A/N: Wrote this entire thing at 2 AM in the morning. I have no idea what I wrote, and completly blanked out. I really need to get some sleep, so I'm just going to upload the first quarter of the chapter now and deal with the rest later. If you have any plot holes or grammatical errors, its probably because I am severely sleep deprived ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Here you go!
"… you possess the mettle and the might, in parallel, to interest me in your little odysseys of yours. Perhaps we can make a deal, hmm? I know of your talents after all."
She suddenly pursed her lips. "It seems that your disappearance has already been noticed by far too many of my children. Best hurry along now, and to try to make what you do interesting, okay? Also, could you please sacrifice a few more offerings to me in the future? I only receive a handful every millennia you know." The hand that wrote All flashed a smile, and began to fade away. With her rapidly fading form, she offered one last tidbit.
"Hero, if you wish to return to your current reality, take the path to the exit, and you will find yourself back at the eternal flame of your first Olympus. But if you wish to gamble with me, then jump into the abyss below your feet, and I might even grant a gift or two for your confidence."
The thick fog cleared away, he saw the platform he was standing on had actually stretched on for an uncountable distance away, and he saw the faint impressions of light, which was apparently where his exit was. Dreading what he was about to see, he popped out a rangefinder from one of his utility pockets. Flicking the on switch, he pointed it towards the exit. This device was designed by Athena as a favor, and was rated to work for distances up to a few lightyears. Looking expectantly at the display, nothing happened.
With a frown, he swore and lightly bonked the side of the rangefinder with his left hand. The rusted piece had probably malfunctioned after not being used for ages. Whirring to life, the device took a few seconds, but turned on eventually. "'Undefined'?", what the fuck? How far away is it?"
He sank to his knees. There was no other choice. In his current state, he wouldn't even make it past a few kilometers. Must have been part of her plan. He cursed himself for his stupidity. Without any more options, Perseus Jackson, grit his teeth, and dove into the endless abyss.
He found himself falling. He had woken up in the air, amidst thick, white clouds. The water vapor energized him, and for the first time in millennia, he could feel moisture on his form. Speaking of which, was really weird. He splayed his hand in front of him. Strange, he couldn't see his hand, or the rest of his body for that matter. A thin wispy form seemed to make his entire body.
With more pressing matters at hand, he had no time to dwell on his current situation, because at the speed he was falling at, ethereal form or not, he would definitely not survive planetfall without his suit.
He broke through the storm clouds, and found himself falling towards a strangely familiar apartment building, birds squawking angrily as he phased through them at supersonic speeds. Suddenly, he remembered a joke Annabeth had told him during one of his test flights with the suit. "It's not the fall that kills you, it's the sudden stop at the end". Smiling ruefully at his ex's antics, he curled up and braced for a violent impact.
Waiting for the incoming pain to hit, he closed his eyes and clenched his jaw.
After a few seconds, surprised at his continued existence, even though by all rights he should have been a Percy-shaped impression on the roof, he opened his eyes.
A familiar, turquoise blue ceiling came into focus, and as his eyes adjusted to the brightness of the room, he came to a startling realization. This was his room, though he only faintly remembered what it was like. Countless faded memories came back to life, hitting him with a wave of nostalgia. Great amounts of memories had refused to be forgotten, no matter how horrifying or depressing, had shaped him to become the person he was today, and would never be forgotten. Moving to throw off his blankets, he froze yet again. His hands.
His hands had lost the pale, cracked exterior, and replaced it with soft skin. The scars along his arms, gained from countless life-and-death battles with others, had also faded away. Most notably, his right pinkie finger was back in its place among his digits, it was supposed to be torn clean off, and replaced with a mechanical replacement. He never told anyone, but he had lost it to a lucky shot from a furious huntress of Artemis (total accident too, he was just exploring a potential monster camp, and she had thought he was trespassing, usual dogshit demigod luck).
Shelving his regenerative abilities in the back of his mind for now, he finished throwing off his cartoon seal-covered blanket and strode towards the door. Grasping the handle and nearly tearing the door off its hinges, he was greeted with a sight of moldy walls, veritable mountains of empty beer cans, and a disgusting smell of cheap tobacco coming from down the hallway.
"Ah, this must have been the gift she was talking about" He remembered the parting comment that she had told him before she disappeared. Time travel was an anomaly at best, and usually resulted in a nightmare for everyone involved. He remembered THREE separate occasions during his watch, where individuals had managed to reverse the flow of the river of time to arrive back with the knowledge of the future. All three times were events of absolute chaos and destruction as various pantheons vied to take control of such a critical asset. (There was some dude in China though, apparently through artificial means. Something about an Autumn Cicada?). The Greeks were lucky enough to have a reincarnator from the future, and managed to pry (read torture) enough knowledge from the poor kid to dominate the western hemisphere by the end of the 5th millenia.
"Percy baby, where are you? It's time for you to go to school" A voice drifted from down the hallway. A head peeked from around the corner, piercing blue eyes boring into him.
Sally Jackson was humming to herself as she was preparing Percy's daily boxed lunch, making extra sure that she was giving him the proper vegetables and foods he needed to grow, and by the gods she knew how much he would need it.
Checking the clock by the living room, she balked at the time. They had less than 15 minutes before they had to leave! And Percy hadn't even woken up yet!
She quickly wiped her hands and hung the apron. She then strode across the living room, pointedly ignoring Gabriel, out cold, reeking of alcohol from last night, and peeked down the hallway. "Percy baby, where are you? It's time for you to go to school" She called. She was expecting to hear muffled movement and the usual response of "Coming mom, just gimme a second", but she was met with the strangely terrifying piercing green eyes of her son.
"Percy? What are you doing just standing there? Are you ready to leave? School starts soon and my shift starts in an hour."
"Mother"
"Yes Percy?"
"Come, we need to talk"
Beginning to get confused with the newfound actions of her son, she cautiously stepped into her son's room, where she saw him sitting on the bed, posture rigid.
"Close the door please, this conversation is not for curious ears."
Realizing something was seriously wrong, she nodded quickly and shut the door behind her with a resounding click.
Percy closed his eyes, and suddenly seemed to fire off a pulse of blue energy from his body, quickly passing through the walls and fading away.
The both inhaled, and Sally recoiled in disgust, as now the entire room smelled of rancid seaweed. Shocked, she asked:
"Am I in the presence of a Divine Being right now? Is my son currently possessed by someone?" She ventured carefully forward, standing close to her son, who remained unmoved.
"Calm yourself, mother. For I still remain, Percy Jackson, your son, not under the influence of anyone for now. I recommend you sit down, for this might be a shock"
She took a seat on his desk, still filled with incomplete homework from yesterday.
"I have temporarily neutralized the observational instruments of the 'Eternal Lord of Atlantis', and 'The one of Many Colors'. As long as we do not speak their standard names, they cannot penetrate this barrier."
She gasped.
"How do you know all of this? Did someone teach you? Percy, please answer me! You're beginning to worry me now!"
He sighed. These endless questions were merely a waste of time in his eyes.
"Mother, while I understand that you have many questions for me, I can provide the answers you want if you let me speak."
He took a deep breath. 'Hoo boy, this is going to be really hard'.
"I stand before you not as Percy Jackson, but Autokrætor Rex Perseus Jackson, Lord Commander of the Divine army of Greece. The Avenging Hand of Gods, and Bulwark of Olympus Primaris.
I have seemingly transmigrated approximately twenty thousand standard years into the past. And have brought my knowledge with me.
I also possess the remnants of my armor, which are integrated into my body, along with partial remnants of the Répertoire du Savoir Athénien"
She chuckled, and then began laughing.
"Did you read all of this in a book? Are you practicing for a play I wasn't told about?"
"No, mother, I am serious. I am fully aware of your past relationship with the Eternal Lord of Atlantis, and the current danger I am in, without the presence of the mist to hide my scent from the monsters. I am also aware of the full extent of this body's current powers and potential"
Sally Jackson froze mid laugh. She realized her son really knew the truth, and was a bit too unnaturally well-versed in a pantheon he had no right to know about. But before she could speak though, he began again.
"For the protection of both you and the future, I cannot stay here any longer. My scent is exponentially increased when I become aware of my origins, something that I am sure you know about. I have chosen to inform you of this, in order to cause less panic and complications in the mortal world.
My plan is to leave after the end of school, and chase one of the werewolf packs to Yosemite, where Lycaon is currently residing. You cannot come for me, and you should not worry. Although my body is underdeveloped, I have my means to take him down. I understand your distress, but regretfully, this is the best choice I can make currently. "
Still in mild shock, she could only nod.
"Very well, let's move"
She only came to her senses when she pulled away from the drop-off zone at Yancy Academy. 'Oh Hades, Poseidon is going to be so mad.' Even though she knew she should be panicking, she was still too shocked to feel anything. By the time she looked back at the gate, Percy was already gone.
It was strange. As Percy ascended the stairs, he looked at the dozens of kids milling about the doorway and hallways. He felt the unfamiliarity of the situation and was worried. Millenia of standing guard and zero social interaction had deteriorated his social skills into nothingness. Struggling with only his earliest memories, he could only try to mimic what everyone else was doing, and maintain his cover for now.
…
'Nevermind, I like sleeping MUCH better' He thought as he dozed on his desk. Classes were a breeze, as the teachers seemed to be already accustomed to his behavior and only sigh when they saw him.
The day had begun like any other at Yancy Academy, with Percy's first two periods: Math and English. The teacher droned on about algebraic equations, his monotone voice blending into the background as Percy struggled to keep his eyes open. English was no better, with Mrs. Dodds assigned yet another essay on Shakespearean sonnets, and spending far too much time, in his opinion, with her eyes on him.
As the bell rang signaling the end of the second period, Percy felt a sense of relief wash over him. Next class: History.
Entering the history room, Percy's gaze fell upon the familiar figure of the disguised Chiron seated at his desk at the front of the class. "Mr. Brunner" was unlike any other teacher at Yancy Academy. His wheelchair-bound form and age made him an outlier in the school.
"Ah, Percy Jackson," Chiron greeted with a warm smile. "Right on time as always."
Percy offered a weak smile in return, moving to take his usual seat towards the back of the classroom. His eyes sneakily roved over the desk and papers, desperately searching for his signature fountain pen, Anaklusmos.
A glint caught his eye. His eyes flicked to it, and realized that his sword was clipped on Chiron's jacket. Knowing he had little time to act, he blurted:
"Mr. Brunner, I lost my pencil case just now, can I borrow a pen or something please?"
He nodded, and Percy, with anticipatory eyes, watched as Chiron took Riptide from his pocket and handed it to him. "Try not to lose it now Percy, that thing is practically a family heirloom" Chiron joked, as Percy nodded rapidly and walked back to his seat.
As Mr. Brunner launched into a lecture on ancient civilizations, Percy was patiently waiting for the end of class. As he looked towards the board, he recognized a familiar sculpture, and realized that Chiron was staring at him.
"Percy, do you know much about Greek mythology?"
Percy shrugged. "A bit, I guess."
He smiled "What about Kronos, the Titan lord?"
"Uh, he was the king of titans, right?"
"Precisely, Percy. Kronos was a Titan, to be more specific, the Titan of harvest, not to be mistaken with the Primordial of time Chronos. That's why you always see him depicted with a scythe. He was the father of the gods, but he was overthrown by his son, Zeus. You see that statue over there? That's Kronos, eating his own children. Makes you wonder what kind of father does that, doesn't it?"
Percy could only shrug again. "Yeah, I guess."
"Anyway, Greek mythology is full of stories like that. Gods fighting gods, heroes battling monsters. It's all quite fascinating, wouldn't you agree?"
Shrugging for what seemed to be the umpteenth time, he could only nod his head to respond.
As the bell rang, signaling the end of class, Percy lingered behind, waiting for the other students to file out before approaching the Trainer of Heroes.
"Sir, I might have something to tell you" Percy began hesitantly.
"Yes, Percy?" Chiron prompted, his gaze piercing yet gentle. Percy face transformed into a grin.
"Hey Chiron, if the Providence of Archers and her little party start getting mad in a few days, tell our resident Courier of Insanity back at camp that it was me okay? We can't get the Olympus all roused up over me or else that would cause a lot of trouble, alright?"
Before Chiron could even react, Percy bolted.
"Wait!"
Temporarily still stuck in his wheelchair, he could do nothing as Percy sprinted down the hallway, towards the exit.
Contrary to what Chiron was thinking, Percy was dashing down the stairs, ignoring the confused looks of his fellow students. Opening the unlocked maintenance room, he was greeted with the dark interiors of the school's boiler room. His instincts led him down a narrow side hallway, past the cylinders and dusty tools. The air grew colder, and Percy's breath misted in front of him as he skidded around a corner.
And there it was! The entrance to the Labyrinth. An inconspicuous brick, inscribed with a neon-blue delta symbol, beckoned him forward. Percy hesitated for only a moment before thumbing the symbol and stepping through. The air shifted, and suddenly he was no longer in the school basement, but standing in the middle of a traditional tunnel.
The Labyrinth stretched out on his left and right. An intricate maze of twisting passages, hidden traps, and ancient magic. He knew of unprepared demigods who had entered the Labyrinth and never returned. But right now? He couldn't afford to hesitate. More time sitting and doing nothing meant the less chance Lycaon would stay in Yosemite.
As Percy ventured deeper, the walls seemed to mold and grow colorful. The air grew thick with dust or mist, and he could feel the moisture sticking to his skin. Faintly, he could her the faint noise of conversation around the bend ahead.
Soon, he approached the bend, leaning and peering for a quick second, he saw a clearing. A makeshift camp of sorts. Tattered tents made from monster hide were scattered around a central fire pit. Percy crouched behind a fallen pillar, watching as hellhounds, cyclops, and assorted monsters moved about.
A cyclops twirled its club, its single eye scanning the perimeter. And in the center of it all stood a dracaena, a serpent-woman with scales and venomous fangs. Percy's mind raced. He needed information. Why were they already here? Were these part of Luke's army or just a random group of enemies? He couldn't risk being seen, not yet. He climbed silently up a nearby pillar, finding a sturdy arch to perch on. From this vantage point, he could observe without being detected.
A dracaena spoke in a guttural language, Lingua Achaicus, he realized, the language of monsters. He saw the dracaena gesturing toward a crude map spread out on a rock. Percy strained to listen, catching snippets of conversation. They were discussing an attack on a few demigods and a satyr, a coordinated assault that would catch the demigods off guard.
His grip tightened on Riptide. He'd faced an endless amount of dangers before. Titans, Gods, and ancient evils. This was different though, the Labyrinth was alive, shifting and twisting, and might not side with him. If dissatisfied with him, the Labyrinth could just path a horde of monsters towards him. For now, he was just a mortal in its system.
Percy settled into his hiding spot. He would wait, biding his time until the right moment. The dracaena continued to plot, unaware that an additional uninvited guest was perched above them. Percy was ready to strike, and he had to hold himself back from plunging the distance and killing them all, and sending them back to Tartarus to reform.
But for now, he waited, hidden in the shadows, ready to leap into action. The Labyrinth had always whispered its secrets in the air, and Percy listened.
...
'There'
The wind swirled around him.
"Provide offering, demigod. Then, I guide to location"
He smirked. 'Simple enough'
Percy's grip tightened on Riptide, his knuckles white with determination. The moment had come. With a silent leap, he descended from his perch, gracefully landing unnoticed behind the cyclops, who was still busy studying the map.
The hellhounds were the first to notice his presence, and barked angrily at him. The cyclops, who looked at the hellhounds in annoyance, yelled, "Shut up! Stop barking at me! I need quiet dogs!"
Percy was fast. Before the cyclops knew what was happening, Percy lunged, rolled, and sliced sideways. Riptide cleaved through the air, severing the cyclops's neck in one swift motion. The creature crumpled, its single eye wide with shock.
The dracaena hissed, venom dripping from her fangs.
"What do we have here~?, a lone demigod? A brilliant feast just offered itself to us. Go dogs~, we shall feast good today, one dead means more food for us~"
The hellhounds jumped over the table and circled Percy, snarling and snapping. Their fiery breath singed Percy's skin, but he stood his ground. He weaved between their lunging forms, striking with precision. One by one, their heads rolled cleanly, in practiced, smooth motions.
The last hellhound lunged, jaws wide. Percy leaped, somersaulting over its back. As he descended, Riptide flashed downward, slashing open its exposed back. It collapsed, whimpering, unable to get up. Seeing this, the Dracanae hissed angrily.
"Young one, it seems you possess some skill. It will be no match for-"
She lunged suddenly, but Percy sidestepped, parrying her slashing claws. His blade danced, deflecting each attack. The moment she struck too hard, Percy sidestepped, then drove Riptide through her heart. The serpent-woman crumpled, plethegonic, fiery blood oozing from the wound.
He approached her lying form. She hissed again, but instead of anger, it was one of fear. The Labyrinth seemed to pulse, its shifting walls echoing Percy's victory. It had been needing an offering, and one was about to be given. Percy slowly wiped his blade clean with the edge of his shirt, catching his breath. His young form was still far too weak. His endurance and strength was barely sufficient for this fight.
The campfire crackled, bringing him back to the world. The fire was casting flickering shadows across the ancient stone walls of the Labyrinth. The lifeless forms of the hellhounds were piled next to the scared dracaena before him. He knew what he had to do. The Labyrinth demanded appeasement, and Percy provided.
With grim determination, he dragged the barely alive creatures closer to the flames. With a toss, she was shoved in the fire. Her scales sizzled, and her pained cries echoed through the twisting corridors. With the smell of burning flesh in the air, he raised both of his hands into the air.
"I shall dedicate this death and its spoils to the Labyrinth of Daedalus, in exchange for safe passage to Yosemite" He declared.
He felt the Labyrinth pulse with an approving beat, and continued. He looked back at the pile. The quiet whimpering of the last remaining hellhound could still be heard. He rolled the massive dog, which was the size of a desk, into the fire, its form too weak to even fight back. He raised both his hands again.
"I shall dedicate this death and its spoils to the Labyrinth of Daedalus, in exchange for an exit to Yosemite at the end of the passage" He declared.
He pushed the rest of them into the fire, blood-matted fur only helping them stay on fire. Their essence would feed the maze, perhaps granting him faster passage.
"I shall dedicate this death and its spoils to the Labyrinth of Daedalus, in exchange for a swift passage" He declared.
As the flames consumed the monsters, the Labyrinth seemed to pulse. Its shifting walls moved, showing cryptic riddles and glimpses of hidden chambers. Percy closed his eyes, listening. The maze accepted his offering, surely it would hold to its end of the deal?
And so, Percy listened as the fire consumed the remnants of his enemies. The Labyrinth absorbed their essence, merging them into the essence of the maze.
It began with a tremor, a deep rumbling. Percy, still clutching a now capped Riptide, stood at the center. The ground shifted, revealing a narrow fissure. Percy hesitated, unsure.
The fissure widened, revealing a tunnel, a shortcut through the maze. But this was no ordinary passage. Its walls shimmered like the night sky, constellations etched in stone. Percy stepped inside. The air smelled of pine and ancient magic. The stars seemed closer, as if he could reach out and touch them. He idly wondered if the labyrinth had pathed him near Pan's domain, as he walked down the new hallway.
The tunnel curved, and suddenly, Percy stepped into a dusty basement. Moonlight shone through a high window, and as he walked up the stairs, he emerged near an altar. Spying the cross at the center of the building, he realized it was an old stone church. Percy felt a presence, a remnant ghost, perhaps.
As he stepped into the moon-dappled forest, he glimpsed Half Dome, the signature attraction of Yosemite, rising in the distance. The Labyrinth had delivered him to the heart of the park. He raised his head up, trying to smell for the smell of wet dogs, the signature smell of werewolves.
Smelling nothing, he decided to walk down the path, and hopefully sense the werewolves before they noticed him.
*thwip*
He spun around. Something had dashed behind him.
*thwip*
He flicked around again. He couldn't track the monster. It was too fast for his current form to track.
*thwip*
'Shit' he thought. There were very few enemies that could outrun his senses. And he was reasonably confident this was not a Greek monster, as none were as fast as this. This ruled out the Roman Pantheon too, as they really just piggybacked off of most of their Greek variants. The Shinto-Japanese were also out of the question. They mostly stayed in Japan, and the few in America stayed close to the shoreline. Norse and Egyptian pantheons wouldn't allow a monster of this level to reside here, so it left one realistic pantheon.
'Must be the Biblica-'
*thwip*
This time, he saw it. A red flash.
'Demonic! It must be'
He suddenly coughed. Looking at his hand, it was covered in blood. The demon had infected him with demonic energy, eroding his body. Without Regen-Ex, the recovery couldn't be effectively found unless he found a source of Holy Water. He would progressively get more weak, before succumbing to the demon's strike and being killed mercilessly.
'Maybe the church had a bit of holy water left in the basement? I need to go now'
As he pivoted, he head a beep.
Host's 24 hour mute of Répertoire du Savoir Athénien has been lifted.
Demonic Energy detected, recharging…
…
Charge: 0.113%
Charge complete. Standby.
Trace of Demonic Energy 0% ± 0.00001%
His savior had arrived. Running into the church for momentary safety, his demonic energy problem was solved for now. Quickly dashing back down to the labyrinth, he entered the doorway.
He was safe, because as long as he stayed here, the demons were not allowed to intrude upon Divine Greek Territory, lest they invite the wrath of Zeus.
'Directory, talk to me'
Host has confirmed interaction with Répertoire du Savoir Athénien. What services do you require?
'I need the name of the demon lord that governs the region I am currently in, FAST'
Rebooting archives of Répertoire du Savoir Athénien will consume 0.1% charge, this is ill advised, as energy reserves are at 0.112% and decreasing. Confirm?
'Do it now!'
Host's acknowledgement has been registered. Restarting Répertoire du Savoir Athénien…
…
…
Return:
32nd Demon Lord Asmodeus, Rank 2563 on Unified Rankings
As of 2005, August 19th, 22:23, last known location in Personal Castle located 0.8km NW from your location.
…
Low battery, entering forced sleep mode
'Wait!'
Répertoire du Savoir Athénien has entered recovery mode!
'Fuck!'