16. Revealed Secrets

Artemis POV

My father has made a lot of good decisions lately. He had made both camps a demigod paradise and now ruled over Olympus like the right and just ruler he is supposed to be. Only recently did he decide to appoint a male into my Hunt.

I have to admit that it was one of the best decision he had ever made.

Percy Jackson is different, to say the least. He is not like the males I have grown to hate in all my millennia of immortal life. I had brought up girls in my hunt that were used or abused by the pigs that call themselves men. It was quite a pleasant change.

When I met Percy Jackson for the first time all those years ago in Maine, I didn't know what to think of him. He seemed alright at first, not disrespecting me or my Hunters and keeping a respectful distance away from them. When I was trapped under the sky, I had thought that I would never get out from under there. Nobody would willingly take the sky from me and I was prepared to spend eternity under the burden.

Turns out I was wrong.

A fourteen-year-old Percy Jackson decided to fight Atlas, the General of the Titan army and one of their best fighters. Obviously, he stood no chance against the Titan but he did something that still surprises me to this day.

He accepted defeat, no small feat for anyone, especially a man. He accepted that he could not beat Atlas and instead, demanded that he take the sky from me just so I could fight in his place, knowing full well that he might die under the strain.

I had managed to put Atlas back under the sky, of course, but not without a price. The best Hunter I have ever had, Zoë Nightshade, had given her life to save both me and Percy. She had said that Percy Jackson was not like the other males out there and that was when I started looking at him at a different perspective.

Now that he was a lot older, I had expected him to change during his time alone in Alaska. But the only thing that changed was his power level. He had gotten a lot more attuned with his water powers and he could do things that weren't meant to be possible but his personality is still the same. He is respectful, humble and kind, and those are just a few of the words that can be used to describe him.

Percy had brought a positive influence into the Hunt. Even though he is a male, my Hunters took his company really well. He doesn't try and force himself onto them and keeps his distance if they feel uncomfortable around him. He makes us laugh and keeps us in a good mood all the time.

Not to mention his amazing cooking.

Even though my Hunters had avoided him for a long time after he revealed one of his deadlier powers, he still stayed with us. If he hadn't, I wouldn't have my Hunters anymore and I would be painfully reforming in Tartarus.

It was the day after the third attack and the Hunt was warming up to Percy again. It was nice to see he was no longer avoided and was finally able to talk to my Hunters without any problems. The girls really liked the water travelling thing he did, too. I tried it as well but I would prefer normal teleportation any day.

I left my Hunters with Percy at Central Park before teleporting to Olympus. Zeus has called a council meeting which slightly worried me. The last time he had called a meeting was when we found out Percy Jackson was missing.

I teleported myself to the throne room to find everyone already present and in their thrones. I was the last one surprisingly.

'Good,' Zeus said nodding at me 'Now that Artemis is here, we can begin.'

I sat down on my throne quickly. I looked around the room and saw that almost everyone was confused as to why the meeting was called. Even I had no idea why my father called a council meeting in the middle of the day when most of us had duties to attend to.

Zeus started speaking but my eyes were on one council member and one council member only.

After hearing about Percy's powers, I couldn't help but wonder how he got so powerful. He could change the state of water and water travel with just as much ease as if he was Poseidon himself. And that was who I was looking at.

I could faintly hear Zeus' droning in the background but I was focused on one thing. Percy would have gotten all of his powers from his father, but there was one I have never seen Poseidon use before.

I thought about Percy's ability to simply control someone with the water in their bodies. Surely Poseidon had this power as well, right? Percy had to have gotten it from somewhere.

'Artemis!' I heard someone call out.

My head snapped to the direction of the voice and I saw Apollo looking at me concerned.

'Artemis are you okay?' he asked gently.

'Yeah, why?' I said nonchalantly.

'You were staring at Poseidon for the past five minutes,' Zeus said looking at me sceptically 'It was as if you didn't hear us at all.'

I mentally facepalmed. I shouldn't have been that lost in my thoughts. I turned to Poseidon to see him looking at me questioningly.

Is there something you wish to speak to me about, niece? I heard him ask in my mind.

I nodded, Stay behind after the meeting.

Poseidon nodded back as I turned back towards my father, 'Sorry, father. Just thinking. What were you saying again?'

Snickers arose from some of the Olympians but I ignored them.

'As I was saying,' my father sighed 'I believe there is something about to happen.'

The laughter in the room immediately stopped at those words. Based on the expression on Zeus' face, that 'something' isn't good.

'What is going to happen, father.' Athena asked worriedly.

My father sighed and leaned back on his throne, 'I believe another being has...declared war on us.'

There was a brief moment of silence for everyone to process the information before the rest of us started calling out in disbelief.

As my relatives argued and protested, I sat on my throne thinking about what my father had just said. It now made sense why my Hunt was attacked. Not once, not twice, but three times. They were trying to remove us from the playing field.

Thank the gods that Percy had been there all three times.

After a few minutes of headache-inducing shouting, Zeus raised his master bolt and shot it into the air, making a throne room shake with a loud boom.

'Silence!' Zeus shouted, causing everyone to immediately shut their mouths 'I did not tell you this just so you can deny it!'

I watched as almost everyone slouched in their thrones. They didn't want another war. I didn't either. Another war would mean guaranteed casualties and the other Olympians had gotten close to their children over the past four years. A parent would never want to lose their children.

'And what proof do you have?' Ares spoke up, surprising a lot of us council members. It was unusual for Ares to ask for proof regarding a war. He was the God of War after all and he did try to start one by framing Hades a while ago.

Zeus nodded at my half-brother, 'There have been sightings of larger monster gatherings, hellhounds in particular. And from what Artemis told me, the monster attacks are more coordinated.' he said looking at me.

I nodded, 'The monsters had planned their attacks on my Hunters. They were highly cooperative with each other and actually used tactics that would have worked if not for Percy.'

Poseidon smiled at the mention of his son but I continued, 'Only yesterday did they use a plan that I have never seen them use before.'

'And what plan did they use?' my sister Athena asked. She was always one for plans, even if it was from the enemy side.

'The monsters had caught me in a Celestial bronze net,' I winced. Celestial Bronze nets were highly effective against us gods. They interfered with our power and kept us contained until someone let us out from outside.

'A Celestial Bronze net?' Hephaestus asked with raised eyebrows. He was a master at catching gods in nets.

'Yes, and that's not all,' I shook my head 'My Hunters would have killed the monsters but they threatened to kill me if they tried anything. They used me to subdue my Hunters and tie them up.'

Athena looked surprised, 'That...is a surprisingly good plan. Use someone as leverage to get to someone else. Impressive.'

'And how did you get out?' my father asked worriedly. I was not his only daughter in the Hunt.

I smiled and said one word, 'Percy.'

'And how was he able to do anything with you in the monsters' custody?' Apollo asked concerned. Sure, we annoyed each other but we still cared for each other. Percy was also his favourite demigod other than his children.

'He actually wasn't around during the attack,' I replied 'He went out to do...something.'

'And how did he kill the monsters?' Athena asked 'How many were there?'

'About 200,' I said, causing a lot of eyebrows to go up 'He killed them using his powers.'

I said that looking straight at Poseidon, hoping he would get my really subtle message. Unfortunately, he didn't. Instead, he just looked impressed.

'That is impressive,' Poseidon mused 'He must have grown really powerful indeed.'

You have no idea, I said in my mind.

'Do you know who our enemy is?' Demeter, surprisingly, asked.

'We are not sure,' Zeus said nervously 'But what we do know is that they are powerful.'

That caused nervousness to ripple among the assembled Olympians. We didn't want another powerful enemy to fight against. Were the Lord of Time and the Earth itself not enough?

'But father, that is not the most concerning part,' I said remembering what the monsters had said 'It seems that they were targeting Thalia. They had wanted to kill her and had almost succeeded if Percy had not reached her in time.'

My father's face instantly turned stormy at the mention of the monsters' selective targeting. Zeus had grown a lot closer to Thalia since Percy made that wish and he really cares for her. Even Hera was slightly worried. She had hated all of Zeus' children that were not her own at first, including Apollo and I, but after a while, she had learned to care for and possibly even love almost all her step-children (Heracles is still a piece of schist).

'And where is Percy?' Zeus asked looking at me 'It seems that Thalia would not be here if not for him. I think I should reward him.'

I shook my head, 'As much as I like that idea, you know Percy would never accept any reward. Thalia is his family and he would do anything for family, reward or not.'

My father looked thoughtful for a while before nodding, 'Very well, daughter. I will do as you say but I still need to thank Percy. When you see him again, please give him my thanks.'

I nodded.

'Before the meeting is dismissed, I think you should bring your Hunters to Camp Half-Blood,' Zeus suggested 'I don't want you to lose your Hunt.'

Despite what he said, I could hear the underlining message. He didn't want to lose either me or Thalia. It would break him.

'Okay, father,' I responded 'I'll bring them to camp as soon as I get back.'

He nodded, 'Good. Before you all leave, make sure to keep an eye on anything that might seem suspicious and if so, report it to the council immediately. This meeting is adjourned.'

With that, he disappeared with a bolt of lightning with everyone else following closely behind. I sat on my throne and waited until the only people in the throne room were Poseidon and me.

I got up from my throne and shrunk down to human size before making my way to Poseidon who was standing in the middle of the throne room.

'So what did you want to talk about, niece?' Poseidon asked curiously.

I looked around before lowering my voice, 'Not here. Is there somewhere where we can go that is more private?'

My uncle looked confused but nodded, 'We can go to my palace in Atlantis if you want.'

I thought about it. I never liked being in the sea because of my father's rivalry with Poseidon. But now, Poseidon himself was inviting me to his palace under the ocean. I was never comfortable near the sea but it would be good since only Poseidon and his immortal family would be there. It eliminated the possibility of potential outside listeners.

'Sure, uncle,' I said finally 'I'll go to your palace, but I can't breathe underwater.'

Poseidon smiled, 'It's okay, Artemis. I'll make sure you would be alright. Hold on.'

He placed his hand on my shoulder and I felt the familiar sensation of water travelling. The one time I had tried it with Percy didn't really prepare me to do it again but at least I still had a little experience.

I reappeared in Poseidon's underwater palace for the first time and it took my breath away. And not because it was underwater.

Poseidon's palace in Olympus was beautiful of course, but it was nothing compared to Atlantis.

I remembered Poseidon's old underwater kingdom that was destroyed in the last Titan War. It had been amazing, the beautiful buildings made out of pearl, abalone shells and sea stone. This new Atlantis, the one he rebuilt after the war, rivalled even Olympus itself.

The layout of the underwater city was unique, the buildings were far enough apart as to not look too crowded but close enough together so that it did not seem too spread out. It wasn't symmetrical either, the pathways lined with glowing pearls winding all over the place but it still fit the city perfectly.

I could see Poseidon's palace in the distance. A magnificent structure that showed Poseidon was truly the ruler of the seas. It wasn't as flashy as my father's on Olympus and that was what made it look so amazing. The sea stone and abalone shells complemented each other so well it was as if it was one single material.

I could see the citizens of Atlantis float around the city, mermen and all forms of aquatic life darted all around the place, giving the city a unique feel of a different life. I could see all types of fishes and octopi and even some sharks swimming around.

I was too busy admiring the beauty of the city that I didn't even realise I was underwater. And that I was breathing.

I looked around to find my head surrounded by an air bubble. I mentally thanked Poseidon for putting up the air bubble around me.

'Beautiful, isn't it?' I heard Poseidon say from behind me 'Although I am surprised. Usually, people would throw up the first time they teleport like me.'

I frowned remembering the first time I water travelled with Percy. I had to apologise multiple times for throwing up over him. It was embarrassing.

I saw Poseidon looking at me questioningly and I looked around, 'Maybe we should go to your palace, uncle?'

Poseidon nodded and started swimming towards his palace. I followed behind him and watched as the citizens of Atlantis greeted their lord and ruler.

I couldn't help but admire the city more as we swam to Poseidon's palace. The closer we got to the palace, the more elaborate and beautiful the buildings were. The abalone shells used to make most of the building gave the water an ethereal glow, making it look more entrancing than it already was.

It was not long before we reached my uncle's palace. The entrance was grand, the tall doorless archway suiting the palace wonderfully. The interior of the palace was just as impressive. The hallways were decorated with glowing green pearls mixed with seashells embedded in the sea stone. Glassless windows lined the top of the rooms, about 100 feet to the floor we were floating above.

We arrived in the throne room where we decided to discuss what I came here to discuss. Poseidon's throne in Atlantis was completely different from the one on Olympus. Instead of being like a fishing chair, his throne in Atlantis was made out of the same sea stone as his palace, but polished to a point where it looked neater and more fit for a god.

This throne suited the Poseidon that made sea storms or capsized ships, when he was showing his more destructive side and showing everyone that he was truly the God of the Seas. This throne gave more of a godly vibe. His throne on Olympus displayed his other side, the side where he was calm and easygoing, just like the sea on a good day. It was still a godly throne but the power was more toned down.

'So, niece,' Poseidon said after he sat down on his throne 'Now that we are here, what did you want to talk about?'

I looked at Poseidon and thought about how to approach the topic. It wasn't exactly easy telling him his son had the power to easily kill any living being.

Before I could say anything, Poseidon spoke up, breaking me from my thoughts.

'Oh, I just remembered,' Poseidon said smacking his own forehead 'How is Percy? Is he doing alright in the Hunt? He hasn't been killed yet right?'

I winced involuntarily, which didn't go noticed by Poseidon.

'No, no. He is alright, uncle,' I said quickly when I realised he saw me wince 'It's just that he is why I have come to talk to you.'

'He didn't do anything, did he?' Poseidon asked seriously.

'You know him better than that, uncle,' I said shaking my head 'No, I am here to talk about his...tremendous growth in power.'

Poseidon leaned back on his throne and nodded, 'I understand, Artemis. I did sense he became more powerful when he was revealed on Olympus. He managed to stop my attack on your brother.'

I nodded. I was not the only one surprised that Percy managed to challenge his father's control over the water.

'Yes, but that is not the only thing he can do now,' I said looking him straight in the eye 'Do you remember what I said during the meeting? That Percy managed to kill all the monsters with his powers?'

When my uncle nodded, I continued, 'He did use his powers, yes, but it wasn't the usual water powers you would expect, uncle.'

Poseidon looked at me quizzically, 'What are you trying to say, niece?'

'Percy killed over 200 monsters by skewering them from behind,' I said seriously 'With spikes of ice.'

Poseidon's eyebrows shot up, 'What? Surely you must be mistaken, Artemis. None of my demigod children could control ice, not to mention make it!'

'But he willed the water to evaporate two months ago.' I countered.

He nodded, 'Yes, but making ice is a completely different story. The only way he can do it is if he trained for a very, very long time.'

I wondered what Poseidon's reaction would be when I tell him his son can water travel just like him and his...other power. He was already slightly freaking out at the mention of his son's ice-making ability.

'He did say he trained a lot in Alaska,' I continued 'Tell me, uncle, what do you call the form of teleportation that you use?'

Poseidon was deep in thought for a minute before he shook his head, 'I actually have no idea. I'm surprised that I haven't even thought of a name for it yet.'

'We call it water travelling,' I said smiling 'Do you want to know how we came across to naming it?'

My uncle looked at me confused before realisation dawned on him and his eyes widened.

'Impossible,' he muttered 'That is...that is unheard of! My son can...he can water travel!'

'Yes, he can,' I said amusedly. I did not expect this reaction from my uncle 'And he can do a lot more.'

'What else can he do?' My uncle said excitedly. He looked like a child when his parents told him he was going to go to Disney Land.

'Well...' I really didn't want to do this. First of all, I would completely ruin his mood. Secondly, I would learn whether Poseidon truly had the ability to do what Percy can. And I don't know which one I'm dreading the most.

I took a deep breath, 'Percy can...he can control people. With the water in their bodies.'

Poseidon's smile instantly vanished, his mood dropping to a point where he looked like he was fighting in a war again.

'What?' Poseidon asked with a serious expression on his face.

'He can control the water in people's bodies.' I repeated cautiously.

I could see my uncle tense, his knuckles white from gripping the armrest of his throne.

'You must not repeat a word outside this room, do you understand?' he said coldly.

I nodded, 'I swear it on the Styx.'

When the muffled sound of thunder rumbled in the distance, Poseidon relaxed but just a little bit.

'And how did you find out about this?' he asked me.

I moistened my lips. I have never seen Poseidon act like this before and it was making me nervous.

'He told us when we asked him how he killed Python.' I answered.

Poseidon didn't even acknowledge the fact that his son killed Python and rested his head in his hands.

'I guess I could only hide this for so long,' he sighed 'I can't believe my son, a demigod son no less, has gained this ability.'

'How come I have never seen you use this power, uncle.' I asked. I genuinely needed to know the answer to that question.

'You know your father, Artemis,' Poseidon said dejectedly 'If he found out about this, he would exile me and kill all my children. I know he has changed recently but I am still scared to tell him.'

'And what about your wife?' I wondered 'And your son, Triton? Do you know if he had gained this ability as well?'

I was surprised when he shook his head.

'I don't want to find out if Triton can do this,' he replied 'And Amphitrite doesn't know. I would like to keep it that way.'

I nodded, 'Thank you for telling me, uncle. I had been wondering about this since I found out.'

Poseidon got out of his throne and held me by the shoulders at arm's length, 'Please, Artemis. Keep Percy away from this as much as you can. If he lets it take control of him, nobody is safe. I believe your Hunters would keep quiet about this?'

'I'll keep Percy safe, uncle. I swear,' I said seriously 'And my Hunters won't say a word.'

Poseidon let me go and looked at me gratefully, 'Thank the gods that it was you who found out first. I don't know what I would do if anyone else came to me.'

I smiled, 'Of course, uncle. You don't have to worry about anyone else finding out. I'll keep your secret.'

Poseidon smiled and motioned with his hand for me to leave. I really needed to get my Hunters and Percy to Camp Half-Blood. I prepared myself as Poseidon water travelled me back to the Hunt.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The trip to Camp Half-Blood was uneventful. The most interesting thing that happened was when a bird pooped on top of Thalia's head.

Putting up with the constant whining and complaining from my Hunters, we reached camp in less than a day, which was probably a new record for us.

As we approached the magical borders of the camp, I looked at Percy to see a wistful and nostalgic look on his face.

'You okay, Kelp Head?' Thalia asked poking his arm.

'Yeah, yeah, I'm fine,' he said offhandedly 'It's just that...I haven't been here in a while.'

Everyone looked at him smiling. The last time he had been at camp was the day before his birthday four years ago. Then a thought struck me.

Percy was so going to get killed when the campers find out he came back.

Unfortunately, Percy had a completely different thought in his head. I didn't even need to read his mind to know he was thinking something mischievous. Sometimes he could have the smile of a Hermes kid.

We watched confused as he reached into his pocket to take out what looked like a small container. He took off his pack and pulled out his black mask still grinning like a madman.

'What are you doing?' Thalia asked confused.

'I haven't been here in four years, Thalia,' he said as he opened the container and put on his golden contact lenses 'I was thinking we prank them before I reveal myself.'

As one, all the Hunters immediately mirrored his crazy grin. Even I couldn't help myself.

'What do you have in mind, Percy?' Thalia asked smirking.

He put on his mask and turned towards us, showing us the look he had before he revealed himself. If we didn't know it was him, he was completely unrecognisable. Even with the mask, I could still tell he was smiling.

He spoke up, his voice becoming a few octaves deeper, completely removing the last sign that the person in front of us was actually Percy Jackson.

'How good are your acting skills?'