First Lie || Deception Book I ||

Hidden Identity

"I still find it ridiculous," Ares said sourly. "He's been trying ever since he was cast into Tartarus. Even if he'd gotten the bolt, he wouldn't be able to do much other than blast stuff."

Says you, I thought, glaring at Ares.

"The prophecy matches up," Demeter argued. "Percy turns sixteen in four years. That's when it's prophesied to happen."

"Maybe we should just kill him. Then he'd never turn sixteen," Dionysus mused. "Or I could always just turn him into a dolphin."

"We've had this discussion," Poseidon replied calmly. "It's not happening."

"Besides, doing stuff like that never works with prophecies," Apollo added. "It's better to just let it run its course, or something even worse could happen."

"Well, I think we should at least try to contact the other gods and goddesses and gain their support," Artemis said. "Hecate, did you talk to anyone yet?"

"I met up with Morpheus a few weeks ago," my mother replied. "It's not in our favour. He said that he'd likely stay neutral or join the other side."

"Affirmative on the ones I've contacted," Hermes confirmed. "It's the same for Hypnos, Nemesis, and Hebe."

"Melinoe too," Hades added.

Athena sighed. "What about Prometheus?"

Poseidon shrugged. "Don't know, but it's doubtful. After all, Zeus kept him chained up with a liver-eating eagle for centuries."

Zeus glared at him before facing me. "Clarianna," he rumbled, stopping the entire conversation.

"Yes . . . ?" I asked, my fingers settling deeper into Avalanche's fur in anxiety.

"Have you found the thief yet?" Zeus asked, his eyes piercing as he stared at me.

I gulped. "I . . . "

Ah, shit. I really didn't want to rat Luke out. What is wrong with you? I screamed at myself. You have a mission. Luke is your objective. Period!

But if I told them, then who knew what Zeus would do? Even if Luke was on Kronos' side, he was still a demigod and one that felt betrayed. Also, technically, he was my boyfriend, though that was a lie.

"Clarianna?" Athena prompted, her sharp gaze seeming to strip away every lie I'd built up around me over the past half-year.

"I did." I finally said.

"And? Who is it?" Zeus asked sharply.

"I'm sorry, my lord," I replied quickly, dropping to my knees. "But I'm afraid I can't tell you."

Silence fell in the throne room, and it was so quiet you could have heard a tuft of fur from Avalanche drop to the ground.

"And why exactly is that?" Zeus asked, the air sparking with electricity.

I kept my head bowed as I said, "Because, even though the actions of the thief in question were, without a doubt, wrong, I cannot simply stand aside to just let you blast them. They were wrong, yes, in their actions and turning to his side, but they are, in the end, just a demigod, like me, who was wronged by their parents."

Silence. I could feel Zeus' glare scorching into my head, and fought the urge to spill everything.

"Remember whose side you are on," Zeus growled as the tension in the air crackled louder.

I nodded quickly. "I understand, my Lord. But you are a god. I am just a mortal, and this thief is no less than I am. They have experienced extreme hardships in their life as all other demigods have. Though it does not exclude their wrongdoings, it is not their fault."