Hello wonderful people! I know it's been a long time since my last update, but I was busy with school and church. I'm sorry about the delay, but I struggled trying to find the time to update. I'm sure you all understand. Thank you for not abandoning my story!

-BlueFangirlStreak (SaraFangirlofPercy)

Unknown POV

"Erebus, please, I beg you!" I pleaded with the shadow lord.

He contemplated me, pondering his decision. His face morphed into a delighted grin, meaning that this wouldn't result in a good way at all.

Erebus conjured a whip out of thin air coated with metal spikes, which seemed to be covered with a green substance, most definitely poison.

"I will grant you your wish servant, but in return, you will experience a small amount of pain. Trust me, you won't feel a thing," Erebus explained with a wicked grin visible on his features.

I glumly nodded my head in order to demonstrate that I understood. I wanted to flinch, to run away, to beg him not to inflict harm upon me, but I had to remind myself that I wasn't doing this for my own benefit. I was doing this for him.

I accepted what was about to happen and silently watched as Erebus flicked the whip backward and then thrust it toward me. An explosion of pain erupted on my chest, the spikes grazing through my skin and opening my flesh. I groaned in pain, attempting not to scream unless I wanted the torture to last even longer.

Erebus then proceeded to yank the whip free from my skin, the golden blood gushing from my wounds. A burning sensation spread throughout my chest, making the pain even worse.

Erebus struck me once again. Pain constantly flared all over my body. My back, my legs, my arms, my stomach were whipped, my body a disorderly mess of golden ichor.

After being whacked a repetitive amount of times, Erebus sneered at me, pushing me and causing me to lose my balance. As I laid on the ground, he began to kick me viciously, weak groans escaping from my mouth. My body was battered, an ugly pile of bones, flesh, and blood. With each kick that I received to the stomach, the air was knocked out of my lungs. I was barely able to breathe, feeling very dazed.

I was able to hear the sound of my blood rushing in my ears. My head was pounding uncontrollably. I wanted the torture to end.

When Erebus stopped kicking me, I thought the torture was over, but boy was I wrong. He gripped my hair tightly and lifted me up from the ground. My head was receiving the pain this time, his pull on my hair very strong. I was afraid that Erebus would rip my hair out of my skull. He pulled me close to him until we were face to face.

"I will not tolerate the generosity that you demonstrate to that demigod scum. The next time you ask for another favor from me, you'll be begging for the torture to end!"

With a menacing look, Erebus released his iron grip on my hair and I once again collapsed to the ground, clutching my head in pain. He delivered a kick to my head, causing the throbbing sensation to become worse. Erebus then proceeded to place one of his combat boots over my left arm, bringing it down swiftly before I yelped in agony. His heavy boot had crushed my left arm roughly and my bone ached, possibly broken. With one flick of his hand, Erebus sent me flying through the room and I collided with the nearest wall. The powerful impact resulted in the destruction of the wall as it came crashing down upon me. Erebus yanked me free from the enormous pile of rubble that had buried me before he electrocuted me with a shocking blast of shadow lightning, which, by the way, you do NOT want to experience.

The surge of power crawled through my skin, making my entire body convulse wildly in an unbridled manner. Most of my bones had shifted into the wrong positions and I had lost a lot of blood. I began to cough while Erebus spat on me. Through my hazy vision, I watched as Erebus produced a wicked looking dagger. He came near me before he dug the knife in my right leg. I let out a short cry of pain as I felt the dagger cutting deep through my leg. Erebus did the same thing to my other leg with the dagger before he cruelly sneered at me.

"As I promised, here is what you asked for," Erebus informed me as he snapped his fingers and a gray tray consisting of eggs and bacon appeared. (A/N: Have you figured out who the unknown point of view belongs to?)

He walked away from me before I did my best to drag myself toward the tray. I laid on the ground for a few minutes, trying to regain my strength. When I felt somewhat better, I slowly lifted myself from the ground. At first, I failed miserably and crumpled to the ground once again. But then I finally managed to remain upright (with much difficulty might I add).

With horrible pain coursing through my mismatched bones, I used the powers that I had in my possession and closed my external wounds. While healing myself, my bones began to shift back to their positions. The hall I was in echoed with the disturbing snaps and crunches of my bones as I yelped from the pain. When the bones in my legs began to shift, my legs became weak and I collapsed on the ground again. I decided to wait until the healing process completely finished. Once my bones were back in the correct places and my external wounds had closed, I pushed myself off of the ground and stood up for the second time.

The ichor covering my body had disappeared and I no longer looked like a messy heap of blood and flesh. Although my external wounds were gone and my bones had mended themselves, a certain internal wound was still plaguing me. The spiky whip that Erebus had tortured me with was covered with poison, so I'm pretty sure there's toxic poison flowing through my bloodstream...

With a dejected sigh, I picked up the gray tray and began my journey toward the prison cell belonging to my new friend.

Leo Valdez.

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(If you didn't figure it out, the unknown point of view belongs to Percy/Lysias)

Percy/Lysias's POV

The dark corridors echoed with the thud of my heavy boots as I reached Leo's prison cell. I stopped in front of the cell door as I yanked it open with a harsh rasping sound and walked inside. Leo was sitting on the ground, appearing to be lost in his thoughts until I handed him the tray of mortal food.

"Here you go Leo," I said as he took the tray from my hands.

"Thanks. But, what's wrong? You sound like you're in pain," Leo asked with concern.

Fear immediately struck my heart. I didn't want to tell him about the torture. At least, not yet.

"I do? Don't worry, it's nothing. I was just... remembering something unpleasant," I responded vaguely, knowing that Leo wouldn't be fooled easily.

"Well, okay," Leo replied.

It was obvious that he knew how I felt and he wouldn't force me to tell him what was wrong. At that moment, I grew to respect Leo Valdez more than I already had. He truly was a caring friend.

"Lysias, I've been wondering. Are you a demigod?" Leo inquired curiously.

"Technically yes and no. Actually, I don't know. It's complicated. Heck, even I don't know!" I exclaimed and began to chuckle to myself.

Honestly, it really was complicated, but I found it a bit amusing that I didn't know something about myself. I'll probably regret thinking that later...

"Lysias, during the time you've been down here, have you heard of a demigod named Percy Jackson by any chance?" Leo questioned suddenly.

There was an eerie silence that accompanied his question. As soon as he said the name, my head pounded viciously and my vision blurred. A connection seemed to form spiritually within me and my mind repeatedly told me one thing: I was Percy Jackson.

The problem is, I'm not him.

"How are we similar? This doesn't even make any sense!" I mumbled to myself before I realized that Leo had overheard what I said.

"Uh, sorry. To be honest, I haven't seen or talked to Percy Jackson, but for some strange reason, I feel connected to him somehow. I can't explain the feeling Leo," I answered truthfully.

"But, he's down here somewhere! He was banished down here to Tartarus about five years ago! How did you not find him during all that time?!" Leo asked with disbelief.

"Look, I'm sorry man. But it's not my fault that I don't know where he is. For your information, I'm not patrolling every single part of the Pit!" I said with a bit of annoyance.

"Percy, where are you?" Leo whispered softly to himself.

A grunt of pain escaped from my mouth as my head pounded once again, more severely than last time.

"Leo, please don't say that name around me anymore. I'm getting a migraine just from hearing it," I notified him, hoping that I wouldn't have to bear the horrible pain again.

Leo seemed to understand and switched his focus to the food I brought him. I watched as he grabbed the fork and dived into the bacon first. I waited to see if anything would happen, but he seemed to be fine. I was so thankful that Erebus hadn't tampered with the food.

Leo stopped eating for a moment and looked up at me.

"Uh, Lysias?" he asked uncertainly.

"What do you need?" I replied.

"Well, um, I was just wondering where you got the food from, cause you know, we're in Tartarus," Leo questioned, causing me to flinch involuntarily.

"Lysias, are you okay?" Leo inquired, genuinely feeling very concerned for my well-being.

I panicked.

What do I tell him? I don't want to tell him that I was tortured. That would only make him feel guilty for causing me to go through that just to get him some food.

"It's okay Leo, don't worry. It's just that I've had a really stressful day and I don't really want to talk about it. I'm sure you would understand how I feel. But if you're really curious, I acquired the food from Erebus," I stated simply as I sighed and stood up.

I think that answer was pretty decent. I mean, I did tell him half the truth.

"Well Leo, I'm going to be in my room if you need me. I know you don't know where my room is, but just holler if you need anything and I'll be sure to come. See you later Supersized McShizzle," I teased him jokingly as I retreated to my room.

I was just trying to relieve the mood and get my mind off of the incident with Lord Erebus.

Eventually, I reached my little room. It wasn't much, just a bit of furniture scattered around here and there. My bed was in the far right corner while my dresser with spare clothes inside was on my left. There was a medium sized lamp that sat on top of the dresser. It was pretty much the only light source in the entire room. There was obviously no electricity in Tartarus to power it, but a special canister that contained a never-ending stream of lightning did. It was given to me by Tartarus as a gift and I got to admit, it did come in handy.

Feeling very tired and dejected, I made my way over to my bed and threw myself carelessly onto it.

No one loves me.

Okay, I know I have Leo now, but he only loves me as a friend and we just met today. Plus, he's the only one who loves me. It's not enough.

I scowled deeply. Lord Tartarus and Erebus claimed that they loved me and that I was their adopted son, but in truth, they were only using me. Any mistake I made, whether it was minor or major, would result in a torture session. Since no one is perfect, I obviously made several mistakes, so I had a torture session at least once every week if I was lucky.

Sometimes it would go as high as five times a week.

There were so many hidden scars on my body, each one reminding me of a painful memory.

I'm glad that I found a friend who truly loves me, but I desire a different kind of love.

Family Love.

My father had been murdered by the ruthless sea god and my family had abandoned me, thinking that I had assassinated my own father.

I know I mentioned earlier that Tartarus and Erebus treated me like a true son, but that was only at the beginning. When they adopted me as their son, they had blessed me with many gifts and had given me everything I needed. I had felt loved and appreciated.

But now that I think of it, I have realized that they never told me they loved me.

Not a single time!

I was blinded by the naïve thought of being loved again that I didn't even realize they were using me. Now it's too late to turn back.

Loving parents wouldn't torture their own children. They would guide them through an endless maze known as life. They would always be there to love and support their children in times of need. They would protect them from harm and show them that they truly mattered to the world.

They would be thankful for the blessing of being able to have children.

So what about me? Is there anyone out there besides Leo who loves me? Who even knows I exist?!

On the surface above, I had been rejected and thrown aside. Down below, here in Tartarus, I was tortured simply for making mistakes.

I wasn't wanted in any part of the world. Maybe I wasn't meant to be born. Maybe I wasn't meant for this world.

Is there something wrong with me? What do I have that others hate about me? Am I some sort of monster that people will dispose of right away?

I feel as if the world has turned its back on me... and it's tearing me apart. I can't wake up from this nightmare that has become my reality. I can't stop feeling as if my entire life is a made-up lie.

Where are you now father? Were you only imaginary? You're stuck in my head and I can't seem to let you go.

I am so afraid of telling Lord Tartarus and Erebus what's on my mind. I don't argue with any of their decisions, even when I know I am right and they are wrong. I tell them what they want to hear, the information that will please them. But I don't want to hold back all of the things that I want to say, that I NEED to say. I want to release the emotions and feelings that have been locked deep inside of me. I've been doing what they want, but I don't want to anymore.

I have tried to tell them no, to refuse to do their evil bidding, but fear has always stood in my way. I don't want to live in fear anymore!

Sometimes I ask myself who's a friend and who's an enemy, but it's really difficult to answer that question. Sometimes I just think everyone's the same.

Some people appear to be innocent, yet I know that they can be deceiving. Take Lord Tartarus and Erebus for instance. When I first met them, sweet words and golden promises freely spilled from their mouths, but then they quickly revealed their true colors. I shouldn't have fallen into their trap.

It was all a lie.

A burning sensation suddenly seared through my chest.

Oh no.

I had completely forgotten about the toxic poison from Erebus's spiky whip coursing through my bloodstream. I slipped from my bed and collapsed weakly to the ground. It was about to reach my heart.

But I wouldn't let myself die in such a foolish way.

With a shaky hand, I lifted up my right hand and placed it over the location in which my heart would be. My hand began to glow with a faint black glow. The poison was draining my powers, and my life. I used the last of my energy to extract the poison, which came out in the shape of a luminescent sphere. I then made it vanish into thin air before collapsing from exhaustion.

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Third Person Omniscient POV (Mount Olympus)

Zeus slowly unfolded the ancient scroll, the lines of the very first prophecy glowing with a powerful golden tint.

Once he had completely unrolled it, he cleared his throat and began to read the prophecy in a booming voice.

"Young Olympians, beware the Balance of the Universe,

For it's Stability is both a blessing and a curse.

An infamous male hero known to be gallant,

Will eventually unsettle the Universe's Balance.

An ultimate battle between Good and Evil will arise,

The determining factor will elect the side worthy of the prize."

When Zeus finished delivering the Prophecy of the Balance of the Universe to the Olympian council, he returned to his throne and waited for an interpretation from Athena. As expected, she stood up from her throne and made her way over to the center of the throne room. When all eyes were on her, she began her analysis of the prophecy.

"This prophecy was given to us when we first came into power, so we were warned by the first Oracle to beware the Balance of the Universe, which can easily be unsettled. As we heard, an infamous male hero that is known to be brave and courteous will unsettle this balance, and we know that this has already occurred. But who could this infamous hero be? Our only options are Heracles, Jason Grace, Frank Zhang, Leo Valdez, and Nico di Angelo. Heracles can immediately be eliminated because we all know that he is not a courteous man, no offense Father. On the other hand, he is a god, so it cannot be him. We will have to determine which of these four heroes is the one who has disturbed the Balance at a later time," Athena announced with a contemplative expression upon her face.

"As we discovered earlier today, Lysias revealed that a war between the forces of Olympus and the forces of the Pit is soon to arrive. Yet we do not know what the determining factor is. Apparently, it will select the victorious side of the war that is worthy of acquiring some sort of prize. As for what this prize is, I do not know yet, but I will research more about this subject," Athena informed the gods while noticing that Poseidon was trying to hold back a laugh.

Of course Poseidon would enjoy watching Athena struggle to find an answer for once in her immortal life. Being rivals, they would always try to find each other's weaknesses and flaws. This would be a perfect situation to use against Athena in the future.

Athena sent a glare in the direction of Poseidon and then returned to her throne now that she was done with her interpretation.

"Does anyone else have something to share with the council?" Zeus inquired as he glanced at each and every one of the Olympians.

Seeing that no one had anything to say, Zeus stood up from his throne and declared, "Very well then. I officially adjourn this council meeting."

He then flashed out dramatically from the throne room before the rest of the Olympians did the same thing individually. Except for one goddess in particular.

Lady Hestia quietly watched as the rest of the gods vanished from the throne room until she was entirely alone. A peaceful silence engulfed the throne room once everyone else was gone.

Hestia slipped off of her throne and silently glided toward the doors of the throne room. Once she was in front of them, she came to a stop and gracefully pushed them open.

Standing on the other side was the minor Roman goddess who happened to be well-acquainted with Lady Hestia.

"You were eavesdropping on the council meeting, weren't you my friend?" Hestia asked the minor Roman goddess playfully.

"Yes I was Lady Hestia. I had a feeling you would sense my presence," the goddess stated knowingly.

The minor Roman goddess had been friends with both the Greek and Roman aspects of the goddess of the hearth for many years.

"Indeed I did. Have you gathered any information concerning the young hero?" Hestia asked seriously, all playfulness from before gone.

"Of course I have. After all, I am the goddess of secrecy and silence," the goddess announced with assurance.

"Have you heard about the new threat by the name of Lysias?" the Roman goddess questioned as Hestia responded with a small nod.

The goddess looked around to make sure no one was listening before revealing, "He is the young hero you've been looking for. Lysias is Percy Jackson."

At that moment, Hestia burst into tears at the news she had just received. When she was able to regain her composure, she wiped away her tears and spoke up.

"He is the one who will determine the victorious side of the War of Balance, isn't he? The poor boy has already suffered too much during his lifetime, he doesn't deserve this. And I suspect that he is under the influence of Tartarus and Erebus. Those foul monsters! They have changed him in order to use him to their advantage! If it's war they want, it's war they'll get!" Hestia snarled in rage.

She cared so much for Perseus that she would literally kill the Primordials that had taken away his freedom. She was known to be a peaceful goddess, but when it came to the well-being of someone she cared deeply about, she would become someone you didn't want to mess with.

When Hestia calmed down a bit, her friend hugged her before telling her that she had to leave.

"Very well, thank you An-" Hestia began to say before she was cut off by the sound of someone clearing their throat.

Both goddesses turned in the direction of the sound to find Hades leaning casually against a nearby tree with his arms crossed against his chest.

"How much did you hear?" Hestia was the first one to speak.

"Not much, but enough to know about Lysias's identity," Hades revealed, causing the minor Roman goddess to slightly pale.

"I'm so sorry Lady Hestia, I had no idea he was here!" the goddess apologized to her friend.

"Please, no need for formalities. Just address me as Hestia. You know we are good friends, there is no need to apologize. I hadn't sensed his presence either. But I trust him more than the other Olympians," Hestia consoled the goddess.

Hades raised an eyebrow before asking, "You do? And what makes me more trustworthy than the other gods?"

"Lord Hades, I know very well that you were the only other Olympian who disagreed with Perseus's banishment to the Pit. I have noticed that you are unlike the other vile gods who crave power and attention. You have earned my trust and respect," Hestia revealed as she bowed to Lord Hades as a sign of reverence.

Hades seemed to be left speechless at Hestia's words and struggled to give her his gratitude.

When he regained his voice, Hades said with great appreciation, "Thank you Lady Hestia. Remember that you will always have a friend in the Underworld. I swear on the River Styx that I will not reveal any information regarding Lysias under any circumstances unless given permission," Hades promised as he gave Hestia a rare smile before flashing away.

"It's been a long day my friend. You should rest. Again, I thank you for aiding me," Hestia told the Roman goddess before they hugged again and parted ways.

Shoutout to DeFalc0 for being the first one to correctly figure out the identity of the unknown Roman goddess! By the way, I gave away major hints to her identity in this chapter. Let me know if you think you know who she is! As always, please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts about the chapter. I hope you all enjoyed and have a wonderful day my lovely readers! :)

-Sara