Percy was still a natural with a sword. He fought Thalia in the clearing where he forged their new swords. But his style was different now. He was fighting like he had someone else helping him, leaving strange openings but never going on the defensive. He spun around Thalia and struck at her blind spots, but before she could turn to attack him he was moving again. Once Mavros joined in he became unstoppable, whereas before the wolf joined Percy lost three out of five matches, Mavros covered him and he covered Mavros. The pair was unstoppable, but as individuals they were slightly above average, not good enough to face the Titan of Time in single combat without each other. Percy also fought with a long cloak he could use to distract his opponent and leave them guessing as to which direction his sword was coming from, or which direction Mavros's teeth were coming from.
"How did you get that good in three years?" Thalia panted.
"I didn't sleep very much." Percy answered. The daughter of Zeus nodded and sat on a fallen tree heavily. Percy sat beside her.
"What's next?" Thalia asked,
"Time passes much slower in here than outside, so we have time to be absolutely prepared for the fight with Kronos. I want to make at least partial sets of armor for each of us out of Adamant. That way we'll be better defended." Percy answered.
"That makes sense. When did you get so good in the forges?" she asked,
"Lots of practice in secret with Beckendorf." Percy answered.
"That makes sense I guess." Thalia answered. Percy stood.
"Can I see Aegis? I'll get to work reinforcing it with Adamant while you hunt dinner." Percy asked, Thalia activated the shield before pulling it off her arm and handing it to him. Percy hurried to his forge and started working.
Percy finished the Adamant armor after two more years of work. He wasn't the most skilled blacksmith, but he took his time and made sure everything he made was absolutely perfect, or it was remade. Aegis was something he couldn't replicate, there was heavy magic on the shield, so Percy covered the face with a thin layer of Adamant and braced the inside so it could take heavier hits. He used the dull gray metal to forge a series of neutral guards for he and Thalia, then started working on the armor specifically for her. An hour of awkward measuring later he started pounding away at the heated metal with a blush still lingering on his cheeks. His own armor was much lighter. He made a simple chain mail shirt and reinforced his cloak with even more mail. Any hit to his chest would hurt incredibly, but his entire body was protected from the rear by the hooded cloak. Thalia's armor consisted of a simple chest plate and the customary bracers and grieves, identical to Percy's own bracers and grieves. Percy ran the perimeter of the valley twice every day. When he finished the armor he was faster and stronger than he had ever been, he secretly worked with his water powers while pretending to sleep.
The sound of clashing metal echoed through the forest. Percy deflected Thalia's spear with his own and leapt over her, she spun only to have the butt of his spear hit the back of her knees. She rolled back and thrust her own spear at him from the ground. Percy twisted away and brought his spear down like a staff on where her head had been moments before. Thalia rolled away and stood quickly, keeping her guard up against the faster opponent. Percy hadn't broken a sweat despite dueling her for almost an hour. Thalia glared at him and charged. Percy crouched and spun, rising again behind her and tapping her shoulder with his spear. She turned and glared at him.
"How did you get so good with a spear?" she asked,
"I practice every day. And I can use the water vapor in the air to read your movements." Percy answered.
"Really? Why can't I do that?" she asked,
"You probably haven't tried. Close your eyes and focus on the air around you. You've used the winds before right? It'll be similar to that except instead of making them move you just use how they move against your opponent and the surroundings to tell where they'll strike." Percy explained. Thalia closed her eyes and focused. After a few seconds she was able to tell Percy's exact location and how he was moving faster than her eyes could show her by watching his spear. Then she lost it.
"That was awesome. But it's so tiring, how do you use that in combat?" she asked
"I've had a lot of practice, it'll get easier as you use it more and more, plus I manipulate my sweat so that it helps me strike harder. Which puts less stress on my muscles." Percy answered.
"Whaddya know! You grew a brain." Thalia remarked. Percy scowled.
"I spent my first year here driving myself mad trying to find any way to make myself stronger so I could face Kronos. That was what I meant when I used the word 'insane' to describe myself." Percy responded.
"Well it's better than twiddling your thumbs." Thalia shrugged. She raised her spear.
"Again?" Percy asked,
"Again. I'm gonna figure out my own ways to make myself stronger so I can keep your idiotness alive." Thalia answered. They closed the gap with a crash.