Percy P.O.V.
It's been a hectic past few days. I explained the situation to Bob and Damasen. It was kind of awkward when Zoё and Bob met, as Bob, when he was Iaeptus, was Zoё's grandfather, I mean, he still is, but he doesn't remember it, so does it count? Zeus was a tad upset when I brought a Titan and a Giant to our headquarters, until I vouched for their loyalty. Bob now fights on the front lines with a spear given to him by Hades, that resembles his old broom. Damasen acts as a healer, using herbs grown by Demeter herself to save people on the brink of death. On a side note, Nico hasn't returned from the little "mission" I gave him, it's been too long for him to not have run into trouble, I hope the little emo is alright. Leo also cam back, strafing a few monsters on Festus before jumping into battle.
We fought a few battles in the past days, the number of monsters I've killed is absurd, I've probably killed 3,000 in the past 3 days single handedly. I've been sleeping whenever possible, but I still feel like I could sleep for a few days. Me and Artemis have been... interesting. We haven't had any alone time since the night when we rescued Bob and Damasen, so we haven't really gotten to discuss what happened. The most we've gotten to do is steal glances at each other when we thought no-one was looking. Connor and Travis were sworn to secrecy, we both trusted Thalia enough to not spill the beans, and she was unconscious so we made her believe she was seeing things, but mostly trust in her.
I snap out of my musing when my dad flashes into the room I was using as a bedroom as well as war/strategy room at the moment. We got pushed back to Olympus itself, the overwhelming numbers of the enemy proving to be too much. The god's palaces are stacked to the brim with resting warriors, the injured, and in some cases, the dead that we can't give the final rites, as we are at war and don't have time. "Percy, Tartarus is currently moving his troops up the elevators. They brought out a Giant and a Titan, as well as 20 dracanae with shields to protect the troops coming up later." says my dad.
"Alright, I'll see you out there dad." I say. He nods and flashes out. I follow his lead and flame travel out to our forward observation post, where Athena was waiting, acting as an advisor, which is within seeing distance of where the elevators are located. The sight I see is grim, I see Porphyrion and Atlas, as well as the 20 dracanae my dad reported, as I watch, another 30 dracanae come out of the elevator, half of them with shields, half of them with bows. The archers set up behind the shield wall with arrows notched, waiting for an order.
"We need to strike now, before more reinforcements show up. We completely outnumber them right now, but we might not for too long." I say. Athena nods her approval. "This is an excellent time to test out the new branch of our army. Katie, get your team." I order. She nods and runs off, Hazel and about 20 other demigods following her. I turn back to the elevator doors.
Line Break
By the time Hazel mind messages me they are ready, another 50 dracaenae archers show up, an additional 25 shielded dracaenae and another Titan, a winged archer, that Athena named Lelantos, come out of the elevators. That complicates things. "Frank, message Katie and tell her to do an arrowhead formation, she'll know what it means, as well an updated enemy troop count. Tell her the Hunters and Apollo kids will cover them." I say. He nods.
"Artemis, if you would." I say, looking at her. She rolls her eyes and looks at the Hunters.
"Alright girls, ready your bows for supportive fire." she says.
"You too, Apollo cabin. Target the enemy archers." I say. "Dad, Artemis, and Apollo, with me. We'll be taking care of the immortals. Everyone, stay ready." Then I taxicab whistle as loud as I can. That earns me a few glares. Bring a friend, I send out.
Two shapes appear in the sky, one dark as night, and the other white as snow. Blackjack and Porkpie. Hey Boss, whatcha need? asks Blackjack.
"Porkpie, would you mind carrying my Dad and Apollo, Blackjack, me and Artemis?" I ask. Porkpie looks excited and honored to carry my dad into battle.
Of course, I will my carry Lord Poseidon anywhere he needs me to. says Porkpie.
Carry Boss and the pretty hunter girl, got it. says Blackjack.
"Percy, you still haven't told us what we are doing." says my Dad. Oh yeah.
"Dad, you will be riding Porkpie with Apollo shooting from behind you, Artemis will be seated behind me on Blackjack, doing the same. We will be attacking the enemy immortals, along with them." I say, pointing to the sky behind him. There, 20 or so pegasi fly through the air, each with a demigod rider on their back. A blur on the ground shows Hazel's arrival as well.
Hazel comes to a stop next to me. "We're ready Percy, lead the charge." she says.
I nod and face the shield wall. "FOR OLYMPUS!" I shout as we charge towards the enemy with Flame raised, the pegasi overhead, as well as Blackjack, Porkpie, and Arion charging on the ground. The Hunters and Apollo kids open fire on the enemy archers, and the archer twins themselves, start peppering Lelantos with arrows, who fires back, thankfully, Blackjack and Porkpie both pride themselves on their fancy footwork, and anything them miss is deflected by me or my dad. The pegasi crash into the shield wall first, punching a hole in it that we ride through. Hazel and the flying cavalry get to work on the shield wall and archers, while we take on the immortals. Apollo and Lelantos start fighting, my dad and I take Porphyrion, and Artemis jumps off Blackjack and takes Atlas, as much as I want to worry as the concerned boyfriend I am, I know she can take care of herself.
I pull out Nightmare and jump off Blackjack, who goes and starts kicking dracanae in the back of their heads. Dad drops off Apollo and gets off Porkpie, who follows Blackjack. Me and my father both circle Porphyrion as he spins to keep us both in his sight, holding his spear defensively. My dad experimentally thrusts at Porphyrion, who blocks and counterattacks. Dad blocks while I slash at his back, he dodges and swipes at me with his spear. I jump back. This continues for a few minutes before Porphyrion oversteps attacking me, and I strike. I slice his spear in half and smack him towards my dad with the flat of my blade, who hits him in the gut with the blunt end of his trident. Neither of us notice the arrow until it is too late. "Dad, watch out!" I yell, when I see the arrow about to strike him in the small of his back.
My dad attempts to dodge, but gets hit in the side. He cries out as he falls to the ground. "Barbed and poisoned." he whispers, which I somehow hear. I turn to see Lelantos with his bow pointed towards us and Apollo on the ground, not injured, but stunned.
"Apollo, help him!" I yell, before slicing off Porphyrion's head. It won't kill him, but it will buy me a few minutes. I sheath my swords and pick up my Father's trident. A god's symbol of power, one of the Big three. It is literally vibrating, and I can feel the power of the sea, restless, residing inside it, waiting to be unleashed. Apollo flashes my dad back to our lines and starts to work on him. I turn towards Lelantos, who is grinning. "You dare attack someone who is fighting another, do you have no honor?" I ask.
"This is war little boy, honor has no place here." he replies.
"With honor comes mercy, which you will get none of." I say. I stalk towards him, and he starts to fire arrows at me. I deflect each one off of the trident, relying on my natural skill as a son of Poseidon. He narrows his eyes and starts to fire faster, making it ever so slightly harder to dodge or deflect his arrows. "ENOUGH!" I shout, shooting a high-powered blast of water out of the tip of the trident, knocking Lelantos off of his feet and to the ground. I walk up to him and strike him in the side of the head with the blunt end of the trident, knocking him back to the ground as he tried to get up. I grab an arrow from his quiver and stab him with it, right where he shot my father. He cries out in pain until I thrust the trident into his chest, making him dissolve into golden dust.
I turn and throw the trident at Atlas, striking him in the throat, right as he was about to counterattack when Artemis overstepped just a tiny bit. He too, dissolves. I thrust out my hand, and the trident comes shooting back towards me. I catch it and grin at Artemis, "I could get used to this!" I call out.
She rolls her eyes and says, "Two down, one to go." I nod, and we both charge at Porphyrion. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice the cavalry has finished off the shield wall and archers, and are attacking the hellhounds that burst out of the elevator.
Porphyrion had fully reformed from when I cut off his head and laughs when he sees me and Artemis approaching him. "The young demigod has found himself a godly weapon and a virgin goddess, and suddenly thinks he can take on the Giant king!" he shouts.
I reply with, "I cut off your head with a sword, this just ensures your death." I nod at Artemis, who starts to shoot at Porphyrion, while at thrust and shoot water bolts at him with the trident. He pulled out a sword, as his spear was broken, and was having trouble defending from both of us. Half a dozen silver arrows stuck out of his body, but he was still going strong. Finally, I catch his sword blade in the trident and twist, causing his wrist to twist and him to instinctively drop his sword. A good swordsman wouldn't have dropped it and could have recovered, but it's obvious he relied on his spear. I then stab him in the chest with the trident, at the same time that Artemis shoots an arrow into his head. I whistle for Blackjack, who comes and picks both me and Artemis up, and call out to Katie, "Pull back!" I shout. She nods and relays the order to the cavalry as they finished off the hellhounds. We all ride back to our observation post.
"Good work everyone, got some sleep, I want everyone ready for the final fight.. We can't keep giving up ground, we're going to have to make a final stand."
Line Break (5 hours later, dusk)
Third Person P.O.V.
The steady thud of an army on the move echoes across the olympian slopes. Tartarus and his army of about 25,000 advance up Olympus, slowly making their way towards the throne room, where the gods's doom awaits them. The remaining Olympian fighters await them with only 50 yards between them and the throne room doors. Poseidon remained unable to fight, but he regained consciousness.
"Percy Jackson, I will give you one final chance to surrender. You, and any immortals who will not swear loyalty to me, but the rest of your forces will live if you and the immortals surrender to me now. Last chance." says Tartarus.
"Go to the Void Tartarus!" Percy replies.
"Foolish demigod. You stand no chance! My forces outnumber yours 50 to 1. Our arrows alone will blot out the sun." boasts Tartarus.
"Then we will fight in the shade!" Percy says back.
"Enough, I've run out of patience with you, insolent demigod. First wave, forward!"
A force of 1,000 troops advance on the Olympians roughly 500. They are led the Nemean Lion and Alcyoneus. "I'll take Alcyoneus, the Hunters and Artemis get the Nemean Lion, the rest of you split up based on your bridge/tunnel duties and target different sections of the army. GO!" shouts Percy, leaping over the makeshift barricades set up by the Olympian army and running at Alcyoneus, yelling "For Olympus!!!"
The rest of his troops run after him, yelling like banshees. Percy draws Nightmare and Flame as he runs, dodges Alcyoneus's initial attack and makes two long slashes into Alcyoneus's right leg, which start bleeding oil. Alcyoneus cries out in pain and tries to smack Percy in the chest with his staff, but Percy dodges and kicks the staff out of his hand. He then stabs his in the abdomen, causing Alcyoneus to fall to the ground. "Some god take this guy to the border of Canada and kill him!" shouts Percy. Hermes rolls his eyes and teleports himself and Alcyoneus away.
Percy then goes to help Hermes's group, killing monsters left and right, like a tidal wave crashing down on a beach. Golden dust litters the slopes of Olympus.
With Thalia
"Why does the Nemean Lion have to have invulnerable skin?" asks Thalia, fighting for her life against the overgrown invulnerable cat. The cat swipes at Thaila only to have Artemis swipe at it's paw, causing it to pull the paw back and hiss at her. Zoё shoots at its mouth but the lion quickly shuts it and the arrows bounce off its lips. The lion pounces towards Thalia and knocks her over. Thalia is left on the ground facing the cat's mouth and fangs, trapped underneath two of it's paws.
Suddenly, a bronze and silver sword flashes across her vision, and the lion moves off of Thalia. "Hey Thals, need a hand?" says a mysterious voice. The person who saved her helps her up and Thalia can't help but gasp at the face that went with the voice.
"Luke?!" she shouts. "Aren't you supposed to be dead?" she asks.
"Yeah, I am, but Nico brought me and the other dead demigods from the war back to fight one last time. Some lady named Mrs C. gave us all real bodies for the duration of the war and a few months as a reward for those who survived. She was pretty cool." says Luke. Thalia looks around, Luke, Bianca, Beckendorf, Silena, and so many more who died in the Titan war and Giant war were back and fighting.
"Thanks Luke." she says.
"Don't mention it, think of it as the beginning of my redemption for, ya know." replies Luke.
"Hey Death Breath, you just now getting here?" asks Thalia.
"Well Pinecone Face, it took longer than expected to track down the original souls, Chaos helped me with the ones who had gone for rebirth, she just didn't tell the souls who she was." replies Nico, stabbing the monster in the rear. It roars in pain and Bianca shoot it in the mouth a couple times, while Luke stabs his sword down it's throat, killing it. The dead heros and the hunters all retreat back to their original position once they realize the wave has been dealt with.
There were only a few injuries, no dead, such is the power of divine help in times of war.
Third Person P.O.V.
"I'm done playing with you Olympians, I'm finishing this." says Tartarus from the front of his army. He kneels onto the ground and puts both hands on the ground. Circles of shadows appear all around Tartarus's army. Tartarus grits his teeth and puts more effort into what he is doing. The shadow circles slowly solidified into all the defeated monsters from the war, including the Titans and Giants, except for Orion, whose essence was absorbed by Nightmare.
"What are we going to do now! They've added at least another 5,000 to their number along with all of the strongest fighters they have, besides Tartarus, of course." shouts some random demigod.
"We'll do what we planned to do in the first place, fight until we can't anymore. Numbers don't always show how strong an army is." says Percy. Tartarus raises his own stygian iron blade, a 10 foot longsword, and points it at Percy. Tartarus's army charge at the Olympian army, weapons raised and faces painted with bloodlust. The Olympian army charges back, ready to meet them head-on. Percy and Tartarus at the head of their respective armies. The leaders meet first, followed by their armies.
Percy swipes at Tartarus's head with Flame with Nightmare already up to defend himself. Tartarus jumps back from Percy's swipe and stabs at Percy's chest. Percy sidesteps and swipes down at Tartarus's sword. The primordial twists his blade so that Percy's blade hits the flat of his blade and clangs off. Percy steps back and throws one of his knives at Gration's neck, allowing Artemis to finish her fight and join Percy in his. The two work flawlessly together, playing off each others moves like they've been fighting for years. Percy would stab at Tartarus, forcing him to either dodge or block, and Artemis would attack him either way. This fight left tiny scratches on Tartarus's armor and skin, but did little to hurt him in a significant way. "What's wrong Tartarus, scared of a demigod and goddess?" asks Percy.
"Little demigod, I haven't even begun." says Tartarus. He pushes Percy back with a shadow attack and stabs Artemis in the gut with his sword. A shockwave emits, with Percy at it's center, it kills every monster except the immortals, meaning only the Giants, Titans, and Tartarus were left of the enemy army.
Percy P.O.V.
I watch as Artemis's body drops to the ground. "NO!!" I shout, dropping my swords and pointing my palms at Tartarus. Suddenly, Tartarus is pushed back 30 feet and goes flying into the air. He falls to the ground with his sword a few feet away from him. At the same time, a shockwave of power emites out of me, killing every monster on the enemy army. I thrust my hand at Artemis's fallen body, flame travelling her to the back of our army. "Apollo, help your sister!" I yell. Strangely, I can sense Apollo, as he teleports towards Artemis, I can feel his godly power flowing into her, trying to heal her, but I also feel a darkness inside Artemis's wound, not allowing Apollo's healing to be effective, it's barely helping and taking up too much of his power to help in the long run, but it's holding her on for now.
Tartarus slowly stands up and picks up his sword. "What are you?" he asks.
"The demigod who is about to kick. your. ass." I growl out.
Third Person P.O.V.
Hyperion rushes at Percy, who justs sidesteps and slices him right through him. Polybetes is next, Percy blocks his attack and stabs him in the head. Zeus eagerly points his lightning bolt at Polybetes, anxious to get some glory, when Polybetes dissolves into golden dust. "Did he just kill a Giant by himself?" asks Athena. Zeus just nods. "That shouldn't be possible!" exclaims Athena.
"That would partially my fault."
Zeus and Athena turn around to see Chaos. "What do you mean Lady Chaos?" asks Athena.
"As you know, Percy is my champion. That means he gets, let's say, some 'unique' powers. Such as, when he gets angry enough, and I mean, angry enough that he could lose control of his powers because his fatal flaw comes into effect, his godly DNA takes control, allowing him to be considered a god, from a technical standpoint, but he is still mortal, meaning he fits both parts and is able to kill a Giant on his own." explains Chaos.
"What do you mean, 'partially?" asks Zeus.
"Well, in order for this reaction to happen, it has to be triggered by triggering the fatal flaw in the worst way possible. For someone with the flaw of power, that would mean offering them something that makes the more powerful than everyone they know, for Percy and his loyalty, that is hurting the person he loves the most. I must admit, even I didn't think that was Artemis." says Chaos.
"That sea spawn cares about my daughter, the virgin man-hating goddess, more than anyone else?" asks Zeus, eye slightly twitching.
Meanwhile, Percy kills every Titan and Giant except for Kronos in Mark's body, and Porphyrion. They stand on either side of Tartarus, who still looks questiongly at Percy. Porphyrion thrusts at Percy with his spear, who sidesteps, kicks the spear point into the ground, runs up the shaft towards Porphyrion, and slices off his head. He kicks off of Porphyrion to where Kronos is, and slices towards his head, but Kronos blocks with his scythe and counter-attacks. This goes on for a few moments before Percy drops Nightmare and pulls his father's trident from off his back, which he uses to shoot Kronos with water, knocking him off balance, and then impaling him on the end of it. "Tartarus, it's just me and you left. Beg for your life and I may end you quickly." says Percy.
"Not a chance, demigod." replies Tartarus. The two exchanges blows, trident and sword against sword. Percy slashes Flame across Tartarus's leg, causing his to stumble. Percy moves to finish him but Tartarus recovered quickly. He knocks the trident out of Percy's hands with his sword and the fight continues. Percy stayed on the offensive for most of the fight, but Tartarus got some good hits in. Percy has a slice on his left arm, the one without a sword in it, and it while it didn't affect his sword play too much, it still cost him energy. Tartarus has a slice on his forehead and sword arm, but he still fought on. Percy gets Tartarus into a blade lock and uses the first trick he learned. He twists and Tartarus is disarmed. However, Tartarus grabs Percy by the throat and holds him into the air. Percy drops Flame in an attempt to get air. He beats at Tartarus's arm but to no avail. Percy reaches down for his gun, he gets past his pocket and to the holster, grabs it, unholsters it, but is unable to fire it due to Tartarus crushing the barrel after saying, "Perseus, you know modern weapons aren't meant for demigod hands. What would your father think?" he asks mockingly.
Tartarus uses his other hand to grab his sword and place it at Percy's neck. "I must admit, you put up a good fight, but you are just a demigod while I am a primordial. You know, my blade is coated in a poison potent enough to force a god to fade, I wonder what it will do to your soul? Any last words, Percy Jackson?"
Tartarus loosens his grip enough for Percy to choke out some words. "Yeah, don't watch the mouth... watch the hands" he says. With that, Percy uncaps Riptide, which he got when he reached for his gun, and slices off the hand Tartarus is using to choke him. Tartarus drops his sword and clutches his new stump, as is expected. Percy then slices Tartarus's head off.
Percy wastes no time flame travelling over to Artemis's side. "I'm sorry Percy, you know I would do anything to save my sister, but I can't. Even using all of my power, I'm not strong enough to stabilize her, I barely made a dent in the poison as it is!" exclaims Apollo.
"Move." Percy all but growls. Apollo moves to the side and Percy kneels at Artemis's side.
Percy P.O.V.
No, no, no, no, no! This can't be happening! We just got together! I focus on my healing powers, putting all of my energy into healing Artemis. I won't let this happen!
Third Person P.O.V.
A golden glow surrounds Percy and Artemis as Percy attempts to heal her. Slowly, Percy's body starts to slump over, the exhaustion of healing a goddess whose body is trying to fade. "Come on... come on. I can do this! COME ON!" whispers Percy. The Hunters surround Percy as he tries to heal their mistress.
Suddenly, a hand appears on Percy's shoulder. Percy sees Apollo out of the corner of his eye, "Tartarus tried to take my sister from me, I'm going to do everything in my power to stop that." Suddenly, Percy feels power, godly power, flowing through him, giving him strength to continue on. Two more hands joined in, one on Percy's other shoulder belonging to Hestia, the one on both Hestia and Apollo's shoulders being Poseidon's. Slowly, each and every god and goddess lent their energy to Percy, giving him the power to keep going, the last to do so being Zeus, only beaten by Hera.
Slowly, Percy starts to sing quietly under his breath.
If you need help, if you need help
I'll shut down the city lights
I'll lie, cheat, I'll beg and bribe
To make you well, to make you well
When enemies are at your door
I'll carry you away from war
If you need help, if you need help
Your hope dangling by a string
I'll share in your suffering
To make you well, to make you well
Give me reasons to believe
That you would do the same for me
And I will do it for you, for you
Baby, I'm not moving on
I'll love you long after you're gone
For you, for you
You will never sleep alone
I'll love you long after you're gone
And long after you're gone, gone, gone
I surrender honestly
You've always done the same for me
So I will do it for you, for you
Baby, I'm not moving on
I'll love you long after you're gone
For you, for you
You will never sleep alone
I'll love you long after you're gone
And long after you're gone, gone, gone
You're my backbone
You're my cornerstone
You're my crutch when my legs stop moving
You're my head start
You're my rugged heart
You're the pulse that I've always needed
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
Like a drum my heart never stops beating
For you, for you
Baby, I'm not moving on
I'll love you long after you're gone
For you, for you
You will never sleep alone
I'll love you long after you're gone
For you, for you
Baby, I'm not moving on
I'll love you long after you're gone
For you, for you
You will never sleep alone
I'll love you long
Long after you're gone
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
Like a drum my heart never stops beating for you
And long after you're gone, gone, gone
I'll love you long after you're gone, gone, gone
(By Phillip Phillips)
With how quiet Percy was singing, only Hestia and Apollo heard him. Apollo though it was just helping him concentrate, Hestia understood the implications of the song and smirks. One by one, the Olympians break off, not having enough power to continue lending their energy. The last to break off was Apollo, his will to save his sister surpassing his weariness. Finally, it was just Percy, the demigod who has done things the gods themselves couldn't, pushing forward, pushing his limits and breaking them, something he hasn't done in a long time. "Almost there, almost there..." mutters Percy.
"So close, come on!" says Apollo under his breath, Hestia just smiles grimly and uses her powers to ease his nerves. The sweat dripping off Percy's forehead from the effort forms a small puddle underneath Percy.
"Come on Percy, you can do this." whispers Phoebe. The rest of the hunters mutter their agreements.
As if the Hunt's words were magic, Percy sends one final pulse of orange-golden into Artemis's fallen body, and her wound seals itself. "Alright everyone, I think she's going to be alr..." Percy starts to say before collapsing onto Artemis's body.
Everyone surges forward but Apollo stops them, "Stop, he's going to be fine, he just had the divine energy of the entire Olympian council and used all of his own energy. He needs to rest, probably for a week, maybe a little more."
Artemis starts to stir, "What happened, Percy?!" she shouts, noticing his unconscious body draped over her. "What happened to him, wheres Tartarus, wasn't I stabbed?" she asks rapid fire.
"Relax niece, Percy healed you with all his energy, that is why he's unconscious. Percy killed literally everyone after you were stabbed. To answer your last question, see your first answer." answers Hestia.
"He did that, risked his life, to save me?" asks Artemis with a slight hint of awe.
"Yes sister, yes he did." replies Apollo, looking at the unconscious demigod with a look of thanks.
That was the Primordial War. There were going to be like, 5 more battles, but I didn't want to force the people still reading to have to wait an additional half a year to finish this story. The next chapter will also be the last, the reward ceremony. I intend to take this a way that I have never seen happen before. Interpret that as you will. There was a reference to "Spiderman into the Spiderverse" as well as a little sneak peak to a possible chapter in the sequel, see if you can find that. DM me your guesses for the reference and the sneak peak.