Percy Jackson: Life In The Land Beyond The Gods [The Completed Rewrite]

"The Gods Don't Trust Him." EDITTED

Peaceful. A word that the blonde too often forgot the meaning of. Perhaps, sat there, with a perfectly good book, curled up beneath the shade of Thalia's Tree she could embrace some semblance of peace. The sun, brightly burning, danced overhead, heating the air and filling the sky with golden light. Dew-splashed grass tickled at her feet, an infinite emerald carpet spilling out over the light.

The forest, itself, was beautiful, its health boosted by the Golden Fleece that dangled a metre or two above her head. The sweet smell of tree sap wafted through the trees, painting an almost blissful illusion amongst the pines, which indeed, might be why the daughter of Athena constantly returned to this spot.

The nostalgia was like stroking an owl, as memories played in her mind. Hesitant to come into contact at first, for not everything was to be remembered, but comforting nevertheless as there are some memories she always would treasure. Silently watching over her home, pride washed over her. Pride for what she'd accomplished; pride for what she'd survived through. Warmth pulled at her heartstrings as she envisaged both fond and forgotten memories, good and bad blending into a morbidly beautiful picture of memories. The strawberry fields where she'd spent countless afternoons picking at the red fruits, the cluster of rocks where Kronos' army had killed demigods and they had killed monsters, the canoe lake where Percy had kissed her...

No, don't think about that now, you were the one to cause this mess. Don't think of him..

Echoing in the distance, the conch shell alarm pulled the girl out of her musings. Albeit reluctantly, she stood up, slowly stretching, and placed a hand on the trunk of where her best friend used to sleep. In truth, her hands only met reptilian scales as a dragon's thick body coiled around the tree. Undoubtably, Thalia's tree – and the Fleece – would be safe until Annabeth Chase next returned.

***

Bone met metal as Annabeth's sword collided with her opponent's. Scouring for a new angle, she pulled back for the briefest moment. A second passed before a fleeting smirk crossed her face, repelling the bronze blade and ducking the weapon aimed at her torso. As expected, the blade sliced only air and uselessly soared over the girl's head. Seeing her chance, she swung her leg outwards without hesitation and swept her opponent's feet out from under her. The fight soon ended as the daughter of Athena pressed her sword to their neck.

The sounds of blades clashing together echoed all around them, but Annabeth's gaze never diverted from the girl in front of her. Her gaze was met defiantly and, internally, she began to count down from five.

At three, the Piper McLean looked away, muttering, "Alright, alright."

Annabeth pulled herself up off of the ground before helping the daughter of Aphrodite to her feet. She allowed the smile to grace her features as she encouraged her friend, "Nice try Piper, but you're getting better! You just need to work on becoming less predictable, you gave me too much time to anticipate your actions."

"Thanks," Piper panted sarcastically, though she knew the advice was appreciated.

The two shook hands, quickly heading to the water stands before the next round began.

Piper grabbed two bottles, passing one to the blonde as she cracked hers open and downed about half the bottle. The other mirrored the action, though not gulping down nearly as much as her.

Goosebumps rose on Annabeth's neck as a boy landed next to Piper, wind ruffling his clothing. His hair was wild and his gold-rimmed glasses were crooked, though he wasn't out of breath like he would've been if he'd run. He set his gaze on the daughter of Athena, his lips twitching into a frown.

"Percy just got back from Olympus and he looks annoyed. As in, really annoyed."

"Wait," Annabeth held a hand up. "When did Percy go to Olympus?"

Jason's eyes were fixed on the ground, and Annabeth could almost picture the lasers in his glare like some kind of Superman. Eventually, he ground out, "He was summoned by the council."

Annabeth blinked, "So which immortal wants to kill him this time?"

"My father," Jason responded, "We, as in myself and Piper, think that it has something to do with how powerful Percy is. If not, it might be about... you know where."

Piper took over, "The gods don't trust him. He's essentially the strongest demigod in history - well, that we know of - but you get my point, right?"

Annabeth nodded before forcing herself to crack a smile, "So does this class as Code Blue?"

The couple laughed.

"I guess it does. Now, come on!" Jason called over his shoulder, already running in the direction of where Annabeth assumed Percy must be.

The blonde bit down her growing unease. Peace, she had been contemplating earlier, probably was allergic to demigods.