Confused by Storm

Chapter 16 - Titan of the Abyss

Percy wasn't expecting a nice welcome, despite the fact that he was returning Nico, so his capture was surprisingly civil.

He flashed right to the border on the front, knowing that Iapetus would be keeping Kronos preoccupied, but Kronos could easily figure out that something was wrong. Percy had to be fast.

Percy had chosen an outpost slightly out of the way of the main fighting. He stepped forwards into their line of sight, Nico held in his arms.

"Who's there?" A guard called, a little pointless since if Percy had wanted to attack he could just do so without having to answer.

Percy let out as sharp breath. "Percy," he called up. "Formerly Jackson. Formerly a demigod. Now a Titan." He waited a beat, until he could hear and see bows being drawn in the darkness. "I have Nico di Angelo here. I'm returning him. I surrender – I swear it on Chaos, I'm here to surrender."

Percy could pick out a few curses and other crude words shouted down at him, but over the voices he heard one yell, "Someone get Zeus on an IM."

They weren't stupid enough to open the gates for Percy, keeping him waiting on the Titan side of the boundary. Percy was slightly impressed by the speed of the message, since less than a minute after he'd appeared there were flashes of light – the gods landing beyond the watchtower.

Percy took a deep breath as the gates creaked open. Zeus stepped out, eyes instantly narrowing at Percy. His Master Bolt crackled in his hands.

The Titan slowly lowered Nico to the ground, summoning Tsunami and taking out Riptide, and then placing the weapons next to the demigod. Then he stood up and stepped back.

Hades was – predictably – the first to move, crouching by Nico and listening for a few seconds to his son's insane babbling, before he turned to glare furiously at Percy. "What have you done to him?"

"I haven't done anything," Percy said quietly. "I got him out."

Zeus' cold blue eyes were still fixed on Percy. "On your knees," he ordered flatly.

Percy lowered himself to his knees, even raising his hands above his head too in case the gods thought he might reach for a weapon. His hands were bound tightly behind him, before a blindfold covered his eyes.

Less than three minutes after Percy had appeared outside the watchtower, he was being led into the encampment behind and the doors slammed shut behind him.

Percy fought to keep himself calm as he was marched through the first few lines of defences, trying to ignore the insults hurled his way.

Eventually, after what seemed to be hours – though Percy had never been good at telling time, that was Kronos' forte – Percy felt himself led into a building. The grass beneath his boots changed to stone, the sun burning down overhead to the cool of the shade inside.

"Why surrender?" Zeus demanded after Percy was forced to kneel.

Percy took a deep breath. "Something's wrong with Kronos," he said. "I don't know what, but he's not himself. And... Nico – I couldn't just let him be insane the rest of his life. I was hoping you'd be able to sort him out."

Percy could almost sense Zeus' incredulity. "You allowed yourself to be captured for that?"

"Yes," Percy said lowly. "Kronos has allied with Erebus. That is one thing I will never do."

"Percy." Ah, that was Poseidon. Percy turned his head in the general direction of his father's voice. "You've given yourself over to be a prisoner of war for that? Why would you...?"