Perseus- The battle of New Rome

I bellowed a mighty roar as I ripped through undead soldiers by the dozens, standing at the dead centre of the roman front line whilst golden arcs of pure godly power lashed out at my foes.

Throughout the fight, I continued to will out my energy to each and every soldier on the front line, keeping them from tiring at my own expense. But the sacrifice of my strength was small and I hardly noticed the difference as I tore apart the skeletal soldiers before me.

But it was pointless.

As much as I was enjoying my new powers, the sinking feeling of defeat was growing in my chest. Mars's undead army expanded over the horizon, and even with my newfound abilities I could hardly defend the city forever.

Our overall losses were low, but every man, woman, boy or girl we lost was the equivalent of a thousand undead soldiers. Mars's army had more heads than the hydra ever could, but like the hydra, they could always replace the ones we cut off… but of course, there is one head that can't be replaced.

As long as Mars is holding up Terminus's barrier, the undead tide will continue to slowly flow. I need to seal the barrier at the Pomerian line, and defeat Mars before they break through our ranks. It was time to bring out the old tricks.

I turned on my heels, and grabbed the shoulders of the girl behind me.

"Don't let them breach the line," I yelled. Then I pushed through the ranks, thinking fast on my next move.

The resounding "Yes sir" from not just the girl, but of all my comrades in arms, filled me with pride as she filled the hole I left in the defence.

Moments later- I held up my hands as I stood at the banks of New Rome's lake. I could feel the power that the Little Tiber contained, as I momentarily thought back to the first time I was at Camp Jupiter, when Hera/Juno had stolen my memories from me. It left a sour taste in my mouth, and brought up many other angry thoughts that would have previously had me struck down by that… goddess. Eh.

It was with these thoughts that I began my master plan: Wing it and hope for the best. But nowadays, winging it basically amounts to fire and brimstone, so I can say that there have been worse plans.

I rose my hands into the air, summoning my demigod powers once more. I hadn't used the powers of poseidon since I fell into Tartarus, so I didn't really know what to expect. But as it turns out, when you mix demigod powers with your godly powers it makes for interesting results.

The entirety of the little tiber rose up, much like the river at camp half-blood had not long ago. The tiber may have failed to hold back the attack, but it can serve other purposes, like drowning undead soldiers and annoying beefed-up war gods. I let the tsunami drop, and the noise was near deafening, but it washed away everything from the pomerian line to the borders of the camp.

Hundreds of thousands of undead soldiers were crushed under the force of the wave, and Mars was picking himself up out of the dirt, dripping wet… but he didn't look too worse for wear. That was a wave that could drop cities, maybe even states, and Mars simply stood up and shaked it off. He hadn't even let go of his weapon.

"Perseus! I challenge you to a trial by combat!" His roar echoed across New Rome, and I stared him down. It took me a second to realise that he had actually spoken telepathically, as his voice was so loud, so full of power, that he may as well have screamed at the top of his lungs, right in my ear. It painted a clearer picture of just how strong he was.

I took a second to think over his proposal, and then I answered.

"What are the terms?"

"Simple," he said. "I win, you're out of the way and I can finish up here. You win, I leave with my army, and you can have the honor of being my… better."

I continued to ponder his proposal, going over each possible conclusion to the matter. If I win, he leaves, and he takes his army with him. If he wins… we're all stuffed. If I refuse… then we're all still stuffed. My answer was firm, if not a teeny, tiny bit reluctant. I didn't like my chances of winning. This isn't that thug, Ares, in front of me. This is the true god of war.

There is a reason why he's renowned as the god of rome. This is a master of tactical warfare, arguably the most skilled warrior of rome, and now he's even stronger than ever, thanks to Jupiter's carelessness and Pluto's input.

But dismal chances are better than none at all, and in the end, I had only one choice.

"I accept, on the condition that the battle commences outside of the city."

"Very well," he said, and his undead army, previously running towards him ready for battle, stopped. In one quick motion, his entire force dropped their weapons, and then they crumbled down to a massive pile of bones, weapons, combat uniforms and armour.

"The battle shall commence on the field of Mars. The demigods may leave, there is no need for more bloodshed."

He was letting them go? Maybe he saw no point in killing them. Maybe this attack was only a sign of what was to come… or maybe he had ulterior motives.

"And of course," Mars spoke up. "The victor gets to do whatever he wishes with his opponent. You have half an hour to prepare."

Then he turned around, and began to make his way to the field of… him.

"What is Mars playing at?" I mumbled aloud.

It was time to find out. But first, I needed to notify Reyna. She has to organise a mass evacuation in the event that I lose, an event that unfortunately looks to be likely.

It's time for a trial by combat.