Chapter Text
Prologue
Perseus, or as he prefers, Percy, was the first demigod son of Poseidon. Born before even Zeus' son of the same name, he was instrumental in Olympus' victory during the first Gigantomachy, as, among other things like being the greatest swordsman of his time, he was the one who, in helping Hermes after seeing him intercepted during one of his deliveries, discovered that the Gigantes could only be killed by a God and demigod working together.
He was offered Godhood, but declined because of, of course, love. He was in love with a girl from a small settlenent outside of Athens, and had officially asked for her hand in marriage before going off to fight in the war. A war which he discovered his lover didn't think he would come back from.
On the day of his return to their shared home, his fatal flaw truly became fatal, as upon entering to see his beloved with another man, he froze. The man attempted to fight him, and of course Percy beat him easily. He turned to face his former flame and became both greatly enraged and immensely saddened. In his emotional state, he sensed the man get up and start to thrust a sword at his back, and instead of knocking him out, he instead robbed him of the weapon and decapitated him with it. The girl screamed and Percy turned to her with the most hatred he had ever had in his eyes. He grabbed her neck and slammed her against the wall before interrogating her. She said nothing and sneered, causing him to call her a slut and punch her in the gut hard enough to render her unconscious.
Tears pooled I'm his eyes as he realized what he had done, and he felt so ashamed that he ran to the river that ran beside his home, stepped in the water, took his sword, and stabbed himself in the heart.
"I'm sorry, father." Were his thoughts as the blade pierced his chest. The water kept him alive and regenerated him just enough so that he would feel the pain of his organ bursting until he ran out of blood.
It was an agonizing 5 minutes before he began to lose consciousness and the last thing he saw before he did was Poseidon picking him up with a panicked expression.
When he woke up, he was in a bright white and gold room. "No… I can't have survived…but this isn't the Fields of Punishment, and I know I'm not worthy of Elysium. Where the Hades am I?" Barely a second later his father flashed beside him and wordlessly helped him stand.
His face was unreadable to Percy, but before he could get a sound out he was teleported to the Olympian Council throne room.
"Perseus" called the booming voice of Zeus, "you are here because your father pleaded for us to give you one more chance at accepting Godhood. Do you accept?" Percy's chest ached. He clenched his fists, kneeled, and answered. "Yes my Lord. I accept."
And thus he became Perseus: God of Swordsmanship, Whirlpools, Tidal Waves—and most importantly, Loyalty and Betrayal. His symbol of power was the sword he used to attempt suicide, which he named, *ερωτοφάγος or Love Eater.
Over the years, decades, centuries even, he watched people trust each other, and subsequently break that trust. It took many years for him to be able to do his duties without being reminded of his own.
Eventually he grew resentful. He resented those who had relationships with a mutual sense of loyalty, something he didn't get to truly have. He resented those who severed those threads, as it made others feel the pain that he felt.
Eventually he grew desensitized. He no longer felt the pain of his own betrayal, and no longer cared for those who would go on to experience it.
Eventually he grew spiteful. From seeing so many be happy when he wasn't. He wasn't hurting, but he was certainly angry.
Eventually he decided, "I am the guardian of loyalty and faithfulness. I shall do my duty by testing the strength of that loyalty so as to prevent false relationships from solidifying. And I shall inflict upon those who would betray others the pain of being betrayed…"