Perseus, Demigod of Olympus

Twisting threads of an ever changing tapestry.

Luke had no idea why Camp Half Blood's famous Oracle was kept in the attic. From what he had heard from Hermes, the Oracle of Delphi was a pretty huge deal....and here it was in the attic, gathering dust. He gingerly pushed open the door, steeling his nerves. He needed to do this...this was his mother's only chance of being healed again. He could not believe he might get to actually talk to his mother ever without her bemoaning his tragic future demise. He stepped in, sighed and was about to turn to see where the Oracle was when he felt something hit his head and passed out. Groggily, he forced his eyes open. "Ugghh" he groaned, staring at the vaguely familiar dining room in front of him. It was his house, no doubt, but as far as he remembered, his house didn't glow with greenish light and wasn't surrounded by a heavy layer of green fog. There was also that small issue of his house being far away from Camp Half Blood's attic. Then the smell hit him, a rotten smell he knew was characteristic of reptiles. "Luke", a voice whispered through the fog. He gasped. "Mom?" He must have misheard the voice. His mother wasn't here. This was silly. He had faced Cyclopes and Hellhounds alone; creepy fogs were hardly noteworthy. He slowly got to his feet and went towards where he knew the door was. He pushed it open and screamed. Beyond the door was a dark, vast, nothing. The door was hanging in mid-air and below was a gaping void. Somehow he got the feeling something was down there, though he had no idea what. Shakily he closed the door and breathed in relief. Something about that void had been disturbing, much more than anything else he had faced before. That relief turned to hoor when he realised he was no longer alone in the room. Standing at the far end was someone that looked like his mother, but he knew distinctly was not his mother. The figure turned and he saw instead of his mother's eyes, the being had glowing green irises. "Luke Castellan." The being spoke in a cacophony, sounding like his mother, a little girl, and an old woman all at once. "I am the spirit of Delphi , speaker of the prophecies of the Phoebus Apollo."

"Hello," Luke said, now thoroughly creeped out. "Do you usually knock people out and look like their mothers?" A dissonant hiss flew through the room. "No , Luke , I do not. You, like your mother, are special. She tried unsuccessfully to host my power, but failed, leaving her in the condition you know. You, boy, can change that. You can set me free of this husk. That is why you are special. You can change Fate itself." Luke couldn't help it, he grinned, hearing a being with the power to see the future tell him there was a chance to save his mother was amazing. "So, um, could I have my prophecy?" He asked the oracle. "Of coursssee, Luke." Her voice ended on a lingering hiss as she and the entire room vanished. Luke's eyes suddenly flew open and he saw a mummy staring at him. He let out a scream, but then recognised the green fog flowing around the room. So, this was what she had meant by husk. The Oracle was stuck here? Sounded like a problem for the god downstairs, he thought. The mummy's eyes began to glow a familiar green as the fog coalesced into his mother and father. Seeing Hermes stand in the air made out of green fog almost made him snicker. The fog version of his mother opened her mouth and said, "Westward shall you venture forth, at sunset must you prove your worth." Hermes continued "Owl's deception and snow's bite shall pave the path to your final kismet." Then both the spectral figures spoke in unison: "falter in your fated pursuance,  and doom the world for eons hence. Gilded prize of the Earth is yours to claim, but uncharted is your final aim. Only one half-blood returns withal, to Fate's prize the sky shall fall. "At the last word, both the figures dissolved back into green fog which entered the mummy's mouth. He had even more questions now. Luke had thought the first part of the prophecy was honestly not that bad. But "only one returns" and "sky shall fall" sounded downright terrifying. Spooked, he ran out of the attic to find either Percy or Thalia. No matter what the prophecy said, he couldn't do this alone.

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PERCY

" I knew Luke shouldn't have gone to the Oracle. That Prophecy clearly tells us if Thalia and I go with him on the Quest, we're not going to return" , I told Chiron. Deep down, I was very anxious because I knew I couldn't let Luke and Thalia go by themselves, but my own chances of surviving this Quest were really low.
"Prophecies are never what they appear to be , Perseus. Fate isn't something concrete , and while there's no guarantee that you will survive , no one can say with certainty that you will not , either" , Chiron said. " Of course, the final decision is upon the two of you , would you risk your own lives to accompany young Luke here? " Thalia immediately nodded " Sure I will. he's not going to make it through the day alone. "
" I'll go with him , too. Luke's one of my few mortal friends , can't let anything happen to him. " I told Chiron.
Luke seemed grateful, but still said " Are you sure about this ? I don't know what we'll face , and our guiding prophecy isn't exactly reassuring... " I laughed " You already said you're sure about this Quest , and as long as you're going , I most definitely am. " Thalia nodded in agreement. " So , where are we going ? what's the goal ? gilded prize doesn't ring any bells.. " Luke got serious and sat down , " The Apples of Immortality. That's what we're trying to steal. " Thalia's eyes widened and I almost let out a squeal." Herakles' quest ? That's... wow. I was not expecting Hermes to give you that for your first time. " Chiron seemed shocked too " I trust Lord Hermes' judgement, but that does seem too ambitious.. " Luke shook his head " No , Hermes has a reason. It's personal, I need one of those apples. " Chiron's face seemed to age a bit before our eyes , when he spoke he sounded tired." Of course . Your Quest partners have already agreed , so you can prepare today and leave tomorrow. Argus will drive you to the city. " As we got up to leave , Chiron called out "Luke , some of us learnt what happened to the Oracle. Fate isn't concrete , no , but some things you cannot change. I hope you understand that , young man." I turned around to ask Chiron what he meant but he'd already gone into the Big House.

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Annabeth woke up with her hand curled protectively around her bronze dagger. Last night , she had met someone called Khione who her grandfather said was one of their friends. Khione had told her her grandfather's name was Lord Kronos. She remembered the name from Greek mythology, but wasn't sure where. All she could recall was that Kronos had been a king of someplace.
Getting up , she saw she was in a large room somewhere. Beside her head was the familiar bronze box filled with soil. Preparing for the pain , she raised the dagger to her arm and let the blood fall into the box. The well-rehearsed verse flowed from her lips , "Κρόνος, γιε της Γαίας, δέξου την ταπεινή μου προσφορά. Αφήστε τη δύναμή σας να επιστρέψει καθώς κάθεστε ξανά στον Μαύρο θρόνο. " The blood smoked and sizzled as it fell and soon disappeared. She felt a bit light-headed as she pu the knife back and walked towards the door. She smiled as she felt her grandfather's protective presence around her again.
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Atlas stopped paying attention as the Telkhine chattered nervously. The message has been clear. His Uncle and his King was returning. He'd already sensed the Stirring , of course, but he'd expected Olympus to rule for a few more years before the Golden Age returned.. It seemed that was not to be. The weight of the Sky above him seemed to lessen as he gathered his strength. Lord Kronos had promised he would be free soon, free to entertain the half -blood guests he would soon receive , if his Lord's sources were reliable.

They usually were.
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A/N

So , yes, that's another chapter.. I have exams right now , so the next one is going to take a while , sorry.
I hope you enjoy and I apologise if you don't.
On a happier note , we crossed 1OK READS !
🥳 Unbelievable. Really. I'm overwhelmed. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you to each and everyone who ever opened this story :)
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