Omicron, Chaos's Commander (A Percy Jackson Fan Fiction)

Chapter 26

[A/N: Dedicated to thewanderingEggbert for an extremely detailed answer. Quintus gave Percy a Stygian ice dog whistle.]

Thalia's POV

The next day, the time for mourning was over. We needed to come up with a plan that would somehow keep the rest of us from getting killed.

Nick had called for a meeting in the Big House to discuss defensive strategies. He had pretty much invited everyone except the immortal campers, hunters, and Chaos soldiers, so basically anyone who could undermine his authority. That was fine by us. We knew that, with most of the Athena cabin at his disposal, he would come up with a decent plan, so we met in the Bunker to form a plan of our own.

"Alright," Annabeth said from the head of the table. "The main problem is obvious. We need to find some way to bring Percy back, or no plan will save us from him and his army's next attack. Any ideas?"

Luke sighed. "Annabeth, we've gone through all of the options. There's no way for someone to stop Erebus or Void from controlling someone else, let alone both of them at the same time. We might have to start looking at . . . other ways of stopping him."

"That's not an option," she said, shaking her head stubbornly. "We're going to need his help to defeat Void."

"Are you sure that's the only reason?" Luke asked.

"You know it isn't," she answered quietly.

"Okay," I interrupted. "Are you sure we can't block their control of him somehow? What could stop Void energy?"

Malcolm stepped forward, their chief strategist. "Well, an equal amount of Chaos energy is one option, but that's far more than any of us have. Another would be an overload of Void energy, which, though it would be extremely dangerous, could give Percy the power to regain control of his body."

"An overload of Void energy?" Annabeth said, almost to herself. I could practically see the gears turning in her head already.

Apparently, Luke could too, because he said, "No, Annabeth, that would be a really bad idea."

She looked up, challenging him with her glare. "You heard what Malcolm said. It could bring Percy back!"

"And what if it did? That amount of power would change him. We wouldn't be saving the Percy that we all know. And it would be even worse if it didn't work. Either it would kill him, and his body would release the energy and kill us all, or he would remain brainwashed, but with infinitely more power to destroy us."

"Do you have any better ideas, Luke?" Annabeth asked.

"Well..." he started, clearly trying desperately to come up with another option.

"So, it's settled then. We have to use the Void sword and give him Void's extra power. He's completely invincible, except for his Achilles' heel, so I'll have to be the one to actually use the sword."

"Wait, what?" I asked, startled. "You're just going to stab him in the one place that could kill him?"

"Thalia, nothing else would affect him at all," Annabeth said. "It has to be there, and then all we can do is hope that it helps him."

Nico sat forward, looking concerned. "This seems pretty risky."

"But Annabeth's right," Luke admitted. "We don't have any other options."

Percy's POV

I was on my way back to Void's throne room, where we were preparing for the next and final attack on the demigods' camp.

There wasn't much left to do. The plan was fairly simple. I would lead another assault through the woods on one side of the camp, while Erebus led the rest of our forces up the hill and through the main entrance of the camp. Void would remain behind and gather his power for when we would have to defeat the Olympians.

I would also have the four Void beings' help in my attack on the camp, though they weren't very much help last time. Well, if Lord Void says they will be useful, I'm sure they will be.

Void and Erebus looked up from the large map of camp they had set up when I came in. I am still fairly glad that they did not punish me for my previous failure, though I know I would have deserved it.

"Come here, Commander," Void said, beckoning.

I strode quickly across the room and stopped before him, standing completely still. It was best not to keep someone like Void waiting.

"Tartarus has supplied us even more powerful monsters this time, so you must be fully prepared for the upcoming battle. This will be your last chance to defeat the demigods once and for all. Do not fail me."

"I won't, lord. No demigod will survive this attack."

"Good," Void said, creating a portal in the center of the room. "Then go with Erebus, and prepare for battle."

I bowed to him, then followed Erebus into the portal. It transported us to the same area I had used as a base of operations for the last battle. There were twice the number of monsters there, along with a couple Titans.

"Kronos, Oceanus," I said, nodding to both in turn.

"Commander Theta, so good to finally meet you," Kronos said. He was smirking at me for some reason, and it made part of me feel uncomfortable, but I ignored it. I wasn't sure which demigod he had convinced to be his host, but it seemed like Kronos was having no problems inhabiting the poor kid.

Poor kid? No. He had sacrificed himself for a worthy cause.

"I was informed that I will be helping you in the attack on Camp Half-Blood," Kronos continued. "Is that correct?"

He voice seemed to be mocking me slightly, but I just nodded in response and turned toward my tent. I could feel his eyes on me the whole way to my tent, and even in the tent's welcome darkness, I still felt uneasy.

I stretched out on the cot, closed my eyes, and immediately fell deep into a dream.

I was running through what might have been a forest . . . I wasn't sure. It seemed familiar, but everything was out of focus and disjointed, like it was incomplete. I was surrounded on all sides by an impenetrable wall of mist.

As I was running, I became aware that other shapes were moving past me. I couldn't quite make out the faces, but I felt like I should know them.

Then, a girl appeared out of the mist in front of me, blonde ponytail bouncing back and forth as she ran. I didn't know why, but I felt like I should catch up to her, that I needed to catch up to her. I ran faster and faster, but she remained just a few feet in front of me.

Eventually, she slowed down, and I was able to draw up alongside her. She turned her head next to me, and I was so shocked, I almost forgot to keep running. She's one of the campers...Annabeth. Why would she be in my dream?

She seemed surprised to see me as well. "Percy?" she said. "Is it really you?"

I shook my head, wondering why she kept calling me that. "No, you're my enemy. You shouldn't be here."

She looked shocked, hurt even, but then her face took on a look of determination. "Percy, I can help you. You need to remember who you really are!"

"I don't need help!" I practically yelled at her. "I know who I am, and I know what I have to do. I'm going to destroy every last one of you, just as my Lord Void commands. Now get out of my head! You're not real!"

She finally stopped keeping pace with me, staring at me in horror. I kept running, not looking back as she was swallowed by the mist.

[A/N: Who were the giant Antaeus's parents?]