Chapter 35 - Never From Your Enemies

Percy stared down over the rails of the Argo II, watching the Tyrrhenian Sea roll past beneath the ship.

It had been several days since Annabeth and Luke had fallen into Tartarus. In that time, the demigods had left Rome by heading west across Italy, their priority to get away from the earth and above the sea where Percy could theoretically keep them safe.

It was easier said than done.

There had been no end to the attacks that had plagued the crew down the coast of western Italy and towards the strait between Italy and Sicily, and multiple times there had been an alert on Leo's scanner that something was flying around them, only for nothing to be visible. Percy, being the son of Poseidon, had been relied on to act as an early alarm in the event of any sea monsters that may wish to try their luck. Him and Jason had been taking shifts depending on whether the Argo II was in the sky or on the sea, so while Percy was half-awake Jason would be currently snoring away beneath the deck.

Percy doubted even a monster attack would wake him at this point.

"Hey."

Percy grimaced. "Hey, Nico," he greeted. The son of Hades was starting to recover from his captivity. He no longer looked like he had both feet in his grave, but more like death warmed over. Of course, the constant switching between the sea and the sky didn't help him or Hazel in the slightest. Both children of the Underworld had spent half the time crouched over a toilet.

Nico was hunched over, as if to protect himself from the sea breeze that swept over the deck. Spray occasionally splattered the deck. The small droplets kept Percy semi-alert, but Nico was glowering at the sea as if he could terrify it into submission.

"It's the Fourth of July today," Percy said, as if that was a good conversation starter. But he was honestly fed up with the looming apocalypse, he wanted to talk about something else – Hades, he'd put up with Nico's rants about Mythomagic at this point.

Nico's eyes furrowed. "Independence day. You realise Italy doesn't actually celebrate Independence day? It's only you Americans that actually celebrate that."

Percy huffed. "Does that matter?" His eyes furrowed, considering what his mother and Paul would be doing back in Manhattan. As much as he hoped they'd be celebrating, he couldn't help but think that was unlikely. More likely his mother would be worried out of her mind for him, unable to put aside that message he'd left for her when going to Alaska. Percy swallowed. "We should find a way to celebrate," he said.

Amusement flickered in Nico's eyes. "Here? In the little of the ocean?"

"We have Greek fire," Percy said. "I'm sure Leo could rig up some fireworks for us." He raised his voice. "Hey – Hazel, Leo – what do you two think about having some Independence Day celebrations?"

Leo grinned. "Fireworks?"

"Absolutely," Percy agreed.

"The others need to sleep," Hazel protested, but she didn't seem like the idea was completely terrible.

"We'll do it quietly," Percy said. "Leo?"

"I'm sure I can get something."

Percy grinned. He needed something to forget everything. Forget the end of the world, forget his friends whom were falling into Tartarus, forget his concerns about Kronos.

Of course, the entire Greek world was out to get them at this point. It seemed even a few minutes of fun were out of the question.

Percy paused, turning his head to the side. Something… he wasn't quite sure what, only that something had apparently realised that there was a Greek trireme sailing overhead. "Wait," he said, holding up a hand. The other demigods stilled, turning expectantly towards the son of Poseidon. Whatever it was, it was hurtling towards them at startling speeds, propelled by what seemed to be jet propulsion.

"There's something down there," Percy said. "A… I think it's a squid?"

Nico's eyes furrowed. "A squid…?" He cast an uneasy glance into the sea next to them.

"Leo-"

"Already on it," Leo said, cutting across Percy as he started the command sequence to raise the Argo II into the sky.

Unfortunately, the apparent squid had obviously been waiting for them. Percy tried to push it back using the force of the ocean, but it rebuffed his attempts with ease, the water instead propelling it faster. How…?

The squid rocketed into the side of the Argo, latching onto the hull with eight giant suckers. The Argo II groaned and teetered to the side and Percy swore, grabbing onto the rails to keep himself steady.

"Percy?" Nico demanded, his tone sharp.

"It's controlling the water," Percy said in disbelief. He tried to grasp the ocean around it, intending to simply crush the squid and call it over, but his control slid away. It was like trying to grab an oil slick between his fingers, and it seemed horribly familiar. He'd felt something like this before, but where?

"What is it?" Leo yelled, sounding furious that that squid was daring to attack their trireme.

"I don't know," Percy groaned. It was moments like these when Percy used to rely on Annabeth to help him. "Giant squid – I've heard of something before."

"Crios."

"Krios?" Percy asked, baffled. "He's a Titan – not a squid."

"Not with a 'K'," Hazel said. "With a 'C'. He was a giant crab. During the time when Typhon stormed Olympus-"

The trireme shuddered again and Percy realised that the squid was trying to rip the hull away from the ship, maybe to get at the Athena Parthenos squashed into the stables.

"He was trusted to guard Poseidon's daughters, but some of them ran off. So he asked the Vamari – the vampire squid – to find them. Vamari did, but-" Hazel yelped, having to latch onto the railing to keep herself from toppling overboard at the squid jerked the trireme again.

"Let me guess," Percy said. "He killed them."

"Ate them, actually," Hazel said.

Leo paled. "Great. I don't want to be eaten."

Percy's eyes furrowed. He remembered the story, but the presence that rebuffed his powers with ease, that wasn't Vamari. It was similar to the powers of his father, but darker. If Poseidon was the surface of the ocean when it was calm, this presence would be the dark, unfathomable depths of the deepest abyssal plains that held monsters and creatures far older than even the god of the sea.

The son of Poseidon shuddered. There was only one option: Oceanus. He, of course, remembered that moment under the sea after the explosion of the Princess Andromeda, when he'd seen the Titan from a the Titan of the Ocean would be able to bless a creature such as Vamari so that it could shove off Percy's attempts at controlling the ocean.

"Oceanus has blessed it," Percy said to the others. "I can't kill it." He tightened his hands on the railings. "I can't do anything." He couldn't help them.

"Nico, get Jason?" Hazel said. "We need him."

Nico nodded, stumbling down towards the bedrooms as the trireme shuddered again.

Percy tried to grab the water, tried to blast the squid to get its attention, but it seemed mindlessly focused on getting through the hull towards Athena's statue. His gaze landed on a jar of Greek fire and Percy snatched it up, hoping that it would do some damage. He bolted towards the portside, being able to sense where the squid was trying to get through, and let the jar drop into the ocean. Fortunately, the squid didn't pay any attention to the jar. Being several dozen feet in length it likely didn't consider the small object to be of any concern.

Percy jetted the jar straight into the Vamari's eye. Immediately, the vampire squid released the trireme with a shudder and an ear-splitting screech. The monster lurched around with startling speed, but otherwise didn't seem fazed by the Greek fire licking along its side.

Percy swore.

The Vamari's giant eye locked onto Percy's. It's tentacles propelled it through the ocean, heading straight towards Percy.

The sky ripped apart, the brilliant flash nearly blinding Percy as a lightning bolt landed on top of the monster. Percy blinked the spots out of his eyes, letting out a short breath as he spotted the monster dust floating on the surface of the ocean. Wordlessly, his spread out his fingers to disperse the golden specks and send them far and wide in the hope of stopping the monster from reforming.

Oceanus' presence was gone.

He turned to face Jason, the son of Jupiter standing behind him. "Thanks," he said.

Jason nodded. "No worries, bro," he said. He looked Percy over with a faint frown, probably seeing the weariness that he was trying to hide from the others. Seeing the shadows in his expression that grew darker with every day that passed. "Why don't you go get some sleep, since I'm up? I've had a good few hours."

"But-"

"He's right, Percy," Nico added. "You look like you could do with some sleep."

Percy sighed and nodded. "Right," he agreed. "Fine."

Jason nodded, looking rather relieved. "Good. Leo, get us in the sky would you?"

The son of Hephaestus huffed. "That's what I've been trying to do for the past ten minutes."

Percy disappeared below decks, heading straight into his room. The trireme shook with an impact around them, but he paid it no mind – Jason was protecting the ship now. The demigod groaned, dropping down onto his bed.

Now alone, his thoughts lingered on Annabeth and Luke. He hoped they were still alive, hoped that the other alpha was keeping a close eye on Annabeth and keeping her safe. If there was even such a thing in Tartarus.

He hadn't been able to save them, couldn't save them from where he was, and now he couldn't even keep the trireme safe in the ocean. Percy was such a colossal failure that he couldn't even get good grades in school, how did the gods expect him to save the world? How did they expect a group of meagre demigods to defeat Gaea of all beings?

Alone in his musings, Percy stilled when he caught the shadow in his peripheral. He whirled around, uncapping Riptide as he did and pointing the blade at the hulking figure in his doorway. "Kronos," Percy said in surprise, jerking upright as he gaped at the winged immortal standing at the entrance to his room.

Kronos' lips twitched. "Percy," he greeted.

"You're back," Percy breathed, inching closer, prior thoughts immediately forgotten. A smile flickered across his lips.

Kronos quirked an eyebrow. "Yes. Not for long though."

He eyed Riptide and Percy flushed, pressing the pen cap to the point and shrinking the sword back down. "Sorry," Percy apologised. "I wasn't expecting company." Least of all you.

The Titan Lord shrugged. "Neither was I."

Considering how they'd last parted, Percy hadn't been expecting to see him for a while. Or maybe he was just hoping that Kronos would lay low for the rest of the war, disappear then re-emerge later with that crooked grin of his. "Hey, what I said-"

"Don't," Kronos said. He stepped into the room, shutting the door behind him. "It's forgiven."

Percy's lips twitched. "Gods, I've missed you." The Titan Lord hummed. Percy didn't stop to think, watching as the Titan sidled closer towards him. The wings shimmered and faded away, probably so they stopped brushing against the ceiling. "I'm sorry, I don't – don't leave?" He asked, lacing their hands together to moment Kronos was within touching distance. "Please?" Percy murmured. The Titan was watching him, barely a hint of emotion showing. That hollow ache in his chest was smoothing over, cooling and healing and Percy allowed himself to relax now that his omega was back with him.

He tugged Kronos closer, the Titan immediately closing the remaining distance between them with a need that nearly took Percy's breath away. Of course, the impact caused Percy to stumble back and he ended up falling backwards onto the bed.

Percy grinned. "Gods, Kronos-" Percy rolled them over, determined to reunite in the only way alpha and omega should. Kronos shuddered as the alpha's lips fell to his neck, and Percy tugged at his clothes. "Take them off," he said. There was a golden shimmer, then both of their clothes were simply gone.

It felt like an eternity later that Percy was sliding between Kronos' legs, the omega whimpering softly. Percy rested his forehead against Kronos' as he bottomed out, groaning and shuddering. He set a slow and steady rhythm, determined to last long enough that Kronos would at least get something out of it. Their lips brushed together, briefly partly before rejoining.

Eyes shut as Percy tried to control himself, aware that the two hadn't been joined at the hip for weeks at the least, the demigod felt only a pinch in his stomach at first. Focused on other feelings, he wasn't aware initially of what had happened.

His eyes opened, furrowed. Kronos stared up at him, a small flicker of guilt in his eyes. "Sorry, Percy," the Titan Lord said.

And a raw, burning inferno erupted in Percy's abdomen.

A short breath later, Kronos was hovering over him, one hand clamped firmly over his mouth.

Percy reacted on pure instinct, the plumbing shattering with the pained yell that was stuck in his throat. One wall crumpled, collapsing inwards as a jet of water rocketed across the room to slam into Kronos' side – Percy only thinking get off – and throwing the Titan into the other wall.

The demigod only had time to glance at the dagger buried in his abdomen, a pained scream finally tearing from his throat, before Kronos was hovering back over him. Eyes near-feral with an unmatched fury, Kronos covered his mouth again even as he thrust that dagger further into the mortal's abdomen.

Percy tried to stop him, but no mortal has never been a match for a Titan. Kronos brushed aside his hands with ease, pinning them over his head and out of the way with one hand. With the other, he released Percy's mouth and jerked the dagger out of Percy's abdomen, pausing briefly to watch the glistening blood that splattered over the bed.

"Kronos…?" Percy whispered between screams, unable to muster up the disbelief and anger that he wanted to. "Why…?" Maybe he shouldn't have been so surprised, so horrified, but the only thing he could think was why? why would the omega do this, how could he?

Kronos shifted, glancing down at the blood that was now also splattering over him. He hunched over Percy, smiling. "Why not?" He asked in return, cocking his head to the side. The Titan rested his forehead against Percy's, a gesture which before had relaxed Percy now sending his blood to boil. "Porphyrion wishes to meet you. Face-to-face." Kronos shrugged, an odd look in his eyes that Percy found he hated. "So I thought I'd bring you to him."

That hollow ache was back with a vengeance. Maybe everyone's right, Percy thought as his vision darkened at the edges. Maybe we shouldn't have trusted him.

The worst part about betrayal is it never comes from your enemies.

I hope this was still a surprise for all of you. This was actually one of the first scenes that I started planning for this fanfic, and it's not perfect, but it's not terrible either. But you know, Kronos will be Kronos. What can you do?

booklover: Thanks, here's the real cliffhanger xD. In TTC it's mentioned that immortals can't just challenge anyone, but mortals can 'as long as he has the nerve' or something similar. I don't really have any update dates, it's just kind of whenever I have the time. And yeah, Kronos really hates people trying to tell him what to do.I think Sally will regret being so nice to Kronos now though. Ah... the heat. It's fun (not). It's kind of difficult to explain.

Terrorisk123: Ha, thanks.

ghostfall: Oh, I'd think that Luke's perfectly safe down there xD. Was? When did I ever say that Luke had changed?