The Dark Lord

Nursing a Wound

Chapter 3: Nursing A Wound

I'm back again. So far, I've only got one name that I'm sticking with, so I need more suggestions. They won't actually become important characters until a bit into the story. For this first part of the story, before Percy becomes a dark lord, will be focused completely on Percy and Artemis' relationship and the forging of the weapons. I won't tell you what the next parts will be about, other than the fact that Percy goes rogue and becomes a dark lord.

Chapter 3: Nursing A Wound

Percy's P.O.V.

My dream faded away, and I woke up drearily. My head felt fuzzy, and I turned it, which was more like it slumping to the side. My eyes set upon a girl with black hair, her head in her hands. She was quiet, and it took me a moment to process that I was looking at Thalia.

She was either asleep, or just wasn't saying anything. I'll admit, I didn't try and get her to speak, since I was only half-conscious. I just turned my head to the other side.

I was surprised to see someone else sitting there, who I instantly recognized as Artemis. She was asleep, leaning forward with her head resting on one hand. I saw that it was still dark outside, since the tent itself was lit only by the orange glow of the campfire outside and a candle on the table next to me, along with some medical supplies.

As I regained feeling of my body, I became aware of two distinct feelings. One was the searing pain coming from my right leg. It sung a lot, and I looked down at it. The wound was obviously treated to, as it was bandaged up and the bleeding had stopped. I don't know what else they did, but I'm sure they'll tell me when they wake.

Speaking of which, the other feeling. I looked to my right again, but this time down at my arm, which lay flat at my side. A hand was resting on my arm, palm down, and I followed the arm up to realise it was Artemis' hand. The man-hating goddess was holding me while I slept.

I blushed furiously, glad that no one was awake to see me in such a way, but I didn't move my arm or remove her hand. I simply let her rest while I lay there quietly, looking at the ceiling.

After a couple minutes, I sighed, which caused Thalia to snap her head up. I looked over at her, and saw dried tear stains on her face. "Percy!" She yelled in shock, and immediately tackled me in a hug, which hurt my leg and shocked Artemis out of her sleep.

I groaned from the pain and hugged her back weakly as she sobbed into my chest. "I thought I was gonna lose you, Kelp Head. Don't do that to me again!" She sobbed, beating my chest with her fist. I groaned again, and nodded, though she couldn't see it.

"Sure thing, Thals. I'll do my best not to step into any bear traps next time." I joked, and she got off me, sitting back in her chair and mock-glaring at me for the joke.

I heard Artemis clear her throat next to me, and I turned to look at her. She smiled at me with a slight red tint in her cheeks, and I noticed her hand wasn't on my arm anymore. "I'm glad you're alright, Percy. We've stopped the bleeding and bandaged up the wound. Luckily, since you're a god, you have a slight natural regeneration ability. All it really does is speed up the time it takes to heal, and the only thing it instantly heals are small cuts and bruises, but it helped." She told me, and I nodded.

Then I did a double take. "Wait, I can regenerate?" I asked in shock, and the goddess nodded. "Yes, but like I said, it's that effective. It fully heals small things, and just speeds up the healing cycle. That's why you don't see gods with scars unless they choose to keep them, and why the gods are so hard to kill. They require enough to kill ten mortal men before they have to reform. To completely fade would require something a lot worse than mortal wounds." She explained, and I lay back, letting that sink in.