Hi guys, and welcome to the newest chapter of Percy Jackson and the Primordials! I am so very sorry that this chapter took over a year to produce, but I hope you like it! I'll see you at the bottom. Enjoy!

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The light died down to show a man in clothes of the purest white, a direct contrast to the absolute void of Chaos. His hair was immaculate, not a hair out of place, with a finely trimmed beard and the most piercing blue eyes anyone had ever seen. His clothing was devoid of any wrinkles, dirt or any sign that it was actually being worn, and the man's shoes were polished so well that they shined in the fading light of the teleportation.

"Hello dear brother. How have the millennia treated you? You're looking very well" the man said. He was directing his words to Chaos, obviously, but his vision was sweeping across the room, inspecting everything. His expression showed a hint of distaste as he surveyed the room, his eyes gliding over everyone, lingering on Percy and finally landing on Chaos.

"Order. What are you doing here?" Chaos spat out, his face the very picture of rage as he ignored Orders' attempt at pleasantries. Order looked shocked at the question before throwing his head back and roaring with laughter.

"Why, I'm just here to see my dear twin brother. It's been a while, hasn't it? Since you LOCKED ME UP IN THAT HELLHOLE FOR MILLENIA!" Order replied, his handsome features twisted by rage at the end of his reply.

"You know damn well why you were locked away, Order. Don't make it seem like you're innocent. After all, you did try to eradicate my very existence". Chaos said all of this in a calm, even tone, although he still looked incredibly angry with Order.

"I only did what was necessary. You were causing too much trouble" Order said, waving his hand dismissively. His previous anger was wiped from his face, replaced by a mask of cool indifference. "Everything must be ordered, not chaotic, to grow and thrive". Chaos sighed wearily, as though re-hashing an old argument.

"Now is not the time for this, Order. Go back to where you were banished, or I will drag you there myself" Chaos said, drawing himself up and staring directly at Order. Order just snorted in reply.

"You? Please, don't lie to me. I can feel your power, and it's not even close to mine. Him, on the other hand…", Order pointed directly at Percy, "He has an adequate amount of power. Not enough, but a fairly large amount…for an Olympian". Percy looked angered and opened his mouth to reply, but both Artemis and Athena stopped him.

"Don't say a word, Percy. If he thinks you are just an Olympian, he'll underestimate you" Athena hissed in his ear. Percy nodded his understanding and the women let go of him.

"What do you want, Order? Your minions refused to relay any information" Percy asked. Order looked inordinately please by the declaration.

"Yes, well they were told not to say anything. Good to see they obeyed. What I want is quite simple. I want…Order". Order lifted his hands and threw balls of energy at the gathered crowd.

"NOOOO!" was all that was heard before an explosion rocked the tent.

The remaining Primordial deities watched through a conjured crystal as Order attacked the group. Most of them cheered when they saw the explosion, but Hemera and Aether were rather upset. Being the oldest pair, they realised that the attack was nothing more than a show, not capable of killing anyone in the room. Having seen Order before he was locked away, and at his full power, they knew that he had done nothing but annoy the Defenders of Earth, and were at a loss to explain why.

"Enough, you loud, obnoxious fools!" Aether snapped as Hemera destroyed the crystal. The others looked at the pair with annoyance and anger.

"What crawled up your arses and died?" Erebus asked, his deep voice sounding like velvet. Nyx cackled next to him as Ananke and Phanes sniggered quietly. Uranus just ignored his siblings and looked longingly at a picture of Gaia. Aether growled and moved at attack his younger brother until Hemera put a soothing hand on his shoulder.

"That did nothing. It was a pointless attack and we don't know what it achieved" Hemera snapped, glaring at Erebus.

"It didn't do nothing, my dear" a voice said, as the room was filled with light. Order appeared as the light died down, his arms folded and a smirk on his face. "It was a warning shot. There was enough power in that to level a city, but my dear brother blocked it and siphoned some of my power into that damnable staff of his" Order said. The others looked confused. "It was designed to force Chaos to move and protect the collective. I knew he was weakened, but I was not aware how much power he had actually given to that child. It seems it was more than enough to cause a power change, but not enough to consider him my equal. He will be a fight, but he will fall" Chaos said, maniacal laughter echoing in the stronghold.

The echoing laughter was soon joined by others, creating a bone-chilling, echoing laughter that would have send shivers down anyone's' spine.

As the explosion cleared, a barrier could be seen encircling everyone in the tent, as well as surrounding the tent itself from the outside. Percy coughed and asked Jason to clear away the smoke. A small gust of wind whipped through the tent and cleared the smoked relatively quickly, and Percy frantically looked around. He saw Poseidon still lying down in the bed that had been conjured for him, as he refused to go to the healer's tent, his breathing shallow, but his wounds healed. Athena was with him, having added an additional layer of energy to cacoon both of them from the blast. She lowered it and beckoned Will over to help her. He rushed over and pulled some nectar and ambrosia from his pouch and started to feed it to Poseidon.

"Percy!" a voice called weakly from the corner of the tent. Percy whipped his head around and saw Chaos laying in the corner, slightly smoking and breathing with immense difficulty.

"Father!" Percy shouted as he rushed over to help the Creator of All Things sit up. "Ambrosia and Nectar!" was the directive to Will, who rushed over after making sure that Poseidon was okay. Chaos waved him away.

"Save it, it won't help me anyway. I'll heal naturally in a few hours. Percy, we need to talk. Alone" Chaos said, emphasising the 'alone' for the benefit of the crowd. They jumped and make excuses to rush out of the tent, the strangest being "I think I left my chariot running". Percy just shook his head in shame at their actions. Once the tent was emptied, Chaos took a deep breath and looked directly into Percy's eyes. "Percy, what I'm about to share with you has been a closely guarded secret for many millennia. I am about to show you…my brother's history". Percy looked suitably stunned before he was pulled into the black abyss of his mind.

Chaos Memory-15 billion years ago

A single, shapeless mass drifted through the infinite void. It looked vaguely like a human body to Percy, but with no defining features.

"Here is both my beginning, and my brothers'" came Chaos' voice, echoing around the void. Percy watched as the mass began writhing, and splitting in half. One half was the purest black, speckled with tiny dots of light. The other was purest white, not a mark to be seen anywhere. Percy watched as the two halves ripped themselves apart and took shape. He saw arms and legs and heads growing and taking form. He watched at fingers and toes grew. He saw the moment consciousness was achieved by both forms as their eyes opened and looked into the Void. "Watch, Percy, as we grow together. Learn together. Create together". And so, Percy watched. He watched as they created this Universe. And another. And another. He saw the shaping of galaxies, the birth of stars, the beginnings of life. As each new galaxy was created, it was populated with as many forms of life that the two could think of. He watched as the Milky Way was created, and how the life forms were created and placed within it. Finally, there was nothing for the two to do. The looked at each other and just vanished.

"That was the last I saw of him for many, many years. As I told you earlier, I grew lonely, so I created the Primordials. My children".

Chaos Memory-6 Billion years ago

Everything spun around Percy at dizzying speeds, stopping suddenly upon an image of Chaos, standing in his palace. Percy watched as he shaped each of his children uniquely, giving them their own, unique forms and names. He watched as Chaos gave them all a choice of powers and domains, and a choice of partner. He saw that all of the Primordials were once kind, caring beings, and wondered what had happened to turn them into the monsters that were hellbent on destroying their own legacy. He saw Gaia and Ouranus settle down in the Milky Way, and he saw how Gaia changed her shape and bore Earth. Percy watched as the memory started to fade, and he realised that he was no longer standing in space, but was back standing in the tent, next to Chaos.

Chaos looked downtrodden, his eyes misty with unshed tears as centuries of emotional pain coursed through his heart. Oh, and the physical pain of having been thrown around in an explosion. That still hurt as well.

"Why did you show me that?" Percy asked, as he helped Chaos to his feet. They hobbled over to a nearby seat and Percy set the ancient man down. Chaos nodded his thanks and answered the question.

"To show you that my children are not what they seem. You saw how they were: kind-hearted beings who have, unfortunately been twisted by Orders' madness". Percy looked confused.

"What do you mean, 'madness'? Isn't the whole point of him, you know…Order?" he asked. Chaos looked at the child (at least to him, he was a child. C'mon, he'd been alive forever. Everyone is a child to him) and chuckled softly at his narrow thinking.

"Percy, what am I?" Percy still looked confused, but answered regardless.

"You are the Creator, the First Being, etc. You are Chaos" Percy answered.

"Exactly. I am Chaos, in every sense of the word. I am that which is uncontrolled and uncontrollable. That is what I, and now you, embody. Now, what is Order?" Chaos asked. A spark went through Percy's mind, and he looked shocked.

"He is the exact opposite of you, isn't he? He represents order, structure, stability" Percy said. Chaos nodded his confirmation.

"Indeed he is. And therein lies the problem. You cannot have one without the other. Chaos must exist if Order is to exist. However, my brother doesn't understand that. All he sees is a mess that must be sorted out and stabilised. What he doesn't understand is that what he will do is destroy everything we created together!" Chaos shouted, then coughed.

"What do you mean? What does he want to do?" Percy asked, conjuring up a glass of water and handing it to the old man.

"He wants to erase all traces of Chaos, leaving only order. All that will do is cause stagnation, and eventually destruction" Chaos said, a sad tinge to his words. "Chaos is the driving force behind evolution and growth. One must be able to grow in order to survive. Stagnating growth will cause death" Chaos explained.

"So we must stop him!" Percy exclaimed, a fire in his eyes. Chaos sighed, seeing Percy act like his younger self.

"Yes, but we must think before we act, Percy. Order is just that: the embodiment of order. That means he is structured. He plans ahead. He thinks. Something we must do more often, hm?" Chaos chastised a suitably shamefaced Percy. Percy shuffled his feet like a child and nodded his agreement.

"So, what do we do? You know him better than anyone else" Percy asked.

"We need to capture him. Not destroy him, understand?" Chaos asked. Percy nodded. "Good. If you destroy him, you destroy yourself". Percy looked completely shell-shocked by that. "Oh, I forgot to mention. You and he are linked. Since you took my place, you are now Chaos, remember? Although, you are not his equal, and you won't be until I Fade". Chaos enjoyed the look on Percy face and allowed himself a small chuckle before he returned to his stern demeanour. "However, he doesn't know that. He still thinks that he and I are linked, and that you are just my protégé. That's why his blast didn't kill me. He knows that destroying Chaos will inevitably destroy Order as well" Chaos explained as he moved around the empty tent. Percy just looked confused.

"But you just said that he wants to destroy you. Why wouldn't he have done it when he was here?" Percy asked. Chaos just smiled.

"I was hoping you would pick up on that. When I said that he wants to destroy Chaos, I did mean me, not the concept. However, he also wants to destroy me, as I embody that concept. I know that is confusing, but I didn't just say the same thing twice. He knows that he can't destroy the concept, so he wants to control it. He wants to transfer my power to one of his minions, so that he controls everything. Obviously, this would upset the power balance, and cause problems. You still with me?" Chaos asked as he finished setting up the tent. Percy nodded absently, his mind still trying to work through the paradox presented to him. Chaos just laughed and clapped Percy on the back. "Don't worry about it. For now, all you need to know is that he is more powerful than you, but not the both of us combined. So, this is what we will be doing for the next few days". He pointed to the set up within the enlarged tent and Percy's jaw dropped.

"How did you set this up so quickly?" he asked.

"I've been doing it for millennia. But, you know, magic helps" Chaos replied, as he wiggled his fingers much like a child. Percy just laughed. "Alright, let's get started. We are going to practice using our power…as one".

"How are we going to do that?" Percy asked.

"We are going to have to link our minds. Essentially, we become one person with 2 bodies. Please, step into the circle" Chaos said, gesturing towards the circle of Greek runes, interspersed with what Percy knew were characters from the original Chaos language. He tried reading them, but all he got were the words "Power", "Mind" and "Together".

"This is going to hurt, isn't it?" Percy asked with trepidation, hesitantly stepping inside the seemingly innocent ring. His only answer was a smile and a shrug of the shoulders from Chaos. "Oh boy" he muttered. As soon as he stepped passed the circle of runes, a light flashed and Percy gripped his head as a sharp pain hit him like a sledgehammer. "Ahh!" Percy gasped in pain. Compared to a sword thrusting deep into his gut, this was mild, but unexpected. He turned his head and saw Chaos standing straight, calm as you please. Percy glared at him.

"What? I've done this before with my brother. It hurts the first few times but, after a while, you get used to it. Just let go, Percy. Don't hold onto yourself" Chaos said.

"Easy for you to say" Percy muttered, but grudgingly let go of his head and forced himself to ignore the pain. As soon as he did, Percy felt something in his head that hadn't been there before.

"Percy, it's just me. Don't force me out. Let me in" Chaos' voice echoed in his head. Percy took a deep breath, and nodded. He stopped resisting and immediately felt himself disappear, only to feel himself again.

"Wow, that's a weird feeling" Percy said, and was alarmed when it also came out of Chaos' mouth.

"I told you, we are one person with two bodies when connected like this. Our communication only needs to be telepathic, not verbal, with each other. What one decided to do, we both do. However, there is this that can occur…" Chaos moved his arm toward Percy, and Percy both saw Chaos' arm move, and saw his body not respond.

"What just happened?" Percy asked, remembering to think it.

"You viewed both sides of the equation. This is why we need to practice. You need to get used to melding fully. This is only a partial meld" Chaos explained, adding the last part to answer Percy's unasked question. "If we had done a full meld immediately, you would have likely lost your sanity".

"What's a full meld then, if this is only a partial one?" Percy asked.

"A full meld removed any trace of separate identities. You notice how, when you think, you still refer to yourself and myself as different entities, much like I have just done?" At Percy's mental nod, he continued. "A full meld makes us fully one entity. We lose the separation of ourselves and become we and us, not you and me. I am going to release it now. This will also feel weird" Chaos said. Percy felt a shift in something within himself, and his vision blurred for a second before clearing up.

"Okay, that was weird as fuck" Percy said, and was happy to hear only himself speak.

"Crass, but accurate" Chaos said. "Take a break for 5 minutes. Doing that again to soon will make you go insane. However, we can lower the time between the linkings with practice. So, we will be at this for a while" Chaos said, as Percy groaned.

"Alright, fine. If it helps, I won't complain" Percy said, as he left to go to the lake. Chaos watched him go and, when he was out of earshot, let out a groan and massaged his head.

"That hurts more than I remember" he said. "But I have no time to be groaning about a little bit of pain. Time to reset and go again". Chaos walked around the tent, setting up more of the runic circles, and had just finished the last on when Percy walked back into the tent.

"What are you doing? Why do we need more of the circles?" he asked. Chaos just smirked.

"Because you are going to study them and learn how to set them up yourself. It's not just me you can link with. Any immortal will do" he explained. Percy just looked lost. "Just look at the circles, the symbols that went into making them. I want you to learn them off by heart so you can conjure them whenever you need to".

"Wait. Won't I have to practice with everyone else to link with them perfectly?" Percy asked as he was inspecting one of the circles. He had already gone through a few, and was beginning to see how they would be drawn, although he was still clueless on the meaning of most of the Chaos symbols. Chaos smiled when he heard the question, because it showed Percy was thinking clearly about the ramifications of the linking ritual.

"No. The only practice you need is drawing the circles. As everyone else is not as powerful as you, you can link with them without any practice or problems, because your power would overrule theirs and subdue it, allowing you to control them like a puppet" he explained. Percy looked horrified.

"I refuse to participate in this if it means controlling my friends!" Percy yelled. Chaos just laughed.

"Relax Percy, I'm kidding. The linking can only be achieved between very powerful individuals. Meaning you can only link with the Olympians, if necessary. Still, you won't need to practice with them because you have been with them for years, and you have already formed a battle link with them. Linking with them via the ritual will be easy. Plus, they have been linking with each other for millennia, so they will have no problem". Percy just looked hollow by the time the explanation was over, and was silent for a while after. "Percy…?" Chaos asked hesitantly.

"You…made…a joke?" Percy stuttered before losing himself to hysterics. He was on the floor, clutching his stomach and laughing so hard that he was crying. Chaos was alarmed.

"Do you need help? Should I go get someone?" he asked. Percy just shook his head and waved away Chaos' concerns.

"I'm fine" he choked out, wiping away tears. "I just never expected you to make a joke" he said as he slowly stood up. Chaos looked mildly offended.

"I can make jokes, thank you very much. I simply choose not to" he sniffed. "Now, come. We have a lot of work to do". Percy just laughed again and followed his predecessor.

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A white flash of light appeared in the darkened cave and Order stepped out of it, brushing off imaginary dust from his clothes.

"That should give them a little bit of warning" he muttered to himself. His eyes flickered up when he heard a noise from behind him. "Lurking in the dark is so unbefitting of one such as yourself" he said. Order turned around to see Nyx and Erebus step out of the shadows into the middle of the cavern.

"Darkness is our home, as you well know" Erebus hissed, his velvety voice tinged with anger. Order narrowed his eyes slightly at the tone.

"What is it that you mean, Erebus?" Order asked, his voice perfectly polite, but carrying the weight of the universe in it. Erebus looked visibly shaken at the way he was spoken to, but recovered quickly enough.

"I mean, why did you appear in the middle of their camp and blow your cover? They only thought we were behind the attacks. You could have remained a secret!" Erebus exclaimed. Nyx held her husbands' arm to keep him still, but was also looking slightly angered.

"Who are you to question me? It was I who bought you all together, and it was I that helped you all unlock your potentials that your 'father' had hidden away! I do what I decide is necessary, and I expect you to follow me without question!" Order hissed, power leaking out of him in waves, making the darkened cavern light up slightly. Erebus and Nyx shrunk back into the shadows, away from the power that they knew could destroy them in an instant. Order took a breath and withdrew all the power he had leaked. "But I will indulge you just this once. I did it to strike fear in them. My dear brother has likely told them of my power, and how I almost destroyed him millennia ago. It will be enough to shake their confidence, and we will destroy them in the next battle. Which, incidentally, I believe to be yours" Order stated, his voice slipping into a soft whisper by the end. It sent shivers down the Primordials' spines.

"It is, Lord Order. We apologise for our insubordination, and it will not happen again. We will go prepare ourselves now" Nyx said, sensing an escape. She tugged on her husbands' arm, and he reluctantly followed her back into the deeper parts of the maze of tunnels they had built over the last 5 years.

"Why did you do that?!" Erebus hissed. Nyx just threw him a look and kept walking. Erebus followed her, still stewing in his anger. When they reached their destination, Nyx threw her husband against a wall and a barrier around them to prevent anyone hearing them.

"Are you insane?! We could have been obliterated by him if he had chosen to do so! If we are to ever take control of this planet, we need to work with him and our siblings until we are sure we can destroy them" Nyx hissed, her hand clutching Erebus' throat tightly enough to cause him some discomfort. Erebus growled and wrenched her hand away from him.

"I am perfectly sane, thank you. I do not like that he is going off and ruining centuries of planning just because he has more power than we do" he replied. Nyx just scoffed.

"Typical male" she muttered. "Look, I don't like it either, but we must deal with it for a little while longer. Just until the final battle. We will make our move then" she said, caressing his face. "You can wait until then, right my love?" Erebus lent into the caress.

"Anything for you, my shadow" he said.

"Come then. We must convince Aether and Hemera to take our place" Nyx said, and released the barrier. She grabbed Erebus' hand and walked towards where she knew her siblings were waiting for them.

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"Percy!" A voice called from outside the tent that Percy and Chaos were practicing in.

"Yes?" was the response that was given, although Artemis was sure she could have heard two voices. She frowned but shrugged it off.

"We need to talk" she said. Silence met her statement before Percy emerged from the tent, looking a little worse for wear and smoking slightly. Artemis looked alarmed. "Are you okay? Do you need to see Will?" she asked, checking him for injuries. Percy just laughed and pushed her probing hands away.

"I'm fine, Artemis. Just practicing a new power. It just went a little bit astray when you called. You startled me" he said, and clicked his fingers. His clothes were replaced with a new pair of jeans and a shirt, and his hair was washed and sweat-free. "What's up?" he asked. She just took his hand and teleported them to the lake. It was just hitting sunset, so Percy knew she would have to leave soon to fly her chariot. She took them to a cliff overhanging the lake, and overshadowed by some large willow trees. It was a very secluded spot, and Percy suddenly felt very nervous.

"Percy…" she began, and Percy felt as though something bad was coming. Artemis turned to him and held his hands. "I'm ready" she said. Percy just looked confused.

"You're ready? To do what?" he asked. Artemis just sighed.

"I'm ready" she said again, this time glancing down. Again, Percy just looked confused. It hit him a moment later, and he looked stunned.

"You mean…?" he pointed to the two of them, and then made a lewd hand gesture. Artemis just smiled at his childish behaviour, but nodded. Percys' hands dropped by his sides as he processed the information. "Now?" he asked. Artemis looked horrified and slapped him.

"No, not now, you pig! I meant after we win this war. I am ready to give everything to you, Percy" she said. Percys' face changed from shocked to determined.

"Then I had better win this war! For you, Artemis!" he shouted and he ran off to continue practice with Chaos.

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Hi everyone! Thanks for reading this new chapter, and I am so sorry it took so long to post. I am honestly the worst person. I will try my best to post regularly, but it looks unlikely. Uni and life are just overwhelming me right now, and this story is slipping from my head. I will try to get it back on track, and any suggestions you guys have will really help!

On a positive note though, I am so happy that you guys are all liking the story. I realise this chapter my not be up to scratch, so I apologise for that, and I will try to make a better one for next chapter. Leave a review and let me know what you think!

Until next time,
Fawkes