Percy – II

Percy stayed a feet away from the weird man. He didn't really have great experiences with people (or mummies) followed around by green smoke.

"You shouldn't be here, Perseus." The priest said in a bit of an alarm. "Things will get complicated. The fates will not be happy."

Percy snorted. When were they ever happy with him.

"Of course. Can we skip the usual 'you are a threat Percy' intro and get to the part where you tell me where I am?" Percy replied in exasperation. He had encountered the same dialogues hundreds of times. He wished there was a button to skip these 'cutscenes' from his life. It would make things faster.

"Do you think this is a joke, child?" The priest replied angrily, as his eyes glowed, the blue rims of his eyes glowed unnaturally, as Percy came to a sudden realisation.

"You are a priest blessed by Apollo himself." Percy stated.

The priest ignored Percy's statement, as he shook his head in worry.

"This shall not lead to a good outcome, Perseus. I am not a direct descendant of Lord Apollo, so I cannot tell what forces are at act here." The priest started as he joined both his hands and prayed to Apollo, looking towards the sky as if Apollo was going to send a message.

"Head North, Perseus, towards Mount Parnassus. You will meet someone important there. Hurry. You must join the thousand feet. March along. Hurry." The priest said as he suddenly grabbed his shoulders and tried to usher him out of the hut in a haze.

Percy narrowed his eyes as he took the priest's hands in his own, tightly locking the priest's hands in place. The priest shivered as he seemed to suddenly break out of the dream and looked into Percy's eyes. They had lost all the mirth that was usually in them.

"Where am I?" Percy said calmly, but both knew it was not a question.

"What do you know about king Agamemnon, boy?"

Percy tilted his head. 'King' Agamemnon was quite famous in camp. He was quite a controversial figure. Everyone in the camp hated his personality, even if the books about his 'wise' personality tried to justify the wars he brought on to his nation, crippling its subjects, but they all begrudgingly accepted his merit as a conqueror, especially the Ares cabin. Agamemnon might have been inhumane in regards to actual war, depending more on numbers and sending his soldiers to die without a care, but he was a powerful king, with a very strong political influence. Afterall, he did unify the Achaean forces, however selfish and power hungry the intentions may have been.

Although, Percy wasn't quite sure that he liked the guy.

"Yes, I do." Percy finally replied. "What of him?"

The priest looked him in the eyes, as if he was trying to read his mind.

"He is uniting the kings, Perseus. You don't have much time."

Percy's grip tightened, as a feeling of vertigo hit his head. His eyes grew wide in shock as he tried to deny what the priest insinuated.

"That can't be true. If it is, then that means…"

The priest nodded his head grimly as he forcefully pulled his hands out of Percy's grip, trying to numb the pain cause by Percy.

"You are a trespasser, Perseus." The priest said.

Percy shakily let out the air that he was seemingly holding in his lungs for the past few minutes.

"You do not belong to this era, boy. You are not from this time."

Percy sat in silence, skinning the rabbit meticulously he had just hunted to ready it for dinner as he contemplated the dilemma he was currently in.

The past, huh. Percy thought angrily as he tried to get some of his anger out on the dead rabbit.

This was a new one, Percy thought idly. Turns out he can get unluckier. Perhaps he was secretly cursed by Tyche. Percy groaned and hit his head on the tree that was currently supporting him.

The past. Thousands of years in the past, precisely. His mood got darker as he tried to work around this situation.

Kronos, Percy realised. It could've only been him, he though as anger soon started to take over the misery, as the skinning got more and more uneven.

Of course. It had to be him. Just after he had gone through not one, but two big wars and he finally thought he could get some peace. He could have had a nice life with Annabeth. He would've gone to the college in New Rome with Annabeth. Ideally, they would've finished in a couple years and probably bought a home there, continuing their respective jobs as a marine biology specialist and an architect. They would've taken swordsmanship classes on weekends, and probably would've taken a day off, hopefully no gods interfering them for decades. But now he was stuck in the past. How was he going to get back to Annabeth? How was he going to get back to the life they had planned? What would Annabeth think? Would she even know him? Will he be able to get back to his time? If not, how will he meet Annabeth? What would happen to them?

Annabeth.

Percy tried calm his breathing as he put his sword down for a moment, letting the body of the poor rabbit go.

For Annabeth.

He had to calm down. For Annebeth. He had to find a way. Afterall, that's what he was good at. He always more or less succeeded, regardless of the number of sacrifices made along the way.

He was willing to sacrifice again. Percy narrowed his eyes as he realised, coldly, that he was not just talking about personal sacrifices. He was talking about everything. Everyone.

After all, there's only so much pressure a dam can hold before it bursts, and Percy felt like he was about to overflow. He had reached his threshold, like a brewing tea left on the burner for too long, steaming and bubbling over. If pushed any further, he might not care who got burned.

He tried not to dwell on it as he shook his head furiously and tried to forget what he had just thought. But that fleeting anger was still tied to him, however much he tried to get rid of it, like an anchor to a ship. However much his mind tried, it couldn't get rid of the feeling.

As the night progressed, Percy laid his back on the branch he had climbed to avoid monsters, looking at the night sky.

It looked more clear, devoid of the pollution that the future years were going to harshly lay on the atmosphere. The stars blinked brightly and clearly, and soon his mind calmed down enough to think again about his situation.

He was in the past. Specifically, the era of the Trojan War.

He tried to remember the lessons they had had on this part of the history. It was quite famous, and Percy remembered most of the impactful parts of it. How Agamemnon had rallied the Achaean forces in the name of getting his brother's bride back, using it as a way to fulfil his hunger for power. How they had fought a war lasting ten years, Achilles butchering through the enemies till a fateful mistake on Achilles' part and trickery from Apollo's. How a trojan horse was made, a cunning trick, leading to the fall of Troy.

Although he knew the important tidbits of the war, it still left out a lot of information. If he would've have known something like this was going to happen to him, he would've picked up the probably thousand-page long book that would surely be found in the Athena cabin.

Percy tried to give himself a bit of leeway here. Even if he probably would've read the book, there was no way the accounts were going to be accurate. It was a fact; the history books are always skewed in the favour of the side who won the war. He was sure the book present in a Greek camp would just be full of lies, glorifying the Greek empire. Perhaps it was better to not go in with opinions full of lies. He was not even sure if the chain of events would be the same or not. For now, he could work with the important information he had, forming opinions on his way, tackling the problems as they come. He would deal with the legends of the era if it comes to that.

Percy blinked as he stopped his train of thoughts. Why was he thinking he would have to deal with those people? Why was he associating himself with the Trojan war?

Percy grimaced as he remembered his lack of luck. If the fates had their way, they would probably torture him as much as they could for potentially altering the future they had weaved.

Percy hoped it wouldn't come to that.

He wished that he could resolve this without being part of any major events in history. He had tried sacrificing a rabbit to his father to gain his attention, but it didn't lead to a response. The war must have started having its effects on Olympus. He was sure the Gods had started taking sides and the tensions must have been rising. Zeus would surely have limited the contact of the immortals from the mortals in order to avoid godly intervention. The only hint he had was to head North, which will apparently lead him to Mount Parnassus.

One step at a time, Percy.

Annabeth's voice seemed to whisper to him as the day's events started to catch up to him and his eyes started drooping.

You are strong, Seaweed Brain.

A smile unknowingly crept up on his face as he regained his confidence. He was strong. He knew that. He would persevere, whatever the challenge ahead of him be.

He would definitely see her again.

One step at a time.

The time he had alone, while walking through the forest didn't help him get a hold on his thoughts. Various possibilities flooded his mind, actions he could take, the consequences he might suffer.

He could very well storm to Olympus and try to get the attention of the Gods. But one thing he had learned by now was that the Gods were selfish and arrogant. They had no reason to help him, nor would they just let a demigod of his power, especially a potential time traveller leave be.

No, he had to think properly. He needed to make himself seem useful.

Percy shook his head, trying to calm himself.

He would like to think that he was not a believer of fate, and that everyone had a chance to shape their destinies. But he knew there were some outlines of life that were set in stone and right now, the only thing he had to do was reach Mount Parnassus.

The presence of the stream he had encountered earlier was starting to throb more to his body. The bridge connecting the forest and the village was close. Percy had to travel through the village to reach Mount Parnassus. He didn't really want to be stared like an ungodly threat by the villagers, but he supposed there was nothing he could do. A sudden sound of marching stopped his train of thoughts as he rushed towards the approaching forest line and stopped short behind the tree lining.

There was a small phalanx of about a hundred soldiers marching through the village. There were five horse riders, leaders of the phalanx probably, who moved forwards towards the gathering crowd.

A buff man in gold plated armour stepped down from his horse and removed his helmet and stepped forward.

"At ease, brothers. I am Andreas, the leader of this phalanx. We come here, on the command of King Agamemnon, to offer sacrifices at Mount Parnassus to Lady Athena. We wou-"

"But Mount Parnassus is sacred to Lord Apollo!" a villager cried out, panic evident in their voice. "To worship Lady Athena would incur the sun god's wrath upon us!"

Andreas grimaced as he unsheathed his sword and pointed it towards the crowd.

"Lord Apollo is a god, and we respect him as such. But he has decided to side with the Trojans. Whereas, Lady Athena has blessed the Achaeans with her support in this battle."

Andreas sighed and looked up in the sky. Hatred for Apollo was strong among the soldiers. But only few dared to oppose him head on. He was a God, after all. But none hated Apollo more than King Agamemnon. In truth, sacrificing to Athena was not the only task he was assigned with. Yes, they needed the blessing of the Gods for this expedition, clearly evident by the difficulty faced in gathering the forces. But Agamemnon wanted to send a message. To Apollo himself. Andreas was tasked with getting a prophecy from the oracle of Delphi, and kill her afterwards.

Andreas gulped. Other than killing the oracle of Delphi, the path to the summit of Mount Parnassus was infested with monsters. Andreas looked behind him and saw a young kid trying to not get buried under the weight of his armour.

This 'quest' of his was not an act of importance, but an act of anger. Just to spite Apollo. The Achaean forces could not afford to send qualified to soldiers to this unnecessary mission.

But, if he could, somehow, bring the head of the Oracle to Agamemnon, he would surely be rewarded heavily. Afterall, he was a legacy of the goddess Nike. That had to mean something, right? He had godly blood in his veins. He was the legacy of the Goddess of Victory!

"You know what," Andreas started, "Fuck Apollo."

The face of Andreas rested in a forever grimace, as his head was spiked on a tree branch, blood dripping to the ground slowly, as the sun shone brightly on his beheaded face.

Percy grimaced disapprovingly at the scene before him. Percy had followed the phalanx, trailing them quietly towards Mount Parnassus. Cursing the Gods while being powerless was not a good idea, Percy thought.

Percy continued to move on, slaying the monsters that dared to face him.

The consequences were contrasting. On one side lay a decimated phalanx, consisting of a hundred people, and on the other hand lay a pathway of golden dust. It was beautiful, in a way. Percy was experienced after all.

Moreover, he was strong.

Reaching to the summit was a matter of when, and soon, Percy had reached his destination.

A distant melody started to reach his ears as he moved to towards the centre of the summit and a cave came in his view. The melody was beautiful, and Percy had to consciously tense his muscles to stay on alert. Percy took a deep breath and entered the cave.

The cave was lit by torches, the fire in which seemed to sway to the tunes of the melody. Percy walked steadily, not really caring to soften the sound of his footsteps. If the person singing was who he thought she might be, then she already knew he was here.

Percy soon reached a cavern, on the centre of which was big stone. A beautiful women sat on the stone, surrounded by many animals, from squirrels to rabbits to foxes. The squirrels ran up and down her arms, as she laughed melodiously on the acts of the squirrels.

Blue eyes stared at him as a shiver went down his spine. He was facing the Oracle of Delphi.

"Welcome Perseus." She said sweetly, beckoning him closer. "Or should I call you Percy?"

Percy didn't answer as he slowly stepped closer, riptide lowered beside him but still in his hand, ready to be used immediately.

"My, my, aren't we a bit distrustful?" The oracle laughed as she petted the fox in her lap that was snarling at him.

"Well, as you must know, I have more enemies than friends, no?" Percy replied.

She smiled lightly as she responded, "True, true. But such is to be expected for someone who defeated the Titan king." Her eyes glowing knowingly.

Percy breathed deeply. She knew.

"Yes, I know." She replied as if she was reading his mind. "I am Pythia, the Oracle of Delphi after all, no?"

"Then tell me why am I here. Who was it that sent me here?"

"You know that already child. No one else could have such power."

Kronos, Percy thought. This confirmed his suspicions.

"But how is this possible? This surely defies something that the fates have constructed."

Pythia laughed as she shook her head, as if his question amused her.

"Of course, sending someone back in time is not something the fates condone. But the fates disapprove many things. Especially a demigod changing fates. Yet, you managed to do it. What makes you think that Kronos, the Titan of Time, cannot do the same?"

Percy opened his mouth to respond, but found himself flustered.

"I suppose," He finally managed to get out, "But how do I get back? I was told to go towards Mount Parnassus by the priest of Apollo. Surely you must have some way" he asked, with desperation in his voice.

Pythia smiled sadly at him. The oracles of Apollo were… special. In a way, they were more closely to tied to the Fates themselves than Apollo. They often saw more than Apollo. She knew, what hardships the boy in front of her had suffered. His fate was cruel, and she was among the very few people in this whole world that knew of it in this time.

"Perseus, hero of Olympus. You must know, Kronos is a powerful being. Even more powerful than Zeus. A spell casted by him cannot be reversed by any God, let alone you."

Percy's breath caught in his lungs as panic rose within him. He tried to calm himself down, be he was failing to do so. All these years, all the hardships, the battles, the losses, to not even spend his life with someone he loved?

"Calm down, Perseus."

"How am I supposed to calm down?" Percy shouted. "All the sacrifices that I made, what did they even lead up to?"

"It isn't all lost, Perseus." Pythia started calmly, her eyes soaring over the dishevelled state of the demigod in front of her. It was warranted, she thought. Even she couldn't completely see what was about to happen in the far future, but she knew one thing: the future had changed. For better or worse, she didn't know yet. But there were strings, many strings. Her eyes roamed around Perseus. Strings connected to his entire body. Many, many possibilities, strings breaking and forming upon his every action.

"Join the war, Perseus. That is the only way. For you, and for the world." Pythia said as her eyes glazed, her being adrift from the present.

"What? The war? Why do I have to join the war? And how will it affect the world?" Percy started, alarmed. The war took ten years to settle. He did not have that much time. "I do not have that much time, Pythia. You are the Oracle of Delphi for fuck's sake. You must know something, some prophecy?"

"Prophecy?" Pythia's eyes refocused and snapped to the entrance of the cave. Here eyes narrowed as she started to move deeper into the cave.

"What- Where are you going?"

"There is someone here to meet you at the entrance of the cave, Percy. I must leave. It is not safe for me."

Percy looked between the entrance of the cave and the retreating figure of Pythia.

"The prophecy! Give me some lead!" Percy shouted. He didn't like the desperation in his voice, but he needed information. Pythia looked back at him, her eyes glowing.

"You will get a prophecy, child, but not from me." She said, as she disappeared inside the cave, the animals skittering behind her.

Percy watched her leave, as thoughts flooded his mind. His hands trembled and anger started to simmer in his mind. His sword swung in impulse, cleaving the stone in front of him in two.

"Fucking immortals and their secrets. Leaving the rest of us to suffer in the dark." Percy muttered as he started to make his way back to the entrance. He deduced it must be an immortal waiting for him, though he was not quite sure which one. Well, whoever it was, Percy was not in a good mood.

He stormed his way out the cave as the light hit his face. His vision readjusted, and there outside the cave stood a woman adorning a flowing chiton, covered with armour. A spear in one hand and the aegis in another.

The Goddess Athena stood at the entrance of the cave in all her glory.

Percy groaned. She was not the immortal he would have liked to see now. He did not expect one of his big haters to help him in this situation. Percy decided to shovel his disappointment inside and instead decided to just quietly stare at the goddess. If she wanted something from him, she would say it. If she wanted to kill him, well, she was welcome to follow the footsteps of Ares.

Athena looked at the demigod in front of her. He reeked of the sea.

She scrunched her nose as disapproval masked her face. She was assessing the preparation of the Achaean forces when she had distinctly heard the prayers of the phalanx being decimated. She had heard about the mission to desecrate Apollo's beloved Delphi, and although it was quite obvious that was never going to happen, she liked to think even the mere attempt should itch Apollo's temper.

So, she immediately flashed to the location of the massacre, not to save them, of course, she had better things to do than save foolish mortals who dared to insult gods without even having any power or influence, but to clean up their bodies. The murder of a complete phalanx of soldier, that set out on a mission in the name to offer her sacrifices would not really motivate the commonfolk to help in the cause of war. After all, the common folk were measly cowards, running around to any immortal that would pay them a dime of attention, and she didn't need them to act as a thorn to her plans in the war.

But, imagine her surprise, when she saw an unknown demigod, of the sea, on a killing spree of monsters. To use such a demigod…

To be honest, Athena could not tell how strong he was. Achilles could kill ten times the number of monsters with relative ease, but this was not a normal war. This was a war, supported by the divine. A war of this measure was catastrophic, and losing it was not something Athena wanted attached to her name.

The Achaeans, and Trojans too, surely, had been accumulating the demigod numbers in their army. Afterall, it was them who would ultimately decide the flow of the war. And a spawn of the sea usually meant trouble, especially one that had escaped from Athena's eyes for years.

Athena stared at the defiant pose of the demigod in front of her, a bronze sword casually lay in one hand. Athena's anger flared at the insolence.

"Bow, boy. You stand in front of the Goddess of Wisdom." Athena said, voice layered with power.

But Percy was not one to be affected by it. In fact, this only served to increase his own temper, and angry Percy was not polite.

"So? Why the fuck would I bow to you of all people."

Athena blasted the demigod before he could even finish his sentence. Well, the Achaeans didn't really need him anyway, she thought, as she turned away from the forming cloud of dust.

"One sea spawn less wouldn't really affect Poseidon, hopefully." She said normally and turned around ready to flash.

"Well unfortunately for you, goddess, I am not dead."

Athena turned around, quite surprised, as she saw Percy standing in the middle of the cloud of dust, sword raise, apparently cutting through the blast of energy. She cocked her head, observing the specimen in front of her. To be very honest, Athena had underestimated the spawn. The energy in the blast of power was low, but its speed…

To possess such reflexes was rare and not easily attainable. To have another demigod with at least some significance of power in the Achaean forces could turn out to be helpful. Athena stepped forward as she circled the alert Percy, standing in the middle with his sword raised.

"I have to say, demigod, you do seem quite interesting. Who are you?"

"You are literally the Goddess of wisdom; shouldn't you already know about me?" Percy retorted.

Something about angering immortals just pleased his mind, and the look of anger on Athena's face was totally worth it. However, he had to be careful. A battle with Athena could go anyway, and he didn't really want to blast the entire mountain off just like Mount St. Helens.

"You insolent demigod. I could blast you to smithereens with the blink of my eye." A demigod insulting to a Goddess, an Olympian no less, was diminishing, and Athena wanted nothing but his death,

"Well, then why don't you?" Percy questioned, looking into Athena's eyes. Most of the Gods were selfish bastards, and her not attacking a son of Poseidon, who just insulted her, meant only one thing. She wanted to use him, and Percy meant to take advantage of that.

Athena breathed deeply and straightened the non- existent creases in her chiton as she calmed herself down. She didn't want to lose a potentially powerful pawn in this war.

"You look Greek, boy. Join the Achaean forces under King Agamemnon and serve my cause. Fight under the Greek banners, and if I deem your contributions worthy, I shall spare your life."

"No."

"No?" Athena repeated, the anger simmering again.

"I will not do it, at least for nothing." Percy replied, waiting for Athena to take the bait.

"Is sparing your life not enough of a gift for you?"

Percy laughed at her response. The level of their selfishness always seemed to surprise him.

"Sparing my life, to fight your war, to save your reputation. It seems only fair to me that I receive something in return of putting my life in line in the war."

Athena stared at the boy. She could kill him at any moment, like an insect squished in your hands, in fact any other God would have already done so, but not her. She was knowledge herself. She would use him. Afterall, his death shall be in vain and his power will be wasted.

"What do you want?" Athena questioned, letting Percy speak. In her mind, Percy was a foolish powerless demigod, and Percy would keep it that way for now.

"An attendance with the Olympian council, after the war." Percy said, watching the Goddess as she raised her eyebrows in question.

"And why do you want an audience with the Gods?" Athena had encountered many a demigod wanting an audience with the Gods, most for immortality, some for power and some for money. Many were blasted by Zeus for expecting something from the immortals as if they were owed, some achieved their wishes. In theory, it did not matter. He was no threat, and she supposed, there was not much he might accomplish even after meeting the council.

"You will know that when I attend the council, Lady Athena." Percy replied, deciding to stay civil for now. Afterall, something important was at stake now.

Athena stared at him for a few moments, staring at his skull as if she wanted to gauge his brain out and know all his intentions.

"Very well, you shall be granted the audience, if, we win this war and your contributions were noteworthy." Athena answered. Well, however unproblematic it might be granting an attendance to him might be, it was something that was only given to a few mortals.

"Seems a bit vague, no?" Percy replied. Her demands were not set, and he didn't intend to be played on by words.

"It is what it is, mortal. Accept the deal or be prepared to die."

Athena's patience was depleting, and the want to kill him was ringing in her head. Perhaps he was not that important.

"Fair, fair," Percy started, trying to not let this deal go away from him, but well, there were some things that bever changed, "I agree, as long as you swear on the river Styx."

Athena scrunched her face as she contemplated. Swearing on Styx did not hold Gods as tightly as it does for mortals. Yes, the Styx always remembers, and there will be consequences if she were to not hold her end of the deal, but she will deal with it when the time comes.

"I swear on the Styx to uphold my end of the deal if yours is completed." Well, her end of the deal was still vague, and she could still play him on words while he will have to play his part.

"You are naïve, child. Leave to join the forces." Athena said as she smirked at Percy for one last time, and turned to leave.

Percy looked at the retreating figure of Athena and cocked his head. Athena was smart, and he supposed he could not really get more out of the Goddess in this situation. But she had flaws too. Yes, she did twist the words, but he could twist his actions.

"Athena," Percy called out, stopping her in her tracks as she turned around.

Percy's face set in stone with determination, as he thought about Annabeth. There was nothing that was going to stop him from reaching her. Not any Goddess, Titan, the Styx, the Fates, anyone. He will push through all of them. Everyone. He was not cruel, no, he was still the same Percy, but he will not be used again. He will do anything to reach her.

"If you do not uphold your end of the deal, I will kill King Agamemnon with my own hands. I will destroy the Achaean generals and shake the foundations of the Achaean leadership and leave a mark on history that cannot be ignored. Your beloved Greece and Athens will remember the consequences of betrayal."

Percy watched as the Goddess' faced morphed into anger and turned away as she flashed away, incinerating the surroundings in her anger.

Percy patted the dust off of himself as he made his way down the mountain.

Well, time to crash a war, Percy thought with a groan.