Many Hours Later… 10th June 2005
Cabin 3
Percy Jackson's POV
I stare at the pastel blue ceiling, unable to get sleep. It's midnight right now, and though I had one insane day, I just couldn't sleep. I was… afraid. Weird Nightmares were ruining my sleep, terrifying dreams of a giant horse and eagle, fighting on a stormy sea. And then, the abyss, and a single voice calling to me.
Though I had bed, unlike a sleeping bag on the floor, I missed the absence of loneliness that I had in the Hestia Cabin.
Perhaps it's my ADHD but since I couldn't sleep, I decided to walk around the camp. There's a lot of things that are surprisingly different about the camp when it turns to night. Some of the flowers in the hanging pots by the Demeter Cabin glow white in the moonlight, the Artemis Cabin radiates a silvery aura with the decorative deer antlers shining a bright gold, and the forest rang out with the sound of clashing steel. All in all, a very beautiful sce-
Wait.
Why was there 'clashing steel' in a forest?
Despite the fact that both Chiron and Grover had told me that the forest was super dangerous to go in alone, I walked in anyway, Riptide in my hand. Oh yeah, apparently, it's some sort of family heirloom that Chiron had for some reason? Gill convinced Chiron to give me it, and I think it might've been because mom was staring daggers at him. I hope they get along though, even if I was a little mad at what Gill did earlier today.
As I pass through the dense forest, hearing the light snores of dryads, and in the darkness, I see flickers of gold and red. The clashes get louder, so I peer out behind a tree, and see a sight that makes my eyes go wide as Drachma.
A wide river that flowed through the forest, though I could somehow tell that it would thin into the creek I stood guard by the day before. Probably my Poseidon Powers, I guess… And above it, were two figures, holding long swords that I had recently learned were called Katana.
One figure was a middle aged man, wearing tattered robes with unkempt hair… and was definitely a ghost. I mean, he's see-through everything. And opposite him, ready to attack with his blood red katana was… GIll. Yeah, of course it's Gill.
Geez, he could be President Bush in disguise and I still wouldn't be surprised.
But even though the situation was ridiculous, I couldn't help but watch. I guess it was entertaining, sure. Definitely cooler than most tv shows I've watched. But what drew me more was how beautiful it was. It was the way that the moon reflected off the water's surface, how every time the two katana's connected, these weird green sparks blew up between them, and how every time Gill landed back onto the water, I could practically feel how much power was emanating through him.
I'm not really someone who wants to be strong. Sure, it'd be nice, but after all the schools I've been expelled from and the literal monster I met a week ago, I'd absolutely love a normal life. Definitely would love to not deal with ADHD and Dyslexia.
But there's something weirdly inspiring when I watch Gill swing his sword. It's like I'm seeing him in every swing, if that makes any sense. Like, everytime he attacks, he puts his entire being into it. I guess it's crazy to hear, but I'm pretty sure anyone would understand if they could see it.
From behind me, I hear a rustle within the bushes. I turn my head and see a somewhat familiar face. He's one of the few Asians in the camp, with jet black hair, and skin that is definitely too pale, even for an Asian person. He's one of the other campers I've seen around the Camp. I think his name is… Yoru? No, Yuri! Dammit, that doesn't sound right either. I wasn't really paying attention when Annabeth had pointed him out to me.
He raises a finger to his mouth, as a motion for silence, and comes closer. "You're watching them too?" He asks in a hushed voice. I was a little unsure if it was an actual question, since he was saying it more like a statement or fact.
"Uh yeah." I nod, as I look back at Gill and the ghost thing fight. "Hey, uhm, is that ghost?" I point towards the green, see-through Asian guy. Although my eyes are in surprise when the ghost raises his sword and slices down at nothing, only to split the river. I didn't pay much attention to classes, but I'm pretty sure Physics says that you can't do that.
"Yes." The boy next to me confirms, "He's Sasaki Kojiro." He looks at me as if I'm supposed to know whoever that is. He sighs as he explains, "A famous and powerful Japanese swordsman whose existence is debated by historians."
"Oh." I say simply, not really knowing what to say. As we watch the ghost (who may or may not exist) and Gill duke it out, I try to ignore the awkward silence between me and the boy that seems less alive than the actual ghost. "...So, you're an Athena demigod?" I ask, already breaking the awkwardness. I'm trying to be mean or anything, but there's something really unsettling when I'm near this guy. It's like when you get a shiver up your spine, but the shiver doesn't leave.
"No. I'm the son of Melionoe, Goddess of Ghosts and Nightmares." I'm pretty sure he added the last part because he knew I didn't know.
"Huh, nice… You mentioned Nightmares, right?" He nods, so I take a breath, and ask him, "Well, for like the past week, I've been having these really freaky nightmares." I saw that the boy was paying surprisingly close attention, so I continued. "At the beginning, I'm in a storm, and I see a giant eagle and horse shouting at each other. Something about a theft. And then… then I'm in a void, and a voice calls out to me, telling me to join him."
As I finished, I saw that the son of Melinoe had turned deadly still, and looked like he was thinking of a million different thoughts. There is a very long silence, like 5-minutes long. Super awkward, but this time I didn't try to break the silence.
Finally he speaks, "We… need to talk to Chiron. Immediately." Huh. Was there a hint of fear in his voice? That's not looking good for me.
"Now?" I ask, looking at the pitch black sky, "It's a little late, isn't it?"
As the pale boy gets up, he shakes his head, "No. Chiron barely sleeps at night. Centaurs rarely sleep and Chiron less so since he's the son of Kronos." He begins walking, and honestly, for a second I kinda wondered if I should actually follow him. I had a feeling that if I did follow him, then my life would continue to get even more crazy.
But then, I see a white raven sitting on a branch, looking at me, which pretty much makes me realise that my life was already fucking (Sorry Mom) insane.
As I get up, I quietly chuckle. A white raven. That sounds dumber than a minotaur.
The Next Morning 10th June 2005
Gill's POV
I stand in front of 8 boys and 6 girls, all of various ages, all of them my half-siblings. The sun had just risen, and they had all awakened automatically, thanks to our parentage.
"Alright everyone," I say with an authoritative tone, "For the next week or two, I won't be at Camp, so I've developed a new schedule for everyone that should compensate for not being here. It'll be focused on your weakness instead of your strengths like usual." A lot of my fellow Cabin Councillors had looked at me weirdly for how militant I was with my cabin's schedules and training, I knew that it would only help the camp in the long run. Children of Apollo were great assets in a war. Magical Healing on top of excellent archery, and if needed they can inspire troops with their music. But more importantly, some of these kids will die, leaving Will to be one of the last few Apollo kids alive, and that simply won't do. They're my brothers and sisters now, and they're gonna absolutely live till they're old and wrinkly.
As the kids looked over their new timetables, one of the older ones, a 13-year-old boy named Alex Keel, came forth with a question, "Wait, what do you mean that you're not going to be at Camp? Pretty sure we need permission for it."
Though I loved these kids like family (because they are), I still had to keep my secrets and plans very close to my chest, so I gave my slightly older brother a sly grin, and simply told him, "Ah, it's nothing important. I'll just be running some errands. As for permission, just let me worry about that." I then return to addressing all of my campers, "Alright everyone, I think it's time to get started, okay?"
And though there were some noises of discontent at their new timetables, the siblings had quickly learned to trust me. After all, they had proof of their improvement shown during their Capture The Flag games.
Speaking of Capture The Flag, I'm kinda banned from participating. 'Tis the price of being too OP. Of course we've tried many handicaps. It even went to the point where they handcuffed my legs AND hands, tied me up with rope, blindfolded me, AND gagged me. Yet, through a lot of fucking planning involving a 20 mason jars, a whole lotta rope, and learning how to use echolocation like bat, I still managed to clutch a win. So eventually Chiron gave up and banned me. However, he did make me a referee so that I can make sure that the campers don't maim each other and shit.
As I watch my siblings walk away, I see a very tired looking Yurei walk over to me. I was a little confused why he was showing up now. I watched him and Percy go to Chiron a while after midnight but didn't bother following them. I knew they'd come to me soon enough. Though, I do wonder what they've been doing for the past 6 hours or so.
Greeting me with a yawn, Yurei informs me of some unsurprising news. "Chiron wants you. The Oracle isn't speaking to anyone." He then begins to walk away, to Melinoe's Cabin. Presumably to sleep.
As I walked to the Big House, shrugging off the very bland conversation, and focused on the Oracle. If I had to guess, Chiron shoved Percy in front of her corpse, but he got no response. Fate was broken, and none of the prophecies were working. Pretty sure Octavian is probably crying in Camp Jupiter, surrounded by torn up teddy bears.
And as much I would love to relieve everyone of the burden of the Great Prophecy, I needed the timeline to stay relatively simple. Kronos has a servant who's NOT Luke, and I have no clue who it could be, there's a mystery girl at Camp who has still not been claimed AND has absurdly high stats, and for some reason that I still haven't figured out yet, the first ever video on Youtube was not about Zoo visit, but about a Museum instead, so I don't even know the fucking ramifications of that on the world throughout the next 20 years.
So yeah, the last thing I need is for the Gods to be unpredictable.
Well, anyway, thanks to my high as hell Intelligence stat, I've already predicted and created a solution to this situation long ago.
It's time for me to become a prophet.
Okay, that might sound ridiculous, but just wait and see.
Anyway, I walk into the Big House, and am greeted by the sight of Percy, drooling in his sleep, and Chiron, furiously reading away at a book called 'Prophecy 101: Divination for Dummies'. "MORNING!" I shout, snapping Chiron from his reading, and waking Percy up.
"Oh, Gill. You've come." Chiron states, glancing at the befuddled Percy. "I suppose we can start without Mr D. He usually comes at 12 o'clock anyway. So Gill, we have a problem." You know, I'm pretty sure that's quite an understatement from Chiron's viewpoint. If there was one thing an immortal could rely on, then it would be Fate. But how does one react when Fate doesn't work? I suppose that's what Chiron is experiencing.
"Just a problem? Come on Mr Brun- I mean, Chiron." Percy catches himself before fully calling the centaur by his pseudonym, an easy mistake. "Because to me, being accused of stealing some sorta super powerful lightning bolt, and World War 3 happening in a month is a pretty big deal!" Damn. Percy is one cranky motherfucker when he doesn't get his sleep apparently.
"And you've got no prophecy to solve it." I continue, looking at Chiron, who has a weary expression on his face. "Well, I think I have a simple solution!" The two looked at me with relief, like I was a saint about to save them. "All we gotta do is-" However, I could finish, as I felt my body rise to the air, and green filling my vision.
Third Person POV
Gilgamesh Ashford floated above the floor, his body limp, and eyes emanating a bright green glow. A sickly green smoke flowed into the room, filling it quickly. Chiron rose up, and so did Percy. The former did so, for he recognised the similarity the scene had to whenever he'd convene with the Oracle. The latter did so, because he was freaked out.
"Perseus Jackson" What sounded like a disjointed choir of voices came out of Gill's mouth, and Percy stepped back, a little fearful. And the son of Poseidon didn't like what he was about to hear next.
"You shall go west, and face the god who has turned,
You will find what was stolen, and see them safely returned,
Ocean's Son will survive the Father's plots,
But shall fail to save the mother that rots."
And with those words, Gill's body crashes to the floor, as the smoke begins to dissipate.
Chiron could say only two words, which Percy decided accurately to fit the situation. "Di Immortales."
Back to Gill
I rise from the ground rubbing the back of my head. "Damn. What happened?" I look around cluelessly and do my darndest to not laugh at Chiron and Percy's faces. "Well, that was weird. Anyway, where was I?"
However, before I can say anything, Chiron asks me, "Gil, my boy. Do you not remember anything that has happened in the last 20 seconds?"
I tilt my head in faux confusion, "Duh. I came in here and was about to tell you how to solve your no-prophecy problem."
"Uhm, I don't think we need to worry about that, dude." Percy responds, as he surprisingly grins. And with that, the two begin to explain what had just happened, as I nod and act as if it were a shock. Oh my! A prophecy? From my mouth? What a surprise! I never would've guessed such a thing!
As they finished, I put my hand to my chin, as if I were pondering hard upon something, "Hmm… I guess I shouldn't be surprised," I say, "My brother Halcyon could also tell the future. Though I'm still concerned that the Oracle of Delphi decided to be silent"
"Indeed, Gill. But that is a worry that can be solved over time." Chiron nods, glancing towards the stair that leads to the attic, "But our present concern is the prophecy you just gave."
"Hey, it seems good" Percy inputs, "I mean, it literally says that I'll find what was stolen" Ah Percy, always focusing on the one good thing whilst completely ignoring the bad. A blind optimist if anything.
"Ah, but know this Percy," Chiron begins to counter, "Simply because a prophecy says that you will complete it, doesn't mean you should ignore the path."
"He's correct, Perce." I nod, "I mean, the prophecy says that you'll face a god. You think you're up to fighting a millennium old being that could smite you before you blink?" I chuckle as Percy blanched, "Exactly. Now, I'm pretty sure that the God in the west is Hades, right?"
"Hmm… Yes, he'd benefit the most." Chiron nods. I make sure not roll my eyes. I like and respect Chiron, but I'm quite surprised that he'd still assume Hades is always the bad guy after all these centuries.
"That means… I'll have to go to the Underworld." Percy looked as pale as Yurei.
"Yeah, probably." I shrug. "My advice? Don't tell Hades about Charon wanting a pay raise. You'll get what I mean when you get there." I added the last part after seeing Percy's look of confusion.
We continue to delve into the possible meanings of the prophecy, and I did my best to make sure to not reveal too much to the two. Merely stating the obvious and perhaps misleading them a bit. I had to keep myself from bursting into laughter as Percy began to realise the situation he was in. Perhaps I shouldn't be laughing at a kid, but in all fairness, I too am a kid myself.
"Unfortunately, it seems we won't be able to divine any further information about this." Chiron sighs, frowning. "I'm quite sure that the Father referenced in the third line must be Zeus, but I'm still quite confused on who is this 'Mother That Rots' is. It could be Melinoe or Persephone, but the former has always had a distaste for interacting with Olympian affairs, and the latter is quite neutral despite being married to Hades."
"Geez, why would wanna save either of them?" Percy yawns not really scared but rather bored and tired now.
"Hey, what if it's-" However, I'm interrupted by the Big House's door crashing open. We all turn to it, only to see Annabeth Chase, sweating and panting.
"Chiron… Percy…" She says in between gasps of air, "It's your mother, she's-" Percy immediately rushes out of the Big House, past Annabeth, and presumably to the Pavilion, since Sally Jackson had apparently decided to have breakfast early. "-been taken." Annabeth finishes her sentence, ignoring that Percy had already left. She takes a seat on one of the sofas to rest.
I look to Chiron, and he nods to me in silent agreement, and together we leave the Big House, rushing to where Percy had gone. I take a quick look back and snicker, as I see Annabeth slowly inching to where we had written down the prophecy I had said, and where we had written our notes and thoughts on it. What a cunning little girl. She's gotta have some Hermes blood in her, right?
By the time we reached the Pavilion, most of the camp had already arrived. There was incessant muttering, and a deafening shout of a boy. "WHERE IS SHE!?" Percy practically screams, as looks around. I look towards the shore, where I see the ocean beginning to stir with wrathful fury. The clouds above looked like they would pour at any second.
"Kyle was the one who saw what happened" I hear a voice say. The crowd parts to reveal a very terrified young boy, with short auburn hair and green eyes. A son of Demeter if I recall.
"I- I was watering the pavilion f-flowers when it happened." The boy, Kyle, says. The story checks out. Demeter kids often wake up early. Something to do with being on farmer's schedule. "And then, I saw your mom, she was jogging or something. A-And then everything went black, and I woke up an hour later. When I went where your mom was, this was all I found." Kyle produces a wallet from his pocket, and gives it to Percy, who immediately opens it.
"It's… It's my mom's." Percy reveals, in shock. Rain begins to fall, and no one can see the tears falling down Percy's face, "Then, she really has been kidnapped. But who-"
I guess Chiron decided to take some initiative, before Percy could mention his quest, "Ok children, how about everyone goes back in their cabins for today. I believe the rain will not be stopping today." Though there were a few grumbles, the halfbloods decided it was best to leave, especially as the rain was getting practically torrential.
When I read the books and saw how Thalia and Percy could drastically effect the weather when they were mad, I though it was cool, and emotional. But experiencing it in real, watching the weather adhere to Percy's rage and sadness, it's kind of terrifying. I would genuinely rather face the Minotaur or Gello.
As everyone leaves, it's just Chiron, Percy, and I left. Just standing in heavy rain. I put a hand on Percy's shoulder. I felt bad, manipulating everyone around me, but every time I do, I justify it by reasoning that so long as I do this, everyone will live. Everyone will live.
To my surprise, Percy wraps me in a hug, and I can feel him cry into my chest. I reciprocate the hug, and softly smile. I keep forgetting he's just a kid. It kind of shocked me, to see him cry. In the books, I could the number of times he's cried with one hand, but I must keep reminding myself, that I'm not in a book, I'm in real life. And Percy's a real kid, and my friend.
A few minutes pass by, and silently thank Chiron for waiting, though I'm sure he was more than happy to do so. The centaur was one of the few genuinely good immortals in Greek Mythology.
Percy breaks the hug, whispering a thanks as he wipes his eyes. The rain had calmed down a bit, but it was still pouring. "S-so do we know who took her? If she's…" dead.
I shook my head, "No, I doubt she's dead. Not only because that isn't Hades's style, but because that means he would lose his bargaining chip."
"Bargaining chip?" Chiron asks.
I nod. "Yeah, probably. Hades wants something from Percy. That's only reason why he'd want to take your mom. I'm not sure what it could be though."
"His allegiance." From behind us all, Annabeth appeared, taking off her Cap of Invisibility. God damn, what an entrance. I'm proud to say that I taught her that during some of sparring sessions. Of course, I didn't tell her it was 'How to make badass entrance 101', but merely told it was how to catch people off guard and get the upper hand.
"What? You think Hades wants me to work with him?" Percy questioned, not particularly perturbed by Annabeth appearing out of nowhere. "As if I'd ever do that."
"Maybe you wouldn't have choice" I counter, "I mean, he has your mother, Perce." I could see Percy faltering, but I knew he'd pull through no matter what. "Either way, it's best that you leave for LA tomorrow."
"Why LA?"
"Because that's where the Underworld is"
"Naturally."
"Do you know who you're taking with you?" Annabeth asks, forgetting any semblance of subtlety. Girl, just wear a t-shirt saying 'Pick Me Pretty Please' at this point. "Typically, you need two other people with you on the quest."
"Oh. Uh how about Grover?" It took Percy a good second to think of picking Grover. Speaking of the satyr, though I did consider him a friend, we weren't all that close. We should've been I guess, after all we're both adults in a teenage body, which is kind of funny when I think about it.
Chiron shakes his head apologetically, "Unfortunately, Mr Underwood won't be able to join you. I'm sure he'll tell you all about it himself, but the Counsil of Cloven Elders has decided to give him his Searcher's Licence, and he'll have to leave at the end of the week."
"Oh." It's clear Percy didn't really get what Chiron was talking about, but like the centaur said, Grover will explain. "Then how about you Gill?"
I sigh. I knew he was going to ask me this, but I didn't really know how to let him down, "Sorry, Percy. I won't be able to go with you all the way." I see him droop down in disappointment, "That is to say, I'll meet with you in LA, so I'll be with when we go into the Underworld. I've got some… things to take care of before I meet you there." Annabeth looked at me in slight confusion. After all Campers weren't meant to leave without permission. But Chiron and I had come to an understanding a while ago. He lets me leave, and I don't make a Sunday roast from the harpies.
"Oh. But you'll still come with me to the Underworld, right?" I nod. "Ok, well how about Yurei?" Huh. I didn't expect Percy to get close enough to Yurei to pick him, but honestly, Yurei's not a bad replacement for Grover. In fact, he's totally someone I'd suggest. Plus, it'll be good for Yurei to make some more friends.
"Hmm… You'll have to ask him, but I'm pretty sure he'd say yes." Like any camper, Yurei also has ADHD, and an instinctive drive to fight. He'll say yes immediately, "And for your third companion?" At this point, Annabeth was practically leaping out her skin, wanting to be picked.
I'm pretty Percy picked up on that as he says to Annabeth, "Do… you want to join-"
"YES!" Annabeth shouts a little too loudly, causing her to flush in embarrassment as everyone chuckled. She repeats in quieter and more dignified tone, "I mean, yes, I will go with on your quest. Somebody needs to make sure your seaweed brain doesn't start another world war." And she leaves, before anyone could get another word.
"Is she always like that?" Percy asks.
I simply pat his back and walk away. The poor boy will find out soon enough.
Around 15 Hours Later…
Midnight…
I flap my wings as I fly above the city of New York, bustling with vehicles and people even during the night.
I had left Camp Halfblood as soon as everyone had gone to sleep. Somewhat for a more dramatic effect when they wake, and mostly because I didn't want anyone to see me leave.
I dive down when I see the large green mass known as Central Park and head to its southern most section. I fly to the north of pond that's creatively titled as 'The Pond, and land, transforming into my human form. Lucky for me, as a Son of Apollo, I could practically taste the dark energy that the Underworld leaked, and followed that energy, till I found what I was looking for.
The Gates of Orpheus.
From my Inventory, I bring out a pan-flute. I'm sure I could've used a guitar, but Grover used his pan-flutes back in the books, so I decided to not leave to chance.
Playing a melody, I see the ground part as the entrance to the Underworld opens. Flowers being to blossom around me, as if using my song as nutrients. I play for few more minutes, before stopping.
I look to the Gates of Orpheus, a take in what look to thousands of steps, and I take deep breath.
I descend the stairs.
1 Hour Later…
The Underworld…
I stand in front of Hades's Palace, preparing myself for what I was about to do.
I'm sure the God of the Dead was well aware of my presence, after all, I'm pretty sure a couple of The Furies were following me. The fact that they hadn't attacked, meant that he was willing to hear what I had to say.
See? This why Hades is the coolest of his brothers.
I walk to the entrance, knock the 30-foot-tall door, made of a weird black wood. Without any warning, the door swings back, opening. I take it a sign of welcome, and walk in. I'm immediately shadowed by two skeletons. One wore military garments that had Japanese lettering on them, whilst the other wore a raggy cotton shirt, and cutlass by its side.
As I walk to where I assume is the throne room, I see skeletal guards, all from different armies and time periods, all holding different weapons. Pretty sure one of them had a grenade launcher.
I finally arrive in the throne room, where I finally see him. A slender man, with albino white skin and long hair as black as night. He was in his giant form, where he stood at about 25 metres tall. He sits in throne, a horrifying thing to look, made of the skin of tortured souls.
He looks down at me with his piercing eyes. He radiates a deathly aura, that would make a lesser man cry.
"Tell Me Demigod. Why have you come?" He asks me, with a deep voice that practically shook the room. Every word had contained raw power, and it was if he was commanding my body.
But I take deep breath and kneel. I raise my head and look up to him, determination my eyes.
"Lord Hades," I begin, "I am Gilgamesh Ashford, Son of Apollo…"
"And I would like to make a deal with you."
Author's Notes: Et voila! Done. Sorry it's been so long, and unfortunately, I won't be able to update for a bit, as I've got a month long internship, so I'm gonna be busy with that. But yeah, I hope you all have enjoyed the chapter!
Here are Gill's stats:
Name: Gilgamesh Ashford
Age: 12
Level: 81
Title: Apollo Cabin Councillor
HP: 15890/15890
MP: 19063/19063
Stats
Strength: 1000
Agility: 1000
Endurance: 1000
Charisma: 1285
Intelligence: 900
Willpower: 900
Luck: 1000
Stat Points: 0