III

Percy

The first thing that went through Percy's head was, Did Poseidon have other half-bloods? Then he realized that was stupid, and that this woman was obviously a goddess. Nothing else could possibly give off such an aura, so powerful. Sure, she was a minor goddess, but that meant absolutely nothing when compared to a demigod.

His second thought was: Why is she helping Polybotes?

He didn't have to wait long because Kymopoleia growled, "You do not even know who I am, do you, son of Poseidon?" She was scowling, deep hatred radiating in her eyes.

Percy decided he should at least try to act like he knew the goddess, though he really didn't have any idea. "Uh…yeah, of course. You're, uh, you were at Poseidon's last Christmas party, right?"

She chuckled, obviously amused with his pathetic attempt. Her eyes flashed and she waved her hands, causing the water around her to swirl in a ferocious whirlpool, stirring up more and more silt. "I do not need your excuses, demigod. I know that I am unknown to most. Unfortunately for you, that will be your final mistake."

Percy knew he couldn't fight Polybotes and Kymopoleia alone. It wasn't like he could kill either of them. Without the help of a god or goddess, he could only slow down the giant, and the only goddess on hand was one that hated his guts. That was just his luck.

He decided he'd need to get back to the ship and figure out a plan, something hopefully Annabeth could help him with. He guessed that something was going on he knew nothing about, which was no surprise, but staying down here, waiting to get killed, just wasn't an option. Willing the water around him to propel him upward, he suddenly gasped, feeling the energy drain out of him. Confused, he stopped trying, widening his eyes at Kymopoleia.

The goddess laughed at his shock, spinning the whirlpool above her faster. "Confused, demigod?"

Percy, breathing heavily, just stared at the goddess. Yeah, just a bit.

Polybotes, who Percy had somehow almost forgotten about, shook his head, causing basilisks to fall from his head and lunge for Percy, who drew Riptide and slashed them to dust. "You should know, son of Poseidon, that, while you have control over water, others do as well. And you, stupid hero, are on Kymopoleia's turf."

Realizing that moving the water was like a turf war, Percy cursed himself. That's why the aurae dropped him into the sea. He was almost as helpless as a mortal, the exception of breathing underwater, and he couldn't go anywhere without absolutely exhausting himself. Unfortunately, that only left fighting to the death, which he was certain would end in his death. He decided that his only tactic would be to pull an Annabeth and get the goddess talking. If he could persuade her to help him…

"Kymopoleia," Percy said. "Can I call you Kym? Look, what are you a goddess of?" He asked it genuinely; he was curious what kind of turf he was infringing on and how she could make such a powerful whirlpool with such ease.

Kym scoffed. "Why should I tell you now? Because you are about to die?"

Percy shrugged. "That's some of it. But how do make whirlpools like that? They're huge." He wasn't lying either; there was no way he could make anything like that, though he was half mortal.

"I am the goddess of violent storms," she announced, obviously proud of her status. "And I have been suppressed and ignored for centuries, waiting for the mortals and gods to acknowledge my power! You demigods are getting what you deserve."

Understanding what Kym meant by underestimation from the gods, he sympathized. The twelve Olympian gods were always using demigods and minor gods alike to their advantage, not caring what happened to them as long as they didn't betray the gods. The only reason that Kronos could rise the last time was because Luke felt abandoned by Hermes and decided to throw his lot in with the Titans. The only reason that he was in this situation was because Kym felt cast aside by the Olympian gods and, therefore, the demigods. So, he realized that maybe Kym wasn't too far gone.

"Kym," Percy said, capping Riptide and turning to face her completely. "I know what it's like to be used by the gods and ignored, and I understand why you're angry. You have every right to be." The goddess's eyes got wide at that, staring at him in shock. "Heck, I'm still pissed at Hera for taking my memory and sticking me at Camp Jupiter." He said that last part bitterly, realizing just how mad he was with the gods.

"Really? But—"

"ENOUGH!" Polybotes bellowed, pointing his trident at Percy. "It's time for you to die! I will torture you until your mortal heart gives out, or your mind scrambles, whatever comes first!" As soon as he was done, green poison began making its way toward Percy, surrounding him, cutting off any possible escape routes.

When the poison got to him, he hadn't expected it to boil his insides. He'd expected something like Akhlys's poison, making him choke and gag, robbing him of oxygen and making his sinuses burn. But when the green anti-Poseidon poison enveloped him, it felt as if his insides were set on fire, boiling him, melting him from the inside out. He screamed, the sound ripping from his throat, agony and torture all poured into the sound, making his throat raw, until he just lost his voice. He didn't know how long it'd been, or how long he'd been underwater, until it got to the point where he couldn't remember anything before this pain, and he couldn't imagine anything coming after. He wanted to die—he wanted to die to make this pain stop.

He was so disoriented that when the poison finally receded, it took him a good five minutes to regain his senses. He felt like he'd just taken another trip through Tartarus, drank some river Phlegethon. He started hacking, even as the water healed him.

A deep laugh made him whip around to face Polybotes, only to wince at the pain in his head, like a hammer pounding on his skull nonstop.

"You mortal mind is so weak," Polybotes chuckled. "It took only two minutes to make you lose all sense."

Only two minutes? Percy thought. It felt like an eternity.

And, without warning, the poison came for him again, the tendrils wrapping around his legs, snaking up his body, burning his skin the whole way.

"Percy!" a voice shouted from behind him, drawing his attention. It was Jason, surrounded by venti, which apparently allowed him to breathe underwater. "Percy, move!"

Using the last of his energy, Percy propelled himself closer to Jason, away from Polybotes' poison. As soon as he did, though, he could barely move. His energy had been drained from going against Kym. Glancing at Jason, he realized the sky god's son was doing no better. He was barely reigning in those venti.

"Percy, we have to go," Jason said, out of breath, eyes on Polybotes and Kym.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Polybotes lunged and grabbed Jason, yanking him through the venti, cutting off his air supply. Polybotes had him by the neck, holding him almost like when Darth Vadar force choked people. He gagged and thrashed, trying to get himself free, but Percy could tell he didn't have the strength. Knowing Jason couldn't breathe underwater, Percy started to panic.

"Ah well," the giant said. "I'll settle for this little runt first. Too bad he can't even put up a fight." His hand tightened, slowly crushing Jason's windpipe, and Jason's eyes bulged, darting this way and that in fear.

As Percy saw that, he felt something break inside him, just like when he was standing at the edge of Tartarus. He didn't know what it was, except that it felt like broken glass grinding his insides, putting him on a razor's edge. Anger flooded him, filling him with renewed power, engulfing his veins with liquid rage. He was livid—he wanted blood. He was absolutely done with this ridiculous giant, messing with him wherever he went, and causing him grief. But this time, he'd crossed the line. Jason was Percy's friend, a great one, and if Polybotes thought he could mess with Percy's friends, he had another thing coming.

I will rip you apart if it's the last thing I do, Percy swore to himself, eyes flashing in anger and hate and bitterness. A million emotions swirled inside him, bumping against one another, threatening to boil over and consume him. Up until that point, he hadn't let them get that far, let them influence him so heavily, but now he just let go and let his anger rule.

Shooting forward with lightning speed, Percy drew Riptide and slashed down on Polybotes' arm that was holding Jason, slicing it clean through. The giant's eyes widened in shock, but Percy had no time to wonder at how he'd done it—Jason couldn't hold his breath much longer. He remembered back to how he'd controlled Akhlys' poison and instinctively knew, rather than thought, he could control water in anything, especially if he were surrounded by it. Raising his hand and pouring all his hate and anger and bitterness into his focus, he imagined Polybotes' blood, partly water, and imagined it flying apart, all of it separating into individual molecules. He let out a primal, animal scream, and curled his fingers into a fist.

Polybotes let out a scream, but it was cut short as his entire body flew apart, scattering into dust. It immediately began to reform, slowly, and Percy growled. He turned on Kym, who was staring, horrified, at Percy, her mouth in a perfect 'oh'.

"Kym!" Percy yelled, pointing at the solidifying giant. "I can give you the recognition you want, but you have to help. I know what it's like to be a pawn, forgotten, but you still can't be on the wrong side. I can only help you if you help me!"

Kymopoleia was stunned. She'd never witnessed anything like what Percy had done, not from a demigod, and it truly scared her. Percy saw she'd stopped her storm, and was just openly gaping at him. But he didn't have time for that.

"You have to decide now!" he demanded, swimming over to Jason, grabbing his friend under the arms.

The goddess shook her head as if to clear it, still staring. She broke her stare, though, to glance at Polybotes, who'd reformed halfway and was already spitting mad. She'd hated the gods and their half-bloods, but this one seemed different somehow. More violent. And she liked it.

"I will help you, Percy Jackson. I don't know why, but you are different. You are not like your Olympian family, and I find that intriguing. Let us kill this giant," she said, pulling her golden discus back as Percy hoisted Riptide by the hilt like a spear, and they threw at the same moment, weapons hitting home, turning Polybotes to dust.

"I hope I see you again, Percy Jackson. I look forward to the day. A warning, though. Your fatal flaw is dangerous, son of Poseidon, especially now. I have seen what you can do when you are protecting those you love, and it is truly frightening. But you are loyal to a fault. Gaea knows you would give up anything to save your friends, and I've witnessed it here.

"Your humanity is your own to lose, Percy Jackson, but the world is not." With that, Kymopoleia disappeared in a bright flash of light. Meanwhile, Percy shot upward, hauling Jason's limp body with him, trying not to think about what the goddess said.

When they landed on the deck of the Argo II, there wasn't a monster to be found. His friends had killed all of them, and only scattered piles of dust signified they had even been there at all. Annabeth and Piper rushed forward, running at full speed, shouting their names, but Percy was only focused on Jason.

Using the last of the strength he'd had underwater, Percy extracted the water from Jason's lungs, and he presently started hacking, gasping for air. Percy smiled and was about to say something, when his surroundings blurred, turning fuzzy and inconsistent. He blinked, trying to clear his vision, when a wave of dizziness swept over him, causing him to fall to stumble.

The last thing he heard was Annabeth shouting his name before he collapsed, hitting the wooden deck with a thunk, and everything went black.