Pain exploded in my right abdomen, as Tartarus punched me. "Your gonna die Jackson, one way or another." He said as he got close to my face as I was chained to a concrete wall by my limbs. I had to fight the urge to tell him to 'take a hint or take a mint'. I could feel my left eye throb as it swollen shut.
"We've beat you and your kind before. Trust me, we'll do it again." I groaned as I looked up at him with my good eye.
"My kind? What kind us that exactly?" He snarled.
"You know, the bad kind." I said.
Just as he was about to shove him knife through my throat, I woke up.
"Percy!" Someone yelled as they shook my shoulders. I bolted upright in my bed, ramming into someone head as well causing them to swear and back up grabbing their head.
Jason.
I grabbed my head too saying, "Geez, what the Hades man?"
"Ow, sorry bro."
"Jason, what are you doing in my cabin?" I asked realizing that's where I was.
"I heard you screaming, I just assumed that you were having another nightmare." He said with sad eyes. He knew that I had been having terrible nightmares since the Giant war. Since Annabeth.
"I'm fine." I said standing up with a frown, walking over to my dresser.
"I know your not." He said turning and looking at me.
After a minute of silence and I finally found a Camp Half-Blood t-shirt and Jason said, "You don't have to tell me everything if you don't want okay? Just don't lie to us. We have already lost two friends from the war, don't make us lose you too." He told me remembering that Leo never came back, even though I know exactly where he is. Calypso.
"I'm sorry okay? I'm just, confused." I admitted to him as I sit back down on a chair.
"Confused? About what?" Jason asked as he sits in front of me on the edge of my bed.
I think for a moment, "I don't know." I see the confusion in his facial expression. "Its not just about the war I've been having dreams about " I whisper.
He leans in, "What else?"
I remember and give a small smile, "My cousin and our best friend."
"Who?" He questions. I never talked about them because it was to painful, and I never wanted to get them mixed up into what happens in my world.
"I have a cousin on my moms side, his name is Scott. He's our age. We used to be best friends back when we were little. We had a best friend, his name was Stiles. He lost his mother when he was ten. (Internet says that he was 8 but in the latest episode Stiles had a flashback of his mother in the hospital when he was ten, so I don't know.) Bout a year after his mom, Claudia, died, my mom packed me up and left. I asked her why for so many years but she never answered, not until all this stuff started happening to me a few years later. I never saw them again." I said feeling sadness weighing on my heart as I finally told someone. I realised I was looking at a picture of all three of us from before things turned bad.
I saw him looking at me looking at the picture, so I turned toward him and explained why it was so important. "We had just gotten done swimming and it had been a few weeks after Scotts dad left. Gods I hated that guy. He reminds me of Gabe actually. A drunk. I remember him grabbing Scotts wrist and when Scott pulled back, he fell all the way down the stairs and hit his head on the ground when he reached the bottom, he was knocked out for only about twenty seconds but when he woke up he didn't remember a thing. While he was knocked out though, I put in a few good punches before he woke up. I may have only been about six years old but I held a lot of anger towards that man. Even more when he actually tried to come after me. Then I remember my mom and my aunt Melissa shoving him out the door screaming at him to get out, then my aunt called the Sheriff, Stiles dad, right after. Stiles came over to and we all spent the night with Scott. I told Stiles what happened to Scott but we decided to keep quiet about it so that maybe he doesn't grow up hating his dad so much."
I turned back to the picture and smiled," Few weeks later we went to a water park. Just us guys hanging out and our moms. I remember feeling comforted by the water. How we had a hold your breath contest and I won every time." I said with a chuckle. " When we were done we all took a picture. With me on Claudia's shoulders. Stiles being carried bridal style in Melissa's arms making a silly face and Scott on my moms back making "rock on" sign with his fingers. Then this one-" I said pointing to another picture of all of us. "Was a do whatever we want day. Sheriff Stilinski was on duty so it was just us again. We had a picnic in the park then we played on the playground, fed the fish and ducks, went to the zoo and a few museums we wanted to go to had ice cream. Then we went back to my house and played catch with a football while our moms joked and laughed, we played soccer while our moms laughed some more. The house that we had when we lived there had a second story patio with these outdoor patio recliner chairs and we sat there drinking root beer watching the sun go down. I remember our moms went inside setting up a movie and making popcorn while us guys were still outside, Stiles soon fell asleep and started snoring, then soon he just fell off the chair and woke back up. We called him Snoozer the rest of the night, finally our moms said that the movie was ready. Our moms got recliners and we got the couch, by the end of the night, we fell asleep like this-" I told him digging out another picture from that night of how we all fell asleep.
My legs were hanging off the arm of the couch, my head was laying against Scotts head as he was upside down with his feet hanging off the back of the couch and stiles on other side of the couch with his head leaning on the arm of the couch with his legs across Scotts body and his feet near my face. Thanks the gods he was at least wearing socks.
Jason cocked an eyebrow at the image, " Umm.....at least he was wearing socks?" He asked more than said. Then chuckled. Then I handed him the real photo of us from the day. Me with my mom, Scott with his mom, and Stiles with his mom.
"You look so happy." He says with a smile as he analyzed the picture from my childhood.
I can't help but say, "I was."
Then we got summoned to the Big House, people were saying that it was urgent. I couldn't help but notice the glares sent my way as I approached my destination.
----------------The Big House ----------------
"What do you mean Chiron? What are you saying?" I yelled.
"The gods have voted you out. You are banished from camp grounds as of tomorrow. They have given you enough time to pack up and go. I'm sorry Percy." He said not looking me in the eye
"But why?" I whimper feeling the back of my eyes burn as they start to water. This was my home, and now I'm losing it too.
"It was not my place to ask. Don't make this any harder than it has to be Perseus. Please." He says as he turns and walks off.
I run back to my cabin locking the door behind me, I grab my back and start throwing stuff in it.
'Why would they do this to me? What did I do?' I kept thinking to myself. Then I feel a warmness followed by a bright flash enter my cabin and I uncap Riptide.
"Hold on there, put that away Percy I am not your enemy." Said the goddess of the hearth.
"Oh yeah? I was just told the the gods are banishing me from camp. Last time I checked, you were considered one of them." I yelled.
"No we took a vote to banish you, I was against it. Now lower your sword." She instructed with truthfulness in her voice.
I capped Riptide and shoved him back into my pocket, "What do you want?" I ask her.
"I feel guilty. It's not a new thing for us gods but we have never had anyone like you Perseus-"
"Percy." I correct her.
"Percy, you are Olympus's hero. I know you don't deserve to be condemned. So, I want to make you an offer." She said.
"I want you to prevail. I want you to be my champion." She says to me.
I'm in shock, "Y-Your champion?" I pathetically stutter.
"The one and only." She says with a smile
"Doesn't that mean, you'll be giving me some sort of, fire abilities?" I clarify.
"Yes, you will have the Healing, Destruction, Soothing, Hurt, and Speed flames coursing through your veins. As well as your Demigod blood." She informs me. "Do you except?" She asks.
I nod, "Of course."
She comes closer to me and puts her palm on my for head and says, "For the record, you are about to endure a severe amount of pain." But before I could respond I feel like my insides are burning so much I'm afraid they are about to become jello. I'm about to scream when she steps backward and catches her breath as I fall to the ground on my knees.
"Ow." I finally say. I catch a glimpse of myself in my mirror and say, "Woah." My muscles have more definition to them, I think I'm now 6 ft 5' instead of 6ft. My eyes are brighter, but more than that I can see clearer, and feel like I could run more than 48 miles right now without slowing down.
"I do not know what what the full extent of your abilities are now, for I have never done that before to a demigod." She said looking slightly pale. I'm about to say something when she says ,"I'll be fine in a few minutes. Here-" she says as she hands me a necklace with an Hearth on it. "There is a secret button in the middle for if you ever need me, press it."
I took the necklace and clipped it around my neck. "Thank you." I say to her with genuine great fullness. She nods and flashes out.
----------------------The next day-----------------------
I'm in front of my mom and Paul's apartment now. I said goodbye to Grover, Jason, Piper, Nico, Hazel, and Frank an hour ago, most of them over iris messaging but it was the least I could do to say bye.
My mom opened the door. "Percy!" She hugged me in her warm embrace. "I thought you were at camp?" She asks.
I pull away and say, "They kicked me out."
She looks sad and confused, "What? Why would they do that?"
"The gods all took a vote and banished me from camp grounds. I don't know why." I say. "Where's Paul."
"He has a class. Come in." She says.
"Anyway, school is almost starting and I wanted to know where to go." I say to her as we head into the dining room.
"I was thinking about the too. Since you've been kicked out of every school here I was thinking, maybe somewhere a little more like home?" She asks.
"You want to home school me?" I ask in confusion as I drop my bags on the couch.
"No silly. Beacon Hills."
I froze.
"I was thinking, I could ask Melissa if you could stay with them for a while just until you finish high school? You could see the other 'Musketeers'." She chuckles knowing that was our nickname from our parents.
"Yeah! Oh my gods yes!" I say as I get up and hug my mom. She giggles some more and so do I, but not out of amusement, out of relief. I finally get to see them again. I can't believe it.
"Alright. Alright. I'll give Melissa a call." She says as I kiss her cheek and go to my room to hopefully get a good nights sleep.
(A/N): I'll update in the morning! Goodnight my lovlies