Percy POV

"This place is so huge!"

Bastilla took in the surrounding buildings of New York with amazement. We had just gotten out of Olympus, and when her eyes fell on the buildings around us, Bastilla was gawking at the sounds of busy traffic and all the people walking by without a care in the world and not noticing us. To them, we were just ordinary people like they were, and so they paid us no attention. To Bastilla however, she was so excited and I knew straight away that she was already liking this place, despite the fact that she hardly knew it at all.

Before we left Olympus, we had managed to change our clothing to mortal clothing. To be honest, it felt weird wearing them again, as I had grown accustomed to wearing Jedi robes most of the time. I was wearing dark blue jeans, along with black and white trainers, a black top and my old signature Polartec jacket that I wore during my teenaged years. It was a little snug but I knew it wouldn't bother me.

Jason wore similar jeans, but he had a white fleece on instead, and he had a purple top underneath it. He wore white trainers and he had a NYC baseball hat on his head. I inwardly smiled, thinking what a prat he looked like with his hat and fleece.

After much convincing, Bastilla finally deciding to wear lighter blue jeans that almost barely fit, a white sleeveless top and high heeled boots. She looked slightly uncomfortable, not use to clothes like this, but she didn't say a word. To be fair, I thought she looked very beautiful when she was excited - her hair was put down in a ponytail, and she looked breathtaking with the sun shining on her face. She looked younger than she what she really was - she might be forty years old, but now she looked to be somewhere in her teen years.

Piper caught me looking and she frowned. "Why are you looking at her like that?"

I quickly looked at Bastilla, who didn't hear a thing. She far more interested in listening to Leo, who was talking to her about the different buildings in New York.

I looked back at Piper. "I'm not looking at her in the way you think, Piper. I just didn't realise how excited she can be when she hasn't heard of anything. Since she doesn't know Earth as well as me and Jason does, she's open to learn more about new things. Plus, I'm not supposed to be thinking the way you think I am."

Piper frowned, not understanding. "What? Thinking about love? What's so wrong about that?"

"It's against the Jedi code," I said, dropping my voice to a whisper.

Piper looked shocked. "Jedi are not allowed to love? Why?"

I shrugged. "The Jedi Council thinks that attachments are forbidden in our Order, and they have really good reasons for it. Attachment means that your are passionate about something, and with that passion comes a lot of dark thoughts. Fear, anger, jealousy, greed - they are some of the soul influences of the Dark Side."

"But..." Piper stammered. "But...what....wha-what about you and Annabeth? Do the Jedi know you're married to her?"

I nodded. "Of course they do. I told them everything when I arrived on Coruscant. But with me, they knew straight away that I loved her very much in a good way. Passion and compassion are two different things Piper. When they saw the light in me and that they saw only my love for Annabeth, they allowed me to keep my marriage status. They even allowed me to keep thinking about her to give me hope when I go on missions across the galaxy."

I then frowned. "Speaking about Annabeth, where is she? I didn't see her at camp."

Piper looked at Jason, who was talking with Leo and Bastilla. "About a month ago, she left camp. She was behaving erratically on some occasions before she left. She said that she needed to be away, and that she was going to try and find you and Jason and bring the two of you home. I knew at that point that she must've been desperate, because none of us could find you and Jason anywhere. We haven't had any contact with her since then. It was like she vanished into nowhere - not even her father knows where she is; heck, even Athena doesn't know where Annabeth is."

Okay, I must admit it, I got very concerned for my wife at that point. She was missing? Gods, the last time I had gone through this kind of experience, she had been taken captive by Luke and Atlas when I was fourteen years old. And now, according to Piper, my wife was missing again. Where was she?

Piper smiled at the look of worry on my face. "Even after all this time away from Earth, you still care and think about her. Thank god, otherwise I would've hunted you down and send you to Tartarus the hard way."

I literally recoiled at that word, and Piper noticed it. She looked at me apologetically.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "I forgot that you still hate that place."

"It's not the place I hate," I muttered. "It's the memories that I still have about that place."

Shaking my head, I walked forwards towards the street. Placing two fingers in my mouth, I whistled loudly, giving my best taxi whistle. I looked back at my friends quickly.

"Alright, once we get to Rachel's house, be ready," I cautioned. "Python could be around there, and that makes this trip a whole lot dangerous."

Bastilla nodded, looking determined. "Same strategy as we used on Geonosis?"

I nodded. "But this is gonna be a whole lot bigger than you think Bastilla. This is Python we're dealing with. He's bigger than what you think."

"Aw, come on," Jason complained, rubbing his hands together. "How hard can it really be?"
==========
Piper POV

"You had to open your big mouth," I grumbled.

Jason just kept looking at Rachel's building, looking at it with a look of resignation. "I'm such an idiot."

"Force me," Bastilla muttered, "he's massive!"

Coiling around Rachel's building was Python, and he was one huge snake. He had coppery brown and dark green scales slithering along his entire body; his head was the size of a camp cabin, and it had frills at the sides of his face; he had yellow and red eyes that roamed the streets constantly and he had the sharpest set of teeth I had ever seen - you could literally shred a car with those teeth! When he hissed, it was like listening to the sound of a car braking suddenly.

Percy looked through the window of the taxi, taking in the scene. "Alright, change of plan. Me and Bastilla will distract him - Jason, you take him out."

Jason looked at him, his resigned face turning into one of determination. "Thunder Force?"

"Thunder Force," Percy nodded.

Bastilla's legs were really jittery, letting me know that she was battle ready. "Let's do this then."

Before we got out, Percy stopped us. He closed the door and looked at me and Leo. "You two stay back until we've dealt with Python. I'm not risking your lives with a monster you don't understand."

"What about you?" Leo argued. "You don't know how to handle a creature like this!"

Percy smiled. "I've been up against snake like creatures similar to Python that are very dangerous and poisonous. Me and Jason ran into a nest of these things back on Geonosis. Nasty experience."

He got out of he taxi, followed by Jason and Bastilla. Leo frowned, looking seriously confused as me and him got out as well.

We saw the trio walk up to Python, who instantly saw them. He hissed and snarled in response, slithering down to meet them. As soon as the top part of his body touched the ground, Percy and Bastilla immediately reacted, throwing their arms outwards and Python instantly roared in surprise.

I couldn't explain how I saw it, but I did. I looked at Percy's hands and I swear I saw something come out of them. It was like watching the air boiling, because it looked like waves of heat coming out of his hands. It was the same with Bastilla, as she casted this same kind of wave outwards towards Python, holding him in place.

The Force, I thought to myself. So that's what it looked like from a distance.

While Python was immobilised on the spot, Jason ran forwards and brought out his lightsaber, just like Percy did when he fought against Anderson. Jason then jumped high up into the air - higher than anyone I've seen do - and stabbed Python in the eye. Python roared with agony, but Jason continued. Jason then yelled, and a bolt of lightning came rushing out of the sky, immediately striking Jason's lightsaber and sending it through Python's body. The last thing I heard of Python was him giving a monstrous roar and he exploded into gold dust.

Jason dropped to the floor, using the winds to slow him down as he touched the ground. Percy and Bastilla looked a little exhausted as they approached Jason, but they didn't bother with it and Jason nodded at them.

Leo and I however gawked at them. "How did you do that?!" Leo exclaimed.

Bastilla shrugged. "The Force aids us with many things. You just need to focus on controlling it. We froze Python with it."

Percy looked at the building door, walking towards it and clutching the door handle. "Well, that's one problem taken care of. Next stop, the Oracle."
=========
Still Piper POV

"It's about time you showed up!" Rachel snapped at me and Leo as she opened her apartment door, but faltered when she saw Percy, Jason and Bastilla, who had thrown up their hoods.

Rachel looked like she had just got out of the shower, as her flaming red hair was soaking wet. She wore only bath robes, and her skin was pale. Her eyes were a little bloodshot but nothing too serious was wrong with them. In fact, she looked just the same as I last saw her, before the whole business with Python got worse.

"Who are you?" she demanded at Percy.

Percy smirked underneath his hood, and he lifted his head up so that his face was visible. Rachel stiffened on the spot, gasping slightly as she saw Percy's familiar sea green eyes.

Percy lowered his hood. "Your eyes do not deceive you, Rachel Elizabeth Dare."

Rachel looked shocked, until she had a stern look on her face and placing both hands on her hips. "You've got a lot of balls to say my full name like that, Perseus Jackson."

Percy just smirked further. "Or maybe I just know the fact that you use to like me calling you by your full name, Rachel. Unless, you're far too old and formal for that kind of business?"

All the bravado that Rachel showed vanished, being replaced by a smile as she launched herself at Percy, throwing her arms around his neck. Both she and Percy were laughing, which brought a smile to my face, as I just saw too really good friends reunite with each other.

Rachel pulled back from Percy, gripping his shoulders. "Gods, you look older from the last time I saw you! You look almost thirty years old! How is that possible?"

Percy chuckled. "I'm actually over forty years old. I've been away for twenty years from where I came from. Even my master said that I need a shave!"

Rachel, despite looking visibly stunned at what Percy said, laughed even further. She then noticed that we were all standing outside her door. "Oh, gods sorry. Come on in, I got some coffee on the go."

"Oh, thank the gods!" both Percy and Jason exclaimed, rushing into the apartment and heading towards the kitchen. Rachel looked amused, until she noticed Bastilla at my side with Leo.

"And who are you?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

Bastilla looked a little confused at Rachel's stern gaze, but she stood up straighter and looked back into Rachel's eyes. I couldn't help but notice that she had the eyes that you might see in soldiers when they return from war - like they've seen all sorts of hell and still try to push through the day as best as they can. According to Percy and Jason, Bastilla had been with them for nearly two decades so that must mean that this Jedi woman had seen a lot int hat time.

"Bastilla Shan, Knight and Sentinel of the Jedi Order on Coruscant," she said calmly. "And good friend of Percy Jackson and Jason Grace. Nothing else."

Rachel nodded, pleased at that. I knew what she was thinking: she was probably thinking that Bastilla and Percy were dating, but I knew now that Percy would never do something like that to Annabeth. Plus, I could see that Bastilla isn't the type of person to go around and hang out with men. Jason has already explained to me that Bastilla is committed to the Jedi Code, and because of that I knew she wasn't in the mood for a relationship.

Okay, I thought to myself, rubbing my head. Aphrodite overload. Calm down, Pipes.

Rachel stepped aside and allowed Bastilla to walk through. As I watched, I saw how Rachel eyed Bastilla with a little distrust. I placed a hand on her arm, getting her attention. I shook my head, signalling that Bastilla was trustworthy. Rachel nodded in understanding.

Just then, Percy and Jason came back into the living room, both carrying two trays of coffee each. When he noticed the silence of the entire room, Percy looked at us in confusion.

"What happened?" he demanded immediately, looking at me for answers. Before I could answer however, Leo interrupted for me.

"Rachel was glaring at Bastilla," he said, making Rachel blush slightly and Bastilla to eye the Oracle of Delphi. "Literally, she was glaring at Bastilla so much when she entered the apartment, I thought that Rachel was staring at Bastilla's butt."

Rachel's eyes widened and she blushed even further, refusing to meet anyone's eyes. I looked at Leo with irritated eyes, which made him shrink back a little. But, to my utter astonishment, Percy, Jason and Bastilla burst out laughing, hugging their chests and patting their legs, trying to breathe. Jason was supporting himself on the wall behind him as he laughed; Percy was hugging his chest whilst he bellowed with never ending laughter and Bastilla was giving off a long round of giggling, which actually sounded really cute.

"Oh, Force," Bastilla gasped, wiping a tear from his cheek. She was about to say something, until she resumed her giggling fit. "That was funny."

"Damn," Jason chuckled, looking at Leo with an amused smile. "It's good to hear you crack jokes again, Supreme Leader of the Argo II. Man, it's great to be back!"

"Man, you got that right," Percy agreed, a smile still etched in his face.

Rachel was just looking bewildered, while I just sat there with a smile of my own. By the looks of it, Jason and the others rarely get to have some jokes. It was great to see him, Percy and their Jedi friend getting some sort of a breather from what it sounded like a decade of nonstop war.

Percy sipped his coffee, which led to him shaking his head as if he was having a sugar rush. "Whoa, that stuff is strong! You know, one of the things that I've missed the most is coffee. I mean, you've got none of this stuff on any of the classy planets - Coreilia, Coruscant, Taris... You just can't beat it here on Earth."

Bastilla actually tried some, and the moment the hot liquid touched her mouth her eyes widened in surprise and she gulped the rest of the stuff in one go. "I could sure use more of that stuff."

Without saying a word, or waiting for permission, she grabbed the coffee pot and filled her cup up to the brim and she started drinking it again.

I shook my head, looking at Rachel with a serious expression. "Rachel, we need your help."

Rachel looked grim all of a sudden. "I'm guessing that you need a prophecy for something?"

"Not me, or Leo," I patted both mine and Leo's chest. I pointed at Percy. "He does."

Rachel looked at Percy with a worried tone. "I don't see how he could get another one: he's already had two for his own. Getting a third one would be like getting the worst bad luck there ever was. Like losing a friend or seeing someone killed in front of you."

After that, I saw that the Jedi trio had fallen silent and were looking down at the floor with sad eyes. It was Jason who answered for them, but his voice sounded hoarse.

"Well, given our bad luck so far, this is like just getting a letter from the judge," he told Rachel.

"Except Rachel isn't one of those kind of people," Leo said in his attempt to lighten the mood again. "If she were, then she would be wearing one of those big white wigs and a gravel. Can you even see her wearing that? Plus, how bad is your luck anyway? Despite the Sith and all the general obvious, it can't be that bad."

Percy looked at Leo, looking like he wanted to sew his mouth shut. "Malak use to be one of us, Leo. Before he became that creature of a person, he was our friend Alec, a member of the Prodigal Knights. Then, out of the blue, he invades the Jedi Temple, our HOME, with a Sith armada and possibly an entire empire of Sith acolytes. And then, not only that, as we were trying to escape, a member of the Jedi High Council was murdered in front of us by one of Malak's followers and I lost my right hand to that same follower. Yes, Leo, everything has just gone down the shit hole."

I frowned, looking at Percy and his tightly clenched right fist. "You lost your hand? How have you? I can see it right there!"

"Wait a second," Leo muttered, closing his eyes. "Hold up, I'm sensing an unusual amount of metal in your hand. Why is that, Percy?"

Percy gave Leo a pointed glare...and literally just pressed his index finger onto his wrist. It suddenly opened and I was amazed to see wires and pulleys in the points where bone and flesh was supposed to be. Silver and black metal made up for the surface of the hand and it gave off little wiring sounds when Percy flexed his fingers.

Leo inspected it, lightly touching the pulleys and giving it a critical eye. "This is major prosthetic work here. What is this? An advanced cybernetic limb with a new and improved nerve impulse reading system, able to read the nerves in your brain more accurately and faster just like your regular hand use to?"

Percy nodded, closing the hatch of his wrist. "Pretty much. It's been surgically grafted into my skin and the rest of my arm bone. I've got it for the rest of my life now."

Rachel pulled out of her shock and looked at Percy seriously. "So, are you ready to ask the Oracle what it is you want?"

Percy looked at Jason who nodded with a grim look. He then looked at Bastilla.

"Don't freak out on this part," he told her. Bastilla gulped and nodded.

Percy nodded at Rachel, who in turn doubled over as if in pain. She drew in a rattling breath and sat up, looking at Percy with smokey green eyes. Green mist surrounded Rachel, and the hissing sound of snakes filled the air. Jason took a step back, while Bastilla kept one hand on her lightsaber.

"What is that?" she hissed. "It looks as if she's been hypnotised by the Nightmare Sisters magic."

"It's the spirit of the Oracle of Delphi that lives inside her," I explained quickly. "Every century, it will pick a young maiden and reside in her body, as she becomes the new vessel for the Oracle. It will look into a heroes mind, and would predict a prophecy that will come into being."

Bastilla looked at Rachel with a shocked look. "Does she even know that she's being possessed?"

"She would call out to it," Leo said, keeping an eye on Percy as he steps forward. "She normally has control over the Oracle, but it would sometimes act on its own accord. It's like two minds inhabiting one body."

The Oracles green eyes turned to Percy, regarding him with emotionless eyes. "I am the spirit of the Oracle of Delphi, speaker of the words of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach seeker, and ask."

Percy shivered. "I will never get use to hearing that voice." He looked straight at the Oracle. "What must I do to find the Star Forge?"

Rachel quivered, like she was suddenly cold. Then, she spoke in a low and raspy voice:

"Fifteen shall go and seek out the weapon of ones betrayal,
They will find the five hidden relics to reveal the dark and dangerous trail,
The training grounds of Knights shall begin the quest,
By the heroes who many believe will do their ultimate best,
A loved one shall be redeemed from the tyrant who controls she,
By the one who started this chapter; bring her back shall he,
Old members of the Seven shall be reunited once more,
And seek out the marsh cave which houses ones mentor,
Old enemies will combine forces to form great friendships,
For they together will face countless deaths and brutal hardships,
One hero shall find deep conflict within thyself,
The Dark and the light; he'll decide for himself."

Rachel slumped forward within a sharp intake of breath, gasping for air like she was holding it in. Percy looked at her with wide eyes as he processed the prophecy that was just given to him. Even I had to admit, that was the longest prophecy that I had ever heard, and I knew that a lot of it was pretty bad.

Bastilla reached forward and helped Rachel sit up. Rachel looked pale, like she was placed in a block of ice in Antarctica.

"I never...had the Oracle...say something that...long before," she gasped. "This must be...really urgent if it said something that long."

Jason looked at Percy with both a grim look and a excited look. "Old members of the Seven...oh boy. Percy, are you thinking what I'm thinking, bro?"

Percy nodded, before he turned to Leo and me. He smiled slightly. "Yep. I am thinking exactly that."

Leo looked at me in utter confusion before a look of realisation crossed his face. He broke into a grin. "The old team! That means Hazel, Frank, Piper, Jason, you and I will get back together for this quest! Oh man, this is so cool! The great Leo McShizzle is back in business!"

"Everyone apart from Annabeth," Percy sighed sadly. "The other members for this team the Oracle suggests - I have little doubt that it includes the other members of the Prodigal Knights as well. So that means Mission, Zaalbar, HK, Bastilla, R2 - that makes twelve of us. The other three, I have no idea."

"Old enemies..." I mused, walking back and forth in a straight line, which led to Jason following my every step. I stopped suddenly and looked at him. "Do the Jedi have any other enemies, apart from the Sith that they might seek an alliance with?"

Jason shrugged. "Apart from the Sith, its the..." His eyes bugged out. "Oh, kriffing Force!"

Percy seemed to get the hint, as he groaned in disgust and annoyance. "Not the Mandalorian's! Of all the enemies, why them?"

Bastilla scrunched up her nose, like she just swallowed a lemon. "Even I'm not impressed. We have to side with the Mandalorian's to win this war? That's near impossible."

"I'm guessing these Mandalorian's you speak of are bad?" I assumed.

Percy looked at me, frustration in his eyes. "Those guys are killers, Piper. They are war like people who constantly raid other planets and pretty much wrecks them until there is nothing left. Pillaging, looting, murdering, raping...to be fair, it's like looking at several Ares clones wherever you go! They're even worst than him! And after the crazy stunt they tried to pull on the Republic nineteen years ago..." He physically shivered and recoiled at the memory.

I looked at Bastilla, who answered. "They tried taking over the Republic during that time, when it was in its most vulnerable state. Pre Vizela, the Mandalore at the before before Perseus, thought that if he could conquer the Senate on Coruscant, then he could have pretty much own the Republic. If the Jedi hadn't enter the conflict, then the Republic was doomed to fail."

"The Jedi won the war thanks to us and the other members of the Prodigal Knights," Jason said. "But to the Mandalorian's...well, let's just say that they developed a special hatred for Jedi. Especially Percy, who now rules Mandalore and after what he did with Vizela's mask."

"What did he do?" Leo frowned.

Percy looked embarrassed. "Well...I kind've...hid the mask away from them. Without the mask of their leader, the one relic that symbolises their culture and legacy, they are left powerless. With no leader, it's impossible for them to do anything. That's why they hate me so much. And it's why I don't speak to many Mandalorian's - they are either the ones who fought during the war, or are close family members or friends of those who died."

Rachel looked smug. "I see that your talent for ticking off people hasn't left you, despite you being older and more mature."

Percy merely shrugged. "My master says it's something that I need to work on."

"So, we got twelve members of the quest party," I narrowed down. "So now we need to find this 'training grounds for Knights'. Do you guys know what that is?"

"Dantooine," Percy, Jason and Bastilla said simultaneously.

"It's one of the two planets where most Jedi Padawans would go to train, until they are qualified Jedi Knights," Bastilla explained. "We should know because we were all trained there when we were younger."

"It's also one of the planets that is incredibly strong in the Force," Jason said. "That's why it's considered to be the best optional choice to train Jedi."

"There is a hitch though," Percy muttered, looking at Jason. "Malak was trained there as well, so he knows about it too. What if he went through with his plan and wiped out the enclave there on Dantooine?"

"It's a risk we're gonna have to take," I said to him, lacing a little bit of charmspeak in my voice. "The prophecy states that we need to go there and figure out how this quest starts."

Percy raised one eyebrow. "Is that charmspeak I hear in your voice, Miss McLean? Because if it is, let me remind that its not gonna work on me."

I felt my face reddening with embarrassment. How in Aphrodite's name did he figure that out? Most importantly, how did he resist it? He couldn't have done that, even if he has a strong mental mind!

Jason smiled. "So how about it Pipes? Will you, and the rest of the Seven, join us on our quest to save the universe?"

I smiled at him, crossing over and wrapping my arms around his waist. "For you, anything."

Jason smiled happily.

Leo reached into his pocket and brought out his phone, dialling Hazel and Frank and speaking to them about the quest. By the look on his face, it seemed that they were in.

I looked at Percy, who had a fiery look in his eyes as he stood up and put his mask back on.

"Let's get this show on the road."