Chapter 12

Greetings readers! I hope all of you are enjoying this story. I have decided to make this story a Percy X Athena because I feel that this saga has more potential to be satisfying. I'll elaborate in the footnote.

Firstly I want to thank Hippie Painter, JoJo Jesus and Sidaqlotay07 for your supportive reviews. I'm glad you liked the last chapter!

In reference to ShadowThanatos' review, I'm glad you enjoyed this chapter and I really appreciate your genuine enthusiasm. Thank you for your support!

I want to thank someonefamous99 for your continued support and I will try my best to incorporate your changes. I personally believe that making the protagonist stronger than the Big Three takes the fun away from fights, but then again that's my belief and I'm not taking a jab at anyone. Thank you for your continued support!

I want to thank 98 for you supportive review. I wanted to show Percy as more than just a brawler. That's the reason I chose a Percy X Athena pairing.

Regarding SpartanBoi's review, I agree that two heavy swords are not effective to dual wield, I have made these two swords very light so as to not hinder speed and mobility. Also, dual wielding of swords has been followed in the East Asian countries for a very long time. In this story, Percy has divine capabilities along with having invulnerability, this makes him more suited than any human to dual wield. Finally, dual swords have more appeal than a sword and a dagger. I hope I have convinced you. Thank you for your continued support!

All credit for the characters goes exclusively to Rick Riordan.

Percy was in the middle of an epiphany. It had been three years since his father had started teaching him geokenesis and he had been practicing his powers in the arena. He had gathered all information possible about earthquakes and what he had realised was that they were essentially just shockwaves that propagated through the Earth. If he had the power to cause earthquakes, it meant that he potentially had the power to cause shockwaves in any other medium.

His father had taught him to effectively channel his geokinetic abilities through his swords by stabbing them into the ground and releasing his energy through them in the direction of his target. It was only logical that the same principle would work in other cases, which was what he was trying to find out currently. He pointed his swords towards a large wooden board, his brow furrowed in concentration as he focused on manifesting his geokinesis.

Out of nowhere, his swords gained an ethereal glow but, much to his chagrin, nothing happened. Undeterred and unwilling to give up, he worked on channelling more and more of his energy into the weapons. He could feel it was working, the sea around him had started reacting to the power emanating from the two swords, the waves almost humming around him. Alas, there was still no sign of any shockwaves, as if something was blocking the outlet of his power. Frustrated, Percy swung the two swords in a wide arc and struck them against each other.

The moment the swords clashed an extremely powerful shockwave spread in all directions with a deafening roar, the sheer power reducing the entire Royal Arena into piles of rubble. The impact was too much even for Percy, who was flown a hundred feet backwards before he loudly crashed into the debris and dropped down like a rock, falling immediately unconscious.

Percy groaned as his eyes blinked open, the realm of unconsciousness still fighting to keep him under. His whole body was sore, and he could feel what could only be a variety of bruises throbbing in pain. Immediately, Poseidon and Amphitrite were at his side.

"Percy! What happened to you? How did you hurt yourself? Why did you release that earthquake?" Amphitrite was frantic, her son's tendencies for injury not something she could get used to. Percy, still a bit disoriented, just blinked back at his mother.

"Give him some space Amphitrite, he's been out of it for a while. Percy, how are you feeling?" Poseidon gently questioned.

"I'm sore." Percy grumbled after shaking off his head to clear his mind.

"Oh, you are gravely mistaken if you think you're just sore, Prince Perseus." A new voice said in a flat and slightly reprimanding tone.

"Good to see you too Mavrus." Percy sarcastically replied; he knew that voice could only belong to one merman.

"I don't know what you did, Prince Perseus. But whatever it was produced so much force that threw you all over the Arena like a ragdoll. Even with your advanced biology, you would not have survived if not for your invulnerability. That said, you have not gotten out unscathed, the impact of the crash has caused a dozen hairline fractures along your back, arms and ribs." Mavrus chastised.

Percy stayed silent for some time as he tried recalled the incident. "Were there any casualties?" Percy finally asked in a quiet voice.

"Thankfully, no. There weren't any people in the arena at the time of the earthquake. A few Mermen were injured by some small debris that were launched by the destruction of the building but it's nothing lethal." Poseidon clarified. He then nodded at Mavrus who left the room to give the three of them some privacy.

"Percy, why did you release that earthquake?" Amphitrite softly asked.

"I did not release an earthquake. I released a shockwave." Percy told in a subdued voice. At this piece of information, Poseidon's and Amphitrite's eyes widened in surprise. Following through with that statement, Percy explained the whole incident in as much detail as he could offer.

"Unbelievable. You have the ability to cause shockwaves?" Poseidon breathed in awe.

"No father. We have seismokinetic abilities. We can cause shockwaves by clashing two weapons through which we are channelling our earth-shaking powers. Unfortunately, I still need to discover a way to specifically direct them towards a target." Percy explained sheepishly, proud of figuring out the basis of their seismokinesis but still guilty of all the issues he caused.

"These shockwaves can be caused anywhere?" Amphitrite asked.

"As long as there is a medium to propagate, we should be able to cause shockwaves at any time and place, yes." Percy guessed.

"Son, you have discovered a very dangerous ability. Even more dangerous than our geokinesis. What you did today is the best example of what could potentially go wrong - what if you hurt yourself again like today?" Poseidon worriedly questioned.

"I was too excessive with my power today father, I will admit. This time, I'll experiment with only the weakest shockwaves and I will not let my frustration get in the way." Percy promised. He tried to get up, but his father firmly placed a hand on his chest.

"Not today. Maybe tomorrow, your fractures still need to heal." Poseidon said in a voice that left no room for argument.

"Percy, your father is right, even with the sea healing you, it will take you at least a day to heal. Rest my son." Amphitrite stated as she affectionately planted a soft kiss on Percy's brow. Percy nodded at her and fell back on the bed, his exhaustion enough for him to slowly drift back into the realm of Morpheus.

Percy was nervous as he walked into the magically reconstructed Arena the next day. His father, mother and brother were already standing at the ends of the arena, ready to interfere if things did not go as planned.

Percy nodded at his father and rotated the golden bracelets on his wrist by a hundred and eighty degrees. Immediately, his robes were transformed into a beautiful pitch-black armour with ornate sea green, cyan and gold engravings.

The armour consisted of a pair of vambraces, a pair of greaves, a breastplate and a waist guard. It also consisted of a fearsome helmet with a plume made of an alternative pattern of sea green and gold. To complete the menacing look, in his hands were his two gleaming and deadly swords.

The Elder Cyclopes had outdone themselves. His armour was light, indestructible and had magical enchantments that housed his spear, his trident and his short javelins, all of which could be summoned at will in a moment's notice.

With a deep breath to steel his nerves, Percy channelled a very small amount of his power into his swords as they started to glow the same as the last time. He then aimed the tip of his swords at a large wooden board and struck his swords at each other. The collision released a shockwave following the trajectory of an expanding funnel. As soon as the shockwave reached the board, it blew the wood apart, sending splinters everywhere.

Identical grins of excitement broke out on the faces of the male royals and a wide, proud smile spread on Amphitrite's face.

(Two Years Later)

Percy was carving a piece of wood. He was learning wood engraving from Aphros in the Royal Palace and the repetitive, methodical motion allowed his thoughts to slowly drift away from the piece of wood in his hands.

It had been an eventful two years since he had discovered his seismokinesis. He had been training at Camp Fish-Blood for the past year and his definition of hellish training had been greatly redefined. Bythos had been training him in an air bubble and with weights to force him to adapt to fighting in harsher conditions. It had been very difficult at first, but he had slowly gotten used to it. This harsh training had pushed his skills to a new level, and it was also the perfect opportunity for him to develop his seismokinetic abilities.

He had quickly discovered that the shockwaves spread from either the edges or the tips of his swords, depending on how he held them. This discovery had allowed him to come up with an assortment of forms which would propagate different varieties of shockwaves.

He hadn't spent all his time in combat training though, seeing as he should have a well-rounded education as the second crowned prince of Atlantis. While Bythos had been teaching him to harness his power to its highest potential, Aphros had been teaching him the fine arts of sculpting, engraving and weaving.

He had returned to Atlantis for a week as his parents wanted him to be in the palace with them for his twenty first birthday and even his grandmothers were in Atlantis to witness this event. Anxiety was running high on the royal court about tomorrow, as he would be turning, at least in theory, partially immortal.

To be honest though, he had no clue how this would work. His maternal grandmother had told him that he would experience a sudden and abrupt increase in his power and physical attributes. According to her, he would probably even have an instantaneous growth spurt, but that still made no sense to him.

"No Percy. Your stroke has to be lighter and faster for a smoother engraving." Aphros' correction brought him back to reality and he shook his head to clear it of all other thoughts. Whatever had to happen, would happen. There was no point in speculating.

Triton was anxious. His whole family along with Lady Styx were gathered in a circle around Percy, who was in the centre of the Atlantean throne room. They had been waiting for the past five hours for any changes to take place on the younger prince and so far, it did not seem like anything was going to happen.

"What if he's going to turn immortal all at once later on, instead of becoming gradually immortal bit by bit? I mean if it had to happen, it probably would have happened by now." Triton voiced out his doubts.

"Patience Lord Triton. The process of his divine side overpowering his mortal side is a slow one. After all, it's a battle that has been taking place for the last twenty-one years. His divine side is fated to win today. His blood will be purged and replaced by ichor. Once the ichor starts flowing through his veins, his soul will be his only mortal anchor left .What you are about to witness is a spectacle that is a first in history. You should be proud of yourself grandson. " Styx calmly replied before addressing Percy.

"Gee, I'm so happy that I will be the first in history to have my blood purged." Percy sarcastically grumbled from his spot in the middle of the circle.

"Aww, are you afraid of a booboo little brother?" Triton taunted.

"You are just bitter that you are going to get your arse handed to you once I become immortal." Percy retorted with a challenging smirk.

"Oh yeah? Bring it on spiky." Triton accepted the challenge with his trident in hand.

Percy was about to rotate his bracelets when suddenly, he was hit with a wave of searing pain unlike any other thing he had ever experienced. His vision blurred and he fell to his knees, his legs unable to support him.

Before anyone could be at his side, his maternal grandmother shouted "Stop! The transformation has started, once the process is complete, he will release a tremendous amount of energy. Lord Poseidon, create a divine barrier to contain it." She commanded.

Percy's whole life flashed before his eyes as the pressure in his body mounted to a uncontrollable degree and in that moment, he released all his pent up power in an effort to alleviate the pressure. He was enveloped by a golden light as he released a shockwave so powerful that the marble floor developed cobwebs of cracks.

Everyone in the room could feel the suffocating force that was permeating from Percy and, once the light subsided, all their breaths hitched at the sight before them.

Standing in the middle of their circle was a changed Percy, the only adjective that could accurately describe him was Royal.

He seemed to be glowing with power. He had grown three inches to stand at six and a half feet tall, with chiseled muscles that seemed to be bulging due to the power they stored. His facial features were more defined and aristocratic, even his hair somehow seemed to be messier, fuller and denser, but in a less rugged but more windswept manner. It was his eyes that had changed the most, though they retained their vibrant sea green colour, they seemed to be glowing and swirling, the power of the sea evident in their depths.

"Grandson, how are you feeling?" Rhea questioned him once the power surrounding him had subsided.

"I feel fine, grandmother. In fact, I feel like I can run thirty laps of the Royal Arena right now." Percy responded in a deeper, smoother voice.

"Is it only me or is no one else able to sense his mortal soul anymore? Lady Styx, are you sure that he is not a god?" Triton questioned in confusion.

"You are right, Triton, even I am not able to sense any mortal trait in his aura." Poseidon seconded.

"He is not a god yet, due to being an Underworld deity, I can sense his mortal soul, but it is very faint as its presence is being smothered out by his other divine attributes and ichor." Styx stated with a bit of awe.

"Wait, how does this work? I thought only divine beings can have ichor." Percy asked for clarification.

"Ichor is the blood of immortals Percy, not only of gods or titans. Having ichor doesn't make someone a god. Ichor only enhances the physical attributes and magnifies the manifestation of domains or powers. The other abilities of gods and titans, such as energy projection, telepathy, teleportation, are a result of our essence. Our essence is normally scattered because it cannot be in one place for a very long time as we are a part of our domains. Different gods or titans maintain different percentages of their essence at a time. When we do gather all our essence in one place, the form we take on is called our divine form." Rhea explained.

"So, all of you are not at full power right now?" Percy questioned his family.

"Your assumption is right. Me, your mother and your brother always have a tenth of our essence in our domains. The remaining is what we are manifesting as a physical form. On the other hand, your grandmothers maintain a higher extent of their essence in their physical form." Poseidon explained the essence of divine beings.

"I know lesser beings can be incinerated if they observe divine forms but what about me?" this time, Percy's question was directed at his grandmother Rhea.

"Normally, a mortal is incinerated by a pure divine essence. Seeing though as you are a god - both in terms of physical attributes and elemental power, as well as in mental capabilities - even though you have a mortal soul, your other divine attributes prevent you from being incinerated. It will be a slightly painful affair, the sheer potency of a divine form will blow you back, but other than that, it will be inconsequential. Even if they call upon their essence in combat, it'll only stun you momentarily." Rhea clarified.

"Like he needed another advantage." Triton muttered under his breath.

"Ready to get your arse whooped brother?" Percy challenged with a smirk.

"Bring it on kid." Triton met the challenge with an identical smirk.

"Hold on there, boys. No one will be fighting anyone. Today is Percy's twenty-first birthday and I have organised a Royal Ball that will be attended by all my sisters, the Nereids, my parents and even my aunts and uncles - the Oceanids and the Potamoi. The guest of honour will be my grandmother Tethys and I want both of you to be on your best behaviour." Amphitrite strictly ordered them as a look of horror made its way on the faces of the princes. They looked like they wanted to argue, but the one glance at their mother's stern face and they nodded in resignation.

At the sight of his sulking adult sons, Poseidon was trying and failing to stifle his laughter, but immediately quieted when Amphitrite rounded on him. "You, Poseidon, are going to stay by my side for the entire duration of the ball. You are not going to be discussing battle strategies with Triton, Percy and your generals. You are not going to act like a restless soldier, at least not in front of my mother and especially not in front of my grandmother. Understood?" Amphitrite told Poseidon in a no-nonsense tone. Poseidon stiffly nodded in confirmation. He had no wish to incur the wrath of his wife, not when he could get out unscathed by just sacrificing a few hours of his sanity around his parents-in-law.

"Good. Now all of you go scrub yourselves clean of all the grime and dust. You will be nothing but impeccable tonight." Amphitrite commanded and immediately the three of them vanished in a blue mist.

"It seems that you run a very tight ship around here, niece." Styx commented with amusement.

"You have no idea Aunt Styx. The three of them are personifications of the Sea. Both literally and figuratively. They are always restless and seem to hate formalities. But that is also the most endearing quality of theirs. Even though all three of them possess a tremendous amount of power, they maintain a benevolent nature, which is also due to the influence of the sea." Amphitrite replied with a fond smile.

"I am surprised that Tethys is coming. I thought she and Oceanus had retreated to the deeper parts of the seas. I have not heard from them since I requested them to teach Hera to control her temper." Rhea commented.

"She is making an appearance because she wants to have a look at Percy. There are multiple rumours about Percy's strength and invulnerability. I would bet the royal throne that she's only coming here out of curiosity." Amphitrite replied. Rhea just hummed in agreement and the three of them dispersed from the throne room.

Tethys was curious. She had never liked any balls or formal festivities as she always felt that they were a needless show of pomp. Wanting to meet her great grandson, the supposedly invulnerable Prince Perseus, was motivation enough though for her to come to this one.

It had been a blissful millennium. Along with Oceanus, she had retreated to the deeper parts of the ocean when Poseidon had taken over the control of the seas. It had been a very peaceful transition, as Poseidon had honoured her daughters and granddaughters by giving them important places in his court and for the most part, had left them alone. He sought her council occasionally but, other than that, he had honoured his promise of leaving them be in peace and he had even done a good job ruling the seas.

As soon as she materialised in the Royal Palace, she was greeted by her daughter, sister and granddaughter.

"Grandmother, it is an honour to have you here with us." Amphitrite warmly greeted.

"The pleasure is mine, granddaughter. Now, where is my great grandson, the wondrous Perseus? My daughter and sister have told me a great deal about him. Where is he?" Tethys asked her granddaughter after greeting her.

Amphitrite pointed at Percy and Tethys took a moment to marvel at the similarity between him and Poseidon. She nodded in courteous greetings at her sister and daughter before heading towards the young Prince.

Percy was fiddling with his golden bracelets when he noticed a lady that could only be his great grandmother approaching him. "Lady Tethys, it is an honour to meet you." He greeted her with a slight bow.

"Prince Perseus, there is no need for any formalities. After all, I don't hold any position of importance in the seas anymore." Tethys commented.

"You were the Queen of The Seas for countless millennia, great grandmother. You deserve just as much respect as my mother does." Percy sincerely replied.

A serene smile broke out on Tethys' face. She could sense the power rolling off from him and yet, it seemed that he had not let it corrupt him with arrogance. Rumours of his humility and genuine accepting nature had not been fake after all. She was still intimately connected to the sea and she could feel that his presence had affected it for the better, that he made Atlantis a calmer and happier place. For that, he deserved a reward in her eyes.

"Meeting you has been a great pleasure, great grandson. You have brought much joy to the seas and for that reason, I, Tethys, Titaness of the sea, bless Perseus, Son of Poseidon and Amphitrite to forever have the support of all bodies of water." Tethys blessed him. A teal blue light shot out of her hand and enveloped Percy. This caught the attention of everyone in the room.

Once the light subsided, she addressed him "You may be wondering what advantages my blessing gives you. Unlike your other blessings, this one hasn't made you stronger. Instead, it has guaranteed the support of all Naiads, Nereids, Oceanids and Potamoi. Perseus, you might be extremely powerful but it is always good to have support. We can't win all our battles alone." Tethys explained her blessing and advised.

Percy bowed in respect and thanked her "Thank you, great grandmother. I shall strive to honour you and your blessing." Tethys warmly smiled at him, gave her family members a nod and vanished from the palace in a teal blue mist.

It had been a few months since Percy had finished his training in Camp Fish-Blood, managing to also spend his 22nd birthday with his family, luckily without the fanfare of last year. Immediately he had taken a position in the Atlantean army and he was currently discussing war plans with his father, brother, Delphin and the Mermen generals in the Atlantean war room.

"The minor gods in the green tulip zone are causing a lot of dissent among the populace, Lord Poseidon. We cannot fight them, and they flee whenever Lord Triton or Lord Delphin show up to confront them." One of the generals, Narsus, reported.

"There has to be some way to deal with these pesky gods, Narsus. Atlantis has to be a stronghold; we cannot attack her forces if there is internal strife to hinder us." Poseidon replied, frustration evident in his voice. In the past year, ancient sea monsters had been gathering and attacking far away settlements and were causing a lot of casualties, both military and civilian. He had sent Triton on a few missions to kill them, but it had not been nearly enough. Thankfully, Percy had arrived a few months ago and had immediately subdued a monster attack on a Merman settlement that was about two thousand leagues away.

Since then, Percy and Triton had toured the seas to wipe out any monster gatherings. It had been effective and, at least for now, most of the grouped monsters had been killed. But these minor sea gods were proving to be troublesome.

"They flee through the kelp fields whenever we mobilise large enough forces, so why don't we light the fields on Greek fire and ambush them when they resurface?" Another general, Bellaurus, suggested.

"Absolutely not. Those kelp fields feed an entire district of Atlantis. Hundreds of thousands of Atlanteans will starve to death if we destroy them. Once we set them on fire, nothing will be left." Percy vehemently disagreed.

"Percy, we will have to find another way to feed the Atlanteans because catching these minor gods is imperative." Poseidon argued.

"Give me one chance, father. Chiron has trained me to shroud my presence. I will secretly ambush them and bring them to you in chains. If this fails, then we can follow through with General Bellaurus' plan." Percy promised.

Poseidon seemed unsure about letting Percy fight three gods alone. Even if they were minor gods, they were still dangerous. Percy had admittedly proven to be almost unbeatable though and Bythos had called him an unstoppable arc of destruction. So, he decided to trust Percy and nodded in consent. Instantly, Percy vanished from the room in a blue mist.

"My lord, are you sure that Prince Perseus will be able to subdue the three minor gods?" Bellaurus asked with uncertainty.

"My brother does not make false promises general. Have faith in his abilities, if he has promised to bring us those gods in chains, I have no doubt that he will uphold it." Triton cut off any further arguments with this statement. Now, all they had to do was wait.

Percy was traversing the shady streets of the green tulip zone with a cloak and was using the mist to shroud his presence. He had been tracking the divine signatures of the three gods and it had finally led him to a small tavern.

As he entered the tavern which the minor gods seemed to be using as their hideout, his enhanced hearing picked up an alarming conversation.

"Lord Polybotes wants the three of us to start a rebellion in Atlantis. He says that this will split the sea god's attention and will allow Lord Polybotes and his forces to deliver the lethal blow when the sea god least expects it." One of the gods discussed his war plans.

"Yes, he has promised us the city of Atlantis in return for our services." The other one replied with a greedy smirk.

"Finally, that wretched crown prince will not hunt us anymore. Lord Polybotes has an amusement park of tortures for him and the rest of the royal family." The third god revealed.

"To Lord Polybotes" the three gods simultaneously cheered.

Having heard enough of their plan, Percy decided to act. He rotated his bracelets and his armour enveloped him as his swords materialised in his hands. Still hidden in the shadows and unnoticed, he clashed his ethereally glowing swords and launched a large shockwave at the unsuspecting gods.

The shockwave propelled two of the minor gods to the street through the wall of the tavern and Percy rounded on the remaining minor god. The god tried to send a large, pressurised jet of water at him, but he dissipated the jet with a thought. In an instant, he closed the distance between them and ferociously brought down both his sword hilts on the god's forehead, the power behind the attack driving the god into the ground, where he lay in a small crater.

Percy then turned his attention back to the other gods, who had managed to stand upright on the street, and shot off towards them in a geyser. He held his swords in front of him as he barreled into and impaled another god. The god let out an agonizing scream before being knocked out by a brutal right hook.

"Prince Perseus." the final god uttered in horror. The left side of his body covered in ichor and his arms and legs were bent in an unnatural way due to the effects of the shockwave.

In an attempt to escape, the god attempted to take on his divine form. Alas, Percy was faster as he slashed his swords at the god's torso and carved a large X on it. He then knocked out the god by sending him flying into the tavern with a hard kick. The impact of the collision caused the whole tavern to collapse on him. By now, everyone had fled the tavern in fear and were all hiding. No one dared to come out, in fear of Perseus.

His mission complete, he solidified the water around him into chains, which he used to bind the three unconscious gods. With the three of them in tow, he vanished from the area in a blue mist.

Poseidon was surprised. While he had always had full faith in Percy's abilities, he had thought that it would take Percy at least a few days to capture those minor gods. He had not expected Percy to finish his mission and show up in the middle of the throne room with three unconscious and bound gods in only a few hours. He was even more shocked to see two of them covered in ichor and the third one seemed to have a large dent in his forehead.

"I brought them to you as promised, father." Percy addressed him with a slight tilt of head as a sign of respect.

"Good job, son, you've greatly exceeded expectations." Poseidon complimented with pride.

"I am afraid I have some bad news, father. These minor gods were serving one of the new breed of immortals. His name is Polybotes and he seems to be vying for your throne." Percy solemnly reported.

Poseidon's eyes darkened "We need to immediately report to Olympus about this." Poseidon declared.

As if coordinated, an Iris message appeared, Hestia's voice interrupting them mid-conversation.

"Brother, your presence is urgently required on Olympus. Helios has spotted one of the Gigantes." Hestia announced from the other side of the message. Poseidon immediately nodded at her and slashed through the image in the mist.

"Percy, I want you to come with me to Olympus." Poseidon commanded, Percy nodded his acquiescence and they simultaneously vanished from the Atlantean throne room in a blue mist.

Hey guys! I know this chapter took quite a bit longer to come out, but, as a writer it is my responsibility to maintain the quality of my stories. For that reason, this chapter took a bit longer to write. This chapter concludes Percy's training and growth along with concluding the second act of this story.

Coming to the pairing of this story, I finally chose a Percy X Athena because I felt that their personalities are more attuned in this story. I am going to give Calypso an arc too, but the final pairing will be with Athena.

Seismokinesis is the ability to control and manipulate shockwaves. I felt that this was an unexplored angle at Percy's geokinetic powers and decided to run with it. Percy's seismokinesis is activated when an ethereal glow surrounds his weapon or a body part.

Percy is nineteen initially, twenty one in the middle and in the last part he is twenty two.

Also, a shout-out to MissyAndTheDocs for your phenomenal editing.

Read and review, I used a few ideas that had been suggested in some reviews and I hope that all of you liked this chapter. Have a great day!