Lord Perseus Child of Rome

CH. 10

Ch. 10

10 Months after the Battle of the Labyrinth

Perseus sat in his throne next to his father in the throne room in the void. It had been 10 months since the campers emerged victorious against a small portion of the Titan Army. The losses were high but not crippling. Since that time the Labyrinth had been destroyed. The Hunters of Artemis had captured Daedalus inside the maze as he tried to flee deeper within its depths.

He had been betrayed by the Titans who refused to give him refuge after their attempt to destroy the demi-gods had failed. Zeus demanded Daedalus be brought before the council to be judged and later executed. Athena though, had spoken with Artemis before the hunters were sent to capture him and asked that she bring him to her instead. After a long discussion, Athena had finally forgiven Daedalus for killing his nephew millennia prior and she understood his actions seeking freedom after millennia stuck inside his workshop in the Labyrinth. Using Poseidon and Hestia as a go-between, she convinced Hades to allow Daedalus to escape the Fields of Punishment and instead Hades assigned him the duty of Architect of the Underworld, designing improvements in Elysium, the Isles of the Blessed, and Hades Palace. After Hades agreed, Daedalus was given a painless death by Thanatos and with the Labyrinth bound to Daedalus' life forces; it collapsed under the weight of the land above it.

Artemis simply reported to Zeus that Daedalus resisted once brought out of the Labyrinth and the hunters were forced to kill him. When Zeus Iris-messaged Hades to make sure Daedalus was sent to the Fields of Punishment, Hades responded by flipping his younger brother the bird and swiping through the message; much to the amusement of his siblings and the majority of the council. Zeus with no authority in Hades' domain was left without options.

Chaos and Perseus were discussing the Titan War, which would begin within the next couple days. Kronos had taken the body of Clarisse La Rue as a host and was currently readying his army for the invasion of New York and Olympus. Krios and Perses were leading a smaller army toward Camp Jupiter to destroy the Roman demi-gods.

"Perseus, there is something you must do that you will not like. I would never ask this of you if it were not the only way, but in order for Thalia to defeat Kronos, you must convince her to bathe in the River Styx." Chaos said cautiously.

"What!? No way father, that could kill her. We will find another way to help her defeat Kronos. I will kill him myself if I have to. I will not ask her to risk her life even more so than she already is." Perseus replied angrily to his father.

"I'm sorry; I cannot allow you to interfere with her destiny. She must defeat Kronos herself if she is to be strong enough to survive the upcoming war with your siblings. Her mother is dead, so you will not need to seek her blessing for Thalia to enter the Styx. You and Zoe can go with her but she must do this alone. You cannot try what Thetis did with Achilles, Thalia is almost 17 and she must enter upon her own free will for the river to work. In order for that demi-god Clarisse to host the Titan of Time she had to become invulnerable by a taking a dip in the River Styx. If Thalia is to defeat Kronos she must be on a more even playing field." Chaos explained to his son.

"There has to be another way to do this. If she does not have something to tie to her to her mortality she could dissolve in the Styx. It has happened to many other lesser heroes who wanted to achieve Achilles' fame." Perseus argued.

Chaos smiled, "She has plenty to tie her to her life on the earth. She has her friend Annabeth, she has her brother, she has you and Zoe, and she has the boy she loves Luke. She will survive. With this she will defeat Kronos and she will be ready to fight by your side against the Giants."

Perseus stared at the floor for several minutes trying to think of another way but his mind only came up blank. Finally he sighed loudly, "If she does not survive I will rip the Titans and their army apart by myself. Gaia will learn of my existence and it will endanger the world even more. So I hope for the sake of Earth you are right father."