Clockwork

17

7 months later...

"We've found everyone. All of them except One and Eleven." Artemis said. "We have yet to find a son of Hephaestus or a son of Zeus. Clockwork, it's all you. If you find anything, I'm sure they'll award you a Grammy Award for Perfect Tracking Skills." Thalia said. Percy sighed. Through the last few months, he had worked behind the scenes and hadn't actually gone out. He found the locations and groups of hunters went to retrieve them. He hadn't had any dreams about Nineteen, but that didn't make him less worried.

The Titan kids talked to him more, as they felt the need to update him on what went on during camp since Percy never went anymore. The 'connections' with the newspapers about the missing children had turned out to be dead ends, at least for this problem. It was something to look into after all of the Twenty were found and everyone knew what was going on.

The week after that 'prophecy', the children popped up out of the blue everywhere-- Camp Jupiter even found a child named Six wondering around their borders, leading them to alert the Roman camp of what was happening, after they found the daughter of Tyche. Or Fortuna, as the Romans introduced her.

"Clockwork, I never asked. Who was that source that gave you their names and their godly parent?" Leia James asked him. "An acquaintance of mine," Percy said, not giving any more information than that. It wasn't like he could tell her the truth. The fact that Phineas, his blind half brother, was still alive and telling the future and he was back to his old curse. All Percy had to do was buy him some food and fight the harpies off for a little while the old man ate. The man didn't tell him even a general area of where they could be, or if they had any particular importance to them.

The kids were scattered, different people calling to alert them that they had found a kid who was named after a number, Percy's own mother who he had found out lived in Alaska even called made the risky decision to call Annabeth when she found a son of Melinoe running from hellhounds. Even sent a few pictures of a scrawny kid who said his name was Sixteen. Sixteen was currently staying with Sally and Paul, who were both in their late sixties-early seventies. How he got there was a mystery.

Something about it was bugging Percy. There was a child in Alaska, a child in Rome, and the children in the camp.

The day the sea comes to swallow the earth
The stars will fall and cause disarray
Shortly after one's birth
He will cause Doomsday"

Shortly after one's birth, he will cause doomsday.

Shortly after one's birth. Percy silently cursed as he thought back to the meeting Artemis had first recruited him for this.

"...I didn't think she'd get pregnant!" Zeus was defending himself before Percy came in and they started the meeting. That was about 8 months ago, and it would explain why they couldn't find a son of Zeus. The son of Zeus wasn't even born yet.

The son of Hephaestus was a different story. Hephaestus hadn't gone out and reproduced since Percy died, so this son of Hephaestus was over 10 years old. But sadly, Hephaestus confessed to having a lot of kids that could currently be 10 or 11 years old. Well over 50. He had no 12-year-olds through 14-year-olds, but he had 15-year-olds and up. He kept track of their mothers, and their ages, but not their names because he also admitted there were times when their mothers either shunned him and asked him to leave the child's life, or he didn't keep tabs on them.

There was a lot of people to check, and who knows, the son of Hephaestus may not even be named after a number. Like Kenneth, he could be named an actual name but given the nickname of a number.

I'd rather have him have a nickname that's a number than calling him something out of the Greek Alphabet. Out of all the names in the world, Kenneth chose Alpha. Disappointment doesn't even begin to explain how I feel about that right now. Percy thought.

"Lieutenant, send a message to Olympus. I need the name of the last person Zeus slept with along with the address. I also need it before the child's due date, so as soon as possible, please. As for the son of Hephaestus... I'm not sure right now, but we'll find him." Percy said.

"Clockwork. I've received news that the Oracle has revealed a new prophecy." It was Artemis who spoke to him. Percy glanced at the hunters surrounding them. "Follow me," Artemis said. Percy nodded.

He and Artemis had yet to actually have a conversation about Percy's real identity, and it wasn't something Percy was looking forward to.

"A prophecy?" Percy asked once they were in the goddess of the hunt's tent. "I said prophecy, didn't I?" Artemis said. "I meant... more of a question, I suppose. She pursed her lips as if her next words were those that she would like to avoid.

"A choice between Death and Destruction, who will you help win?"

Percy sighed. His life just was an *insert random plot crap here* sign huh? The Fates were cruel old ladies. He was supposed to help Death or Destruction? Probably Death seeing as Thanatos isn't complete trash while Percy could do without Perses. This is making Percy's brain hurt.

"Thank you, Milady. Anything else?" A question that Percy knew beforehand that he didn't want to ask because there was always, always, something else.

"Yes, actually," Artemis said.

Ha. Called it.

"And that is?" Percy said, tilting his head as his he let his thoughts wander.

He exhaled and instead of wondering why he could still breathe since he didn't have actual lungs, just cogs, he found himself comparing his feelings he had about Artemis to those he felt about Jasmine. But he reeled those thoughts in quickly, dispelling them from his mind. Jasmine was his friend, and Artemis was technically his boss until all of this was over. Anything else would just be... no, thank you.

"Why haven't you revealed that you were alive to everyone else? Why let everyone believe Annabeth killed you?" Artemis asked. "Annabeth and her husband did kill me. That much is true. As to why I haven't revealed myself, why ruin the image they had of me?" Percy said. He had never once admitted to it out loud before. He was grateful to Hephaestus, and a part of him that was still considered human and not machine missed his family. But was he just to give them scrap metal pieced together with wires and practically leftover skin? "At first I did so for my son. I come to camp, reveal I've been killed my wife and his mother, and leave him with a murderer as a mother and a half-dead man as a father? Now..." Percy trailed off.

Now, there was nothing truly stopping Percy from revealing himself. Everyone knew what Annabeth and Adrien did, and Percy was sure that Nico noticed that his soul wasn't in the underworld. His family obviously missed him, why not show him who he is?

"You're scared, aren't you?" Artemis said. Percy made the mistake of assuming she was mocking him, but when he looked up, she wore a sincere and gentle expression. "No... Maybe. Probably. I guess. Kinda. Yes." Percy said.

Artemis rolled her eyes playfully. "There's nothing wrong with that." She says. "Says the goddess of the hunt who has killed the most dangerous of men and monsters," Percy said, raising an eyebrow.

Artemis laughed at that. "I'm afraid at times too. I mean, I was the one captured by a Titan." Artemis says. "That's true."

There was a knock-- a knock, how does one even-- on the tent. "Sorry for the interruption Milady, but there has been an attack on Camp Half-Blood. Our assistance has been requested by Camp Director Chiron." A hunter called through. This one, Percy didn't recognize. Hmm, she must be new. Whatever.

"Understood. Be ready to leave at once." Artemis said. Percy stood. "Yes, Clockwork, you are dismissed." She says, nodding her head. Percy nodded back, before turning on his heel. He was a good way from the hunters before he began running at his full speed. He was only as fast as a car, but that was fast enough to get to the camp well before the hunters and see the destruction before the demigods managed to make it look less than what it was.

And that's a wrap! Thank you guys for reading this part (Oof, thank you guys for reading this book) and I hoped you enjoyed it.

What did you think? Well until next time,

                        ~DemonsFromAbove