Pain.
Terrible, excruciating pain.
That was all he knew, all he felt.
Then everything came back, and the pain lessened, not much, but more bearable.
Two lives replayed in his mind: his life as the Titan Iapetus, and as the janitor Bob.
Iapetus was a son of Gaea and Ouranos. His brothers called him “the soft one” because, when Kronos was chopping his father into little pieces, he offered to hold down Ouranos’s legs, not wanting to watch as Kronos dethroned his father in the most gruesome way imaginable. However, although the other Titans would disagree, Iapetus was not at all soft. He was a ruthless killer, and if his victims pleaded for mercy, he would only laugh harder as he plunged his sword into their hearts. Even the most powerful monsters feared the mighty Iapetus.
The gods came along and waged war against Kronos. Iapetus fought valiantly, but it was in vain. The gods won, and he was imprisoned in Tartarus with his brethren.
When Kronos helped him out, he was given the task of protecting a sword. What a joke! But the task proved to be more difficult than he originally thought when three teenagers showed up.
Perseus Jackson shoved Iapetus into the River Lethe, but it was not Iapetus who resurfaced, it was Bob.
Bob was kindhearted and selfless. Although he was weaker than his former self, Iapetus, that didn’t stop him from defending his friends from an enemy he couldn’t defeat. In the end, his essence was absorbed into Tartarus’s armor.
Choose, whispered a female voice. Choose a name. Bob or Iapetus?
Confused as he was, he understood what he had to pick. Coldhearted but powerful, or helpful but weak?
The answer seemed plain, and he was about to reply, but realization hit him like the cold when you step outside in the winter.
As Bob, he had experienced compassion. He hadn’t been Bob for long, but he was certain that the satisfaction of having helped a friend surpassed that of gaining power.
He would stick by Percy and Annabeth to the very end, which was likely close.
“Bob,” he croaked. Then, with a more confident voice, “My name is Bob.”
The world began spinning, faster and faster, so fast that Bob was experiencing vertigo in seconds.
Then, just as quickly as it had begun, the spinning feeling vanished, along with most of his pain.
Bob refused to open his eyes for a few minutes, and when he did, he found himself sprawled out in front of the Doors of Death. He stood up and found himself in front of the most beautiful woman alive.
Her glossy black hair was pinned up in a braid bun with one wavy strand falling on the right side of her face. Her violet eyes showed wisdom and memory well beyond that of any immortal. She possessed an aura more powerful than Gaea and Tartarus’s combined.
“Who are you?” Bob had many questions, but that was the question that popped into his head first.
“I am Eurynome, goddess of everything,” the woman replied. “I sense you have many questions, but I request that you save them all for the end of my explanation.
“I saved you from Tartarus before you faded because you answered my question with the answer I was hoping for. Choosing to give up power takes a large heart, a size very few people’s hearts are. One of the most extraordinary demigods of all time happens to have such a heart. Can you guess who?”
“Percy,” Bob responded immediately. Of the few demigods he knew, Percy was the one that most struck him as “powerful” and “big-hearted.”
“Such a strong demigod, you would expect him to be immensely prideful and self-involved. However, Perseus Jackson is unbelievably loyal, a fatal flaw quite rare in heroes, and tends to downplay his achievements. He does not know his own power, but I can assure you more of that power will be revealed in the coming war.” Eurynome did not divulge on her words. Rather, she began on a new topic.
“I believe you are wondering about your friend, Damasen. I am very sorry, but he has faded.” She paused and they spent a moment in silence out of respect for Damasen. “I could only save one of you, and I was curious as to whether you would accept or reject power.”
“Percy and Annabeth?” Bob asked, hopeful.
“They made it,” Eurynome assured him. “And you must do the same.” She pressed the up button on the Doors.
“What if Tartarus returns?” Bob asked worriedly.
She laughed softly. “Tartarus is no match for me, even while I’m holding a button.”
“How will you get out?”
“The same way I got in.” Again, she gave no revelation.
She thought for a moment, then added, “I don’t usually interfere with things, but I believe you should know this. Porphyrion’s weakness, it’s-“ She whispered the rest in his ear.
Bob couldn’t keep himself from laughing. “Are you messing with me?”
She had a serious face. “I don’t mess with people. Now go. You are needed in Athens.”
“But where will it take me?”
“It can take you anywhere in the world now that the chains are broken.”
Bob stepped into the elevator, and the doors closed.
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Twelve minutes of boredom later, the elevator chimed, and the doors slid open to show a spectacular view.
He was high up, on the top of an extremely tall building. Below him was a maze of lit up streets with an eerie yet beautiful green glow. A canal made its way between the two sides of the structure that eventually formed into one building.
The scene was so alien yet so well-known that Bob knew exactly where he was: on top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.
He smiled. France wasn’t far from Greece.
I’m coming, Percy, he thought. I’m coming to help.
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Okay! So, I won’t be updating for a while because I’m off to my cottage again, but once I come back, I’ll have two more chapters ready. The war starts in the next chapter!
