Chapter 25
Greetings viewers! I hope that all of you enjoyed the previous chapter! Firstly, I would like to thank the two guest reviewers and John for your supportive reviews. The fact that all of you are enjoying and interacting with me to this extent tells me that this story is going in the right direction. Thank you for your continued support!
I would like to thank Achilles for his motivating review, I hope you enjoy this chapter as well. Thank you for your support!
In reference to SonGoku76's review, I am glad that you like this portrayal of Percy. I have read amazing fanfictions where Percy is portrayed as a soldier, but I felt that portraying Percy as an actual Prince was a novel idea and I built on that idea. Thank you for your continued support!
I would also like to thank HellRaiderS for your supportive review. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well. Thank you for your support!
In reference to Onyxeye's review, I am glad that you liked the last chapter. However, I have another cliffhanger in store at the end of this chapter :) Thank you for your support!
In reference to hawkeyestratos1996's review, I appreciate your input but I am not comfortable writing pairings which are polygamous or polyandrous in nature. Also, I want Percy to go through some actual and irreversible heartbreak. Going back on that will be equivalent to reversing the progression of his character. Thank you for your continued support!
In reference to Ryan's review, even your latest idea is great but, I am a bit unsure about using a concept from the Marvel Cinematic Universe so openly because I don't want to rip off anybody's ideas. Of course, I will draw inspiration from this suggestion and combine it with my earlier plan in an original manner. Thank you for your continued support!
In reference to ItsYaBoi325's review, I do apologize for all the complex and big words that were extensively used in the previous chapter. I tend to get a bit carried away when I am writing and I like using words that are not a part of common usage. And I am glad that you agreed with my reasoning for having Percy talk to Aphrodite instead of Hestia or Amphitrite. I am also glad that you liked the previous chapter and I hope that you enjoy this chapter as well! Thank you for your continued support!
Regarding IceFire99's review, I am stoked that you liked the careful balance that I tried to strike between Percy's authoritarian imposition that he has been brought up with due to being a Prince of Atlantis and his diplomatic acumen. I am glad that you liked the previous chapter and I hope that you enjoy this chapter as well! Thank you for your continued support!
Regarding JoJo Jesus' review, firstly, I am thrilled that you liked the previous chapter! Answering your question, the modern canonical landscape is going to look a bit different but the changes will be a bit unexpected :) I am glad that you agree with the direction that has been set for Aphrodite's character in this story. As I had stated in one of my earlier footnotes, I believe we give Aphrodite too much flak. So I wanted to portray a different take and I am glad that you liked it! Thank you for your continued support!
All credit for the characters goes exclusively to Rick Riordan.
Percy was relieved to see that Hestia had finally managed to convince Zeus to accept the terms of the settlement that he had reached with the minor gods.
It had been a very busy eighteen hours. As soon as the settlement had been finalized, his aunts had gone into overdrive and had been on a diplomatic frenzy. Unfortunately, he could not join them in this mission as his involvement in these negotiations had to stay a secret.
If the gods found out about his role as one of the facilitators of this settlement, there would be an uproar on Olympus. Some of them would not be pleased with the fact that he bypassed their authority while reaching this settlement. Hence, he had tried to put as much distance as possible between himself and his aunts' endeavour in an attempt to feign ignorance.
Fortunately, in a matter of a few hours, they had managed to convince all the gods except Athena, Hera and Zeus. It had taken his aunts the entire morning to convince Hera and they had decided that Zeus and Athena would be dealt with in the meeting.
It had been a tiring, long, repetitive and, in his opinion, very frustrating council meeting. To make matters worse, he had been unable to give his opinion on this topic in an effort to make sure that his involvement in these negotiations was kept a secret.
He had been forced to quietly listen to arguments and counter arguments between his uncle and the rest of the council, unable to intervene. Although in hindsight, it looked like their decision had paid off. His uncle had accepted the settlement, albeit with a lot of reluctance. Now all that was left was to convince Athena. Coincidentally, his train of thought was interrupted by Athena's voice.
"Percy, you have been silent this entire time. Is there any reason for that? What are your thoughts about this settlement?" Athena questioned him with a seemingly straight voice, though the hint of suspicion in it was easily detectable. All the gathered gods, including Zeus, eagerly leaned in, curious to know about his opinion.
Percy internally smirked. As expected, they had played right into his hands. He knew that he had to be very careful while answering this question though. Athena would detect the slightest difference in his statement and even one slip-up would derail this entire settlement.
"I stayed silent as I did not want to interrupt the ongoing conversation. Frankly, I believe that this settlement will be beneficial to us. While we can win this war on our own, it certainly won't hurt to have the help of a dozen other gods. Besides, we don't have anything to lose from this outcome. We arrange a council that in all honestly, just gives you more direct influence. Additionally, similar to the Big Three, all of you get retinues of your own. This extends the Olympian umbrella to every edge of this world." Percy neutrally commented. However, he quickly continued.
"Of course, this will empower the minor gods quite a bit. But does this actually matter? After all, they can't even hope to match you. Giving them more power is indirectly more beneficial to you. You get loyal and happy lieutenants, more control over the minor gods and greater spheres of influence. As far as I can deduce, we are the ones who are getting the longer end of the stick." Percy smoothly finished.
He wasn't lying. As far as he was concerned, this was a mutually beneficial statement. It gave more power to the minor gods, which in his opinion, they legitimately deserved, as well as brought some accountability to the Olympians. Finally, it gave them a chance to peacefully extend their spheres of influence.
All of the gods, including Athena and Zeus nodded in agreement. Percy had presented the deal in a very appealing way. While Athena agreed with him, she could sense that something was off. She had meticulously analysed his statements and somehow, she felt that he knew far more than what he was letting on. She brushed those thoughts aside for a later, private discussion.
"You make a very compelling point Percy. Very well. I extend my support to this settlement." Athena finally declared.
Percy stopped the wide smile that threatened to break across his face. Their strategy had been a resounding success. Now, all that was left was to ratify the settlement and after that, he could finally focus on going on the offensive.
Percy was annoyed. He had thought that once the entire council agreed to the settlement terms, it would just be a matter of calling the minor gods and taking the oath, but he had been sorely mistaken.
As soon as the minor gods had arrived, an argument had broken out between the Olympians and the minor gods on the subject of who would take the oath first, with both parties accusing each other of being untrustworthy and manipulative.
Finally, Percy decided that he had had enough of this useless argument. He closed his eyes and instantly, a titanic wave of power pushed back all the gods present in the throne room and the entire throne room fell silent. When all the attention was directed at Percy, he opened his eyes and most of the gods recoiled at the sight of his harshly glowing sea green eyes.
"Now that we have all settled down, let's find a way to end this dilemma. I propose that all of you take the oath simultaneously and I shall confirm who has taken it and who hasn't." Percy commanded with a calm, yet, firm tone
Some of the gods seemed miffed that they were being ordered to do something but before any of them could voice their discontentment, Hestia interrupted them.
"Percy is right. It's high time we finalize this settlement and focus on our next plan of attack." Hestia seconded.
All the assembled gods grudgingly nodded their heads and all of them took their oaths. Thunder boomed overhead and everyone looked at Percy for clarification. He nodded his head in affirmation and they all let out a breath of relief. They had all been expecting someone to purposely miss out but, thankfully no one had attempted such a stunt.
Once that was done, Zeus nodded at the minor gods and they flashed of the throne room. A stony silence enveloped the entire throne room before it was broken by Percy.
"Since we have reached this settlement, shall we move forward and discuss our next course of action?" Percy questioned all the gods. Once he received nods of confirmation, he continued.
"Now that we have dealt with these spirits, we can finally focus on hunting down Athena's bane and freeing Ares." Percy declared. Everyone else nodded in agreement.
"But the gigas has escaped to the land beyond the gods. How do we mount an assault?" Artemis questioned.
"Yes. Once we go to that wretched place, we lose the ability to take on our divine forms. As a result, we are left with only our enhanced physical attributes and are incapable of wielding our metaphysical skills such as teleporting or energy manipulation." Athena explained.
"I am aware of that. But that is not a drawback for me. Technically speaking, I am a mortal. I may have divine physical attributes and a lot of power but, my elemental powers are drawn from a vast internal pool of energy. Unlike gods, I do not draw power from any domains. Of course, due to that reason I do not have any metaphysical capabilities, but I am also not affected by any metaphysical constraints or barriers." Percy explained.
"We get it, cuz. You are an unstoppable force of nature." Apollo replied in a deadpan voice.
"What he meant to say is that he can handle this hunt without any problems. But, even he cannot bring down a gigas on his own." Hestia elaborated.
"We need to form a strike team consisting of Percy and some other gods." Hermes stated.
"I'm afraid that won't work, Hermes. We will be able to effectively shroud the presence of only one god or goddess. Having more than one immortal will give away too much of an energy signature and the gigas will sense us from hundreds of leagues away. I can have only one hunting companion." Percy stated. It seemed like Athena wanted to say something, but Poseidon cut her off.
"I will join you son." Poseidon immediately declared, his eyes narrowing at his son when Percy shook his head.
"Father, you radiate enough energy to light up an entire continent. Having you or for that matter, any of the other Elder Olympians on the strike team will make it impossible for us to attack stealthily." Percy explained.
"Are you saying that we are too weak to be detected?" Artemis asked in an offended tone.
"Not at all. I am saying that it is easier to shroud the essence of the younger Olympians than to shroud the essence of the Elders. Let's accept it, they're in a league of their own. So, who will be joining me?" Percy placatingly stated before questioning in a faux cheerful voice.
Naturally, most of the gods seemed a bit reluctant to be a part of this strike team. But, finally, Athena spoke up.
"I will join you Percy." Athena stated with a resolute look directed at him. Before Percy could say anything, Zeus joined the conversation.
"Athena, your bane will detect your presence from a league away. To make matters even worse, you cannot even teleport once you reach the land beyond the gods. It's too dangerous to have you on this mission." Zeus stoically replied.
"I don't see anybody else lining up to be a part of it. This is my bane that we are hunting. For us to succeed, I have to be a part of this mission. Besides, I don't need you coaching me on what is dangerous for me and what isn't. I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself." Athena responded with one of her infamous glares.
"Daughter, I never said that you can't take care of yourself. You are one of our best fighters and you are the greatest strategist in the world. But we have already lost Ares. We cannot afford to lose you too. The stakes are too high. We cannot gamble on this opportunity." Zeus stated in a firm voice. Not willing to give up, Athena replied.
"My bane was birthed with the intent of defeating me. If we want to win, I am needed to counter him." Athena stated.
Zeus and Athena stared each other down, neither willing to budge. Not knowing what to say, the other Olympians stayed silent. Finally, Percy decided to break this uneasy tension between the two gods.
"I have an idea. Let us ask Hecate to cover Athena with wards that will hide her presence." Percy proposed. Before Athena could convey her assent, once again, Zeus interrupted her.
"No. That is a very dangerous endeavour. If the wards don't work, the consequences will be disastrous. I will not let my daughter be captured by some vile gigas." Zeus declared. Athena wanted to argue but an unrelenting glare from her father silenced her.
"Brother, I hate putting Athena in trouble but, I am afraid that we don't have any other choice. She is right. Along with Percy, only she has the ability to outwit her bane." Hestia calmly stated. Before Zeus could pop a vein, Percy put forward another proposal.
"I have another idea, Lord Zeus. I have formulated a contingency plan to safely escape if things go south." Percy stated. Zeus nodded at him and gestured him to continue.
Percy looked at his father and the two of them seemed to have a mental conversation. A few seconds later, two sea green pearls materialised in Percy's hands. Percy was met with numerous questioning looks so he decided to explain his actions.
"These pearls are crafted by my father for the sake of teleportation. If one of them is crushed, it will teleport the person who has crushed it to one of the islands on the Aegean Sea. This is regardless of where it's crushed and this is the tool that I used to drag Lord Hades' bane out of the Underworld. Should things go south during the mission, we will use these to safely teleport out of harm's way. " Percy expounded.
Athena eagerly nodded her head before turning towards her father and engaging in a seemingly intense mental conversation with him. Finally, Zeus face softened as he relented. He nodded his head to convey his consent before turning towards Hermes with a stony look in his eyes.
"Hermes, bring Hecate to the council." Zeus commanded. Hermes nodded his head and disappeared. He reappeared a few moments later with Hecate along with him.
Zeus gestured at Percy to explain his plan to Hecate and Percy explained his plan to Hecate.
"I can cover Lady Athena with stealth wards that will hide her presence from everyone until both of you are just a league away from her bane. But, when you are a league away from the gigas, her presence will not go undetected unless you radiate your own power and mask her presence with your own." Hecate stated.
"We will find a way to deal with that. Now, can you please cover her with those wards?" Percy requested.
"Lady Athena, if you could step down from throne?" Hecate asked, though her voice came out more like a statement. Athena acquiesced and descended from her throne.
A moment later, a deep purple glow followed by a light purple glow surrounded Athena. When the light subsided, the gods were astonished to notice that they could only sense the presence of a weak demigod rather than that of an Olympian goddess.
"I have to warn you, Lady Athena, the moment you enter a fight with your bane, these wards will dissipate. They will accompany you only on the hunt. They won't cover you on the return journey." Hecate clarified.
"If there aren't any other questions, this meeting is dismissed. However, I would like to have a word with Perseus in private." Zeus declared.
Poseidon shot a suspicious look at his brother but calmed down when Percy gave him a reassuring smile. Most of the gods flashed away but a few of them stayed back
"Son, as much as I don't want you to go, I will not stop you. This is your choice and therefore I shall not interfere. However, if there is even the slightest chance of the situation getting worse, I want you to promise me you will use the pearls. Neither this war nor this hunt is as important to me as you. I wish I could offer you more help, but you are going to a place that is beyond my sphere of influence." Poseidon stated with a sorrowful sigh.
"Don't worry father. We will return victorious and triumphant. No one can stop us from winning this battle." Percy stated with a fiery determination blazing in his eyes. Poseidon gave his son a wide, proud smile before disappearing in a blue mist.
"Percy, come to my palace once you finish talking to father. We will discuss our plan of attack." Athena stated before vanishing in a grey light.
Finally, only Zeus and Percy were left in the throne room. Taking that as his cue, Zeus addressed Percy.
"Your father, he has no qualms in openly expressing his love for you. That is the reason I envy him the most. My children mean the world to me. But, as the King of the gods, I have to put on a tough, neutral front, which forbids me from showcasing my affection openly." Zeus started with a solemn look in his eyes.
"You may be wondering why I am sharing with you all of this information. You were the one who suggested the contingency plan. I need you to follow through with that responsibility and protect my daughter. She may be the greatest spearwoman in the world but, once you reach that wretched place, all her metaphysical skills will desert her. You have proven to be an important part of this war and you also happen to have durability comparable to that of the General's. This is not an order from the King of the gods. Rather, this is a request from a father." Zeus finished in a calm voice.
"You have my word, Lord Zeus. I will do everything in my power to protect Athena." Percy promised with unwavering resolve. Zeus intensely stared at Percy for some time as if he was weighing the sincerity behind his words. After some time, he relaxed and leaned back into his throne.
"You are a good man, Perseus. May the fates be with you." Zeus complimented with a small, almost unnoticeable smile on his face before disappearing in a blinding flash of lightning.
Percy shook his head in mild shock. He had always known that, despite his uncle's stony and proud exterior, at heart, he was an honourable man. However, he had still never expected him to be this protective of his family.
This small incident had instilled a new hope in him. He had grown disillusioned with the gods after having to leave Calypso. But if one of the proudest gods could swallow his pride and seek his help, it proved that they were willing to change. With these uplifting thoughts, Percy vanished in a blue mist.
Athena's heart was racing. After a long journey atop Selene's chariot, they had finally reached the edge of her sphere of influence. Once they crossed this channel, they would enter the land beyond the gods.
They had decided to camp on the shore for the rest of the night and continue their journey in the morning. They were currently sitting inside the tent that she had given Percy.
"Intimidating, isn't it?" Percy suddenly stated from the other side of the tent.
"I would be lying if I said no. Bar the Pit, this is the most dangerous place for us. Once we cross this channel, no call for help will be answered. No metaphysical ability will help us. We will be entirely on our own. With only our brain, physical attributes and in your case, elemental powers." Athena replied in a sombre voice.
"A simple yes would have sufficed." Percy sarcastically replied.
"But then I wouldn't have spooked you out, would I?" Athena rhetorically questioned with a small smirk.
"I never expected Athena, the goddess of wisdom, to have a quippy bone." Percy replied with similar smirk.
"And I never expected a man with the durability of the General to have such a playful side. I am curious though, what is the true extent of your invulnerability?" Athena retorted before questioning. Percy seemed to ponder about this before answering her.
"To be honest, even I only have a rough idea of its true extent. Due to being physically invulnerable and thus incapable of bleeding, my pain tolerance is greater than even my father's. Most blows that may cause some hindrance to even my father are just minor discomforts for me. Having the blessing of the River Styx also enhances my pace of healing to unprecedented levels. But I am certainly not invincible and I am definitely not above injuries." Percy recounted.
"I can still be gravely injured by extreme blunt force trauma. But in all honesty, I don't think any god, Titan or gigas for that matter has the power required to put that much power behind a single strike. And while a distributed impact, such as a fall from Olympus, will cause quite a bit of damage, it isn't a life-threatening injury. However, these kinds of strikes can put me out of commission temporarily." Percy finished before continuing.
"May I know what brought this on?" Percy questioned.
"You are my companion in this mission Percy. I need to be fully aware of your weaknesses in order to cover them for you. This mission will be the hardest one that we have ever faced. Without this knowledge, our combined effort will not be executed in a smooth and effective way." Athena explained.
"I agree with you. On that note, is there anything I need to know something about you?" Percy seriously questioned.
Athena pursed her lips as she searched for a reply. She did not like exposing her own weaknesses but withholding this information could prove to be a very costly mistake. Besides, he had shared his imperfections with her, so it was only fair that she did the same.
"I do not commit mistakes in battles. In order for a mistake to happen though, all my undivided attention must be focused on an opponent who can fight me on a roughly equal footing. This means that there is a very small but still real chance of me being blindsided by a new, unexpected opponent." Athena tightly finished.
She half expected him to laugh and taunt her. But, she was surprised when he simply took cognizance of this fact without passing any comments. She herself found it embarrassing that even though she was a master combatant and strategist, she had a tendency to sometimes be caught off-guard.
"You don't find it amusing or laughable that the goddess of wisdom and strategy has such a simple weakness similar to that of mortals?" Athena questioned with disbelief. Percy just raised an eyebrow at this statement.
"Of course not. Everyone has their own flaws. Even beings of higher order aren't spared by this phenomenon. Like you said, you are my partner in this mission and covering you is my responsibility too. Aspiring for perfection is a fantastic goal that makes us a better person and makes sure that we continuously evolve, as long as we accept that achieving perfection is an impossible goal." Percy paused before continuing.
"There is nothing wrong in having a flaw. That just shows that we can still improve and making fun of someone else's flaw is akin to the pot calling the kettle black. We must accept, adapt and evolve. That is what separates and makes us far, far better than the Titans." Percy replied with a sober maturity shining in his eyes.
Athena couldn't help but smile at him. There was something magnetic about the man in front of her. She would not voice it out loud but, in her opinion, Percy represented the best of both worlds. He had all the power, attributes, authority and regality of a god yet, he had retained the humility and inclusiveness of a mortal.
Those traits, combined with his innate kindness and noble motivations, made him the closest any man or, for that matter, any god could get to perfection. One had to note though, the eyes of the man in front of her were not the same as the ones that she had seen more than six months ago.
These eyes housed deep sorrow and weary acceptance. Yet, they brilliantly radiated a sense of peace and a warmth that they were sorely lacking on the six months ago. He was truly an enigma.
She wanted to know what had driven this change but out of the immense respect she housed for him and the inexplicable friendship that she had cultivated with him, she finally chose not to question him further.
"Alright Percy. It seems that Selene has already finished half of her journey across the sky. We need to be well rested for tomorrow. Talking to you was refreshing. Good night." Athena greeted him with a radiant smile.
"Likewise, Athena, likewise. Good night." Percy replied with a dazzling smile.
With smiles etched on their faces, Percy and Athena moved towards their respective rooms to rest. They had a very important and demanding week ahead of them.
Enceladus was filled with anxious trepidation and a slight amount of fear. He had heard the news of the son of Poseidon's return and his subsequent annihilation of the spirits. A large pang of fear had passed through him when his mother had informed him that they had developed a game-changing weapon.
He knew that they would be gunning for him. All of his brethren had underestimated the son of Poseidon, but he knew better than that. He knew that the wretched godling was an ingenious and unconventional strategist. A master of finding weak spots of his enemies.
For that reason, he had strengthened all the defences of his camp. He had built fortified, impregnable walls that were impervious even to the devastating earthquakes that the son of Poseidon was capable of causing.
The nearest source of water was hundreds of leagues away and the place where he had set up camp was dry and mostly devoid of any moisture. Most of all, dozens of dracaena archers monitored the skies to repel any aerial assault from taking place.
Even his camp was very compact. It spanned a little more than a thousand feet and he had made sure that every inch of it was saturated with monsters. He had learnt from his brethren's mistakes and he was determined to not give his crafty and cunning opponent any foothold to latch onto.
He could not afford to ignore the threat that the son of Poseidon posed. Any complacency on his part would be the last mistake that he ever made. Unfortunately, all his effort would go to vain.
Seemingly out of nowhere, a glowing Celestial Bronze missile made its way towards the camp at a blistering and unmatchable speed. A sonic boom seemed to lazily follow it but, by the time the monsters and gigas realised what was going on, the Celestial Bronze shell broke away revealing a lump of blindingly glowing metal.
As soon as the payload landed on an unsuspecting cyclops next to Enceladus, it unleashed a monstrous radial shockwave that blew away the gigas and vaporized every other monster in a radius of two hundred and fifty feet. Immediately, a weaker, yet equally destructive shockwave blew apart all monsters within five hundred feet and once again, Enceladus was rudely blown backwards.
By now, the portion of the monster army that remained had devolved into disarray and tried to scramble out of the camp. Before they could do that, a final shockwave erupted and the remaining monsters and Enceladus were slammed against the impregnable walls of their camp like rag dolls. The first and decisive blow of the battle had been dealt.
Percy was stunned. He had scouted the enemy camp and had conducted extensive reconnaissance missions over the past week and he had to say that he had been impressed.
As expected, this gigas seemed to be the smartest of his brethren. The gigas had not left any stone unturned in making sure that he didn't get any advantage. But, it was for that exact purpose that they had brought the SKEAN along with them.
The recoil from launching it was more than what he had expected and he was currently massaging his sore and sprained arm with some nectar. That wasn't the only surprise though, as the missile had also been much, much more devastating than what they had planned. It seemed that they were going to pick up an easy victory.
Once his arm was back to its optimal condition, he nodded at Athena before quickly grabbing her armour-clad shoulder and they disappeared in a blue mist.
They resurfaced inside the monster camp and from the look of it, Athena was not amused.
"Okay before you get angry, it was easier to show you rather than explain it to you. Besides, we were a hundred leagues away, it would have taken quite a bit of time to fly." Percy placatingly stated. Athena just huffed in annoyance but thankfully, she did not complain. They then turned their attention towards the fallen gigas who was completely covered in ichor.
"We finally meet Enceladus, the Bane of Athena, proclaimed by the great mud face herself to be the smartest of all her children. I have to say, I am underwhelmed. When I materialised here, I didn't expect a mangled, reptilian mass." Percy taunted. In response the gigas just groaned in pain and disorientation.
Percy's eyes widened when he saw the Celestial Bronze jar hanging from the gigas' armour. In a flash and before the gigas could come out of his disorientation, Percy swooped in, grabbed the jar and tossed it to Athena, who immediately put it inside a pouch.
"There are a few stragglers. I will deal with them. After that, we'll deal with the gigas and get out of here as soon as possible." Percy stated before disappearing in a blue mist.
The ground suddenly swallowed Enceladus and a moment later, he shot out of it with his most grievous wounds healed.
"Praise be to Gaia." Enceladus bellowed before turning his attention towards Athena.
"Goddess, we finally meet. Today, I will please my mother by capturing you. I already have the war god with me. Once I capture and sacrifice you, my mother will rise with all her primordial glory." Enceladus declared with a cruel smirk.
"War god? Do you mean the one that is housed in the Celestial Bronze jar hanging from your armour?" Athena taunted.
Enceladus' eyes widened before he frantically searched for the jar. When he didn't find it, he let out a loud roar of frustration.
"Are you really born to oppose me? Or are gigantes foolish in general?" Athena baited him with a condescending smirk. Enceladus growled at her and charged at her with his spear. Athena responded by blocking his thrust and engaged in a fierce duel with him.
Percy decapitated the last of the few dozen monsters that were left after the havoc wreaked upon the army by the SKEAN. Once that was done, he noticed that the gigas was fighting with Athena on equal footing.
Deciding to intervene, one of his swords was replaced by his spear as he took aim at the gigas' exposed arm and launched his spear towards him.
Enceladus howled in pain as the long Celestial Bronze spear impaled his arm. Immediately, Athena cracked her shield against his head.
The gigas sunk to his knees but he was given no respite. Instantly, two pitch-black swords were embedded to the hilt into his neck.
Caught off guard by this merciless onslaught, the gigas could only gurgle in pain as Athena's spear cleanly went through his forehead and he dissolved into a mass of reptilian skin and owl feathers.
"That was quicker than expected." Percy mused.
"Indeed; but let us not jinx ourselves. Let's get out of here immediately." Athena stated.
Percy nodded at her and the two sea green pearls materialised in their hands. Simultaneously, they crushed the two pearls but to their utter disbelief, no teleportation took place.
Suddenly, from his peripheral vision, Percy noticed a gargantuan spear racing towards Athena's blind spot. With no time to inform her, Percy pushed Athena out of the way but in this process, his armoured torso was struck by the incoming spear.
The collision caused a loud explosion as the spear broke into two. But, the impact of the collision also sent Percy flying backwards. His flight was slowed as he crashed through dozens of trees before finally coming to a halt and dropping to the ground, unmoving like a rock.
Hey guys! Let me first address the obvious cliché at the end of the chapter. I am aware that I had told in one of the earlier chapters that I would try to avoid clichés. But, I tried and I failed to come up with another way. So, I went ahead with the cliché. But, on the bright side, I did manage to incorporate a cliffhanger along with it, so all is not lost.
I have also embedded a small Percy X Athena moment in this story, in an attempt to set another stepping stone towards their eventual relationship.
The land beyond the gods I am referring to are British Isles and the channel is the English channel.
So, this story will be over in another four or five chapters and I want to thank all of you for staying with me. I had thought that the Armament Arc would be the penultimate but I guess that I had forgotten about this arc. Once this arc ends, we will move to the final arc of this story.
However, this will only be the first story in the trilogy that I have planned so I hope you enjoy those stories too.
Also, I have significantly deviated from Zeus' canonical personality for the sake of the plot. I have tried to give a more positive, familial and honourable spin to his character.
Read and review, I hope that all of you enjoyed this chapter! Have a great day!