War Within the Depths (PercAres)

ep 6.

Chapter six:

Percy let the waters of the Tennessee River swirl around him and wash over him. Every inch of his exposed body surrendered to the cool touch of the water, which cleansed both him and his thoughts.

Lately, Percy had been troubled and irritable. The quest forced upon him, his distance from Apollo, and the constant presence of the god of war beside him were the main factors contributing to his foul mood.

No.

The truth was, it had started earlier—more precisely, it began when he realized he was in love with Apollo.

What the hell had he been thinking when he let himself fall for that flirtatious god? Pfff, as if that’s what was missing in his life—awful haiku songs from some god whose brain has been fried by the sun.

Percy shook his head under the water; these were exactly the kind of thoughts he was trying to avoid. What good would it do to linger on how what started as simple physical attraction had grown into blind love? What good would it do to think about all the times Apollo had visited him in the night, leaving his heart broken? Even Annabeth had told him to let go, to try and find new love, but every time Apollo's arms embraced him, when his lips pressed to his ear and whispered sweetly and warmly, when their bodies melded as one… each time, Percy yielded.

Suddenly, Percy thought that perhaps he should be a bit more grateful for this quest.

After a significant amount of time, he was suddenly far from the sun god and his influence, occupied instead with slaying monsters, searching for lost gods, finding food, and dealing with Ares.

Ares.

It was the first time Percy had thought about the god of war and didn’t feel anger.

Of course, when he thought about it, he still resented the idiot god for getting him tangled up in all this mess in the first place, but he found that it no longer occupied his mind too much.

The truth was that he had begun to devote himself to this quest, and now, with the cold water soothing his nerves, he could quietly admit that he was actually enjoying it.

He really wanted to find out where Aphrodite was, who had kidnapped her, and in general, even killing a basilisk in the morning had been quite cool.

Even Ares was starting to become bearable; fighting alongside him when he had nothing much to boast about could suddenly be quite enjoyable…

Percy found himself smiling as the image of Ares clearing the way for him against the basilisk came to mind.

-The stage is all yours, Perseus Jackson.- Ares's deep voice rang in his ears, and he chuckled to himself.

Percy swam in the river, and after a few long moments, he intended to get out of the water, but a muffled sound distracted him. As the sound became clearer, Percy heard his name.

"Perseus Jackson."

It was a young-looking naiad, her bluish hair swirling around her in the water.

"Hi," said Percy, "Are you the river naiad?"

"One of three, indeed, Perseus. I came to warn you, but my time is short. I'm on my way to the Ohio River." It seemed she was really struggling against the current, as if it were pulling her to continue downstream.

"I'm listening," Percy said.

"You're searching for the goddess Aphrodite, aren't you? I don't know much, but I've heard something." She hesitated for a moment, "I heard that a former lover of Aphrodite has a hand in this matter."