Percy's POV
Imagine a man ten, no, a hundred times bigger than you, taller than even a mountain. Got it? Now imagine that that man's head is the same size as yours, except he has a hundred of them. And imagine that when you look at the heads, they seem to change every time you blink: sometimes they're human heads, sometimes snakes, sometimes lions.
If you can imagine that, you have a vague idea of what Typhon looked like.
He walked slowly by the mountain, glaring down at us like we were little ants he wanted to step on. He seemed to hiss and roar at the same time. He slowly began walking through the battlefield, stepping on scores of warriors with every step.
The minute they saw him, our warriors almost fled in terror. It took all of our persuasion to convince them to keep fighting. I myself was terrified. Typhon could squash me without a second glance. The more I looked at him, the more I wanted to run for my life…
Snap out of it, I told myself sternly. Your friends need you. I concentrated, calling out to the sea. In an instant it surrounded me, a torrent of water rushing through my hair and skin. I willed it to grow, become faster, stronger. Soon the huge twister of ocean was nearly twenty feet high. I rushed toward Typhon as he came across the battlefield.
He was reaching down, picking up bronze-clad warriors and tossing them in his mouths. I rushed toward him in the whirlpool, throwing all of its force into the Titan's chest.
He didn't even stumble. His hundred heads blinked slowly and glared down at me, like I was annoying him. Then he roared and picked up another warrior, an Amazon this time.
I concentrated all my strength, and the water slowly closed around the lower half of Typhon's legs. I wound it around his gigantic calves, then I pulled myself out of the water and closed my outstretched hands into fists. I watched as something misty appeared in the middle of the torrent and spread rapidly across the Titan's legs and down to his feet. The water was freezing.
New trick, I thought. Thanks, Dad.
Now Typhon was really angry. His lion heads looked down at his legs, which were suffused in ice. The heads became snakes', and he tried to shift his feet through the ice, but to no avail. I was starting to feel really confident, when suddenly the Titan bent over like he was going to throw up. And throw up he did, but not your usual contents.
Lava poured from a hundred mouths, dripping down to the ground and spreading heat rapidly into my face. The ice melted instantly, and the Titan hissed/roared in triumph. I was forced to dive out of the way of the lava, climbing onto a large boulder near the face of Mount Tam. I gazed up at the mountain peak, where I could imagine Luke laughing at me while he watched the show.
Come on, Jacob. Where'd you run off to?
--
Jacob's POV
"Thalia, watch out!" I yelled, as I met the Gorgon's dagger with Skysoarer. Lightning crackled through the sword and made her long black hair stand up funny, but she held on, twisting her dagger through my sword and trying to reach my heart.
I jumped away as my sister dodged the other hag's talons. We were fighting our hearts out, but the Gorgons weren't falling back. If only I had a wind current down here, I thought, I'd throw them against the walls until their guts spilled. As it was, I could only manage a little electricity every now and then. It was frustrating.
Suddenly the Gorgon spun toward me and dipped the dagger towards my stomach, then feinted back to my neck, then to my stomach again. I was forced to switch to my left hand to counter the blow, and my wrist was nearly displaced with the effort. Desperately I reached a hand toward the Gorgon's face, willing the sparks to come again, but they would not. The hag cackled and struck at my face.
Instantly my half-blood senses caused time to slow down, my ADHD making me forget everything else for a moment. I turned my face so that the dagger missed me by inches, then I raised my sword and cut off the Gorgon's hand with all my might.
She yowled and clutched the stump, falling on the ground and writing in agony, but she did not disintegrate. I should have killed her, right then, but I was distracted by Thalia and the other Gorgon. They were both fighting valiantly, but Thalia was being backed up towards the wall. I rushed over and struck at the Gorgon's neck. She saw me at the last second and shied off my sword with a flick of her knife. We slowly backed away from the wall as we continued to fight her, and now we seemed to be winning.
After a minute, she suddenly raised her hand. "Enough, heroes," she said. "You have won. Spare me from further torture."
For a moment I was relieved, but then suspicion hit me. Something was wrong. I could feel it. Thalia could sense it too, and she realized what it was a second before I did. She turned around, wide-eyed, and I spun around too, just in time to the see the other Gorgon raise her unsevered hand and throw her dagger at my chest.
I didn't have time to think. One second the knife was flying through the air towards me, the next there was a body in its path. I watched with horror as the dagger flew through the air and sank cleanly into Thalia's heart.
--
Percy's POV
Just when I was beginning to think retreating would actually be the best choice, two dozen girls in silver jackets emerged from the entrance to the mountain. The Hunters! I couldn't believe it. I ran towards them as they collapsed with exhaustion. "Are you okay?" I asked. "Where are Jacob and Thalia?"
"They – stayed – back – to – fight – monsters," one girl panted, "while – we – escaped."
Oh no. Monsters? Surely Sparky had known there would be guards in the cave. I had half a mind to go down there and have a look myself, but the Hunters needed my help, so I got them on their feet and enveloped us all in a wave that I carried back toward our medical tent.
Most of the girls screamed when they laid eyes on Typhon, and I prayed he wouldn't notice us. Luckily, he didn't, because right then footsteps began to shake the ground and a second hundred-limbed creature burst onto the battlefield.
"Briares!" I heard Tyson yell, and I watched as Titan and Hundred-Hand One clashed in the middle of the battlefield. A new confidence surged in my chest. Maybe we could win this after all.
--
Jacob's POV
I tried to scream, but I don't know if I really did, because I was too much in shock. Thalia had sacrificed herself for me. For me, the guy that she barely knew. I kneeled down and examined her. Her eyes were half-closed and her breath came out in short, ragged gasps. "No," I murmured. "No, no, no, Thalia, please, don't die, you can't die, please-"
Tears spilled from my eyes, but then I felt a warty hand on my shoulder. "Do you see, son of Zeus?" the Gorgon's raspy voice purred in my ear. "Do you see what happens to those who defile us? Now you shall meet the same fate. A pity, really. You would have done well on the side of the Titans."
Fury surged through every part of my body. I had only one instinct: They killed Thalia. They have to die.
I rose, and released every last spark of lightning in my body on the two hags in the cell with me. They screamed and begged me to stop, but they soon disintegrated into yellow dust. I kept going, releasing all my energy on the piles of powder until they were black and ashy, and finally vanished altogether. Only when I had nothing left did I finally stop and fall to my knees and sob.
I examined Thalia's body again. Her eyes gently flickered open. "Thalia," I breathed, "you save my life."
She gave me a faint smile. "Of course I saved you. You're my brother."
I looked at her wound. "We've got to get you out of here," I said. "You'll be fine. Chiron will make sure of that."
But Thalia shook her head. "No, Jacob," she said. "My time here is done. Promise to take care of Seaweed Brain for me. And Annabeth too, and Rachel. She's a good girl. We got to know each other while you guys were away. She's a good match for you." Her voice was slowly fading to a whisper, and her eyes closed.
"Thalia," I said, feeling tears coming again. I settled down next to her and began to talk. "I always wanted someone who was like me. Ever since I ran away from the orphanage, I was looking for someone that had my gifts, that I could confide in. When I found the hotel…"
The words continued to pour from my mouth, even though a small voice inside me told me it did no good. I already knew that Thalia was dead.