Beauty/Tragedy | Percy Jackson

Blessing or Curse

Henrietta Cordelia Ray, 'Aspiration'

We climb the slopes of life with throbbing heart,
And eager pulse, like children toward a star.
Sweet siren music cometh from afar,
To lure us on meanwhile. Responsive start
The nightingales to richer song than Art
Can ever teach. No passing shadows mar
Awhile the dewy skies; no inner jar
Of conflict bids us with our quest to part.
We see adown the distance, rainbow-arched,
What melting aisles of liquid light and bloom!
We hasten, tremulous, with lips all parched,
And eyes wide-stretched, nor dream of coming gloom.
Enough that something held almost divine
Within us ever stirs. Can we repine?

Ariston made sure to be very careful as he explained his dilemma to his son in law.

In the past two years, what Ariston had got to know was that the son of Poseidon was truly a blessing.  He knew how to twist his words, because of him they had avoided war with Lipsana. Often the demigod chose to visits the soldiers at their training grounds, Ariston was against this behavior then but the man had the blood of the gods running in his veins, he was the higher power and Ariston could not refuse for long. Turned out that the act had been beneficial, the loyalty of the army of Aristo was stronger than ever to their kingdom, to their king.

One thing Perseus had missed was to get the support of some councilmen. 

Ariston wanted the Perseus who was happy; a blessing. He did not need the man to lose faith in them and become the biggest curse.

He needed to clear the doubts of the royal council about the devotion of the royal family towards the protection of the people of today and the generations of future. This demanded a promise. This demanded a new ally without losing the current one.

The crown prince of Aristo needed heirs. Perseus Poseidonson, declared eighth in the line of inheritance of the throne of Atlantis, darling of the gods, could not give him grandchildren. 

"Kallias is given a choice, Perseus." He told the man. "If he decides rationally and says yes, I want you to support him."

Perseus frowned, "What kind of choice?"

Ariston braced himself. "I'm a mortal, Perseus. Fragile in comparison to you and nothing compared to the gods, but I have wishes too. You cannot fulfill them, that is why Kallias must choose."

"What choice?" Perseus repeated his question. "What is it that you wish?"

"Before Thanatos claims my soul, I want to see my grandchildren." Perseus stiffened.

The man did not say anything for long. His hands shook, he took a deep breath to calm himself. "What is the choice?"

"He marries a princess. He either chooses to strengthen our kingdom with a sacred bond and earn us an ally," He paused and looked Perseus in the eyes with an emotion that told as if his next words would ensure the end of the world. "Or he chooses to stay with only you. The council will snatch the throne in no time, in that case. Many already feel threatened. They say, after my death, war will fall upon us, and the end will be easy. The crown prince had no heir. He will be the last of me." Ariston's voice shook with a barely concealed panic. "Kallias! Kallias will lose me my kingdom!"

Perseus took a step back. He watched eyes wide, the King had gone crazy in his greed, in his hunger of more.

"Kallias will be the last to fall! And that would be enough for the enemy!"

The servants in the chamber were retreating to the shadows, afraid almost of their own king.

"I need Kallikrates! NOT what you have made him! Not Kallias!"

"He is your son." Percy hissed, feeling so so angry and barely keeping his powers in check.

"And the prince! The future king! He has duties!" Ariston growled, "But for now, when I am King. You shall listen to what I say, it would be the best for my kingdom."

He was reminding Percy of the paranoid Zeus. "I am the blessing to your kingdom, my King." He said the words with venom. For the sake of others in the chamber, this needed to be brought to a stop.

"A curse too! I cannot keep you happy for all your life! If you want, you will go and cry a little and the sea god will spare me nothing!"

"You're insecure." Percy told him. "It's not because of me. Stop blaming everything on me. It is because you know you are not worthy of what you have but you clutch your greed to your chest like it is your heart."

With a vicious glare, Perseus turned and left the room and the servants scurried away to follow him out, gratefulness clear on their face as they escaped the chamber.

Percy would have preferred to forget what happened days ago, really.

--"Loyalty..."

Kallias' face lit with a smile when he entered their room and saw Perseus. He climbed on the bed and laid his head in his husband's lap.

Perseus carded his fingers through his long hair and massaged his scalp. Kallias sighed and his posture relaxed. "I missed you." He whispered softly.

Perseus smiled at him and continued to hum the tune of song.

He seemed calm. His shoulders were relaxed, his eyes were closed and a soft expression --one Kallias could try and describe but fail to justify in its serenity --on his face. Maybe it would be the right time to ask him or maybe not; time was running away.

His father had smiled at him, no frown on his face and called him Kallias. For the first time in so long, his father proved that he cared, and his mother seemed so happy recently, Kallias could not help but notice. 

Now, Kallias just did not want to be the reason everything goes back to how they were in old days. Kallias wanted a happy family. Kallias wanted his father to look at him in pride. He wanted to sit on the throne one day but with the support of his family, not with the thought that he was a disappointment and got the throne just because of his bloodline.

"Seus, have you ever thought about having children?"

*

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