Percy jolted upright in an unfamiliar bed, and in an unfamiliar room. The walls were solid gold, the roof made of a blindingly white marble with a gold inlay of a sun in the center, incredibly bright despite no visible sources of light. The sheets were white silk, the bed more comfortable than any he'd previously felt, and he was tempted to go back to sleep, despite feeling more well-rested than he ever has before. A staff with a single green snake curled up around its handle propped up in the corner next to the door on the opposite side of the room, a desk shoved up against the wall covered in papers and empty prescription bottles, cabinets above it full of little pull-out trays. The snake seemed to be sleeping, and Percy was curious how comfortable that could really be, having multiple, separate parts of your body pressed up against a wall like that.

Trying to think about why he'd be in Apollo's palace - a place he recognised from a previous trip here after the fight with Kronos, where the god had taken some of the more beat-up demigods to care for them, and Percy came with because he wanted to check up on Thalia, Percy climbed out of the bed, the door slamming open the moment he stood up.

A clean-shaven man with short salt-and-pepper hair, wearing a stereotypical white lab coat over a business suit of all things, with a stethoscope around his neck stood in the doorway, one hand on the center of the door, glaring at him. "No! No. You get back in that bed." Closing the door behind him, he grabbed the staff and the snake whirred to life, a crown of spikes fanning out from just below its head. "God you may be, you're still new to it, and it's been millenia since anyone Ascended. There's all sorts of checkups I need to do before you can go anywhere, got it?"

Percy was even more confused. He'd never seen this man before in his life, and he felt some sort of… connection, to him, like a string linking them he could tug if he wanted, but he followed the instructions, almost habitually, and put the weird feeling he had to the side, since he was probably a doctor of some sort based on where he was and what he was wearing.

The doctor nodded, taking off the stethoscope and reaching out with the butt of his staff, pressing it against Percy's chest. He felt a warmth flow through him, and the doctor nodded again, apparently satisfied. "Good. Everything seems to have gone fine, despite your longer than normal rest. Now, what is the last thing you remember?"

It… took Percy longer than he'd care to admit to remember.

Or to speak.

"The… The giants." Images whirred through his head - the Acropolis, the army, the blood, being bitch-smacked from Athens to Long Island by Zeus.

"The Romans." More - Camp Half-Blood, his home, his family, surrounded by an enemy army of monsters and demigods alike, run by a madman claiming himself Pontifex.

"Gaia." A towering figure a hundred feet tall made of dirt and stone, the living embodiment of the ground they walk on and the planet they were born from. Eyes the embodiment of the cruelty of nature itself, the hatred of the very Earth aimed at them. A crushing force, bones shattering almost as fast as they could heal, hearing each tick on the hands of the clock of Time as he felt his lungs fill with mud and he couldn't breathe he was drowning-

Something pressed against his chest and he calmed, forced out of his memories. The doctor looked concerned, but didn't ask him anything, which he was thankful for.

Percy takes a few deep breaths, trying to mentally prepare himself for what was to come. "I… The fight with Gaia. Routing the Romans. Dad…" He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry looking down at his scarless - where did they go - hands. "Dad lending me his Trident." He remembered that very well. The conversation he had with Poseidon was… short, and one of the most interesting ones he's ever had in his life.

Percy knew what would happen if he took that Trident. He'd be the one responsible for killing Gaia and saving the rest of the Seven. He'd be the only one that reliably could - Leo and Jason's plan could work, sure, but this would.

He wouldn't be mortal anymore.

The Trident itself didn't make him immortal, he didn't think at least, Poseidon wasn't very clear - but it, combined with everything that followed… did. The storm he unleashed, the earthquakes that raged - if Percy remembered right, he expanded the lake by camp by a good margin when he was trying to throw Gaia off balance, throwing her into the sky with a storm and using the Trident to impale her like - like a fish. That's kinda funny now that Percy thinks about it - the oddly thick ichor of the primordial splashing onto him.

The doctor nodded at him, stepping away to sit at the desk, attaching some papers to a clipboard, grabbing a pen, and starting to fill in some sort of info he got from that. "Now, just a heads up, Lord Zeus wishes to speak with you as you're awake, to get you sorted, give you some information, and set you up with a trainer. Before I send you on your way, are you feeling any symptoms of nausea, heartache, increased anxiety, burning blood, eye strain or discoloration, detached vertebrae…" He continued listing different things. Percy felt… fine, at least physically, and told him no. The doctor made a few more scribbles on his pad, setting it down on the desk, and stood up and held open the door. "Great! Zeus is waiting for you in the throne room. Now, leave." His voice took on a slightly hostile tone, so Percy complied quickly, the door slamming shut behind him.

Percy walked through the temple-hospital in a bit of a daze, coming across a mirror and taking a moment to observe himself, surprised at both how similar and how so very different he looked. Sea green eyes filled with storms, dark skin free of acne - and scars. One he knew he had under his right eye from Tartarus, falling down a hill and ripping the skin open on the glass land, was absent. Dark hair was as wild as ever, the gray streak from his time holding the Sky more prominent than he remembered it being, currently clothed in a fixed version of what he was wearing during the fight with Gaia - dark jeans, a Camp Half-Blood T-Shirt, his camp necklace… He continued through the hospital. Stepping out onto Olympus and turning, the layout of the floating city memorized from the days of the Battle of Manhattan, and its beauty lost on him today, looking as if the Titan War had never happened - as if hundreds of demigods, of children, hadn't died at the base of it, voices - voices calling out for Gods who could not - would not - answer, Percy doing his damndest to answer in their stead, Riptide tainted with the blood of traitors who turned their back on their families, looking worthy of the position as a son of the Father of Monsters - he idles his way through the city, nodding towards some of the people that notice him, making his way through the winding streets of the mountain top, eventually finding himself standing in front of the great doorway to the throne room of Olympus, someone familiar standing in front of them and blocking his way in.

Standing across from the newest god on Olympus, was the oldest Olympian god. Hestia stood there in her childlike form, barely coming up to Percy's thigh. She looked excited, if nervous, which made the ex-demigod more than a bit concerned.

"Perseus," Hestia started, which was already not a good sign. "It's… good to see you awake."

Percy nodded at her. "Hestia. How did you know I was awake?"

"My Domain. As well as your Blessing." Percy nodded. He figured, but, who else may know about him if she did? He… really didn't want to deal with people yet. He wasn't quite ready for that, and was more than happy to follow Hestia when she motioned for him to move off to the side of the doorway, a small (for Olympus) gazebo a bit down the hill and off to the side.

Hestia takes a seat, short enough for her feet to not touch the ground, legs swaying back and forth slightly as her hands rest in her lap, Percy taking a seat across from her, hunched over with his elbows on his knees, hands clenched together out in front of him.

Hestia speaks first. "So. Before you meet with the King, do you have any questions you'd maybe like discussed in a… gentler environment?"

Percy sighs, a hand running through his hair. "The doctor. Who was he and what was his whole deal? He seemed pretty peeved at me, and I can't think of anything I've done to piss him off, at least not directly. I've never met him, so… yeah."

The Hearth goddess nods, taking a moment before answering the question. "That was Asclepius, one of Apollo's sons. You may have heard of his myth. He was a mortal who Zeus killed upon the request of Hades because he figured out how to undo Death itself, and Apollo was upset enough Zeus made him immortal. Technically speaking, he's a star, but he's Divine enough to manifest in more Divine-inclined places, such as Olympus, through Apollo. He's here, and upset at you, because his punishment for aiding The Seven and crafting the Cure for them, even if it has gone unused, was making sure your Ascension went properly. However, that was of no concern, and he's effectively spent the past year forcefully bound to the hospital you were in, watching a god do nothing."

Percy took in that information for a minute, before nodding. "Yeah, I'd be pretty pissed too if I had to make sure a corpse didn't die."

Hestia smiled at him, and a feeling of warmth spread throughout Percy and he found himself relaxing a bit more. He wasn't sure if it was her using fancy god-powers or just her being her, but he welcomed it either way. "Honestly, the only other thing I'm concerned about is my friends. Is… is everyone okay?"

Hestia reached across to him, softly patting him on the head and ruffling his hair, and Percy smiled a bit. "Thalia and Nico have recovered well. They're not great, but, after what you all went through, I don't think anyone would be. Dionysus has been helping them recover, and they can sleep well now, at least. They have regular sessions still, and you may want to try to take him up on that as well. I know you two don't get along, but he doesn't like seeing anyone be in that state. Reyna stepped down from Praetorship and joined the Hunt, after a long series of events involving Apollo's punishment after the Giant War, which Zeus will likely tell you about, or you can ask him yourself if you get the chance." She moves over to sit next to him, legs kicking a bit as she takes some time to continue her response. "Piper has removed herself from the Divine world as much as a demigod really can, trying to focus on repairing her relationship with her father. Frank and Hazel have instigated a lot of reforms in the Legion, trying to remove children from the front lines. Leo has been leading the construction of a currently unnamed Greek version of New Rome - they're considering the name New Athens, but there's a lot of debate about the focus on Athena, as opposed to all the gods, or even the demigods themselves. He's also working on setting up a protected safe haven for demigods in Texas, and a series of smaller ones across the country for homeless demigods on the run, and to make it easier for people to travel from camp to camp. And Jason…" She reached a hand out, resting it on his arm and he felt another pulse of warmth - this one more intense, and he felt… subdued? "Jason Grace died."

Percy felt like he should be mad. Sad. Depressed. Something. Instead, there was… contentment. As if he had already had his time to grieve, to come to terms with it, despite only hearing about it two seconds ago.

And then he felt betrayed. Hestia had forcefully skipped the mourning process for his friend. Realistically, he knew why. He had something important to do, and one bad day for a god is far, far different from one bad day for a demigod. A bad day for a demigod meant some bruises and cuts in training, some overturned dirt, vined-up houses, broken bones, storms… But a bad day for a god meant cities would vanish. Likely even for a new one like him.

The far more emotional side of him - the side that Percy thought made up the vast majority of what made Percy, Percy, felt betrayed. That she would dare deny him the grieving process was a massive breach of trust and faith and the love they had for each other - in a familial sense, of course, as well as between Patron and Champion - and Percy wasn't sure he could get over that. But he also… He couldn't find himself able to dig up the rage, the hatred, the anger he should feel about something like this. Maybe that was Hestia's lingering magic, or maybe it was because he understood why it happened, why it needed to happen.

So, instead, he sat there, and stewed in the turmoil he was allowed.

Hestia didn't say anything. If she knew about his thoughts, she didn't show it. And when Percy stood up and left, walking back towards the doors of the Olympian throne room, she didn't follow.


Pushing open the doors to the throne room, Percy noticed two figures immediately, and was a bit let down. He then noticed three others, and an already somber and tense situation became incredibly serious and concerning in an instant. Directly in front of him sat Zeus, as expected. He didn't seem to notice Percy yet, instead looking down at some papers with some black square-frame glasses, which was confusing because Percy didn't think that gods would need glasses, and he also didn't notice the reflective glint of any lenses. Every time he met Zeus, the comment his father made the first time Percy met him of Zeus more than deserving the domain of Theatrics made more and more sense. Percy also noticed a few of the odd connections he felt to Hestia and Asclepius, but pushed that to the side of his mind for now. The other person in the room was a bit surprising - sitting in one of the thrones was Apollo, and he was… far less teenage-supermodel-y than Percy remembered him being. He was still golden-skinned, had blonde hair and blue eyes, and frankly still hot, but he looked more… realistic, he supposed.

And behind Zeus' throne stood the wizened figures of three old hags.

The Moirai. The Fates.

Apollo, contrary to Zeus, did notice Percy enter, and grinned at him, either oblivious to or ignoring Percy's internal crisis at seeing The Fates. "Hey, lil' cuz! Welcome to the immortal side of the family."

Percy didn't have time to reply, as Zeus' head shot up, lightning flickering across his storm-gray beard as he set down the papers and folded up the glasses, slipping them into his breast pocket. "Perseus! Glad to see you awake, nephew." As the King of the Gods spoke, the throne room seemed to warp, and instead of having to look up at the two Olympians, he was now roughly eye-level, accounting for them being seated. He wasn't sure if he grew, or the throne room shrank, but neither god seemed it worthwhile to mention. Zeus continued speaking. "Your father wanted to be here for you, but I assured him he had nothing to worry about, as this will mostly be a boring discussion with a lot of paperwork. Apollo is here by virtue of being a trained psychiatrist, as well as the person most familiar with your position, in his own way, that I believe you would get along with. I know you don't have the best relationship with Dionysus, and Apollo has been a mortal before, so I believed he would be the best for this position."

The confusion kept stacking for Percy - Zeus was rather different than he remembered, and was treating him… nicely? Percy was expecting to get thrown back into Tartarus, really, for daring to ascend to godhood without his explicit permission, but Zeus seemed… welcoming? And- "What about Heracles?" Percy blurted out before he could stop himself.

Zeus went to speak, but Apollo interjected. "We're pretty sure he'd try to kill you." At Percy's confused expression, Apollo elaborated, both pointedly ignoring Zeus' look towards his son. "Think about it this way. He's been riding the fame high of his Labors for, what, three millenia now? And you come along and do most of them by accident by the time you were fifteen? Three years into being a demigod? And then you one-up him by doing three things he never did, beating Kronos, traversing Tartarus, killing Gaia - though, he had a hand in that, since he was there for the first Gigantomachy, but you still did more than he did with that. And then you steal his other bit by ascending? Hilarious! Hell, when I heard you all met him on your quest to Rome, I was surprised he didn't sink your ship immediately!" Zeus cleared his throat loudly, the sound like thunder, and Apollo stopped talking, a sheepish expression shot towards his father. "As I was saying, Apollo is the best suited for being here at this moment, and as such, he is here. But, I should extend a formal welcome to the newest god, and as King it is my duty to help you get adjusted. Do you have any questions?"

Percy thought back to something that Asclepius mentioned in passing. "How long was I out for?" Zeus flipped through some papers. "One year, two months, seventeen days, and four hours, give or take two and a half hours. A rather long time for an Ascension, oddly. Dionysus was only out for a few months, and Heracles didn't take any time at all."

Percy blanched - a year? What had changed in that time? Were his friends still around, did they know what happened? Did they miss him? Were they worried, did they think he'd forgotten about them? Oh gods, his mom-

"Worry not, we kept the camps informed, and Poseidon visited your mother to let her know. She was apparently ecstatic to learn of your position, actually. No mother wishes to bury her children, as you may know."

Oh. That… cleared that up, he supposed. "Uh…" His brain was briefly de-railed. "What exactly am I the god of? And… what all does my new position, I guess, entail?"

Zeus flipped through some more pages, taking his glasses back out of his pocket and putting them back on - Apollo scoffed softly, and Percy was certain now there weren't any lenses in them. "Your only current domain is Oaths. What that means specifically is that it is your duty to enforce, regulate, and bind deals and agreements between individuals or groups. A rather easy job that's mostly auto-pilot, though you may wish to make a binding oath people can swear other than the Styx. She's been complaining about that for millenia, says the broken ones pollute her river even more than it already is, whatever that means. And it does, admittedly, come with some duties related to enforcing some of the Ancient Laws, but we'll get to that here in a minute when I outline some misbeliefs you may have about those."

Percy remembered the river from his trips to the Underworld and his time in Tartarus. Even down there, little bits and bobs of discarded dreams and broken oaths found their way down the river.

"Well… I can work on that, sure. But, what all have I missed in the past… year?" The word hurt to say.

Zeus flipped through some more pages. "Well, after your Ascension truly began and you were brought to Apollo's clinic, the demigods of the Seven and some of the other big players of the war came here for a reward ceremony, as you may remember happened after the second Titan war. They were granted wishes in the form of requests that we have done our best to honor. Unfortunately, there were…" Zeus' eyes look towards Apollo, before turning his attention back to the paper. "Complications that caused a notable delay, so it took a few months to occur, and not everyone has made them yet, but it happened."

"Jason wished for Camp Half-Blood to be granted the room necessary for and aid in constructing a Greek version of New Rome, to hopefully help your kin survive to adulthood. Leo Valdez requested help creating a system to traverse between camps and other demigod hotspots and safe havens, such as the Waystation, the Amazons, or…" He turned towards Apollo. "What are they calling that new one they're working on in Texas? Have they picked a name for themselves yet?" Apollo answered immediately, which Percy found surprising. "They're still trying to decide between Valdez's Garage and The Jive Station."

Zeus nodded, as if that made perfect sense. It didn't, but, sure.

"Yes, that. Next on the list, Frank Zhang used his wish to disconnect his life from that little stick of his - he desired to live his life not having to worry about his friend accidentally burning the rest of it. Hazel Levesque and Thalia haven't used theirs yet, nor has Reyna Ramírez-Arellano. Piper McLean used hers to…" Zeus paused, before looking up from the paper and at Percy. "Ah. Right. Piper used hers to… request aid in Jason's unfulfilled promise to the minor gods, to get them recognition and proper temples in New Rome. After Jason…" Percy interjected at Zeus' hesitation, evidently unsure of how to break the news he already knew. His voice was quiet and hoarse. "After Jason died. I know. Hestia told me."

Zeus nodded, awkwardly clearing his throat, the sound a lot quieter this time. "Well, yes. That. So!" The King of the Gods was evidently eager to change topics. "The second part of your responsibilities as the God of Oaths. Something you may not know, I'm not quite sure how much they teach you at that Camp, but not all of the Ancient Laws were created by Olympus."

That was, in fact, news to Percy. He thought that the Laws were some bullshit excuse for them to not have to deal with the consequences of their actions.

Zeus continued. "Many of them, such as the one about not stealing Symbols of Power - something we need to get sorted for you, after this, actually - or crossing domains or interfering with quests, were outlined by… either the Fates, or Chaos themselves. We aren't quite sure."

Even upon them being mentioned, The Fates didn't respond, or even move.

Percy did speak up at that. "How do you not know?" Zeus snorted. "They're rather secretive entities, the Primordials. While the Fates may work alongside Olympus and us Gods, they do not serve us, and hold no necessary obligation to answer us, no matter how different some may believe. But, as I was saying - there's a full list of ones enforced by Olympus and the others that I can have brought to you after we finish, and you present yourself in front of the Council. But, within your capacity as the god of Oaths, it is part of your responsibility to enforce punishment for those that may break them. You'll have far less to do for the… bigger, ones, I guess you may be able to call them, as those are fairly self-sufficient, and enforced by the fundamental laws of reality. The others that were created by us, you'll have to be far more hands-on for, as well as any that will eventually get sworn to you, when you finalize your own system. I do request that, when that happens, you bring it to the Council - more specifically me - for approval, so that notices may be sent out mostly, but that's not important currently."

"Now, Perseus, do you have any last questions?" The King of the Gods was… oddly patient, today, or at least it seemed that way to Percy.

The newly-titled God of Oaths nods, cogs in his brain turning as Percy tried to process everything. "You said current domain. Am I going to be getting more..?"

"Gods are not intrinsically given domains. Not mostly. Until after we defeated our father, neither my siblings nor myself had any Domains. We had to earn them. Much like Apollo was not God of Prophecy until he slew Python the first time, and Themis handed the domain over, or how my daughter Artemis earned the Childbirth domain by aiding her mother in having him. Now, many of them are given something upon being born or raised - Dionysus was granted Wine, Heracles given Strength, and Athena was born with Wisdom and War, and you were given Oaths. That's not to say the Fates have anything planned for you, per se, but I'm not saying they don't either."

The Fates were, again, eerily still, and Percy was starting to wonder if they were statues. The moment the thought crossed his mind, one of them squinted at him just long enough for him to notice, and threw the thought out of his mind.

"Now, before you are brought before the Council to confirm your position, there are two very important things that we must do, that require privacy." Zeus looks at Apollo, and the god of the Sun nods, vanishing from his throne. Zeus rises from his, stepping towards Percy and walking through the table in front of the chairs as if it wasn't there, stopping a few feet across from Percy.

"I imagine you already know what you wish for your Symbol of Power to be, so I'm not going to ask about that yet. But there are things you need to know before you meet the Council in your new capacity."

"First. What happens there is a formality. It's a show. What happens here, now, is what's important. Second. Your position gives you abilities very similar to some of my own. As such, your training will be very hands-on with me, so that I may monitor you and ensure you do not accidentally break anything. I do not doubt your loyalty to Olympus, that has been more than proven within your service, it is simply concern over you doing your job in the best way possible, to your full capacities. Third. I do not want you to get confused or concerned over where to place your loyalties. Your oath will be to serve Olympus, as every god before you has done. Your loyalty to your father is commendable, and will be important, as some of your domains you may gain later will likely be related to him, and you will likely serve in his Court. That is not an issue. Fourth. As you adapt further into your Divinity, something that I will have Apollo explain better later, your Domain may change. Not what it is, but how it shows and represents itself. You may find new interpretations in Oaths you didn't previously, or find yourself more attuned to when one is broken, or who knows what. If and when that happens, you are to find me immediately, and I will help you to the best of my capabilities. Fifth. Your capacity as god of Oaths will have many coming to you trying to get out of them. There is a process for that. Ultimately, that will be up to you to decide later, but for now I request you send them to me for judgment over what will and will not be allowed until you are better Settled and accustomed to your Divinity. Sixth. Your position will, inevitably, work hand in hand with my own. That means you will see and hear much most others don't get, even my own wife. There will be a lot of trust placed within you from me due to that, and I do not believe I need to explain what will happen if that trust is broken." Zeus' hands placed themselves on Percy's shoulders and gripped, his eyes turning from a normal stormy gray into a deep, almost black shade, sparks and lines of blue, white, and yellow appearing like lightning, and for the first time, Percy felt truly afraid of the god in front of him, Zeus' aura pressing down on him like the Sky itself once did.

"Now. I need two more things from you. One. Hand me Riptide."

Percy almost struck down the god then and there.

"This is an important part of your Ascension, Perseus. I will not hold it long. This is simply to confirm it as your Symbol of Power."

Percy didn't, personally, quite believe the god in front of him. But something within him - within the newest chunk of his soul - did. And so, Percy reached into his pocket, pulling out a simple ballpoint pen, uncapping it, and as the Celestial Bronze blade expanded in his hand, Percy handed it over.

Riptide vanished as soon as it came into contact with Zeus. "Another Aspect is dealing with what is necessary. The process is secretive, and the only people that truly know it on Olympus are myself, my brothers, the Fates, and the Elder Cyclopes. It will be returned to you when the process is done, by my own hand, unchanged except for what is necessary to make it a Symbol."

"The second thing needed is an Oath. One to Olympus, that you will serve Her loyally, in your fullest capacity, and do what is necessary to bring Her glory and strength. It need not be vocalized, though I will know if it is not completed."

Upon mention of the Oath to Olympus, Percy felt something within that same part of his soul pulse, mentally dragging his attention to it. There was… something inside of him. Something living, in some capacity, that was reaching out in so many directions, forming connections both coming to and going from him and so many others he didn't know, and he could feel its desire to latch itself onto something else. Onto Olympus. And so, he let it.

Zeus let out a loud sigh, eyes closing as Percy came back to - he knew what had seemed like a simple process had taken almost two hours - one hour, fifty-three minutes, and forty-seven seconds, to be exact.

The King of the Gods nodded, evidently content. Zeus moved back to his Throne, taking his seat at the head of the Council as his hands lightly clenched the ends of his Throne's armrests, and Percy felt something pulse throughout the world, and within moments, every Throne in the Council Room was full, Hestia was at the Hearth, and a thirteenth chair had erupted from the ground opposite Zeus, and in it sat Hades.

The simple fact of the God of the Dead being here was enough to put Percy on edge - he had a good relationship with Nico, sure, but his dad still had held his mom hostage, and had kidnapped him. Percy imagines that having beaten him on the bank of the Styx wouldn't exactly endear the god to him either. Ares, to be honest, he wasn't too concerned about. The rest of them…

That remained to be seen.

If any of the Olympians were concerned with the presence of the Fates behind Zeus' Throne, they didn't show it. And as the last of them appeared in their Thrones - Hermes, funnily enough - the room seemed to shift as the walls vanished, being replaced by columns of marble as it turned open-air, thousands of seats being revealed beyond, each filled. Percy had never felt smaller, even in front of - a black hole in place of a head, shattered armor covering every inch of what should be exposed skin and rippling muscle, the size of a semi-truck standing vertically, what's visible through the cracks a deep, rich purple the very color the ground beneath them - Tartarus himself, thousands of pairs of eyes staring at them- at him.

"Gods of Olympus!" Zeus' voice billowed out, drowning out a clap of thunder. "You have been summoned here today to witness something not seen in over four millennia! The crowning of a new god, a mortal having ascended to Divinity!"

The crowd was silent. Whether they had expected this, had simply realized what was happening before Zeus had said it himself, or were too afraid of interrupting the King of the Gods, Percy wasn't sure.

"Perseus!" Above his head, Anaklusmos shimmered into existence, physically unchanged, but as it drifted down into his hand, he could feel the difference.

Riptide had never felt like a normal sword. It was unique even within the Divine world - Katropis, Thalia's spear, nothing else had ever felt like it, to him or to anyone else that held it. Percy had originally chalked it up to the fact it was magic, even more so than the other hidden weapons a lot of demigods carried, or the fact that it was, as Chiron had once told him, an ancient blade, with connections to the Sea. Percy had since learned better. It was infused with the essence of two immortals - Zoë Nightshade, and her mother before her, Pleione.

It was a weapon that Percy was very familiar with, having used it for nearly half of a decade, and when he grabbed it, it felt different. Something about the blade had changed. It felt… heavier. Not in a literal sense, it was as balanced in his hand as it had ever been, but more… spiritually. Something within his soul, his Domain, was reacting to it.

But, as Fate would have it - the bastard - Percy was busy and couldn't spend the time to inspect it at this current moment.

The King of the Gods continued, having stood from his throne as he was addressing Percy, hands spread wide towards him. "God of Oaths! From this day forth, shall your loyalty to Olympus never waver, and shall you spend your immortal life in Her service. May the Serpent guide you in your endeavors to serve Her, and in your journey to secure your Divinity."

There was applause. Mostly polite, slightly scattered from the minor gods - a lot of them liked or appreciated Percy for securing them positions and amnesty after the Titan War, sure, but many of them, frankly, didn't give a shit about him, either. And like Apollo mentioned, others considered him a dangerous upstart, like Heracles.

After that, a lot of the gods just… left. Zeus hadn't said anything about continuing the meeting, and the minor gods weren't required to be here anyways. Though, as Hermes went to speak - likely to inquire about whether or not it would actually continue, if Percy had to guess, the room seemed to twist as he got frozen in place, and the Fates made themselves the center of attention (as they so loved to be, he thought), appearing in front of Percy in a line.

The one in the center (Percy had no idea which one this is) spoke. "Perseus Orkistís." The name seemed to ping something deep within him- and he was thrown back to one of the lessons at Camp, of the whole "names have power" thing he regularly ignored.

Divinity had different Names, depending on what they were doing, or trying to be. He tried to recall a few- Poseidon had some like Pelagios, which had.. Something to do with water, he thought. Apollo and Athena had some big ones - Pallas was pretty much an alternate name for Athena, and Phoebus was almost always attached to Apollo.

Meaning… Did he just get his first Divine Name? Epithet?

The Fate continued. "Your duties are small in number, but wide in scope. For now, at least. For now. They shall grow, as our Mother demands, Polýolvos." Another ping - another Name, for… some reason. It sounded familiar- and his mind was thrown back to the young face of a girl with flaming eyes, tending to a Hearth. A… shared one, maybe? He knows there's a few of those-

"Your next one finds you at your Home, Perseus."

And the world seemed to twist once more-

The Fates were back where they were. Hermes continues his question about leaving, Zeus rejecting it, putting the topic down. Percy wasn't paying attention, too rattled by the revelations the Fates gave him.

A few more things were spoken of - brief checkups of both camps, a note from Ares about a drop in monster activity, a note from Dionysus about an uptick in demigods reaching camp, Demeter saying something about a drought in Oregon… Percy stood there, off to the side now, only vaguely listening.

Zeus spoke up once more, after everyone stopped their reports. "Now, there is one more matter to discuss." The King of the Gods lifted up the paperwork, pulling out the glasses - Poseidon audibly groaned. Zeus ignored it. "The punishment for Dionysus has been decided due to his interference within the second Gigantomachy, as well as for his actions causing demigods to turn against Olympus during the Titanomachy."

Now that got Percy's attention, as well as everyone else's. The crowd of minor gods that stayed got silent, all the little whispers happening hushing in an instant. The council went stiff, looking towards the God of Wine, who was sputtering. "Wh- I helped the brats kill the Twins! And if those damn little campers were worth-" He was shut up by a look from, surprisingly, most of the gods both on and off the Council, including Zeus himself.

"Now, as I was saying." Zeus cleared his throat, thunder booming in the background as he gave Dionysus a short glare. "Dionysus is to be removed from his position as Director of Camp Half-Blood, and is to be put under house arrest here upon Olympus. He is to be banned from the mortal realm for the rest of his previous punishment - approximately forty-eight years. He is to only leave Olympus in a minor capacity for the purpose of monitoring his domains, exceptions to be approved by the Council on a case-by-case basis. While the punishment itself is not to be voted upon, the matter regarding his position at Camp Half-Blood is up for vote, as his position would otherwise be left vacant."

"Currently, we have two leading choices. Chiron, the current activities director, has justifiable cause to be promoted. However, that would still leave a vacancy." Two pairs of stormy gray eyes dart towards Percy. "I nominate Perseus, God of Oaths for this position. I believe his relationship with the current demigods of both Camps would be an asset, it would allow him to enforce the rules we have for claiming," Zeus levels a glare towards a few of the minor gods - none Percy could name. "And it would allow him access to the mortal realm for the purpose of properly adjusting to his Divinity, and gaining recognition from the mortals as a new god. As far as I am aware, he has already received many offerings from veterans of the war in both camps, enough to warrant the chance to cement a position as their Patron god."

Percy was stunned - what was with Zeus being nice? Sure, Zeus now had to deal with him forever, and they'd have to work together. But this was going beyond just a normal level of politeness, or work-colleagues. He was being kind to Percy. And it, frankly, scared the new god. He'd have to ask about it later. While lost in his thoughts, the Council voted - Zeus, Poseidon, Hephaestus, Aphrodite, Apollo, Artemis, Demeter, Ares of all people, Athena, and Hermes all voted Yes, for both Chiron's promotion and Percy being instilled as a camp director, while Hera abstained, and Dionysus voted no.

And with that, the Council was dismissed.


Leaving the Throne Room, Percy was more than a bit shaken. The fact that he couldn't escape the Fates, despite his immortality, was a reality-ruining experience, and he was already having a pretty shit reality. And the knowledge that he couldn't really live as just this - a minor god, barely acknowledged beyond the necessity of people creating oaths, that he would get more domains… He really didn't like that.

But, as his life has proven time and time again, there's… truly not much you could do against the Fates. Much less, apparently, their mother.

Idling his way down the massive slope leading up to the Throne Room and homes of the Olympians, Percy eventually hit the plateau at the bottom, and found himself in a park. Directly in his line of sight after walking through the gates, far down the road, was a statue.

Percy didn't want to see this statue. He didn't want to be reminded. But he walked, as he should, to honor the fallen. The park was silent- despite this being the biggest park on the mountain, no gods found themselves here, far more concerned with a party being held in his honor he didn't find himself caring to attend.

Stopping at its foot, Percy looked up- a Scythe falling into the Hearth, a pleading voice and a flash of blood, a drained form with golden curls framing an empty face, a Yankies hat at the feet of a man with gold- no, blue - eyes, the dripping of golden blood- and then back down. He couldn't stomach it. His hands ghosted over a plaque, and then a voice erupted from behind him.

"Perrrcy!" The voice trilled, and the sound of hooves pounding against stone rushed towards him, and Percy felt a body slam against his, hitting the ground hard. Percy rolled, slamming the person beneath him to the ground, only to see Grover. A bit older, a bit of a shaggier beard, but… Grover.

Percy scrambled off of him, helping the satyr pull himself up, and the new god smiled. "Hey, G-Man! What are you doing on Olympus?"

Grover started a trot while he talked, leading Percy over to a bench. "Well, honestly, a lot. Being Lord of the Wild gave me a bit of a pass to come here, not much though, but after, uh…" He looked Percy up and down out of the side of his eye. "All of… y'know. Actually it's a bit of a long story-" Grover sat down on the bench, stretching a bit as Percy sat next to him. "Basically. The empathy link we had? I told you a while back that it would kill the other one if one of us died, right?" Percy nodded. He remembered that well. While he would have gone to save Grover from Polyphemus anyways, that added a bit of fuel to the flame. "You die, I die, I die, you die, but, apparently… You ascend, I do too. I'm the new God of the Wild. The new Pan."

Percy didn't really know how to feel about this - something that was happening a lot today. On one hand, Grover was immortal with him! Someone he knew, liked, and could trust, would be going along with him on this journey of his. On the other hand, though, Grover had also been immortal much longer than he had - or, at least, had more experience due to not being unconscious for a year. And he hadn't exactly had a say in it, either. Percy at least kind of did.

Grover didn't get that chance.

Percy threw it out of his mind as Grover started to talk, and the two chatted for what could have been hours. Mostly about what Grover had done while Percy was out - a lot of wildlife preservation and reclamation, the topic of Apollo's adventures came up and Percy got briefed on that whole fiasco (what was Zeus thinking?) as well as what was going on at Camp. The city was coming along really nicely, apparently, though the gods hadn't quite figured out the safe transportation method yet (or, if they have, they haven't said anything or made it yet) between Greece and Rome, and apparently Hestia was a bit out of date with her information as he called the city "New Hellas" before explaining there was some vote going on with the leaders being "New Hellas" and "New Achaea". Percy didn't feel particularly strong in either direction, but Grover apparently had some strong opinions he only half paid attention to-

Grover finished up telling what Percy was certain was a heart-wrenching story of his marriage ceremony to Juniper (that he wasn't at all upset he wasn't invited to definitely not-) when the satyr suddenly shot upright! "Oh! Oh! You need to see camp!"

Percy smiled- he was waiting for this, especially since he could change camp now, without needing to lead a few wars for it. He could expand cabins, tables, maybe even the border! The possibilities of what he could do were endless! He could help!

The God of Oaths shot up, heading towards the elevator. "Well what are you waiting for, G-Man? Let's go!"

Grover looks confused for a moment, before blinking a few times. "Oh, do you not know how to Flash yet? C'mon, I'll do it. Can teach you after."

Percy stared at him, before laughing. "Right. Gods. Yeah, bud, let's go."

Holding out his hand, Grover's fingers brushed his and he felt his form shatter into a billion pieces, his consciousness spreading to encompass what he thought could very well be everything, hearing every spoken or thought promise, every agreement, and every deal being struck, as he shifted into his Divine Form for the first time. Feeling a tug as the energy that made up his body was shunted into a direction, Percy felt his attention shift and narrow down - a singular tree atop a hill, a magical barrier that spread around him to allow him entry, the electric feeling in the air even after Thalia had been released from her prison, and in what could have been an instant or an eternity, he and Grover stood at the base of Thalia's Tree, on top of Half-Blood Hill.


A/N

This is an idea that's been floating around in my head for almost a year now, and after reading a few different fics, such as "The Gates of Horn and Ivory" by OhSchist11, "Astraeus" by FicReaper, and the Gods know how many others over that time, I've managed to piece together enough ideas, friends in this circle, and medication to let me actually write something legible.

Admittedly, I did write the extreme majority of this in about 3 binge sessions of 2-3k words each, with a few smaller bursts of edits and detail expansion, and as stated in tags you're seeing the first and last draft. I edit as I write, and am enough of a perfectionist I don't write down scenes I'm not mentally happy with. That likely won't change as I write this story, so if you see anything that doesn't make sense - transitions that feel too sharp, sentences that don't parse right, or whatever else, please leave a comment to let me know. They're useful for that, and they also fuel my soul, and let me harass my beta readers over things they missed. This is also my first writing project since 2021, and the first fic I've wrote since 2018, so try to be gentle with them.

Normally these won't include things like this - just little tidbits for things like translations (as seen below) or little comments if I can think of anything worth saying.

- Translations, Names, and Other Bullshit -

(In order of appearance)

Asclepius - In Riordan's work, he was made a god upon death. However, in actual myth, he was turned into a star, alongside people like the original Castor and Pollux, and as happened to Zoe in the books. I've decided to do a middleground here, as stated by Hestia, where he can manifest in places holy to him, as well as through Apollo's Divinity. Basically serving as another "Aspect" of Apollo.

The Whole Hestia Thing p1 - Hestia is a God. As nice of a God she may be, she is still a God. She doesn't understand many things of mortals, like why being sad someone died would be important. She can respect it, but it doesn't really... make sense, to her. She does know that they find it important, yes, but she also knows that Percy has a lot of stuff that needs to be done, and that learning Jason died may very well break him for a longer-than-acceptable amount of time. Zeus is nicer here than canon, yes, but he's still impatient.

The Whole Hestia Thing p2 - I've always liked the idea of Percy being Hestia's Champion, especially with the whole "returning Hope to the Hearth" thing, but I don't like the way a lot of older fics handled it, with the whole food manifestation and conjuring fire. I did want him to have powers though, and they'll come up, but that's spoilers.

Epithets and Names - In canon, names have power, but that's really told and never shown. I've decided to make it that Percy just... didn't care, but it's still true. Names/Epithets are how gods show up in multiple places - aspects of themselves that they can split off to make avatars, that are good at different things and act different ways. Percy got two here - translations below.

Orkistís - Quite literally, I shoved "Oathkeeper" into Google Translate. Showcases his aspect as God of Oaths, his only current one.

Polýolvos - A name attributed to Hestia, roughly meaning "blessed by many." I felt it'd fit, for spoiler reasons, and to showcase his connection and blessing from Hestia. Like Zeus said, if (when) Percy gets more domains, they'll likely be connected to things he's done or people he's connected to, such as Hestia, or Poseidon.

The Whole Dionysus Thing - I felt it was total bullshit Apollo got turned mortal, but nothing happened to Ares, or Dionysus, or anyone else who fucked up, so I changed that. Others also got punished, just hasn't come up yet.

"They shall grow, as our Mother demands" - This is specifically referring to Anake. Also referenced in this chapter as "the Serpent"

Flashbacks - PTSD's a bitch, man.

Chirton is right. Goodbye.