[Third Person's PoV]
In the aftermath of the explosion, the battlefield was a scene of destruction—scorched earth, uprooted trees, and a massive crater under the darkened sky where Thalia's thunderclouds once loomed. The force of their clash had thrown both Lucian and Thalia back, but despite the intensity, they were quick to rise, each with a smile of exhilaration.
"That was so cool," Lucian remarked, a smirk playing on his lips.
Thalia laughed, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "I know, right? It's like we created a mini nuke with that attack!"
Lucian, still grinning, pointed behind her. "I hate to rain on your parade, but..."
Thalia turned around to find one of Lucian's shadow clones standing there, smugly holding her flag. Her expression shifted to one of realization and amusement.
"So, you didn't send all of them to attack me earlier. I should've been more attentive," she admitted, still buzzing with the thrill of their battle. "But honestly, I don't mind. That clash was worth it."
The shadow clone rejoined Lucian, and soon after, the war horn echoed across the battlefield, signaling the end of the war games.
Lucian regrouped with his teammates, who were dusting themselves off from the earlier blast. Hoisting the captured flags, he began to march with a triumphant chant, "Another day! Another win!"
His team, catching onto his enthusiasm, joined in, chanting along with him. "Another day, another win!"
On the losing side, groans of annoyance could be heard, but the victors paid them no mind, reveling in their success.
As they approached the flag area, Lucian spotted Percy emerging from the water, looking a bit unsteady. Lucian acknowledged him with a nod, "Good work, Percy. I saw how you held off the Ares cabin from taking our flags."
Some of the other campers noticed the drenched members of the Ares cabin and looked puzzled, until a few from the Athena and Hermes cabins chimed in.
"Yeah, Percy created this massive wave that swept everyone away from the flag—"
Before anyone could finish, the camp fell into a stunned silence. All eyes were fixed on the top of Percy's head. Chiron approached, galloping slowly, and began to bow, his actions quickly followed by the rest of the camp as they dropped their weapons and bowed as well.
Percy, utterly confused, noticed only Lucian and Thalia standing upright. Lucian pointed upward, directing Percy's gaze. When Percy looked up, his eyes widened in shock—a glowing trident symbol hovered above his head.
"Did I just get claimed by my father?" Percy muttered in disbelief.
Chiron nodded solemnly. "You've been claimed by Poseidon, the Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses… All hail Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God!"
Lucian spread his arms wide, his smile broadening. "Hahaha! Welcome to the family, cuz!"
Thalia, her hand on her hip, added with a smirk, "I guess that means we're this generation's Big Three."
As she spoke, her eyes crackled with lightning, while Lucian's eyes glowed ominously red.
Percy, feeling slightly overwhelmed, joked, "So when do I get my pair of glowing eyes?"
Chiron then stood up, and the rest of the cabin members followed suit.
"Everyone, you may now return to what you were doing!" Chiron commanded, prompting everyone to rise.
Clarisse, who was nearby, glared at Percy with disdain before scoffing and walking away with the other members of the Ares cabin. As the crowd dispersed, some campers continued to glance at Percy with awe.
Chiron turned to Lucian and Thalia. "Can I trust you two to explain everything to Percy and lead him to his new cabin? I think it'll be easier for him to understand if it comes from someone of a similar age and experience."
Both Lucian and Thalia nodded in agreement, accepting the task.
"Huh? What does he mean by that?" Percy asked, puzzled.
"Well, Percy… there's a lot to learn. Come along now," Lucian said, marching ahead smugly with the flag still draped over his shoulder. Thalia and Annabeth followed, with Annabeth leaping gracefully from above to land beside Lucian.
Percy sighed, looking down, where he noticed the broken spear. He stared at it, recalling Clarisse's anguished scream as it shattered. He bent down, picked it up, and jogged to catch up with Lucian, slipping the broken pieces into his pockets.
After removing their armor, Lucian led Percy back to the dormitory to gather his belongings. They then headed toward the third cabin—Poseidon's cabin. Percy stared at the marble structure in awe, realizing this would now be his new home. As they approached, Percy heard the sound of hooves behind him.
Turning around, he saw Grover trotting toward them. "Percy! I heard you got claimed! Congrats, buddy!"
"Uh, thanks… I'm still trying to wrap my head around it," Percy replied with an awkward smile as Grover patted his back sympathetically.
They all entered Poseidon's cabin, and Lucian immediately began, "Alright, let's start with the basics. You're a forbidden child—a child that shouldn't have been conceived."
"What?" Percy asked, shocked by Lucian's bluntness as he placed his belongings on his bed.
"But don't worry, you're not the only one. Thalia and I are forbidden children too," Lucian explained.
"I don't understand… Is it because we're children of the three major gods?" Percy asked.
"Yes and no," Lucian replied, gesturing vaguely with his hand. "Do you know about World War II?"
"Kinda… but I wasn't really paying much attention in class," Percy admitted, a bit embarrassed.
"It doesn't matter," Lucian continued. "The gist is that World War II was a war between two sides: children of your dad and Thalia's dad against children of my dad. Those important figures you see in history? They were probably demigods."
Percy's eyes widened as Lucian added, "For example… Hitler is my half-brother. Which, uh, doesn't sound great when I say it out loud."
"WHAT!?" Percy exclaimed, looking at Lucian in shock.
"Yeah, children of Hades have this thing with holding grudges—like, really holding onto them. Hitler got rejected by an art school, and, well, he caused a genocide as a consequence… But I digress," Lucian said with a shrug, as if discussing the weather.
As Lucian spoke, the weight of his words hung heavily in the air. "Each time a child of the Big Three was conceived, their power grew stronger. Toward the end of World War II, the gods received a prophecy: one child of the Big Three would cause the end of time on Olympus. So, all three gods swore an oath that they wouldn't have any more children. They kept to the promise for decades until…" Lucian slowly turned his gaze to Thalia, his expression unreadable.
"I see…" Percy said awkwardly, piecing together the implications. "They broke that oath…"
Lucian nodded. "One by one, that oath kept getting broken, and here we all are. It's almost like Thalia's birth caused a chain reaction."
"So we shouldn't have existed in the first place because of the oath," Percy mused, his voice tinged with disbelief. "Which is why we're forbidden children… Oh wait… Was that why my dad didn't visit me before? Because I'm a forbidden child?"
"Yup, most likely to protect you," Lucian said, pointing upward. "When He found out about me, he sent an army of monsters to have me killed. I'm guessing your dad didn't want that for you."
Percy looked horrified as he stared at Lucian, taken aback by his casual tone when speaking about being hunted down.
Lucian then shrugged, adding with a smirk, "Or he could've just been a deadbeat, for all we know."
"Lucian!" Both Thalia and Annabeth nudged him in the side, their expressions stern, reprimanding him for his bluntness.
Percy rubbed his temples, overwhelmed. "This is a lot to take in and process. I still haven't gotten over the fact that one of us might be the end of Olympus…"
"Yeah, it's a lot to take in," Thalia agreed, her tone softer. "That's why we're here—to slowly fill you in on everything."
The group continued their discussion, delving deeper into the complexities of demigod life, the consequences of their actions, and the ever-present threats that loomed over them.
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