When Things Fall Apart

Chapter Fifteen

Percy spent the majority of his time watching over the hunt, but sometimes he ventured to outside towns. He enjoyed the simplicity of human interactions. He missed them. His last two conversations were over the span of years, and both of them were with the oldest deities in the universe.

He was sitting on a park bench, watching a tee-ball game going on. He was always amused with how the kids acted during the game. They would hit the top of the ball and it would bud out a couple of feet. Then, they would run to first base like they were the Flash or Superman.

"Hello Percy," a feminine voice called to him. Chaos appeared on the bench next to him.

"Quite the game here," she snickered. "Who's winning?" she asked, amusingly.

Percy smiled. "If I had to guess, I'd say the Tiny Tikes, but half of their players are blowing dandelions in the outfield."

She looked over to him, leaning forward. "You miss this, don't you?"

"Oh, I never played tee-ball. I'm from New York," he replied.

She shook her head. "Not the game Percy. You miss social interactions. You enjoyed being around people. Whether it was the Stolls or Grover or Annabeth," she told him, "You are one of my most loyal creations. And loyalty requires doing something for something or someone else. And you've put your values in people." There was silence, and they both watched more of the game.

"And you've continued to do that, to the best of your ability. All of your little chores might go unnoticed to the Hunt and Artemis, but not the creator of the universe," she said. "You are destined to be loyal, Percy. It was built in the fiber of your very being."

He folded his hands together and rested his elbows on his knees. "I thought I wasn't destined to do anything," he commented. She shook her head.

"Do you remember what I told you last time we talked? Right before I left?" she asked.

He nodded. "You said that the Fates weren't the only ones who brought balance."

"Exactly," she agreed. "Balance takes different forms. There is the balance that is brought by order. And then there is balance that can be brought by chaos. Now, I know you mortals think that everything dissolves into a state of enthalpy and disorder, but that's not exactly true. When I say chaos, I mean the true freedom of choice. As things stand on Earth, this does not exist. My brother instituted a system where every event is exactly how it should be. It could be calculated and understood if enough variables were considered."

Percy seemed pretty shocked. Not because he was actually understanding a quasi-physics lesson. That would never happen. He just assumed that, as much as he hated their plan, the Fates were necessary for a universe. But he never considered that their power meant no ultimate choice. He knew that he couldn't escape the prophecies that were ordained, but he still felt that every choice was his own. It seemed like a "chose your own adventure" game, but really, it was more of a drama that was going to play its way out exactly as the Fates ordained, no matter how aware you were of each moment.

"So even the gods-"

"Yes, Percy," she replied. "Even the gods, as mighty as they may seem, are bound not only to ancient laws, but to the fabric of reality. They respond to a stimulus just like anyone else. The only difference is the amount of power in their response. And because of that, demigods and mortals below them have faith that they are the ones in charge. In reality, it is simply a matter of degrees to the same condition."

Percy thought about that. Even Poseidon and Artemis were bound to so many causes beyond their understanding. It reshaped how he viewed not only them, but the world.

"As of now, Percy, you are the only being, besides my brother and I, who can make free choices. You still have things that impose effects on you. But your choices and views of them are tied directly to your will and nothing else. Pretty liberating, isn't it?" she asked.

Percy shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not sure if I'd consider the life I've been living as 'free'," he replied. She nodded, and silence swept over the conversation.

They watched as the Smelly Sox started making some good plays. Tommy Wilson threw the ball from second to first base, and it only hit the ground twice.

"Well, Percy, that's why I'm here. I want things to be different for you," she told him. "How was my brother when you met him a couple of years ago?" she asked

"He seemed surprisingly nice. He cooked me food and tried to comfort me," he replied. Chaos nodded her head.

"My brother is good, but he has the potential to be quite stingy and concerned. What you didn't know, Percy, is that he was scared of you. Now don't get me wrong, my brother and I have gotten along well over the past eons. But if I had to guess, he suggested you stayed hidden from society, correct?" she asked. Percy nodded in agreement.

"Yes, he is very nervous of your potential," she reiterated.

"And why is that?"

"What he didn't tell you was another option for your future. I would have told you this the first time we met, but I needed to think it through more closely. Yes. Now, here's the thing, Percy, I will say it as blunt as I can. The Fates are just doing the bidding of my brother. And you are inherently doing the bidding for me with your natural chaos. The Fates try to prevent any form of that chaos in the world, because they fail to see another way to make things running properly. But Percy, at this point in the civilization of humans, I have faith in them. Sure, some of them are bad to the core, but most are just trying to make it by. People want what's best for themselves and their family. They fight the burden of existence every day. They see their loved ones die. They fail to meet others standards and then get hurt by it. Look at this game in front of us." Percy watched as the two teams formed lines and then started giving each other high-fives.

"Have you ever heard of the expression 'if you love something, set it free'?" she asked him. He nodded his head.

"That's what I want you to do, Percy. I want you to set everyone free," she told him.

"How do I do that?" he asked.

"Now, my brother was nice to you before. But he won't be after this. I'll try to convince him otherwise. If you want to free everyone, and in the process, go back to being with people, and hunters," she nudged his elbow, "then you have to render the Fates useless." His eyes widened.

"What do you mean by that?" he asked.

"The Fates have to give up their control. And the only way to do that is by force. If you want to defeat the Fates, you have to take their yarn, needles, and scissors."

"What?" he asked. "It's that simple. I don't even have to fight or... kill them?" he asked.

"Those materials are nothing like the one's your grandma uses. That yarn is what tethers the Earth to its causes. That is the Destiny and ultimate order. The scissors are what ends someone's life. And the needles manipulate that reality to how they ordain it. It may seem simple, but it wont' be. If you are able to take them, I have no idea what it will do to your mortal body. Listen, you could try and make them fade, but it seems like you are past doing those stunts. All you have to do is take it away, and the Earth is literally in the palm of your hands," she told him. Although he wasn't about to pee his pants like some of the members of the Tiny Tikes, he was utterly shocked.

She stood up. "You can find the Fates if you know where to look," she told him with a wink. "But I do warn you. The Fates may not be able to control you, but they can control everything else around you. Be careful," she told him. She gave him one last smile, and she disappeared. Next to him was another envelope, similar to the one Order had given him.

Percy just sat there with his hands in his face.