Disclaimer: Percy Jackson belongs to Rick Riordan, as well as any other element of any other work, creation that appears, credits to whom it corresponds.
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"Characters speaking"
"Characters thinking"
This is basically an alternate universe where the Greek and Roman personalities are not the only ones the gods have, the Mycenaean is alive. Percy will be Posedao's son, and I'm going to play around with the ages of some of the characters, for different reasons.
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Previously
It wasn't a sound, nor a powerful presence, nor an obvious magical presence, but something in the air shifted subtly, as if the air itself had decided to hold its breath. An invisible pressure filtered through the hallway, like when a beast tries to move silently and can't, not completely, but because the world around us is silent or disturbed because it knows it is there.
But it was like that for the instincts the green-eyed boy inherited from his father, sounds like the faint hum of the lights and the distant echo of the gym's music were dulled to Jackson's own senses, as if something bigger, more important, and more dangerous was nearby, but he knew what was causing that feeling.
Percy stood still for a moment as his breathing became slow and measured, his hand instinctively brushing against the seam of his left arm sleeve where his other enchanted bracelet lay asleep while he also felt again the need to reach for the disguised weapon in his pants pocket.
"Thorn" Jackson thought, he didn't see it yet, but it was close... close enough for the monster's presence to be felt by the son of Posedao's own instincts as on several occasions during the last few months
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Thorn was not, by far, the most powerful creature that Percy Jackson had ever met, nor was it the most terrifying since it did not alter his instincts to such an extent and because the half-breed had already been in front of beings whose presence was so heavy that they made him feel like the air was escaping from his lungs just by existing, beings whose true power made him feel like he was being buried under an avalanche and was unable to do anything.
No… Thorn wasn't that, but he wasn't a truly weak monster either, nor the kind of threat Jackson's senses could miss, or one his enchanted bracelets hidden under his sleeves could ignore.
Even less so when Jackson had been taught through words, dreams, bruises, and the occasional training scar that no matter how strong a deity's son was with a human, a single lucky blow could kill him. And monsters, even the clumsiest ones, knew that one way or another; they just needed him to let his guard down, just one chance to land a decisive, killing blow… and then, goodbye.
Besides, no matter how arrogant or ancient the monsters and other supernatural beings were, Percy understood that he should never underestimate creatures that had existed for over a thousand millennia, as well as the fact that being part of the original Mediterranean pantheon didn't make you immortal, much less invincible by default... surviving was the closest thing to it. Because even though a large number of monsters had become predictable over the centuries because they repeated tactics, relied too much on fear and the skills they had while underestimating mortals and half-breeds, not all had fallen into that trap.
There were exceptions, a few monsters and other beings who had learned new things over the centuries, whether to trick, track, fight, survive, or something else, and Jackson didn't yet know if Thorn was one of those exceptions, and in what way.
That's why the 16-year-old kept his guard up even though he did his best to pretend otherwise, and the tingling in his wrist hadn't faded either when the green-eyed teen slipped down another of the side corridors, this time one that led to the west-side restrooms. It was a less-traveled hallway on normal days, but at that moment it was even less traveled, and a bit removed from the main hubbub of the party, where the music was barely audible as a distant murmur of synthesizers and speakers distorted by the building's acoustics.
The bathroom doors were open as a safety precaution, according to the old, faded signs stuck on with old tape and institutional disinterest, while a light flickered intermittently on the ceiling, as if it were as tired of the problems as he was on his worst days. But the air was thick with dampness and cheap disinfectant, though both smells were being drowned out by the unmistakable aroma that wasn't from ordinary cigarettes.
But that last smell was enough to let the green-eyed boy know that the place was not empty.
"Did you see the one... from class 10B?" said a tall boy, leaning casually against the toilets as he smugly exhaled a puff of smoke, though his tone of voice suggested he was somewhat affected by what he was smoking. "The one from... biology class.... the one with the good ass... I think she was hitting on me."
"Nah... not at all..." another replied, sitting with one leg dangling over a sink counter, as if it were his personal throne. "But her friend... the one who always wears a black shirt under her uniform and has big tits... she desire me... She told me with her eyes.... you know?... She almost tripped... looking at me"
Percy stifled a snort. "Gods… idiocy hangs in the air more than smoke."
Without looking at the older boys who were talking nonsense while smoking, Jackson walked to one of the restroom stalls at the back and calmly closed the door, trying not to attract too much attention. Then, once the stall door was closed, he lifted the toilet seat, pretended to urinate, and as he did so, he adjusted the rhythm of his breathing.
Not because he was nervous, but because he was focusing, as his training had taught him that even the smallest actions could be part of a surveillance ritual, and now, every movement was part of his cover-up… at least against those who were truly observant.
Then the teen placed a hand on the cold tiled wall, his fingers brushing against the old ceramic, as rough with age as it was and cold as winter fog, right where a faded painted line indicated the route of the indoor plumbing, then he closed his eyes barely a second later and the next thing Jackson felt was a dull throb that responded, like an echo buried deep within the infrastructure… it was water.
His father may not have claimed to rule the seas and ocean like his Greek counterpart, nor was he the lord of fresh waters like the sensible and disciplined Neptune; but he was more ancient and crude, he was the patron of the rivers of the underworld and as such, any flow, current or any source of water connected to the deep earth, be it in pipes, grottos, wells, rivers, underground or even drains forgotten by humans, carried traces of his authority, were part of his domain.
That's why a sensation like a subtle heat ran down Percy's arm, although it was more like a warm current rising from his palm to his elbow, from there to his shoulder and the rest of his body, so he kept his eyes closed and let himself go.
For him, the vibration of the water flow wasn't just physical, it was like a voice or an echo whispering to him from the pipes hidden behind the walls, as if speaking in an ancient language he understood only by instinct, not logic; but the more he concentrated on feeling it, a certain energy reached him from inside the pipes, helping him hear voices.
There were two voices, the first was firm, but feminine with the sharp tone of a teacher who has spent every afternoon dealing with disobedient teenagers and no longer has patience for excuses.
The second voice… wasn't quite normal to the son of the former lord of the Underworld, who didn't need to see it to know whose it was either. That voice, no matter how hard it tried to disguise itself as a man, had a flawed feeling about it that was too harsh, too perfect in its imitation, as if someone had recorded the words of a human voice on a tape recorder and put them all together… it was Thorn.
Percy opened his eyes just a fraction as he continued to draw some power and energy from the water circulating in the pipes to sharpen his senses despite the lack of direct contact with the liquid, but his senses were as tense as a cable in a storm.
"…they're all in the gymnasium, Latiza. Don't worry", said the voice of the supposed teacher, trying to sound charming on the surface, almost silky… but failing at it, and Percy detected the vibration behind the tone, an ill-contained irritation, something creeping beneath the skin of the disguise. "But I'll be making a rounds of the entire west side" Thorn added, his pause heavy with different intentions "I want to make sure they're not smoking where they shouldn't… or running away… You know how seniors are… too… rebellious"
Percy suppressed the urge to curse out loud. "Right... Right this way... How convenient..." The green-eyed boy complained about his luck because he knew what that meant, the monster was coming in his direction in the next few moments and Jackson doubted it was doing it for a routine checkup.
No, Thorn was hunting, maybe he didn't know exactly who, but he already smelled something off, that there could be another half-blood in the academy... and although Jackson may have been driven by worries about the appearance of three unknown demigods, the fact that the son of the god of earthquakes had killed several monsters since the beginning of the school year was enough to put the false teacher on alert, in addition to the fact that they haven't discovered him yet thanks to the amulet on his necklace and that Percy had been discreet enough when eliminating other monsters, must have bothered Thorn.
But the woman responded with the characteristic severity of someone who has spent too many years correcting stubborn teenagers, her voice had that cutting edge that only true veterans of the classroom develop, although in this case, she didn't know that she was talking a 'false co-worker'... a partner who wasn't even human.
"It's a good idea, Thorn. But remember, we'll meet at the main entrance… as long as no one is breaking the rules," she said, in a tone that made it clear he'd better be where he belonged and not let anyone escape punishment if he found him.
"You don't need to remind me," Thorn replied, and Percy could imagine him smiling tightly, the kind you imagine without actually seeing it, a thin, tight, dangerously sharp smile.
The half-human boy couldn't help but roll his eyes from inside the cubicle due to his own, as well as annoying luck while also letting out a sigh and wait, he may not have been able to see it, but with every passing second and every step the monster took in his direction, its presence was becoming more and more obvious to him like a nuisance under the skin, to his own instincts. (Note 1)
That feeling was not new to him, but sometimes it was annoying, as it was right now when Jackson was asking himself and not for the first time, why he hadn't killed the monster weeks ago, even if that might attract more monsters and other beings. But after a few more brief moments, the teen had no doubt that Thorn was standing right outside the restrooms, perhaps a couple of steps from crossing the door, disguised as a staff member concerned about 'student morale'.
But Jackson knew monsters well enough that there was no way, not even by divine error, that a creature like Thorn could last an entire night maintaining his disguise while watching over teenagers in the middle of a party without a darker purpose. And apparently, the boys who were smoking in the restroom had sensed it too, because the silence fell upon them like a bucket of cold water.
The laughter died down, as did the idiotic remarks about girls in classroom 10B, only the nervous silence of two teenagers who had just remembered they were doing something forbidden, not out of fear of a monster... but out of fear of having their 'cigarettes' confiscated and being punished with something worse than no having their access to the campus internet suspended... "Mortals" the green-eyed boy thought instead of snorting at the humans who are unaware of the true danger lurking within the academy.
It wasn't the first time in the past two years that Percy felt some disdain for completely normal, human teenagers, for their ignorance to the truth of the world that gods are real as well as monsters, as well as countless creatures that most of humanity believes only exist in myths and legends, but he knew that most wouldn't be able to deal with a life like his.
They wouldn't know how to deal with the fact that Thorn was probably tracking and hunting, not for fun, nor by chance, the monster was waiting, looking for something or someone... probably the newcomers if they weren't his allies or him in the worst case. But the most important and reassuring thing happened a few seconds later and that was what didn't happen... the monster didn't enter the bathroom.
"Good" Percy thought, exhaling carefully, barely a contained sigh because despite the internal alarms that had put him on alert since his bracelet detected three unknown demigods, it seemed that they had not yet discovered him for what he really is, the concealment magic carved into the shrunken skull was still working.
With a little luck, and perhaps a touch of divine intervention, Thorn would continue his supposed patrol of the corridors without imagining that Jackson was right behind him, tracking him and watching him, because monsters rarely imagined themselves in that position.
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8 years ago
New York, 1999
The animal was still and breathing heavily, but without the aggression and fear of a few moments before, but only a few seconds later in an unexpected gesture, the animal lowered its head, gently tilting it in front of the child. But Percy didn't see it, not yet because his eyes were still squeezed shut, trapped in the idea that the world wasn't safe yet, and then he heard it.
A voice was agitated, but it didn't come from outside, it didn't come from any tangible place unlike the heavy breathing of the animal that was finally registering in the boy's ears, but from some strange corner of his mind, like an alien thought that had crept in without permission. It wasn't human, nor was it audible to the others. "My lord..."
Little Jackson slowly opened his eyes, first one and then the other, as if afraid of what he was about to see. Then the dark-haired seven-year-old saw the horse looking at him with its enormous head still lowered, as if in submission.
The animal's eyes, which moments before had been filled with terror, now conveyed something completely different... relief, recognition, and respect... as if the horse knew exactly who the child in front of it was.
Percy gulped, not understanding anything. "W-what…?"
"PERCY!" His mother's voice brought him out of his trance, just before she wrapped him in a desperate hug. Sally Jackson knelt before him before hugging him to her chest with a desperate, trembling strength from the panic she felt at seeing her son in danger.
Around them, chaos erupted as several adults ran to them, to other children, and to those who had been inside the carriage to find out if they were okay or hurt. Someone shouted that they had called 911 while the children remained scared, many of them crying or calling for their parents through their cries, but Percy only had eyes for the horse.
"Did you speak?" he whispered, without taking his eyes off the animal.
Sally didn't seem to hear him, her heart in her throat, her face pale with shock, and her blue eyes filled with unshed tears. "Percy! Tell me you're okay!" she exclaimed, examining him with anxious hands, feeling his face, his arms, his torso, looking for any sign of injury, broken bones, or any kind of damage.
But neither she nor any of the other adults seemed to notice the strange way in which the horse stopped and the carriage was thrown without taking the animal with it, although in the case of the brown-haired, blue-eyed mother it was out of concern for her son.
As for little Jackson, he was barely moving because he was still in some shock at what had just happened, as well as confused by the voice he heard and that he could swear came from the equine, with his eyes fixed on the horse now 'kneeling' in front of him, as if something inside Percy knew, without knowing why, that nothing that had just happened was normal.
"Are you hurt, Percy?! Does something hurt?!" she insisted, her voice a little desperate as she continued checking her son for any injuries.
"Mom..." Percy said, his voice barely audible, as if the words were slipping through his thoughts because he still hasn't taken his eyes off the animal.
But Sally, who hugged her son tightly again after finding no visible wounds, finally noticed his tone of voice and that he was paying attention to the horse, not her. Then the boy's mother turned her head in the direction her son was looking... but as she did so, it wasn't the horse that caught her attention, no, her eyes stopped in utter surprise on another figure, one that hadn't been there a second before, one that simply... appeared out of nowhere.
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Note 1 : Throughout the Percy Jackson books, different moments have been shown in which the son of Poseidon can sense danger from brief moments before it occurs, whether at sea or not, such as in the second saga when they ran into Chryasor and his crew, where Percy could sense long before anyone else that trouble was approaching the Argo II.
And since this Percy is better trained, and knows from before that his canonical version of the books about the gods and demigods, his abilities, skills, instincts, are better trained and developed
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