AN: As promised here is the final chapter of the story.

Hope you all like it!

For this is the end of part one, or book one, or whatever you want to call it.

So yeah, I hope you enjoy it, and please leave a review etc. If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to PM me.

Another thing while I am at it, is this. I am a part of a discord group, there are tons of others there, plenty of writers, admittedly mainly PJO, but other stuff too, including a growing number of writers from other fandoms. Feel free to pop along and say hi, I'm always happy to chat about the stuff I write. So if you fancy it please do join by sticking this: discord .gg / elibrary into discord, with no spaces, or using the link on my bio.

Thanks for reading and please do leave a review, or feel free to PM me, I am usually much better at answering those!

Betaed by Arch_Angel and Silver

Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson.

( - )

(Last Time)

Overhead the sun continued to shine down upon him, even as it started its slow and steady descent.

He was running out of time.

His power rose and fell with the sun.

"Not that one then," Atlas chuckled, his eyes alight with curiosity. "I suppose it would make sense for your surviving aspect to be one of your most obscure ones. Fortunately, my dear daughters have kept me abreast of the times these many long millennia. But even so, it's tricky. It would have to be one only loosely related to our Pantheon. After all, that is how you survived as long as you did, isn't it? Where most titans and gods stayed stagnant, you evolved. Isn't that right, Helios-Mithras? Or do you just prefer Mithras for short?"

( - )

Chapter 18

( - )

(With Percy)

The moment the name left Atlas's lips it was like a nuclear explosion had gone off in the pit of his stomach.

His entire being vibrated with the energy, and light seemed to erupt out of every pore, bathing everything around him in its radiance.

The light he was exuding from his eyes, was blinding to everyone around him and they were giving off heat so intense that it reduced Atlas's thumbs to ash before he could shove them into Percy's skull and gouge out his eyes.

Roaring in pain, the smug smile on Atlas's face dissolved into a look of shock and rage, even as Percy looked down at him through his now glowing, white eyes.

His head was pounding, his skin was tingling, and his throat was dry.

But despite that, he felt incredible.

Clenching his hands into fists, Percy let out a roar of his own as blood coursing through his veins became like molten lava.

He felt eyes growing hotter and hotter before suddenly twin beams of fiery white energy exploded out of them. Like a superheated laser which followed his line of sight and burrowed into Atlas's furious silver eyes.

Atlas's roar turned into a scream as his eyes exploded in a shower of golden ichor. Only for that golden ichor to get immediately vaporised by the heat, even as the silver flesh around his eyes began to char and turn black. As the twin laser beams continued to bore into his skull.

Once again flush with power, even if only for a moment, Percy brought his clenched fist up between Atlas's muscled forearms and ripped them apart, breaking himself free from Atlas's now mangled grip.

Touching down on the ground once more, Percy didn't even bother to hide a snarl as he lunged forward. His body was now wreathed in golden solar energy as he collided with the blinded titan. His arm was cocked, and his hands were clenched into tight fists.

Growling, Atlas, now temporarily blind, showed his experience as he instinctively braced himself. Halting Percy's advance, and reflecting his punch, even as he ignored his blistering, steaming flesh, and the scorching heat Percy was now radiating.

Pushing forward, Percy broke through Atlas's guard and rammed his other fist into the titan's solar plexus.

Grunting, Atlas tanked the strike and grabbed onto Percy. Grappling with him as he tried to put Percy in a headlock. No doubt with the intention of shattering his neck like a twig.

Unfortunately for Atlas, before he could regain his advantage and put his still prodigious strength to use, a razor-sharp knife buried itself up to the hilt in the back of his knee. Slicing through veins and tendons with brutal ease.

Roaring as he felt his leg giving out, Atlas looked down to see his daughter's cold, onyx-black eyes boring into him.

He'd been so caught up with kicking around Percy, and so dismissive of those around him, that he hadn't noticed where he had ended up standing.

Artemis was trapped beneath the sky only a few metres behind him.

Twisting the knife, Zoe flashed him a vicious, triumphant smile and pushed herself away. Even as Percy braced his knees and pushed forward, knocking Atlas off his feet and sending him tumbling head over ass into Artemis. Who, upon seeing what was happening, caught on immediately and pushed herself back and away, even as Atlas slammed into her allowing the weight to drop onto the Titan's chest.

"NO! NOT AGAIN!" Atlas bellowed as he struggled on the ground.

The weight of the sky was now no longer on his back or shoulders, but instead fully on his chest. Pinning him back down to the earth, with all the weight pushing down on his sternum and lungs. Giving him no leverage to push himself up. He was truly trapped.

"NO-!" Atlas roared again, his cry breaking off halfway through as he struggled to breathe beneath the weight of the sky.

His every breath was ragged and painful.

Breathing deeply, Percy unleashed the remainder of his pent-up power – which even now felt like it was immolating him from within – channelling it through his now throbbing eyes in the form of two whitish laser beams. Both of which struck Atlas in the chest, charring his flesh and searing muscle beneath it.

By the time he finished expelling all his absorbed energy, and had returned to his former height, Atlas's chest was a carbonized ruin. His now visible ribs were blacked, and some of them had been reduced to ash. His organs had also been eviscerated, leaving behind a smoking ruin, which even as he watched began too slowly but surely regenerated.

A garbled gurgle left Atlas's lips in response.

His healed silver eyes bulged and his mouth opened and closed like a fish, as he suffocated, yet still didn't die.

His body was too hardy and endurable to die, no matter how much the titan might wish it wasn't at that moment.

Exhaling a ragged breath of steam, Percy stumbled away.

His clothing, although somehow protected from the worst of his fire, was little more than rags at his point after his fist fight with Atlas. They only just protected his modesty. In fact, the only thing that had survived unscathed was his Nemean Lion skin jacket.

Groaning, Percy rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck.

Every move he made hurt.

He just felt like a massive bruise.

Behind him he could sense, more than see Artemis crouching beside Zoe, her voice low as she muttered something to her wounded lieutenant.

Looking sideways through stinging eyes as he walked past the duo, he quickly noted Artemis' condition.

Her face was soaked in sweat, her limbs were still quivering, and she looked exhausted.

But despite her condition though, her hand was still glowing silver as she sealed Zoe's wounds.

Nodding internally to himself – Zoe would survive – Percy continued on his way. His gaze instinctively shifted to the blonde girl next.

She was tired and battered, but would also probably live. Or at least she would if someone patched up the bleeding wound on her upper thigh.

Which was more than could be said for Phoebe.

With just a single glance he knew it was too late for the abrasive hunter.

Her eyes were glazed, and there was a large pool of blood around her fallen body.

She was long since dead.

Surprisingly, as he walked past her, he felt a pang of loss at that realization.

He hadn't liked Phoebe at all.

In fact, he thought she was a colossal bitch.

Yet at the same time, he was still saddened by her death.

She hadn't been at all pleasant to him, but she had still dedicated her life to Artemis and had done her duty, even at the cost of her life, and honestly, he could respect that.

At the start of the quest, he had assumed that the hunters had only been so dedicated because of self-interest, after all, Artemis was the source of their power and immortality.

But now he wasn't so sure.

Sighing, he tore his gaze away and looked over at Thalia, his heart clenching painfully at the state she was in.

"Thalia," Percy said tiredly, his eyes locking with hers as he reached out and checked her pulse.

It was faint and seemed to be getting fainter with every moment.

"I…, I knew y-you'd come," Thalia rasped, a trickle of blood leaving her lips as she tiredly looked up at him and gave him a weak smile.

The daughter of Zeus was dying, and they both knew it.

"Liar," Percy said softly. He hadn't even been sure himself that he would return. In some ways, he still wasn't sure why he had. Not that he was all that concerned about that right now. Instead, he had other things on his mind, like Atlas's revelation, and perhaps more importantly, Thalia. "You probably thought I was dead."

"I-I hoped y-you w-weren't," Thalia replied honestly.

Percy smiled and gently cupped her cheek.

Thalia tried to smile again, only to let out a groan of pain instead.

"I'm dying," She said softly.

Her eyes were full of resignation.

The only thing keeping her standing at this point was the rock behind her.

"I-I don't…, I don't want to die…" Thalia gasped out, her voice breaking slightly in the middle.

"I know," Percy said softly.

This was not the first time she had gone through this.

"But I guess you don't want to be turned into a tree either," Percy said with a forced smile.

Thalia gave a painful chuckle, more blood bubbling at the edge of her mouth.

Biting his lip, Percy glanced behind him and saw that Artemis was getting to her feet again, her silver eyes locked forlornly on Phoebe's corpse. Over her shoulder he could see Zoe and Annabeth were both slumped to the side unconscious. They both looked battered, but their wounds were now bound. The slight rise and fall of their chests was evidence enough that they were still among the living.

Exhaling, Percy returned his gaze to Artemis.

From what little he knew of her and gods in general, Artemis would be of no help to Thalia right now.

She could probably heal the hunters or enhance their natural healing to a certain extent due to their innate connection to her. Otherwise, her powers were limited to those associated with her domains. Save of course for the standard abilities that came hand in hand with being divine.

The only gods that could help Thalia right now, or at least the only ones that he could think of, were probably Apollo or his son, Asclepius.

But neither of them was here, nor could they interfere even if they wanted to.

The Ancient Rules wouldn't allow them to, not unless Thalia had a direct connection to them, or their domains, which she didn't.

Zeus might be able to help, but chances are he'd probably turn her into a tree again if given the chance.

"P-Percy…" Thalia said desperately, pulling his attention back to her.

Reaching out he took her good hand on his own and gave it a squeeze.

She didn't have long left.

"It's too late for her," A voice behind him said softly.

Looking over his shoulder he saw it was Artemis.

She still looked tired, but not as much as before.

Already he could see she had regained some of her previous poise, along with a faint silver glow that now shrouded her childish form.

Glancing behind he saw that Phoebe's body was now gone.

"I placed her in the stars," Artemis said softly, already knowing his question. "It is the least she deserves for all her centuries of service, and for her final great sacrifice."

Percy nodded curtly.

For all that her voice sounded sad, her expression might as well be carved from stone.

"Thalia will soon follow her," Artemis continued, her gaze shifting to Thalia now. "There is nothing I can do for her. The only one that can save her now is our father, and he will not do it. To do so would be to break Olympian Law, the very laws he put in place."

Percy fought the urge to scoff.

Of course, there would be some shallow excuse for why Zeus wouldn't help.

The gods truly were scum.

Or at least most of them were.

"You should say your goodbyes now. The Winter Solstice will soon be upon us, and we must return to Olympus," Artemis continued, either oblivious to or ignoring the look of disgust on his face. "Once she passes, I will conjure a shroud and return her body to Camp Half-Blood."

"We?" Percy questioned, focusing on the first part of the statement as he turned back to Thalia. As he turned, he stuck his free hand into his jacket pocket.

"I did not hear all that Atlas spoke of, but I heard enough," Artemis said calmly, her eyes boring into the back of his head. "His words raised questions that need to be answered. My father and the rest of the Council will want to speak with you."

"You mean interrogate me, and then probably blast me to pieces?" Percy replied scornfully.

"For what you have done here today, I will speak in your favour," Artemis replied, deftly avoiding his question.

Closing his hand into a fist, Percy pulled it out of his pocket.

"I'm sure you will," He continued, shifting his position now to block Thalia from Artemis's view as he reached out to her once more.

Laying against the rock, Thalia's eyes widened slightly as Percy pressed his closed fist to her mouth and then opened it.

"But what makes you think I will go with you?" He continued, his eyes locking with Thalia even as he shoved some mushed-up apple down her throat, forcibly making her swallow it.

Staring up at him in shock, there was nothing Thalia could do as he force-fed her some of the flesh from one of the last apples of immortality.

"What are you doing?" Artemis asked, her voice suddenly hard.

Turning away from the gagging Thalia, Percy stuck his hand back into his pocket and pulled out a few remaining bits of apple, and absentmindedly snacked on them.

Even mushed up and bruised, the apple tasted heavenly.

Licking his lips, the moment he swallowed, he felt his entire being thrum with power.

His aches and pains rapidly faded away in moments, and his head which had been foggy and pounding before began to clear.

The afternoon sun overhead had already been passively rejuvenating him, but the mushed-up apple practically kicked started his entire being.

Meeting her gaze, Percy sent her a crooked grin.

"I'm being a fucking idiot," He replied, his eyes alight with amusement.

Artemis' expression hardened, and two silver knives, almost identical to the ones Zoe and Phoebe had wielded, appeared in her hands.

Smiling wider, Percy's eyes flashed golden.

"Don't do this," Artemis said warningly. "You don't want to make an enemy of Olympus."

"You're not exactly in much of a condition to stop me," Percy replied, his entire being suddenly buoyed up with adrenaline and new life.

Behind him, he could hear rock shifting slightly, and a groan.

"You overestimate yourself, boy," Artemis said, her voice and expression hardening and her eyes starting to glow silver.

Artemis, even if she wasn't weakened, was probably nowhere near as physically strong as Atlas.

But, considering what he knew of her, she was probably substantially faster than the Titan of Strength and Endurance.

"What have you done?" Artemis continued, her gaze flicking behind him for a moment.

In the reflection of Artemis' blades, he could see that Thalia was getting to her feet, her pallor much healthier than before, and her wounds visibly healing.

"H-How am I still alive?" Thalia said, her voice stronger than before.

"The apples of immortality," Artemis stated, understanding flooding her whole body and her eyes widening.

Percy grinned in response.

"You do not know what you have done," Artemis said, her silver eyes widening. "Those apples should never be consumed by a mortal. To do so is blasphemy. If my father was predisposed to smiting you before for the threat you represent, then he will almost certainly destroy you now. And he will destroy Thalia too, Hera will make sure of it."

"As if he wasn't already intending to do so." Percy sneered.

"P-Percy, what have you done? How am I still alive?" Thalia asked, her voice was full of confusion and exhilaration. "What's happening to me?"

Hazarding a look over his shoulder, Percy's heart clenched.

"I'm sorry I forced this on you," He said softly, "I… I just acted on impulse."

"Wha-" Thalia started to say, her eyes widening.

Before she could finish her sentence though, Artemis made her move, her body blurring forward in an instant.

Turning swiftly, Percy unleashed an excruciatingly bright flash of golden light from his eyes, momentarily blinding Artemis. He ducked low and shifted to the side, allowing Artemis to shoot past him and hit the solid rock wall behind him.

Sending one last look Thalia's way. Percy, his entire form once again wreathed in golden energy, gave her a single nod, and then vanished in an explosion of light.

( - )

(With Artemis)

Blinking the spots from her eyes, Artemis instinctively scowled.

Having spent a lifetime around Apollo she could easily recognise the power of a Sun God when she felt it.

But at the same time, she could spot one of her brother's children from a mile away too.

The boy was not of his bloodline, of that she was certain.

Not that she was all that surprised by such a revelation.

She had not been able to hear all that was said during his confrontation with Atlas, but her sharp hearing had picked up the tail end of the conversation.

The boy was not a son of Melinoe.

But instead, was a son of Helios.

Or rather, he was the son of one of Helios' more troublesome aspects and an immensely powerful one at that.

Helios-Mithras was a dangerous entity, especially considering the old Cult of Mithras and what it later led to.

Narrowing her eyes, Artemis let out an irritated 'tssk'.

If she had not been so distracted when meeting him for the first time at Westover, then she would have probably noticed.

The boy looked like Zoe, which should have told her he was related to the Titans. Plus, he had given off the same signature as one of her brother's children. Her brother had almost noted as much but in the end, had shrugged it off due to the boy's colourings, and that he was a possible legacy of his at best.

They had become too indolent in these times of peace, too trusting, and now the boy was gone.

She clicked her tongue in irritation. Her eyes quickly scanned the afternoon skies. It seemed to hold up the sky and had taken a greater toll on her than she had first thought. Were she in her prime, or were it nighttime, then she would have been able to easily shut the boy down before he even had a chance to get away.

"Lady Artemis," Thalia, her demigod half-sister, she idly noted, spoke up behind her. "Why did he run? What is going on?"

The girl was confused, and honestly, she could understand why.

Moments ago she had been on her deathbed and now she was whole and hale and probably healthier than she had ever been in her life.

A wave of discomfort flowed through her gut at the thought of Zeus' reaction.

Her father generally favoured his offspring, but even he had his limits.

She would have to speak up on her half-sister's behalf or do something desperate, as otherwise Zeus or Hera, or most likely both of them, would kill her. Immortality was the providence of the gods and could only be granted by them. For demigods to try and cheat death and seize immortality for themselves… well there was a reason Daedalus had spent the last three thousand years of his life running.

"He flees because he is a thief and a coward that refuses to face the consequences of both his actions and his existence," Artemis said, her eyes narrowing as she caught sight of a golden figure flying rapidly through the sky several miles away.

It appeared the boy had gained the ability to fly if he hadn't already had the ability to do so. That or he had developed a technique that mimicked true flight.

She grimaced.

Yes, her father would almost certainly destroy him if given the chance. He had always been a jealous being, especially when it came to others intruding on his domains.

It was almost a shame really, as he had done her a great service, and had helped when he didn't truly need to.

Letting out a soft, inaudible sigh, she summoned the symbol of her power, a glowing silver bow.

Raising it, she drew the glimmering string and aimed the shining silver arrow that formed in his direction.

The scavenging boy had done both her and Olympus a great favour.

He had freed her from beneath the sky and saved the life of Zoe, Thalia, and the daughter of Athena.

He had also destroyed the Ophiotaurus before the Titans had the chance to use its power.

He should be getting rewarded for his deeds, not punished.

But unfortunately, he was also a danger too.

Whether or not he knew what he was before Atlas revealed his connection, he was still a child of the enemy and an immensely powerful one at that.

He was also a demigod that was not fully bound to their Pantheon either.

But was instead only peripherally connected to it, among others, due to the soldiers of Rome's blasphemy.

Meaning he was a free agent and a dangerous one at that.

She shifted her aim slightly, adjusting it for the wind.

"Don't do it! He saved you! He saved us all!" Thalia screamed, her eyes widening as she tried to interrupt her.

She could feel the girl's anger, and the desperation in her grip as she tried to throw off her aim.

It was a familiar anger, one all those born of Zeus shared.

"You owe him," Thalia continued, her voice laced with accusation.

Artemis narrowed her eyes and pushed her aside with a harsh shove.

She would forgive her sister for her actions this time.

Inhaling, she pulled her glowing, silver bowstring an extra inch and shifted her aim a fraction, before exhaling and releasing it.

An explosion of air followed along with a distant boom as her arrow, shining brightly in the sky like a shooting star hurtled through the air towards Percy's still fleeing form.

By this point he was out over the San Francisco Bay, and nearly home free.

Lowering her bow and ignoring Thalia's cry of outrage, she watched as the distant golden figure disappeared from the sky in a flash of silver as the arrow, imbued with a sliver of her godly power, smote him from the sky.

"I do, you are right," Artemis finally said her tone and her hand raised as she saw the fury in Thalia's eyes. "But the safety of Olympus is more important."

With a click of her fingers, she sent Thalia falling to the ground and into the waiting arms of Morpheus.

She knew what she would have to do next and knew it wouldn't be pleasant.

But at the same time, it was the only thing she could think of that would save the girl's life.

A dry, haggard laugh nearby quickly attracted her attention.

Atlas, his chest now mostly regenerated from Perseus's fire, was laughing wheezily.

"You are more of a fool than I thought," Atlas chuckled, his voice strained from his new position under the sky. "You will come to regret your actions here today."

Artemis cocked her head to one side, her expression turning cold and emotionless once more.

"We'll see," She said, before without a word of warning she raised her bow, drew the string, and shot a moonlight arrow into and through Atlas's exposed crotch.

Atlas screamed in agony.

Holding back a tiny smile of satisfaction, Artemis turned away from the howling titan and summoned her chariot.

The Winter Solstice would soon be upon them, and there was much she needed to do, and much she needed to share.

( - )

(With Thalia)

Walking through the stately streets of Olympus, Thalia almost felt like she was in a dream.

The city of the gods was as beautiful as she had always imagined it would be.

Their roads were made of marble and inlaid with gold, and gigantic mansions and palaces lined the main thoroughfare. These structures made even the most majestic of buildings on earth look like hovels in contrast. There were also statues, perfectly kept gardens, and beautiful displays of public art that would make even the harshest of art critics break down and weep.

At her side, she could see Annabeth, now mostly recovered after partaking of the nectar and ambrosia Artemis had summoned while on the chariot, looking around in awe.

She had no doubt that her friend's mind was practically swirling with ideas at the sight of the beautiful architecture. Annabeth was predictable if nothing else.

Smiling wanly, she looked around, her gaze shifting over gods both major and minor as they went about their daily lives. Everyone here looked like catwalk supermodels. No, that was an understatement. Most of those she walked past made catwalk supermodels look like toothless hobos in contrast. This was probably not all that unsurprising considering the amount of ego on Olympus and their handy ability to manipulate their physical forms at will.

To Thalia, it just made Olympus all that more alien and uncomfortable.

This place was completely different from anything she had ever seen in her life.

Everything was just so big, grand, and so over the top.

The place was figuratively dripping in wealth and power, as its occupant strutted around with inhuman levels of entitlement.

It made her skin crawl.

Holding back a grimace Thalia looked ahead at Artemis who led the way through Olympus, the other gods and nature spirits around her bowing and genuflecting to her as she passed.

Glowering at the back of Artemis' head, Thalia let out a hiss of irritation.

Artemis also made her skin crawl.

On Mount Othrys she had done something to her.

She wasn't sure exactly what it was she had done, but she had definitely done something.

Only every time she tried to insinuate, she had done something, or pressed Artemis about it, she got stonewalled in return.

It was beyond aggravating.

Still, there was nothing she could do at the moment but watch, wait, and follow.

This is exactly what she did as they finally reached the throne room doors, only for Artemis to once again lead the way as she slowly pushed them open to reveal elven Olympian Gods and Goddesses sitting in their thrones.

Though that number was soon to be twelve as Artemis rapidly grew in size as she entered the cavernous hall, and after a murmured greeting and a nod to a now grinning Apollo, she took a seat on her own silver throne.

The thrones were noticeably set out in a U-shape, very similar to how their cabins were set out at Camp Half-Blood.

Looking around the throne room, Thalia was quickly able to identify who was who, despite this being the first time she had met or even seen most of the Olympians. After all, each of their thrones reflected their domains, as did their appearance.

Ares for example looked like a thug.

Poseidon was spinning his trident in his hands and was dressed like a retired fisherman.

Aphrodite was super-hot… Like so hot, she made all the posing and posturing gods she had passed on the way to the throne room look bland and unappealing in contrast. Which was especially odd, as even as she watched Aphrodite's body and face seemed to constantly change, and shift into more and more beautiful forms.

Tearing her gaze away, Thalia noticed that Athena had the same blonde hair, sharp stormy grey eyes, and general facial features that Annabeth had. Markedly those eyes were currently locked on said daughter right now, a faint smile playing across her full lips as she watched her enter. From where was standing, Thalia could see a hint of relief flash through her gaze.

The sight of it was enough to make her gut churn with jealousy.

Holding back a scowl, Thalia saw that Demeter also looked a lot like her children. The Goddess of Agriculture had the same hair colour and eye colour as her children, only she also looked like a middle-aged hippy too.

Hephaestus meanwhile was really steering into the stereotype of a greasy mechanic. He was also currently playing around with some mechanical-looking doodad as opposed to actually paying attention to the ongoing meeting.

As for Hermes, Thalia did grimace this time. He looked painfully similar to Luke. He had the same shade of blonde hair, and similar angular facial features, only he looked more… elfin than Luke and had a far cheerier demeanour than his traitorous son.

Finally, in the centre of the room were the two remaining gods.

On the left there was Hera, whose exquisite beauty was somehow both tarnished and accentuated by the harsh and austere expression on her face and the coldness in her multi-coloured eyes. She was right up there with Aphrodite in terms of her objective attractiveness.

And right next to Hera was Zeus.

Her father looked exactly like his statue in her cabin did complete with the beard and the stern, disapproving expression. Only instead of a toga, he wore a flashy, pinstripe business suit.

Reaching the middle of the throne room, Thalia glanced sideways at the other two and then followed their lead as all three of them bowed to the assembled Olympians.

"Artemis," Zeus said in a powerful, booming voice. His sharp, blue eyes were locked intensely on the Moon Goddess as he spoke. "It gladdens me to see you well."

"Father," Artemis lowered her head.

Zeus nodded, his attention quickly shifting to the three mortals in the room. "Zoe Nightshade, Thalia Grace, and Annabeth Chase, you have my thanks for assisting my daughter, and will receive your reward for completing your quest in due course."

The three of them bowed again, dutifully.

Favouring them with a smile, Zeus nodded his head, his attention once again moving to Artemis. "Now daughter, tell us of all that happened."

There were no wasted words, no theatrics, her father was just blunt and straight to the point. He didn't draw out his greeting, or fawn over his recently returned daughter. Instead, he jumped straight to business.

Nodding her head, Artemis succinctly recounted all that happened. With her describing first the ambush that had led to her capture, and then her imprisonment under the sky, before finally covering the events on Mount Othrys from her perspective.

As she spoke the Council just listened intently.

From what Artemis had said while taking them to Olympus in her chariot, Mount Othrys was now completely hidden from the gods' eyes. The Titans' power, although weakened and a shadow of its former self, was still deeply entrenched into the very bedrock of the ancient mountain, and as that power grew stronger, so too did the effect it had on the gods' scrying.

Tuning into Artemis's explanation as she described their arrival, Thalia listened on with a pained expression as the goddess dispassionately gave a summary of their brief, but ultimately futile fight with Atlas.

Hermes, she noticed, looked especially uncomfortable when Luke was mentioned.

Not that any of the other gods mentioned it as Artemis instead continued with her version of events.

Her tone of voice was cold and clinical.

As she spoke, a few of the gods sent them curious looks, especially when Artemis described her brief one on one fight with Atlas and how she had ended up all but splattered against the side of the mountain – thankfully Artemis was more eloquent and verbose when it came to the actual description of the fight and how it ended.

Surprisingly though, considering her tone and demeanour, Artemis gave her far more credit than she was due and also seemed to go out of her way to emphasise her dedication to Olympus and her bravery.

It was distinctly odd, considering how cold and distant Artemis had been to her otherwise.

Not that she gave voice to her thoughts though, as she instead continued to listen in. Especially when it came to Percy's arrival.

The moment he was mentioned, Thalia couldn't quite school her expression.

This was the part of the fight she had been least aware of, as at the time she had been drifting in and out of consciousness.

The gods also seemed inordinately interested as well.

Though some of that interest did begin to fade when Artemis described just how much Atlas dominated the fight, and how he essentially toyed with him until the very end when he used tricky, and the assistance of Zoe to unbalance Atlas and trick him under the sky once more.

Again, it was odd.

Glancing sideways, Thalia felt a frown trying to force its way onto her face.

Zoe's expression was cool and collected and gave away nothing.

Annabeth meanwhile looked enraptured by the events. The only major reaction she'd had was when Artemis had mentioned Luke being impaled and kicked off a cliff, and even then she had only jerked a bit and looked forlorn for a few moments, before quickly schooling her expression into something more neutral.

Biting her lower lip, Thalia looked back up at Artemis.

Something about her description of events just didn't feel right.

It was a gut feeling, but at the same time, it felt like Artemis was twisting events slightly to suit her.

Not that she could explicitly say that, even if she was able to offer up any evidence to back up her theory. After all, Artemis was an Olympian and a being of absolute cosmic power, meanwhile, she was just a demigod in comparison.

The gods would never take her side over Artemis'.

Grimacing, at that thought, she turned her attention back to her father.

"I see," Zeus said thoughtfully, his heavy gaze moving over the three of them once more. "And where is this Perseus now? Considering his contributions to the quest, and what I have heard of him from others who he has undertaken work for." His gaze flicked over to several of the seated gods. Namely Hermes, Hephaestus, and strangely enough Ares. "I would have thought he would be here, ready and willing to accept any reward offered?"

Thalia turned her accusing gaze on Artemis.

On the chariot ride over she had waved away her questions about Percy and had just said he fled not long after Atlas had been forced under the sky. Artemis had not said anything more on the matter and had ignored all her other queries.

"And I am sure he would have been. Except during the fight. Atlas revealed that Perseus was not in fact a son of Melinoe like we presumed. But was instead likely a legacy of Melione's that she just took the opportunity to claim. His actual father, it appears, was Helios-Mithras," Artemis said carefully.

Annabeth's eyes widened.

Zoe cocked an eyebrow but otherwise didn't look at all surprised at the revelation.

The gods meanwhile began to murmur to one another.

None of them looked happy.

Apollo especially looked distinctly uncomfortable. "I thought he faded long ago?"

"Apparently not," Artemis replied. "And considering what I saw of Perseus's abilities. I have no reason to doubt Atlas's words either. The power and abilities he showed were both immense and directly related to the sun."

Again, the gods murmured to one another.

Of the lot of them only Aphrodite and again, strangely Ares, looked unconcerned.

"This is worrying news," Hera finally spoke up, her tone grave as she looked around at the rest of the Council. "If a being as strong as Helios managed to survive and stay hidden all these years, how many others are out there? How many of those we thought dead or faded are lurking in the shadows, biding their time and waiting to strike?"

Several gods nodded their heads or mumbled their agreement.

"Erm," Thalia spoke up suddenly. Her voice, although small and quiet compared to those of the gods, still managed to be heard over the goods muttering.

Many eyes turned to look at her.

Some looked curious, others irritated.

"What is it, daughter?" Zeus asked after a moment.

"I'm sorry, but who is Mithras?" Thalia continued carefully. Something about this deity had stirred all the gods up, and considering it was one she had never heard of, it had gotten her curious. "I mean, I've heard of Helios, the former Titan of the Sun. But who is Helios-Mithras, or Mithras, or whatever you call him?"

Several of those present exchanged looks, before with a sigh, Athena started talking.

"It is complicated," She said. "Mithras' origins have long been shrouded in mystery, even to other gods. Some claim that he was originally a Persian God who survived the fall of the Zoroastrian Pantheon, and later merged with Titan Helios, becoming one of his aspects during the time of Rome, when Cult of Mithras was first formed."

Yet more murmuring followed this revelation, and some of those present looked distinctly displeased at the naming of this cult.

Ignoring the other gods, Athena pressed on with her explanation. "But that was only one theory. Another is that Mithras, as he was, died with the Zoroastrian Pantheon. Only for him to get later reborn into the Greco-Roman Pantheon as one of Helios's new aspects when Roman soldiers rediscovered his existence during their campaigns and started worshipping their perceived idea of who he was. Which in turn created an entirely new being, a Romanised version if you will, from the remnants of who the original Mithras was."

Thalia tilted her head in confusion. "I don't get it?"

"Join the club," Hermes muttered from nearby.

Scowling sharply at the Messenger God, Athena looked back at her and smiled thinly. "He is a complex figure in Mythology and a controversial one too. What is known, however, is that Mithras, or Helios-Mithras as he is sometimes known, is an ancient deity who rules over the domains of Covenants, Light, Oaths, Justice, Contracts, and the Sun. He also had a deep connection to the Titans and to our old enemies the Persians. And that during later years of the empire he attempted to, and eventually succeeded to a certain extent, in undermining the Greco-Roman Pantheon's grip over Rome and our connection to the Flame of the West."

"He is an enemy of Olympus and as far as I was aware one that we had defeated long ago," Zeus added bluntly, his tone dark as he succinctly summarised Olympus's view of the deity. "The fact that he continues to linger on is indeed concerning, especially considering his tangential link with Christianity."

The other gods frowned and began to mutter darkly to one another.

"Hera has the right of it. The fact that Mithras still exists is concerning and could mean that other enemies that we thought vanquished still linger," Zeus continued, his eyes shifting over the rest of the Council. "Artemis, Ares, Athena, and Apollo, I task you four with investigating this issue."

The named gods nodded.

"Good, now Artemis, where is the boy now?" Zeus demanded.

"Dead," Artemis said, her tone suddenly ice cold. "I requested that he come to Olympus so that we could question him and ascertain his origins and loyalties. He refused and tried to take advantage of my weakened state by fleeing. He overestimated his abilities. I shot him down while he was flying across the San Francisco Bay."

Thalia's heart clenched painfully.

Percy was dead.

Artemis had murdered him.

Opening her mouth, Thalia was about to start shouting.

However, before she could, Artemis' voice sounded in her head.

'All is not what you think. Say nothing, and I will explain all later.'

Scowling, Thalia turned to look at Artemis, only for the goddess to not even glance in her direction or acknowledge her existence.

Athena, however, did. Her eyes narrowing slightly in the same way that Annabeth's did when she was suspicious or trying to solve a problem.

"Huh, so he was the one that dared to trespass in my domain. Good." Zeus said, his scowl easing into a smile. "That is one less thing to worry about. Though it does mean that you have lost your lead on where Mithras is hiding."

"Maybe," Artemis allowed, "But Zoe did manage to glean some things through her interactions with him. His last name is Jackson, and he grew up in an orphanage in Canada where he was apparently dropped off and abandoned. If we can find this orphanage using his name, and then his mother and track her movements. Then we can potentially identify an area that Mithras has at least definitely frequented, and then go from there. Furthermore, we might be able to tease out further details from the mother's memories, including what forms or aliases he has been going by in the modern age."

"That is something at least," Athena hummed, her eyes narrowed in thought as she too pondered over how best to hunt down Percy's dad like some kind of rabid dog.

Coughing awkwardly into his hand, Poseidon quickly drew the assembled group's attention to him. "I might be able to make things easier. There is a good chance that the boy's mother was Sally Jackson, the same woman that birthed my son Theseus. Prior to our… coupling… Sally had another lover, who impregnated her and disappeared the next day. The boy was only a year old when I met her, and well, not long after I started courting her she drove over the border to Canada and gave the child up for adoption…."

Thalia's eyes widened.

Ares meanwhile let out a snort of laughter. "Uh-huh, and I'm sure you had nothing to do with convincing her to abandon the brat."

Poseidon didn't refute the accusation. "When I decided to make her pregnant with my child it became the obvious choice. A household with two demigods would draw too much attention from monsters. So, for the safety of my yet unborn child, I decided it was best to get rid of the other child so he could grow up in relative safety, and so Sally could dedicate her full attention to him and him alone."

"Especially since you probably messed with her memories too," Athena tagged on nastily. "Just like a cuckoo you entered another's nest, kicked out the young already there, and replaced them with your own."

Poseidon grimaced at the apt comparison, "As if you're one to talk."

"Enough," Zeus cut in, stopping the argument before it could even get started. "Find this Sally Jackson and go through what is left of her memories and then act on what you find."

"Don't hurt her," Poseidon tagged on.

"As if you care," Athena sneered.

"I said enough," Zeus boomed, his expression hardening. The entire room seemed to shake in response to his voice.

From where she was standing, however, Thalia felt nothing but disgust as she looked around at the gods and the way they were casually discussing messing with people's memories and minds.

Her gaze then shifted to Artemis who also looked displeased.

Thalia's eyes narrowed, considering the gaps in her own memory of what happened on the mountain she suspected Artemis had probably done the same to her, especially since she remembered nothing of what happened after Percy joined the fight until she awoke on the chariot fully healed after apparently having ingested a lot of nectar and ambrosia. Which incidentally was also apparently the reason for why she was feeling so strong and healthy too.

Gritting her teeth at that thought, she could feel herself getting close to losing her temper.

The only thing that held her back from shouting and creating a scene were the cryptic words Artemis had spoken in her mind previously.

"Good, now that is done. We must discuss the great prophecy. My daughter turns sixteen tomorrow and according to the prophecy; she will make a decision that will decide our fates." Zeus said, swiftly changing tact.

Great Prophecy? Thalia thought with a scowl, she had heard of it but didn't know the exact wording of it.

"Actually, that will no longer be an issue." Artemis cut in swiftly. "I will be taking Thalia under my wing going forward."

Thalia scowled.

"You are taking her into the Hunt?" Zeus asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"It seems like a good idea to me," Hera smiled thinly from beside him.

"Indeed," Athena nodded.

Ignoring the other gods, Annabeth's look of shock, and Zoe's amused smile. Thalia turned her attention to Artemis.

She had no intention of joining the Hunt whatsoever, or of swearing an Oath to Artemis, especially considering all she knew about the goddess.

She was a liar, a murderer, and a manipulator.

There was no chance in Hades she was joining her little cult of man-haters.

Artemis looked down at her.

'Go with it, all will become clear later.'

"I'm glad," Artemis nodded, a smile now on her face. "It was something we talked about previously when I met her at Westover Academy and something we further touched upon on the chariot ride over. Thalia Grace will never turn sixteen, and so is no longer a candidate for the great prophecy."

"Which leaves only two," Ares grunted. "That we know of at least."

Two? Thalia thought, her brow furrowing.

Theo was obviously one of them, but who was the other?

Zeus frowned again, his gaze on his daughter for a moment.

His blue eyes were hard, but lingering beneath the depths she thought she could see a hint of disappointment.

It was enough to make her gut twitch unpleasantly, and her already frayed temper got that little bit closer to overwhelming her good sense.

"Zoe, if you could take Annabeth and Thalia outside and back to my chariot, I will meet up with you later, after the meeting is finished," Artemis said, locking her with Zoe. "As my father said, the rewards for completing the quest will follow in due course."

"Yes, my Lady," Zoe said curtly, her eyes flicking to Thalia and Annabeth again before she gestured for them to both follow her.

Gritting her teeth, Thalia adjusted Percy's satchel from where it was looped over her shoulder – she had found it in the chariot when she came to – and clamped down on her temper and did just that. She could feel her spine stiff instinctively as she felt many sets of eyes following her as she walked away.

"What the hell is going on?" Thalia snapped at Zoe the moment the throne room doors closed behind them.

"Yeah, are you really joining the Hunt?" Annabeth demanded her gaze solely on Thalia.

"Gods no," Thalia hissed quietly. "Which I think I've made pretty clear in the past, so why the fuck is Artemis saying I am?"

"Because things are more complicated than you know," Zoe said stiffly. "My Lady will explain more once we are away from Olympus and safe from prying ears. Just know that my Lady is only doing what she must do to protect you. And that for all intents and purposes you are joining the Hunt."

Thalia exhaled loudly as she tried to keep her cool.

"And Percy?" Thalia demanded, sidestepping the Hunt issue for the moment. "I don't give a shit who his dad is. I mean fuck, your dad is Atlas and as we literally found out today, he is a massive shitheel and far worse than this Mithras guy probably ever was."

"I know. Trust me. Percy was a good person at heart," Zoe bit out, her lips thinning, "I do not know of all that happened between him and Lady Artemis, but I trust my Lady and you should too."

"A bit hard to do considering I know for a fact she fucked with my memories," Thalia spat out bitterly.

"Wait, she manipulated your memories, why?" Annabeth frowned.

"That's what I want to know." Thalia scowled.

"The fact you are aware of what she has done is evidence enough that she had a reason," Zoe said with forced calm. "She will return them to you I'm sure and will probably explain just why she did what she did. Just be patient." Zoe looked around cautiously as she spoke. "All is not as you think."

Following her gaze, Thalia saw that they had once again made it to the main thoroughfare. Which meant that there were now gods and nature spirits within listening distance of their hushed argument.

"The explanation had better be good," Thalia grumbled.

And I really hope Percy isn't dead, she thought as well, her heart once again clenching.

He wasn't the most likeable of people.

But she definitely liked him.

She only hoped that wherever he was, he was both alive and okay.

( - )

(Elsewhere)

Letting out a groan of discomfort Percy Jackson opened his eyes.

It was currently nighttime, and the dark skies far overhead were filled with more stars than he had ever seen in his life.

"Where am I?" He muttered to himself.

Wherever he was, it was very comfortable.

He could hear the sound of gently lapping waves and the distant cries of birds.

He was also lying on the sand, presumably a beach.

He had never really liked the sand.

It was gritty, and coarse and got everywhere.

But at that moment, he didn't mind it all that much.

The sand beneath him was incredibly fine, and lying on it was comfortable; it felt like he was lying on a feather mattress or a cloud instead.

Pushing himself up Percy looked around curiously, his eyes idly lingering on the silver arrow currently sticking out of his knee.

Huh… that was unexpected.

Reaching out he flicked the white fletching and watched the shaft wobble back and forth.

Strangely it didn't hurt, or at least not yet.

Looking away, he turned his attention to his current location.

He was sitting on a luxurious white sand beach only metres away from the sea.

Was this heaven?

It sure felt like heaven.

"Greetings traveller," A soft melodic voice spoke up behind him.

Twisting around, Percy felt his mouth fall open almost comically at the sight of the angelic figure behind him.

Yep, he was definitely in heaven right now.

"Hello there," Percy grinned. "Is this heaven?"

"No," The beautiful girl giggled. "This is Ogygia."

"Oh," Percy muttered, a grin playing around his mouth. "That's cool."

( - )

AN: And boom, there we go. My first story completed and on a cliffhanger too! :DDDDD

Thanks for sticking with this as long as you did, and I hope you all enjoyed it!

The next book should come out at sometime, and things will start getting crazy!

Also, I am on discord with a load of other writers, so if you fancy popping over to ask questions or offer suggestions about this story, or any of my other ones, or to find new authors you might not have come across yet, please feel free to use the link in my bio.

Thanks for reading and if you have any suggestions or questions feel free to PM me or find me on Discord.

Catch you later.

Greed720.