Several days before Percy's 19 th birthday

Percy was at the airport, for the second time in his life, though the first didn't really count in his mind because he'd been rushing like Hades to get his uncle's precious weapon back to him. His eyes kept darting from side to side, his hand fingering Riptide in his pocket, the cool metal of the pen calming him down slightly. He jumped when a hand landed on his shoulder, whirling around immediately, only to find his mother smiling at him warmly, her bright blue eyes sparkling with excitement and amusement.

"Mom!" Percy said, sighing, "Please don't scare me like that."

Sally laughed, a musical chime in his ears, "Oh Percy, why so tense? I'm the one going on the plane you know. Besides, you should be happy that you'd be left unsupervised for awhile." She said, giving him a knowing look.

He blushed slightly, "Mom..." he whined, grinning, "There's just so many people here, I'm not used to it. But, you should enjoy your holiday. It's been so long since you got one." He said softly, smiling at her.

Sally smiled at her son, "Oh Percy, you've grown so much! And don't worry; I'll be back before you know it!"

Percy laughed, "No, no, no. Don't worry about me. Really! I can go to camp and all, just enjoy your honeymoon. And Paul." He grinned wolfishly.

His mother's face turned a beet red, and she smacked him lightly on the arm, the both of them laughing."Percy, could you do me a favor? Run to the sweets shop and grab some candy for me will you? I have to wait here for Paul to come back, and look out for our flight."

Percy blinked at the strange request, but shrugged it off, he couldn't read the sign anyway, his dyslexia prevented that, so he might as well go. 'Blue?" he grinned.

"Blue." His mother smiled at him.

As he walked away from her, he didn't notice the way the smile dropped of her face or her saddened look as she stood alone in the midst of a crowd.

Percy paid for the bag of sweets he had chosen and walked back to where he had left his mother. He glanced around, not seeing her. He walked further, looking for his mother, only to bump into Paul, who was queuing with both their luggage, the plane tickets in his hands.

"Hey Paul." Percy said, causing said man to look up from where he was checking his tickets.

"Percy!" Paul greeted, "Where'd you go?"

"Oh, I went to get some sweets for mom, she said she wanted to have them on the plane in case she got airsick. Where is she by the way?"Percy said, frowning slightly.

Paul smiled at his step-son's protectiveness of his wife. "Relax Percy; she just went to the washroom, no monsters involved."

Percy looked at him and blushed; he didn't know that he was being that obvious. "Oh."

"But she's been gone for quite awhile, you should go look for her," Paul said, he pointed to one corner, "She went there I think, I need to check in our luggage, could you go find her? we probably need to go in soon."

Percy nodded, depositing the bag of sweets with his step-father, cutting through the throngs of people. He kept an eye out for any unusual behavior amongst the humans though, he didn't know which one could be a monster, and despite his parents' reassurance, he was still a son of the big three, and his scent was extremely strong, monsters were bound to be attracted. He just didn't want to ruin the start of his mum and Paul's well deserved break.

He made it to the washroom without any incident, and he paused, unsure of how to find his mother. He walked forward still, rounding the corner to get to the washroom that was located far inside. He was about to call out for his mother when he heard her muffled voice. Tensing, he reached into his pocket and gripped Riptide, ready to uncap it in an instant if his mother was in danger. He manipulated the Mist so that people wouldn't get suspicious of him as he crept towards the sound of her voice.

He reached a door that was left slightly ajar, and was prepared to barge in to demand for his mother when he heard-

"-are you going to tell him?"

He blinked, confused, who was his mother talking to? And who was she talking about? He crept even closer, practically plastering his ears to the door, listening intently.

"Never, preferably."

He reeled back in shock, because that was his father's voice that he recognized. He wondered if his mother had just wanted to talk to Poseidon before she left. But that doesn't make sense, he thought, she could always IM him from Europe, it wasn't like Iris-Messaging had overseas charges.

"What?" came his mother's aghast voice, "You cannot keep this from him forever Poseidon!"

"I can and I will Sally. He cannot know about this, it would break him."

"This is why you should tell him! Do you think he'd rather be lied to for the rest of his life? He's bound to learn about it one way or another would you rather he learns from someone else other than his parents?"

Percy's eyes widened in shock, that was definitely him they were talking about, but why?

"Can you guarantee that he will accept it if he finds out Sally? Can you guarantee that everything will be the same?"

"Of course not. Nothing will be the same you know that!" she paused for a few moments; Percy leaned in, hardly daring to breathe at all. "I have raised Percy since he was six, and I love him like he was my own child, you know that. I know him; he would rather hear it from us than from someone else."

Percy's breath caught in his throat, backing away until he hit the wall behind him. He slid down the wall, the remaining conversation drifting over his head. There was no way, no possible way that that could be true.

He leaned against the wall in shock, wanting to collapse right there and then with the revelation he was just given, but he couldn't do that. No, he couldn't be selfish, he couldn't let his knowledge get in the way of his mother's happiness.

Only, a voice whispered to him, she isn't really your mother is she?

He felt the burning sensation behind his eyes and he forced them back, not wanting to cry in front of his mother. He walked until he was a distance away then, taking a few deep breaths to steady his voice; he called out for his mother.

She answered him several calls later, coming around the corner, smiling at him as though she hadn't just had a conversation about him with his father. His heart clenched, but his face did not waver, he forced a smile on his face-when did he get so good at that? - "Come on, Paul's waiting for you."

She smiled back at him, and they both walked towards the man waiting for them, the announcement of their flight echoing overhead. He tilted his head when Paul met them halfway, carrying their handheld luggage. "Well, I suppose this is where I say bon voyage?"He teased, smiling even though it hurt him.

Sally smiled at her son, unaware of the turmoil that she had unknowingly caused, "We'll see you soon enough Percy. Try not to mess the house up too much. There's money in your room if you need it, you can IM me as well, preferably not at night though, you should ask Annabeth about the time difference. Sleep early; don't stress yourself too much-"

"Sally!" "Mom!"

Sally laughed, both her boys giving her an exasperated look, "Alright alright, I get it. No nagging. But really Percy, be careful alright?"

"I will mom; you and Paul just focus on enjoying your honeymoon. Make god use of Uncle H's gift."

"We will Perce, don't worry, I'll take good care of your mom." Paul said, grinning at his step-son.

Percy grinned back, giving him a one arm hug. He turned to his mom and hugged her tightly, letting her go. "Have fun mom, I'll miss you, but enjoy yourself."

Sally nodded. The couple walked towards the departure hall, turning back one last time to wave at him before disappearing from sight. He let the smile drop of his face, pain shining in his ocean green eyes. Percy turned and left the airport, his hands gripping the wheel of the Prius tightly.

He drove home on autopilot, his mind curiously blank. When he reached, he just turned off the engine and sat in the car, dazedly staring blankly ahead. He robotically got out of the car, walking down the street instead of heading up, he didn't think he could handle being cooped up in his room with his thoughts now.

He drew his jacket around him; slipping his hands into his pockets, head bent low as he slipped from block to block. He didn't know where he was walking to, but he just kept placing one foot in front of the next. He turned a random corner, and looked up, realizing that he had stepped into an alley with a dead end. Sighing inwardly, he took one step back, intending to get out of the alley, when he sensed a presence blocking the alley's entrance.

He kept his head bowed, hands still in his pocket even as he stood still, breathing lightly. He heard the presence behind him shift, and a low voice pitched, "Well, well, well. Look what we have here. A little meal that got itself cornered."

"Hee! Cornered! Cornered! I'm hungry, hungry!" another high pitched whine cut in.

"Hah. Little demigod, should have known better than to enter alleyways." A third voice piped up.

Throughout this, Percy didn't react; he just stood there, his head bowed in a seemingly resigned position.

"Heh? Did the meal give up already?"

Covered by the shadows, Percy smirked, his oceanic eyes flashing. He turned around, revealing his face to the monsters that had covered the alley's entrance. The monsters all flinched back when they recognized him, but then the lead monster, the Cyclops, just grinned, his one eye narrowing in triumph, "Look who we got boys! We'll be famous after we take your head Perseus Jackson."

"Famous! Hee!" the crazed Empousa giggled, her head lolling to one side. Behind them were a few other monsters, hellhounds, telekhines, and Cyclops. Above him were several harpies.

Percy just stared at the assorted group before him with barely veiled amusement. He just let a grin form on his face, "Bring it on demons," he hissed, "I'm in the mood for some blood."

The monsters snarled and leapt at him. He just grinned, Riptide flashing in the darkened alleyway.

Several months later, hours before the attack on New York

Percy unlocked the door, calling out his presence as he entered, fumbling with the lock for a moment as he juggled his bag, his new sword and his jacket. He felt like a complete retard for bringing his new sword out, especially since it couldn't collapse into a convenient form like Riptide, but the mission involved mortals apparently. He still hated killing, gods forbid if he ever became used to it, but even he couldn't stand the girl's father when he went on an errand for Nemesis. The man reminded him sorely of Smelly Gabe, and he had been more than pleased to eradicate the man, since he was deprived of that opportunity when his mom made Smelly Gabe into a stone sculpture.

He locked the door finally, and walked to the living room, stopping short when he saw his father on the couch. He stared at his parents, his mom, who was averting her gaze from him, and his father, who had a solemn gaze on his face. Percy felt his heart clench in fear, he had a rough idea as to why his father was here, but he didn't want to talk about it, he'd managed to accept that he maybe was adopted by his mom, but he'd already accepted that she loved him no less.

"Right," he began, "I'm just uh, going to go place my stuff in the room... if you guys uh, wanna talk then just continue-"

"Sit, Percy." His father said.

"Uh," he stammered, "Can I put my stuff in the room first-"

"Please Percy, sit down." His mother said, turning tear filled eyes to him.

He felt his heart drop, and he sat down gingerly, shrugging off the bag, placing the sword leaning against the side of the chair he sat on.

"So...?"

Poseidon sighed, and lifted his eyes to the boy opposite him, practically his mirror image without all the wrinkles."Percy, we have something to tell you."

Percy gave him a weird look, not betraying the way his heart was hammering in his chest.

"Percy," Sally said, "Please, know that we have and always will love you."

Percy faked a laugh, which sounded nearly hysterical to him, "What? You sound like someone is going to die or something."

"Percy," Poseidon said his eyes stern but gentle, "Percy, I never wanted you to know, but your mother convinced me that it was better for you to learn of it from us than from someone else's mouth."

He took a deep breath, but Percy interrupted him, "I know." He said, his eyes dark. "I know what you're going to say." He turned to his mother, "I'm not your real son am I?"

Both adults were shocked, "How?" Sally whispered.

Percy smiled sadly, looking at his mum, "I heard you, well, overheard you. At the airport. I overheard your conversation, and I uh, I heard what you said, about looking after me since I was six. And I pieced it together from there." He said softly, looking down. "Am I right?"

He missed the sad looks that his parents shared above his head, "Well," he continued, "I'm fine with it, really, I am." He smiled, "Took me some time, but I'm fine with it. Really."

"Percy," Poseidon said, "Really dad, I'm fine." Percy cut in.

"No," Poseidon continued, "That is not all Percy."

Percy blinked, confused, "What do you mean?"

Poseidon closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "I need to tell you the whole story Percy. Don't interrupt me. Please."

Percy frowned, still confused, but nodded anyway.

Poseidon clasped his hands together. "You know how Zeus' daughter got turned into a tree when she was twelve I believe?" he said, waiting for Percy's nod before continuing, "At that time, when the news of Zeus' daughter first came up, we all assumed that she was the child of the prophecy. We still didn't know about the existence of Hades' children in the Lotus Casino. We all assumed that she, along with the daughter of Athena and the son of Hermes, would make it safely to Camp Half-Blood. What we did not account for was the sheer number of monsters that Hades sent after her, nor the extent of the anger that my brother held against her existence."

Percy nodded, still confused at why he was being told thing she had already known, but willing to play along for now.

He wished he hadn't.

Poseidon's voice grew more somber, "As much as we gods know about the future, even we are not certain of the outcomes. When Thalia was turned into a tree, we did not know what to do. There were no other children of the eldest gods, and the prophecy clearly stated that one was to be the prophecy child." Poseidon closed his eyes and took another deep breath, "There was no guarantee that Thalia would have been revived like she was during your second year at camp and become the child of the prophecy. If it was any other prophecy, Zeus would have gladly allowed the situation to remain, but the last line, 'Olympus to preserve or raze' implied that there was a great battle on the horizon, and Zeus, paranoid as he is," he ignored the thunder booming outside, "wanted to make sure that Olympus would not be destroyed. Even if it meant entrusting it to a demigod."

"There were only three of us, Hades, Zeus and I. Only our children could become the child of the prophecy. Athena analyzed the fatal flaws that our children generally shared, and despite protests from my brother, we all agreed that the child could not be one from Hades or Zeus. Not Hades because his children generally held grudges and he had no particular loyalty to Olympus. Not Zeus because his children craved power, which would have been a large temptation for them, as with what Thalia went through with the Ophiotaurus."

"That left only me. As you are well aware, my children's fatal flaws are usually loyalty. Which is both a strength and a flaw." Percy nodded, remembering how Athena had told him that his fatal flaw would let him sacrifice the world for the one he loved.

"And therein lay the problem Percy." Poseidon said softly, "We needed, and we agreed, that a child of Poseidon should be the child of the prophecy, but there was one problem." He looked straight into Percy's eyes, "Sally was sterile."

Percy felt his heart stop. "What?" he whispered.

"I couldn't conceive Percy." Sally took over, "We tried, gods forbid, we tried, but I had a checkup, and it was confirmed by Apollo as well, I couldn't conceive. It was impossible for me to do so."

He looked between his parents-not really his parents now were they?- and asked, "What then?"

Poseidon picked up the story, he swallowed, gripping his hands together, "At that time, I had the option of running to another woman, and having a child with her. But," he looked at Percy, who was still sitting in shock, "I did not want to be unfaithful to Sally, even though she gave me permission. We could not go for the surrogate mother option because Sally could not produce any ovum."

"Sally was a part-time volunteer in an orphanage at that time, and she remembered a child, about six years of age who seemed bright and cheerful, despite having been abandoned by his parents when he was born and brought to the orphanage by an old lady with a good heart. No one knew why he was never adopted, but Sally, she remembered him, and she was his main care-taker. She told me about the child, not out of any suggestions of any sort, but because she loved him, loved his brightness, and so I had an idea. I brought it to the council, and they approved, and so I told Sally about the plan. She disapproved at first of course, fighting fiercely for the rights of the child that she took care of. But eventually, she gave in after Athena presented the facts and the logical reasoning behind the plan. "

He took a deep breath, and with the next few words, shattered Percy's world completely.

"She adopted the child officially, and we brought him to Olympus. The first time a mortal was allowed on the land of the gods. We blessed the child, and I gave him a blessing that would raise him to the standards of one of my demigod child. Of course, a mortal body would not have been able to contain that much power, which led to Hecate casting the spell that would allow the child to hold the power within him, but he could not receive any other blessings anymore, lest he burn out. We had Mnemosyne remove any memories the child had of the first six years, and replace them. Then," he paused, closing his eyes, "We named the child Perseus."

Percy's eyes widened as his breath caught in his throat. He swallowed, staring at his father-no, not his father anymore- his mind blank. "I-I'm not, I'm mortal?" he whispered.

"That cannot be. I'm not, you're lying. You are lying to me. This is some joke right? How did Hermes and Apollo get you to join their prank?"

"This is no joke Percy." His mother pleaded.

"No. NO!" he shouted, standing up, "There is no way, no fucking way that I am not either of your sons. No way." He laughed hysterically, "No, I'm not-I won't accept this, this isn't true. Tell me it isn't true!" he screamed, feeling tears gather behind his eyes. He stumbled backwards, seeing the pained look on the god's face.

He felt the world drop out from beneath him, "No," he repeated over and over again, "It's not true. Please, tell me it isn't true. I don't - why?"

"Percy?"

"Why did you use me like this?"

"Percy, we didn't-"

"DON'T LIE TO ME!" Percy roared, "You said so yourself, you needed a child to be the one in the prophecy. You didn't even know what the prophecy meant and you were ready to sacrifice me to save yourself. You were ready to let me die for the sake of preserving Olympus."

"Percy, the line didn't mean death-"

"But you didn't know that did you? You didn't know it referred to Luke! You didn't know that it meant that I wouldn't die. And you used me. You fucking used me. Like a tool, which is actually what we are, isn't it? Demigods, we are all just tools for the gods to use and essentially disposable."

"Percy no-"

"Can you tell me otherwise?" Percy demanded, "Can you look me straight in the eye and tell me that you gods don't use us?" Poseidon just remained silent, guilt etched on his face, "That's what I thought, you can't. Because it's true. You only see us as tools to be use. You don't see us as children to be loved. You only see us as mistakes." He spat, watching as his so-called father flinched at having his words used against him*.

"Is that why you never told me before? Because you were afraid that if I found out I'd run straight into Kronos' arms?"

"Percy please-" Poseidon tried, but Percy wasn't listening anymore. He had grown up thinking he was a freak, then found out that he wasn't, that he was a part of a world where such things were normal, only to be given the revelation that he wasn't even a part of that world in the first place.

"No. I have suffered, killed, been tortured and seen my friends die because of you gods. Because you cannot help yourself. I don't care that I'm essentially a mortal. Because I know even mortals are strong sometimes. I'm upset because you used me. Because you picked me for the sole purpose of having me fulfill a role."

He breathed heavily, blinking away his tears, "What would happen to me after I outlived my usefulness then? Would you have killed me? Would Zeus send someone to dispose of me? Like what you would do to a tool that was no longer useful?"

The god just kept silent, the lack of words speaking louder than anything he could have said. Percy nodded, and dashed out of the house, slamming the door behind him.

Sally let her tears pour down her face while Poseidon placed his head in his hands.

Percy ran to the nearest alley and blew hard on the stygian ice whistle Nico gave him, the whistle crumbling in his hands after he blew it. He waited, tears threatening to escape as he waited for his beloved hellhound. The moment she burst forth from the shadows, he jumped on her back, and as if sensing his distress, she leapt straight into another shadow, taking the both of them to Long Island, the only monster to ever be allowed in camp.

Percy sat down at the beach of Camp Half-Blood, watching the waves slowly crash against the shore, the water splashing against his leg like a soft apology for the lies he lived through. As much as he didn't want to be near anything related to Poseidon, he felt that the water still calmed him down the most. And was that a product of their meddling? Or did he naturally love the water? He didn't have any answers for his questions; he didn't even know who he was supposed to be now.

His whole life, he had lived as if he was a demigod, even when he hadn't known he was one. His whole life was revolved around the gods, the demigods, camp and monsters. Now that he wasn't a part of this world, what more did he have? What could he do now? His life was a lie, how did you continue moving forward when everything you knew was a lie?

He absently played with the sand beneath him, wondering if his swordsmanship capabilities were a by-product of someone's blessing or if he truly had a natural gift for wielding a sword. He didn't know how to feel, he felt lost and drifting, helpless, like he did on Calypso's island. He closed his eyes and hissed out a breath, how did everything always go so wrong for him?

Living in the mortal world, he never fit in, he was abnormal. And just when he thought he'd finally found a place he could be himself, he wasn't actually a part of it.

Soft footsteps padded behind him, and slender arms wound around his neck. "Try not to think so hard seaweed brain, you might hurt yourself." Came the teasing voice.

A small smile made its way to his face as he turned slightly to face her, "Come on wise girl, you're always asking me to think more."

She laughed lightly, plopping down on the sand beside him, winding her fingers through his. "I do, when you're on the battlefield, but I'm afraid that if you keep thinking that hard, whatever is left of your brain might spontaneously combust." She teased, poking him in the forehead. She leaned back, her face becoming concerned and serious, "But really Percy, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just, some shocking things that's all."

"It's not nothing if you're acting like this." She said quietly.

He remained silent, and Annabeth didn't press him, she knew him well enough that he would speak when he wanted to. He licked his lips lightly, feeling undeniably nervous, if he told her, would her opinion of him change? Would she still concede to a relationship with a faux-demigod?

He swallowed, looking out at the ocean, "My father, and my mom, they told me some stuff today, after I got back from my mission."

She squeezed his hand encouragingly, not saying anything. His voice cracked, "They said that I didn't belong to them. That I'm not a son of Poseidon." He blinked back tears, "They said that I was from an orphanage, I wasn't- I wasn't their kid." He whispered, gripping her hand tightly.

"I don't understand, they said that my mom was sterile, and they needed a child of the big three to be the one in the prophecy because Thalia had been turned into a tree at that time. I don't get it, so what, I was just something for them to use as they liked?"

"Percy," Annabeth said hesitantly, "The gods have reasons for why they did what they did, I'm sure that it doesn't change anything-"

"It changes everything!" he yelled, "Because now I have no idea how much is a part of their meddling and how much of it is really me. I don't even know if I like water because they wanted me to be a son of Poseidon or because I liked water originally. I don't even know who I'm supposed to be now, and I thought I was over that when I first found out that I was a demigod!"

"Percy, your father loves you, I'm sure of it, as does your mother-"

"I know that," he said brokenly, looking at his callous-filled hands, each scar a mark of his battle for the gods and for the world he was never a part of, ""I know that they love me, I know that. But I also know that there is a part of my father, no matter how small, that sees me only as a tool to be used."

He clenched his hands into fists, looking at his girlfriend and best friend, "What happens when I'm no longer useful?"

Annabeth just stared sadly at him, the hero who had given so much hope to his allies and instilled fear into his enemies, the boy who jumped into Tartarus with her because he didn't want her to be alone, the boy who carried the sky in order to save her, the boy she took a knife for without knowing why. "Percy," she whispered, her heart clenching with guilt.

He just breathed and looked away from her, facing the ocean again. He froze, a nagging sense in the back of his mind that told him that something was wrong. He faced the ocean, staring blankly ahead, his mind racing, what was wrong? There weren't any monsters, he knew that, Mrs. O'Leary made sure of that, no nymphs or naiads or sea creatures then what was wrong? There was only two people on the beach, why did he feel that something was off? No one else, only him and Annabeth-

Annabeth.

He replayed the practically one-sided conversation in his head. His eyes widened, no, he thought, that cannot be possible, but-

She hadn't shown any surprise when he said that he wasn't a demigod.

His breath caught in his throat, and he felt like screaming. Instead-

"You knew, didn't you?" he whispered.

He felt more than saw her jerk back in surprise. Her body language was more than enough as an answer for him.

"Percy," she said, her gray eyes wide, "Percy listen, I tried, to tell them, but it didn't work-"

"You mean your mother convinced you with her logic." He said flatly, still not looking at her.

She winced, bowing her head slightly. "Percy," she whispered.

"How long?"

"What?"

"How long have you known about it?" he repeated, his dark eyes piercing through her.

She bit her lip, averting her eyes, "When you were found outside camp's borders." She took a deep breath, "When the minotaur killed your mother the first time."

He lips pressed into a thin line, "You knew, since before I came to camp. You knew who I was; you knew that I wasn't a demigod."

She nodded, biting her lips, "And all this time, seven years, and you never told me. You lied to my face day in and day out." He said softly.

"Percy please, I didn't agree with it, I felt that it was immoral-"

"Until the gods convinced you." He interrupted.

She looked away, "It was logical." She whispered, "At that time, it was a logical decision. We couldn't chance that the prophecy would not come true because there was no child of the Big Three. It clearly said that this demigod would save or destroy Olympus. If there was no demigod, then there wouldn't even be a chance of saving Olympus. Which is why when Thalia was purged from the tree I was shocked. And why I didn't know what to do when Nico was claimed as the son of Hades."

Percy nodded, feeling the sting of utter betrayal. "You couldn't chance it. So when two more children of the Big Three appeared you panicked because it was only supposed to be me."

"Percy," she pleaded, her normally proud gray eyes now pleading, "Percy please, listen I didn't-"

"What, now you're denying it?" he said harshly.

She flinched, "Percy, listen to me, I'm not denying anything, and I am truly sorry, but please, we couldn't take the chance of telling you at first-"

"Because then you wouldn't know if I'd go straight to Luke."

She closed her eyes, her heart clenching as it did whenever she heard the name of the sandy-haired boy.

"Percy..."

He didn't answer, just continued staring out into the sea. "I agreed with Luke you know." He said softly, ignoring Annabeth's sharp intake of breath. "I agreed with him about the gods. You have no idea how close it came for me to leave with him."

He looked at her, seeing her wide eyes, "It was only because I had a taste of Kronos' power and personality that I didn't want to go. And later on it was because of you, because of all our friends, and because of my mother. Because I knew that while the gods weren't the best rulers, they were the lesser evil between them and the titans."

"It's the whole reason why I agreed to Luke's last request. Because I knew where he was coming from. I was in the Hermes cabin for all of a few days, and being cramped in there? With hardly any space for yourself? I couldn't blame the kids for joining the titans. Not when I felt like they did, except I was lucky enough to be the so-called son of Poseidon. So I got claimed. But the rest? They weren't as lucky. They were forgotten and abandoned."

Annabeth looked away, she knew what he was talking about, she had been claimed nearly the second she stepped past the borders, so she had never needed to bother with the cramped cabin, and the Athena cabin was always pristine and neat, so they each had their own personal space. She never stopped once to consider the feelings of those who were stuck in the Hermes cabin, despite not being Hermes children. Those who were not children of the Olympians.

"Percy, I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it Annabeth." He said tiredly.

"Percy!"

He whipped around, startled when his name was shouted, a hand reaching for Riptide. "Nico? What's up?"

The son of Hades skidded to a stop in front of the couple, panting heavily, looking at him weirdly, "Why do you look like-? Nevermind, I just came from New York, its under attack!"

Percy felt his heart drop-again- and grabbed Nico, "What's going on? Monsters? Or what?"

Nico shook his head, "No, worse, aliens." He said seriously.

If those words had come out from anyone else's mouth, Percy would have brushed them off, but Nico wasn't one to joke around, not when the situation was serious.

Percy whistled once for Mrs. O'Leary, "Are the mortals doing anything?"

"Yeah, some group of guys, five or six? I'm not sure, they're keeping the aliens within several blocks from the Empire State Building. Percy paused, "That's not possible."

Nico shrugged, "Maybe the gods are doing something, but either way, they're not getting further than that."

Percy nodded, and walked to Mrs. O'Leary, who wagged her tail, eager to jump into battle. "Wait!" Annabeth called out, "You can't just leave like that, and we have to tell Chiron first, besides, its mortals' affair!"

He turned to face Annabeth, "You tell Chiron, I have to go, my mom and Paul are in there."

He turned to Nico, who nodded and clambered up on Mrs. O'Leary's back. Percy followed suit, and with a loud bark, she dashed forward into a shadow. Back in Camp Half-Blood, Annabeth ran for the Big House.

The shadows in an alleyway grew darker and darker, until it seemed to solidify, spitting out a humongous hound and two teenagers. The older and taller one slid off first, a pen in his hand. The other slid followed suit, twisting his ring.

Percy uncapped Riptide, the pen elongating into a shimmering bronze sword, while Nico twisted the skull ring on his finger, a shadow forming over his hand as a Stygian sword emerged from it.

"Split up?" the darker boy said, Percy nodded, and watched as his cousin ran into a shadow.

He looked up and saw the sky filled with aliens on some flying contraption, zooming back and forth, firing into anything and everything they saw. He observed them from the safety of the alley for a moment, frowning when he could pick up no pattern of attack. They seemed to be just randomly firing into anything, not aiming at the mortals' particular, just seemingly bent on causing as much destruction as possible.

He scowled, disappearing into mist and appearing almost instantly in his apartment. He blinked in shock, the living room was destroyed, there was a huge hole in the far wall where the building's side had been blown wide open. He looked around, searching for any clue about his mom's whereabouts, but finding none, surmised that she must have escaped already. He moved to the gaping hole, only to duck down instinctively as a shot exploded against the back wall where his head had been a second ago. He braced himself, sword out, as the alien slammed into him, sending the both of them crashing to the floor.

Percy rolled and pushed the creature off him, slashing at it. The creature flinched back, only to find that it was unharmed. He swore furiously, apparently celestial bronze didn't work on things other than monsters, gods and titans. He threw Riptide to the side, knowing that it would return to his pocket eventually, and threw himself backwards, dodging another blast from the alien's weapon. He narrowed his eyes as the creature chattered noisily, summoning water from the kitchen where the sink had been broken.

He formed several icicles and threw them straight at the creature, which was taken by surprised and got impaled by several. Taking advantage of its distraction, he dove for the silver sword that had been thrown to the corner of the room and twisted around, parrying the creature's weapon. He stared into voided eyes and snarled, pushing the creature backwards. He twisted and avoided the blast, slashing at the creature's belly, causing it to screech in pain. He twisted the sword upwards and cut off the creature's arm.

He kicked it in the chest, sending it flying backwards. He walked over to where it lay and drove his sword through its chest, killing it instantly.

He glared at the body and yanked his sword out, the silver dripping with black liquid. Percy walked towards the hole and dropped outside, hitting the ground running, searching desperately for his mother.

On the other side of New York, Nico di Angelo was sifting through the crowd of people who were running in the opposite direction. None of them bothered about the kid in their midst heading to where the battle was taking place. He kept his sword down, aware that his Stygian iron sword was unlike Celestial Bronze or Imperial Gold, it could still affect mortals, since it drew life essence from the creature the blade strikes.

He ran quickly through the streets, keeping an eye out for Percy's mom and step-father. He like the both of them, they treated him like a normal kid, instead of shunning him because of his heritage. He didn't think that they would be here though, considering how their apartment was on the opposite side. It wouldn't be logical for them to run here.

Nevertheless, he drifted from street to street, looking up occasionally to see a man in red and gold armor zooming past him, a horde of aliens chasing after him. He raised an eyebrow at the flashiness of the man but shook his head; he was one of the few who were actively fighting back.

Nico stumbled across a horde of aliens that were herding the mortals, who were screaming their heads off. He scowled, he couldn't summon his army of the dead because then the mortals might see, but he didn't have a long range power like Percy or Thalia. He sighed, stepping out of the shadows, revealing himself to the aliens.

He heard the mortals' alarmed shouts for him to run away and smiled grimly, raising his sword in a silent challenge. The aliens hesitated, probably sensing the strong aura of death rolling off him, but they surged forward anyway. He grinned darkly and ducked, swiping at the side of one of the aliens, reversing his blade and slamming it into the gut of another.

He twisted and pulled the sword out, his dark eyes flashing as several shadows gripped the aliens and dragged them down. He pointed his sword to the ground, point first, summoning shadows, exerting his power as he felt the shadows suck away their life. They crumbled to the ground like puppets with their strings cut.

When he was done, there were only a few remaining aliens, and they all backed away warily. The mortals were all silent. He didn't know what they saw through the Mist, but he was willing to bet that it wasn't pretty. He grinned and raised a finger, beckoning the other aliens. They hesitated, the fired simultaneously at him. He just stomped his feet and a wall of darkness raised before him, absorbing the blasts. He leapt forward, through the wall, and took off the head of the first one, rolling and severing the tendons in the alien's legs. He stabbed one through the chest, killing it, and ducked, slitting throat of the alien that had come up behind him.

He breathed heavily, adrenaline running through his veins. He looked t the group of mortals, and snapped his fingers, manipulating the Mist on them. He looked up, seeing the portal that had begun to let in gigantic creatures-were those whales?- into New York. He squinted, and saw the vague outline of a mother ship. He frowned, well then, time to put the spell into practice, he thought, smirking. He vanished into a shadow and reappeared somewhere on the roof of a building, roughly in the centre of the city. He drew the shadows around himself and sat down cross-legged, closing his eyes for concentration as he started muttering under his breath.

Percy ran down the streets, pushing past people and aliens alike. Well, he killed the aliens, but that wasn't the point. He ran down street after street, screaming for his mother and Paul, ignoring the pitiful glances he drew from people who heard him and policemen who tried to stop him. He cut down the aliens that were attracted to the sound of his voice, adrenaline pumping through him as he ran.

He skidded around the corner, eyes growing wide as he saw Paul at the other end, dirtied and with blood dripping down the side of his head, trying to shift the debris off of one of his mother's legs, who remained lying prone on the ground, trying frantically to push the debris off her leg. He stepped forward, intent on sprinting over to help them, but Fate had other plans.

Time slowed down, and Percy stepped one step forward, just as one of the gigantic flying creatures burst through the building that had trapped his mother, the head smashing through the building, creating more debris that buried his mother. Paul was sent flying backwards by the force of the creature's head, straight into another building, the sickening crack echoing in Percy's ears even from that distance. His eyes widened in horror, the creature sliding to stop in the middle of the street, the building his mother was beside now just a pile of rubble.

He froze, unable to move as his stepfather lay opposite the street, his crumpled form unmoving and his mother somewhere underneath all the rubble. He couldn't hear anything above the rush of wind n his ear, didn't notice as a missile was redirected to the portal. Didn't see the way the aliens converged on him, he who was standing in the middle of the road, an easy target for everything. He didn't notice how he caused the water to explode from the fire hydrants, how he stabbed the aliens with them. He didn't notice as his powers activated on its own accord, like the whirlwind he created when he fought against Hyperion. He didn't notice how the aliens that weren't hit all suddenly dropped dead. Didn't realize how unnatural it was.

All he saw was the bodies of the two people who loved him the most. "Paul-Mom." He choked, eyes darting between them. He ran towards Paul, knowing that there was a slim chance a demigod could have survived such a hit, let alone a mortal, but he still choked back tears as he felt Paul's cold skin. He wondered how his body could have become so cold so quickly, but he forced himself to get up and look for his mother.

There was still a chance that she's alive, she wasn't flung away, maybe the debris just missed her, and maybe she's trapped underneath the building, the thoughts were running through his head as he knelt and began digging away at the rubble, his hands becoming scratched and bruised as he kept digging. He felt a hand on his shoulder, but he shrugged it away, continue digging even though his vision was blurred.

He gritted his teeth and pulled away debris after debris, yanking his arm away from whoever it was that kept grabbing him.

"-let go, Kid, stop, you're hurting yourself. Kid!"

"No," he gasped, "No, my mom, she's under here, she's still alive, I know, please, I have to find her-"

He didn't see the sad looks that the group of mortals-known later on as the avengers- exchanged with each other. The man in a red and gold armor placed a metal hand on his shoulder, "Look kid, we'll look instead alright? You look like shit."

Percy relented, a tiny part of his mind knowing that his mother was gone, for real this time, but he didn't want to acknowledge it. He watched vacantly, half kneeling and half sitting on the ground, supported by the only female of the group, as the three males lifted the rubble methodically. An inhuman scream ripped from his throat when they moved the final piece, revealing the broken body of a woman, her brown hair splayed out around her head, matted with blood and dust, her normally bright blue eyes dull and empty.

Percy screamed and screamed, struggling against Clint's tight hold of him. The assassin had realized before the others that the woman was already dead, and reacted faster than them, holding the boy tightly.

The avengers all looked at each other, their faces solemn. They had saved the day, but it was such things that made them feel as though all their efforts were for naught. Clint gritted his teeth, feeling his anger at the god who brought all these chaos and mayhem to their doorstep intensify. His own personal grudge aside, children should not have had to lose their mothers in such a way. And it was obvious to both assassins that the boy had watched as the building buried his mother alive.

From the shadows, Nico watched sadly as Percy fell to his knees, looking more defeated than he had ever seen him. He kept his sword, and slowly walked forward, gaining the attention of the group of mortals that were standing around him. "Percy..." he whispered, not daring to raise his voice.

His cousin heard him though, and he turned broken green eyes to him, still on his knees. Nico ran to his cousin's side, "Shit, Perce, I'm sorry. I'm sorry." He swallowed, slightly uncomfortable; he didn't know how to comfort. He remembered how he felt when Bianca died, even though he wasn't present to witness her death, and he regretted ever wishing for Percy to experience that. For once, the other boy allowed himself to be comforted instead of comforting.

"It's alright Perce. You know that, she's in a better place." She's in Elysium now.

"It doesn't make it any better; she and Paul had such a life ahead of them." She didn't deserve to die now, she had finally settled down with a mortal and a completely normal life.

"I'm sorry." I know how you feel.

Percy shook his head, and Nico hesitantly wrapped his arms around his cousin, hugging him tightly. The other boy didn't dare to look at the opposite side of the road; he didn't want to see Paul's unmoving body along with his mother's.

The avengers bowed their heads and backed away slowly, leaving the two teenagers in the middle of the street, surrounded by destruction and the bodies of the two people that meant the world to them.