It was like he had vanished off the face of the Earth. Because, in a sense, he had. He had exiled himself to a cave 20 miles away. And there he lived.

3rd Person POV

And live there he did. He made himself crevices to tie rope that he made to so that he could have a hammock. He made himself in a quiet little fireplace just outside his cave, but still under an overhang. In the back of the cave, he set up kerosene torches; lit by kerosene and burning bark and a little wood. When the light was revealed, he found a small pond, which he decided would be drinking water and he devoted the river to bathing and washing his clothes.

Each day, he hunted an animal for his dinner and for breakfast, he forged berries and nuts from a ways away. His life became very good, he even made paper and clothing from the animal skin so that he could make a journal. After he made the journal, he realized how repetitive his life was, and he sought challenge. Sure, monsters came after him every few days, but he was close enough to camp that most monsters were either dead or somewhere else. So he decided that he needed several things; to find an entrance to the Labyrinth and to ensure that it is far from camp.

And so he searched, never did he guess that it would be three days journey to the second nearest entrance. Because it was just him and his sword, he never slowed down, he only stopped for food and sleep. By the end of those days, he had a well defined torso and firm abdominal muscles.

The entrance, hidden little maze, was inside a tree. The bark made a delta on a knot on the trunk. When Percy was within 20 feet of it, he was drawn to the tree. Of course, the Labyrinth would draw those seeking it into it's entrance. But why? This never occurred to Percy, he was only interested in the maze. And training there.

Upon entrance to the maze, Percy was very relaxed. Nothing seemed to be amiss. Then he noticed that. And wondered why the maze didn't try to kill him already. Percy wandered the maze for what felt like miles. It was only a half mile, but the darkness that Percy was in warped his ability to measure distance. After a while, percy heard a clink. A simple, metallic sound that prompted Percy to draw his sword. And so he did. Percy always went with what felt like his gut. When he drew his sword, a spike immediately impaled itself into the sword. Then, Percy ducked.

In that moment, thousands of spikes erupted from the wall, just as Percy would've been shish kabobed. after a few minutes, it became clear; the Labyrinth had no clip limit. So Percy, slowly, surely, crawled out of the corridor. After that, he passed through many rooms; from columbed plazas to bioluminescent caves to fluorescently lighted hallways. As he wandered, he fought dracaena and Earthborn and cyclops and hellhounds. He fought the Minotaur again. Finally, at an intersection, he heard a deep, booming laughter:

"The gods may have beaten my brothers, but they will not defeat me. I, Eurytus, will destroy them all! And this time, that wine god will not get in my way!" Came a bellowing down the left corridor. Percy had heard that name before. Then he realized, Eurytus was the giant born to oppose Dionysus. Percy knew that the giant had to be killed and offered up a silent prayer to the gods, specifically Athena and Dionysus, that he might get assistance defeating this giant and staying alive. The smell of grapes became pungent in the air.

As Percy approached the giant, he called out. "Hello noble warrior, I come seeking training and skill and I have heard that yours is unmatched by all those in the maze."

"And who are you, to come seeking my help," asked Eurystheus. "And why should I help you, a demigod son of Poseidon of all people? You are born of my enemies. YOU WILL DIE!"

So much for introductions. Percy thought, I guess we have to do this the hard way. "I am Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, Slayer of the Minotaur, Bane of Titans, Conqueror of the Giants, Nightmare to Monsters, and soon, I will add slayer of Eurytus to my list of titles." The look of determination is Percy's eyes struck fear into the mind of the giant, who stepped back.

It was in that moment, that from a grape vine in the corner, Dionysus materialized. We had this in the bag, and the giant knew it.