Chương 31: Son Of Poseidon
The Seraphic System
Chapter: 31
I know some of you may be annoyed at this chapter but I felt it was needed, next chapter shit hits the fan. Hope you all enjoy this anyway.
Pa/ t reon details at the bottom of the chapter if you're interested I'll keep posting regardless.
(Son of Poseidon)
-{Percy Jackson}-
Percy stared at the rapidly distancing back of Kai as he casually walked away after dropping a huge revelation.
'Kai was a fucking angel? Is he joking or am I missing something?' Percy thought.
Ever since arriving in this new world of chaotic gods and monsters, Percy had felt lost. He didn't fit in with the other demigods, and it had been hard.
He would never admit it, but he cried himself to sleep on his first night at camp. Everything seemed so unfair; he didn't belong in the human world or the mystical one, which made him think maybe he just didn't belong at all.
Besides Grover, Kai was the only one who genuinely wanted to talk to him. Percy sensed there was something different about Kai. His constant aloof attitude, there was just something strange about him.
But Percy didn't care; he had seen "normal," and it was terrible. His instincts were confirmed as Kai helped shoulder the burden Percy had carried since arriving.
Percy closed his eyes as the warm sun washed over him. It was strange knowing gods existed and that now apparently his close friend was an angel of all creatures.
'Wait, does that mean the Abrahamic God is real too? Was that who Ares was referring to as the "king of feathered assholes?"' Percy thought.
He also wondered why Kai didn't speak of his family. He must have quite a lot of siblings if he was a part of the angels. Like literally in the thousands and knowing there were more gods beyond the Greek pantheon was somewhat intimidating but not that surprising.
Not after he had experienced so many surprises in the last few weeks. Fighting monsters and pissing off gods, Percy chuckled as he walked back to Annabeth and Medusa.
'My life has been completely turned upside down and yet I can't find it in myself to hate it,' Percy thought.
By now the drowsiness from the lotus hotel magical drug had worn off; he felt energy surge back into his body as a wide grin spread across his face, determination alight in his eyes.
"What's got you so energised?" Annabeth asked, a smile as she matched his energy.
"I'm starting to feel like things are looking up for us," Percy responded with a shrug. "Oh, also, Kai finally told me what he is."
Annabeth blinked before smacking her forehead in annoyance.
"I completely forgot to ask him about that. I assume he's a demigod child of Lord Apollo, though I'm not sure what Lord Ares meant by 'feathered' and 'silver city,'" Annabeth sighed.
"He's an angel," Percy responded with a smirk, nearly laughing as Annabeth choked.
"What?" she asked, taken completely off-guard.
"Kai is an angel, and the city he was speaking about is Heaven," Percy replied, crossing his arms and nearly laughing.
"An angel? Like, Abrahamic faction, child of God, enemy of demons, angel?!" Annabeth stuttered. "They're real?"
"Yup."
Annabeth's stormy grey eyes narrowed.
"Are you messing with me, seaweed brain?" she growled.
"Oi, who are you calling seaweed brain, bird brain?" Percy retorted.
"B-bird brain?!"
Medusa clapped her hands, grabbing both of their attention.
"Children, please. Yes, Kai is an angel. I assumed you were aware of this fact," Medusa calmly interjected.
"Oh, you knew?" Percy asked.
"You knew?!" Annabeth shouted. "That's not fair, how come he tells you first?"
Both of them had quite different reactions. Percy had seen that Medusa was keeping her word, and she had sworn an oath on the Styx, so he wasn't too hostile towards her. Annabeth, however, was still extremely wary, having heard rumours of a vengeful, cursed woman killing fellow demigods.
"Yes, he showed me his wings when we first met," Medusa sniffed.
"What did they look like?" Percy asked curiously, now eager to see Kai's wings for himself.
Medusa blushed faintly. "They were beautiful. I had heard rumours that angels possess exceptionally beautiful wings. Sightings of angels are extremely rare, so I had never been able to confirm it," she said, looking lost in thought.
Percy tilted his head in confusion, about to ask a question, but Annabeth beat him to it.
"Why are angel sightings rare?" Annabeth questioned.
Medusa sighed.
"Angels are known for being very secluded. No one really knows why, but they all stay locked up in the safety of Heaven. They have been for a long time. I have been alive for many millennia, and he is the first angel I have encountered," Medusa explained.
Annabeth and Percy looked thoughtful.
"Then why isn't Kai in Heaven?" Percy asked with a frown.
Medusa smiled mysteriously.
"That's what I've been trying to find out. Normally it could mean he had fallen, but I had seen his wings. Pure as ever. He hasn't spoken about it at all. He just seems to be shrouded in mystery," Medusa informed, a hand on her hip.
Percy clenched his fist.
'I'll get stronger so he can rely on me too,' he thought determinedly.
"Right, let's go. I need to contact my d-dad." He hesitated when saying the foreign word for just a second.
"Right, the nearest river is by the canyon nearby. Let's hope Kai is right and you can contact your father there," Annabeth nodded. "The question is, how do we get there?"
Percy's eyes trailed over to the car Kai had kindly liberated for their usage. Annabeth's eyes followed his gaze, and she instantly shook her head.
"There's no way. We can find another way," Annabeth denied instantly.
Medusa merely smirked in amusement, deciding to let Percy and Annabeth figure out the travel arrangements.
"Like a bus..?" Percy joked, only to frown as Annabeth started nodding.
Percy gave her a flat stare. "Oh, don't give me that look. One freak accident doesn't mean we can't use a bus ever again," Annabeth argued.
Percy slowly turned to Medusa, hoping his expression conveyed the sheer incredulity he felt.
"Fine," he sighed.
He guessed she might have a point; after all, she was a child of Athena, the goddess of wisdom, warfare, and crafts.
Annabeth smiled at his acceptance. "Right, let's go find a bus to take us to this canyon," she announced.
"Lead the way," Percy said, following behind her as she began leading them towards the closest bus station.
It was good Kai had left them with some money, which was used on getting some bus tickets as they arrived at the closest station. They now found themselves sitting at the back of the bus once more.
This time without the addition of their slightly insane angel friend. Percy looked outside the bus window, eyes flickering to anyone who entered. He had quickly adapted to the life of a demigod as he understood that he had to always be alert.
His hands clasped around the pen that was able to transform into his sword at a moment's notice.
Luckily, no creepy secretly disguised Furies entered the bus this time, or at least no one he could see that was out of place. Percy liked to think he had a better sense of anyone who wasn't a normal human.
Annabeth was also watching the doors closely, her hands resting close to her celestial-bronze daggers while Medusa lounged on the other window seat lazily, seemingly uncaring of who entered.
Percy had to admit he felt a bit safer with her around even if he knew that she possessed some complex feelings towards him due to his father wronging her in the past.
He didn't know the full story, but he was sure she would protect him if it came down to it. Percy didn't know why he felt like he knew she would, but he trusted his instincts.
That has proven reliable in the past few days.
"How do you think Kai is doing?" Percy idly asked as he leant his head on the window.
"I'm sure he's doing fine. Whatever Lord Ares had set up was probably expecting you in mind. So I'm sure he's fine," Medusa calmly deduced.
Percy blinked.
"You think that overcompensating god left some traps?" he asked, somewhat naively.
Annabeth shook her head as Medusa laughed lightly.
"Seaweed brain, you think the god of war left his shield in some coliseum by accident?" Annabeth said, a fond smile on her face despite the words.
"But why?" Percy asked, frowning.
He knew it made sense, which was why he was having second thoughts about letting Kai go alone to face a danger meant for him.
"I suspect that's what Kai is going to find out, if he doesn't already know, of course," Medusa responded with a sly smile.
Annabeth tilted her head in confusion.
"What do you mean?" she questioned, ignoring as the bus started moving forward. The doors shut as everyone was finally on the bus.
"I suspect Kai knows more than he's letting on, which is a good thing for us in any case. I've come to learn that my new master is a bit secretive," Medusa answered.
Percy grinned.
"Then I guess there's nothing to worry—" Percy started saying, only to be cut off as the bus came to a stop. The bus driver was shouting at someone in the middle of the road.
Percy calmed down, releasing the firm grip he had on his sword pen. Calming his beating heart. A small plump lady walked out from in front of the bus, a small dog on a leash sniffing the ground in front of her.
Medusa's posture suddenly changed, becoming more alert as she looked at the lady in confusion. Seemingly sensing something off but not quite able to locate it.
She leaned forward, inspecting the lady. As the bus driver shouted for her to get out of the way. Her dog was sniffing under the bus, so the bus driver couldn't move without killing it. Which was a one-way ticket to getting sued of all his life savings.
The plump lady wore a large summer hat, acting oblivious to the calling of the annoyed bus driver. Who finally got up from his seat. Opening the door he stepped out.
"Miss? I'm going to need you to either join the bus or move out of the way please." He said.
The dog sniffed and began to come closer to the window Percy was sitting by.
"Hey!" The bus driver walked towards her.
The little dog looked back up at the plump lady, who in turn looked directly into Percy's eyes. A creepy smile overtaking her features.
"Found you."
"Miss-" The exhausted bus driver tried. Only for a tendril of mutilated flesh to spear out of the plump lady. Piercing his body, the poor bus driver couldn't even scream as the tendril retracted.
A massive hole was left in where his stomach should be.
Percy's eyes widened as this happened in a split few seconds. He clicked his pen as the lady's eyes turned pitch black and the grin stretched further than human possible. Her teeth started to turn impossibly sharp.
Medusa uttered some words in shock that made a cold lance of dread spike through him.
"Echidna."
Annabeth gasped, her knives already out.
The small dog suddenly twisted, rapidly growing into a strange combination of a lion, a goat, and a serpent. It has the body and head of a lion, a goat's head growing out of its back, and a tail that ends in a deadly serpent's head.
"The Chimera" Annabeth whispered next.
Its maw opened and a bright orange light gathered at the back of its throat. Medusa pushed Annabeth out of the way as she and Percy jumped away in a blur of speed.
Next moment an explosion of flame incinerated half of the large bus. Passing through and destroying an entire building. Screams rang out as humans witnessed a building explode.
A loud cackle rang out through the surroundings.
"Son of Poseidon, you've been harder than expected to find." Echidna spoke. Her voice was loud.
"Shit." Percy cursed. Annabeth pushed him out of a window as the entire bus was incinerated a moment later.
Percy felt fear grip his heart at the untamed power, the one busy street ablaze. Adrenaline surged through his veins as he suddenly found himself in a life or death situation. This time without the addition of Kai. Which oddly enough made him feel even worse.
He supposed that having a powerful angel friend who was seemingly calm all the time would do that. Angels were meant to be like that right?
The cars around the bus were also consumed in the Chimeras flames.
Gritting his teeth and remembering his promise to Kai, his eyes glowed green. The tug in his stomach that had become familiar with his small power usage so far returned.
The Chimera rounded the corner, its black claws deadly weapons in there own right as its every step caused cracks to cascade in the ground. Its throat made a clicking sound as Echidna laughed.
Water exploded up from the ground. The water pipes underground running underneath the road ruptured as Percy in a panic called on all the water nearby.
The Chimera let out another massive wave of flames that rampaged towards them in a destructive path.
Percy roared, the water around him whipping towards him and creating a shield of pure water. The resulting collision caused a massive amount of steam to be generated.
"Impressive, for a newly turned demigod." Echidna taunted. She didn't seem to be joining in with the little fight yet. Which made him all the more wary.
The Chimera suddenly burst through the steam, forcing Percy to raise his sword to block. Percy was sent skidding back as the Chimera followed up with another claw swipe immediately.
Its attention was momentarily taken as Annabeth flew out from the steam, throwing a knife at its eye which it was forced to dodge. Taking advantage of the brief reprieve Percy jabbed his finger at the Chimera with malicious intent.
The sounds of dying humans fueling his unusual bloodthirsty fury. A massive burst of water the size of an ice cream truck sent it flying back. Annabeth quickly picked up her dagger.
"Where's Medusa?" She asked, her grey eyes frantically searching the battlefield filled with burning cars. The black smoke made it hard to see.
Percy scowled, waving his hands and sending a massive thick wave of water drops to extinguish the fire. The more he used his power, the more confident he became.
He hadn't experimented with it yet and this had been his first time truly using it in a battle.
"I don't know." He replied. His eyes flickering to see if he could catch sight of her.
They couldn't say much more as they were forced to jump away as the Chimera took a massive leap down, the ground exploding in a shower of rubble with the resulting force.
Percy slid away, the water around him turning into multiple water spears. That he sent towards the Chimera. They pushed it back as the water spears impacted its body, but left no real damage.
"Target its eyes." Annabeth called out.
Giving her a look, he grinned. Feeling more confident.
The Chimera let another massive fireball loose towards them, a dome of water intercepting its path as Percy charged forward. Percy slashed his sword towards the Chimera's eyes, only for a paw to intercept his swing.
He ducked under a paw swipe as Annabeth joined, throwing a dagger to its eye once again and forcing it to redirect its attention. Percy swung up and narrowly avoided its eye as the Chimera backed away.
Annabeth kept the pressure as she came in closer, throwing her other dagger and rolling to pick up the one she had thrown earlier. Percy sent a blast of water as it dodged, sending it on its back from the force.
Percy dived in for the shot, only to be intercepted by a hissing snake that was its tail, the serpent biting down on his sword and stopping his swing mid-motion.
Annabeth didn't face that restriction as she jumped up, Percy using his water manipulation to create thick water ropes that restrained its two paws from attacking.
She plunged her dagger with both hands into one of its eyes, causing a loud roar of pain to erupt from the beast. Percy grinned wildly, but that grin turned into a worried shout as the Chimera tore out of its bindings, swinging its paw and sending Annabeth flying into a restaurant's front doors, crashing through multiple walls and out the other side into another wall.
Percy launched himself towards her.
"Annabeth!" he shouted, worry easily recognisable in his tone.
'What immense strength. The creature was slower than us but made up for it with its monstrous amount of pure strength.' Percy thought.
He rushed through the restaurant, ignoring the Chimera, which got up with a bit of a stumble, one of its eyes closed as black blood leaked out from beneath the eyelid.
Annabeth was slumped down, blood leaking from her forehead. He crouched beside her, checking for a heartbeat. Sighing in relief when he found she was still alive.
That relief turned to rage.
Percy wasn't an angry person, but he had only a few friends in his life, and those he truly trusted could be counted on one hand. While they might argue, Annabeth had become important to him.
His teeth ground together painfully tight. Anger overcame him, removing his inhibitions, uncaring of the consequences.
He roared, his eyes glowing brighter than ever. The ground trembled.
Water surged up from under him, propelling him through the air. The water followed his form as he flew down, aiming for the Chimera that had harmed his friend.
The water coalesced into a giant construct in the shape of a fist. The Chimera looked up just in time to be smashed in the face with a massive watery blow. The force sent it crashing into a nearby wall.
Percy didn't stop there. Massive amounts of water erupted from the ground, surging from both of his hands as he used it to propel himself forward.
The dazed Chimera stood no chance. A giant wave of water followed Percy, crashing down directly on top of it and sending it careening through a nearby building that collapsed under the force of the wave.
Percy didn't even have the presence of mind to wonder if anyone was inside; luckily, the building had been evacuated. The Chimera coughed up globs of water.
Its attempt to build up flames backfired as a pillar of water shot up into its open mouth, causing the flame to explode internally. The Chimera coughed violently.
Before it could recover, Percy stormed through the wall like a wrathful king, a halo of water above his head sending out five powerful blasts that knocked it off balance as it tried to rise. The water halo transformed into a massive fist, which he promptly slammed onto its head. The Chimera staggered, the lack of oxygen and multiple heavy blows causing it to wobble unsteadily.
"You think you can hurt my friends? Why does everyone keep trying to take the people I care about?" Percy seethed.
Raising his hand, he engulfed the Chimera in a massive ball of water, lifting it into the air and swirling it chaotically. The Chimera spun helplessly, unable to escape.
Percy was ready to end the creature when Echidna intervened. "I think that's enough," she ordered. "I admit, you've impressed me, boy. You're not ordinary, even for a demigod of the Big Three. It's a shame you'll have to die for the damage you've caused my child."
Percy growled, preparing to fight another formidable opponent, only to be interrupted as a massive crack appeared in the hotel behind Echidna.
"Hm?" Echidna hummed, her black eyes widening as the entire building tilted and collapsed onto her.
Medusa burst through the dust kicked up by the impact, carrying Annabeth in her arms.
"That won't hold her for long. Throw the Chimera away. She'll prioritise its survival over catching us," Medusa ordered.
Percy hesitated briefly before nodding. He commanded the ball of water to shoot away, gasping at the sheer amount of energy expended.
That battle had taken a lot out of him. He hadn't realised how much energy he had expended, so focused was he on his anger.
They ran, hearing an explosion a few dozen seconds later.
-Scene Break-
Percy slumped down, breathing heavily. Medusa walked past him, gently laying the unconscious Annabeth down on the floor.
"Is she okay?" Percy huffed between deep breaths.
Medusa nodded calmly. "She will be fine."
Percy let out a sigh of relief. "Damn, she left her knives behind."
Medusa smirked and held up a pair of celestial-bronze daggers. "Nope, I managed to snag them while you were having your moment," she replied, sitting down.
"Why didn't you help earlier?" Percy asked, his eyes narrowing in annoyance. "We could have prevented Annabeth from getting hurt."
Medusa sighed. "Sorry, dear. I was waiting for the right moment. Echidna is an incredibly powerful opponent. I knew immediately when we saw her that we would have to retreat regardless."
Percy nodded in understanding. "Thanks for the assist."
Medusa simply smiled back at him. "On the bright side, we're close to our destination, so we won't need to apprehend a vehicle for our journey," she said, the last part spoken in a teasing tone.
She got a tired chuckle in response.
"Hey, are we good?" Percy asked after a moment.
Medusa tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean?" she questioned.
"I know you have issues with my dad, and surely after killing demigods for so long, your grudge didn't just disappear," Percy replied.
She nodded in response. "You're smarter than you look," she responded with a sly smile.
"Hey!" Percy protested.
"You aren't wrong. To be honest, I found myself hesitating when helping the both of you out. The children of the two gods I hate the most. It must be fate playing with me again." Medusa laughed.
"It's getting easier." She admitted.
Percy quieted down.
"I was given a chance to be more than that when Kai appeared. Some may say it was rash to so quickly proclaim my loyalty, but I've been waiting for something like this for a long time," Medusa sighed.
"I've tried before, you know, to be something else. To try to break out of the miserable existence of killing and being killed by demigods. But it never worked. I have a reputation I can't outrun, not without help. Everyone I tried to explain this to always ended up killing me anyway for trying to deceive them," she ranted.
Percy felt sympathy for her. She may have brought it on herself by killing demigods, but she had been cursed unfairly. It was no wonder she went for the only source of revenge she could.
Then, finally snapping out of that and trying to be different, only to realise you can't? Percy let her continue on without input from him.
"So when a powerful angel, a being part of perhaps the purest race, appeared, I figured it was my only chance. Now here I am, without any regret, as I've spoken more in the last few days than I have in years," Medusa finished, giving him a smile.
Annabeth groaned, her eyes fluttering open. Percy smiled, moving beside her.
"What happened?" she asked.
"You got thrown through a building," Percy explained.
Annabeth's eyes widened as she frantically looked around for the Chimera.
"Don't worry, we escaped," he calmed her down.
She sighed.
"Though this could have been avoided if we had simply stuck to using the car," Percy teased, earning a scowl but no retort.
"We need to start making a move," Medusa interjected. "Echidna is still after us."
Percy nodded, giving Annabeth a hand up.
"We aren't far. Let's quickly get a move on," Percy ordered.
They started making their way to their destination.
'I wonder how Kai is doing?' Percy wondered.
-END-
if you wish to read up to eleven chapters in advance among all my stories and other things please visit pa/t reon * / Snipez818, I appreciate all the support!
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