"It took you long enough to realize, runt. You have got to be the most naive person I've met so far."
The voice sounded...odd. As if it were virtual and real at the same time, the tone would switch from high octaves to low sporadically.
As the voice inside his head berated him, William thought about his current situation. From all the information he knew about stories that he learned from his mentor, people who were transported into stories were unable to defy their character, meaning they couldn't do anything their character wouldn't do. On a different note, he hadn't even heard of someone being able to converse with their body's original consciousness before. Not even once. Perhaps he had some plot relevance after all.
"So tell me, Perimedes. What exactly are you?" William would ask inquisitively. This was a nice ice-breaker question, he thought so atleast.
"You should know by now, as you and I are alike. What am I exactly, a character in a storybook? A real person? If we truly are alike, I'm sure you know my views on that."
"How cryptic.... but I think I understand what you mean. Moving on, typically, a transported soul cannot act out against their character's nature. So my actions earlier also served as a test for your nature. How coincidental, I was transported into the one person in this entire story who was nearly identical to me in terms of values."
"Hah...You're merely at the tip of the iceberg. But seeing as you tried to test the boundaries of what you were allowed to do, you aren't as much of an idiot as I thought you were."
"You seem quite knowledgeable on the story system...how is that possible when you're inside of one?"
William would ask mentally, slightly confused.
Perimede would simply laugh.
"This extends far beyond what you could ever imagine as you are now, your role has already been decided, that is, unless you acquire the power to change "it" ."
"What's that supposed to mean? I dislike cryptic speech like that, unless I'm the one saying it, of course. It's fun to hint at secrets." William would exasperatingly reply.
"What are you, a child?" Perimede's judging voice would boom through his mind.
"Of course not, but acting dumber in a conversation is a good way to get others to underestimate you."
"Moving on, I'd like to ask for your tacit agreement to what I'm going to do when we encounter the sea god, Poseidon. You know, just so I don't get bound by the rules of the story."
Will would say calmly. He came up with this idea after ages of thinking, after all, since he couldn't act against the character's will while in the story, all he had to do was make sure that the character's will aligned with his.
"Hmm, how about we make a little deal? Your reward will be my unrestricted support. As for the conditions..."
A drove of information would enter William's mind, a contract.
A screen would then appear in front of Will, displaying the terms and conditions of the contract.
[1. The receiver of this contract must clear the story with a unique ending. While having their own story unlocked.]
[2. The receiver of this contract must defeat the God of Tides, Poseidon, with cunning.]
[In return, the receiver will obtain "Perimede's" help in avoiding the ramifications of the story's character rules.]
[In the event you fail to accomplish both clauses by the end of the story, the receiver will die.]
[Anyway, please sign here]
William would read through the lines over and over again, scanning for any sort of trick or deceit that may have been snuck into the contract. In the end, he couldn't find any, so he used his finger to write his signature on the designated area.
[Contract successfully signed!]
"It is done. I must say, I feel at ease now knowing that my actions won't be restricted. Perhaps it's just my worries being lifted though."
William would say, while stretching out and lying down on the wooden floor, finally getting a chance to relax and be calm.
"Good...With this contract signed, you'll be unrestricted! I wish you luck in your fight against that fork-loving fish f***er of an octopus."
Perimedes would say loudly in Will's mind.
"Does everyone hate Poseidon or something..."
William would mutter to himself. Questioning what Poseidon had done to be this hated. Regardless, it was time for him to take a break; it had been a long day...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Four days later.
William would be chilling on the deck of the ship, staring out at the sea, he had updated his wardrobe a bit. He decided to wear some lighter clothing, to make sure he could move quick and fast.
They were nearing the island of Ithaca, Odysseus's home. Which also meant that Poseidon could come down at any second to attack.
"Good morning Perimedes"
Odysseus would climb out of the captain's quarters, yawning. He was looking quite good mentally despite the looming threat of the Sea God. Truly a conniving person....William thought.
"Good morning cap'n"
William would greet him warmly.
Something William had forgot about in the past few days was his captain. Well not his captain's existence but more the fact that he was an unparalleled genius in these times. Something William was deeply disturbed by.
"I wonder what hes planning.."
William would think to himself.
"Athena definitely knows about my boon from Helios, so we should assume that her disciple knows about it too. Is he planning to use me to kill Poseidon? I suppose I seem like a useful tool to him, but he definitely should have contingencies for me nonetheless...How infuritating. Intelligence is truly terrifying."
William would rattle his brains to no avail, due to his [Average] attribute he couldn't hope to figure out the plans of a genius like his captain.
Eventually he would sigh and ask his captain how far they were until they encountered Poseidon.
"Hey captain, how much longer do we have until that guy shows up? Can you give me a rough idea?"
"If all goes to plan, today is the day "He" will strike."
Odysseus would reply calmly, an unreadable expression plastered upon his face.
William would nod silently. Before heading back into his quarters to get some training in. In the past few days William had been trying out his sun powers, but to a.....varying end result, it turns out his [Average] attribute even applied to magic...How unfortunate. Nevertheless, he decided to try to think up a way to use strategy to defeat Poseidon, even if he wasn't a genius like his captain who could think up several master plans in a couple minutes, he could rack his brains for four days for one solid move atleast.
This was his last opportunity to test out his idea, so he had to make things count.
A couple minutes later, William would be standing in the quarters, lost in thought. Before smiling and proclaiming loudly:
"It..worked. Maybe I'm smarter than I think I am!"
[No, you aren't]
William would suddenly hear a loud boom outside, aswell as the tides crashing upon eachother, the smell of the sea was beginning to flood the area more than ever before. William would ready his things and step outside while smiling.
"Odysseus of Ithaca...It's time to settle this measly argument once and for all..."
A powerful voice would boom from the heavens, like the sound of a storm.
The God of Seas and Storms, the God of Horses, and the God of Earthquakes.
One of the Twelve Olympians, the brother of the Skies and Underworld, Poseidon, had descended.