A/N:
I have just realized I forgot to include Jason getting disowned. Oops! Just know he is disowned. Additionally, in this story, Phoebe does NOT die from Orion. Just tortured.
Percy started at Chaos incredulously. Here he was, talking to him about going to the Goddess KNOWN to castrate and destroy males and joining her hunt. Yep, very likely.
Chaos sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I was afraid of you taking it like this. Artemis and her hunt is the safest place for you to be, and the easiest place for you to scout. Hestia has already recommended you."
Percy gulped. "Did she… leave out the fact that I was male? Cause if so, every hunter is going to first kill again, then resurrect me and kill me again."
Chaos chuckled. "Do not worry. You have already gained the respect of St-Zoe, which will make several of the older hunters respect you. Not like, but respect."
Percy sighed. "I guess I have no choice. When will they be arriving?"
Chaos checked his watch. "In about 20 minutes. Good luck. Oh, that reminds me. We need to fake your death."
Chaos said this in such a conversational tone, Percy almost missed it. "Wait, what? How do we do that?"
"It's simple. Give me riptide."
Percy looked at his beloved sword. Here Chaos was, telling him to let go of it, and his past, for the sake of the mission to save the world. He sighed. Could he really do it? Give up his last link to the past to save the world. His loyalty brimmed. He would do it for Annabeth.
Firmly capping riptide, he gave it to Chaos, knowing it was the last time he would see it again. Chaos waved his hand, and suddenly Jason's gladius and Nico's stygian iron sword appeared.
He snapped them before turning to riptide and uncapped it, sticking it firmly into the ground. He then added some blood and monster dust on the floor. To be fair, it looked pretty convincing.
"Won't Nico and Jason mind?" asked Percy.
Chaos shrugged. "I'll give them new weapons. Riptide I didn't snap otherwise Star will be on me for it."
Percy frowned. Something was tugging at his head. "Wait. Earlier, you almost said Star instead of Zoe. Is Zoe in your army?"
Chaos gave a nod. "These will be for you." He waved his hand, and three crosses appeared, alongside a staff.
The crosses were intriguing. They were perfectly symmetrical, and one was pure black while the other was pure white. The last cross was a mix of icy-blue and fiery-orange.
The staff, on the other hand, was fiery-orange on one side and ice blue on the other. Where it met in the middle, a sliver of purple was visible. It was Y-shaped, on both sides. Percy noticed the ice-blue side had a rune on it, labeled Ehwiz.
Percy gingerly took the weapons. The two yin and yang crosses welded to his hip, while the mixture was on his back, alongside the staff, which was underneath the icy-blue & fiery-red cross.
The staff and the yin and yang crosses disappeared. Percy frowned, turning to Chaos with a confused look.
"The staff and the yin and yang crosses are meant to equal Duality. With your twin blessings from seemingly opposite elements, I figured these would be nice. However, you need to properly embrace both sides. These will come to you eventually, when you have achieved duality."
"That sounds like some sort of cheesy line from a movie," Percy commented, grabbing the hilt from his back. "What even is this?"
"Spin it."
Percy did, and a foot long scythe appeared. Percy got a stinging sensation in his back. It looked exactly like Kronos' scythe, except it looked to be forged in some otherworldly material and adamantine.
"Time has the real version," Chaos said. "don't worry, it doesn't make people fade."
At the mention of fading, Percy suddenly felt nauseous and missed the detail Chaos gave.
"Spin it again."
With shaking hands, Percy fumbled with the cross a bit before spinning it. It turned into a foot-long sniper, complete with scope. He spun it around again and it turned back into a cross.
"Opening the third eye will turn your eyes golden when you are in your fire-mode. Use this ability sparingly in front of the Olympians for they may think you are Kronos."
Percy gulped and attached it to his back. "Is that it?"
"No, you need a name. One for the Olympians, for I fear they will recognize you."
Percy nodded, not trusting himself to speak.
"Can you think of one?"
Inspiration came to him as quickly as a beam of light infiltrating his blankets. "Pyrosvestis. Fire fighter."
Chaos quirked an eyebrow. "Then it is done. They should be arriving soon. Good luck. They don't know about me, so don't mention me to anyone except Hestia and Boreas. Do not get caught."
Percy frowned. How was he going to explain the murder scene? Before he could ask, Chaos summoned a portal and walked through. Along with him, the murder scene disappeared. Rustling was soon heard throughout the bushes. Percy turned around warily. There were so many things that could go wrong, so he would have to ready. Fiddling with the cross, he studied the bushes, scanning for any hint of the hunt.
Rustle.
And then a sound of a bow being drawn was heard, and all of a sudden Artemis was there, holding an arrow to his neck. Or a bow to his neck, it was the same thing.
She narrowed her eyes. "You are our guardian? Hestia mentioned it being male. Nice to meet you again, man."
Percy took a nervous step back. "I suppose. Is the rest of the hunt here? I'd rather not be castrated, thank you very much."
Artemis raised an eyebrow but released her hold on the bow and arrow and let out a whistle. Instantly, dozens of hunters rose out of the bushes, bows pointed at Percy. Percy scanned his surroundings, searching for a particular pinecone face…
That instantly appeared behind him and shocked him. Literally.
About a thousand volts of electricity arced through Percy's spine and it was all he could do to not wince.
"Kelp Breath! You're are guardian? Why are your eyes orange? Why do you have a scar on your forehead? And what happened to Camp?"
Percy winced at the last question. Thalia noted this and looked confused. A familiar daughter of Bellona walked over to them. "Somethings going on at Camp Half-Blood. Piper hasn't been answering any of our calls, and the entire camp seems to be cut off in contact."
"Reyna!" Percy said happily. "You're a hunter?"
"Yeah, it's fun here."
"Hey!" Thalia complained. "How come I don't get a welcome like that?" Reyna laughed and smacked Thalia on her arm.
Percy noted the chemistry between Reyna and Thalia. They were close. Almost close enough to be…
"Are you sure nothing else happened while you were at the hunt?" asked Percy, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
As expected, Reyna and Thalia sported identical blushes. Score!
A loud cough interrupted them. Artemis was standing there, giving them a pointed look. Some of the hunters seemed disgruntled. Apparently Hestia hadn't told them clearly enough that their Guardian was male.
"Oops," Percy muttered.
Artemis rolled her eyes. "Alright we'll pack up camp. Perseus, you'll have to make an oath-"
"I swear by Chaos to never romantically approach, touch, flirt or in any way do something that would break their oath with any of your hunters."
"Interesting swear." Artemis looked at him with narrow eyes.
Percy sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I swear on the Styx to never romantically approach, touch, flirt or in any way do something that would break their oath with any of your hunters." Lightning boomed overhead.
Artemis nodded, satisfied. "Percy, you will go to the campsite."
"Where is it?"
"Twenty miles southwest. But,"
That was all Percy needed to hear. He created wings out of flames (which seemed to be his main element now) and flew upwards. Again pushing his wings to the max, a loud boom was heard before Percy made it to the campsite.
Thalia gaped at where he was in shock. "If he doesn't tell me the story I swear…"
-[blue cookie]-
In the time it took the hunters to arrive back, Percy was bored. So, he looked around the area to find anything that would count as a suitable meal.
"You know you can summon free food with my blessing, right?" said an amused Hestia, sitting by the fire that Percy had created.
"Really?"
"Yeah. Just think of the food and snap your fingers."
"Cool!"
Percy decided to test this out when the hunters got back. It might be considered disrespectful if he ate before them.
Hours later, the hunters finally made it back.
Artemis narrowed her eyes at Percy. She would really need to teach him some discipline.
Once the hunters were in eyesight, Percy bowed to Artemis. "My Lady, what would you like to eat?"
"Whatever my hunters want." Percy nodded and turned to Thalia. "Well, Pinecone Face?"
Thalia thought about it for a moment. "Two portions of steak and a glass of chilled apple cider."
Percy faced the other hunters, getting many nods.
Focusing on steak and apple cider, Percy snapped his fingers. The sound of many plates clinking together filled the Cafeteria, and the Hunters looked on in amazement at the dishes prepared for them. The younger hunters and Thalia looked particularly ready to eat, but the older hunters stopped them.
"How do we know that you haven't put anything in this food, boy?" asked one, scorn in her voice. Surprisingly Phoebe interrupted her.
"I don't trust him and many of us do, but Zoe did. And her opinion is worth a lot. Additionally, Bianca trusts him and so does Thalia and Reyna." Phoebe said.
Many of the older hunters nodded assent. Percy cleared his throat.
"For what it's worth, I swear by the Styx and on Chaos I have not put anything incriminating into these." Thunder shook overhead. Surprisingly, nobody looked at him to see if he would explode. They were too busy scrambling to the tables, eating their food. He gave Artemis an amused look. She rolled her eyes and turned to the table. Percy summoned a portion of steak for himself and a glass of blue coke. He ate quickly.
Soon, he became aware of whispers. Percy turned towards them. Thalia was smirking evilly. Percy withheld a groan.
"Come on Kelp-Breath, come over here and sit down!" she said, smirking all the while.
Percy groaned for real this time but walked over, seeing how his food was already done. Before sitting down, he tested it out to make sure it was good. It felt okay.
Percy carefully stepped on. When nothing happened, he breathed out a sigh of relief.
Before the bench disappeared under him.
And he fell.
Into spilled apple cider which was conveniently spilled.
"Thalia!" he yelped, after getting his bearings. "You ruined my pants!" Thalia rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at him. Percy groaned. Apple cider can get sticky, extremely quickly. Laughter rung out across the tables. Even Artemis was trying (and failing) to withhold a smirk. Percy rolled his eyes.
"I'll be staying about a mile north of here. Wake me up when you need me," he grumbled.
His first day at the Hunt was not pleasant.