Second Chance (Percy Jackson Chaos Theory Fanfic)

Kronos's Weakness?

Percy POV

With Triton on our side the battle went much more smoothly. But we still had about nine thousand five hundred monsters to worry about, plus one rather angry Lord of Time. Now that Triton was out of the way, I could afford to engage in battle with Luke against Kronos.

Luke could definitely use my help, as he was slowly but surely being backed up against the border of camp. A few more steps and he would be at risk. Any monster could attack him without worrying about being incinerated by the border of camp.

Throwing caution to the wind, I ran forward, straight toward Kronos, whose back was toward me. Perfect.

Annabeth was busy annihilating a telkhine, but she took the time to grab me, pull me into her embrace, and whisper, "Go get him, Seaweed Brain." A nice, passionate kiss, and I was sent on my way once again.

I also passed Nico, who held up his hand, which I high-fived on my way by, and continued on. Jason and Thalia shouted at me in encouragement, Piper waved, Clarisse actually smiled (WHOA!), Chiron saluted.

And as I ran past each friend, each brother and sister, love blossomed inside me. These were the people I laughed with. Fought with. Talked with. And loved. There were times when we might fall out or get angry to the point of suicide, sure, but in the end they would always stand by me and give me their support. This was why they were mine.

I had to win this. If not for Luke, then for everyone else. They deserved to have the happiest lives in the world.

All these thoughts, and many, many more muddled together in my mind, coming together until I couldn't contain my feelings any more. It all came out in a loud scream as I launched myself on Kronos and wrapped my arms around his neck in the choke hold.

Thankfully, Luke knew what to do. While Kronos dealt with the delightful struggle of throwing me off, Luke leaned down and grabbed Kronos's legs, suddenly jerking upward and flipping Kronos around. Seconds before the god of Time landed, I slipped off his back and landed neatly on both feet. Riptide, which I had retrieved from my cabin earlier that day, was in my hands in a matter of seconds. The golden bronze grip was a familiar comfort, and somehow, it seemed that having it with me brought everything together. All was as it should be.

Kronos scrambled to his feet, hand clenched so tightly around his weapon that his knuckles turned white. His gaze snapped between Luke and me. "So you think you can defeat me again? I know your tricks from the last time we fought, you know."

His tone was grim and stubborn, but there was another emotion underlying his toughness: fear. Kronos was afraid. He knew that of all the campers that could have fought him, Luke and I were the worst. Alone, he could take us on, no problem. But together? We were one of the most formidable teams around.

"You mean, you remember the tricks we used to accomplish," I reprimanded. "That was seven years ago, Kronos, and people change during that amount of time. Both Luke and I are stronger, and have learned much in the ways of combat. In fact, I probably know more than you do."

The fear stimulated once again in Kronos's golden eyes, but he covered it with a smirk. I was honestly impressed: the dude had learned to hide his feelings. "You're bluffing, I know it. You might have learned more, but not enough."

"You wish," Luke growled from where he stood by my side. His sandy hair was tangling above his eyes. "But what you don't know, which is so obvious I'm surprised you haven't caught it, is the fact that my friend here is the heir of the entire freaking universe. He's Chaos and Order's heir! Given the right opportunity, he could ship you off to Tartarus and the Underworld in less than a nanosecond."

Now Kronos was unable to hide his fear. He knew Luke was right: there was no denying it. The wings folded against my back, the chain around my neck, even the firm position I stood in told him that I had indeed become much, much stronger. Strong enough to defeat him again... and this time, keep him away.

"That doesn't mean I won't win," Kronos laughed maniacally. "I too am stronger, given the strength of Void as he passed into the... well, that's ironic."

The phrase spoken by Kronos after he trailed off was so random, neither Luke nor I could hold in the bout of laughter. We knew what Kronos had been about to say, "Void passed into the Void". It really was ironic when one thought about it. Void had technically passed into himself.

No, that was creepy on so many levels. And gross, too. Changing subjects.

"But take into account that Percy did defeat Void singlehandedly," Luke pointed out almost nonchalantly. "He's learned how to channel his new powers, plus," Luke nudged me here with a playful wink, "he has me. I've got to count for something."

It was strange smiling in the midst of a battle, yet there I was, laughing. I pointed my thumb at Luke. "He counts for way more than something. He's only the slightest bit beneath my level, so... yeah. Have fun."

The fear dissipated in Kronos, and instead, he hefted his sword and grinned wickedly. "Oh, I will."

He charged at me, and I slipped around him while Luke took my place. Every moment we fought, I kept my mind open for any possible weaknesses he might have. Obviously, his weakness wasn't the same as Triton's, and it most likely wouldn't be easy to spot, so I couldn't afford to miss a thing.

It came when Luke asked Kronos a single question.

All three of us were tiring. I'd just barely managed to escape Kronos's thrust, and Kronos had almost been shish-ke-bobbed by Luke, and when the three of us were almost too tired to even lift our swords, Luke held out a hand from where he stood directly in front of Kronos and choked out, "What is it you really want?"

Hmm. Interesting, yet very good question. In all this time, we had been stupid not to ask Kronos what he truly was after. I mean, he had possessed Luke, and now that Luke was back, he wanted Luke gone. But that was only part of it. He had possessed Luke for a reason, something he wanted to accomplish. What that reason was, I didn't know.

We all froze where we stood, all lowering our weapons. Even Kronos. He seemed a bit surprised by the question, but he seemed to realized that he really hadn't told us what he wanted. Knowing what he wanted would give him a perfect excuse to fight us. So, while the battle around us raged, Kronos merely said, "I want what he has." And instead of pointing at one of the gods, or Chiron, or even Luke himself, he raised a hand, curled all but his index finger, and pointed at me. "I want power. I want to rule the universe. Simple as that."

"Yeah, saw that coming, didn't you?" I muttered to myself, too quiet for Luke or Kronos to hear.

And then I realized...

That was it!!

That was a weakness, something I could use to my advantage!

Kronos wanted power.

He could have power... But of a different sort. He wasn't like Triton. The Lord of Time didn't have any good side to him, any kind side. That had been proven in our first battle with him. Which meant that there was no way I was giving up my claim as Chaos's heir. Kronos would only use the position to destroy the universe, and oops, there goes all chances for a normal life with my friends and family. No, this had to be done in a sneaky way. A way that got Kronos to believe he was receiving power, but also ended up with him dead.

I knew what I had to do.