Eros was genuinely terrified. Not just of what Aphrodite would do if he failed, but of what chaos would come to be, should he succeed.
He was no fool, and he knew what the arrow would do the moment it hit its target.
Unbridled lust for the one it hit from the opposite sex.
It would start small, just in the immediate area around the one who was hit. It would cause those effected by it to be flirty, and a little possessive at first. Nothing too horrible, maybe a fight or two would break out, but those could easily be handled.
But, it would soon grow out of hand. The area of effect would grow, covering a wider area by the day as the lust grew stronger and stronger, turning the effected into little more than animals during the height of the breeding season.
Within a week, the area would cover a city block, and people would be willing to break bones.
Within two, it would cover half of New York, including Manhattan. People would be willing to hospitalize.
Three, and it would cover the smaller states around New York. People would be willing to kill, then.
After that... well, he didn't know. The target was usually killed in the crossfire around the start of the second week.
The longest someone lasted was three weeks and two days before they died.
And, honestly, he couldn't remember the last time his mother had done something like this.
He was scared, and he didn't want to do this... but what other choice did he have?
If he didn't, he would fade soon enough. His mother would make another do it in his stead, and they would be too fearful to even think about anything other than carrying out her wish to the letter. They would not think of the consequences of success, only the price of failure.
Maybe... maybe he should warn the demigod about it. Of course, it would have to be anonymous, and some time after the fact. Maybe he should make the warning now and leave it someplace he was likely to retreat to?
It wouldn't help much, he knew. But, at the very least, it was something he could do to help.
And a way to apologize.
Yes, that would be it. He could always say it took him a while because of the presence of another god around the boy. He had to wait for the other divinity to leave before he could strike.
So, quickly conjuring some paper, Eros lightly touched down on the ground, setting the arrow far enough away that he wouldn't prick himself with the arrowhead.
He really, really didn't want this one to even point at him.
~
Percy sighed as he sat on the beach, just at the edge of the sea. It was close enough that whenever the tide came in, the water would splash against his feet.
The battle of the Labyrinth was just a month ago, all the events leading up to it still fresh in his mind.
And the consequences.
He knew there was little he could have done, but it still didn't help any.
To see Mr. D like that... Barely holding in there as he stood above the body of one of his few demigod sons...
Percy just wanted this thrice-damned war to be over with already.
He was currently on a sparsely populated beach a few miles down the coast. The weather wasn't exactly the best, but it was decent enough.
The only reason is that he was even out here was to think. Anything really. The war, his upcoming birthday, his relationship with Annabeth (Or lack thereof), the next school year, his mother and Paul, the camp...
Looking out over the ocean, Percy gave a quiet sigh.
There was just too much going on right now, really.
He never noticed the divine presence behind him, only feeling something pierce through his chest before the feeling disappeared...
Along with the last bastion of normality he had, even amongst demigods.
~
Eros, happy that his little note was someplace Percy would discover it, flew to where he knew the boy was.
Seeing him sitting there, contemplating what his life had come to, did not make the task any easier.
Walking up to him, his divine aura keeping both the boy and the mortals unaware of his presence, he drove the arrowhead into Percy's back, where the heart was.
“Forgive me...” he whispered. Watching the arrow melt into the boy, become one with him, Eros wondered if the fate of the world had just been altered.
Or if it had been doomed from the start.
“Sometimes, death is a kindness...” He said, flapping his wings to fly away.
He frowned, having only said half of his favorite sentence.
'Death is a kindness, and love is cruel.' He thought, scowling inwardly. 'But there will be no love, and empty words of love are the cruelest things of all.'
He idly wondered if he should, perhaps, distance himself from his Mother for the time being.
“Oh, Eros~”
Eros cringed, his wings flapping double time.
What horrible thing would she force him to do next?
~
Percy hit his chest with a fist, the sudden pain going away.
“Probably just a bubble of air.” He said to himself before he went back to his thoughts.
Percy didn't notice a few presences of the female persuasion making their way to him.
Now, were they by land, or by sea?
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