A/N: To blaze: Yeah, it has been pretty boring. Hopefully, this'll speed it up a bit. Just bear with me here. But now, after a few boring chapters, all the pieces are in place.
Disclaimer: Screw it.
Chapter 49- The Final Battle, Part One
Martin's POV
"Wakey-wakey, Martin." Arin said, punching me lightly in the shoulder, "We're about half a mile from Pittsburgh."
I rubbed my eyes, getting my seat back upright and spoke groggily, "Let's stop the caravan, then."
Minutes later, I was standing in a circle with the rest of the Councilors and Thalia.
"Okay, we think the outpost is right about there." I pointed to an old, abandoned warehouse, "We're destroying it."
Clarisse nodded, "Good. How?"
"That's what I don't know." I replied, "We don't know much about this warehouse, except for the fact that it exists."
"Then we should split up." Annabeth said. After yesterday's events, her standing with the other Councilors was lowered quite a bit, but they still listened, "Give each group a leader that can adapt on the fly. I'm thinking me, Clarisse, Martin, Leo, and Thalia."
"Everyone?" Katie asked.
"Yeah. Twenty to a group."
"Then let's do it. You have any Greek Fire in those supplies, Arin?" I asked, turning to face her.
Arin's feral grin was all the answer I needed.
"Good. Get some to each group." I ordered, "Enough to blow a wall in or burn down the warehouse itself."
Arin nodded and raced off, while Annabeth chose the groups. Then, we all scattered to gather those groups and prepare for the attack.
Line Break
Martin's POV
"Wait. Wait." I warned my group, then a flare-arrow arced into the sky, "Now!"
My team of twenty charged a group of thirty monsters on the perimeter. This base was a lot smaller then the one in Manhattan, so there were a lot fewer monsters guarding it. Arrows whizzed into the monster horde in front of us, then the fifteen of us who weren't archers hit them, swords slashing and spears stabbing.
The dracaenae I had set my sights on almost looked surprised as I ran it through. A sword came down from my left, but I caught it on the dagger, then dispatched it's owner with a quick counter-stroke. A club smashed into my side, sending me flying. I groaned as I got to my feet, seeing the Cyclops that hit me turn to dust after a black-feathered arrow with a Stygian Iron point sprouted from it's neck. After that, the fighting died down as the last of the monsters were killed.
"Everyone okay?" I called, then saw a body and rushed over. It was Sam, a son of Aphrodite. He had been stabbed with a spear sometime in the battle, but was still alive. Not for long, though, with that kind of injury.
An Apollo kid,-Joseph, I think- looked up at me and shook his head, "That wound's too deep. Scratched his heart and punctured a lung."
"Just. . . . . go." Sam choked out, "Get. . . it. . .done."
I shook my head, but Arin pulled me away, "You can't do anything for him except do what he asks."
I sighed, "Get me some Greek Fire."
Arin handed me a small jar, and after making sure Sam was truly dead, I smashed it over his body. No way I was going to leave it here.
"Let's go." This time, there was none of the excitement was we ran. There weren't any more monsters until we reached the warehouse itself.
We were the last ones there, and I could already hear fighting inside. After breaking through a door, we raced inside. The rest of the demigods were here, fighting a group of about fifty monsters. At least, fifty were left, but there was dust all over the floor. Once we joined the fray, the demigods quickly surronded the monsters and killed every last one of them. No mercy.
"Why so few?" Someone wondered aloud as we left.
"They were sent somewhere else, most likely." Annabeth replied thoughtfully, "Maybe to attack Camp Jupiter or join up with the forces chasing us."
"Let's get back to the caravan." I said, "We don't want to be caught here."
Line Break
Time Skip: One Week
Percy's POV
Saracen burst into the cell, which was the first indicator something was happening, "Get a weapon. Now!"
Not questioning, I yanked out the loose stone, grabbed the Celestial Bronze knife and tossed it to Artemis. Then, I took off my belt and held the non-metal end in my hand.
Saracen ran off, Artemis and I following. Artemis glanced over and asked, "What's that supposed to do?"
"Silver buckle, Artemis." I replied, still running behind Saracen. There was a pair of dracaenae guarding a room, but Saracen drew her scythe and killed one before Artemis' knife found the throat of the other.
The chains around Artemis' and my own hands made moving quickly hard, but we managed it. Saracen opened the door stealthily and crept inside, where I could hear Krios muttering angrily.
"Of course they leave me behind. "No, no, Krios, this is an important duty. You're watching the prisoners! It's a big honor." Krios was watching what looked like a screen of fog or something, that showed Camp Jupiter. A massive army was attacking the base, leaving New Rome alone. There were easily six or seven hundred of them, way outnumbering the Romans.
Then, I saw a line of cars stop about a hundred meters away from the fighting, and heard Krios' grunt of confusion. Then, doors started opening and demigods climbed out. "No!"
Krios slammed a fist on a table. Saracen stood up right behind him, her scythe cracking off his skull, and the Titan crumpled.
"Get over here and wrap your chains around his wrists." Saracen ordered, and I smiled as I realized what she was doing. Artemis and I wound the length of chain that connected us around Krios' arms, binding them together and hopefully taking his powers with them.
Saracen rifled through his pockets a bit, then tossed me a familiar ballpoint pen, "Thanks. I'll need this."
Artemis grabbed a spear off one of the dracaenae we killed as we dragged Krios out. Saracen seemed to know where she was going, and soon we arrived at the room where Atlas should've been holding the sky. Instead, there was a women in silver who looked like a lot like Saracen.
"Selene, loosen your grip on the sky." Saracen said.
"Trust her." Artemis added. Selene's head came up, and the Titaness of the Moon saw both her daughter and her successor. Krios was still unconscious when we unwound the chains and shoved him under the sky. Selene let go and rolled out from underneath, then hugged Saracen.
"They said they captured you!" Selene stepped back and saw the shackles, "And it looks like they captured you, Artemis."
Selene turned back to Saracen, "How's your father? You didn't just leave him, did you?"
Saracen sighed, pulling Selene's arms off her, "He ran off. I'm looking for him, but nothing."
"I'm so sorry. Malin?"
"He died in the second Titan War." Saracen replied stiffly.
Selene's silver eyes clouded with sadness, then she grabbed the chains that still connected Artemis and I. After a few seconds, they shattered.
"Selene, can you get us to Camp Jupiter?" Artemis asked, "Our captors are fighting the Romans and what's left of everyone else there."
Selene nodded, then with a burst of moonlight, we all disappeared, reappearing on the field of Mars. We ran towards the fight, and my gaze narrowed in on one target, who was in golden armor and wielding a familiar sword. Thalia, Martin, and Arin were all attacking him at once, but Hyperion was holding them back.
A flash of light burst from Light, temporarily blinding his attackers, and Hyperion scored a deep gash across Martin. Arin screamed in rage and fought even harder, but she was outmatched as Martin staggered backwards. Then I was next to Martin, and healed him quickly before turning to Hyperion.
"I believe you have something that belongs to me." I said, then ran forward. Hyperion saw me and growled, kicking Arin backwards and removing Thalia from the fight with a brutal chop.
Riptide clanged off Light as I drove a column of water right into Hyperion's shield, creating and opening in his defense. Riptide slashed, cutting Hyperion near the waist, below his armor. Hyperion growled as ichor leaked out, then the wound healed over.
Light swung downward, but I caught the stroke on Riptide's cross-guard, then the shield smashed me in the chest, sending me flying backwards. I got to my feet and charged him, jumping into the air on a wave of water that smashed Hyperion to the ground, but it all turned to steam as Hyperion's entire body caught fire.
"Looks like you haven't learned your lesson, Golden Boy." I stabbed Riptide into the ground, and all around me, the ground erupted upwards. Water swirled around me, and as I swung Riptide, the water mimicked my movements. A giant sword of water arced down on Hyperion, but he cut through it with Light, snarling. Then, a huge, watery, fist slammed into his chest, sending him backwards a meter or so.
Hyperion got to his feet and charged me, slicing through the hurricane I summoned around me. Soon, we were fighting at the eye of the storm, Hyperion's body was extinguished, but he was still very skilled with Light, even in it's altered form. My eyes flashed red, making Hyperion stumble as he saw his deepest fears. That stumble was all I needed to grab his shield and rip it away, tossing the disc of metal into the storm. Then, I rained blow after blow down as Hyperion desperately parried them with Light.
I spun after a particularly heavy slash, my leg arcing out and tripping him. Riptide flashed, cutting off his hand. I held my sword to his throat as I reclaimed Light, then I slashed, all but cutting off his head.
The hurricane died down around me as I rejoined the fight. Artemis and Selene were both fighting Atlas, and kicking his arse. But there were still way too many Titans, and way too few gods. What are they doing?
Then, disaster struck again. A long line of eighteen wheelers and SUVs drove up. Giants and Cyclops climbed out of the back of the trucks, dozens of them, as smaller monsters like dracaenae and empousai got out of the SUVs. A man wearing a long white coat, red hair, and a black bowler climbed out of the first SUV, and surveyed the situation. Shalin.
Damn, We could barely hold the monsters that were here already. These reinforcments would slaughter us.
As my attention was distracted, an axe nearly took off my head before Thalia blocked it with her shield, "No time for day-dreaming, Aqua Boy!"
I nodded my thanks, then the Mist settled over my features, turning me back into Sean. The new horde of monsters charged forward as I tried to form a line against them. Then a horn sounded, and chariots flew out of the sky. The gods, late as usual.
Poseidon and Hades landed in front of the monsters, and all around them, their armies formed. Cyclops were summoned around Poseidon while skeletons climbed out of the ground around Hades. Zeus swept down to engage Coeus while the rest of the gods split up among the remaining Titans.
I ran towards a Titan no god was fighting yet, who had dusky black armor on. He noticed me, then pointed his sword. A column of air slammed into me, throwing me back, but I landed on my feet and summoned a shield of water in front of me. The wind started pummeling it, but I was pushing forward. The Titan -Astraeus, Titan of the Dusk- snarled, lunging forward with his sword. I rolled to the side and swung, but my sword clanged off something invisible, like hardened air.
Great. Just great. I sent a bolt of fire at him, but it hit impacted a shield of air and disappeared. I was right behind it, though, smashing through the shield with a ram of water, then my ears popped as pressure dropped and I ducked. I heard a whomp above my head, probably one of Astraeus' powers. As a precaution, I formed a thin layer of water over my entire body, then charged Astraeus again. Riptide clanged off his sword while Light cut a small gash in his armor.
Astraeus punched the air, and a column of air slammed into my chest again, this time driving me to the ground. I rolled to the side as Astraeus stabbed down, then, still on the ground, I tried to stab his knee, but Riptide scraped off his armor. Astraeus stomped on my right wrist, forcing me to let go of Riptide, then his sword came down and knocked Light out of my left. My hand went to my belt for Shadow, then I remembered I had niether my belt nor Shadow. Astraeus snarled with triumphant as he raised his sword for a killing blow, then a silver blur shoved him backwards.
Artemis was stalking towards Astraeus, her eyes filled with fury. Astraeus barely got to his feet when Artemis was there, grabbing his collar and driving the spear she carried through his chest, "You will not harm him!"
I rolled to my feet, grabbing Light in my right hand this time and Riptide in my left. Artemis looked at me, relieved I wasn't dead, and nodded curtly, then ran back to the fight. Turning, I tried to see what was going on. Poseidon was fighting Oceanus and Tethys with Hades, but he was losing that fight, so I re-entered the fray.
The Titans seemed to have control over the water offensively, and were blocking Hades' bolts of shadow with it. Poseidon was doing all he could to keep Tethys' and Oceanus' powers at bay, but it was a losing battle. A barrage of water flew at Hades, who deflected it with a wall of shadow. The bad thing was, that barrage was deflected towards me.
Concentrating, I tried to halt it in the air. It shuddered and slowed, but no more than that. Then, I felt another presence exert it's will over the water, pushing in the same direction. It came to a complete stop, and I could feel Tethys, Oceanus, Poseidon and I all struggling to control it. Then Hades lunged at Tethys, breaking her concentration. The water flew at Oceanus, bowling him over while I sprinted the last few meters and swung with both weapons. They clanged off a sword in Oceanus' left and while a serpent in his right struck at me, but missed.
A trident flew over my shoulder, skewering the serpent. Oceanus howled, and shot a blast of water that was too quick to shunt away, sending Poseidon and I flying. Poseidon stood just in time to block Oceanus' sword with the haft of his trident, and they were locked in combat again.
I got to my feet and tried for a stab that bounced off of Oceanus' armor. Poseidon and I forced him backwards, until he stepped on something. Without glancing down, Oceanus flicked a spear into his left hand with his feet, then threw it at Poseidon,who was too slow in dodging. Fortunately, it barely penetrated Poseidon's armor. I swung Light, create an arc of fire that flew at Oceanus, who tried to summon water, but Poseidon and I kept it from forming. The fire melted some of his armor and charred a line of skin from his shoulders to his feet.
Oceanus howled in pain, then Poseidon's trident found his throat and silenced him. Hades was being pushed back by Tethys, but Poseidon ran off to join him while I searched for another target. Selene was fighting another Titan, this one with a shield emblazoned with the Sun: Helios, her brother. Artemis was fighting Pheobe, her grandmother and the Titaness of prophecy. Ares, Phobos, and Deimos were all fighting Perses and Pallas. The gods were losing, but before I could get there, a giant grey owl swooped down, and transformed into Athena.
Then, I felt something behind me, and jumped forward just as I felt the prick of a dagger at my back. I looked around wildly, but no one was there. Would Annabeth. . . . . ? No, she wouldn't. She doesn't even know I'm Percy.
I slashed Riptide, sending a large arc of water through the air. It hit something about a meter away from me, so I turned and sprinted away, forming a wall of fire behind me. A female voice cursed as whoever-it-is ran through the flame. My eyes flashed red as I tried to find her by seeing her fears. No dice.
A blade created a large gash down my arm, making me turn and send a blast of water in that direction. It hit something, soaking her in water. Now, at least, I could sense where she was by sensing where the water was. I charged forward, stabbing with Riptide. Something deflected it, then Light arced down to at least injure her, but met only air.
She had ran a few meters away, and was now standing still, like she was waiting for something. I shot a bolt of fire in that direction, but she rolled out of the way, then I was on her. I stabbed at the ground wildly, hoping to hit something. Luckily, it did, then I stomped. Something tugged at my feet, and after a loud rip, someone appeared. She looked like Artemis, almost, which means one Titaness: Leto.
Leto got to her feet and lunged at me with twin daggers, but I sidestepped and brought both my swords down. The Titaness was fast, and managed to block both of them. We strained for a few seconds, then I kicked out, catching her in the leg. Leto toppled backwards, then flashed away. I was on alert for her reappearing, but nothing happened.
Then howls ripped across the battlefield as a new danger came over the hills: The Pack.
A/N: I'm pretty sure I got all the Titans right. Astraeus is the Titan of Dusk and associated with the winds, so he can control air. Leto is "the hidden one", so she can become invisible. Now, what will happen next? How big will the Pack be? You'll just have to find out.
Please review, follow, favorite, whatever. No pressure, except for the review part. I really want your feedback.
