On the way back and even when they arrived back at Atlantis, Percy couldn't make sense of what he was feeling. He hated Oceanus. The titan of the sea had terrorised his father's kingdom, killed thousands in a war he waged and had all but destroyed the careful balance of the sea with just that act alone. Letting him go and not even fighting him felt…wrong. At the same time however, he knew that they stood no chance against what were at least four elder titans with presumably more given what he observed from Artemis' reaction. He knew that they would return to Atlantis with a peace negotiation and without casualties which was more than successful. He knew that this was a good, maybe even perfect result. But his heart disagreed.
It told him to rip Oceanus apart limb by limb and only stop when the titan was begging to be killed. It told him to lash out and unleash all his power and wrath to bury even the slightest risk of Oceanus ever becoming their enemy again. In all his life, Percy wasn't sure if he had ever hated anyone quite as much as he hated this particular titan, even when considering Gabe Ugliano or Kronos himself. Too many of his father's people, of his people, had died because of Oceanus.
He also knew that Triton felt the same. Even now his brother was gripping his trident with what seemed to be his full goldy strength and even if it was only a little bit, currents were still surging around him with violent force. Even his step-mother, who he had always viewed as calm and level-headed, maybe even as apathetic, was screaming bloody murder with her gaze. Her usually regal composure was showing cracks that Percy had never seen before and what was seeping through sure wasn't any longing for her parents. It was the same cold wrath her son and step-son were radiating.
Only Artemis was really devoid of bloodlust, at least on their side. She seemed almost timid right now, something Percy guessed was attributed to the presence of her grandparents. Unlike most other Olympians, Artemis had grown up with her mother and Percy knew from their short encounter in the pit that at least Coeus was rather fond of his children too. She had probably seen them before in a much more peaceful setting and he was sure that had also influenced her decision to side with them when demanding peace talks.
In general the presence of Coeus and Phoebe was the only thing that upheld the brittle peace right now as they were actively distancing Oceanus and Tethys from their daughter, grandson and from him to keep them from killing each other. To their credit, this worked too. They had somehow made it all the way back to Atlantis and no one had been stabbed through with a trident despite how tempted Percy felt to change that. Now they wouldn't be at a disadvantage even if they fought too.
As if on cue, the city's gates opened to reveal an armed battalion of mermen, Poseidon himself leading them. His father was clad in full armour, trident in hand and his power right now exceeding everyone else in the vicinity. "What is the meaning of this, titans? What mockery do you make of my family?"
That was when Percy realised that this probably looked like they were hostages to the titans to Poseidon. Percy also noticed that regardless of his strong appearance, Poseidon was throwing multiple worried glances at his wife and sons while still trying to make sense of the situation. "Peace, nephew. We come bearing no arms and we only wish to speak with you!"
It was Coeus that answered, probably because he was the most neutral of the present titans. Despite that Percy could still see the doubt in his father's stance until Amphitrite also made her move, swimming up to her husband and whispering something to him. That finally convinced Poseidon as he slowly lowered his trident, Oceanus doing the same in response as he had summoned his weapon the moment Poseidon had shown up. On both sides the tension slowly disappeared until eventually the battalion of mermen moved to create a path for them as Poseidon turned around and swam towards the palace. "Very well, follow me then. We will talk in the council chambers."
On that cue, Triton and Amphitrite followed at Poseidon's side with Percy right behind them as he gently accelerated Artemis' swimming too just enough for her to not fall behind. The titans were following them only a moment later, seemingly discussing something else before finally entering the city too. Inside their welcome was what one would expect. The citizens of Atlantis were circling their group, some going to hug the mermen that had returned safely while others threw harsh glares at Oceanus and Tethys.
As he swam by, Percy could hear them, their whispers and insults. He knew that they weren't directed at him. But he still felt like they were. The citizens were right, Oceanus just couldn't be forgiven. He couldn't be allowed peace talks. And yet that is what they were doing. Percy felt like he was dishonouring every single fallen soldier from the titan war, every fish or merman that had died battling the titan of the sea.
Arriving at the palace felt like a slover of salvation as the murmuring of the people finally started to quiet down and the subtle relaxation of his brother's shoulders told him that Triton felt the same. Leadership was a heavy burden, especially when they had failed to avenge the kany fallen heroes of the sea just now. When the doors of the palace shut behind the last titan, Tethys, the last of the mermen quickly left the room. Poseidon and Amphitrite had already grown larger to take their seats and Percy hastily joined them at their side. Since Triton was the crown prince his throne was next to Poseidon's while Percy, who couldn't grow larger on a whim yet, was given a pair of small thrones for himself and Artemis next to Amphitrite.
Their guests on the other hand were given what were more or less just luxurious portable seats for giants as they grew to match Triton's height, staying just a bit shorter than Poseidon who wasted no time from here on. "Speak then, uncle, what do you want?"
The word uncle seemed like an insult from his father and to be fair, maybe it was. They were related through Kronos after all. "We simply seek for this war to end. You and Oceanus have fought for a long time and caused heavy damages to each other and I understand that you will find it hard to let this go now but a new threat is upon us, one that not only threatens you but us as well and we simply cannot afford any more fighting. Continuing this war will spell doom for us both."
Even though it was Coeus that spoke, Percy had the feeling that all four of them agreed on this. Even Oceanus who had opposed his brother's every action so far was nodding his head in agreement right now. Poseidon on the other hand was busy contemplating the offer, still deep in thought. "So you want us to make peace and stand together against whatever new threat is coming our way? What reason do I have to trust you? To believe that you won't just turn on us the moment this new threat is vanquished?"
In that moment both Poseidon and Coeus were basically butting heads with the titan not having a response ready just for Phoebe to speak for the first time, catching the room's attention. "Do you really know so little? The pit is stirring and even the primordial forces are awakening and you think you could face it alone? That we could ever have the liberty of turning on you?"
At that the entire room turned cold and deadly silent. Coeus didn't seem surprised and neither were Percy or Artemis. Everyone else however was staring at Phoebe no doubt processing the weight of what she had just said. Before Poseidon could even answer at all, a quiet 'father' was whispered by Oceanus, fear palpable in his voice. All he got in return was a solemn nod from his brother.
"So you know more about this new prophecy than we do…if the coming war really is one against the primordials themselves, we cannot fight it alone, that much is true. How do I know you aren't just tricking us though, titaness?" Poseidon seemed to still have doubts though even he had the decency to look ashamed when Coeus and Phoebe both started to chuckle a little. "No, if you fight a war against the primordials then even with our help, you are doomed. The only one you truly need to take out is the lord of the pit, the others you will simply have to make your peace with. As for why you should trust us, why don't you ask your son? He and my granddaughter stand at the center of this convoluted patch of fate and after our last encounter I'm sure he won't ever forget the coming enemy."
At that all eyes in the room turned to Percy and by extension to Artemis next to him. Of course he knew what Coeus was talking about, he still dreaded the memory of that day and the price he had to pay just to escape Tartarus once. "He's telling the truth. I…Annabeth and I met him when we were down there and we saw how he…how the lord of the pit took form. He wasn't fully back yet but he was able to easily beat Damansen, Iapetus and myself despite that. He's definitely coming back and he's more dangerous than even Gaea."
He had to pause several times to choose his words carefully as he only remembered in the last second that calling Tartarus by name could attract his attention to them. Even if he viewed them all as ants to be squashed, pulling his gaze to a potential alliance founded on the goal of defeating him wouldn't bring anything good.
Following his words was an awkward silence as the two sea titans as well as the three sea gods all kept looking at him in curiosity. All of them were clearly surprised either by the fact that he had seen Tartarus or that he had survived him. Just when Percy began uncomfortably shifting his body under the prolonged gaze, Poseidon finally took back control of the meeting. "In that case I will believe you, Coeus. You said that my son and Artemis will be at the center of this conflict, does that mean you know more than the prophecy delivered to Olympus?"
Even though he hadn't said it out loud, the peace agreement between his father and Oceanus had basically been sealed by now. Percy could also guess why as his father, just like Coeus, had been in the pit before and as a god he had seen it mostly for what it was. Unlike Percy whose mortal eyes couldn't perceive the true horrors of hell, his could and apparently just seeing that was enough to instill fear into even one of the most powerful gods.
"Of course, who do you think Apollo has inherited his power from? My husband and I were the original messengers of fate and we are still able to observe it closely. Whatever it is that is coming, the two of them must be at the center of it for us to stand a chance." This time it was Phoebe that answered though her and Coeus seemed to know each other well enough to speak for each other anyways.
"Then will you tell us what you know? If we are to work together against this new threat we should at least exchange what little information we have." By now this had turned into a strategic meeting. "Of course but we simply don't know much more. This thread of fate wasn't spun by the morai but by something older and we cannot see her secrets…all we know is that the two of them are important, the rest is beyond us."
Coeus' words suddenly gave Percy an idea, almost a revelation. If they couldn't see it…"Coeus, can you see the fate of other pantheons?" Before he could dwell on it more, Percy just asked. If the titans could help them decipher the prophecy that would be a huge help. What he didn't expect however was for the titan to in turn let out a booming laugh. "And they said you were a foolish demigod! One should never believe in rumors it would seem. That's a good question, a really good question…we cannot. The fate of other pantheons has always been hidden from us but it is possible that the prophecy could send you into another pantheon in turn…"
Coeus just trailed off at the end, eyes meeting with his wife and Percy had spent enough time around Annabeth to know that they weren't a part of the meeting anymore. Just like the children of Athena, the two titans were lost in their own thoughts. In turn however, Oceanus took the chance to bring up another concern of his. "Poseidon, there is one more thing we need to discuss. I know that my daughter sensed it too when she confronted us earlier but…the sea's consort has awoken."
Now that Percy didn't know what to make off. He had never heard of there being a consort of the sea or anything similar. His father however seemed to have heard of it before as his gaze immediately darkened, worry seeping into his features. After a single look at his wife to confirm what Oceanus had said, he looked back at Oceanus and Tethys. "I see…that is certainly concerning. We will discuss this further among the four of us but if he plans to take a claim on his old domain we will need to be ready for whatever that may bring with it."
"Indeed, neither you nor I can defeat him alone so we would be wise to work together and even more wise to confront him before his wife wakes up. If she joins him, we won't stand a chance." Hearing Oceanus say that was honestly worrying. He was a titan and subsequently quite prideful so having him admit his own weakness like that was…a statement. Even worse, Poseidon wasn't disputing the claim at all.
Percy had known before that there were old sea gods, even ones preceding his father's reign but he had never heard of any of them being stronger than Poseidon. Before he could ask however, his father spoke up one last time, his voice grimm. "Then we will discuss this soon, Oceanus. Until then, I suggest you stay where we found you earlier and we keep frequent contact."
As he ended the meeting, both king and queen of Atlantis shrunk down again with Poseidon immediately going towards the titans, Artemis and Amphitrite doing the same. Percy in turn remained on his throne, contemplating what just happened while Amphitrite was either talking or arguing with her mother and Poseidon was first talking with Oceanus and then with Phoebe when a conversation between the titaness and Artemis somehow ended in Artemis being scolded. Maybe he should have also stepped up but right now his mind was so jumbled with different thoughts that he felt all but petrified on his little throne.
After a moment, the situation calmed down again with Phoebe appearing to make some kind of concession before turning around and leaving together with her husband. It wasn't long after that when Oceanus and Tethys also left and Poseidon and Amphitrite also went out, in their case to make an announcement to the city. Triton joined them a bit later, also waiting to give a small speech to his troops on why they had opted to make peace with their sworn enemy.
That left only him and Artemis in the throne room and for a moment he was convinced she had also already left without him noticing. "Something is troubling you." It was more of a statement than anything else. He knew that she was waiting for him to say something on his own but his mind was tumbling over multiple issues at once right now and none seemed easy to solve.
"Yeah…it's just…having to just let Oceanus go…it feels wrong, like…it just shouldn't be that way" He was struggling to even articulate it. There wasn't anything wrong with peace. Ending bloodshed was quite the opposite, it was the perfect outcome. But it felt wrong. It felt so awfully wrong to let Oceanus go after all he had done.
"I know but you…it might take some time but you'll have to come to terms with it. It's the better way forward and no matter what he has done, the pit is worse." Percy flinched at that, knowing that she was right. Logically, she was completely right. "But…could you? If you had to make peace with Orion, could you?"
The question came out in a spur of the moment and he immediately regretted it, watching Artemis' face morph into irritation at the mere mention of the name. "Sorry, I shouldn't have brought him up." Even though he was quick to apologise, Artemis continued to look irritated, seemingly growing even more frustrated now before shaking her head and finally looking straight at him again. "No…you don't have to apologise. I could never make peace with him and me asking you to do the same with Oceanus after he destroyed Atlantis was condescending and cruel…"
Artemis sighed before looking at him again, this time without any irritation or anger in her features. "I'm sorry, but it seems like you will need to be stronger than I can be on this."
Her voice was unusually quiet when she said that and it took Percy a moment to realise that she genuinely felt bad for acting that way. "Thanks a lot." He couldn't help the slight sarcasm even though he really did mean it when he thanked her. She hadn't given him a good answer on how to move forward but just hearing that this was something he had to force himself to accept even if he didn't like it…it helped. It gave him a new perspective to look at this from and he needed that right now.
Now all that was left was figuring out the prophecy together with two titans and dealing with whoever the sea's consort was. "I spoke with Phoebe…with my grandmother earlier. She agreed to let us meet my mother."
Yeah, I'm ending on this one. I originally thought I would need way more nuance for this negotiation but while writing I realised that Tartarus was such an overwhelming threat that nuance wasn't really required.
That aside, Coeus and Phoebe are the titans usually associated with foresight and all that stuff so I figured they would probably also be able to hear prophecies and since Coeus is very knowledgeable too they'd definitely know a lot about what is going on. The next chapter will be an extension of what happened here mostly dealing with how this new alliance affects the relationship between Atlantis and Olympus and maybe also starting on the interpretation of the prophecy.
Other than that this chapter also set into motion a few things that neither Percy or Artemis are part of and that will basically be happening off screen while they do other stuff so…I'm kind of glad I won't have to write that and won't have to do the mythological research on that.
That's it for me this week. Since I'm going back to university next week any schedule I may have wanted to keep initially will now be thrown out the window and I'll be updating whenever a chapter is ready…yeah. Have a good rest of the week and I'll hopefully see you soon!
-M