Legends Never Die

Handling New...ness

"Are you freaking kidding me?!" Percy complained.

"You know, complaining more doesn't change anything," Zoë said.

"I know, I know. But it doesn't make sense! I haven't lost my connection and he didn't take anything away. I shouldn't be having these issues!"

"You have absorbed Pride and Envy and then turned around and didn't stay close enough to Artemis. Also, Eros did say it may start affecting your normal abilities. Maybe that's what it is. You are a lot stronger than you were. You chipped your new sword in one swing and snapped it in two on the second. And you have different powers. I mean, if you want to get technical, you still have your Earthshaker abilities, but as Envy showed, that was her ability too."

"But, if you don't recall, while I'm pretty much immortal now, I lost any godlike abilities I had from being Artemis' husband. I can still flash...sort of. Thankfully no one will get incinerated by looking at me, though."

"You act like this isn't something you can handle. You are The Percy Jackson. You have fought countless monsters, stood toe-to-toe with multiple Titans, and have looked two primordials in the face and lived to tell about it. I have no doubt you can handle this."

"Yeah, but I know very little about Pride or Envy's abilities, other than Envy has some minor manipulation over Earth. Also, some of them have another form I can take on to enhance the use of their power. Yet, I still know so little about it or them. They aren't the easiest to deal with so I typically force them into a slumber."

"Then why don't you try manifesting one at a time and do it that way? It seems like a better idea than dealing with both of them. And it makes it perfect for me, so I don't have to listen to you complain anymore." Percy rolled his eyes at her. "But first, you are going back and apologizing to your wife."

Percy cringed. "I'd rather not. She's a maiden goddess. She did what she did to protect her throne and ensure her Hunters survival," Percy responded.

"If there's one thing I know, it's that Lady Artemis would never marry a man over something so trivial as her throne. She's too prideful to do that. She'd sooner risk losing it than deal with a man. If she married you it's because she somehow developed feelings for you.

"Not to mention. She has been on a baby hype for quite some time. At least half a millennia now, and since it's only been three years, I doubt that has changed."

Percy went beat red at that and stuttered out, "You don't think she'd want...you know...sex that quick do you? Just to get a baby?"

Zoë smirked. "Well, I doubt it will be that quick. You two are both stubborn, naïve, and hardheaded. So I think it'll be some time. But, you do have good looks and your eyes are pretty magnificent. If I didn't see you as a really good friend or a brother, and I had met you before Heracles, I would have fallen for you myself," she giggled.

"Do I have to?" he asked.

Zoë's gaze hardened. "If you don't, I'll force you to listen to Grover's reed pipes for ten hours straight."

Percy loved his best friend, but his reed pipe playing was atrocious. He doubted he could survive ten hours worth of it. Though he wasn't entire sure he could survive this encounter with Artemis either. "Fine. I'll go." He ported out, leaving a frustrated Zoë behind. She had really wanted to see Artemis beat the Apollo out of him.