★ 。＼｜／。★

𝗕𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖎𝖙𝖗𝖊 𝖙𝖗𝖊𝖓𝖙𝖊-𝖓𝖊𝖚𝖋:
CONFIRMATION OF
SOULMATES

★ 。／｜＼。★

LIFE SEEMED TO be working out in their favor for the next three minutes. It was good that Demigod brains were wired for battle, because if they weren't, they definitely wouldn't have been able to comprehend everything.

Jason fell on top of king Porphyrion with such force that the Giant crumpled to his knees, blasted with lightning and stabbed in the neck with a golden gladius. Frank unleashed a whole hail of arrows and drove back all the Giants nearest to Percy.

"Belle, go!" Frank shouted.

The girl nodded rapidly and ran off. She sprinted off in the direction of Percy, dodging monsters and Giants all around her. Behind her, the sounds of the ballistae and catapults firing echoed all throughout the Parthenon and allowed Greek fire to spread. Belle leaped over a small wall of fire that had erupted on the ground and reached the column where Percy was. She fell to her knees in front of him and placed a hand on his cheek, gently lifting his head up.

"Beauty?" Percy questioned, still obviously dazed.

"Yeah, hey, it's me," Belle told him, putting her other hand on the other side of his face and letting him look at her. She inspected some of the cuts on his face. His nose was bleeding slightly and she ripped off her shirt sleeve, crumpling it up and handing it to him. "Here. Use this to try and stop the blood flow. Make sure it doesn't touch the ground, okay?"

Percy nodded and pressed the crumpled shirt sleeve to his nose. Belle turned around to check on her friends momentarily. Leo was flying the Argo II over the Parthenon, firing and taking down monsters wherever he could with Festus blowing Gryphons out of the sky and Archimedes spheres intercepting boulders from Earthborn to blast them to dust. Frank was shooting whatever he could with his arrows, including Kekrops and his snake people. Hazel was riding around on Arion and helped Frank destroy the snake people by collapsing their tunnels. Annabeth was facing off against a thawed Periboia, but even with a bad leg, she was holding her own by playing a deadly game of tag with the Giantess. Jason and Piper were standing back-to-back while fighting off Giants that came their way.

A shadow suddenly loomed over Belle and Percy. Belle looked up to see Thoon standing above them, who had somehow reattached his hand and found his meat cleaver. Her eyes widened as she watched him raise the meat cleaver over his head. She gathered Percy in her arms, and with all of her strength, she pulled them out of the way. The two of them landed on the ground right next to where the meat clever embedded itself.

Belle glanced over to Percy. "Do you have Riptide?"

Percy nodded, obviously still in a daze. He stood up slowly with the help of Belle. While Belle gripped Sunflower, Percy reached into his pocket and switched Belle's bloody shirt sleeve for Riptide's pen. Belle pointed Sunflower down at the ground and raised it up. All of the plants bent to her will once again and she used it to trap Thoon in place as best as she could. Percy stabbed at Thoon's leg wherever he could but he still seemed to be a little out of it.

However, the element of surprise ultimately faded, and the Giants began to overcome their confusion. Frank soon ran out of arrows and changed into a rhinoceros to leap into battle, but the Giants got back up as fast as they were knocked down. Their wounds seemed to be healing faster as well. Annabeth lost her ground against Periboia and was forced to retreat. Hazel was knocked out of Arion's saddle at sixty miles an hour. Jason summoned another lightning streak, but Porphyrion merely deflected it off the tip of his spear. Thoon fought his way out of Belle's plants and she wasn't able to grow them fast enough. The Giants were bigger, stronger, and more numerous. No Gods were here to help kill them, and they certainly didn't seem to be tiring.

The seven Demigods on the ground were forced into a defensive ring. Another volley of rocks thrown by the Earthborn hit the Argo II. Leo, however, couldn't return fire fast enough this time. Rows of oars were sheared off and the ship shuddered and tilted in the sky. Enceladus took this opportunity to throw his fiery at the ship. It pierced through the ship's hull and exploded inside, sending flames throughout the oar openings. An ominous black cloud billowed from the deck, and the Argo II began to sink.

"Leo!" Jason cried.

Porphyrion laughed. "You Demigods have learned nothing. There are no Gods to aid you. We need only one more thing from you to make our victory complete."

He smiled expectantly. Belle's eyebrows knit in thought and followed his gaze. She looked to see him staring right at Percy. His nose was still bleeding and he seemed unaware that a trickle of blood had made its way down his face to the very end of his chin. Her eyes widened and everything seemed to go in slow motion.

"Percy!" Belle shouted desperately.

He turned to her in confusion. She gestured to his nose, but he didn't seem to get the memo. But it was too late. A singular drop of blood fell from his chin and hit the ground between his feet, sizzling like a drop of water that fell on a frying pan.

The blood of Olympus had watered the ancient stones, and the Acropolis groaned and shifted as the Earth Mother woke.

"Uh . . ." Percy trailed off sheepishly. "My bad."

The Giants smiled maliciously at them. They closed in on the defensive ring of Demigods, and Belle exhaled nervously. Nothing was going right. They couldn't kill these Giants and Gaea was actually awake.

But then, things turned in their favor — surprisingly. The clouds suddenly parted over the Acropolis. Belle looked up and really didn't believe it. Instead of a blue sky, there was a black space spangled with stars with the palaces of Mount Olympus gleaming silver and gold in the background. Without any moments of hesitation, an army of Gods charged down from high.

A supersized Zeus rode on a golden chariot pulled by four horses made of wind, his lightning bolt crackling in his hand. On the underbelly of the Argo II, the glass bay doors that Belle and Percy had sat on together so long ago split open. Nike, Goddess of victory, tumbled out of it, now free from the gold net Leo had kept her in. She spread her glittering wings and soared to Zeus' side, taking her rightful place as his charioteer.

"MY MIND IS RESTORED!" Nike roared. "VICTORY TO THE GODS!"

Hera (which made Belle roll her eyes) rode at Zeus' left plank, her chariot pulled by enormous rainbow-colored peacocks. Ares was on the other plank, bellowing with glee as he rode on a fire-breathing horse with his red spear. Belle spotted Demeter among the Gods, her scythe and sickle in her hands. She smiled briefly.

In the very last second, right before the Gods reached the Parthenon, they seemed to displace themselves. The chariots disappeared, and the Demigods were surrounded by the Olympians who were now human-sized. They might've been tiny next to the Giants, but they glowed with extreme power.

Belle looked over at Percy briefly. "You take Otis, I take Ephialtes?"

He smirked at her. "You've got yourself a deal, Belle Adair."

That was the same exact thing she had said to him back in the Battle of Labyrinth. It was enough to give her confidence. With a shout from Jason, their actual fight against the Giants began, and fighting raged all over the Parthenon and the rest of the Acropolis.

Annabeth fought Enceladus with the Goddess Athena, her long dark hair spilling over her shoulders and the golden armor over her white robes shining. Athena thrust her spear at the Giant and brandished aegis, her shield that had the fearsome bronzed visage of Medusa. Together, Athena and Annabeth drove Enceladus back into the nearest wall of metal scaffolding. It collapsed on top of him, and the Giant wasn't seen again.

Frank and the God Ares were smashing their way through an entire phalanx of Giants on the other side of the temple. Ares fought with his spear while Frank — as an African elephant — used his trunk and feet. The God of war laughed while stabbing everything around him.

Hazel raced through the battle on Arion's back. She disappeared into the Mist whenever a Giant came close them appeared behind them and stabbed them in the back. The Goddess Hecate followed her, setting fire to enemies with her two blazing torches. Hades wasn't visible in battle, but every time a Giant stumbled and fell, the ground broke open and swallowed the Giant whole.

Piper fenced with Periboia the Giantess, sword against sword. Her opponent was quite a few times larger than her, but Piper seemed to be holding her own. The Goddess Aphrodite floated around them on a small white cloud. She threw rose petals into Periboia's eyes and called encouragement to Piper repeatedly. Whenever Periboia tried to strike, doves appeared from nowhere and fluttered in the Giant's face.

Jason and the God Zeus faced off against Porphyrion. Porphyrion was swinging his spear in jabs and slashes, but Zeus used the wind to deflect it away from Jason whenever he could. Sparks flew around as the father and son drew Porphyrion towards the cliff of the Acropolis.

Leo was racing across the deck of the Argo II and shot ballistae, dropped hammers on Giants' heads, and set fire to their loincloths. The God Hephaestus stood behind him at the help and tinkered with the controls, furiously trying to keep the ship aloft.

Percy fought against Otis just like he had agreed to. The God Poseidon stood by his side, wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt and holding his trident in his hand. Otis stumbled. Poseidon morphed his trident into a fire hose and sprayed the Giant out of the Parthenon with a high-powered blast shaped like wild horses.

As for Belle, she faced off against Ephialtes with Demeter by her side. It gave Belle a sort of comfort standing next to her mother. She had only met her once during the Battle of Manhattan and saw her again in that dream in Tartarus, and Belle had to keep reminding herself that she was actually real. But she couldn't focus on that.

Belle looked up at Ephialtes and tilted her head at him. "Eager to get killed again?"

Ephialtes snarled at her, although it wasn't very intimidating. "I will destroy you!"

Demeter stepped forwards and placed a hand on Belle's shoulder. "We'll see about that."

With that, Belle sprinted forward. She flicked her hand upwards and a staircase immediately formed out of strong roots in the ground. Belle ran up them and found herself face-to-face with the Giant. The Giant's eyes widened, and Belle sent him a smile before she stabbed Sunflower right into his forehead for a moment before pulling her sword out. Ephialtes cried out in pain and stumbled backwards. That's when Demeter waved her hand. Ephialtes fell to the ground, instantly turning into a patch of wheat in the middle of the Parthenon. Belle breathed heavily as she flicked her hand downwards and willed the roots to bring her back to the ground.

She glanced around the area. Nothing was left of the Giants except heaps of ash, a patch of wheat, a couple of spears, and some burning dreadlocks. The Argo II was barely aloft and moored to the top of the Parthenon. Half of the ship's oars were either broken off or tangled. Smoke expelled from several large splits in the hull and the sails were peppered with burning holes. Everyone else seemed to be doing the same as Belle — just taking in their surroundings.

"You did well, my daughter," Demeter commented, making Belle look up at her. "It's been an honor to see you grow these past couple of years. And I'm sorry I couldn't help you more when you were in Tartarus besides appearing to you in a dream."

"Thank you, mother," Belle replied. "And, um, I have a question."

"You want to ask about Sunflower," Demeter guessed.

Belle nodded. "Yeah. Somehow, Percy and I can trade swords easily. They almost . . . feel the same."

"Riptide and Sunflower were made at the same time in the same place," Demeter explained. "The two swords were forged out of Celestial Bronze in the fires of Mount Etna and cooled in the River Lethe. Sunflower, however, has incredible power, which you discovered in the Battle of Manhattan. And just like before, when you saw the hilt glow a brighter green, that's you using the power of plants to make yourself stronger."

"Oh. So there's no relation between Riptide and Sunflower besides them being made the same?"

"Not exactly," Demeter admitted, her eyes glittering a little. "I kept Sunflower to myself until the right Demigod came along. When you were born, I knew that you would be the one to have it. As for Riptide . . . since they were two almost identical swords, whoever wielded them at the same time were destined to be soulmates."

Soulmates. Belle glanced across the Parthenon. Percy was talking with Poseidon. Even from across the way, she could see the Celestial Bronze on Riptide glow a little brighter. She looked down at Sunflower in her hand and saw her blade doing the same. Belle smiled slightly to herself and felt butterflies rush through her stomach. Although she knew for a while, it was nice to have someone else — especially her mom — confirm it.

"That day when Chiron gave Percy Riptide for the first time, I realized that the right choice had been made," Demeter continued. "The Fates have intertwined your strings. Now, if you would excuse me, I have to go talk to my fellow Gods. We must discuss what will happen next."

Demeter walked off. Belle looked down at Sunflower for a moment longer before flipping it and clipping her keychain to her belt loops once it appeared. She immediately locked eyes with Percy and the two of them gravitated towards each other like the opposite ends of a magnet. Belle threw her arms around him once she reached him and Percy responded by wrapping his arms around Belle's waist, lifting her up off the ground easily.

"I'm so glad you're okay," the two of them said at the same time.

Percy set down Belle on the ground and stared down at her. He kissed her quickly and sweetly for a moment before pulling away.

"How's your head?" Belle questioned worryingly, taking his face in his hands and trying to look for more injuries.

"Fine."

"Your nose?"

"Fine."

"Your—"

"Belle," Percy interrupted, laughing slightly. "I'm fine." His eyes then focused on something behind her. "Come on, we better join the others. Zeus is coming back."

The two of them joined the rest of their friends. Leo probably looked the worst with his face covered in soot and his clothes smoldering, but nevertheless, they were all alive. Belle gripped onto Percy's hand as Jason came to join them with Zeus. The rest of the Gods fanned out into a semicircle as their king approached, none of them seeming particularly joyful about their victory.

Apollo and Artemis were standing together in the shadow of a column like they were trying to hide. Hera and Poseidon were in the midst of an intense discussion with Demeter. Nike attempted to put a golden laurel wreath on Hecate's head but the Goddess of magic swatted it away. Hermes sneaked closer to Athena to try and put his arm around her, but Athena turned aegis his way and Hermes scuffled off. The only one who seemed to be in a good mood was Ares. He laughed and mimed gutting an enemy to Frank, whose expression was polite yet queasy.

"Brethren, we are healed, thanks to the work of these Demigods," Zeus began. "The Athena Parthenos, which once stood in this temple, now stands at Camp Half-Blood. It has united our offspring, and thus our own essences."

"Lord Zeus, is Reyna okay?" Piper asked. "Nico and Coach Hedge?"

Zeus knitted his cloud-colored eyebrows together. "They succeeded in their mission. As of this moment they are alive. Whether or not they are okay—"

"There is still work to be done," Hera cut in, making Belle grit her teeth. She spread her arms like she wanted a group hug. "But my heroes . . . you have triumphed over the Giants as I knew you would. My plan succeeded beautifully."

Zeus turned on his wife, thunder shaking the Acropolis. "Hera, do not dare take credit! You have caused at least as many problems as you've fixed!"

Hera's face turned pale. "Husband, surely you see now — this was the only way."

"There is never only one way! That is why there are three Fates, not one. Is this not so?"

By the ruins of Porphyrion's throne, the three Fates silently bowed their heads in recognition.

"Please, husband." Hera tried to smile, but Belle could see that she was completely and utterly terrified. She almost felt sorry for her. "I only did what I—"

"Silence!" Zeus snapped. "You disobeyed my orders. Nevertheless . . . I recognize that you acted with honest intentions. The valor of these eight heroes has proven that you were not entirely without wisdom."

Hera seemed like she wanted to argue, but she didn't speak up.

"Apollo, however . . ." Zeus glared into the shadows where the twin Gods were standing. "My son, come here."

He inched forwards out of the shadows. Apollo was wearing jeans and a Camp Half-Blood t-shirt with a bow over his shoulder and a sword at his belt. He looked no more than seventeen with his tousled blonde hair and blue eyes. Apollo literally looked exactly like Will Solace, which made sense because Will was his son. The Three Fates then gathered around the God in a circle with their withered hands raised.

"Twice you have defied me," Zeus announced.

Apollo moistened his lips nervously. "My — my Lord—"

"You neglected your duties. You succumbed to flattery and vanity. You encouraged your descendant Octavian to follow his dangerous path, and you prematurely revealed a Prophecy that may yet destroy us all."

"But—"

"Enough!" Zeus boomed. "We will speak of your punishment later. For now, you will wait on Olympus."

Zeus flicked his hand. Apollo turned into a cloud of glitter, and the Fates swirled around him, dissolving into air. The glittery whirlwind shot into the sky.

"What will happen to him?" Jason inquired.

The Gods stared at him.

"It is not your concern," Zeus answered. "We have other problems to address."

Uncomfortable silence settled over the Parthenon. Belle, with the hand that wasn't holding Percy's, nervously fiddled with Sunflower's keychain.

"Father, I made a vow to honor all the Gods," Jason told him. "I promised Kymopoleia that once this war is over none of the Gods would be without shrines at the Camps."

Zeus scowled. "That's fine. But . . . Kym who?"

Poseidon coughed awkwardly into his fist. "She's one of mine."

"My point is that is that blaming each other isn't going solve anything. That's how the Romans and Greeks got divided in the first place." The air became dangerously ionized, and Belle felt her scalp tingle, but Jason kept going. "Apollo wasn't the problem. To punish him for Gaea waking is . . . unwise."

"Unwise," Zeus repeated, his voice almost a whisper. "Before the assembled Gods, you would call me unwise."

Belle was now on full alert, along with the rest of her friends. Her fist clenched around Sunflower's keychain even tighter. Belle squeezed Percy's hand to tell him that if they had to jump in and fight at Jason's side that she was ready.

Artemis then stepped out of the shadows. "Father, this hero has fought long and hard for our cause. His nerves are frayed. We should take that into account." Jason went to protest, but Artemis stopped him with a glance. "Surely, father, we should attend to our more pressing problems, as you pointed out."

"Gaea," Annabeth chimed in, obviously anxious to change the topic at hand. "She's awake, isn't she?"

Zeus turned towards her. "That is correct. The blood of Olympus was spilled. She is fully conscious."

"Oh, come on!" Percy complained. "I get a little nosebleed and I wake up the entire Earth? That's not fair!"

Athena shouldered her aegis. "Complaining of unfairness is like assigning blame, Percy Jackson. It does no one any good." She sent Jason an approving glance. "Now you must move quickly. Gaea rises to destroy your Camp."

Poseidon leaned against his trident. "For once, Athena is right."

"For once?"

"Why would Gaea be back at Camp?" Leo asked. "Percy's nosebleed was here."

"Dude, first off, you heard Athena — don't blame my nose," Percy responded.

"Besides, Gaea's the Earth, right?" Belle added. "She can appear wherever she wants. And she always told us from the beginning that the first thing she would do was destroy our Camp. Now we just have to figure out how to stop her."

Frank looked to Zeus. "Um, sir, Your Majesty, can't you Gods just pop over there with us? You've got the chariots and the magic powers and whatnot."

"Yes!" Hazel agreed. "We defeated the Giants together in two seconds. Let's all go—"

"No," Zeus flatly said.

"No?" Jason echoed. "But, father—"

Zeus' eyes sparkled with power. "That's the problem with Prophecies. When Apollo allowed the Prophecy of Eight to be spoken, and when Hera took it upon herself to interpret the words, the Fates wove the future in such a way that it had only so many possible outcomes, so many solutions. You eight, the Demigods, are destined to defeat Gaea. We, the Gods, cannot."

Typical, Belle thought to herself. Yet again, the Gods aren't helpful at all.

"I don't get it," Piper admitted. "What's the point of being Gods if you have to rely on puny mortals to do your bidding?"

All of the Gods exchanged dark looks.

Aphrodite, however, laughed gently and kissed her daughter on the cheek. "My dear Piper, don't you think we've been asking ourselves that question for thousands of years? But it is what binds us together, keeps us eternal. We need you mortals as much as you need us. Annoying as that may be, it's the truth."

Frank shifted uncomfortably. "So how can we possibly get to Camp Half-Blood in time to save it? It took us months to reach Greece."

"The winds," Jason voiced. "Father, can't you unleash the winds to send our ship back?"

Zeus glowered down at him. "I could slap you back to Long Island."

"Um, was that a joke, or a threat, or—"

"No. I mean it quite literally. I could slap your ship back to Camp Half-Blood, but the force involved . . ."

Over by Porphyrion's ruined throne, Hephaestus shook his head. "My boy Leo built a good ship, but it won't sustain that kind of stress. It would break apart as soon as it arrived, maybe sooner."

Leo straightened his tool belt. "The Argo II can make it. It only has to stay in one piece long enough to get us back home. Once there, we can abandon ship."

"Dangerous," Hephaestus warned. "Perhaps fatal."

Nike twirled a laurel wreath around on her finger. "Victory is always dangerous. And it often requires sacrifice. Leo Valdez and I have discussed this."

She stared pointedly at Leo. Belle's eyebrows knit in concern. She had debunked that idea of Leo sacrificing himself a couple of days ago, but now . . . she really thought it was true.

"Leo, what is Nike talking about?" Annabeth questioned.

He waved off her question. "The usual. Victory. Sacrifice. Blah, blah, blah. Doesn't matter. We can do this, guys. We have to do this."

Belle knew what Leo said was true. They had to get back to Camp Half-Blood and stop Gaea. If not, the whole world would be turned into hell.

"Leo's right," Jason finally stated. "All aboard for one last trip."

— [ ♡ ] —

props to percy for waking gaea with a nosebleed

also demeter confirming they're really soulmates bc of sunflower and riptide 🥺🥺crying tbh

gifs by 1-800-SIMPINGFORSEB !