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Chapter Two: In Apollo's Palace on Olympus.

Point of view: Apollo

I rush forward as Percy slumps into my sister when she puts him to sleep. His threats didn't anger me. Even though they were aimed at one of my descendants or my sister. He is stuck in grief, he is a mess on the inside. Both Artemis and I can feel it. I take Percy from my sister and swing him up into my arms. Artemis and I flash into my palace and I lay Percy's body onto a cot in the middle of a room to the side of my entrance hall.

I strap his unmoving body down with metal restraints. His wrists, ankles, waist, and chest are now being held down. I hover my hands in the air above him and guide them over his body to sense where he's hurt. Physically and mentally he's fine. Surprising on the mental part, but emotionally, he was all sorts of screwed up. His head was trapped in a nightmare and an ugly one at that. His soul was twisted and missing parts. I wonder why. He has to be awake so I can find out.

"I need him to awaken." I tell my sister as the gods flash in.

"I cannot. He will be like that for another half an hour. Thanks a lot, Clarence." My sister laces her voice with a freezing cold that makes Clarence flinch.

"I'm only doing my job, Lady Artemis." Clarence answers, shaking.

"Your job is to monitor him, not make him loathe those who still want to help him. Nor is it to make his unstable state worsen further." Artemis barks at him.

"She's right you know. He was hit the worst of us all." My aunt Hestia speaks up. "He knew almost everybody in both camps even with the short time he spent at the Roman side. And he felt responsible for them when they raised him on their shield. Even the retired soldiers came to fight because Reyna called in favors from every single last one of them. They all died and Percy feels weak because she had to call on so many. He lost everyone closest to his heart. The poor boy is ill in his feelings. He only wanted immortality to defend the rest of those so they wouldn't die again."

"Look at my favorite goddess. You hit it right on the nail." I turn to Percy.

Point of view: Perseus Jackson

I wake up out of that stupid memory nightmare to find that I'm strapped down to a cot. I hear Hestia speaking and reply before anyone else could.

"Look at my favorite goddess. You hit it right on the nail." I roll my eyes again. "I see you're to cowardly to face me descndant of Apollo. Makes me immobile, stupid child. I won't harm you if you set me free." I say the last sentence in a sickly sweet voice.

I watch his reaction and Clarence just stares at me in shock. "He didn't. I did."

"Ah! So the blood pumping through his veins is natural. Thank Poseidon. I thought he was just playing at being doctor. You really are related. Last time this happened, Clarence had the last of Hephaestus's and Iris's kids to hold me down until he got the restraints around me. I was interrogated forever. Seriously, the guy sat there probing me with questions for two days straight, only shutting up when he had to eat or shower or some annoying habits humans do." I tell Apollo. "I still need to get you back for that. Too bad I can't. Stupid oath. Only took it for the reasons Gaea and Kronos made me have. Gods, now I wish I could take back my oath so I could drown you." I tell Clarence.

Then a thought occurs to me. "I can do it from a distance to you know. Fun, I grew my powers after realizing what I was capable of during the war. Especially when I went all out on Gaea. I figured out how to go all commando like that without the rage coursing through me too. It's funny to watch the sea strangle my enemy's to death." I chuckle.

"Oh, Percy. What have you become?" Hestia starts crying.

"A soldier. I was born for battle. Ares child or not. Your stupid prophecies made sure of that. So did the wars. If only the big three could stay in their pants or not be able to have children with mortals anymore, it wouldn't happen." I say. "Don't cry for my sake. I'm not worth it, Lady Hestia. I've been bred for war. It is fun now that it's the only thing that comforts me. But I'm no war mongerer. I don't go looking for fights. I wait for them to come to me because they always find me. I would laugh in the face of death if it ever came to that."

Her weeping deepens and Hades has to comfort her as he holds his sister. "Percy, can you talk to me?" Artemis looks at me.

"Of course. We both lost something dear for that side of the battle. What do you want, Lady Artemis?" I ask her.

"How much have you really grieved?" Is her first question.

"Every day of my life. What else?" I look at her curiously, pulling against the metal restraints.

"You didn't answer my first question. Not really." Artemis whispers.

I sigh and let her into my mind. Artemis gasps. "Like I said. Every day of my life. When I wake up and before I go to bed. Which I can't, but you get my point. When I visit any grave of a person I knew. That's when I grieve. And I never stop thinking about those moments of battle where I watched as each of my loved ones fell before my eyes. Lie the Fates wanted me to see all the death I've caused. The foes who perished on my blade. I can name every person who fell, because I watched every person die. Would you like me to name them? I learned every name, counted them, counted all the deaths I saw, and they all match up with everyone I saw that day. I remember each monster I killed. I remember all of it like it was yesterday. My ADHD made me see everything on that field. So yes, I answered your question, but I didn't put all the words into the answer."

She moves closer to my little prison of a bed and rolls up my sleeves. All the names of the fallen, all the little cuts in between the names, and all the names of the gods that person was related to. Apollo almost faints at the site. Poseidon comes over and falls to the floor in shock. "W-why are they still gold?" Apollo asks me in a small voice.

"I recarve them every morning and night. Like I said, I only feel anger. I am numb to the other emotions. I subconsciously block them off to protect myself. You can blame the disorder for that one. Built-in instinct as Athena told me recently. Or was that in a book by Athena? I'll have to check and see. Pain I relish in to make the memories go away, only to have them flood back in slowly as I carve their names." I explain.

"Carve names into what?" Clarence asks fearfully.

"My skin if you didn't see Lady Artemis pull up my sleeves in shock. So, Lord Ares, what did you want before I exploded?" I look at said god.

Ares walks up to me and he takes in my arms as I look at the ceiling. "You're a living monument kid. A war monument and a war demon. I will heal your arms." Ares says as he waves his hand over me. I feel the words heal and leave, no scars.

"I'll only carve them back in you know. Firstly, before you accuse the kid you are glaring at murderously, Lady Artemis. I don't sleep, he does. I walk around the borders at night and around three every morning is when I do that. After everybody is sound asleep, I do that. The only time I haven't done it, is when I was strapped down to the bed in the medical ward. Two times I have failed to do it and only because he was questioning my mental state." I tell her, glancing from the ceiling, to her, and back. "I only wear long sleeves so no one thinks I'm suicidal. I'm not, just trying to honor the lost."

"I'll heal them every time, you stubborn little hero." Ares says mischievously.

"Will you now? And I'll reblemish my skin until you learn your little game is pointless. Immortality for a soul like me is sure annoying, ain't it?" I grin devilishly at the god of war.

"You're turning into one of my kids." Ares bellows with laughter.

"And being in your resence only heightens my anger at the boy." I reply, laughing with him. Then I start listing the names of his children of both of his aspects. "Clarisse, Frank, Zeke..." I prattle on under my breath, but he hears me.

"You do remember all of them, don't you? No one ever remembers my kids you know." Ares sighs. "I am proud of all of them. Clarisse and Frank most of all. This is a great tribute for my kids. No one ever gives them credit because their father is the god of war. If they die in battle, they are seen as the worst I can offer because they are supposed to be all that in weapons. Really it's just tedious. My kids are still children and they never live long because of their aura. Their mothers don't like them either. Well, some do because I mostly go after miliary women, but that's not the point." Ares sighs.

"I'll never forget any of them. You only have to living children. One Roman and one Greek. I memorized their names as well. They were on the left arm. The dead were on the right. When or if another one dies bcause I couldn't protect them for being a fool, I'll cross a line through their names. Your kids are Lisa and Julie. Julie is Roman and Lisa is Greek. Bellona has no surviving children. Reyna died. Well, Hylla is still alive, but she's an Amazon and her duties lie elsewhere. The ydidn't have suffient means of transportation to help us that day. I still had her name carved though. Twenty-four names. If we ever get a new camper, they will join the list of names. I know when a new camper comes in, Chiron does too. Fun, right? Hasn't been any since before the war ended." I tell Ares.

"You are definitely deserving. How are my daughters?" Ares asks me.

"Lisa and Julie never leave each other's side. They lead sing-alongs because the remaining blood relatives of Apollo will not. And there is only one. My doctor. Julie and Lisa always progress the most in my lessons. Julie prefers sword and Lisa like spear and shield. Lisa like pop music and Julie like country. They always sneer at everyone but me. They are the only two who will not bow to me, thank the gods. They know it annoys me to death. They sit with me at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I teach them about the demigod life and they tel me about the mortal world. Which I have no interest in at all other than the architectural sites. Even of they do remind me of Annabeth and how muched she loved them. I take the demigods on a trip to one once every two months. So our next one is two months from now. Julie likes learning Greek from me, while Lisa likes learning Latin. I give them permission to prank people as long as they don't tell anyone I do. I could go on, but that's all I really feel like saying about my two friends. My only friends. I will befroend no more. Two is bad enough." I finish.

"Are you romantically interested in either of them?" Ares looks at me.

I roll my eyes. "Please. I just lost the one I loved to my worst enemy. I probably won't love for a long while. Or not at all. Doesn't matter." I shrug as much as I can.

"Very good, kiddo." Ares smiles at me.

"I'm not a kid, Lord Ares. I lost that right after surviving two wars. But I am not a man either. I'm stuck in between until I'm older." I tell him and look back up at the ceiling. It feels weird if I look at someone for too long with my body in this position. "Can I get out of these freaking restraints now? Or I'll blow up Mount Olympus." I say.

"Your-" Zeus begins.

"'Your oath prevents you from doing that, young Perseus.'" I mimic Zeus's tone. "Yeah, yeah. I'll do something that'll tick you off if you don't unbind me." I threaten.

Apollo starts undoing my bonds. I sit up. "now, that it isn't annoying to look at you, what isit you meant by 'You are defintiely deserving.'?" I ask Ares, rubbing my wrists and take out a small knife.

Artemis smacks my hand. "Not a chance. Don't make me curse you!" Artemis yells.

"I can do it without a knife. There are other ways to write on my skin. Sticks, needles, fingernails, swords, spears, toothpicks, etcetera..." I trail off.

"Percy! You will not harm yourself!" Artemis shrieks at me.

"I can harm myself if I feel like it! I do it every second! I won't ever stop." I murmur the last sentence, but she hears me again.

"You'll get better!" Artemis screeches.

"Says who?" I reply darkly.

She looks taken aback. "You will. You have to."

"I don't have to get better. I'll be there to defend all your precious territories. My oath makes me. I swore to stay loyal to Olympus forever. Same goes for watching over the camp. Now answer me, Lord Ares." I turn back to him.

"Kneel, hero." Ares says.

I shake my head as I get down on one knee. "I am no hero."

"Are you ready for my news?" Ares asks.

"I am." I nod.

"I wish for you to become my champion."

Boom! There it is! Or should I say, WHOOP, THERE IT IS!!!!!!!!! Lawl. PJO/HOO is owned by Rick Riordan. To the next chapter, my lovely readers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!