A Son From Lands Unknown (PJO x Male Reader)

From the Moment I Knew The Weakness of Flesh

(Y/N) woke up in the infirmary, an Apollo camper standing over him.

"At this rate, we might as well have a bed for you on permanent reserve," the Apollo camper said, shining a light into his eyes.

"That any way to welcome someone back to the land of the living?" (Y/N) asked sarcastically, holding a hand to his head. Every time he closed his eyes, he could still see the things the Eidolon had shown him. "Ugh, how long was I out for?"

"Three days," the Apollo camper explained. "If it was just two Aphrodite campers, would've been a few hours at most. But no, they had to grab Clovis."

"Clovis?" (Y/N) asked, unsure of who she was talking about. There were like 50 kids in that cabin, he couldn't memorize the name of every single one.

"Son of Hypnos," she said, "god of Sleep. Him being involved knocked you right out."

"Damn. My new leg ready at least?"

"Yeah, it's ready. I'll have someone get Beckendorf."

A couple of hours later, Beckendorf walked in carrying a prosthetic leg that wasn't even trying to look like a flesh one, as it was painted red and purple with golden cracks running up and down its segments. The knee was an intricate series of mechanisms that allowed it to behave exactly like a natural one. Unlike the rest of the leg, the foot on the end would easily have been confused for a normal foot were it not for the same coloring and detailing mentioned prior.

"Good to see you awake, (Y/N)," Beckendork said, placing the leg in line with (Y/N)'s stump. "Need you to take that pant leg off. Unless you feel like wearing those exact pants for the rest of your life."

"Don't have to tell me twice," (Y/N) said, doing as instructed.

"Doc, need you on standby, just in case," Beckendorf told the Apollo camper. "I'm not expecting any complications since the cap's already attached, but just in case."

"Yeah, yeah, she's here," (Y/N) said, "just get it on me already!"

"Alright, alright, just slow down man," Beckendorf sighed. "You need to chill for this to calibrate properly. Otherwise, the life support system I included is going to register your excited heart rate as normal, meaning it'll think you're dying when you're calm."

"What?" (Y/N) asked, unsure what Beckendorf was talking about.

"The cap's been taking in data from your vitals," the son of Hephaestus explained, "but that's all it is. Data. No context for whether you're calm, excited, or dead on the ground, no way to make use of it. With the leg attached, it can process that data into information, information it can use to alert people nearby if you need help. And that's not all this baby can do."

"Will it let me walk on two feet again?" (Y/N) asked, the restoration of his independence being his main concern.

"That and so much more," Beckendorf said proudly, "but that can wait until you're comfortable moving around on it. Finn also finished your other orders, so I'll just leave them here." Beckendorf leaned the cane against the side table next to (Y/N)'s bed. It was exactly as (Y/N) had imagined it, the iron handle and tip gleaming in the morning sun. The dark mahogany wood contrasted with it beautifully.

Hanging from one of the tails of the will-o'-the-wisp handle hung the necklace that (Y/N) had requested as well, the cross hanging from it being a perfect inversion of a normal crucifix. Where most were made of gold and encrusted with diamonds, not to mention right-side-up, this one was made of iron with the center of the upside-down cross made of that piece of obsidian that (Y/N) had used clear back on Polyphemus's island. Adorning the arms of the iron part were small rubies, complimenting the slight red glow of the obsidian when stuck by the sun.

"Alright, you ready for this?" Beckendorf asked. "Once this thing's on, it'll calibrate to your cap. If anyone somehow manages to get it on another person, it'll reject them and freak out, so it's important you're prepared."

"Yeah, just get it on me."

Beckendorf aligned the connection point with (Y/N)'s leg cap and slid the two together. A click and whirring noise confirmed that the two had connected successfully, however the attachment process wasn't yet finished. A panel on each side of the leg came out of what would be the thigh on a normal leg, revealing yet more metal.

"This might pinch a bit," Beckendorf told (Y/N). "It'll hermetically seal around your leg and run coolant around it. Should reduce the risk of it sweating and getting infected."

The panels slid up (Y/N)'s stump and, much to Beckendorf's word, did pinch a little as the seal was established. A distinct hissing noise could be heard as they came together and flushed all of the air out of the space. The leg beeped and a light shined green, signaling that the attachment process was complete. (Y/N) looked to Beckendorf and asked if that meant he was good to stand.

"How about you get used to having it on you first," Beckendorf said. "I tried to make it as close to the weight of a human leg as I could, but metal isn't exactly light. I'm heading back to the forge. If you need anything, just send Julia." Beckendorf was talking about the Apollo camper who had just observed the whole thing.

(Y/N) looked over to the other things Beckendorf had brought. He grabbed the necklace and put it around his neck, pleased with how it turned out. His attention moved to the cane, which he grabbed and lifted next to him. He looked around for any sort of release mechanism, the iron band below the curve making it obvious where it was meant to split into the requested sword. Eventually, he realized that squeezing the central sphere of the will-o'-the-wisp caused a mechanism within to release, allowing him to withdraw the sword. The celestial bronze shone in the sunlight, promising death to any mythic being that stood in his way.

Overall, (Y/N) was pleased. He found that these instruments would be more than suitable for his purposes. He put the sword back into the cane, hearing a distinct clicking sound to indicate that it had locked in place. Unsure of how to move the leg, (Y/N) put his hands underneath it and moved it over the side of the bed, swinging his flesh leg over the edge as well to be in a sitting position on its edge. He flexed his flesh knee, leading to the exact result he expected of his left leg, as it kicked outward. (Y/N) thought about what motions he was using to make that happen in his actual leg and turned his attention to his new prosthetic.

(Y/N) thought about those same motions in his right leg and was amazed when the leg responded in the exact way that his flesh one had, though distinctly slower and heavier. It wasn't that he doubted Beckendorf, he just hadn't expected it to be so... natural. (Y/N) grabbed the cane that he had placed next to himself and prepared to stand, much to Julia's displeasure.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked. "If you're trying to get up, don't. We still don't know how well you can stand with that thing, much less walk."

"And we're never going to find out unless I try," (Y/N) argued. He put the tip of the cane on the ground and placed his hand over the spherical center of the cane's handle. He put some of his weight on it, though most of it remained on the bed. He placed his flesh foot on the floor, transferring some of his weight from the bed to it. Finally, he placed his new prosthetic foot on the ground and transferred some weight to it. As soon as he did, he felt like he was going to fall over. (Y/N) quickly moved the cane so that it was providing support against falling, his reaction time thankfully being fast enough to stop him from face-planting on the floor.

For a little bit, he was cautious to move, not wanting to risk falling down and not being able to get back up. (Y/N) cautiously lifted his hand off the bed, pushing himself away in an attempt to rebalance himself. He was able to do so, standing in place with sufficient balance that he wouldn't fall over.

(Y/N) cautiously took a step forward, unsure of himself. He placed the metal foot on the floor and cautiously placed more of his weight on it, feeling himself move forward slightly. He raised his left foot and repeated the process, grinning as he got the hang of walking once again.

And then he face-planted.

"Ow."

"I told you to wait for a while!" Julia scolded him, grabbing his arm and lifting him upward to put him back on the bed. She opened a drawer in the bedside table and pulled out an ice pack, placing it on (Y/N)'s nose. "Just... stay here. I'll have someone get you some books or something."

"Ugh, yeah, sure," (Y/N) sighed, holding his nose in pain. "You go do that."