'flashback or thoughts'

"normal speech"

Chapter 10: Catalyst Part II

Galloping straight into a group of gathered centaurs Reyna unsheathed her sword and swung. The wind whistled as her sword cut straight through a pair of centaurs that strayed too close to her side.

Again and again she repeated her actions. Reducing as much as possible the amount of enemies she had to face.

Though she didn't carry a spatha like Hazel, who was even now atop Arion doing the same as her, Reyna was more than able to destroy any monster that dared attack her.

The horse Hazel rode was truly the fastest steed on the planet.

His image flickered in and out of sight constantly, impeding and negating all counterattacks aimed at him or his rider.

Even with both of the girls atop their trusty steeds cutting down monsters, they were barely making a dent into their overall number.

Reyna's legion was in trouble and even though she did not want to voice her fears out loud, she was starting to worry that maybe her sister wouldn't come.

She feared her sister would think helping Camp Jupiter survive would be detrimental to the amazon nation.

Quickly she shook her head out of those thoughts and headed straight for the 3rd cohort who was right now being battered by wave after wave of earthborn.

She patted Scipio's head and wordlessly conveyed the need to aid her comrades. With a quick snort to show he understood, her pegasus took flight and soared over monsters in order to quickly get to the 3rd cohort.

Scipio landed amidst her campers and she quickly took command.

"Centurions! Gather your men. Employ the cannae tactic." She demanded.

Instantly focus shifted from merely holding off their enemies and weathering their assault to forming military ranks and obeying their commander's orders. CJ took the lead and dragged those of his cohort who were slow on the uptake into position.

Slowly the campers of the 3rd cohort formed lines and locked their shields. They strengthened the sides and outer lines of soldiers leaving the middle weak.

This was nothing but a lure to entice the enemy to attack the center and thus be completely encircled by the remaining soldiers after the middle campers retreated drawing the monsters further in.

The cohort advanced slowly hoping that their formation would serve its intended purpose. They met the first wave of monsters and were glad to see them attack the weak center believing it to be an easy target.

When the earthborn were completely surrounded CJ gave the order to attack and decimate the foot soldiers of Gaea. Yet the same tactics wouldn't work forever and everyone knew that.

After performing the cannae tactic to perfection several times they had to switch things up and tried the wedge formation. This particular line up was designed to provide a concentration of soldiers in the center to smash through the enemy lines. However, it was not meant to weather countless waves of earthborn sent one after the other to ruthlessly attack the legion.

Soon Reyna had joined her fellow campers in forming a tight circle of interlocking shields that were surrounded by monsters. A defensive ring that had their shields facing outwards and stabbing any monsters that got in range.

In the center CJ had taken charge and ordered the few field medics to patch up any and all wounds that needed attention.

Occasionally on orders by CJ, the Roman soldiers would allow a few monsters into the ring of shields that they were holding up only to be killed by a few legionnaires in the middle. This was naught but a delaying tactic as all present knew that they wouldn't last forever.

Everywhere they looked the legion of Rome was fighting furiously in order to hold off the onslaught of monsters and potential conquerors of camp. The 5th was still battling the Cyclops and the 1st and 2nd were busy trying to destroy the centaurs who had speed and numbers to their advantage.

Percy Jackson was doing all he could to aid the 4th cohort in whatever direction they were fighting but even if he could fight forever the rest of the legion could not. If Hylla and her amazons didn't arrive soon, it would spell the end of Camp Jupiter.

CJ was doing surprisingly well in battle. He continuously jumped in and helped out any camper under his command while fighting. Already he had risked his life multiple times to pull a Roman to safety to the middle of their defensive ring to try and heal them or give them a break from battle.

After pulling another one of his friends to safety CJ turned to his commanding officer in order to ask for and hope to receive some sort of good news, "What are we going to do now Reyna? We can't last forever if things keep up like this."

She bit her lip in worry and frantically scanned the hills of California and looked in the direction of the Caldecott Tunnel entrance for any signs of reinforcement. "We will continue fighting. Even if we were cowardly enough to surrender there is no guarantee that-"

Her words were cut off by the frantic cheering and jubilant exclamations of the 4th cohort. Reyna looked over in confusion at them trying to figure out for herself what made them so happy.

The answer to her unasked question soon revealed itself as massive amounts of arrows coupled with boulders rained down on the monster army that were spread out amongst the field.

Like a mirage of a beautiful oasis would appear seemingly out of nowhere for a man dying of thirst in the desert, so did the amazon nation appear for the legion and brought hope of victory.

Perched atop a forklift that had its tines sharpened to a deadly point, Queen Hylla rallied her amazons. "Forward! Destroy the army of Gaea! To my sister's aid!"

Hope blossomed in her heart once more and Reyna was now more grateful and sure than ever that Percy Jackson might be exactly what Camp Jupiter needed to survive.

Coupled with the reinforcement of the amazons another spectacular event occurred to change the tides of battle. Hazel had galloped and ridden Arion over to Dakota who had the golden eagle standard.

She grasped it in her hands and hoisted it over her head and yelled, "Glory to Rome! Glory to the Twelfth Legion Fulminata!"

Thunder shook the valley, the eagle let loose a blinding flash and a thousand tendrils of lightning exploded from its golden wings. Like tree branches on an ancient sequoia the tendrils of lightning connected with both of the remaining Cyclops.

Quickly both monsters were surrounded and trapped in a cage of lightning that got tighter by the millisecond. Sparks flew and the electricity arced through the air, bombarding the monsters. They battered and rained down on the one eyed monsters until both exploded in a shower of golden dust, soon scattered by the winds.

The look on every Roman's face was priceless. The daughter of Pluto from the disgraced 5th cohort had single handedly, albeit with the help of the golden eagle, destroyed two Cyclops that an entire cohort had trouble defeating.

Everyone once more rallied to the eagle and with renewed vigor attacked the monster army. Amazons and Romans worked side by side to crush the invading forces of Gaea.

Not a moment too soon.

For as much of a fight that they were putting up, the Romans had taken noticeable losses. Their ranks would take time to replenish, both retired and current legionnaires had fallen in battle.

Only one thing had to ruin Reyna's mood and possibly tilt the direction that the battle was going.

Polybotes lumbered forward, smashing through any and all mortals that dared get in his way. Effortlessly tossing around all challengers before him, looking for the child of the god he was borne to topple.

Percy ran in and out of the enemy lines with ease, he cut down any who dared oppose him. Once more his state of mind seemed to accelerate just like when he fought the centurions not long ago.

Time slowed to a crawl. Everything was magnified and all actions stood out. If a centaur took a swing at him Percy could see it coming a mile away. It even went so far as being able to sense danger to a degree.

He had his back turned to a group of monsters and they'd taken advantage by trying to run him through with their spears. Each time an enemy spear came within fatal range; Percy could feel the hair on the back of his head creep up sending a shiver down his spine allowing him to twist and swivel out of the way.

Before the monsters could fathom how the demigod managed to sense their attack, their efforts to rationalize were cut short by a celestial bronze blade granting them a quick passage back to the depths of Tartarus. No matter what the monsters tried; sending multiple attackers at once, firing arrows or hurling spears from a safer distance, the demigod seemed to be fighting with a pair of eyes on both sides of his head keeping him safe from whatever they sent his way.

Almost on instinct he'd been able to twist and swivel out danger. He caught them by surprise and after dodging their weapons turned and slashed them into golden dust.

Of course it was hard keeping a level head while fighting like this. It was like an adrenaline rush, but it seemed much more intense and felt better.

After his conversation with his step-mother he now knew that this battle mode was a result of the curse of Achilles. It granted him a great deal of power that was plain for all to see.

Nothing comes without its drawbacks however.

He already figured out that if he kept this up for a substantial amount of time he would burn himself out and tire quicker than if he didn't have the curse. Another bad side effect that he only now started to get glimpses of was the mindset he was in.

He wasn't sure if he always felt like this in battle but his confidence grew as he battled on. No, confidence wasn't enough to describe what he felt. Despite how odd the word tasted on his tongue, he couldn't deny it was arrogance.

Even in the heat of battle he knew this could be a dangerous feeling to have. He needed to control himself before he made the mistake of biting off more than his mortal body could chew.

But despite knowing that, he felt invincible, invulnerable and pretty much unstoppable. Like nothing could touch him and he could take on any opponent and have a fairly good chance of success. It wouldn't matter if they were monsters, Titans, Giants or even other gods.

It was a slight struggle keeping his cool while fighting and not thinking himself invincible. Only the fact that his friends were fighting for their lives around him kept him level headed.

As his sword whistled through the air and split another earthborn in half the sunlight caught the edges of blade and made the words engraved on it stand out.

Reacting on instinct he lifted his shield to shoulder height and stopped another barrage of arrows fired his way. The words engraved on the shield also shone in the sunlight.

Audentis Fortuna Iuvat. Fortune favors the brave.

Victis Honor. Honor to the vanquished.

Now more than ever he understood the wisdom that those words brought and their intended purpose when engraved on the weapons. They truly were there to be both a reminder to keep Achilles grounded as well as words of encouragement.

Percy ducked as another arrow narrowly missed his head. He scowled and immediately rushed forward to destroy even more monsters.

Already there had been too much blood spilled on this day. More campers than he wanted to admit had fallen in battle.

He was no fool. He knew that in war it was inevitable to have losses on both sides. This was especially true when facing an army as strong as that brought to Camp Jupiter by Polybotes, and yet he hated and wished that he could do something to prevent that.

So he pushed himself hard in battle. Hard enough that he had created a miniature hurricane in his wake while battle all monsters. Then Salacia's warnings of abusing his powers rang through his head.

It would be unwise to overdo things when the leader of the army had yet to enter the fight himself. He didn't want to face Polybotes while tired and he would if he overextended himself.

After all, only Percy had the means to fight Polybotes and hope to defeat him. Salacia had warned him of that and he wasn't one to ignore such a serious warning.

Leaving behind another pile of golden dust that used to be monsters Percy rushed towards another group of campers in dire need of help. It was hard trying to suppress the adrenaline rush that fighting gave him, but he steeled his resolve and made it go away.

It was getting progressively harder not to lose his cool. Yet he had constant reminders to keep his temper in check, such as his friends fighting for their lives. How Hazel and even Frank were doing their best to ensure camp saw another day. That and the words written on his shield and sword kept ringing through his mind.

As he took a second to look around him at his comrades he witnessed no fear in the legionnaire's eyes, but everywhere he looked they were being overwhelmed. There were simply too many monsters, wave after wave of enemies crashing upon their shields. Where were the amazons?

Again and again he surged forward after joining his fellow campers. The legend of the shield of Achilles being the polar opposite of the Aegis shield proved true.

Instead of making his enemies cower in fear at its sight, it inspired his comrades over and over again. They didn't falter in fear of their enemies and instead gained confidence whenever Percy charged forward. His courage and drive in battle renewed all the Romans' fighting strength and spirit.

A few moments later, after helping to rally some of the campers to counterattack and help out one of the cohorts, Percy witnessed Hylla and her warriors arrive upon the battle. He breathed a sigh of relief and silently resolved to go and leave sacrifices for any of the war gods the amazon nation worshipped as thanks for them finally showing up.

He shook his head of any errant thoughts for the moment and jumped back into the fighting. As he took another step closer to another group of monsters attempting to attack some campers from behind he felt a tremor through the earth. Another step and he felt another tremor shake the ground.

Percy looked around perplexed at what could possibly be causing the earth to shake. His eyes widened in surprise and slight apprehension as he spotted Polybotes a few hundred meters away.

The Giant was impossible to miss from any point in the battlefield. Easily standing over two and perhaps even three stories tall, he towered over friend and foe alike.

"Oh crap." Percy muttered, "I have to draw him away from here. I can't afford to have our fight cause collateral damage to my friends and comrades."

His eyes widened in surprise as he saw both Zoë and Reyna surge forward from their ranks in the legion and attack Polybotes together. Instantly Percy broke into a run to try and head them off or at the very least make them leave Polybotes to him.

As he was running full tilt towards Polybotes he noticed a grizzly bear running next to him, battering all monsters out of the way. He'd been informed of Frank's enviable ability to transform into animals in battle but hadn't seen it till now.

"Frank!" Percy called out to get his attention. "Give me a lift." He motioned towards the mass of monsters still ahead of them that seemed determined to keep Percy separated from their leader.

If Percy wanted to reach Polybotes who was fighting two of his friends, then he would have to cross an almost solid mass of monsters. They were gathered so thick and packed so tight that it would be impossible to wade through them quickly.

Frank growled in what could only be agreement before his form rapidly shifted and melded into that of a giant eagle mid stride. He screeched and flapped his wings to take flight as Percy jumped onto its back after storing his sword and shield for better maneuverability.

"Go higher!" Percy shouted and pointed upwards.

Frank turned to give him what looked like an eagles glare but Percy knew to be a questioning look since birds couldn't really convey emotions very well.

"I'll jump down like during the war games and hopefully knock Polybotes for a loop while giving the legion a chance to regroup and surround the remaining monsters. They're trying to contain Polybotes so Reyna and Zoë don't get any additional help." Percy explained.

Frank let out a screech again and flapped his mighty wings. Percy held on tightly as they increased in speed and rapidly gained height.

They easily soared over the monsters trying to keep them separated from their friends and Frank soared high into the sky. He climbed higher and higher until he was about 40 or 50 feet in the air. If he got too high then not even Percy would be able to survive the fall unless it was into water.

Percy thanked the clumsy but friendly son of Mars and jumped from his back head first. Some of the monsters noticed his descent and rushed to where he would land, intent on harming him.

The wind whistled through his ears and whipped through his hair as Percy rapidly approached the ground. Concentrating once more on the feeling in his stomach, that he used to control water and he focused on during the War Games, Percy abruptly swiveled in mid-air and started falling feet first.

He laced his fingers together above his head and locked his arms in order to deliver a hammer blow upon landing. The monsters were all swarming to surround him upon impact. As Percy approached his landing he arched his back and raised his arms high before colliding with the ground.

A massive shockwave erupted from the collision he caused.

Monsters that were mid-pounce were instantly blown away as the concussive force hit them. The earth shook violently for several seconds, going so far as to crack and splinter outwards from Percy's landing.

Even Polybotes was surprised by the amount of power that Percy exuded upon his landing. He'd been about to try and stab Zoë when the earthquake knocked him off balance. He was only able to stay on his feet because he slammed his trident into the ground and held on tight.

Percy slowly got to his feet and walked out of the small crater his landing had created. Reyna wheeled her pegasus toward Percy, shock and hope alight in her eyes.

Zoë who had been trying to fight Polybotes or at least hold him off until Percy's arrival sighed in relief. A small smile graced her features. 'This is it. The deciding factor of the battle.' She thought to herself.

Percy once more released his sword and shield from his bracelet. He pointed at the giant. "I'm your opponent. Let's end this Polybotes."

Percy led Polybotes away from his reinforcements. He was intent on fighting him on his own terms. This also ensured that the two prong attack of amazon and Roman would decimate the remainder of the monster army.

They met by the aqueduct, which so far had remained unscathed. Percy skidded to a stop and wheeled to face Polybotes after running away. With the giant still chasing after him, Percy ran straight at him and leapt into the air to try and stab him.

The Giant didn't have a shield but his massive girth was enough to fend off the demigod. As Percy was in midair Polybotes back handed him into the nearest brick arch. Cracks spider webbed out from the force of the blow.

With a grimace Percy got back to his feet after recovering from the attack.

Polybotes rushed at Percy fully intent on skewering the child of the sea and ending the legion's hope to end the battle. The giant knew that Percy held the highest hopes of defeating him. Hazel and Frank may have already destroyed Alcyoneus but they wouldn't fare nearly as well against him.

Percy watched in seeming slow motion as Polybotes lumbered towards him. He waited until the last possible second before jumping out of the way of the trident. The giant's weapon missed him by a small margin and struck the arch behind Percy with punishing force fully smashing it down and unleashing a waterfall.

Polybotes chuckled darkly as he turned to face Percy. "Well well son of Neptune. It seems that you are not as weak and pathetic as your father. Perhaps this fight will be more entertaining than I imagined."

Percy circled the giant, all the while making sure to keep a reasonable distance between them. "You talk big Polybotes, but that's all it is. You won't be leaving this camp of your own free will."

Polybotes let loose deep booming laughter. "My brothers may have lost their battles to the pathetic children of the gods they were borne to defeat but do not think you will be so lucky. I am Polybotes," he roared and spread his arms wide while tremors shook the earth around him, "among the strongest of my brothers, son of Gaea, in olden times I rose from Tartarus, the abyss of my father to challenge the gods and dethrone Neptune that feeble king. You were right about one thing though child, one of us won't be leaving this battle of their own free will."

Percy ignored the taunts that Polybotes threw his way and instead concentrated on the water falling between the two of them now from the aqueduct. He willed it to rise and whip around him in a show of strength, creating a miniature cyclone.

"You think that impresses me?" Percy rebutted, "I am Perseus Jackson, son of Neptune, vanquisher of Medusa, bane of the Minotaur, nightmare of Titans, and slayer of the Titan King himself!" Percy smirked as he noticed that Polybotes looked nervous at the last proclamation.

"And I am not alone in this fight giant." Here Percy reached into his pocket and pulled out a pearl, one that Salacia had given him the day before with specific instructions. He crushed it in his hand and threw it to his right.

From the shards of pearl a fountain of water erupted into the air. Polybotes looked on in confusion, wondering what the purpose of that was.

As the fountain of water died down a tall and regal figure emerged from the tapering liquid.

A woman clad in full Roman battle regalia stepped forward. Gone was the crab-claw crown on her brow and instead a helm engraved with waves and other sea imagery sat on her head, her deep sea-green eyes easily shining through. Her deep black hair still fell in waves down her back enclosed in a net. She still wore armor but now also wore a leather skirt and military sandals. Her weapon of choice was a trident too, but hers was smaller and looked more streamlined than the one used by Polybotes.

Salacia Queen of the oceans joined her step-son in battle. She stepped forward and stood next to Percy. "It looks like it's time to show Rome the true power of the oceans. I did well in entrusting you with that pearl my son." Salacia said to Percy, not taking her eyes off of Polybotes.

Percy didn't bother reacting to how she spoke the last word. That was a matter for another time. It was part of the deal they had struck and bore no negative consequences at the moment.

The son of Gaea growled in irritation after he saw a goddess bear arms against him. "It matters not who you have help you pathetic sea child. I was borne to crush Neptune, his wife is but a poor substitute for an opponent and you cannot hope to match me either."

Percy scowled and Salacia glared at the giant for his insults. Both took up their weapons and positioned themselves to attack Polybotes.

"Have you done as instructed child? Will you be able to fight at full strength?" Salacia questioned Percy.

She was of course referring to how she told him how to remedy his one possible weakness in the Achilles curse. She had told him that since he didn't remember his mortal anchor there was a high possibility that it would flicker on and off in battle and he might lose it eventually.

Percy didn't want to lose such a valuable aid in battle so had of course chosen to try and fix that problem. In order not to lose the powers granted to him he had to find a new mortal anchor, and he had done so.

Percy's eyes flickered quickly to the side where the Roman and amazon army was destroying the monsters. His gaze fell momentarily on a certain ambassador as she wove in and out of monsters, trying to make her way over to Percy and Polybotes.

Salacia noticed where his gaze and more importantly on who his gaze had fallen on. She smirked as the information she had received seemed to be true after all.

"Yes. There won't be any problems on my end. Are you still all set on capturing him though? It would be a lot easier to kill Polybotes now." Percy responded.

Salacia nodded, "There is a war approaching. We must learn all we can of Gaea's plans. Having one of her children in captivity is the best way to accomplish this. Jupiter is a fool and won't listen to reason so it once again falls on the oceans to protect Olympus. At least Rome will pay us the respect we deserve now."

Percy tightened the grip on his sword, "Very well. Let's go." The very second the last word left his mouth both fighters sprang into action.

Both emerald eyed combatants moved in attacking in a high-low pattern.

Salacia commanded the water from the aqueduct to form a step in mid air that she jumped off of with the goal of impaling Polybotes through the shoulder.

Percy ran in behind her and went in to slide between the legs while swiping at the giant's heel in an effort to cripple his ability to move.

Polybotes roared in irritation and grabbed a piece of the debris from the aqueduct to throw at Salacia. He also tried to throw the net he was carrying at Percy so he could capture the son of Neptune and bring him to Gaea.

The queen of the oceans parried the incoming slab of stone but was thrown off her path of attack. Percy abandoned his attempt to slide under Polybotes and jumped out of the way of the net.

The giant lifted his trident and rushed to stab at Percy who only barely got his shield up in time. The works of Briareus are a true marvel and blessing bestowed upon the Earth, as it fully stopped the trident from penetrating it. Even Polybotes was surprised at this.

Yet the force of a behemoth of an enemy is not to be nullified so easily. Even though the shield blocked the trident from impaling Percy, it merely turned the trident from a piercing weapon into a battering ram. Percy was knocked off his feet and sent skidding along the ground.

Salacia hoped to take advantage of the giant's focus on Percy. She lifted her arm up and waved it at the water, commanding it to shoot at Polybotes at high pressure.

"Rarr!" Polybotes roared in irritation. The water poured over him, turning to poison and creating a steaming marsh around him. It was more of a nuisance than anything, but he used it to his advantage and flung it at Percy.

Reacting on instinct Percy deflected the vast majority of it with his will and jumped out of the way of the rest. As the liquid touched the ground before him, the grass withered and smoked with a nasty hiss.

"Note to self: Avoid that stuff at all costs." Percy murmured.

"Ha ha! Come now son of Neptune!" Polybotes taunted, "I thought that water was to do your bidding. Does it not heal you? Why not take a swim in it and let it bathe you."

The queen of the oceans grimaced as her attack was rendered ineffective. She glanced at Percy to make sure he was alright and was glad he wasn't hurt because of her mistake.

All three fighters readied themselves to continue the fight. No more words were exchanged as all three tensed in preparation for the inevitable clash.

This time Percy took the lead with Salacia holding back to provide cover. He ran straight at the giant but kept his eyes peeled in order to fend off the massive trident. Receiving another blow from that weapon wasn't on his agenda.

He was within lunging distance of Polybotes before the son of Gaea decided to attack. Polybotes brought his trident up and put his considerable weight behind it hoping to stab and pin Percy to the ground. His stab was thrown off target by another trident impacting his own, that of Salacia.

Percy for his part still had to twist out of the way of the incoming weapon and did so with ease because of the increased awareness he had been having all throughout the battle. He quickly ducked to Polybotes' right side and slashed at his leg causing ichor to drip from the open wound.

All around them, the sounds of battle were winding down. As the last monsters were mopped up Percy's friends and allies started gathering, forming a large and loose ring around the giant.

Salacia and Percy were having a much tougher time against the giant than many could understand. It was a goddess and an extremely powerful demigod working in tandem after all.

Polybotes for his part was fighting the family of Neptune tooth and nail. He refused to give even an inch to what he considered inferior beings. Not once did he dare to underestimate the two and had stopped taunting and mocking them in order to fully concentrate.

If he lost focus for even a split second Percy would take advantage and injure him further. Already the son of Neptune had darted in and out of his defense and wounded Polybotes several times. Gashes were abundant on the giant's legs and arms as well as several wounds on his stomach.

He had tried to set loose basilisks from his hair on the raven haired demigod but Salacia had quickly disposed of the dangerous beasts. This in turn forced Polybotes to fight even harder.

As for Percy and Salacia, this battle was significantly harder because they couldn't afford to kill him. If Percy had been fighting the giant alone then he wouldn't care so much but their goal was to injure him enough to capture him alive. A task that made the already tough battle monumentally harder as Polybotes shared no such restraint. Their aim was only to maim not slay the giant.

"Enough of this foolishness! I don't care if mother's goal was to capture you alive, I will end you today!" Polybotes boomed as he ducked to avoid Salacia's trident that sailed through the air.

Percy smirked and darted forward to engage the giant. Polybotes missed him as he ran by and watched in confusion as Percy ran to the one of the arches of the aqueduct, used his momentum to run a few steps up the wall and twisted in midair to bring his sword in a deadly arc to attack the giant.

Polybotes met the weapon with his own trident but Percy used the force of his fall and twisted his sword, managing to somehow disarm the giant. Percy tucked his legs under him and rolled forward to escape injury but wasn't quite fast enough.

The son of Gaea, enraged at losing his weapon jumped forward to step on Percy as he was rolling forward. Percy aware of an incoming danger twisted around and lifted his shield in front of him to keep himself from being squashed.

The bane of Neptune continued with his self-appointed task of turning Percy into a smear on the ground. Again and again his foot plowed Percy into the ground.

Percy was barely holding himself together behind his trusted shield and was pushed further into the earth with each decisive stomp. His arms felt as if they would fall apart at any moment and only barely could he hold his shield in front of him.

Salacia quickly ran to retrieve her trident in order to help Percy get away.

An unexpected fighter jumped into the fray however, as Zoë Nightshade ran in and stabbed at the giant's leg.

"Aargh!" Polybotes howled in agony. He stepped back from his attack and faced his newest opponent. Percy watched in a bit of a daze as the giant stepped forward to smash Zoë with his fists into the ground.

Eyes widening in horror as Zoë refused to move out of the way in order to protect Percy, he jumped out of the crater he was in and pushed her.

"Jackson!" Polybotes thundered. "You will all pay for this."

It was Salacia who jumped in this time to engage the giant in battle. Percy took advantage of the reprieve and retrieved the trident of his enemy. Polybotes had laced his enormous digits together and attempted to hammer the elusive and nimble queen of the seas to the ground.

His enormous strength and size did not allow Salacia much room to counter attack so she could only dodge. Percy timed his attack just right and drove the giant's trident into the ground right at the time Polybotes had attempted to squash his step-mother, managing to trap both arms between the tines.

"This is the end for you Polybotes. I warned you that you wouldn't be leaving here of your own free will." Percy shouted as he ran forward.

"Perseus wait!" Salacia shouted out in an effort to stop what she believed to be the finishing blow and end to her plans of capturing the giant.

Percy sprinted towards his kneeling enemy who was struggling to free himself, his enormous head close to the ground. With a mighty yell Percy jumped forward but instead of swinging his sword he used his shield as a blunt instrument and rammed it with all his strength into the giant's temple, rendering him unconscious.

With a shudder Polybotes slumped forward as he was knocked out cold. Salacia sighed in relief before producing imperial gold manacles from thin air and cautiously moving forward to restrain their enemy.

All around them, every Roman and amazon alike stared in shock at the conclusion to the epic battle.

Salacia turned to Percy to speak her last words before leaving with her new prisoner. "You have done well Perseus. You have brought honor to the oceans and with this we strike a decisive blow against Gaea and her ilk. Congratulations. Until we meet again."

A wave of water crashed down upon the two immortals as cover for Salacia flashing out with her captive.

Cheers immediately broke out among the Romans and their allies. The Romans began to chant, "Percy! Percy!"

The 4th cohort mobbed him. Before he knew it, they had surrounded him and were trying to lift him up.

Zoë and Reyna locked eyes for a split second before both nodded and split apart in the crowd. Whispers of, "Praetor! Praetor" started making their way through the crowd as the rest of the legion joined in the celebration.

Percy was lifted up on a shield and all around him the entire legion cried out the same thing, "Praetor! Praetor!"

Pushing her way through the chanters, Reyna held up her hand and grasped Percy's in congratulation. Zoë watched all this from the middle of the crowd, her whispers and plan she had concocted with Reyna having succeeded.

Both had agreed prior to the battle that in the event that Percy successfully defeated the giant, he was the best candidate for Praetor. Neither wanted to risk a vote being held and Octavian possibly gaining the title.

So with a little mob mentality both had started the ball rolling and manipulated Percy into his deserved leadership role. If asked Percy would disagree but it was obvious that he was the best candidate to share the leadership role of the camp.

With one final cheer the legion hoisted Percy high into the air before turning and making their way through the Field of Mars and to the Mess Principia.

Their good mood was cut short however as a woman's features materialized from the golden grass and shadows of the Berkeley Hills. A woman that Percy had spoken to once already.

"Enjoy your little celebrations while you can Romans. You may have won this petty skirmish but the war is far from over. This was all done to test the waters you could say." Her eyes and mouth remained closed and unmoving just like the last time but Percy and everyone else could hear her voice clear as day.

"Gaea." Percy spat. "Don't pretend you lost nothing here. Even now Polybotes is far from your reach and the information he reveals will help us beat you. Olympus will not fall."

"Oh little Perseus. Do you think that the Styx is the only river of the underworld you've swam in?" Gaea asked as she ignored what Percy said about her son. "Do you know which one was by choice and the other by order of your queen?"

Confusion was evident on everyone's features. None more so than Percy. Salacia had just helped them defeat Polybotes after all, and he wondered what she meant by ordered to swim in a river of the underworld.

"Hahaha foolish little hero. Have you not wondered why your memories were taken and you were placed with demigods who actually value loyalty and comradery? It seems Hera has not admitted to her mistakes regarding your past." Beside him Zoë froze at her words but Percy was too busy paying attention to Gaea to notice.

From her place in the hills Gaea restrained a smirk from forming. 'Yes little hero. You are but a mere pawn in my plans. Hera's little gambit to have you unite the camps depends largely on your loyalty to the Greeks. What will she do now that you are loyal to Rome and the Roman Empire instead? You cannot be the lynchpin to hold the seven of the prophecy together if you do not bridge both worlds.' Gaea inwardly cackled.

"What are you talking about? Your lies and attempts at dissension won't work here. Not after we already beat down the army you sent to destroy us." Percy called out to her.

Gaea's cold chilling laughter once more rang throughout the hills. "You may have survived this little gathering of my forces but don't think they are the only ones I command. After all, not all enemies are monsters are they? Or have you forgotten the centuries old enemy that lurks in the shadows graecus."

All froze at her seemingly innocent declaration. It was frightening to think that she might have even more monsters than what had already been deployed. And it was downright terrifying that she implied their next opponents would be their centuries old enemies the Greeks.

Gaea's face started to fade back into the shadows and her presence disappeared but not before leaving one last parting shot. "I do hope you are good and welcoming host's for your visitors from the past tomorrow. Do remember your manners won't you? Romans…"

All the gathered Roman's turned to each other and whispers broke out discussing what had just happened. Reyna decided to stop the declining mood in its tracks.

"Enough! We have achieved a great victory today. Gaea means to divide us by planting seeds of doubt and fear after her loss. It won't work. Tonight, we celebrate our good fortune!" She declared.

Cheers started back up from Roman and amazon alike and with renewed vigor they made their way to the mess hall.

Percy too headed that way determined not to let Gaea unsettle him.

Zoë noticed the slight trepidation in his steps and threw her arms around his waist to show support and comfort him. Percy smiled back at her returned the gesture as they walked to the mess hall.

He looked at her weary features and the signs of battle she wore and leaned in and kissed her quickly on the cheek. Zoë flushed a deep red but didn't react violently or indeed in any other way but a surprised look sent his way.

Percy decided to explain before she regained her composure and slapped him again. "When Polybotes tried to make me into a Percy pancake before he set his eyes on you I realized something."

Zoë quirked an eyebrow in a silent inquiry. Tapping her foot on the ground, arms crossed.

The emerald eyed teen chuckled before he continued. "I'm a boy so I'm not good at expressing my feelings with words, actions are easier. That was to show you that I appreciate what you did for me and that you're very important to me so please don't do something so dumb again. I'm the one with the near invulnerability not you. Remember?"

Zoë scowled playfully before flashing a mischievous grin. "Is that your way of saying you love me Pervy? You don't have to wrap it up in silly boy-words you know. Just admit it. You can't last a day without me holding your hand to make sure you don't get in trouble."

Percy started walking again with an exaggerated swagger. "I'm awesome! Just deal with it. No need to be jealous."

Zoë giggled and caught up to him. She playfully bumped shoulders with him to take away attention from her still lightly flushed cheeks. Percy laughed before pushing back a little harder.

Their time in Seattle had made them grow even closer, especially at the end, after Salacia's appearance.

The ambassador of Diana was eager to up the ante and quickly stepped forward. She hooked her leg between his and pushed him to the ground. Zoë laughed at the look on Percy's face as he looked up at her from the ground and took off running.

Percy only looked after her in slight bewilderment before giving chase. Who cared what Gaea had tried to allude to? As long as his best friend Zoë was by his side, he felt like he could survive anything and take on anyone.

Polybotes could attest to that.

a/n

Apologies ladies and gents, I graduated this last week and so spent the majority of last month studying and putting my nose to the grindstone so I wouldn't fail. It was an unusual experience... taking things seriously for so long. But to make up for that this chapter is extra long so you guys could get something for waiting so patiently.

Once more thanks go out to my awesome beta Anaklusmos14 for helping out tremendously with the fight scene and helping to organize my thoughts better. As always leave any thoughts, questions or comments on the way out.

I know I've been gone a while but I actually do recommend one story that in my opinion is completely different from the rest and has funny situations.

Unknown Friendship by XxxXGreek GeekXxxX

You guys should read Ender's Game as a movie is being made and comes out in November.

Watch: 30 minutes or less - Very funny