Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians nor do I own The Heroes of Olympus.
Story: Champion of Olympus: The Maze of Death
AN: I've spoiled you all by updating so fast, but this update is 3,685 words, so enjoy.
Chapter 4: Powerful Reunions
City of Valhalla on Asgard- Four days after The Titan's Secret
Percy's POV
The next day I awoke refreshed and ready for my training. I stepped out of the room that the two dwarves gave me yesterday. The rooms off of the main hall of Valhalla were pretty spooky considering that the only other people alive in this building were the two dwarves. I stepped out of my room and walked toward the main hall. I entered the hall and there sat Thor on his throne. He gave me a warm smile as I entered. He motioned for me to approach his throne. I walked toward him, and then I bowed in front of his throne.
"You may stand Percy." Thor said. I stood up and looked at the ghostly figure of my uncle. "You're first step in training is a test of your body. We Aesir rely on two things in battle; the strength of mind and body, and the power of our weapons. On Midgard the mortals talk about science and magic. The humans of today believe that science explains everything that happens in the universe. In the past humans believed that magic explained all. Here on Asgard, magic and science are one in the same." Thor stated. I was stunned; this was different than how Athena explained the powers of Olympus.
"The individual strength and power of an Aesir stems from two sources. The first is the power of the mind and body. The second is the power of your weapon. The mind and body have power based on magic and on genetics, while our weapons are a combination of science and magic." Thor explained. I listened intently as my uncle discussed the sources of Norse power.
"Unlike the Olympians that do not have DNA or genes; you my boy have the blood of the Aesir running through your veins. The power within you must be awakened and that is where magic comes into play. The way the Norse use magic is through the use of runes. These symbols of the Norse are our language and the source of magic within our different realms of existence." Thor said.
"How will runes unlock the power of the Aesir within my blood?" I asked curiously.
"The runes must become a part of your body. Therefore, they are typically tattooed on special areas within your body. Typically, these four areas align with directional equivalents. The first on your chest represents the realm of your birth, which is Midgard; the second is on your back, which represents the birthplace of your parent, in this case Asgard. The third is on your right shoulder, which represents the source of godly power, which for you is Odin. Lastly, the final rune is on your left shoulder, which represents your teacher, in your case that is me." Thor said.
"How do you create these tattoos?" I asked worriedly.
"With magic, of course," Thor said. Thor's eyes glowed, and then a powerful blast of energy enveloped me and I could feel heat on my shoulders, chest and back. After a few minutes the power subsided and a mirror appeared in front of me. I looked at myself in the mirror; the four runes were located as Thor had discussed. The runes were written in black ink, but the tattoos didn't hurt, they almost felt like they had always been there, only hidden under the surface of my skin. Thor began to chant in the Norse runic language. The runes on my body began to glow. A green aura extended from the runes and encircled my body. I felt my blood boiling, as if an unknown power had been awakened within my cells. The process seemed to last for hours. I finally fell to my knees as my vision blurred.
I awoke a few moments later still on my knees in front of Thor's throne. "The sleeping warrior awakens." Thor stated with amusement in his voice. "How do you feel?" I had to think about that. My body felt lighter, but heavier at the same time. The mirror was still located in front of me. I looked into the mirror and the first thing that I noticed was that my face had become more angular and my body more muscled. I didn't look like an Olympic swimmer anymore. Instead, I looked like a linebacker on football team. I had large muscles, but not like a body builder. I could feel that my strength had increased tenfold. I looked taller, I had to be six feet two inches now and I knew I was still too young to stop growing, so my ultimate adult height was still unknown. My skin was a darker tan, almost like a bronze color. My dark black hair was longer than before.
I looked towards my uncle and I could see the large smile on his face. "Now the true Percy has awakened." He stated.
"What do you mean?" I asked curiously.
"I mean that now your Asgardian side as awaken. You now are truly a child of both worlds, Olympus and Asgard." Thor said. I nodded in understanding.
"What are my Asgardian powers?" I asked. Thor smiled knowingly.
"Of course your physical abilities have increased such as strength, stamina, speed, agility, and senses." Thor said.
"Do I get other special abilities?" I asked. Thor's smile widened at this question.
"Yes, but each person has a different special ability, only time will reveal this ability." Thor said. I nodded trying to understand his answer.
"What do we do now?" I asked. Thor's face took on a more serious look.
"We test the limits of your new abilities." Thor said.
"How?" I asked.
"By training and physical activity," Thor said.
"What kind of training and activity?" I asked. Thor gave me a devious smile.
"You'll see," He said. I visibly gulped at the tone of his voice and his devious smile. Thor snapped his fingers and immediately Brokkr and Sindri walked into the main hall. They each carried a large stone that was covered in Runes. They walked up to Thor and sat the stone at his feet. Thor began to chant in the language of the Norse. The two large stones began to glow, and then they began to morph into two large stone warriors. They wore metal armor, but their bodies were made of a grey stone. Their eyes glowed red and seemed to pulse as they looked at me.
"These are your sparring partners, my boy." Thor said. I pulled out Riptide, and then I began to turn the ring on my right hand. Thor raised his hand and glared at me.
"No weapons, please give them to Brokkr and Sindri." Thor said. I looked at him warily, and then his eyes flashed at me in warning. I gave Riptide and my axe to Brokkr, and then I gave my shield to Sindri.
"I'm fighting them hand to hand?" I asked. Thor smiled and looked at me with an amused smirk.
"You're fighting hand to hand; they get use those." Thor said. Suddenly, a large battle axe appeared in the hands of each stone warrior.
"How's that fair?" I asked.
"You are Aesir, this is how we train. You must learn the powers of the body before you learn of the powers of magic and weapons." Thor said. I nodded reluctantly as I looked at the two large menacing stone warriors. "Now begin," The two warriors walked towards me swinging their battle axes.
I dove out of the way of one strike as the blade of the axe embedded itself in the stone floor of the great hall. The second warrior ran forward at an incredible speed. It slashed at me with the axe; I was just able to slide out of the way.
"Use your abilities Percy. You Asgardian abilities have been activated." Thor said. I watched as the first stone warrior struggled trying to remove his axe from the stone floor. The second warrior charged again. He swung his axe toward me at incredible speed. I thought for sure I would be dead, but the strike never came. I looked up and both of my hands were on each side of the blade holding its weight above me. How was I doing that? I could feel my body using strength I never knew I had before. The second warrior spun the axe out of my grip, but I somersaulted out of the way before he could slice me open.
"Percy, you can feel the strength and speed within you. You can use them to your advantage. This is your legacy as an Aesir." Thor said. The second warrior ran toward me again and swung his axe at my head. My hands moved instinctively as they again held the sides of the blade away from me. My eyes widened as images of battle flashed through my mind, and then I knew what to do. The second warrior spun his axe again, but instead of somersaulting out of the way, I moved with the spin allowing the momentum to carry me towards the warrior. My hands slipped off the axe, but my body moved under the strike and toward the warrior's chest. I used both hands to push against the warrior's chest. The push was so powerful that the second warrior dropped his axe as he flew across the great hall, and then he crashed into the large wooden door.
I looked at my hands in wonder just as the first warrior's blade moved towards me. I moved with such speed that I actually struck the side of the axe blade forcing it out of the warrior's hand. The axe hit the floor, and then slid across the room. The stone warrior threw a punch toward me, but instead of deflecting or dodging the strike I caught it with my right hand. The warrior threw his left hand toward me and I caught that strike with my left hand as well. The two of us were locked into a battle of strength. The stone warrior was incredibly strong, but for some reason I held my own. I could sense the stress on the stone warrior as his stony limbs began to crack. I twisted my body and then my wrists as I broke the warrior's arms off under my grasp. The warrior stood in front me looking at me warily. I threw a punch toward the chest of the warrior. My fist went straight through the stone chest of the creature. The warrior broke into a hundred pieces as it collapsed on the floor.
My senses picked up movement behind me. I turned to see the last stone warrior running toward me. I completed a spin kick with such precision and speed my foot landed in the middle of the warrior's abdomen. The force of the kick was so great that the stone warrior exploded into dust. I turned around to look at Thor. He sat on his throne with a look of admiration on his face.
"Congratulations my boy, you've completed the first step in unlocking your Asgardian powers." Thor said with a wry smile.
Camp Half Blood – Almost four months since the end of The Titan's Secret
Thalia's POV
I arrived back at camp yesterday and today Annie would arrive from San Francisco. I sat under my pine tree with Peleus the dragon lying next to me. The dragon always liked me; I guess it could sense my connection to the pine tree that he protected. The Golden Fleece shined in the late morning sun. I looked down the hill and across the barrier that protected camp. Monster attacks had subsided over the past few months, as if the monsters had decided to consolidate their forces for an attack. Chiron had ordered border patrols and we had sent out satyrs to explore our surroundings, as an early warning system against a concentrated monster attack.
Movement across the boundary caught my attention. I looked down the hill and saw one of the camp vans pull up to the boundary. I watched as a familiar looking blonde girl stepped out of the vehicle. Annabeth was now just an inch or two under six feet and her blonde curls were clearly visible even thought her hair was tied up in a pony tail. I stood up and waited for my old friend, until she crossed the boundary. When she saw me, she raced towards the tree making Peleus stand up nervously.
"Peleus, it's ok boy," I said, as I patted his head. He immediately sat back down and watched Annabeth intently. Annabeth approached carefully, until she engulfed me in a hug. I heard Peleus sigh as he curled himself around the pine tree, and then drifted off into a pleasant slumber.
Annabeth and I separated, she gave me a happy smile, but I could tell that it was forced.
"How've you been Thals?" Annabeth asked. I looked at her, and then I shrugged my shoulders.
"Ok, I guess, it's been pretty lonely for me on Olympus." I said. Annabeth nodded in understanding. "How is California?"
"Fine, school was good and I'm getting along with my family." She answered.
"Have you spoken to your mother lately?" I asked.
"No, she's been pretty busy from what I've heard." Annabeth conceded. I knew she meant Athena's search for any signs of Percy still being alive.
"How's Lady Hera?" Annabeth asked.
"Pretty sad still, but we've been helping each other cope." I said.
Suddenly, the conch horn sounded, it was the signal for danger and it was coming from the beach by the ocean. "Let's go," I yelled as Annabeth dropped her bag and the two of us ran toward the big house. We were joined by Luke, Malcolm, Clarisse, Nico, Bianca, and Tyson as we ran passed the big house. We stopped at the edge of the beach and froze at the sight before us. Resting in the shallow water of the beach were ten Hippocampi, but that wasn't the strange part. The strange thing was the passengers that were dismounting from them. They were clearly demigods, about fifteen of them with a woman that looked like a hunter of Artemis in front of them. Chiron, Mr. D and Ares were on the beach with the rest of the camp armed to the teeth, in case a fight broke out. Annabeth and the rest of us walked up behind Chiron as we stared at the demigods. They were dressed in purple shirts and held weapons of different varieties in their hands. Chiron motioned for Annabeth, Luke and I to step forward to join him. The two gods flanked Chiron on each side.
The woman in the hunter's outfit stepped forward. She approached us carefully. She had the aura of a wild beast about her. She stepped within a few feet of Chiron; she had a determined look on her face.
"It has been a long time Chiron." She said. Chiron stared at her in disbelief.
"Lupa, why are you here?" Chiron asked warily. Lupa looked at him curiously, and then she stared at the two gods beside him.
"Lord Bacchus and Lord Mars, a pleasure as always," She said. That confused me; she just called them by their Roman names. Dionysus and Ares both bowed their heads.
"Here we're known as Dionysus and Mars, my dear Lupa." Dionysus said. He was actually polite to her. The woman smiled at them and for the first time I noticed the large canine teeth that she had. Who is this woman?
"Lupa, you didn't answer my question. Why are you all here?" Chiron asked again. Lupa sighed, and then she looked at Chiron sadly.
"We have returned because our camp was destroyed by monsters yesterday." Lupa said. Chiron's face paled and so did Mr. D's and Ares's.
"How did they get through the boundary?" Chiron asked, still in shock.
"We have no idea, but we came to warn you and to ask for asylum." Lupa stated. Chiron looked at her carefully, and then he looked toward the two gods next to him. Ares and Mr. D both nodded.
"Thank you for the warning, my old friend. You and your students are welcome here at Camp Half Blood. I'm afraid that your old bunkers will need quite a lot of repair before they are habitable again. Your students will have to stay with their Greek siblings for the time being." Chiron stated. When he said Greek siblings, the demigods in the purple shirts began whispering intensely.
"Thank you Chiron, my students will be on their best behavior." Lupa said, as she glared at her students. All the purple shirted demigods stopped talking instantly, as she glared at them.
"Will you introduce your students to my campers?" Chiron asked politely. Lupa smiled again exposing those large canine teeth.
"Legion one step forward," Lupa ordered. Six demigods stepped forward led by a blonde boy and a blonde girl. The boy looked familiar, but I wasn't sure.
"This is Jason Grace, son of Jupiter and Praetor of Legion One." Lupa said, as she pointed to the blonde boy. My heart almost jumped out of my chest.
"Jason," I said loudly. Everyone stopped as they looked at me carefully. Annabeth and Luke both gave me a concerned stare. When I made eye contact with Jason, his eyes grew wide. "Jason, you don't recognize your own sister?" His eyes grew even bigger when I said that. "It's me, Thalia Grace." Jason stepped forward and I did as well. We walked toward each other carefully, until we stood only a foot apart.
"Thalia," He said, as tears streamed down his face. I could feel my own tears as I looked at him in wonder. We both jumped into each other's arms and cried. Everyone on both sides was completely stunned. We finally broke apart after a few minutes. Lupa and Chiron both stepped next to us.
I looked at Chiron as I wiped my tears. "Jason is my brother; he disappeared when he was two years old. Our mother began to drink after he disappeared." I said. Lupa stepped forward.
"I found him in the wolf house when he was two. His father is Jupiter, the Roman version of Zeus." Lupa said.
"My father is Zeus." I stated. Lupa and Chiron both looked at each other wide eyed.
"One sibling with the Roman version of the godly parent and the other sibling with the Greek version, incredible," Chiron said, as Lupa nodded in agreement. "Malcolm, Travis and Connor, please take our Roman guests to their applicable cabin and make sure they are treated well." The three boys walked up to the Romans demigods carefully and motioned for them to follow.
"Chiron, I would like Legion One to join us with your counselors in a meeting." Lupa stated.
"Agreed," Chiron turned toward his campers. "All counselors report to the recreation room in the big house." All of the counselors began to walk to the big house, I could hear them whispering to each other as we walked. I stayed back with Jason and held onto his shoulder. The blonde girl that I saw next to Jason earlier stepped forward and extended her hand.
"I'm Reyna, daughter of Apollo; it is a pleasure to meet Jason's sister, even if she's a Greek." Reyna said. She said Greek with some trepidation, but I could tell that she held no malice toward me. I took her hand gladly.
"Any friend of my brother's is a friend of mine." I said. I walked with Reyna and Jason to the big house. Today was certainly a weird day, but for the first time since Percy's death I didn't feel quite so alone.
AN: Thalia and Jason are reunited, but how will the Greeks and Romans get along? Percy is beginning to find his Asgardian powers, but what special power will he find and will he receive a new weapon to enhance his powers? Good questions that will be revealed in the next few chapters. For those who need a clarification, Percy is not dead. He is trapped on Asgard for the moment. Although most people back on Earth believe he is dead. Thor is teaching him about his Asgardian powers. The next chapter will see the timeline on Asgard become closer in line to the timeline back at camp. The events in camp will lead to a new and dangerous quest. Percy will not return to camp till much later in the story, but major events will occur on Asgard that will be instrumental to the conclusion of this story, so please hold on and as always, stay tuned.