Jason POV

Waking up this morning was a nightmare. I agreed to help both praetors with the final day preparations and that was a huge mistake. I was working till 4 am last night. Cleaning up the arena from the previous fights, organizing the Vulcan campers so they were ready for anything, and working alongside that psycho Goddess Victoria when it came to wrangling up all the minor and Olympian Gods. With all that said and done, I still was given gold armor given to me by Jupiter himself. With my gladius at my side and my confidence at all-time high, I thought I was ready for anything.

That all changed when Thalia lost her match.

That fifty-foot tidal wave destroyed the arena and any hope of my sister's victory.

I knew Percy was the favorite, but I was eager to have a great bout with my sister. Fighting Thalia in winners was my goal, but Percy pulled through.

Now I started to doubt myself as I stood on the balcony, watching Hazel and Annabeth carry Percy towards the infirmary. I ran down right after when I saw the condition of my sister. As I was running down the stairs, selfish thoughts started to form.

Can I beat Percy? Piper said I basically did back in Kansas last year but does that even count?

Piper... great now I'm thinking about her. Focus on helping your sister first. Clear thoughts, Jason, clear thoughts.

I made my way toward Thalia ignoring everyone else. Ignoring the applause that Percy got, as well as Chiron's booming voice. I escorted Thalia back upstairs with the Apollo campers carrying her. She was dead asleep and looked as if she wasn't going to wake up anytime soon. Some of the new campers couldn't believe her strength and watched her limp body being carried. People see her as a lieutenant of Artemis first and a daughter of Zeus second. Some forget that she's a daughter of Zeus, but she is. She has been protecting Camp Half-blood for years, and when revived, she led a group on a dangerous quest without any hesitation. She's one of what Leo would call the "small" big three and is strong enough to go toe to toe with any of us, but that wasn't enough to beat the son of Poseidon.

Reaching the entrance of the infirmary, Thalia finally woke up. She slowly grunted before she whispered something that I couldn't hear. I told the Apollo campers carrying her to stop in place as I listened closely.

Thalia's mouth barely moved, but I heard her finally.

"I lost right?" Thalia asked.

I nodded without a word, as Thalia's face finally gave away some emotions. It was a menacing frown that was directed at nobody in particular.

"Well, nobody thought I would win anyway." She sulked.

"Forget that, how are you feeling?" I asked Thalia while the Apollo campers urged me to take her toward the infirmary.

One of them gave me a begrudging look as they tried to pull Thalia away from me.

Thalia noticed and her arm extended. I could hear the sound of cracking as she moved her arm and stretched her fingers. She tried to reach for me but she was inches off. Her face pleading with me as she tried to get a few words out of her mouth.

"Don't hold back anymore, Jason." Thalia whispered. "Percy held back and he almost lost. If he kept me in the air long enough..."

She didn't finish her thought. She couldn't even admit that she would've yielded. She started to look at me directly. Those stormy eyes resembled my own.

"Don't make the same mistake as him."

"What about your mistakes?" I asked without thinking. It was a bit insensitive.

Thalia let out a weak chuckle. "What mistakes, I lost because I'm weak."

With that, the Apollo campers finally pulled her away from me into the infirmary. I could barely hear her, but that last part was clear enough

Don't make the same mistake.

Our family made plenty of mistakes in the past. Starting with our mother and ending with me. I made so many mistakes this week alone. With training Kahale and not dealing with him quickly enough, with the way I yelled at Piper in front of everyone, and how I still constantly fail to connect the camps organically even though I am Pontifex Maximus now. I couldn't afford to make any other mistakes.

I turned my back towards the balconies as Percy was being wheeled away. Fighting the Apollo campers as he didn't want to enter the infirmary. Frank followed as well, making sure that Percy didn't become a nuisance.

"C'mon, I'm fine." Percy moans. Annabeth and Hazel follow him, but I stop them in their place.

Both Percy and Hazel had confused looks on their faces, but Annabeth and Frank knew what I wanted. With no words, Annabeth followed me toward the coliseum.

We were already wearing our best armor. Annabeth with her sleek leather armor for easy movement and my golden praetor armor that was built for defense. Her armor wasn't new, but I noticed an imperial knife and Drakon bone sword at her side. Seems like Nico returned the sword to her after all. Another difference was the amount of throwing knives at her waist and the fanny pack-like pouch at her side. She wasn't known for throwing knives at all and I had no clue on what was in that pouch. I had to look out for whatever was in her bag of tricks. Annabeth gave off a cool side to her. Cool, calm, and collected, but her face said otherwise. She was unsure of herself in this fight, and that's a good thing. I wonder what my face looked like. Was it a face of nervousness or regret?

Before we made our last stride toward the arena, I looked at the practice arena and saw her. Piper McLean. She was practicing dual wielding of all things. I could tell by her face, full of sweat and teeming with anger, that her sword arm still bothered her. She was wearing a sling the last time I saw her, but it seems like she was working through the pain and making her arm stronger as a result. As long as she didn't put any unnecessary weight on it, then it would heal with time.

"You should tell her that," I thought to myself. Intrusive thoughts like that are getting me worried.

Piper spotted me and her harsh features soften. I can only hope she feels the same way I do. I have to speak to her after the match.

Annabeth and I made our way downstairs and busted the door wide open. The light of the sun reflected off my golden armor in multiple directions, with my cape flowing through the wind. Purple with a hint of orange. I wasn't tied to one camp anymore. The weight of my armor didn't bother me as long as I commanded the wind. I felt near weightless in the air, and Annabeth wouldn't have a clue.

The screams of the crowd were at their apex as I noticed a few campers in the stands. Romans and Greeks alike. There wasn't a camper I didn't recognize. It was only the hunters, minor gods, and former legionaries that had me scratching my head. I turned my head up and down, left to right. Trying to find him. I know he was tired of everyone comforting him after his loss to Nico. When he's in a funk, there's really only one cure and I'm the only one who knows it. Stop treating him like a baby and start treating him like an equal. I needed some help as well so it's two birds with one stone.

That's only if I can find him first. I looked everywhere before spotting Gwen in the stands. My eyes widen before I calmed down. For some reason, I always think that she's dead. The Doors of Death opening really screwed everything up. For better and for worse.

Right next to her was Leo and I didn't waste a second as I turned to Annabeth.

"I'll be right back." I yelled as the crowd surged, and before Annabeth had a response, I flew upwards and landed on the railing next to the two.

...

"Dude, just fly." Leo smirked.

I frowned. "This is Annabeth we're talking about. Isn't that a bit obvious? She probably thought of a countermeasure to my flight. I'm asking you since you're the second smartest camper."

Leo smirked changed and mimicked my frown. "Second?"

Gwen stepped in when Leo failed.

"It's fine if she has a plan against your flight, sometimes going the obvious route is good. You're baiting her into revealing her plan." Gwen added eloquently. "Reveal your hand and she'll do the same."

Leo nodded. "Just try it and see if it works. If she has a response to your flight, then adapt to it. If she doesn't have a plan, then you win. She doesn't have powers, bro. How hard can it be?"

They both had good advice, but it wasn't enough. I looked down and saw Annabeth smiling at me before waving. Both Gwen and Leo peered their heads over the railing to catch her glance. Both shuddered at the thought of fighting her.

Leo scoffed. "Oh yea, she's got a plan for your flying habits, Superman."

Gwen clapped her hands. "That's still good. Her plan can still backfire depending on your response. You got this, Praetor Grace."

"I'm not praetor anymore, I'm the Pontifex Maximus now" I clarified.

"Nobody knows what that is," Leo added before turning to an unknown camper.

"Ambrose, you know what that means?" he asked.

The camper shook his head and Leo turned back at me.

"See, nobody knows what that means. I bet you can't even explain it."

"It means that I connect both... you know what? Screw you guys." I said defiantly before flying back into the arena.

Annabeth, Chiron, and the Olympians were all waiting for me.

The Olympians looked at us with mixed emotions. Juno had a mix of a prideful scowl. The pride since I was her patron, and the scowl due to Annabeth making an appearance.

The rest I didn't focus on, all but my own father. He had a face of stone per usual. He didn't seem bothered that I took my time. I couldn't even tell if he would be happy if I won or lost. I saw the true face of my father plenty of times. Stubborn and prideful, but kind and insightful. Qualities that he couldn't show off in front of the entire legion.

I finally turned to my opponent, Annabeth. She only had her imperial knife in hand, and her Drakon bone sword on her hip. There were also multiple throwing knives on her person, and that pouch was filled with who knows what.

"Ready?" Annabeth asked as she positioned herself.

I pulled out my gladius and positioned myself as well. "Chiron, you can call it."

Chiron raised his head towards the Gods, and they approved.

"You may begin." Chiron beckoned.

Annabeth was faster, way faster than me. Her nimbleness knew no bounds as she ran forward and went for my legs first. I didn't give her the edge as I pushed back and dodged her first stab. I flew into the air right after. 5 feet in the air turned into ten feet in less than a second. With no bow on her, I had the competitive edge already. I should've done this against Piper in our match, but I thought I could finish her in a swordfight easily. I basically did, but this was wiser. I couldn't take any chances against the child of Wisdom.

Then, an idea appeared, and I knew how to push my advantage even further. Looking towards the skies. I summon rain and thunder quickly before raising my sword and having a thunderbolt hit it as a conductor. Annabeth braced for impact as she recognized this move before. The stunt I pulled against Kayla so she would yield in record time.

Lightning coursed through my veins, and I started to fly toward Annabeth at a blistering speed. Aiming my Gladius at her throat.

"YIELD." I screamed as Annabeth stood there.

Annabeth had less than a second to dodge, but she stood there for what felt like an eternity.

I had to stop. I had to stop, or I was going to kill her. Annabeth didn't smile or frown. Didn't scream or laugh. She just stood there. Defiant as ever.

Nanoseconds before impact and I glided back toward the air. I bailed out and went right back to the skies.

The weather change alone blew most concessions stand food aside and created some brand-new hairdos.

Annabeth breathed a sigh of relief. Her hair was slightly frizzed. She wiped any debris off her armor and repositioned.

"I don't scare easily, I thought that was obvious?" Annabeth pointed out.

I shrugged suspended in the air. "Last second plan. Seemed like a good idea."

I immediately flew down quickly and went for a quick slash. Annabeth didn't have time to attack and instead dodged my slash with a well-timed roll. I flew back into the air again.

"Time for the real plan. It's not going to as flashy as the first one, sorry."

I dipped down again, and Annabeth was ready with Drakon bone sword in hand, but it didn't matter. We clashed before I flew back up. Not giving Annabeth a chance to counterattack and land a blow on me

I positioned myself in the sky. Watching Annabeth putting her knife away. Dual wielding was out of the question. I came down like a bolt of lightning and slashed at her midsection. She had no choice but to parry, however, I didn't even give her the chance as I flew off the second our swords clashed again. In the same span of time, I turned back and slash again. Annabeth didn't even recover from the last encounter and dodged. I turned again and caught her mid-roll with another slash. She was disoriented and had no clue where I was coming from, as she turned her head upwards, and I flew towards her low enough to the ground that I could taste it. My slash connected with a cut along her thigh. The blood loss was immediate, and so was her scream. I attacked her once more, but she parried my hit before pushing me back before I took to the skies once more.

All that in a span of a minute. Annabeth was reeling from her injury, and I was watching from above. The amount of damage I've done was considerable, especially since I haven't wasted any time already.

Annabeth quickly put pressure on the wound before covering it. Her movement options were gone, every dodge she committed to is going hurt from now on. She looked up at me with a ragged breath and her tangled muddy hair covering her gray eyes.

Gwen was right, whatever plan she had was going up in flames quickly. I'll wear her down by doing the same thing over and over again. Lame, but a smart way to end this. I don't want this fight to be like my own against Piper.

I didn't give Annabeth any chance to recover as I dipped down again for another strike. Annabeth pulled one of her throwing knives from her strap and threw it as swiftly as I dodged it. I landed another hit, but I was blocked by Annabeth's drakon sword as Annabeth threw three knives at me. Only one was properly aimed and I shielded myself with my own sword as the knife bounced off and fell to the ground. Annabeth was running out of options quickly.

She was breathing heavily and was still in the same spot where I cut her thigh. Moving around would only cause more blood loss. The path of victory was narrow, but she still had the trademark determination on her face as her brow unfurled and she started to focus. I can only imagine what was going on in her mind. I had to end this quickly.

I also noticed that her hand was dipping in and out of her back pouch. I still couldn't see what she was pulling out and it couldn't be the knives as those were strapped around her body.

I didn't have a chance to think, as she threw six knives in rapid succession. All aiming in slightly different directions. At that second, I guessed what she was going for and didn't fall for it. I blocked the few that were aimed at me and didn't try to dodge. She threw three more quickly and I parried only one of them. Below me were four knives and I didn't even turn my head to see the others that were probably on the ground.

After six to seven knives right after, it was over. Annabeth's head lowered as she ran out of knives. She was done. I knew she wanted me to dodge the first few knives that were aimed at me so I could fly into the others that weren't. Not the greatest plan by Annabeth, but one final act of aggression was all she had.

I let a bolt of lightning hit my gladius once more.

"Let's try this again." I spoke. "Say uncle, Annabeth."

She didn't say a thing as her ragged breath disappeared. Staring at me with bated breath. Ready to lose or ready to mount a comeback? I had no clue, but she was ready, nonetheless.

I dropped like a rock before finding my desired altitude and flying sword first toward Annabeth. Electricity bounced around my skin and gave me a tingling feeling as well as a boost of adrenaline. I could smell the ozone as Annabeth got closer and closer.

And then, I tripped. I tripped in midair and fell to the ground.

I fought monsters, Giants, and even Titans, but tripping in mid-air sounded so unreal, that I felt as if I was in a dream. It was as if Leo made it the punchline to his joke "Only a guy like Jason would trip while flying."

I fell on the ground hard. Losing all feeling in my sword arm, still bewildered by what just happened, but Annabeth didn't give me the time to process it. With blood spilling from her thigh and painting the arena ground, Annabeth ran at me at full speed with her Drakon bone sword and stabbed at me with full vigor. She was slow, slower than usual thanks to my efforts from before. I dodged it quickly by flying in the air before hitting something hard and falling again. It didn't feel like a wall or some strong structure. It felt like the edge of a long knife bounced off my skin and pushed me back. What is going on?

Annabeth ran forward and I had no choice but to fight, and with a numb sword arm. Annabeth slashed at me and I dodged before going for a stab forward. It was easily parried as I almost lost my sword before gripping tightly. With only two more exchanges, I felt my whole body go numb as I was putting more and more weight on my already fragile sword arm.

This wasn't part of the plan. I would never lose a sword fight to Annabeth, but my sword arm couldn't take each and every exchange. With a quick thought, I pushed her with a gust of wind, and she went flying back with blood falling on the ground.

Annabeth fell with a hard thud and struggled to get up. I took that chance to look around, and I finally understood.

Around the walls of the arena were Annabeth's knives protruding from the high walls. All with different elevations and positions. Annabeth threw them with all her might, and it showed as they were deeply embedded within the sturdy arena walls. Like when Piper's Katoptris was stuck in the walls of the arena the other night.

I took a closer look and finally noticed them. They were tiny but at certain angles, you can see the daylight reflect off them.

Wires. Small steel cords of wire connected from one knife to the other, litter the entire arena. I tripped on nothing; it was the wires that forced me to fall over as I flew into them. Nearly invisible and incredibly strong. It was no surprise that I fell over and let Annabeth capitalize on my vulnerable state.

I turned my head back to Annabeth as I saw her slowly get back up again. She was recovering her strength, but the blood loss was apparent. She was running out of time and needed to win this quickly.

My sword arm and her blooded thigh. We were both injured and options were wearing thin.

Annabeth pulled out both Drakon bone sword and her imperial knife. She couldn't be cautious of her condition anymore, she had to go all out.

I exhaled quickly. "I knew throwing knives weren't your style," I said without thinking.

Annabeth studied me. "I had to shut down your power of flight somehow. If only I had time to do it before you slashed me."

She wasn't just talking about the fight; she was studying my condition. I didn't even notice until I saw her looking at my sword arm and how I protected it with my other hand. I put a stop to that immediately. She could be watching and studying everything. My breath pattern, my cuts and scrapes, and the mental strain that was clear on my face.

I looked at the crowd as everyone was screaming with a mix of excitement or anger. Those on my side and those on Annabeth's side were all rooting against each other. I guess in their eyes, we were evenly matched.

"Stop holding back"

That small whisper pulled me back to reality. I turned my head back and saw my father Jupiter, still with a face of stone. Unwavering when it came to his emotions, but I heard him. My thoughts took over as if my life flashed before my own eyes. I fought and killed the Trojan Sea monster, I beat the Titan Krios in hand-to-hand combat, and I fought off Giants in the original coliseum.

Don't make the same mistake as him.

I should've listened closely to Thalia. Percy had the same problem and still won. If I wanted to win this whole tournament, I have to go all out.

I got up and Annabeth followed my movements as well. She had all the information she needed for her plan, but I didn't care. I didn't have a plan, just instincts as the son of Jupiter.

Annabeth pointed to the sky. "Flights are not an option unless you want to cut those wires, and good luck, they're incredibly hard to cut through even for demigods. Custom built by the Hephaestus cabin."

"No more, Wise girl," I said softly.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "No more what?"

"No more half measures."

I raised my hand to the sky and focus all my strength. My stomach churned as I forced all the clouds to funnel into each other. Cold and hot air circulated as I pushed and pulled the winds with every bit of strength I had left. I still had plenty in the tank too. When I'm focused, I could bend the sky to my will with no effort.

The sound of echoing thunder took over the entire arena and maybe the whole camp. Multiple thunderbolts came down towards the arena and tore the ground apart. The crowd screams were silenced, the air shifted, and Annabeth bounced off the ground as if it was a trampoline before falling down hard on her side. All of the wires were destroyed and fell down flowing with electricity, and Annabeth dodged them all by running towards the back wall of the arena: avoiding being electrocuted.

With the wires gone, I flew towards her as she put her baseball cap on and disappeared right in front of me.

"That won't work." I added before summoning a giant gust of wind that enveloped the entire arena from the stands to the destroyed arena floor. In an instant, Annabeth reappeared, and her hat flew off. She had a face of desperation, knowing that it would happen before turning towards me.

I was only a few feet above her with the storm raging on behind me, the crowd had already evacuated, but the Gods still watched on.

I stared at Annabeth who was barely standing, but still in the driver's seat. I could see the gears turning in her head but there was no plan that could stop all this. Her hat was gone, her breath was ragged, and her blood loss was at an all-time high.

With all that said, she still looked didn't budge. She pulled up her sword. Ready for one last swing.

"She survived Tartarus." I thought. "Giving up isn't an option for her, but I'll make it an option."

I let the electricity that ran through my body electrify my sword before flying toward Annabeth for one last strike. She positioned herself for a parry, hoping to disarm me. Big mistake.

With one fell swoop, our swords clashed and the power of Jupiter himself traveled from my sword into Annabeth's before entering her body. Electricity of such of degree that she trembled before falling over.

Face first into the ground with slight twitches and turns. Her eyes glazed over and her trembling ran rampant. I let a small voltage enter her body and cook her from the inside. This took precise control and I felt slightly drained at the moment.

I flew back into the air, just in case. Waiting for her to turn her head like I knew she would. I finally got that as our eyes met.

"You never wanted to use the baseball cap against me, right?" I asked. "You knew what would happen if you did."

Annabeth spoke but I couldn't hear her. With one hand, I calmed the storm down, allowing us to talk.

Annabeth studied me again and coughed up blood before speaking. Her voice trembled.

"I-I guess you can call it a last-ditch effort. Now I gotta search the stands before someone steals it, so thanks."

Looking at her thigh, I noticed that it was worse than before from all the running. Her sword was gone but she still had her imperial knife which she opted not to use for obvious reasons. Her armor was trashed, and her ankle looked sprained, but I could be wrong. Then there was the fact that her whole body was basically electrocuted.

My eyes finally met hers. "You can't move at all, right?" I asked

She nodded without resistance.

"You have your knife on you, but it can't reach me. You're out of options, right?"

Annabeth sighed. "Looks like it, Jason."

"So, do you yield?"

Annabeth showed a weary smile. "I hate to say it, but yes, I yield."

There was no crowd ready to celebrate. The crowds had dispersed and only those in the viewing area committed to the end. The end wasn't violent or grand. Just a graceful defeat by Annabeth. I smiled before picking her up slowly. She twitched with every step as I carried her away.

I looked upwards at the Olympians above. All of them watched me, with most of them were happy with the result. Hera gave me a smile of gratitude which I didn't respond to, but Jupiter's face from here shined brightly with the sun appearing behind him. I wanted to believe that he was smiling too.

Near the entrance of the stairwell were Chiron, Frank, and Reyna. The moment I reached them, the Apollo campers rushed forward and carried Annabeth away. Frank seemed to be weary of me, just like the first time we met. Reyna treated me no differently, though I could see a slight appearance of a grin before it disappeared completely. I guess she was impressed.

Frank rushed over "You need medical attention right away, Jason. I won't take no for an answer."

I was surprised by Frank's forcefulness, but I appreciated it.

"I imagine that Percy gave you a hard time when it came to the infirmary," I smirked.

Frank shook his head. "He did, but I guess he was right."

I raised an eyebrow at this. "What do you mean? Isn't he there right now?

Percy dropped from the balcony; surprising the Apollo campers carrying Annabeth. Fresh from his battle wounds but he seemed as if he didn't even receive them. He looked completely healed as he listened to Annabeth's whispers. An odd sight as the roles were reversed just moments ago.

Reyna and Frank weren't surprised by my shock. The amount of punishment Percy received, and he wasn't just standing, he was unbothered. As if the fight never even happened. I would hate to see Thalia's reaction to this. Percy Jackson was clearly my strongest opposition.

I listened to Frank and made my way down toward the infirmary. My sword arm was useless now, especially after that last strike. If I was going to beat Percy, I have to be ready.

...

Getting out of bed was a problem. The Roman children of Apollo put in overtime and my arm was already getting back into fighting shape, but it took some time. I had to get up soon since I couldn't miss Nico's match against Kahale for obvious reasons.

At that moment, the curtain of my tent opened, and Piper walked in. She didn't waste any time.

"Jason," Piper said. "Can we talk?"

Happy Tuesday! You didn't think you would get a chapter so soon? I suggest rereading the last chapter again as I played around with the timing of specific scenes. Also, I never asked how you enjoyed my take on the character Lou Ellen? I regret not putting her into the tournament

Next chapter is Reyna vs Clarisse. Here comes the big one