#i don't think apollo has a chariot for me

[bacon-neko]

Nano 2023 Day 17

hey wait a minute! how did you get here? (and where is that large automobile...)

“And I suppose you have special insight into his fate?” said Hermes. “Like where he is now? How to find him?”

“Bold to assume my visions would be helpful,” replied Apollo.

Hermes doubled down. “You found your way here, didn’t you?”

“Several hours late.”

“Sure, but you came.” Hermes pulled to the front, forcing his brother to a stop. “You’d never leave Hyperborea without a reason, come on. You had to have seen something big.”

Apollo stared Hermes down a moment before releasing a puff of white breath and scrubbing his hands through his curls. “I didn’t see much,” he said, eventually, leveling carefully against his brother’s gaze. “Just a crumbling Olympus, a boy with dark hair and grey eyes, and halo of storm clouds above him. I felt motion in the weave, so I let the strings pull me here.”

Hermes frowned. “You’re lying. There’s something else.”

Apollo smiled and shifted past him to continue walking. “Good luck proving that in court.”

“Pretty sure the god of liars can smell a rat,” Hermes called after him.

“And I invented lawyers!” said Apollo. “I like my chances. Now, if you don’t mind, we have bigger fish to fry.”

Hermes huffed and bit back a groan. Despite himself, he asked, “What kind of fish?”

“The kind that keeps father from clocking us as traitors the minute we get home,” replied Apollo cheerily. “Let’s hop to it.”

[knightofthenewrepublic]

The Battle of Manhattan didn’t go the way the Fandom thinks it did; we need to address the “massacre” of the Titan Army!

The Battle of Manhattan is the most pivotal event of the first series. And we see the entire thing exclusively from Percy’s point of view. He takes us through the thickest of the fight from one end of Manhattan Island to the next, and shows us a desperate fight of good against evil.

But we have another point of view for the battle, one that comes from the demigods of the Titan army, and one that informs us of a far different, darker side to the conflict. One where an entire army of children is massacred by the victorious Olympians, without a thought or even a care. It’s a shocking, confronting side of the struggle that most fans don’t seem to be aware of. 

But it’s also completely inaccurate. 

Now I love Alabaster; he’s one of my favorite characters, and I want nothing but the best for him. But he’s a demonstrably unreliable narrator. I don’t even mean that he’s intentionally dishonest; but he’s very badly misinformed about what actually happened. And that gives the fandom three major misconceptions that need to be cleared up. 

Alabaster gets the casualty ratio for the battle wrong (the Olympians had more than he thinks).

The Titan army has far fewer demigods than most fans think (not much more than 50 at the most).

Alabaster does say that there was a “massacre” at the end of the battle, but most of the TA demigods had deserted before that!

Part 1) The Olympians Have High Casualties

“It was a massacre. If I remember right, my mother told me that Camp Half-Blood and its allies had sixteen casualties total. We had hundreds.” (pg 219)

This is the only time we get a specific number for Olympian casualties, but it just doesn’t match up with what actually happens in the books. Looking back at all the deaths we do see:

Charlie Beckendorf -1

one [Hellhound] got hold of an Apollo camper and dragged him away. I didn’t see what happened to him next. I didn’t want to know. (pg 182) -1

Michael Yew -1

A young dragon had appeared in Harlem, and a dozen wood nymphs died before the monster was finally defeated. (pg 203) -12

“We lost twenty satyrs against some giants at Fort Washington,” [Grover] said, his voice trembling. (pg 203) -20 Giants smashed through trees, and naiads faded as their life sources were destroyed. (pg 243) -1< Enemy archers returned fire, and a Hunter fell from a high branch. (pg 244) -1  Too many of our friends lay wounded in the streets. Too many were missing. (pg 257) -1< The flagpoles were hung with horrible trophies –helmets and armor pieces from defeated campers. (pg 282) -1< The Drakon lashed out, swallowing three californian centaurs in one gulp before I could even get close. (pg 288) -3 Poison spewed everywhere, melting centaurs into dust along with quite a few monsters, (pg 288) -1< The Drakon snapped up one Ares camper in a gulp. (pg 291) -1

Silena Beauregard -1

Leneus -1

a body covered in the golden burial shroud of Apollo’s cabin. I didn’t know who was underneath. I don't want to find out. (pg 303) -1

Oddly enough, we actually miss the moment that was probably the worst for the Olympians, the final push by Kronos that breaks through their line. After Clarisse slays the drakon and the monsters are driven back again, Percy and co. take the opportunity to go up to Olympus. Percy gives Pandora’s Pithos to Hestia, and then contacts Poseidon via his throne. It’s just as he finishes that Thalia comes up and tells them that Kronos is coming again, but they miss the fighting.

By the time we got to the street, it was too late. Campers and Hunters lay wounded on the ground. Clarisse must have lost a fight with a Hyperborean giant, because she and her chariot were frozen in a block of ice. The centaurs were nowhere to be seen. Either they’d panicked and ran, or they’d been disintegrated. (pg 312) -<500

And finally, Kronos does kill some people on Olympus itself.

A few minor gods and nature spirits had tried to stop Kronos. What remained of them was strewn about the road: shattered armor, ripped clothing, swords and spears broken in half. (pg 322) -1<

The specific deaths we have mentioned during the battle amount to 48 at the very least; and that is an extremely conservative estimate that only includes the deaths Percy has the time and presence of mind to witness in all the carnage. Considering how many others must have happened, factoring the sudden disappearance of the 500 centaurs in particular, it was likely in the hundreds. And most of the centaurs probably ran at the end, but even that would have involved heavy casualties.

It’s true that actual demigods were a smaller fraction of Olympian forces, and so would have made up just a fraction of losses. The number 16 might actually make sense if it were just the number of campers lost, but that’s not what Hecate said, she said total.

It might be significant that Hecate is the actual source of this misinformation. Would she have reason to lie to her own son, or might she herself be out of the loop. Right now, we just can’t know. 

And she might be underestimating Titan Army losses too. Considering how many times a wave of several hundred monsters tear into Manhattan, and get thrown back by the Olympians only to return later with no discernable drop in numbers, until the army is finally routed entirely, it wouldn’t surprise me if the TA actually took a thousand or more casualties. But those would be overwhelmingly monsters, because:

Part 2) Less Than Fifty Demigods Were Even In The Titan Army

To prove that there could not possibly have been hundreds of TA demigods killed at Manhattan, we need look no farther than Alabaster's own account.

“There was a war between the gods and titans last summer and most half-bloods��demigods like me–fought for the Olympians.” (pg 218)

So the TA could not have had more demigods than the Olympians; and they had about a hundred. There are forty campers to start with, who are quickly joined by the Hunters, who now have thirty members. Then, in the last hours of the fight, they are finally joined by the Ares cabin, which brings another thirty (jeez Ares, you animal!). So Olympus has an even hundred demigods. (The Hunters aren’t necessarily all demigods by birth, but I don’t think Alabaster would make a distinction based on that.)

So the TA has less than a hundred demigods, significantly less. I would argue they probably had no more than fifty because that lines up with the only solid numbers we ever get for them. And every time the TA is described, demigods are a clear minority. First, look at the foes Percy encounters when he infiltrates the Princess Andromeda:

I saw monsters patrolling the upper decks of the ship–dracaenae snake-women, hellhounds, giants, and the humanoid seal-demons known as telkhines . . . . . “I don’t care what your nose says!” snarled a half-human half-dog voice—a telkhine. “The last time you smelled half-blood, it turned out to be a meatloaf sandwich!” “Meatloaf sandwiches are good!” a second voice snarled . . . . . a telkhine was hunched over a console . . . . . a half dozen telkhines were tromping down the stairs . . . . . past another telkhine . . . . . And in the fountain squatted a giant crab . . . . . a couple of dracaenae slithered across my path . . . . . As I was running up the stairwell, a kid charged down . . . . . Laistrygonian giants filed in on either side of the swimming pool . . . . . demigod archers appeared on the roof . . . . . two hellhounds leapt down . . . . . The crowed of monsters parted . . . . . Giants jeered. Dracaenae hissed with laughter . . . . . throwing monsters off their feet . . . . .I knew him, of course: Ethan Nakamura . . . . . two giants lumbered forward . . . . . Panicked monsters surged backward . . . . . one of the dracaenae hissed . . . . . I pushed through a crowd of monsters . . . . . Monsters yelled at me from  above.

That was a quick summary of all the enemies Percy and Charlie encounter on the Princess Andromeda, I’m not crazy enough to try and write the whole chapter. But it’s pretty clear there are only a few demigods amid dozens of monsters. We hear the same thing from Poseidon later, that “there were only a few demigod warriors aboard that ship”; we might question whether or not Poseidon is a trustworthy source, but the evidence does back him up.

When we finally get to the battle, the disparity of demigod numbers in the TA is again evident:

The bronze image showed Long Island Sound near La Guardia. A fleet of a dozen speed boats raced through the dark water toward Manhattan. Each boat was packed with demigods in full Greek armor. At the back of the lead boat, a purple banner emblazoned with a black scythe flapped in the night wind. I’d never seen that design before, but it wasn’t hard to figure out: the battle flag of Kronos. “Scan the perimeter of the island,” I said. “Quick.” Annabeth shifted the scene south to the harbor. A Staten Island Ferry was plowing through the waves near Ellis Island. The deck was crowded with dracaenae and a whole pack of hellhounds. Swimming in front of the ship was a pod of marine mammals. At first I thought they were dolphins. Then I saw their doglike faces and swords strapped to their waists, and I realized they were telkhines—sea demons. The scene shifted again: the Jersey shore, right at the entrance of the Lincoln Tunnel. A hundred assorted monsters were marching past the lanes of stopped traffic: giants with clubs, rogue Cyclopes, a few fire-spitting dragons, and just to rub it in, a World War II-era Sherman tank, pushing cars out of the way as it rumbled into the tunnel. (pg 167)

Here we see the first wave of the Titan Army as a three pronged attack (which Percy says on the next page collectively numbered at least 300) and only one of the units has demigods. It’s the one that Kronos leads, so it’s probably meant to be a more elite unit, at least at first. 

We don’t know for sure how many there are. Speedboats are usually made to carry 4-6 people so a dozen would be possible 48 to 72. Considering Alabaster says there were significantly less demigods in the TA than the Olympians, I would guess it’s on the lower end; and that does match another number we see in a moment.

This fleet never reaches Manhattan, since Percy bribes the East River to swamp their boats. Those who say many TA demigods were killed in the battle might point to this as Percy causing a bunch of kids to drown; but Alabaster never mentions a mass drowning in his narrative of the battle, and he would have been on one of those boats, so it’s safe to say they just went for a swim.

(And Kronos was with them, which means that a very angry titan lord was suddenly pitched into the river and had to swim with the rest of them. That’s not really relevant, I just want everyone to know that.)

Percy is then immediately told that “Another army is marching over the Williamsburg bridge.” This fourth prong of the attack, led by the Minotaur, also has no demigods in it.

An entire phalanx of dracaenae marched in the lead . . . About a hundred more monsters marched behind them. (pg 182) More monsters surged forward —snakes and giants and telkines—but the Minotaur roared at them, and they backed off. (pg 186)

But more monsters keep advancing because by the time Percy kills the minotaur and the demigods charge and rout the whole group, it had grown to 200

Finally, the monsters turned and fled—about twenty left alive out of two hundred. (pg 188)

So the grand total for the first TA attack was 500 soldiers or more, with only 40-70 of them demigods. And after the monsters on the Williamsburg bridge retreat, those demigods show back up.

Then I saw the crowd at the base of the bridge. The retreating monsters were running straight toward their reinforcements. It was a small group, maybe thirty or forty demigods in battle armor, mounted on skeletal horses. One of them held a purple banner with the black scythe design.  The lead horseman trotted forward. He took off his helm, and I recognized Kronos himself, his eyes like molten gold. (pg1 188)

This is the only time we get anywhere close to a specific number when TA demigods are concerned. It would have been the same group that was sunk in the East River, who then had to swim for Brooklynn; which is where they are now trying to take the Williamsburg bridge. This reinforces the idea that the number of demigods in the boats was only a little more than forty, since they would not have suffered more than a few injuries in the sinkings.

I’m going to come back to this moment later to demonstrate how Percy refrains from killing other demigods, even in his Achilles state, but the other important thing to note is that this is the last time Kronos organizes his demigods into a unit that he leads personally. After they fail to break through here, Kronos just has them take on a secondary role, and puts his faith in bigger and bigger monsters to lead the charge instead.

The Titan Army units on Long Island then spend the evening marching the long way around Manhattan (for some reason) because they make camp for the night in New Jersey, at Medusa’s old lair. Percy again describes demigods as the small minority.

Hundreds of tents and fires surrounded the property. Mostly I saw monsters, but there were some human mercenaries in combat fatigues and demigods in armor too. A purple-and-black banner hung outside the emporium, guarded by two huge blue Hyperboreans.

And this is only part of the Titan army, because there are more troops north of Manhattan. 

“Tell my brother Hyperion to move our main force south into Central Park. The halfbloods will be in such disarray they will not be able to defend themselves.” (pg 237)

The army that marches into central park is bigger than the one camped in New Jersey. And it is made up exclusively of monsters. 

At the north end of the reservoir, the enemy vanguard broke through the woods—a warrior in golden armor leading a battalion of Laistrygonian giants with huge bronze axes. Hundreds of other monsters poured out behind them. (pg 243)

There is not a single mention of a demigod. However they’re already joining the fight in other places. 

When it flew above the rooftops, I could see fires here and there around the city. It looked like my friends were having a rough time. Kronos was attacking on several fronts. (pg 251)  

After Percy kills the Clazmonian Sow, the momentum of the battle shifts. With his main force failing to deliver a knockout punch, Kronos has his remaining armies spread out to put equal pressure on the entire defensive line, and catch it in a massive envelopment.

Midtown was a war zone. We flew over little skirmishes everywhere. A giant was ripping up trees in Bryant Park while dryads pelted him with nuts. Outside the Waldorf Astoria, a bronze statue of Benjamin Franklin was whacking a hellhound with a rolled-up newspaper. A trio of Hephaestus campers fought a squad of dracaenae in the middle of Rockefeller Center . . . . . The hunters had set up a defensive line on 37th, just three blocks north of Olympus. To the east on Park Avenue, Jake Mason and some other Hephaestus campers were leading an army of statues against the enemy. To the west, the Demeter cabin and Grover’s nature spirits had turned Sixth Avenue into a jungle that was hampering a  squadron of Kronos’s demigods . . . . . I spotted a familiar silver owl banner in the southeast corner of the fight, 33rd at the Park Avenue tunnel. Annabeth and two of her siblings were holding back a Hyperborean giant . . . . . The next hour was a blur. I fought like I’d never fought before—wading into legions of dracaenae, taking out dozens of telkines with every strike, destroying empousai and knocking out enemy demigods . . . . . At one point Grover was next to me, bonking snake women over the head with his cudgel. Then he disappeared in the crowd, and it was Thalia at my side, driving monsters back with the power of her magic shield. Mrs. O’Leary bounded out of nowhere, picked up a Laistrygonian giant in her mouth and flung him like a Frisbee. Annabeth used her invisibility cap to sneak behind enemy lines. Whenever a monster disintegrated for no apparent reason with a surprised look on his face, I knew Annabeth had been there . . . . . Kronos was riding towards us on a golden chariot. A dozen Laistrygonian giants bore torches before him. Two Hyperboreans carried his black-and-purple banners . . .

“THEN THE WINGED HUSSAARSSS AARRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVVVVVVED” SABATON BLASTS ON ELECTRIC GUITAR

 Sorry, sorry, I mean then Chiron and the 500 centaurs arrived!

Kronos’s forces looked as confused as we were. Giants lowered their clubs. Dracaenae hissed. Even Kronos’s honor guard looked uneasy. Then, to our left, a hundred monsters cried out at once. Kronos’s entire northern flank surged forward. I thought we were doomed, but they didn’t attack. They ran straight past us and crashed into their southern allies . . . a shower of arrows arced over our heads and slammed into the enemy, vaporizing hundreds of demons. (pg 258)

This is how the second phase of the battle ends. And during the entire night, out of a sea of monsters (hehe) we only see one unit of TA demigods. And it’s the last time we get any reference to them participating in the battle.

After being driven south, the TA apparently did another long march, because they make camp northeast of Manhattan.

The Titan army had set up camp all around the U.N. complex. The flagpoles were hung with horrible trophies—helmets and armor from defeated campers. All along First Avenue, giants sharpened their axes. Telkines repaired armor at makeshift forges. (pg 282)

Ethan is the only demigod mentioned this time. And he doesn’t appear to take part in the next attack, aside from releasing the drakon. We get less of a description of the enemy army this time, but it’s all monsters.

The rest of the battle wasn’t going well. The centaurs had panicked under the onslaught of giants and demons. An occasional orange camp T-shirt appeared in the sea of fighting, but quickly disappeared.  (pg 289)

Of course the Ares cabin arrives, the drakon kills Silena, and Clarisse kills it. It’s another rout for the TA.

The monsters retreated toward 35th Street. (pg 298) There was no answer from the enemy. Slowly, they began to fall back behind a dracaenae shield wall, while Clarisse drove in circles around Fifth Avenue, daring anyone to cross her path. (pg 299)

After that we have the final phase of the battle, when the Titan Army finally breaks through the Olympian lines. But once again, we have no reference to demigods other than Ethan.

The Titan Army ringed the building, standing maybe twenty feet from the doors. Kronos’s vanguard was in the lead: Ethan Nakamura, the dracaenae queen in her green armor, and two Hyperboreans. I didn’t see Prometheus. (pg 312) “ROWWF!” Mrs. O’Leary bounded toward me, ignoring the growling monsters on either side. (pg 315) There were thousands of [skeletan soldiers], and as they emerged, the titan’s monsters got jumpy and started to back up. (pg 315)     The armies of the dead clashed with the Titan’s monsters. Fifth Avenue exploded into absolute chaos. Mortals screamed and ran for cover. Demeter waved her hand and an entire column of giants turned into a wheat field. Persephone changed the dracaenae spears into sunflowers. Nico slashed and hacked his way through the enemy, trying to protect pedestrians as best as he could. My parents ran toward me , dodging monsters and zombies, but there was nothing I could do to help them. (pg 318).

The fight continues like this, until Typhon is destroyed, and the defenders are joined by the gods, and Poseidon’s army of cyclopes. It’s then that the Titan army is “massacred.” Most of the fandom thinks that the demigods were killed too, but that’s not the case.

PART 3: The TA Demigods Deserted Before The Final Battle

As Alabaster remembers it:

the war didn’t go our way. I fought on the battlefield against the enemy, but most of our allies ran. Kronos himself marched on Olympus, only to be killed by a son of Poseidon. After Kronos’s death, the Olympian gods smashed any remaining resistance. It was a massacre. “We weren’t all destroyed,” Alabaster said. “Most of the remaining half-bloods fled or were captured. They were so demoralized they joined the enemy. (pg 219)

When you look at this narrative, and compare it to The Last Olympian, it’s actually more complicated than the TA demigods simply getting massacred.

Al says that while he was fighting, most of his allies ran. That’s odd, because we don’t see the relative numbers of monsters go down at any point. What we do see, is the number of demigods go down.

As I illustrated in Part 2, the Battle of Manhattan has four distinct phases. Phase one, that ends when the Williamsburg Bridge is destroyed. The second phase, that starts when Hyperion attacks Central Park, and ends when the Party Ponies arrive. The third phase, which is all about the attack of the drakon. And the final phase, when Kronos breaks through.

We only see TA demigods in the first two phases; they attack the Williamsburg Bridge in the first phase as part of the Kronos’s main force, then in the second phase they’re relegated to a supporting role by hitting the defenders western flank. And that’s the last we see of them. After that, Etahn is the only demigod left standing in the TA. Alabaster must be somewhere in the background, as a retcon, but there’s no one beyond the two of them.

You might think that they’ve just already been killed by this point. After all, Percy blows up the Princess Andromeda, then goes into an Achilles Curse fueled berserker mode several times in the first two phases of the battle. Surely he must have killed hundreds of kids, right?

No, not even close.

Maybe not any at all.

On the Princess Andromeda Percy finds lots of monsters, but the number of demigods he finds could be counted on one hand. And the first one he meets; Percy spares him and tells him to get his friends and evacuate. We can’t prove whether or not any demigods were killed in the blast; we just know that the two we can confirm were still on board, Ethan and Alabaster, both survived. And when Alabaster recounts it, he doesn’t mention any bad losses at this point.

As for the Curse of Achilles, it doesn’t send Percy into anything like the berserker state some people think of it as. It might seem like that when Percy lets loose on the Williamsburg Bridge:

You’re going to ask how the whole “invincible” thing worked: if I magically dodged every weapon, or if the weapon hit me and just didn’t harm me. Honestly, I don’t remember. All I knew was that I wasn’t going to let these monsters invade my hometown. I sliced through armor like it was made of paper. Snake women exploded. Hellhounds melted to shadow. I slashed and stabbed and whirled, and I might have even laughed once or twice—a crazy laugh that scared me as much as it did my enemies. (pg 188)

But when push comes to shove, Percy can control the Curse, and what he does during it. That last moment was when he was fighting nothing but monsters. But when the TA demigods arrived, Percy pulled his punches like he always does.

I tried to wound his men, not kill. That slowed me down, but these weren’t monsters. They were demigods who’d fallen under Kronos’s spell. I couldn’t see faces under their helmets, but some of them had probably been my friends. I slashed the legs off their horses and made the skeletal mounts disintegrate. After the first few demigods took a spill, the rest figured out they’d better dismount and fight me on foot. (pg 189)

Percy is still in complete control of what he’s doing; even when the worst happens.

“Annabeth!” I turned in time to see her fall, clutching her arm. A demigod with a bloody knife stood over her . . . . . I locked eyes with the enemy demigod. He wore an eye patch under his helmet: Ethan Nakamura, the son of Nemesis. Somehow he’d survived the explosion on the Princess Andromeda. I slammed him in the face with my sword hilt so hard I dented his helm. (pg 190)

Percy really has all the reason to hate Ethan at this point; after Percy spared his life in Antaeus’ arena, Ethan still joined the side that had been ready to write off his death, and deliberately helped Kronos achieve his physical resurrection. Because of that Percy’s friends and even-Riordan-doesn’t-know how many mortals are going to die in the next few days; and on top of all that, Ethan just stabbed the love of his life.

And all Percy does is knock him out, maybe a little harder than necessary. He makes no effort to kill him. Those aren’t the actions of a berserker with no control.

In fact, the knife turns out to be poisonsed. And Ethan now has an idea where Percy’s Achilles Spot is, and might tell Kronos. And even after all of that, Percy doesn’t seriously think about killing him as an option.

“I’ll bonk him on the head harder next time.” (pg 241)

But more on topic, there is no reason to think the TA demigods have particularly high casualties in this phase of the battle, though they have a few:

Our archers shot a volley, bringing down several of the enemy, but they just kept riding. (pg 189)

Though it’s vague if they are hitting the riders or the horses. In fact, it might actually be Kronos who’s responsible for more of their losses.

[Kronos] struck the bridge with the butt of his scythe, and a wave of pure force blasted me backward. Cars went careening. Demigods—even Luke’s own men—were blown off the edge of the bridge. (pg 192)

I will die on the hill that between this, Ethan, and other implied moments, Kronos killed more of his own demigods than Percy did.

In the second phase of the battle, when we see the TA demigods attack again, they’re in a very different situation.

To the west, the Demeter cabin and Grover’s nature spirits had turned Sixth Avenue into a jungle that was hampering a  squadron of Kronos’s demigods. (pg 255)

This is the only thing we see the TA demigods do as a group in this phase; and they’re fighting people who are using very defensive tactics, more hampering than harmful. They’re not likely to lose many fighters. A few of them do cross Percy’s path in the chaos, but even at his most Achilles fueled chaos he never loses control.

The next hour was a blur. I fought like I’d never fought before—wading into legions of dracaenae, taking out dozens of telkines with every strike, destroying empousai and knocking out enemy demigods. (pg 257)

He talks about killing monsters, but always “knocking out” demigods. Finally, that phase of the battle ends when the centaurs show up. Did the centaurs kill any demigods? After all, Percy said they “trampled everything in their path.”

Well the only report we get on the TA demigods puts them to the west. When the centaurs attack, they come out of the north east and drive the enemy south, and start off a wave of panic that ripples down the enemy lines ahead of them. The demigods were probably running before any centaur reached them, and might have had better chances of being trampled by their own monsters.

So if the TA demigods aren’t taking many losses, where do they all go in the third and fourth phases, when we don’t see any except Ethan?

They desert. 

Alabaster: “I fought on the battlefield against the enemy, but most of our allies ran.”

I think the demigods of the TA signed up with no real idea of what would happen when they fought the Olympians. They thought they were going to have a sure victory. 

Chris Rodriguez said it in SOM:

“I hear they got two more [drakon] coming,” [Chris] said. “They keep arriving at this rate, oh, man—no contest!” (pg 122)

Alabaster C. Torrington said it in SOM:

“Kronos wasn’t supposed to lose! You said the odds of winning were in the Titan’s favor! You told me Camp Half-Blood would be destroyed!” (pg 196)

And they probably weren’t well prepared for the war either. At one point Luke says they will fight well because he has been training the army. But most of them join because they are the children of minor gods who swear for Kronos, and that doesn’t happen until the end of BOTL, after Luke has been possessed. Most of the TA demigods never got training from him; including their two highest ranking members, Ethan and Alabaster. It’s no wonder most of them weren’t prepared.

As I was running up the stairwell, a kid charged down. He looked like he had just woken up from a nap. His armor was half on. He drew his sword and yelled, “Kronos!” but he sounded more scared than angry . . . . No way was I going to hurt him. I didn’t need a weapon for this. I stepped inside his strike and grabbed his wrist, slamming it against the wall. His sword clattered out of his hand. (pg 18)

And the demigods might not hold much loyalty to Kronos, a violent and temperamental eldritch horror!

Ethan moistened his lips. “He’s still fighting you, isn’t he? Luke—” “Nonesense,” Kronos spat. “Repeat that lie, and I will cut out your tongue. The boy’s soul has been crushed.” (pg 236) “But, my lord,” Ethan said. “Your regeneration.” Kronos pointed at Ethan, and the demigod froze. “Does it seem,” Kronos hissed. “that I need to regenerate?” Ethan didn’t respond. Kind of hard to do when you’re immobilized in time. Kronos snapped his fingers and Ethan collapsed. (pg 284)

And the demigods might have witnessed a darker side to his army that we didn’t.

Back on my first visit to the Princess Andromeda, my old enemy Luke had kept dazed tourists on board for show, shrouded in Mist so they didn’t realize they were on a monster infested ship. Now i didn’t see any sign of tourists. I hated to think what had happened to them, but I kind of doubted they’d been allowed to go home with their bingo winnings. (pg 15)

So, the demigods deserted. After the second phase of the battle we don’t see any at the Titan camp at the U.N., or taking any part in the last phases of the battle. They had been fed false promises, were treated badly, and were being sent against enemies out of their league.

“Most of the remaining half-bloods fled or were captured. They were so demoralized they joined the enemy.”

All except two, Alabaster and Ethan. The son of Nemesis, who has already given so much and is so desperate to see something good and fair come out of it; and the son of Hecate, who was promised victory, and is desperate to avenge the death of his siblings. Ironically, the two demigods who stayed loyal to Kronos the longest, did so because they had faith in their godly parents.

So if there was no “massacre” of TA demigods at the end of the Battle of Manhattan, why is Alabaster so insistent that there was one? 

“Yes,” Alabaster said bitterly. “Camp Half-Blood decided that they would accept any children of the minor gods. They would build us cabins at camp and pretend that they didn’t just blindly massacre us for resisting. (pg 220) “But I’ll never bow to the Olympian gods after the atrocities they committed. Their followers are blind. I’d never set foot in their camp, and if I did, it would only be to give that son of Poseidon what he deserves.” (pg 221)

Well, it’s because the children of Hecate suffered the most in the war. She didn’t have as many children as other gods, and Alabaster was the only one to fight in it and survive. He claims he convinced “most” of his siblings to join; but if Hecate does not have many children, and he is the only survivor of the battle, how are there still enough of his siblings to decently fill a cabin, it’s likely “most” was only slightly more than half. The sad irony is that the fact that the smaller group of demigods had more casualties than the larger ones (and it sounds like not just more proportionately, but more in actual numbers), also kind of disproves that there could have been a large massacre that affected them all.

Alabaster was a scared, frustrated, exhausted kid; who convinced his siblings to fight in a destructive war, and was the only one of them to survive. To him, that is probably always going to feel like a brutal massacre.

[elianzis]

Why do people think Apollo is the god of the sun when it’s Helios who’s the sun god? In The Odyssey, it is Helios’s cows that were eaten and in the myths, he has a son that wanted to ride his chariot of flaming horses and his son ended up dying from driving it

I'm not an expert on Greek mythology to be honest, it's better to ask other people who are more familiar with it.

But I have an assumption that it is possible that at a certain period of history it began to be perceived as an allegorical image of the sun. Plus they are very similar in their solar functions( I assume?).

Also my friends for example say that Helios and Apollo at a certain point became a single deity, and all the attributes passed to Apollo himself. (but I don't know anything about that, to be honest).

In fact, @margaretkart, could you please help me here? Is there any reason for this situation? also, here is a little joke

[crxss01]

hi!!! could i pls request a god!apollo x goddess!reader where ur just cuddling each other after a long day? :) tysm!!!

— Serenity

pairing ʚɞ ⁺˖ ⸝⸝ god!apollo x goddess!reader

summary ⁺˚⋆｡°✩₊ after a long day of driving the sun chariot apollo is happy when you arrive home.

warnings ✧˖ ° fluff, kissing, cuddling.

m. list, main m.list.

a/n . . ◟੭ hey, sweet anon! i hope you enjoy reading this as much as i enjoyed writing it!

you sighed finally getting to your place in olympus after a long day of your godly duties. the only thing in your mind was to have some much needed rest with apollo by your side.

you never expected to marry the womanizer, but he did a really good job at sweeping you off your feet and you did a better job than him because for him it was love at first sight with you.

"my loveeee!"

suddenly you weren't standing on your own two feet but being spun around in the air, two strong tanned arms wrapped around your waist, and pair of lips kissing all over your face.

"i missed you so much, you should've come with me today." he pouted, looking at you with those beautiful eyes that were shinning like the sun.

"sorry, love." you apologized. "but if i keep neglecting my duties as a goddess, your father won't hesitate to zap me."

apollo put you down and nodded, "you're right, he can be overbearing sometimes."

thunder shook the place.

"umm... i take that back."

you laughed placing a kiss on his lips. "you took a bath yet?" you asked him.

"no, i was waiting for you."

even though gods do not need baths, you and apollo liked to take them together most of the time. it gave you both a sense of intimacy and tranquility.

after taking a bath together you and apollo went to bed and now were laying on bed with your arms around each other with you being on top of him, your head on his chest. you could hear and feel his ichor pumped heart beating against the side of your head.

"you know maybe we can make a godly duty that we both can do together, so that my father can't be mad about us not doing our other duties."

"apollo, go to sleep." you mumbled tiredly.

"but listen, darling. we could work with plants—"

"that's demeter's thing and i don't think that you even know how to water them."

"hey! i learned a lot as lester." he complained. "but you're right, demeter wants nothing to do with me so no plants. how about divorces? i don't know of any god who specializes on that."

you looked up at him, raising a suspicious eyebrow. "are you trying to tell me something?"

apollo chuckled, shaking his head. "you can never get rid of me, sweetheart. so no, i'm not trying to tell you anything, i just want to send some of those papers over to aphrodite and hephaestus."

you laughed at that, "even though she doesn't love him, aphrodite would never divorce him. it would bring shame to her name."

"i think it has enough shame already." apollo shrugged.

"be careful, you don't want eros to hit you with another arrow do you?" you questioned, grabbing his face in between your hands. "it would be a shame if he made you fall in love with an animal this time."

"not even one of his arrows can make me fall in love with someone who isn't you." he smiled.

you rolled your eyes, but your cheeks heated up. "i guess you are the god of poetry for a reason."

he lean up trying to give you a kiss, but ended up kissing your cheek when you turned your head and moved off of him to lay beside him.

"let's sleep, we have another long day tomorrow." you said. "in the morning before you leave, i'll give you all the kissed you want."

apollo took a hold of your waist, pulling you to him and making you the little spoon. "i love you..." he told you.

"i love you more.." you answered.

"not more than i do." apollo said back, then covered your mouth so that you wouldn't fight back. "good night, my sweet."

you licked his hand and he yelped, taking it away from your face. "goodnight, sunny."

"and i love you more than you do." you just had to add.

ʚɞ ⁺˖ ⸝��� reblogs are really appreciated

[calisources]

𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐘 (𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟒) 𝐐𝐔𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐒. all quotes and sentences were taken from the movie troy (2004). change locations, names and pronouns as you see fit. mentions of war and politics are included in this post.

 I'll tell you a secret. Something they don't teach you in your temple. The Gods envy us. They envy us because we're mortal, because any moment might be our last. 

Everything is more beautiful because we're doomed. You will never be lovelier than you are now.

If they ever tell my story let them say that I walked with giants.

Men rise and fall like the winter wheat, but these names will never die. 

Let them say I lived in the time of Hector, tamer of horses. Let them say I lived in the time of Achilles.

You gave me peace in a lifetime of war.

You're still my enemy in the morning.

You're still my enemy tonight. But even enemies can show respect.

I have endured what no one on earth has endured before. I kissed the hands of the man who killed my son.

I know my country better than the Greeks, I think.

 You are a brave man. I could have your head on a spit in the blink of an eye.

 Do you really think death frightens me now? I watched my eldest son die, watched you drag his body behind your chariot.

Give him back to me. He deserves a proper burial, you know that. Give him to me.

How many cousins have you killed? How many sons and fathers and brothers and husbands? How many, brave Achilles?

I knew your father, he died before his time. But he was lucky not to live long enough to see his son fall.

War is young men dying and old men talking. You know this. Ignore the politics.

My brothers of the sword! I would rather fight beside you than any army of thousands! Let no man forget how menacing we are.

Do you know what's waiting beyond that beach? Immortality! Take it! It's yours!

 I chose nothing. I was born and this is what I am.

Imagine a king who fights his own battles. Wouldn't that be a sight?

Of all the warlords loved by the gods, I hate him the most.

Will strangers hear our names long after we are gone, and wonder who we were, how bravely we fought, how fiercely we loved?

Men are haunted by the vastness of eternity.

You say you're willing to die for love but you know nothing about dying and you know nothing about love!

Go home, prince. Drink some wine, make love to your wife. Tomorrow, we'll have our war.

Perhaps your brother can comfort them. I hear he's good at charming other men's wives.

You speak of war as if it's a game.

But how many wives wait at Troy's gates for husbands they'll never see again?

If you go to Troy, glory will be yours. 

And the world will remember your name. But if you go to Troy, you will never come back... for your glory walks hand-in-hand with your doom. And I shall never see you again.

 They say your mother was an immortal godess. They say you can't be killed.

You have your swords. I have my tricks. We play with the toys the gods give us.

All my life I've lived by a code and the code is simple: honor the gods, love your woman and defend your country.

Troy is mother to us all. Fight for her!

There are no pacts between lions and men.

Aren't you afraid?

 Everyone dies, whether today or fifty years from now.

If I don't, you'll kill more men.

At night I see their faces. All the men I've killed. They're standing there on the far bank of the river Styx. They're waiting for me. They say, 'Welcome, brother'.

Last time you spoke to me like this, you were 10 years old and you'd just stolen Father's horse. What have you done now?

Do you love me, brother? Will you protect me from any enemy?

Well, then your men did. The sun god will have his vengeance.

His priests are dead, and his acolyte's a captive. i think your god is afraid of me.

Afraid? Apollo is master of the sun, he fears nothing.

I know more about the gods than your priests. I've seen them.

You're royalty, aren't you? Spent years talking down to men.

You must be royalty. What's your name? Even the servants of Apollo have names.

 What do you want here in Troy? You didn't come for the Spartan queen.

Why kill you now, Prince of Troy, with no-one here to see you fall?

You should not have come here tonight.

That's what you said last night?

Last night was a mistake.

I have made many mistakes this week.

Of all the kings of Greece, I respect you most. But in this war you're a servant. And I refuse to be a servant any longer.

Sometimes you need to serve in order to lead. I hope you understand that one day.

Prince Hector, is he as good a warrior as they say?

You come here uninvited. Go back to your ships and go home.

The sun was shining when your wife left you.

She's up there, watching, isn't she? Good. I want her to watch you die.

And I've seen the limits of your mercy and I tell you now, no son of Troy will ever submit to a foreign ruler.

Trojan soldiers died protecting you. Perhaps they deserve more than your pity.

Pearls from the sea of Propontus.

Am I still your captive?

I have heard rumors of your beauty. And for once, the gossip is right.

Soldiers of Troy! You men are warriors! To lead you has been my honor!

Hector fights for his country! Achilles fights only for himself!

You were brave to fight them. You have courage.

To fight back when I'm attacked? A dog has that kind of courage.

It's no insult to say a dead man is dead.

I can't ask anyone to fight for me. I'm no longer queen of Sparta.

You're a princess of Troy now. And my brother needs you tonight.

Menelaus was a brave man. He fought for honor. And every day I was with him, I wanted to walk into the sea and drown.

I almost lost this war because of your little romance.

I want to see him grow tall. I want to see all the girls chasing after him.

Well, of course you do, she's a beautiful woman.

Then I'll make it easy for him to find me. I'll walk right up to him and tell him you're mine.

May the gods keep the wolves in the fields and the women in our beds.

[a-french-coconut]

Jason Grace

Birthdays are, for Jason, a day like another.

It's a normal day.

Nothing out of the ordinary comes from completing another year of living.

When came the day of his third birthday, Lupa gave him a little more food than the other cups.

As for Camp Jupiter...

Well, Jason never bothered telling his fellow comrades his birthday date.

Every time someone asked him "When's your birthday ?", he would always shrug it off and divert the attention somewhere else.

That was until Reyna came along and baked him cakes every single day of the year.

"If you won't tell me, I'll assume it's always today." She would tell him, presenting him a burnt cake with wax dripping from the ignited candles.

He should have know waging war against the daughter of Bellona would mean defeat.

And so, in their first year of friendship, Reyna learns that Jason Grace's birthday is July 1st, in honour of Juno, his patron goddess.

But to his insistence, they don't celebrate it.

"Why ?" She asked him one night, the both of them watching the city from above, in Bacchus' gardens.

"I already have enough attention as it is." He lies, because the truth is that he wants to preserve his birthday like he knows it.

A blurred image of a blue-eyed girl, swinging him around and singing him "Happy Birthday !". He fears that if he celebrated his birthdays, that memory would fade.

"My full name is Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano." Reyna said out of the blue.

"That's a mouthful." He smiled before trying to pronounce it. "Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano, it's-"

"Don't say it again." Reyna cuts him, her hands clutching her t-shirt, "Never."

"Okay." He replies and he understands why she said it to him.

A treaty, a deal between them.

Two things only they know of each other, a proof of trust.

That night, Reyna became the person Jason trusted more than anyone.

Years passed and nobody bothered to ask him about his birthday.

War is looming on the horizon, a storm ready to fall upon them.

They need to see him as a general, a fearsome warrior ready to lead them to victory.

He is the son of Jupiter and wether he is fourteen or fifteen matters not.

It's not until his sixteenth birthday that Jason understands why birthdays are a special date.

A day to commemorate your life, to celebrate living another year.

When Piper hands him a cupcake, with poorly made frosting, Jason eats it, savouring every bite.

That memory goes lock itself next to Thalia's.

When the war is over, Jason thinks that celebrating his seventeenth birthday with all his friends wouldn't be that bad.

(In canon, Jason never makes it to seventeen. Here, we throw canon out of the window because birthday boy deserves some happiness.)

-----------------------------

Jason plops down on his bed, sighing.

What a long year it had been.

His sixteenth year of living began with a fight on the Acropolis, where he basically told his father he was a idiot for punishing Apollo.

Only for said god to barge into his dormitory months later, very mortal looking.

Then, his home is attacked by a zombie army lead by a dead roman king.

And how could he forget Piper breaking up with him.

Overall, that year wasn't the best of years Jason lived.

Except for all the friends he met and the sense of peace it brought him.

Not fully Roman, not entirely Greek, Jason is a children of both.

He has every right to feel at home in Camp Jupiter or Camp Half-Blood, where his father's statue is looking at him right now.

Jason lays in his bed, head purposesly facing the wall, and lets Morpheus greets him in his oneiric realm.

As Artemis leads her moon chariot in the night, June 31st morphs into July 1st.

-----------------------------

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUPERMAN !"

A lousy voice startles Jason out of sleep and he jolts awake.

"What ?" He asks disoriented and tangled in his sheets.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUPERMAN !" The same voice screams and it comes from a flying table making circles in his cabin.

"Buford ?" Jason yawns, "what are you doing here ?"

"WISHING YOU A HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUPERMAN !" Buford yells in his electronic voice, "FROM THE HOTTEST BOY ON EARTH !"

"Right, right, thank you. Can you tone it down a little ?"

"FROM THE DREAM OF ALL LADIES !"

"Yeah, I get it. But please, it's-" He checks the clock, "it's seven am."

"FROM THE SUPREME COMMANDER OF THE ARGO II !"

"What ? I gotta say his name ?"

"FROM YOUR BEST FRIEND !"

"Okay," Jason laughs softly, "thank you Leo for wishing me a happy birthday."

"YOU'RE WELCOME BLONDIE ! NOW GET DRESSED AND COME OUTSIDE !" Buford zooms out of the cabin by the open roof.

Jason shakes his head and quickly puts on a Camp t-shirt and a pair of jeans. When he opens the door, there's no one.

"I know you guys are hiding !" He screams as he scans his surroundings. "Buford told me-" He huffs as a weight settles of his back and arms snake around his neck.

"Happy birthday Jason !" Leo screams in his ear, "Happy birthday, happy birthday, happy-"

"birthday, thanks." Jason completes, holding Leo on his back.

"Amigo, you are going to live the best day of your life !" Leo claps his shoulders, excited.

"Did you plan it all ?"

"With some help but yes, it was me." Leo shrugs, "Now, it's time for breakfast."

"To the Pavillon we go."

Camp's grounds are empty as they walk towards the eating Pavillon.

"Nobody was woken up by Buford ?" Jason asks, surprised, "he made quite the noise."

"Don't worry about that." Leo flicks his head, surely grinning like a madman.

"Fine, but I don't want to bother anyone-" He falters as they enter the Pavillon.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY JASON !" The whole camp scream, whistle, whoop.

He feels his face going hot, "Thanks you guys ! It's very nice of you to-"

At the Apollo Cabin, Will takes a mic and begins to sing.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, Jason Grace, happy birthday to you !" He finishes amidst his siblings' applauses.

"Woah, thank you Will." Jason says, his face probably the colour of a tomato.

Will bows and sits back, himself a little red but pleased with himself.

Leo jumps down from him, "Camp rules still apply so I gotta leave you here. But don't worry, I've got other surprises planned out for you." Leo winks and goes join his siblings.

Jason makes his way towards his table, murmuring "thank you", "really appreciated it", "you're the best." to all the campers he crosses.

When he finally sits down, another little surprise awaits him.

Blue brownies with a note.

"Sorry I'm not here buy you know, studies. Still, Annabeth and I wish you a happy birthday and you'll get our gifts later ! Enjoy your day, I'm still better than you because I win Kansas- ouch Annabeth ! Yes, I'm writing it because Jason will be my witness of your attitude. Appreciate the letter bro because it took me a while with dyslexia.

Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase

PS : I made the brownies (as if it wasn't obvious.), shut up Annabeth. Wait, can I still say shut up if you're writing ? (End the letter.), right, okay, ending the letter now."

Jason chuckles fondly, munching on a delicious brownie while he reads the note.

Most of his friends are at Camp Jupiter, Frank, Hazel, Annabeth, Percy.

He knows they would be here with him if they could, but the praetors are too busy to leave and Percy and Annabeth had exams coming up.

He tucks the note into his jeans and finishes the brownies, sacrificing a conjured apple to his father.

Hello, Father. Thank you for, hum, conceiving me ?

Yeah, that'll do.

He almost faceplates when Leo jumps on his back again.

"You're like a leech." He huffs, readjusting him so they are both comfortable.

"Don't know what that is but I'll assume it's something good." Leo replies, poking his neck. "Head towards the arena please, you have sword fighting class."

"No I don't."

"Yes, you do." Leo chirps, "now go."

"Leech." Jason groans.

Another surprise awaits him at the arena.

"Nico !"

The son of Hades gives him a small wave, "Hi Jason. Happy birthday."

"You came all the way from the Underworld ?" Jason asks with a big smile on his face, "for me ?"

"Don't flatter yourself that much Jason." Nico replies drily, "Will is the main reason I'm here."

"Of course," Jason grins, "how presumptuous of me to assume otherwise."

"I hope I'm not interrupting-" Leo pipes in.

"You are."

"Hush Di Angelo, I got best friend's privileges." Leo continues, "Give him your gift."

"You got me a gift ?"

"Yes." Nico mumbles, glaring at Leo, "I am here for your birthday after all. And Will of course." He adds, taking out a small box from his jacket and handing it to him.

He shrugs Leo off his back and takes the box.

It's pin, with "best cousin awards" written in big golden letters on it.

"It's-" Jason smiles, "it's just to piss Percy off when he sees it, isn't it ?"

"No." Nico says with a straight face. Jason looks at him. "Maybe a little," he concedes, "but I do believe you are not a bad cousin to have."

"Thanks Nico." Jason says earnestly, "I would hug you but..."

Nico smiles, "I can make an exception." and opens his arms.

Jason hugs him briefly and as soon as he's done, Leo climbs again.

"Right ! Now Nico, go find your boyfriend and Jason, direction the Big House !"

This little game lasts the whole day, Leo taking him to different places and people greeting him, wishing him happy birthday.

Malcolm gives him sets of models and black glasses.

"From Annabeth and Percy." He said.

"I understand Annabeth's gifts but did Percy explained ?"

"Yeah." Malcolm suppressed a grin, "It's to help you disguise yourself, like Clark Kent."

Jason rolled his eyes but hanged the glasses on his t-shirt's hem.

Drew gifted him contact lenses.

Connor offered him a book on geometry and architectural design.

"Annabeth might have helped a little." The son of Hermes confessed "And I promise I bought them fair and square."

Katie, Nyssa, Pollux all give him gifts.

It warms his heart that they care so much.

"You did help save our camp." Katie smiled, "It's the kind of thing that makes us appreciate you."

He now has a beautiful plant, a new set of armour and a ticket to an arcade room in New York.

The sun sets and it's time for dinner.

"Leo," Jason calls him as his friend join his table, "thank you for this day, it was the best birthday gift ever."

His friend's eyes glint, "Ah but Jace, the day's not over yet !" and he leaves cackling.

What could have he planned ? Jason thinks as he eats his fries.

Two hands suddenly obscure his vision.

He waits for the person to speak but she doesn't, "I have to guess ?"

He takes the silence for a yes.

"Hum," Jason thinks, who could it be ? One of his friends from Camp Jupiter ? Or... maybe... "Thalia ?" He call out hesitantly.

"Great guess little brother." Thalia laughs as her face appears next to him, "great guess."

He hugs her instantly, "You-"

"Came especially for your birthday, yeah." Thalia finishes, "how could I not ? My little brother is seventeen !" She ruffles his hair, arm on his shoulder.

"For me," Jason repeats, "you came for me."

"Yeah," Thalia says, "I'll always come for you Jason, always." She smiles before adding, "happy birthday."

"You were my only memory for a while you know." He gulps, feeling tears pooling in his eyes. "I'm sorry- I don't know why I'm crying, it's a happy moment, I'm happy-" He takes a big breath, Thalia's circular hugs on his back soothing him.

"You always loved this." Thalia says wistfully, "It always succeeded to calm your tantrums."

"Still works." He sniffles, leaning into Thalia's touch.

"Fate is a cruel thing," she whispers, "I never thought I would see you again after mom left you in those woods. And I've missed all your life, all your birthday parties-"

"You didn't, I never celebrated my birthday until last year." Jason whispers back, "I wanted to keep how I remembered it, with you swinging me around in the house."

Thalia chortles, "You already loved being in the air as a baby, you would always sit next to me and ask to be carried."

"I'm too big now."

"Hey," she nudges him, "no matter how taller you get, you will always be my little brother."

"I'm older though."

"Tough, you're still younger in my eyes." She snarks back, her head resting on his shoulder. "Leo's the one that invited me. I would have come nonetheless but I'm glad you found him, he's a good friend."

"Yeah," he agrees, "he is."

"I didn't come alone." Thalia adds, "there's another hunter with me."

"Hello Jason." A new voice says from behind.

"Reyna," Jason replies, "you're a huntress now."

She nods, "It's what is best for me."

"I'm going to leave you two alone," Thalia says, standing up, "I'll sleep in Zeus cabin tonight so see you later."

After she leaves, Reyna makes no move to go seat with him.

She's as Jason remembered, exuding an air of royalty and undeniable leadership.

She's the leader everyone see when they look at her, the woman who lead New Rome by herself, the demigod that killed a giant.

But Jason can see the small scar on her right wrist, the one she got for teasing Aurum too much with his food.

Or how she's nibbling her lip, indicating she's hungry and the way her hands are clasped behind her back, so that Jason doesn't see them trembling.

She's vainly trying to put a facade Jason can see right through.

"I'm sorry." He says, because it's all he can say.

"What for ?" She tilts her head, "you didn't ask Juno to capture you."

"But you loved me." He adds, because they need to address it, "you loved me and I came back with another girl."

She stiffens and Jason knows that her hands are tightly clasped, Reyna willing herself to stay composed.

"It wasn't your fault, I shouldn't have assumed you liked me back." Reyna clears her throat, "You had every right to date Piper."

"But-" He protests because he expected her to be angry, to be cold. She shouldn't be understanding, "I-"

She laughs bitterly, cutting him off, "You and Thalia share it, you know ? That unshaken belief that you are the cause of everything, that you have a hand in each matter evolving around you. I suppose it is divine heritage." she muses.

She scans the tables, her face lingering on Cabin 10.

"Venus' children ?" She asks and he nods, "Do you remember Charleston ?"

"Hum yes, we went to retrieve imperial gold-"

"I met Venus that day, and she told me that no demigod would ever heal my heart and that I will never find love where I hoped or wished to find." Reyna tells him, still looking at the Aphrodite Cabin, "I never told anyone that" she turns her obsidian eyes on him, "except you."

An olive branch.

An echo to the start of their friendship.

"I'm sorry for leading you on, for never making clear that I considered you a good friend." Jason apologises, feeling angry towards the goddess for ruining his best friend's life, "I hope the hunters of Artemis bring you the family you deserve Reyna."

He leans towards her, "I'm a little jealous of you to be honest," he smiles, a grin devoid of mirth, "I never had such a family before, and I don't think I ever will."

A secret for a secret.

That's how started their first friendship and that is how begins their new one, Reyna quietly seating next to him and directly stealing his fries.

"We'll come visit," she assures him, "every time we are near your location."

She eats quietly for another moment, her eyes fixed on Leo making laugh Harley over some joke.

"I think you're wrong."

"About what ?" He asks.

"About having a family, I think there's someone who would very much like spending his life with you."

"His ?" Jason picks up, "who is it ?"

"Leo Valdez could also make with some family," Reyna muses, "don't you think ?"

"Yeah..." He says slowly, "yeah, I suppose he can."

Next to him, Reyna grins slightly. "I'm sure he would be delighted if you were to sit next to him at your campfire, I'll tell Thalia not to wait for you."

"Maybe I want to sit with Thalia."

She raises her eyebrow, "She'll be here for the next two days, you'll have time to see her."

"Okay, okay" he relents, "I'll ask him when dinner ends."

They spend the rest of dinner chatting about the shrines Jason has to build, the relief of not being predator anymore, Aurum and Argentum, Reyna's new lifestyle.

"Leo !" He calls the son of Hephaestus who looks surprised to see him, "Wanna sit with me at campfire ?" He asks nervously.

"You're not going with Thalia ?"

For a reason unknown to Jason, Nyssa sighs loudly behind them and pinching her nose.

"She's staying a few days, I'll see her later. Right now, I want to go with you."

He gestures his back and Leo laughs but obliges, his head resting on his shoulder.

"Lead the way, Superman."

After two hours of singing, roasting s'mores, laughing until it hurts, Jason lays in his bed in Cabin 1, with a smile as Thalia's light snores fill the room.

Birthdays, Jason has come to find, are extraordinary days that he cherishes a lot for they bring all his friends together.

He cannot wait for his eighteenth birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JASON GRACE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I know I'm a little late but it's because it ended up being way longer than I thought it would 😅

Sweet, fluffy, comforting story because he deserves it 💖

[literallyjusttoa]

do you have any artemis and apollo headcanons to share?

Let me see let me see I think I have a couple.

They have the classic twin telepathy and it pisses off all the other Olympians. Especially bc sometimes Apollo and Artemis will stop mid-conversation with another Olympian to just ... stare at each other. They're communicating just fine but everyone else has to stand around while they have conversation only through subtle facial expressions.

Speaking of, these two are absolutely the nerds to come up with a secret twin code or language. As they've grown up they use it less and less, but they'll still break it out if the situation demands it. No one else has even come close to translating what they're saying.

If Artemis finds someone injured and feels she won't be able to heal it (injury is too complex/chronic) she calls for Apollo to help. Vice-versa, Apollo calls Artemis whenever he finds an injured animal.

Apollo has a pet wolf and Artemis and him argue over her like they're two divorced parents filing for custody. Every time Artemis comes over it's like:

Artemis, in a high pitched voice: Is he treating you poorly Kitri? He is, isn't he? Isn't he? You're just so sad up here with my mean old brother.

Apollo: Artemis, wolves are my sacred animal, I know how to take care of them.

Artemis: Not as well as I can. I'd treat her right.

Apollo: I treat Kitri like a queen. *using the same high pitched voice as Artemis* Don't I Kitri? Yes I do! Oh, yes I do!

Kitri is tired of this bullshit.

They high five every eclipse as they pass each other on their respective chariots. It's a sacred tradition.

This was fun! These two are fun.

[lonewolfel]

Lightning that makes her Kingdom Fall: Chapter 5 - Leaving

Chapter List

On AO3

Ares was sitting on Apollo's couch not pouting no matter what Aphrodite, Apollo, or Asclepius say.

"I crushed his enemy for him and this is the thanks I get. He'd rather go to Athena then me," Ares complained.

"They both care for each other," Aphrodite reassured.

"I can care!" Ares exclaimed.

Aphrodite pat his shoulder. "I know love."

"Can you stop whining I'm working here?" Apollo huffed.

He had his lyre in his hands. Apollo was clearly trying to focus on his music instead of his family. Keyword is trying.

"I am not whining," Ares protested.

"Sure," Apollo said.

"Are you even paying attention?" Ares snapped.

"Yeah, lets see one of the mortals that Athena has been following around like a lap dog likes her better than you. Just like everyone else," Apollo said.

Ares stood up. "What does that mean, Song Bird?"

"Simple, like two gods ever liked you. One of them is because you are a good fuck and the other is your mother. Most if they want a war god they go to Athena," Apollo said.

"Well at least I'm not a bastard child like you and your sister," Ares said.

"Guys," Aphrodite tried to break in.

"Oh wow the only thing you have going for you is the fact Father for once fucked his wife," Apollos said.

"If you are just going to bicker then you can leave," Asclepius said.

He looked up from where he was monitoring Athena.

"Exactly," Apollo said.

"I meant both of you," Asclepius said.

"But this is my temple," Apollo said.

"Yes, but you aren't even trying to heal Athena. If you are going to be a distraction then it is for the best that you leave," Asclepius said.

Apollo opened his mouth to argue. He then closed it deciding against it. "Fine then I'm going to hunt with Artemis since my presence isn't appreciated," With that he stormed out of the room.

"Love," Aphrodite said. "You can be a bit intense at times. I know you mean well but you can scare mortals so easily. Perhaps you should try a different approach and maybe not share your rage this time."

"Different approach. I can do that," Ares said. He walked out with a determination that kind of concerned Asclepius.

"How is she?" Aphrodite asked now that it was just the two of them.

"She's stable, everything else we will have to figure out when she awakes," Asclepius said. "I must say I'm shocked that you care. I had been under the impression that you two hate each other."

"Oh, we do," Aphrodite said. "Well we did I'm not sure about now. She just always acted so high and mighty because she was immune to my gifts. I had honestly thought that she was incapable of loving anything at all, but during the games. She loves those humans. I don't want her to die when she was just beginning to understand love."

Aphrodite then stood up. "I should probably check on Hephaestus. He probably thinks that I'm making love to Ares again and we don't want another net incident."

Asclepius turned back to the unconscious Athena. She has made some surprising shock waves through some of the gods. It was both inspiring and concerning.

~~~

It has been a day sense he has left Calypso's island. Odysseus had nothing but smooth sailing which set him on edge. He didn't dare hope that Poseidon after all this time would have given up on killing him. Poseidon had to not know that Odysseus was back at sea which meant that he had to arrive home before Poseidon figures it out.

Selene's chariot was absent in the sky making it more difficult to see. Exhaustion weighed on Odysseus but he didn't dare go to sleep. He knew that sooner or later he would come across a foe and he couldn't be caught unprepared and he had to ensure that he was going the right direction.

Then he felt the water shifting below his raft oddly. Odysseus had to brace himself to stop himself from falling overboard to be dragged down to Poseidon's cold domain. Then he heard a loud roar and saw something glow beneath him.

"Fuck," Odysseus hissed.

It's mouth opened and Odysseus instantly knew what monster it is. Charybdis, the sea monster that sucks in the ocean to catch it's prey and then spits the water back out. It looks like Odysseus was the monster's prey tonight.

It's glow was enough to see the vortex of water being sucked down the ocean. Well Hermes did say that this was going to be dangerous. Odysseus wasn't about to back down or die. After so many years Odysseus has gone too far to be stopped from going home.

Odysseus moved the raft around one of Charybdis' large tooth.

Then an idea struck Odysseus. Eventually, Charybdis is going to have to spit out the water and when it does he can use the blast to escape. The force of it if timed right could shoot him far enough away that he wouldn't have to worry about a repeat performance.

Though all of this was risky. He had to be close enough to the mouth to be hit by the blast but not close enough to be sucked in. The raft got caught in the currents of the whirlpool. Odysseus began to turn the raft to get out of the currents. The force of it turned the raft onto its side sending what supplies Odysseus had gathered flying into the murky depths.

There was a slight pause in the sucking of the water. Odysseus moved to the center of Charybdis' mouth. If he was wrong about it being about to spit out water that meant that Odysseus would become it's food. It turned out that Odysseus had timed it perfectly.

There was a rumble underneath him. The water began to rise rapidly. The raft was shot out of Charybdis' reach. The raft skipped over the water. Odysseus let out a laugh of relief. He had survived one of the tests.

~~~

Telemachus turned around. There stood Mentor one of his father's most loyal guards that remain here in Ithaca.

"Mentor?" Telemachus asked.

"What are you doing here on the docks, my prince?" Mentor asked.

"I'm leaving Ithaca," Telemachus said. "Don't try to persuade me otherwise."

"Very well, follow me," Mentor said.

"Wait what? Where are we going?" Telemachus asked.

Mentor was already walking away. Telemachus quickly began to follow after him.

"I have a ship. If you want to leave Ithaca I can take you to another island," Mentor said.

"Wait are you going with me?" Telemachus asked.

"Of course, prince, I cannot abandon you," Mentor said.

"I'm not a prince anymore," Telemachus said.

"You are," Mentor said. "Do you want the ride?"

Telemachus nodded his head. He followed Mentor to a ship. The ship was setting sail to Pylos. He didn't have any objections to going there.

[pain-is-too-tired]

Great now I'm thinking about Clarisse and Michael again.

We know from Michael's interaction with Percy later at Williamsburg Bridge that after Clarisse still refused to join the fight after getting the chariot, that he said some "choice words"

Knowing him, probably cussed her out a bit gdgdg

But honestly, I'm imagining him also calling her out on caring too much about her pride than lives

Because, for all the fighting to keep the chariot,we don't really know what was happening between getting the chariot and BoM. Other than Beckendorf's death.

And we see Michael's pride isn't something that he's completely obsessed with. If anything, his pride seems to be centered more on his cabin than himself. We don't know what it took to get the chariot, but I'm sure his cabin fought hard in the battle. Of course he'd want to keep it, his siblings earned that.

Clarisse's seems a little more focused on her own pride or the image of her cabin. She led the battle, so she thinks that the Chariot should be hers. Despite the fact they probably wouldn't have the Chariot if the Apollo cabin hadn't taken it, and as archers a flying Chariot is much more suited to their fighting style.

For how people talk about Michael, even in the books, he doesn't seem to be on the same level of attitude/aggression as Clarisse.

I think he just matches what he's given.

Clarisse is the one who started the fight with the chariot. That's why Annabeth specifically says she'll come to her senses. Because the Apollo cabin are just defending what's their's, maybe aggressively but they have even Chiron supporting that the chariot should be their's. Michael is being more on the defensive in a loud way. It's why no one goes to him and tells him to just give into Clarisse, heck Percy assumes Michael would still have the chariot during BoM. No one wants to just let Clarisse run over the Apollo cabin's achievements. Especially not Michael who's only been Head Counselor for a year.

Yet, Michael is the first to step away from it. But he doesn't let Clarisse just get by with still putting her pride first. He gives her choice words, likely out of lot of emotion, then just leaves.

And he dies. He dies defending Manhattan and his peers against Kronos. He let's Percy push him out of the way on Olympus, he doesn't fuss other than a sarcastic comment when Percy pretty much has Annabeth take over organizing his cabin. He let's Percy make the calls once he's on the scene, continuing to fight when he was just about to retreat. Than retreating when Percy actually orders a retreat. Only to come back when he sees Percy on his own after Annabeth is hurt.

He dies making sure Kronos doesn't get past them. Armed with nothing but one arrow and an idea.

And when Clarisse finally gets to the Battle, it's because her cabin and Silena left without her. She goes berserk on battle more so out of grief than duty.

I really do wish we got to see her reaction to learning about Michael's death/disappearance. Obviously she's had guilt over Silena's death. But she got to say goodbye. She got to be there for her and avenge her.

The last words she heard from Michael was likely him cussing her out.

There's one song I think about when I think about their relationship and it's Allies or Enemies by The Crane Wives

What happens now? Do we have another go? Do we bow out, and take our separate roads? I'll admit I've had my doubts But I want to be let in, not out But I want to be let in, not out Are we allies or enemies? This will be the death of me This will be the death of me All is fair in love, and war But I can't fight with you anymore This will be the death of me

Idk, just something about it hits. Really I don't think Michael necessarily hated Clarisse, I think he was disappointed and upset. And I feel like Clarisse would take his death hard, at least feel pretty guilty. Especially if she was close to him before hand. Heck even if she had just been close to Lee, she would feel lot of guilt for not being there to help his siblings.

And even more so. The last words they ever shared was out of anger.

And she'll never get to apologize.

[actual-gremlin]

@crush-like-that here’s that song analysis you asked me about!

Buckle up cowboy because I’ve got a LOT to say. so, in my mind, this is set right after the Battle of Manhattan. Will has just lost most of his siblings, and he’s now in charge of not only his canon, but also the infirmary. That’s a HUGE responsibility for a 13 year old, ESPECIALLY a grieving one. My guys going through it, and this song perfectly captures it imo.

(lyrics are in italics)

It'll be fine by dusk light I'm tellin' you, baby These things eat at your bones and drive your young mind crazy

So this first little bit is Will trying to convince himself that he’s going to be fine without his siblings. He can’t stop thinking about his siblings and the patients he lost. -these things eat at your bones and drive your young kind crazy-

But when you place your head between my collar and jaw I don't know much but there's no weight at all

He misses his siblings more than life itself. To me, this lyric symbolizes the realization that you’ll never see the person, or feel them hug you ever again.

And I'm damned if I do and I'm damned if I don't 'Cause if I say I miss you I know that you won't

This might be a bit of a stretch, but HC that a lot of campers resent Micheal and Clarrise for their petty argument surrounding the Chariot and since most people are to scared of Clarrise to say anything to her face, they take it out on Michael’s memory instead, causing him to be a pariah of sorts. So this is Will knowing that he can’t say he misses Micheal, because he doesn’t want people to get mad at him for ‘defending someone who caused a bunch of deaths’. But I miss you in the mornings when I see the sun Somethin' in the orange tells me we're not done

Every sunrise is like a stab in the gut, because (HC) the Apollo kids used to watch them all the time. He can’t do that anymore. He’s too busy in the infirmary, and he has to push his grief down to keep moving.

To you I'm just a man, to me you're all I am Where the hell am I supposed to go?  I poisoned myself again Somethin' in the orange tells me you're never comin’ home

So to me, the chorus is Will trying to find solace (ha) in his mom, but she’s in the middle of touring, so she doesn’t have time for him. The ‘where the hell am I supposed to go?’ part is him realizing there’s no safe space for him to grieve and feel the way he needs to. So he pushes it all down and keeps moving forward. He overworks himself in the infirmary because he feels like he has no use elsewhere. On those short moments where he stops moving for long enough to remember, it almost destroys him because he’s kept it down for so long.

I need to hear you say you've been waitin' all night There's orange dancin' in your eyes from bulb light Your voice only trembles when you try to speak  Take me back to us dancin', this wood used to creak

Sibling Angst time!! He desperately wants to hear Lee tell him that he was ‘worried sick! You left no note and we had no idea where you were!’ When he sneaks out with Drew to hang in the woods. He misses the therapy sessions they used to have that always ended in dance party’s punctuated by the creaking of the wood floors.

If you leave today, I'll just stare at the way The orange touches all things around The grass, trees and dew, how I just hate you Please turn those headlights around Please turn those headlights around

He sees his siblings in everything. The way the sun radiates off of his fathers cabin, the grass where they played frisbee, the trees he climbed to get out of dish duty, the dew they used to roll around in first thing in the morning. He’s begging them to come home, even though he knows it’s impossible.

anyways, this was fun!

[skywalking-through-life]

WIP TITLE GAME

RULES: post the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet or tell them something about it! And then tag as many people as you have WIPs.

I was tagged by both @ashilrak and @60sec400, which is honestly fantastic, because I love this idea! My wip folder is deeply hilarious and probably incomprehensible to anyone other than me, so enjoy! I have titles, but also describe scenarios, and use lines I've written that I like as fic placeholders. There is no order to this, it's just how it appears in the folder! Italics indicate what I'm currently actively working on! Feel free to ask questions, lmao!

Post-HoO Truth or Dare beach party

'Percy Jackson's Six Steps to Seducing Your Girlfriend'

Post-HoO summer Chariot race

Titan War Memorial service + bonfire - explore grief ritual?

'[conduct] not unbecoming men who [strive] with gods'

Percabeth wedding

'still half-perfect' - working title for dark as shit wip, feat. percabeth fuck or die

'The Firefighter of the Month Club'

Poseidon and Ms. Lafayette parent- teacher conference

Percy graduates high school!!!!!!!!!!

'a name adds context, not truth'

Percabeth strip poker, Annabeth cheats

'kindness justifies itself'

Percy&Poseidon&Paul, wedding day shaving/ritual

Annabeth&Rachel&Piper&Hazel&Sally&Clarisse&etc, wedding day bath/getting ready ritual

Percabeth first time, in Percy's dorm

'like two birds on a power line'

'I drown in you' - kinky percabeth hotel sequel to 'to burn and to boil'

Percy teaches Estelle how to swim

Demigods talk to Estelle about death

Percy talks to Estelle about differences between mortals and demigods

Percy/Annabeth/Apollo negotiations? Just sex friends or more - have to decide

Percy/Annabeth/Aphrodite negotiations? Just sex friends or more - have to decide

Fed kidnapping fic - dark, long, big angst, outline currently: 20k

Jackson-Blofis Family winter cabin trip multichap

Whale pregnancy wip lololol

Percy&Calypso missing moment conversation in TOA; follow up, Percy's missing moment conversation with Chiron - 2 shot?

College Percy, Annabeth, Frank, and Piper 'rent' a sailboat for the day and go exploring, there are shenanigans, Hazel has to send the Roman navy after them

"Oh, bite me.  Why should I have to choose between being a lover or a fighter?"

"I'm not sure of much, but I know my body can take a pretty good beating and then just get up and keep on going. There's always been something comforting about knowing that. It keeps me moving."

"If actual hell couldn't separate us, then what makes you think that you can?"

"Face it, dude. You have the eyes of a lovable aquatic mammal."

"I've seen what you like as a corpse, "Annabeth. Did you really think I wouldn't recognize you when you look like a queen?"

"You are alive. Let me celebrate that, won't you?"

"You are only a man, but one who could have been a god. I'm sure that weighs."

"Wisdom's daughter, afraid of new knowledge?"

"And so he acted, out of that place of peace and clarity and resolve within him that one might call a conscience."

"One of the best things about Percy Jackson was that he rarely said something he didn't mean. It was also one of the worst things about him."

"A soul like his is more alive than most."

Lolololololol. I hope you enjoyed this? I'm going to tag as many people as I can, but I don't know if I have enough, given the number of wips I have! Tagging everyone who pops into my brain: @tater-tots-last-of-the-romanovs @timemachinechaos @timelesslords @finalgirlmoment @judoflipped @imaginmatrix @mrthology @celestialepiphany @phykios @darkmagyk @no2ticonderoga @ashilrak @moonlacess @moonfrost41 @templarhalo @soleil-in-retrograde @campercabeth @percabeth4life @sappho-of-space @perseannabeth @ananbeth @annabethy @punkflame @zambomarti @hellomomo @duender-writes @melancholic-pigeon @captain-jackson @posallys @faemischief

[firstofthenewguard]

Blood of Zeus Season 2 thoughts (There's alot of them)

I watched Blood of Zeus when it first came out in 2020 and the pandemic kept us trapped in our caves. I really liked the first season, mainly because it’s one of the few media outlets for Greek Mythology that isn’t wildly inaccurate, awkward, or just plain bad. It also set up a lot of interesting possible plotlines, and when the trailer for season 2 came out last month my hopes for those stories could not have been higher. I watched season 2 twice and… I have some notes (unfortunately)

First of All things I liked:

The entirety of episode 3

Hades and Persephone NOT being villains

Hades and Persephone being the only successful and functional couple in this show

The look of Hades’ Palace

ZAGREUS AND MELINOE!

The fact that Typhon is on a “He-who-shall-not-be-named” level and this time it actually has consequences

Other gods actually getting lines instead of just being backround characters on Olympus!

Hades using shadow teleportation, and using his bident like Mjolnir, only cooler

Other races in Hellas being acknowledged

More monsters; the Hydra being an ocean species is a very interesting take

Seraphim getting more development

Gaia and Hecate looked amazing

Problems with the Season:

Okay, a gripe I had with season 2 was Hades motive, and let me be clear I love the idea of Hades wanting to ascend the throne so Persephone wouldn't have to leave for 6 months, but to have him hate being in the Underworld seems like a stretch. In the myths, Hades knew the responsibility of ruling the dead and he did it with pride. It would have made more sense to have him hate being alone in the Underworld. They could've tied into the fact that Hades was the first to be swallowed by Kronos and was in his stomach alone for who knows how long.

Along with that, the season felt disjointed, like they were focusing on the wrong things, at the wrong time, for WAY too long. There were just some scenes that took up big chunks of the episodes and they didn't need to be that long, especially scenes with Heron. I know he's "The Main Character" but if you're going to make him that then please try to make his writing interesting enough for that much time to be devoted to his plot. I know that he's lost so much but his writing honestly felt clunky, it felt like he needed different scenes to make his choices more believeable. His dialouge also seemed stiff and I don't think his voice actor helped either.

We could've had a scene where Hades is talking to or doing something with Zag and/or Meli, showing how he's a better dad than Zeus, but we never got that.

If your going to give Hera a redemption arc GIVE HER A SCENE/EPISODE WHERE SHE CHANGES! Instead, the second she shows back up she's already redeemed? Really?

So, The Demon problem is just over? I don't remember them burning the giant flesh, and on that note where did Seraphim and the Demons move the giant flesh?

Ok, let me get this straight, they could've imprisioned the Giants' bodies in Tartarus the whole time?!

Also the giant problem felt like it was resolved way too early.

They didn't really focus on the open throne idea, yes the 3 trials were to decide the next king, but they needed scenes showing who the other Olympians thought should be in charge, show that scene about Ares rallying others to his side, maybe apollo did the same, or there could’ve still some loyal to Hera.

Minor: I loved Hestia but she looked WAY too young

Minor: Why are Horses just always the ones pulling the Gods' chariots, that's boring! I know most divine chariots are pulled horses in the myths, but for the love of mike be creative!

Minor: The giants guarding the hidden realm looked way to human.

Minor: They kept using the forest backround when they were in Tartarus, isn't the whole place on fire? I wanted to see some lava.

Minor: The other races that showed up for the funeral should've had varying respones to Zeus' death, like Hephaestus said.

The whole Eluesian Stone plotline seemed rushed and felt like it just came out of knowhere. The show said that Zeus drawing the stone from 3 others was how he became ruler of the Heavens, but wasn't the reason in season 1 being because he married Hera who was already queen of the Heavens?

Evios and Kofi didn't really get enough scenes for their characters to really do anything.

Alexia had the same problem she kind of just went along with Heron's whole thing this season, she didn't really do much except (sorta) talk to him.

They really should've brought all of Zeus' misdeeds to the trial, Prometheus especially.

[twoidiotwriters1]

Almighty (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: This one hurt! -Danny Words: 2,178 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter // Next Chapter Listen to: 'Let The Grass Grow' -by Ruel

XVIII: This Apollo Is Not Demure nor Mindful

"Bring me the flying chariot!" Ara runs into battle. "Nyssa, Malcolm, assessment of weak points, hand over weapons—Lily, go with them and come back with a strategy! Nico, you come with me—Put that down, Harley!"

Everyone rushes to aid the Athena statue, Chiron stays on the ground while Ara and Nico climb into the chariot and fly to the automaton's head. "I'd like to point out that I work better on the ground!" Nico exclaims, clinging to the vehicle.

"You're a last resource!" Ara shouts back. "You weaken too fast nowadays, I gotta keep an eye on you—"

"I'll be fine!"

"Bomb!" Ara stretches out her palm and Nico places the item on it. She tosses it and the automaton stumbles to the side by the force of the explosion, but it's a strong design, and Ara fails to see weaknesses. This looks like it took time to make, these men had centuries to plan the perfect way to level her camp, hoping for its weakest moment, and they consider Ara's time to be just that.

Nico swears loudly. "Are those Myrmekes?" He squints. "Carrying Apollo?"

Ara groans in dislike. "He brought Mama?"

"IMPOSTER! I AM THE REAL APOLLO! YOU'RE UGLY!" Apollo screams. The statue slams a hand against him and tosses the ant away, ripping out its wings. 

"He loves falling nowadays, doesn't he?" Ara says, ignoring for a moment that she promised not to make fun of him.

"Put me down on the ground!" Nico demands, spotting Will going to aid his father.

Ara obeys, but only because she wants to hear if Apollo has any prophecies that could be of use. The moment he sees his chariot, he climbs in it, demanding her to go back up. "What's the plan?" She asks.

"I shoot plague through the ear, you drive!"

"How is that going to kill this thing?"

"Because I want it to!"

"I don't feel confident in your plan."

"How about this..." He draws the last arrow on his quiver. "This is my last shot. Failing isn't an option."

"I like that attitude," Ara fixes her gaze on the statue.

Apollo looks down at his arrow with wide eyes. "Did you just speak to me?" He frowns. "But you're an arrow, shooting you is the whole point..." 

"Are you talking to that thing?" Ara asks in confusion. "We're on a tight schedule here, dude, you—NO!" The statue stumbles forward and smashes the pavilion under one foot. "No! That's gonna take ages to fix, you foul piece of—!"

She summons lightning and it comes down right on the statue's head. Ara has half a second to feel happy before she discovers that was a terrible idea, now the automaton is ready to go for another five rounds.

"You can't hear this arrow talking?" Apollo places the item next to her face.

Ara slaps it away. "No! Don't touch me while I'm driving!"

"What would you suggest, O Wise Missile of Dodona?" Apollo brings the arrow back to his side. "My quiver is empty."

"I can give you arrows if that thing won't do it," Ara reaches for Almighty and clicks on it twice, the weight of her quiver making itself present. "Hurry, Apollo, this thing is walking to the cabins!"

The former god grabs one and stares at it, then speaks in a choked voice. "I can't!"

Ara glares at him. "Apollo!"

"I forgot the enchantment! Did Michael ever—"

"No, he thought I would abuse those tricks!" Ara makes a face. "He didn't think highly of me when it came to weaponry and magic tricks, now that I think about it. Perhaps he knew what he was doing when he nicknamed me Beast..."

Apollo looks like he wants to dive deeper into that statement, but then his eyes widen and he yells at the arrow on his quiver. "The enchantment does not start plaguey, plaguey, plaguey!"

"Can't you just sing like in the nest? About sickness and plagues and..." Ara pauses, coming up with a new plan. "Music! You told Harley automatons are sensitive to some waves or whatever, right? I can stun it!" She points at the box between her feet. "Sonic bombs! That can slow it down!" 

Apollo grabs one. "Cover your ears!"

Luckily they're high enough that the campers won't get the full blast of it. Ara pulls Apollo down after he tosses it, the chariot swerves impulsed by the soundwave and Ara struggles to keep it from toppling. The statue vibrates and stays still for five full seconds. Ara nudges Apollo excitedly. "It works! Now we just need to keep it coming..." She has two sonic bombs left, she'll need something else to slow it down.

"Hey, Bronze Butt!" A voice causes her to see in brighter colors: Percy's here. Her brother and Mrs O'Leary land on the statue's head, but the hellhound freaks out and pees over it. Percy slides off without seeing and falls flat on the liquid. "What the—Mrs. O'Leary, jeez!"

"Nemo!" Ara calls, reaching to pull him into the chariot.

Percy jumps and holds onto her, Ara gawks at the pee that he smears on her hand. "All right, who unleashed the giant bronze guy?" Her brother grunts. "Apollo, did you do this?"

"I am offended! I am only indirectly responsible for this! Also, I have a plan to fix it." 

"Oh, yeah? How's that going?"

"Listen, if you're gonna be insolent at least do it while keeping this thing away from the cabins!" Ara says. "Mrs O'Leary, out of the way!"

"Are you wearing a flower crown?" Percy squints while their dog shadow travels away. "Are those growing out of your head?"

"Percy!" She urges him.

He extends a hand and calls for the sea. "Hey, Bronze Butt! You stink! Take a shower!"

Ara tosses the second sonic bomb and the boys duck, then Percy wraps the statue in a whirl of seawater and drags it closer to the beach. "Well?" He looks at Apollo. "Start helping!"

Ara sees her campers running after them, shouting and tossing all kinds of stuff at the giant Apollo while careful not to get stepped on. Lester whispers behind them frantically, and Ara can feel the power emanating from him, tickling her neck. 

"Get me next to its ear!" He exclaims suddenly.

Ara takes a sharp turn that almost causes Percy to fall over. "Watch it!" He rasps.

"Stop fighting! Don't breathe!" Apollo shouts his commands anxiously one after the other.

Percy seems less than happy, every time he's close to Apollo his oxygen privileges get revoked way too frequently. "Shoot it at three!" Ara grabs the last sonic bomb. "One... Two..." Apollo tenses the arrow on his bow and Ara tosses the bomb, which explodes and stuns the automaton one last time. She waits for a second and then screams. "THREE!"

Apollo shoots and Percy drags the statue into the sea, sinking it further into the sand to make sure it can't move once it recovers. Apollo's arrow cutting through the wind is one of the most beautiful things Ara's ever heard, and the sight of it falling straight into the Colossus's ear is just as great.

"Scatter!" She shouts at the demigods below.

The girl hadn't noticed before, but the statue's nostrils are sealed. Once, Leo told her that if a person tried to hold their nose and keep their eyes open while sneezing, they were likely to pop their eyeballs right out. Now she gets to see that on a large demonstration dummy. 

The statue sneezes making a noise almost as horrid as her sonic bombs, his ears pop off just like the top of its head, and they get gallons and gallons of oil over them. "Eurgh!" Percy recoils in the chariot. "Man, this sucks!"

"Take us down, General..." Apollo slips sideways.

Ara lands the chariot where Will, Austin, and Kayla are. They quickly gather around their father to bring him back, Percy slips out of the chariot, and Ara drives the thing a bit further away to make sure the statue doesn't flatten it. The Colossus sneezes again, and Ara runs up to the crowd. "So is that thing dying soon, or...?"

"It's just hay fever, I think," Apollo sighs tiredly. "The best I could do in this punny, weak excuse for a teenage body I'm stuck in."

"You're alright," Ara nudges his shoulder and lowers her voice. "Make an offering."

"What?" Apollo frowns. 

"The statue. Offer it to your dad as proof of your good deed."

"But I barely did anything!"

"Lester," Ara orders. "Do it."

"Oh, mighty Zeus! King of Olympus!" Apollo speaks loud and clear. "Please take this statue as proof of my full commitment to right my wrongs!"

"Good luck fitting that in your backyard, McQueen..." Ara mutters with satisfaction.

The statue sneezes a third time, toppling backward and landing on the water. As soon as it touches the surface, it turns into gold and white foam until it disappears.

It takes an hour to get rid of the oil, the hyacinths are still stuck on her head, but the roots feel weaker. Once that's done, Ara goes out to evaluate the damages done to her camp. The docks will need to be rebuilt, the pavilion too, and the barriers need to be put back up again.

Percy and Lily are with her, helping where they can. Ara's octopus was returned, Meg gave it back to Apollo before disappearing into the woods because she didn't want Ara to think she was a thief, which of course, only made Ara feel even worse about everything.

Percy decides to stay the night, so now he's chatting with Ara on the Big House's porch a few minutes before curfew. Ara tells him everything and he listens in silence, though his expression grows concerned. 

"Ara, if that's all true then..."

The girl leans on the woodrail and sighs. "Apollo got a prophecy," she says carefully. "I don't know if Apollo... if Lester is my obligation, but..."

"But you're going to help him," Percy says knowingly. "It will be tough, Ara. It's not just one thing to recover, one bad guy to keep an eye on. We're talking about three oracles and three emperors who, by the sound of it, are monsters."

She speaks quietly. "Nero called New York his city, and that felt gross, Percy. My campers, and demigods we don't even know, they're all at risk of ending up on his side of town, and the only way to take them down is by retrieving the oracles—by turning Lester back into a god. Meg is out there and she's..." Ara's voice fails her. "She needs me."

"We all do," he says, though he doesn't sound angry, just tired. "Estelle too."

She knows that. And she knows no one will be glad to see her go, and she knows that if Leo comes back and she isn't here, he'll be upset. She can't afford to dwell on it anyway. Ara is the daughter of Olympus, and if there's ever been a quest that concerns her, this is it. 

She's used to this, ripping off the bandaid, being the detached character that goes where she's needed. It requires a level of control over emotions not many have, but she's always been good at numbing out her despair. She excels at pretending the thought of dying has never crossed her mind when in reality she thinks of it at least five times a day.

Ara heaves a sigh. "There is nothing you can say that will keep me from going, Percy."

"I know I can't stop you. Not even our parents can't stop you. I mean, when I showed up without you Mom didn't even look surprised. Paul asked a few questions, but we all knew this was coming. Things can't be normal when one of us is the daughter of Olympus, that doesn't mean it doesn't suck."

Ara slides down and sits on the floor, her back against the railing. "If it were just Apollo..."

"But it's never about the gods, is it?" Percy sits beside her. "There is no one else that cares about demigods more than you do... And that's great Ara, but it comes at too high of a price."

"I know you think I wasn't aware of it when I became a General, but I knew," she rubs her forehead wearily. "The thing is, when you grow up like I did, abandoned, then overlooked, until you're finally given something precious, you do anything to keep it safe. Anything. I can live with all of you resenting me for leaving, but I cannot stay and watch everything die knowing I could've made a difference."

"I think you're a little Atlas," Percy says, eyes misty. "But like, a good kind. One that takes the weight of things without complaining."

"I complain all the time," she laughs dryly.

"You barely complain," he insists, placing an arm on her shoulders and pulling her closer. 

Ara gulps down the lump in her throat. "I keep having this feeling... like this will be my last big quest."

The boy buries his nose in her hair, the smell of hyacinths strong and exquisite, but it makes him think of a corpse beautifully decorated, and he has to push back a shiver. "You... you can do it. Look at all you did this week and with almost no help!"

"Apollo helped..." At her brother's silence, she sighs. "Yeah, almost no help."

Next Chapter –>

Taglist.

@siriuslysirius1107 @ask-giggles1303 @im-planning-something-look @bandshirts-andbooks @coolninjapaper @thewaterlily @whenisthefall @1randomcomic @you-bloody-shank @sunflowergraves @owlalex44 @taylordaughter @typicalsolangelolover @writingmia @espressopatronum454 @slytherinnqueen @orbitingpolaris @obxstiles @ellipsisspelled @thepixiechicksh @ebony-reine-vibes

[arrowheadedbitch]

Tell me about your fics

Oh damn, where to start

You didn't say which fic so I guess I should talk about all of them??? Strap in ig

Okay so right now I'm writing a fic about something I call my seer to godhood au were Ethan will eventually become a god

Right now I'm at the part where he meets Athena, he won't be a god for a while

It's called "Seer? That's all you think you are?" But the Google doc I write it in is called seer is God is for some reason I dunno

Another fic of mine is my meta Tim fic, it's an au where Tim Drake has been a metahuman the whole time and is hiding it

It's called "Meta: a prefix meaning to change or transform"

Another fic of mine is my dragon Tim au where Tim Drake has been a dragon disguised as a human this whole time

It's called uh something it definitely has a name

Uhhhh "fly high or not at all"

I also have one called "The best of friends and the worst of enemies" it's a one shot that is my only hazbin hotel fic

It's a oneshot about an au where Vox and Alastor are secretly best friends and they keep up the persona of enemies in public for the laughs

I also write the SS Pineapple series, there's three of them as of right now, "SS Pineapple" "SS Pineapple 2 the pineappling" and "SS Pineapple 3 electric boogalee" all of which are about Psych where Shawn Spencer is a good artist and yeah

Then we have another Psych fic that is a collab with @j-snapdragon where Jules and Lassie go missing and Shawn and Gus have to find them, it's a case fic with a Shawn reveal

The last fic is a collab with my lovely girlfriend, @mac-cheez called "Chemistry" about hermes and apollo talking in the sun chariot, it is very much hermapollo, they're gay I don't make the rules

And that's all of them! I hope this is what you wanted, if anyone wants to know more about a specific fic just let me know and I'll tell you whatever I can think of ♡♡

[apollosgiftofprophecy]

Hello, I'm a new reader of your fics and found you through AO3, after reading your fic where Apollo n Poseidon are punished with mortality and King idk how to spell his name was talking about getting his daughter married made me wonder about how Greek Marriages and Courtships work/how they were performed and the actual marital rites ofc

Love your work, looking forward to your response •u•

Okay okay, so this requires a lot of know-how and I most definitely don't know everything so this is what I know:

Courtships differed from city-state to city-state. But overall I think they all shared one common factor - a courting gift. Courting gifts were used to basically show off a guy's status in the world, and the better the gift the better chance he had at winning the marriage.

This is actually exemplified in the myth of Cassandra and Apollo! Apollo's courting gift was the gift of prophecy, which Cassandra accepted, ergo confirming their courtship (their relationship was also considered to be a type of marriage btw! Cassandra would have been one of Apollo's 'wives', like the Pythia (essentially married to her job aka Apollo), Cyrene (was literally married to him; eloped with him), or the Muses (his immortal companions) even though they weren't like. married married. they weren't married like Zeus & Hera are, or Hades & Persephone. it was a symbolic one, or even an emotionally-bonded one.

So big gift = better chance at winning her hand. cool.

NOW I WOULD LIKE TO INTERRUPT OUR BROADCAST ON ANCIENT GREECE AND TURN OUR ATTENTION TO COURTSHIPS IN THE MYTHS :D

I've already discussed Apollo&Cassandra, but there are plenty more courtships going on.

Admetus & Alcestis, for one! Odysseus & Penelope! Admetus and Odysseus both had to complete a set task to be seen as "worthy" of marrying their respective wives.

For Admetus, it was yoking a bull and lion to a chariot and riding it into Alcestis's dad's kingdom (which he did with Apollo wingmanning him bless their souls) and for Odysseus, he completed various physical exercises (like a race) and won!

So I guess the overarching message about Greek courting/marriage rituals is the guy has to prove how much of a rich badass he is, and if he can't show off his wealth (like Odysseus), he's gotta make up for it with EXTRA badassness.

As for the marriage itself, it also depended on the region. And it's A Lot so I would recommend skimming this wikipedia article on it and then looking deeper into various other websites - just looked it up, and there are quite a few. I would nail down the main similarities between them as the Facts and the extra info as Potential Facts (my usual method of research - and if the info in corroborated in an informative source, then it is also Fact)

I also see you mentioned Proclia and Laomedon, and what he would have had to do for her marriage. I did find this website on Anatolian marriage customs (since they are in Anatolia and not Greece), but I don't know how reliable it is. If there's anybody out there who knows more, shoot it at me! :D

And thank you anon! :D I promise I have more in store, just working on getting the next couple Hunger Games AU chapters done before moving on to the Delphic fic! :D

[casskeeps]

the wedding of peleus and thetis - dinos by sophilos

basic facts

date - c580-570 bce

style - early black figure

original location - ever so sorry but i have no clue we just know it was made in attica

function - dinos - mixing water and wine

size - 28.8cm tall, 42cm wide/deep

context

similar to perseus and the gorgons ! we're in attica, moving away from the corinthian tradition of decorating using rows of animal processions and floral patterns, and starting to prioritise the attic preferences of narratives - this pot shows the wedding of peleus and thetis! if these guys seem familiar, they should - thetis was a goddess of the sea and the mother of achilles ! it's also good to remember that this wedding is where eris brought the golden apple to start some divine infighting (and also the trojan war).

we know that this pot was painted by sophilos, because he signed the pot - this is the earliest attic potter that we can actually name! he signed "sophilos painted me" between the columns of peleus' house (not in english though !! ancient greeks did not speak modern english).

content

friezes of processing animals - again, we have some corinthian influence with the filling of space done by repeating figures of processing animals. these are less carefully done - the shapes are not quite as regular

floral pattern and animals - he's just not serving as much cunt as the gorgon painter - his floral pattern is less intricate than the one on the perseus+gorgons dinos

narrative frieze - LONG ASS PROCESSION - this shit is SO LONG it goes on forever and ever and ages. lots of gods and godly figures, some chariots.

then we have a cute lil repeating band at the top ! just to finish off the pot - this is also done a little bit haphazardly and there are a few inconsistencies with the incision

list of names to try to remember (as per the british museum):

peleus

dionysos, hebe, cheiron

zeus + hera

poseidon + amphitrite

hermes + apollo

ares + aphrodite

fates + graces + muses

athene + artemis

oceanus + tethys

eileithyia

hephaistos

stylistic features

the procession of gods

there are so many labels - this guy could write and wanted EVERYONE to know

as well as the labels, there is some use of item symbolism to demonstrate which person is which - peleus has a kantharos in his hand, dionysos is carrying a vine rod, etc. however, i'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that the easiest to recognise is cheiron because he has four whole legs (i HATE THEM why does he have two human legs and two horse legs)

hebe is SERVING. she's got the cutest dress ever which is a microcosm of the whole pot with its bands

we do have a little bit of attempt to show 3d concepts - some of the figures overlap, whereas others are in isolation. this adds a bit of variation to the very long line created by the procession

black-figure technique/era - specific points

incision has been used to create patterns and details, like the items that various characters are holding. but, as per early black figure, the lines are jerky and it makes telling what people are holding very difficult.

we have some painting ! there is purple paint on the robes of cheiron and dionysos, white paint on the flesh of hebe (it is important to note that white paint flakes off due to a chemical reaction with the clay !)

again, these guys have no clue what people look like under their clothes - hebe's stripy dress looks like it's still on the hanger because there is absolutely no indication that she is not flat as a board underneath it. similarly, cheiron's robe also looks very very flat. archaic artists just don't really understand how people look under their clothes (see: the sounion kouros - if i had three ribs per side and shoulderblades that were just concave lines i think i would be dead)

it's black-figure, we're going to be complaining about the anatomy. we still have the profile head with the full frontal eye, but we also have very long digits - those fingers and toes are LONG and i don't want them anywhere near me.

composition

decorative friezes

there is some symmetry here - if we take the floral design in the middle as our centre point, there is symmetry in that band, but again, we have a weird disjointed feeling looking down the pot. two rows below this design, the animals have a similar line of symmetry, but the frieze between breaks this vertical line

lots of emphasis on the horizontals - there are a few straight horizonal lines painted, maybe as a guide for the designs, maybe as a conscious decision - the one below the narrative frieze does act as a floor, so that one gets a pass from me

narrative frieze

the use of a procession is so good for a dinos bc it's a long ass space to fill, so what better to fill it in with than a long ass line ?

another time to remind you of hebe's dress - a mini version of the whole pot

lots of repeating shapes due to the monotony of the procession - you might be able to argue that the inverted "v" shape of the legs acts as a jagged-tooth pattern to draw the eye to the labels and heads.

scholarly references

"for the first time we see a long multifigure frieze ... devoted to a single major theme" - boardman

sophilos "liked the written word and made abundant use of it" - woodford

"conventionally and rather carelessly" - woodford

"ambitious, lively, but rarely precise" - boardman

final thoughts !!

i do not love this pot - i think it's clear that his intention was to portray the scene instead of decorating the pot for the sake of aesthetics. i would make a snarky comment about how he had to label the gods because he wasn't good enough at depicting them to make them identifiable but that is not the point of this - instead i will place more emphasis on the fact that it's cool we have written words on this pot.