Percy slowly sat down, his back leaning against the trunk of the tree.
It wasn't for any reason in particular, really. He just wanted to rest.
The sun was setting in the west of Solitas. Between two twin white peaks in the distance, the sun sat comfortably, slowly descending.
Wasn't it lovely? All alone...
His mind was made of stone, yes, but his heart...
His heart was made of glass.
The sunlight shone onto his tanned skin, the light, slightly cold breeze brushing through his bangs slightly.
He was tired.
He opened his fist, revealing his camp necklace that sat in the palm of his hand.
"One, two, three... four," he muttered.
He was tired from all the fighting, all the wars. All he wanted was peace. Was that too much to ask for?
But, sitting here... for the first time in a while...
He felt an invisible weight lift off his shoulders. He felt careless and... free, even.
For the longest time, he couldn't forget her.
Annabeth Chase.
His first love, the daughter of Athena, who had been through countless adventures with him. Through paradise, and through hell itself. Only to perish at the hands of Gaia.
His hands clenched, and he didn't realize that he had drawn blood until he looked down. Reddish-gold ichor, dripping slowly from his fingernails. It trailed down his palm, to his wrist, and then dripping onto the blades of grass, onto the soil in the garden.
He exhaled and forced himself to unclench his hands.
Even when he was with Pyrrha, sometimes he couldn't forget her. It was unfair to her, and it was unfair to Pyrrha.
He looked at the beads on his necklace again. They really were his last memory of his old world, after all.
Maybe he couldn't talk to her, since she didn't have a grave in this world. But he still wanted to.
"Hey, Annabeth," he started.
"I'm becoming a god, now," he let out a chuckle. After having denied it once already, he was becoming one anyway.
"It's not like I wanted to become one, you know," he stared at the sky, "It just kinda... happened. I sure am popular, eh?"
He stared aimlessly at the sky, waiting for some kind of response from her. Then he stared at the beads on his necklace.
Of course, neither responded. He half-laughed, half-cried.
What was he thinking? He berated himself.
After a moment's silence, he continued.
"I guess... I guess since the Greek pantheon is gone, your soul is gone too. There's no Elysium, is there? But..."
"I guess we were always a losing game, huh? The internal strife, the weakening of the pantheon... us demigods were just pawns in a bigger game. Loving you was a losing game..."
"But it was worth it," he smiled, "I'll never regret it. The memories, and the experiences we had. The adventures, the ups and downs.
He didn't want to... he didn't want to do it.
But he needed to let go.
He missed her, almost more than life. But he had to do it.
He needed to let go.
To let her go.
"This is goodbye, my Wise Girl. My first love."
He thought he saw a shimmering mirage in the distance. He could almost hear faint whispers, soothing voices in his ear.
There was an outline of her, from the sun's rays.
It was as if she were answering him.
His lips curled into a content smile.
"Annabeth Chase, my Wise Girl..."
"I'll never forget you."
-----
Warning: This scene is mature. Proceed at your own risk. You have been warned.
Perseus Apollyon was set to leave for Mistral in two days.
Colonel Alvida of the Atlesian Seventh Unit knew this, and she was about to report it directly to her superior. Lord Ørsted, the Lower Apostle Three.
Normally she wouldn't have done the dirty work, being a Deacon of her Goddess, but the opportunity to trail Apollyon had been too exciting to leave behind.
Timing was paramount, and of the essence. Once Apollyon was gone, Atlas would vulnerable. It would be by no means weak, but far, far more vulnerable without his presence.
Gaul, with its abundant amount of dust, and well-trained warriors, as well as the number of Grimm that they could call in, from both underneath the grounds of Solitas and the southern sea.
The Goddess had saved her life. Her faith had been restored in the world.
Which was why she was equally convinced to destroy it. And, in its place, rebuild a new one. Fairer, more just, for her deceased family. For all the discriminated Mantlese people.
And so, Atlas had to fall.
With a deep breath, she stepped back from the railing that she had been leaning onto. And she began the contact ritual.
An intricate pattern of pitch-black glyphs began appearing beneath her feet, spreading across the balcony. They began spinning, at first slowly, then faster and faster. She had to inform Ørsted, but with a full video call, which was why this ritual was so big. It shouldn't be a problem, she thought. No one was up at this time.
"Hello there."
Her heart stopped.
She whirled around in a panic. There was someone there!?
No...
The spell stopped, as she became distracted by something.
Perseus Apollyon stood before her, a piercing, powerful gaze on her. She hadn't even heard him approaching.
He wasn't supposed to be here. That wasn't the plan.
Outwardly, He looked as calm as the sea, but He gave off the impression that it could change at any moment. In truth, as she looked at His eyes, she shivered.
Her heart was pounding rapidly in its chest.
Apollyon stared at her with piercing sea green eyes. They felt like they were staring into her very soul and stripping it so that it was laid bare before Him for His judgement.
They were as powerful as and as deep as the ocean, promising death and pain should anyone ever cross Him. As she looked deeper into His eyes, a single lightning bolt struck the endless ocean.
Thunder crashed, and she flinched back.
She swallowed her saliva, trying to regain her nerves before Him. Before Apollyon.
The aura of power He gave off was indescribable, and it very well would have brought her to her knees, had the Goddess not granted her a blessing.
"What are you doing here?"
"I could ask the same of you," she shot back defensively.
After a long moment of silence, he responded.
"I am simply taking a midnight stroll. As a welcomed guest, I am well within my rights to do so. Now, for your justification."
"I- I was doing the same."
Since she was wearing an official Atlesian military uniform, he had no right to question her.
"And what were the black glyphs? As far as I am aware, only the Schnees are able to perform glyphs with their semblances."
She shivered under His gaze, trying her best to make sure He couldn't read her. She bit her tongue, not answering in fear of being found out.
"Perhaps you were performing some kind of illegal ritual," he tapped his chin in thought.
She denied it.
"N-No."
He stepped closer. She shrunk back.
A cruel, powerful smirk danced on His dark red lips.
Despite the lack of light, His eyes glinted, seeming to tell her that she would soon be dragged down into the watery depths to her pitiful demise.
"Salem granted you power."
It was not an assumption, or a suggestion, but a statement. He was not asking a question; he knew.
"W-Who?" she feigned confusion.
But the act was up.
"An insignificant pest like you would not have the capability of such magic otherwise."
His tone was dark, foreboding. A storm was brewing, and she was in its path.
She had to do something. Otherwise, she would die, and her purpose of serving the Goddess would be forfeit.
She slid up to him. Since he had approached her already, she simply walked to him, and placed her hand on his chest.
Her semblance, Temptress, was on full display. Any within its range of five meters would be affected with lust for her, making them obedient pets. She had tamed quite a few powerful men using this skill, and with the help of her Goddess, she was able to feed her family. Even in Atlas, faunus were unfairly and unjustly discriminated against, but the Goddess was truly all-powerful, and benevolent.
And he was too close for his own good. How unfortunate.
She leaned forward, making sure to show her cleavage to him. She saw his eyes flickering downwards, transfixed. He was quiet, now.
The powerful storm in his eyes was gone, and he was now under her control.
She smiled internally.
All men were weak, and she saw fit to exploit that weakness. All was fair in love and war, after all.
She gently placed a smooth caramel hand on his chest.
She shamelessly felt them, before sliding her hand up to his neck, and along his smoothly shaven jawline. It trailed along his impossibly smooth skin, up to his cheek. She leaned into his ear, making sure that he could smell her alluring scent.
"There's no need to worry about such things, darling..." she sultrily whispered into his ear, "Why don't we head back to my place for the night~"
She was so close that she could practically hear the hitch in his breath, and she saw his Adam's apple bob up and down as he swallowed.
"O-Okay."
It was too easy. Even the Great Apollyon had fallen victim to her temptations.
She laughed to herself. All of this greatness and power that Perseus Apollyon had supposedly possessed had now gone away with a simple touch. All men were the same.
Her arm suddenly snapped.
She let out a scream of pain.
A fist buried itself in her abdomen, and she doubled over, falling to her knees. Her arm was twisted at an odd angle. Her aura at that area had been overpowered with such brute strength that she didn't have time to reinforce it.
He had snapped straight through it.
She fearfully looked up.
The blackness of the sea green orbs stared back into her very soul.
"You forget your place, mortal."
A chill ran down her spine at his words. She hadn't even seen Him move. He hadn't even brought a weapon out.
"How utterly pitiful."
His voice was detached, toneless, glacial; she shivered under His gaze, feeling like no more than an insect, or an ant, beneath his power.
"Who were you trying to contact?"
She bit her lip, "I-I would never betray the Goddess-"
His hand reached out, and grabbed her throat, lifting her up off her feet with ease.
There was an unimaginable, crushing pressure on her windpipe.
She opened her mouth to scream.
The pressure doubled, and no sound came out of her mouth.
She couldn't breathe.
She desperately gasped, struggled, and pleaded, begging, all while unshed tears began forming in her eyes...
His eyes were cold. So very, very cold. Goosebumps formed across her skin.
"A-Air... lease-... eathe-"
The monster in front of her tapped His left ear.
"What are you saying? I can't seem to hear you. If you could speak up, that'd be very helpful."
She couldn't breathe.
Her hands tried to pry his fingers off her throat, but his grip was ironclad. She kicked, choking.
Eight, powerful tentacles spouted from her back, rushing towards Him.
There was a flash of golden, and her severed limbs fell to the ground.
The grip was crushing her windpipe.
She couldn't breathe.
The tears came out of her eyes, flooding down her face.
The color was leaving her face.
She was going to die.
"H-h-help... llyon- s-save... dyi..."
"Are you alright?"
Suddenly, the crushing grip released, and she dropped to her knees onto the ground with a loud thud.
She panted and wheezed, one hand reaching up to massage her throat, making sure that everything was still working the way it was supposed to. She felt sick to her stomach, her body trembling before the monster in front of her.
Her throat ached; her arm was bent at an odd angle. Her heart pounded rapidly against her chest.
This was a fight she could not win.
"What do you know of Salem? If you tell me, I may grant you clemency," the monster in front of her added offhandedly.
"Let's start with who you were trying to contact."
"L-Lower Apostle Three, Ørsted."
"Explain."
She swallowed, cradling her broken arm, "T-The Western Covenant is divided into many ranks. F-From lowest to highest: Hybrids, D-Deacons, Archdeacons, Lower Apostles, and Upper Apostles."
"Anything else?"
She bit her lip.
There was no hint of anger in His eyes, no flash to give her a warning.
He violently backhanded her across the face. She was left sprawling on the floor.
There was a throbbing pain on her face, and she fearfully crawled backwards.
The monster stepped forward, and she moved back.
No, don't come closer.
Please. Please, don't come closer, she begged.
He crouched, meeting her at eye level.
She looked away.
His hand roughly grabbed her chin and jerked it to meet His gaze. His terrifying, all-powerful gaze.
"Anything else you wanna tell me?"
"T-The Church is going to invade Atlas."
He hummed, "Okay, that is very useful information. And you don't know anything else, right?"
She nodded her head furiously in response. She had to be of use to him so that he might let her go.
"Alright you can go, but just don't tell anyone else, okay?"
She nodded frantically. Her heart leaped in its cage.
She was free! Thank the Goddess for granting her this second chance at life! She made to run. She was alive!
And she had learned to never cross Apollyon.
But it was too late for her.
She never saw it coming.
A head rolled on the floor, from the base of which spouted blood.
How annoying.
A mild expression of irritation flashed itself across his face.
Anaklusmos returned to its pen form, and he put it away in the pockets of his suit.
Apollyon sighed, using an expel ward to dissolve the body into atoms.
Following that, the silencing ward on the floor faded.
The blood evaporated at unnatural, unmatched pace, leaving nothing on the ground. No evidence was left at all.
It was good that he had found one of Salem's agents; he had been suspicious after noticing her tailing them to the arena, and to Polendina's lab. Of course, seeing the summoning ritual had only confirmed his suspicions.
As far as anyone else knew, the person known as Colonel Alvida simply vanished out of existence. No police force or detective would ever be able to find her or track her down. She had vanished into thin air.
Apollyon pursed his lips.
A half Grimm, half person. A hybrid, who was furthering the cause of someone who sought to destroy the world. Percy didn't think they deserved sympathy.
At that point, they weren't very human anymore, were they?
Or, perhaps it was the fundamental nature of mortals to choose. And to choose wrongly.
Violence ruled the world. It was the fundamental tenet of life.
Perhaps intelligence, strength, and manipulation were all key components as well, but these components all added up to violence. Strength.
The giants, the titans, the gods, the demigods, the humans. All key factions, all of which struggled for some goal. For the giants and the titans, they sought an age long past. They sought to rule the mythological world once more. Through violence.
The demigods and the gods, they fought back. The only option they had was violence.
Because diplomacy always carried an undercurrent of violence. Strength was key in this world; no matter what happened, one needed to be able to defend themselves.
One could rule through love, yes, and make allies, and friends. But, with political or financial gain at hand to be had, these allies and friends would eventually betray one.
Ruling through love or ruling through fear; the eternal debate. Both had their strengths and weaknesses, and, if wielded incorrectly, could lead to one's downfall.
But... what if one could rule through both? Not both so openly, but subtly, indirectly.
Rule through love in the day, with a subtle, commanding strength. A subtle threat of violence hanging in the air, by virtue of his nature and heritage.
And rule through fear in the night with unyielding violence.
That was the conclusion Apollyon had come to.
-----
Winter hummed, "The outfit does look good on you."
"See sister, I do have fashion sense," Weiss harrumphed, folding her arms. She was undoubtedly proud of the tailored combat clothes that she had ordered for him.
"On the contrary, you have never demonstrated such a thing..."
"Winter!!"
Weiss seemed to banter with her sister like always, but... there was something missing, a certain spark. There was something behind her demeanor. She wouldn't look him in the eyes, not anymore.
He didn't know why. Nothing he had said that night should have had this much of an impact on her.
But, he decided to give her space, anyway.
Percy turned away, ignoring the two bickering sisters.
He wore his new necklace and watch, courtesy of Ironwood and Polendina. The rest of the necklaces built for his teammates were in his back pocket. He also wore sleek, black cloak that Weiss had apparently had custom made for him. It was thoughtful of her to do that.
The bullhead's strong wind gusts whipped through his hair and his cloak, as he embraced Ironwood again. The General of Atlas leaned into his ear.
"Where were you last night?"
Percy raised an eyebrow, "Sleeping? What, did something happen?"
The General hadn't cared when he had killed a hybrid that was tailing them at the banquet. Yet, he might care if that hybrid was one of his subordinates, his officers. He couldn't betray that trust. But, a lengthy trial was boring and disadvantageous, Apollyon knew.
Ironwood thinned his lips, "Never mind. A colonel is missing in Atlas. As the General, I cannot allow this to go unpunished."
"Perhaps one of her agents may have done it," he offered.
"That is the most likely scenario. In that case, I will be sure to re-run security measures," Ironwood decided.
There was a momentary silence before Ironwood spoke again.
"Good luck in Mistral, Perseus."
"You as well, James. I hope Atlas will hold off the assault the Queen sends to you."
"It will be done," Ironwood nodded firmly.
With that, no more words were said between them. Penny, Weiss, Winter, Mercury, and Neo had all already boarded the bullhead.
Percy was the last to board.
It was on autopilot; Percy had specifically instructed that there be no pilot on board. For better or for worse.
He stepped onto the bullhead, and it lifted into the air.
Mistral, here they come.
-----
Yang Xiao-Long's head was in her arms. She was confused, and scared, and afraid.
Two days.
Two days' travel until they got to Shion.
Two days Percy came to them.
In another life, she would have been his.
So you can keep me, loving, on your arm, Percy. Holding you me until our eyes meet, she thought.
Maybe he'd be her prince, and she'd be the princess, and it would be a cliché love story.
She wanted something just like that.
Full of romance, and promises-
But, no.
She shook her head, blonde bangs flying.
Why was she thinking like that? She reprimanded herself.
"You're so selfish," she told herself. Others were more deserving of him.
Yang was boisterous, the "party girl" of their clique, their group. She liked to hit up the bar, she liked to brawl; she was the brawler, the confident flirt. She was a thriller chaser, even she knew it, and she embraced it.
She wanted him, but she also wanted her friends to be happy. It didn't matter if it was Pyrrha or Weiss, so long as it wasn't her.
She wasn't anything special.
She didn't have aspirations like them; she was just a thrill seeker. They had goals and wishes and hopes and dreams... they were from nobility, while she wasn't. She wasn't a noble of Mistral, or the daughter of the Schnee Dust Company. She was just the daughter of the bandit queen.
It was two days until they met her 'mother'.
She preferred to refer to her as an egg donor.
She still didn't know why.
Why had she left?
Don't get her wrong, Yang was completely content with Summer Rose. Super mom, slayer of great monsters and baker of the best cookies. She loved them, she loved Yang as her own. She was super attentive and loved her family like nothing else. She was truly the best mom.
But Yang still sought the truth. The truth of why Raven, her biological mother, had left.
Either way, the future was still uncertain.
-----
"Lancers, huh? That's kinda crazy," Percy drawled. He had expected more of those hybrids to show up. But it seemed like this time, the Western Covenant of Salem hadn't tried to target them too hard.
Maybe it was because he had eliminated one of their rats and tipped Ironwood off about them. One of their vital sources of information, gone with just the slice of a sword.
Unfortunately, now, he couldn't further feel out Winter and Penny's values. Lancers weren't exactly much of a test.
"Can you not act so casual!?" Winter looked back at him from the cockpit, her eyebrow twitching uncontrollably.
"Relax, relax, Winty," Percy waved her off, hanging out the side of the bullhead to see the lancers behind the bullhead.
They were flying over the ocean between Solitas and Anima, known as the Falltham expanse. It was notorious for its vicious winds and violent waves that could easily strand a ship on some desolate island. The wind blew through his hair, and he made sure to keep one hand firmly gripped on the bar overhead.
"Do not call me Winty!" the elder Schnee sister shot back, shouting over the wind.
Percy yawned, "Neo, Mercury, would you handle them?"
Things were still awkward between him and Weiss, and he wanted to indirectly provoke Weiss into acquiring more summons. A queen lancer, or even just a couple normal lancers would be perfect.
"Oh, of course, boss," Mercury replied handily, heading out. Neo followed. Wards began appearing, as the two assassins began stepping on them, and jumping onto the top of the bullhead.
"I'll join them," Weiss declared to no one in particular. She double tapped her necklace, and her ice blue, gray, and white themed suit began covering her skin. She stood up from her seat, trailing the two assassins.
Good. She had felt slighted, so she had to join the fighting force. Perhaps out of a desire to prove herself, maybe to her sister Winter.
"Would you like me to join them too, Percy?" Penny wondered.
"You can, but make sure Weiss gets the kill on the queen lancer."
"Okay!!"
Penny shot out of the bullhead, flying into the air. There were green boosters on her boots, which allowed her to fly without his wards. Pietro, her father, had really upgraded her.
Penny Polendina and Winter Schnee would be valuable additions to his arsenal.
Giant black tentacles of flesh shot up impossibly high from the ocean, trying to grab the bullhead.
The water reached upward, swallowing the limbs. With a clench of his fist, Percy exerted such pressure that the black flesh exploded into different parts of black leftover matter.
Winter continued to maneuver the bullhead, avoiding the harpoon stingers, although a couple of them still embedded themselves in the metal of the aircraft. Inevitably, the aircraft's pace slowed.
Winter cursed, and she came out of the cockpit, having set the aircraft on autopilot.
Both Percy and Winter understood that at this point, she had already failed to dodge the harpoon stingers, meaning that autopilot could take over, as it only needed to continue boosting forward. It would be a futile effort to continue to try to maneuver the bullhead.
Percy moved towards the edge of the aircraft. Winter drew her saber and followed him.
Both of them followed the wards, propelling themselves towards the roof of the bullhead, before pulling themselves up.
Immediately, he could see that the lancers still had their harpoon stingers firmly embedded in the metal hull of the aircraft. Further in front of them, Weiss, Mercury, and Neo were fighting valiantly against the lancers.
Weiss pirouetted, sending ice shards at the lancers from her glyphs. However, they did little to stop the Grimm, as they just fractured off their hard armor.
Even Penny's powerful green beams could not puncture the armor. It was an annoyance, since Ironwood had said that Penny was designed to be an artificial intelligence capable of killing a maiden.
Perhaps Salem had upgraded her Grimm. He had never seen lancers before, since their native habitats were Solitas and the northern parts of Sanus and Anima. However, he could tell that Weiss and Penny were both surprised at this turn of events, judging from their body language. Salem was taking extra steps to make their life difficult.
Mercury and Neo worked as a team, as they took the Grimm down one by one, in tandem. But it wasn't really all that efficient.
They spun and moved and shot and slashed, but for all of their effort, they had to be able to target the soft spots. As such, progress was slow, by his standards.
Winter wasted no time, charging forward and boosting herself with her glyphs. She aided the others, slashing at the lancers with her saber.
There were eight of the lancers, but Percy could not see the Queen Lancer yet, which meant he had no interest in the fight, as long as the others could handle it.
He went to remove the harpoon stingers still embedded in the bullhead, noting that it would be difficult for the bullhead to move ahead if the lancers kept pulling them backwards.
As he went to do so, more harpoon stingers were shot at him from the lancers. It was strange, since Percy had thought these lancers only had one stinger each.
Riptide was out in a flash, and he severed most of them, but he only managed to deflect a couple others. When they came back for round two, he finally cut the rest of the limbs.
With a sweep and the barest feel of a tug, the harpoon stingers that were embedded in the hull of the bullhead were sliced away. The blade shined, and Anaklusmos' celestial bronze was as powerful a godly metal as ever.
Percy turned to check their progress, noting that they were almost done. However, he noticed a much larger lancer closing in on the bullhead.
The Queen Lancer.
"That's one mean-looking overweight bee."
Percy stepped forward, sparks lighting between his fingertips. The Queen Lancer screeched, looking to attack him, but he didn't have time for that.
Teal lightning burst forth from his outstretched palm, frying the Queen Lancer. He made sure to only severely wound it, not to completely kill it. It was essentially a sitting duck at this point.
Weiss jumped in, attacking the Queen Lancer with her dust and her rapier.
And with that, Percy's job was finished.
He watched as the Queen Lancer screeched, freezing up, before dissolving into the black dust of Grimm remains. With that, Weiss gained another powerful summons, and hypothetically, she could now fly on the back of the Queen Lancer if she summoned it.
-----
It was three in the morning.
Pyrrha Nikos stared at herself in the mirror of the bathroom.
She looked like crap. The Invincible Girl persona that everyone knew was nowhere to be seen.
There were signs of tiredness on her face, and her eyes were bloodshot. Her skin was much, much paler than before. She almost looked like a zombie.
And then, the image of Percy flashed into her mind again.
The image of his guaranteed death.
She stumbled back, almost slipping.
Her hands came up, gripping her head.
The only noise that could be heard was her heavy breaths. Her heart pounded against its ribcage.
Last night had been another sleepless night. One of many in the past week.
Nights where she could get at least a few hours of sleep were few and far in between. She could remember when her only worries were the fans, sometimes 'stans', and the fame and popularity that came with being the Invincible Girl. Of course, ascending to become a Sword of Mistral while she was supposed to attend Haven Academy.
But that anxiety paled in comparison to what she was feeling now.
Percy's future was set in stone.
And there was nothing she could do about it.
Was this what Percy had felt like when his world, his friends and companions, disappeared before his eyes? The powerlessness?
The inability to do anything about it. She was helpless to do anything about it. The fact crawled at her mind, tearing at it.
She was going to be powerless, as the man she loved would be torn apart in front of her eyes.
No amount of fighting on her end would do anything to change his fate. And she knew it.
She let out a broken, half-hearted laugh.
"Just hold on, Percy. I still want you..."
"The world still needs you."
AN: Join my discord!
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How'd you like this chapter? Review, comment, favorite, follow, vote, but only if you enjoyed!
Indefinite hiatus after Chapter 42, since I've run out of pre-written material and can't write due to life concerns.
'til next time!
Next Chapter: May 12th (2 weeks)
-thann3