Chapter Text
Look, I never wanted to be a half-blood.
In my 20 years, I’ve been expelled from school 15 times, nearly died so many times I’ve lost count, been through literal hell, watched a bunch of my friends die, etc, etc, etc. Only in the past couple of years has my life even BEGUN to be marginally normal. I turned down immortality because I wanted to live a normal life with the woman I loved. So imagine my confusion when I found myself lying on the floor of the Olympian throne-room, dressed in a chiton, with a mouth full of nectar.
But let’s rewind a bit.
If you don’t know me, my name’s Percy Jackson. Yeah, from that series on Disney plus. For the last time, I never wanted this life. I don’t get what part of being stung by a scorpion is appealing to you. The only thing being a demigod has done for me is make my life unnecessarily complicated. Also, did I mention my raging PTSD? I hate the gods way more than any of you edgy dudes online. Don’t even get me started on Zeus. Those dicks are the reason my mom had to endure domestic abuse for 5 fucking years.
So why had the gods turned me into one of them?
Just before, Annabeth and I had been taking a road trip from New Rome University to Montauk, to spend the holidays there with our families. At least, we were, until our car got struck by lightning. Next thing I knew, instead of the ER, I was on Mount Olympus, New York.
Leaning over me, Ganymede's handsome face was puckered apologetically. I grabbed him by the throat.
“Where's Annabeth,” I asked.
“ Ask them ,” he wheezed. I let go of him.
For some reason, the entire Olympian council, plus Hades, was present. No- they'd assembled specifically to vote me in.
Zeus, front and center of it all, seemed to find my reaction funny. He was leaning back on his throne and fiddling with his tie with a smirk on his face. My dad on the other hand, looked like the sight of me pained him. He kept glancing between me and Zeus, like he wanted to speak, but didn't quite know what to say. Ares had a bloodthirsty spark in his eye, and was stroking the barrel of his gun like it was… something else. Demeter was glaring at Ares. Hera was smiling lovingly at Zeus- for once. Athena and Artemis just looked tired. Hephaestus and Hermes looked like they were sorry for me, but had voted to make me a god anyway. Dionysus looked like he desperately needed about 12 bottles of wine. Apollo kept glancing at me nervously while tapping the rhythm of the cancan on his knee, which Aphrodite saw and smiled mischievously to herself.
“Apparently, my daughter wasn't worth saving.” Athena said, eyes burning with silent rage. “She'd better be in Elysium, at the very least, Hades.”
Hades grimaced- he looked like he desperately wanted to return to the underworld, by death if necessary.
“Would it bother you if she were, say, helping to deal with the traffic?”
“Not if she's working with Daedalus. And gets time off whenever she feels like it.”
I felt as though my heart was being torn out of my chest.
“She’s dead?”
Athena’s gaze softened.
“I’m sorry, Percy. There was no other way.”
“What the hell is going on? Why am I here? What did you do to me? That lightning bolt- I remember that lightning bolt. Was that you, Zeus? Did you kill her?”
“No.” His voice resonated through the hall so strongly I felt the vibrations running through my body. His eyes sparked dangerously. “That lightning bolt was not my doing. Hence why I summoned the council, and you are now a god.”
I laughed. The situation was so ridiculous, I couldn’t help but think I must be dreaming. But then again, I was a demigod.
“Hah. Not you? Who was it, then? Kronos? Gaia? Who else would be able to summon a fucking lightning bolt?”
“There are worse threats in this world, Perseus Jackson, than you have ever faced. Primordial threats. Your friend, Nico, met one of them while he was in Tartarus with Will Solace. But Chaos knows no bounds. Unlike Nyx, she has no distinct territory, no
sense, no willpower. Chaos can change the laws of physics as she sees fit. And she is awakening from her slumber.”
I felt like someone had thrown my brain into a blender.
“Chaos? You mean… chaos cast that lightning bolt?”
“Yes.”
My breath turned to ice in my chest. My knees collapsed under me. No. Not again. Not again. My eyes welled up with tears. Images of the dead rushed through my brain- Zoë, Beckendorf, Silena, Michael Yew, Ethan, Luke, Jason- and now Annabeth. I saw her as she had been just before the bolt struck- sleeping peacefully in the passenger seat, her golden hair tied back in a messy ponytail, laptop still open on her thigh. She hadn’t even finished her latest project.
Crunch.
My feet sank into the marble floor. I felt a tug in my stomach- the same kind of tug I’d felt when I’d blown up St Helens.
“Tell me why I should work for you?” I asked. “Seeing as you clearly don’t care what I want.”
The air around me turned cold. Zeus reached for his master bolt.
“I could destroy you right now, Perseus Jackson. Disintegrate your body so not even the atoms would remain. Would you like that?”
A harsh chuckle escaped my throat.
“Go ahead. Kill me. I don’t care.”