The Fourth Inheritor (A Percy Jackson/Chaos Fanfic) [Complete]

Prologue

"Can I help you?" the black-haired boy, about nineteen, looked at the man in front of him, clearly not impressed. Sea green eyes flashed with annoyance more than anything, partially shielded from view by his messy, windswept bangs.

"Shut up, kid," the man scowled at him, mouth and nose the only visible parts of his face beneath the shadows of his cap. He motioned with the gun, a 9mm pistol, for the boy's wallet. "Give me your money, and you can go."

"Yeah... I'm broke, so better luck next time." Nevertheless, the boy pulled his wallet out, holding it open to reveal an entire three dollars. "See?"

The man pulled the wallet from his hand, face contorting in anger. His eyes flicked over the other contents of the wallet: a frequent customer card for a candy shop, a library card, a few photos, and a student I.D. with the boy's picture and name. Perseus Jackson. The man spit on the ground, mouth twisting into an even larger scowl, clearly not in a good mood.

"I told ya," Percy said with a small shrug. "Now can I have my wallet back? My girlfriend'll kill me if I lose those photos."

"She won't get the chance... useless punk." One shot later, the man was gone, and the boy was staring at his chest in surprise, hand coming up only to be met with blood. As the shock wore off, the pain set in. He staggered back a step, hitting the alley wall behind him, and slid down it. There was nothing he could do. He had no ambrosia, no nectar, no way of contacting anyone.

"So this is the end, huh?" Percy mused weakly. "Have to admit, I didn't expect it to happen this way..." His eyes were unfocused, hazy, and things were starting to get dark around the edges. Everything sounded muted as well: the cars on the street honking at people, the constant chatter of passerby. Not one stopped. Not one noticed the dying boy in the alley, or, if they did, they chose not to acknowledge him.

That was when the shadows seemed to rippled. When Nico didn't appear, Percy figured he was seeing things. Especially when it was more than the shadows that started rippling; the entire city slowly faded from existence until Percy found himself in a blank, empty vastness.

Is this your desire? The voice was everywhere and nowhere, unidentifiable. It was both inside and around him, until it was all he knew.

"Wh-What?" It was a struggle to continue processing everything, even when there was now so little to process.

Is this your desire, to end things now? To end things in this manner?

Was it? There was still a lot that Percy wanted to do, and he couldn't do any of it if he was dead. But he wouldn't remember that if he was dead either... If he made Elysium, he would, but he could start over, try again in another life. However, he wouldn't be Percy any longer, wouldn't have the same goals. Wouldn't have the same people to protect, to love, to protect and love him. "No."

Very well.

The emptiness dissipated, revealing a world of black and white and gray. A world like the one he'd just been in, yet entirely different at the same time.