Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians
Chapter 4: Light versus Dark
Poseidon's POV
The battle was not going well. The Atlantean army was already depleted from the titan war and the war with Oceanus. We were no match for Typhon. The Atlantean army was completely destroyed. My last hope the cyclops army was stemming the tide, but they couldn't keep up the battle for long. I swam to Tyson and joined the battle. I hoped that Triton made it to Olympus. Tyson and his brethren fought valiantly. I bombarded Typhon with energy blast upon energy blast from my trident, until I could no longer focus. I heard the retreat of the conch horn and I was forcibly removed from the battlefield by Tyson and the remnants of the cyclops army. We made it to Atlantis, but Typhon was still out there headed for Mount Olympus. I fell asleep in the infirmary in Atlantis with Amphitrite holding my hand. I hoped my brother, Zeus would fare better in the battle than I.
Zeus's POV
We the Olympians are now prepared for battle. I had a bad feeling about Poseidon and his chances against Typhon. My worst fears were realized when I heard the news reports about a great hurricane heading towards New York. That was the mist working overtime. Typhon was coming to New York and he had one goal, destroy Olympus.
"Father, we are prepared for battle." Athena said trying to sound confident.
"I know what you are thinking this time my daughter. How can we stop Typhon without Poseidon and his army? I wish I had an answer, but we must try. I will not give up Olympus or this world to that monster." I said.
"I knew you would say that father! Apollo, Artemis, Hermes and I are ready to strike with the first wave. Aphrodite, Ares, Demeter, and Dionysus will strike with the second wave. You and Hera will strike in the third wave. I'm sorry, but we have not heard from Poseidon." Athena said.
"I will assist my brother and sister in this battle." Hades said as he appeared in the thrown room.
Athena and I turned in surprise.
"Brother, you have come to help." I said clearly shocked.
"I helped in the titan war, why would I not help now?" Hades said clearly not wanting to answer.
I walked over to my brother and placed my hands on his shoulders.
"Thank you, brother." I said. I'm not use to thanking people, especially my estranged brother.
"Your welcome!" Hades said.
"Then we are set for this battle." Athena said.
"As prepared as we can be." I said. I still held out hope for Poseidon to join us. We would need a lot of help to defeat Typhon.
Percy's POV
I was sitting on the beach at camp looking out at the ocean. I felt bad for having so much fun the last couple of days when a battle was now raging out at sea. My brother Triton was in the infirmary beat up pretty bad and my father was out there in a battle for his life and probably for the fate of the world. I was lost in thought and worry. I didn't feel anyone sit next to me until I heard they're voice.
"Seaweed brain are you there?" Annabeth asked.
"Uh, sorry I was just thinking." I said.
"You were, well wonders never cease, maybe you do have a brain in there with all that kelp!" Annabeth said, trying to make me smile.
It worked of course. "Thank you for always making me feel a little better." I said, I grabbed her hand and held it tightly.
"Your welcome, are you thinking about your father?" Annabeth asked.
"Yes, I can feel that he is still alive but I know the battle is not going well." I said.
"I just spoke to my mom, the other Olympians will soon join the battle." Annabeth said.
"I hope it will be enough, but unfortunately my mind says it won't be." I said.
"Well, my mom said about the same thing to me. However Hades is there to help, so maybe there is a chance" Annabeth said.
"Maybe, but they need my father don't they?" I asked already knowing the answer.
"Yes!" Annabeth said.
"Well, I have and idea." I said. I got up and ran toward my cabin with Annabeth on my heels. I ran inside and to my fountain. Mist was flowing out of it. I grabbed a drachma and threw it into the fountain and asked to speak with my father. The mist cleared and I could see the infirmary in Atlantis and my father was in a medical bed with Amphitrite sitting next to him.
"Amphi, is he alright?" I said.
Startled Amphitrite said, "Percy its you, how is Triton."
"He will be fine, his mission was a success." I said.
"Good, your father is in bad shape. The battle with Typhon took a lot out of him." Amphitrite said.
"He will be alright, though?" I asked.
"Yes, he just needs rest." Amphitrite said.
"The Olympians need him. The eleven others are now in battle with Typhon, but they need Poseidon in order to have a chance." I said.
"He is too weak, he couldn't fight in his condition." Amphitrite said.
"Lady Amphitrite this is Annabeth daughter of Athena, could the hearth of Hestia help Poseidon?" Annabeth said.
"Annabeth, yes I know of you, it is good to see you. Your right, Hestia's hearth could help him, but how can we get him to Olympus?" Amphitrite said.
Annabeth and I just looked at each other and then a voice came from behind us. Annabeth and I jumped in surprise.
"Amphi, just get him ready, we'll handle the transportation." Theseus said from behind us.
"Theseus, it is so good to see you again. I will make sure that your father is ready to travel." Amphitrite said and then the iris message dissolved.
"Theseus, how are we going to get him?" I said.
"The same way we got to Atlantis last time, the hippocampi." Theseus said.
"Won't we have to pass Typhon on the way to Atlantis? I asked.
"We will thats why you and I are going. One of us will run interference for the other." Theseus said.
"What can I do to help?" Annabeth said.
"Well, I was going to iris message Hestia, but I think she will need help preparing and who better to help her than the architect of Olympus. Annabeth, go to Mount Olympus, inform Hestia and help her prepare for our arrival." Theseus said.
"Yes, sir!" Annabeth said and ran off toward the big house to talk with Chiron.
"Brother, let's go to the beach, we have some Hippocampi to call." Theseus said.
Theseus and I ran down to the beach and entered the ocean. We both concentrated on Rainbow and his friends until after just a a few minutes we saw two Hippocampi racing toward us. It was Rainbow and his brother Stormy. They arrived, Theseus and I jumped aboard and we were on our way to Atlantis. As we traveled toward Atlantis you could see the darkness ahead and the sounds of battle. Clearly the Olympians were fighting hard against Typhon. We approached the darkness you could make out the giant's swirling feet and legs. He was huge and his power made the sea churn into an ugly blur of gray, green and blue. Sea creatures of all kinds swam passed us trying to escape the onslaught caused by Typhon.
We slowly worked our way around Typhon, it would take us a while but we didn't dare go closer. The heat and the vortex caused by Typhon's motion through the sea was incredible. Theseus and I both used our power over the sea to create small walls of water to buffer us from the impact. It was hard but together we were able to help the hippocampi pass around Typhon. The heat from the surface was incredible, the Olympian attack was tremendous, but only seemed to make Typhon angrier and more violent. We finally passed behind Typhon and the hippocampi swam for Atlantis as fast as they could. We finally reached the gates of Atlantis. We left the hippocampi and headed for the infirmary. We entered the infirmary and stopped suddenly, sitting in a chair waiting for us was Poseidon. Amphitrite stood behind his chair with hands on his shoulders.
"Percy, Theseus, you made it." Amphitrite said happily.
"Yes, how is he?" I asked.
"I'm better my son." Poseidon said as he opened his eyes and smiled at us.
He was awake but I could tell he was too weak to walk on his own.
"Father we have to go, Typhon is too strong, the other Olympians are fighting him but all they can do is slow him down. They need you!" Theseus said.
"I know son, but I'm so weak!" Poseidon said.
"We'll help you dad, we have to go" I said.
"I know son, Amphi we have to go, I will be back I promise." Poseidon said as Amphitrite leaned over and kissed him.
"I know my love, good luck to all of you." Amphitrite said as Theseus and I carried our father to the gates of Atlantis. The hippocampi were waiting, Rainbow carried Poseidon and I, while Stormy carried Theseus. We left Atlantis and swam back toward New York. The hippocampi swam like there was no tomorrow, come to think about it there may not be a tomorrow if we didn't hurry. Typhon was much closer to New York now and as we approached him he appeared to be much stronger than before. We could not get passed him, the forces he was throwing off were too strong for the hippocampi. We surfaced about a mile from Typhon, the winds were still incredibly strong and I could see the Olympians firing energy blasts and other weapons at Typhon. They were slowing him but he kept moving forward.
"We need to call the Pegasi!" Theseus yelled at me over the noise of the wind and the battle.
"Alright, we need to concentrate together, use our link." I said.
Theseus and I held hands and concentrated together on the Pegasi at camp, until I heard, "Yes, boss we're on our way!" Blackjack said.
The Pegasi arrived several minutes later, they landed on a nearby sandbar, Theseus and I managed to get our father over to the sandbar. My father and I would ride with Blackjack and Theseus would ride on Lightning, blackjack's cousin. We took off toward Manhattan, I waved to the hippocampi as they sank beneath the waves. The Pegasi made a long arc around Typhon to avoid his incredible winds. From the air Typhon looked like a giant storm cloud that stretched from the sea to hundreds of feet into the sky. If you looked closely you could se his storm gray eyes that glowed red with power and hate. He was terrible to behold, I could see the Olympians firing at him mercilously, but again this only slowed his progress. As we reached Manhattan island we darted toward the Empire State Building. The Pegasi dropped us off at the observation deck and we made our way to the elevator that would take us to Olympus.
We exited the elevator and as we made our way to Hestia's hearth I saw Annabeth run toward us. She helped us to Hestia and the hearth.
"Welcome, place Lord Poseidon near the hearth. I will take care of him, you three must wait in the garden as Poseidon must take his godly form to be fully healed." Hestia said.
Theseus and I placed Poseidon near the hearth and exited with Annabeth to the garden just outside the door.
"How goes the battle?" Annabeth asked.
"I'm afraid without Poseidon, the Olympians are only delaying the inevitable." Theseus said.
"Then its a good thing that we brought Poseidon, right?" I asked.
"I don't know, Typhon is incredibly powerful and he seems to be getting stronger as he approached Olympus. By the time our father is healed he might be too strong to stop." Theseus said.
"We have to try don't we?" Annabeth asked.
"Of course, but Percy asked my opinion and thats what I gave him. I have a very bad feeling about this battle." Theseus said.
"Annabeth, have you heard from Athena?" Theseus asked.
"No, she is fighting Typhon with the others." Annabeth said.
The door opened and Hestia exited. She walked over to the three of us in the garden.
"Your father is doing well. It will take about an hour for him to fully recover." Hestia said. I could tell that she wanted to say more but before she could several Olympians appeared before us and slumped to the ground. It was Dionysus, Aphrodite, Apollo, Hermes and Hera they were all seriously injured. Hestia ran to them and asked us to help move them inside. We helped move the gods into the building where the hearth was located they were bleeding icor and looked terrible, much worse than Poseidon. As we walked back outside we were surprised to see more Olympians sitting on the ground looking terrible, there was Ares, Artemis and Demeter. We helped them inside the building. Ares was so bad he didn't even threaten to destroy me or Theseus. I knew we were in trouble then.
"The battle must be going badly, thats for sure." I said.
"Well, seaweed brain, do you think!" Annabeth said.
"Its going terribly I fear, lets go to the observation deck, I want to see it for myself." Theseus said.
The three of us boarded the elevator and rode down to the observation deck. I guess I can be a little dense sometimes but as soon as we exited the elevator and walked onto the observation deck I knew that Theseus was correct. It was night, but darker than I could even imagine. The light from the building could not penetrate the darkness. I could see lightning and fire strike out toward the darkness but this disappeared as soon as it struck the darkness. Typhon was still very powerful and I was afraid too powerful for the Olympians. Suddenly, Zeus, Hades and Athena appeared on the observation deck. They all looked exhausted.
"Uncles, its going badly isn't it." I said.
"Yes, young demigod. Typhon is too powerful." Zeus said, I could see Hades nod in agreement.
"Mom, are you alright?" Annabeth yelled as she ran toward her mother.
"I'm tired my dear." Athena said.
"You all look tired to me, Percy and I brought Poseidon, he is with Hestia and the others." Theseus said.
"What others?" Hades asked.
"Well the other Olympians appeared and they were terribly injured, they are with Hestia now." Theseus said.
"Its just the three of us now" Zeus said, for the first time I saw fear and dread in his eyes.
"Not three, four my brother!" Poseidon said as he appeared next to Zeus.
"Finally, you're here!" Hades said, clearly happy to see Poseidon but trying not to show his relief.
"Well, its good to see you too, brother." Poseidon said as he placed his hands, one on Zeus's shoulder and the other on Hades's shoulder.
"Athena, you cannot help anymore you are too tired. The three of us shall attack Typhon." Zeus said.
Athena walked over to Theseus, he held on to her trying to support her. She was clearly exhausted from the fight.
The big three faced Typhon and fired all of they're weapons and power at the monster. Typhon stopped for the first time that I could remember. The blasts from the big three were incredibly powerful. Suddenly, Typhon's eyes glowed a horrible shade of burnt orange. Time seemed to slow down, I'm not sure if it was just in my mind or if time actually slowed. All I can remember is a powerful blast from Typhon's eyes. The blast was directed at the big three, the force was too fast for the big three to evade it would strike them. At the last moment something intercepted the blast and took the full fury of its power. Time seemed to move normally again, then I gasped. The something that intercepted the blast was not a thing it was a person. I felt a huge pain in my head at first and then I knew the most terrible thing had happened. I ran over to him, he was burned terribly and he was bleeding. Athena arrived at my side to see my brother Theseus dying before us. Athena held him in her arms and I held his hand. Annabeth was there next to her mother, she was sobbing next to me. I started to cry, the pain in my head was now matched by the pain in my chest. The big three walked over and stood over us.
"He saved us." Hades said shaking his head clearly not believing what happened.
"Son, I'm sorry!" Poseidon said as tears welled up in his eyes.
"Theseus, he sacrificed himself for us." Zeus said, I saw tears in his eyes as well. I couldn't believe it, Zeus was crying.
"Theseus, please don't leave me, hold on my love." Athena pleaded.
We all just stayed there looking at my brother, I couldn't believe when he spoke in a soft, raspy voice, "I loved you Athena. You all are family, the world needs the big three to defeat Typhon. Please put aside your animosity toward each other and work together. Please be brothers, please!" Theseus said. "Athena, please help them. I will love you always. Promise me that you will not give up on love, not because of me."
"No, I can't lose you!" Athena said with tears rolling down her cheeks.
"Promise …. me!" Theseus said I could tell it was getting harder for him to speak.
"I promise!" Athena said barely able to speak over her sobs.
"Percy …. be the hero I know … you can be ..." Theseus said struggling to talk.
"I will!" I said.
"I love you all." Theseus said, his final gaze was on Athena, he smiled and then he was gone. I could see the light in his green eyes fade to black, it was like looking at myself die. I felt apart of myself break at that moment and I knew that he was really gone.
I could barely hear or see what was happening but I heard Poseidon talk to his brothers.
"My son is right. We cannot let his sacrifice be for not. We must forgive each other for our past transgressions. I'm sorry for the terrible things that I have done to both of you over the years. I am your brother and I will be here for you and I do love both of you." Poseidon said.
"I'm sorry too brothers, I have not always been easy to get along with. I do love both of you, please forgive me." Zeus said, clearly not use to talking to his brothers in this way.
"I too wish that we could start over. I have been jealous of both of you for so long and I hated you both because of it. I felt like an outcast. All I ever wanted was your respect my brothers. I forgive you and I hope that you will forgive me as well." Hades said.
"I think we can say all is forgiven by beating that bastard!" Zeus said as he pointed toward Typhon. The three brothers walked together toward the edge of the observation deck with determination and hatred in their eyes, hatred not for each other, but for the monster that stood before them.
This was a long one, but I hoped you liked it. There will be some surprises in the next chapter, ah whatever, one big surprise! Update! I added to this chapter as I agree with everyone who commented, Athena definitely needed to talk more. Also, don't worry about Theseus, remember the old saying, "Theseus always wins in the end!"