from behind. The Minotaur was too focused on his prey and didn't notice the threat till the last minute. He turned back and caught sight of Percy a split second too late. The monster managed to throw himself out of the way, missing the beheading Percy had been aiming for, but the hero managed to cut his shoulder, injuring him. The monster fell to the ground with a cry of pain. Blackjack landed in front of the girl who had stopped running in shock.

"Are you okay?" Percy asked her as he dismounted.

The girl nodded her eyes wide. Percy turned to Blackjack, "Stay with her. I'll take care of hoofs for brains."

The Minitour was slowly rising clutching its shoulder in pain as Percy stood to face it, "You sure you want to make the score 3-0 here. There is still time to walk away."

The Minitour roared in rage recognizing the hero who had slayed him, not once, but twice. He began to charge. Percy felt his muscles tense as they prepared for the battle that was coming. Sure his life had been one big mess lately, but this was something he understood. Monsters hunted demigods and it was up to Percy to end this before it killed him or the girl behind him. Percy couldn't help how his mind relaxed some as the familiar sensation of adrenaline filled him.

Right before the Minitour reached him he dogged out of the way making sure to leave another cut with Riptide as he did so. The two continued this dance several times. The Minitour charged, Percy would dodge leaving another cut upon the beast. With each slash of Riptide the monster lost more strength and speed. The demigod and monster faced each other one final time. Percy was sweating but had managed to come away so far without a scratch. The minotaur was not as lucky. The beast's arms, legs, chest, and torso were all covered in cuts, each dripping blood. The monster shook with each step it took.

"Had enough," Percy taunted.

The Minotaur let out a weak growl before positioning himself for one last charge. Rather than dodge Percy met the beast full on. Just like when he was twelve he ducked under the large hands and stabbed the Minitour in its gut. The monster gave one final roar before dissipating into golden dust.

Percy let his sword fall and breathed a sigh of relief. He turned back to see Blackjack had listened and stood back to protect the girl. She was still standing there with her eyes wide and bouncing between him and Blackjack. She was obviously a demigod having been chased by the Minotaur. Her clothes were faded and had definitely seen better days. Percy slowly capped Riptide and put his hands up, "Hey don't be scared. We're the good guys. I'm Percy and that's Blackjack. What's your name?"

The girl stared at him before answering obviously nervous, "Olivia."

"Hi Olivia. I know you're probably freaked out right now, but I want to ask, are you hurt anywhere?"

Olivia hesitated again but eventually answered, "My foot. I think I hurt it while running. I hit a tree limb and fell down. There was pain, but I had to get up and keep going with that…that…"

"Minitour," Percy helped fill in the blank, "It was the Minitour."

"You mean like in the stories."

Percy nodded, "Tell you what Olivia. Why don't I take a look at your foot and answer any questions you have. I bet you have a lot of them."

It took some convincing, but Percy finally got Olivia to sit down and let him look at her foot. Blackjack set himself down letting her rest against his side. Percy wasn't much of a medic, but after how many fights he had gotten into over the years he had gotten better at at least identifying injuries. Olivia's foot wasn't broken, just bruised and slightly swollen from her fall. Percy shared some of his emergency nectar with her to heal the injury. It had only been a few minutes but she was already looking better. Once Olivia had realized Percy wasn't going to hurt her she had burst forth with a million questions. It, thankfully, wasn't hard to convince her that the Greek gods were real. Turns out a lot of strange things had happened around her lately.

"That was really the Minitour?"

"Yup"

"There was a creepy guy in my neighborhood that I thought only had one eye. My foster mom said I was crazy."

"Probably a Cyclops."

"No way! And your horse it's a Pegasus right?

"Yup his name is Blackjack."

"Hi Blackjack. So cool! And you're a half-what?

"Half-blood. Like you. One of your parents was a Greek god that's why you've seen monsters around. Apparently we smell good to them."

"Wow."

Percy couldn't help the small smile that worked itself onto its face. He had a flashback of when he first met Nico and how excited he had been to learn that Greek gods were real. Olivia's face went from concerned to scared in the next moment though.

"So, does that mean that I'll just keep getting chased by monsters. That there is nothing I can do?" She asked.

"No," Percy immediately answered, "Well I mean ya, monsters will keep coming after you because of what you are, but there's somewhere you can go where you'll be safe."

"Really? Where?"

"It's called Camp Half-Blood. It's in New York. It's a safe haven for demigods. There you can learn how to defend yourself and other cool stuff. They have Pegasus and nature spirits. And the kids of each god get their own cabin to live in," Percy told her.

"But, what if you don't know who your godly parent is?"

Percy smiled, "Hardly anyone knows when they first get to camp. Your godly parents will claim you sometime after you arrive. Then you'll live in their cabin with any other kids they have."

"You mean I might have brothers and sisters there?" Oliva asked, her eyes filled with excitement.

"There's a good chance."

Olivia smiled big again. She told Percy earlier how she grew up in the foster system and knew nothing about her parents. The idea of family and siblings was probably exciting. "How do I get there?" she asked.

Percy thought for a moment. He didn't want to go back to camp just yet, but he knew he couldn't just leave this girl on her own. He was conflicted for a moment til Blackjack got his attention, "Boss you can just drop her off. You don't have to go back if you don't want to. She'll be safe once she's in the camp's borders. She can walk down to the Big House and they'll take care of her."

Percy nodded. Blackjack was right. All he had to do was see her to the border. Chiron and the campers could handle the rest. "Don't worry Olivia. I can help get you to camp."

Will Solace was heading up to check on Peleus. The dragon had gotten a small cold recently so Will and his siblings were taking turns checking on him. As he reached the top of Half-Blood hill he noticed someone, a kid, petting Peleus. "Uhh, Hi," Will said, never really having ever welcomed a new camper before. He usually just helped those claimed by his dad adjust to the Apollo cabin and so wasn't sure what to do.

The kid jumped a little and turned to face him. "Oh you scared me." she said. She backed up a little and started wringing her hands.

"I'm sorry," Will said as he knelt on the ground not wanting to intimidate the obviously nervous kid. "My name is Will. I was just coming to check on Peleus. He's getting over a cold and I wanted to see how he's feeling."

Pelus took that moment to growl, reminding them both of his presence. The kid immediately went back to petting him, "Aww, have you been sick. I'm so sorry. I hope you're feeling better." Peleus just sat there basking in the attention being lavished on him.

"What's your name?" Will asked.

"Olivia," she told him, not taking her eyes off Peleus.

"Tell you what Olivia, why don't you help me make sure he is doing well then we can head down to that house you see and get some breakfast. Does that sound alright?" Will asked.

She nodded and Will got to work checking Peleus while occasionally asking Olivia to hold something or to distract Peleus. When done ensuring the dragon was recovering well. Will offered a hand to Olivia to walk her to the Big House. Olivia waved good-bye to Peleus promising to visit him again soon. "He was right about him being a big softie."

"Who was right?" Will asked.

"Percy. I was nervous about the dragon, but Percy told me he was really nice and to not be scared."