Drowning in the Siren's Song

Chapter 11

Percy was still reeling in shock

It was his birthday, a very normal, uninteresting birthday, in which he got the most normal, uninteresting gift of all. What was it? Oh, just the presence of the apparently (not) lost Lord of the wild, Pan.

Did all 9 year old's receive such gifts?
Probably not.

Do all 9 year old's have a old satyr with a beard whiter than snow sitting crossed legged (cross-hoofed?) in front of them with a crazy dodo singing depressing songs as background music?
He was at least 7% sure that the answer was no. 

It had been a wild morning, literally.

The day had started as usual, with him resting after dealing with some lovely snaky ladies, when he'd felt an atmosphere similar to when he received Oak's blessing. It was like a gust of cold wing, carrying the smell of soil after a bountiful rain and subtle scent of flowers. It was hard to describe, but if he had to put it words, it felt like the gentle embrace of nature, if it were a person. 

It was surreal experience and one he was not foreign to, but the possibility of experiencing this feeling again was close to none. So, he became afraid. Afraid of what might be the cause.

He received his answer not a minute later when an old satyr, the oldest he'd seen, appeared in front of him, with a smile much wider than his face seemed to handle. He looked like a wise grandfather, the one whom adults would call crazy, but children would flock to, eager to hear stories and untold legends. But it was only his top half which looked so.

From the waist down, he had the hind legs of a goat with short brown fur, which was streaked with white and grey, reminding him of the temples of middle-aged men. Instead of a pair of feet, there were shiny hooves denting the soft grass, which were slightly hunched with age. 

He was satyr, and yet he wasn't. A satyr wouldn't posses the ability to make his instincts scream with alarm. He was powerful, a power to match a god, and when he realized that, he dropped to his knees in shocked reverence.

"I greet the Lord of the Wild." He said, noticing for the first time, how old and frail he looked despite the expression of maturity. Oak had told him of how the god of the wilderness had weakened, lost in the vast world with no word for centuries, but still, he had not excepted the sight his eyes saw. He looked tired and ready to collapse at any moment, making Percy anxious.

"I too greet you, little Perseus Jackson, receiver of Nature's blessing." Pan's eyes twinkled and before Percy could react, he sat down unceremoniously, flopping down on the slightly damp soil with a plain rock supporting his back. His smile dropped for a moment, revealing an exhaustion hidden under a cheerful pretense, but it was gone the second it came, and his face was again graced with warmth. "Lift your head and let me look at you." He spoke with a lilting tune to his voice; an accent unrecognizable yet pleasing to the ear. 

Percy complied, straightening from his position, suddenly worried. "Are you well, Lord? Do you need anything?" In his concern, he forgot his manners and scooted closer, trying to determine the cause of his discomfort, staring opening at him. 

"I feel perfectly fine, dear boy." Pan replied with amusement in his eyes. "Just the effect of time on a weakened body." 

He was still worried, but held himself back, suddenly remembering that it was a god he was fussing over. He flushed slightly, dusting his cheeks with a pink hue. His embarrassment was short-lived though, broken when the funny bird, a fat dodo with eyes much too sharp and unsettling, started humming. Though Percy was well acquainted with music and songs, he didn't recognize it. It was a crude attempt to carry a tune, but the bird still (somehow) managed holding one. 

"Don't mind him, Perseus." He waved a dismissive hand in its direction with a fond smile, contradicting his actions and speech. 

He decided not to think too much about it, since the fact that he was seeing an extinct bird itself was giving him a headache. "Please, call me Percy." He said instead. He wanted to ask how Pan was there and why he was there, but he curbed his tongue and waited for answers, if there were any. 

"Well then, Percy." And just like that, Pan suddenly become businesslike. "You have questions, I understand, and I shall answer them. But before that, allow me to tell you a little secret; a story to better answer your curiosity." He shot a look towards the still humming dodo, "Hush now." He silenced him.

He cleared his throat, and began. "The power you wield, given to you by the blessing of nature, is a severely rare occurrence. Forgotten over the span of centuries after humans proved themselves unworthy, this particular blessing got buried deep within the soil, until you, my child awakened the memory from the roots of the Oak tree. 

"I too, had  been in deep slumber, a unconscious state which was neither awake nor dead, when I was roused by the invocation of the blessing. All of nature falls under my domain, and as such I was alerted by the transfer of my powers, albeit from one of my children.

"After a few very grueling centuries, for the first time, I felt some of my power return to me. Quite the paradox, isn't it? A little of my power was shared, yet I gained strength from it." Pan laughed to himself at the subtle irony, while Percy waited, silent and attentive.

The satyr looked directly into Percy's eyes, and continued his tale, speaking in the same slow, rhythmic voice of a storyteller, his unique way of pronouncing words making it seem more like a song. "My attention was captured by the receiver of Nature's blessing, and I kept watching. I was distrustful and angered at first, since my only opinion of humans was of their destructive and greedy nature, but as I observed, the little boy began to give life to the wild instead of taking it. 

"He himself was hurt and in pain, and yet he healed my children. I was left wondering as my fondness for him grew. Slowly, his pain started to hurt me and his songs began to pierce me. I could finally see why a dryad decided to bless a human after all they had done and I began to regret my previous distrust."

At this point, Percy was listening in rapt attention, so engrossed that he didn't notice Keria landing in his lap. Pan spared a glance towards her, and smiled slightly, breaking away from the melancholic aura which had formed. "The little boy helped the wild, and kept it wild."

"And so, I decided to come see you, the one human who altered my vision single-handedly." He concluded simply, ending his mighty tale unexpectedly. 

"Oh, and happy birthday, dear child!"