Thank you all for your support. I really appreciate it. Hope you like the next update. Still getting used to writing fight scenes though, so I apologize if I do it poorly. And to those who think the way I write this is fucked up, if you don't like, don't read. I don't know how many times I need to spell that out to someone. And FYI, it's all a part of the plan I have for the story.

Gaining One Million Pounds At Least

Percy's POV

Thalia went straight for Luke. The power of her shield was so great that his Dracaena bodyguards left Luke in a panic, dropping the golden coffin and leaving him alone. But despite his sickly appearance, Luke was still quick with his sword. He snarled like a wild animal and counterattacked. When his sword, Backbiter, met Thalia's shield, a ball of lightning erupted between them, frying the air with yellow tendrils of power.

Annabeth, seeming to think Thalia was probably gonna be in some sort of trouble, went to help her. Unfortunately for her, while Thalia's shield kept them away from herself, it didn't seem to keep them away from Annabeth, so she was stuck fighting them herself.

As for me, I attacked the Titan General Atlas. He laughed as I approached. A huge javelin appeared in his hands. His silk suit melted into full Greek battle armor.

"Come suffer then, shrimp!" Atlas mocked.

"Percy! Beware!" Zoe said.

I knew what she was warning me about. It was one of the first few things Ares wanted me to understand as he started to train me. Immortals are constrained by ancient rules, or as I tend to think of it as, the laws of the Universe, the laws of Chaos herself. But a hero can go anywhere, challenge anyone, if they have the nerve. Once I attacked, however, Atlas was free to attack back directly, with all his might.

Though despite how stupid it was to wish since I have yet to fully heal from my recent injuries, I wouldn't have it any other way. I swung my sword, and Atlas met me halfway with the blade of his javelin.

"Don't kill any of them. Lord Kronos wishes to dispose of the girls personally. And his prized grandson is not meant to die." Luke ordered.

Zoe drawing out her hunting knives, joined me in trying to take down Atlas. Atlas, seeing her charging as he and I held our lock of weapons together, had a second blade appear from the other side of his javelin. And with the other end of his javelin, countered against one of Zoe's knives. When Zoe tried to strike with the other knife she had, Atlas, with remarkable speed, countered by drawing out a sword he had strapped to his back. It was a large, midnight colored looking, curved blade with a silver handle.

"Lady Artemis' blade!" Zoe gasped. (More or less, the sword Artemis gave to Kratos in the first God of War video game.)

That certainly got my attention, and I was not liking the sound of it.

"Not anymore. This sword now belongs to me now. My reward for Artemis' defeat" Atlas mocked and pushed Zoe and I back quite a few ways.

"This isn't good Percy." Zoe said.

I knew she was right. I knew based on the confidence Atlas had and he seemed just as dangerous to fight against than Ares, which was very bad if even Ares couldn't beat Atlas, we had very little to no chance of winning. But if there's one thing I picked up during my training with Ares, it's that whenever there's a will, there's a way. And I knew despite how hopeless it seemed there was a way to beat Atlas. It was all just a matter of finding it.

"If we try taking him on from opposite sides, we might be able to catch him off guard and win." I offered.

Zoe turned to me shocked. Whether it was from I came up with that suggestion or that fact I suggested we work together though, I couldn't tell. But as I'd usually say in times like this, I t can go either way. Or as I just put it simply through two words: pick one.

"We're in a tough spot here Zoe. We can either all find a way to get out of this mess together, or we can all suffer and die together. I like the earlier one more. So, what do you say we take down your father?" I offered.

Zoe seemed pleased with this and nodded her head. We had an understanding between us. We both wanted Atlas and the rest of our enemies defeated here. And the only way we were going to win was if we worked together.

"I'm waiting." Atlas stated mockingly.

"You know, if we end up dying up here, you girlfriend is gonna kill us both." Zoe said.

"Then let's do it." I said.

Getting back up, Zoe and I both charged Atlas again. Atlas, who was awaiting us, began twirling both weapons in his hands. As I suggested, Zoe and I attacked from different directions. Zoe attacked from the left and I from the right.

Meanwhile, Thalia and Luke were both holding their own against each other very well. They seemed to be evenly matched so far. But I was hoping Thalia would find her way around that and finish Luke off. I would've preferred to put an end to Luke myself, but Atlas the greater of the two, so I had to take care of him first.

As for Annabeth, she had already managed to beat two of the Dracaena. One was reduced to dust from a stab to the neck from Annabeth's bronze dagger, and the other fell into dust from being slit in the throat. But the other four were still alive and seemed to be fighter with increases intensity from two of their own being sent to Tartarus.

But it seemed Zoe and I were struggling the most of us all. Atlas was leaving a single opening for us, even as we kept attacking from two different direction. Atlas ability to wield those two weapons was just ridiculous. He'd easily push one of us back momentarily to have the chance to push the other one back next, and just go back to pushing the other back again. He fought with such speed and strength, there seemed no limit to how long Atlas could take us on.

"How pathetic." Atlas said as he moved out of the way of Zoe and I's attack.

Zoe and I were both getting tired. And I was certain I was struggling more. Between being knocked down multiple times and still carrying the wounds from my other recent fights, I was sweating enough to feel my clothes stick to my skin like a wet Kleenex.

"This isn't working Percy." Zoe breathed out.

"I know." I wheezed out.

"You should've learned by now Percy Jackson. Against the power of the Titans, there can be no victory." Atlas said as he charged at us.

Seeing as how I had no other choice; I charge at him back. Zoe tried throwing her knives at Atlas at the hope it would either result in wounding Atlas, or at least distract him enough for me to strike him down. Unfortunately, Atlas merely deflected them both with his javelin, sending them both away from him. And he was more than ready to counterattack me with both the javelin and sword in hand. Zoe made her over to collect her knives back, leaving me to fend off against Atlas myself.

Even with my training from Ares, I was still no match for Atlas. He easily had my out skilled. After a few clangs from our weapons, I tried to get him at his knees. Only for him to, through a spin of himself, kick me in the face and slash at my chest, leaving a cut from the bottom of my left ribs to the top of my right shoulder. Atlas smirked as I gasped in pain and took a step back. Trying to shake the pain off I lunged at Atlas again. I made to swing my sword at his head, only for him to duck and pierce my left hand with Artemis' sword, leaving yet another nasty cut on me. I stumbled back and held my hand to my chest in pain.

"Not so confident now, are you shrimp?" Atlas stated as he made to strike at me.

I was able to dodge his attack and move as quickly as I could behind him and rose my sword up to bring it down and strike him down. Atlas, still not being caught off guard, raised his javelin with both hands to stop my attack. So I made to stab Atlas at his head, only for him to move his head out of the way and brought his javelin down. With this, he caught my arm and had it twisted down, bringing out a nasty crack sound from my arm and making me scream in pain from his hold. Then by Atlas grabbing said arm, I was hurled away and slammed into a black wall. It wasn't Mist anymore. The palace was rising, brick by brick. It was becoming real.

"Fool! Did you think simply because you were trained by that petty war god, that you could stand up to me?" Atlas mocked gleefully.

Despite how my body told me not to through the pain I felt, I slowly got up and, while taking Riptide in my left hand instead of my right hand, charged again. I was hoping I could get to that pool of water to help. But Atlas being in between it and I didn't help. His javelin's point slashed toward me like a scythe. I raised Riptide, planning to cut off his weapon at the shaft, but my arm felt like lead. My sword suddenly weighed a ton. And with that, the javelin caught me in the chest and sent me flying like a rag doll. I slammed into the ground, my head spinning. I looked up and found I was at the feet of Artemis, still straining under the weight of the sky.

"Run Percy! You must run!" Artemis commanded.

But I barely paid any attention to her. My attention was what was up with Riptide and why it felt so heavy. I wondered for a minute before a theory came to me.

Shall feel despair by parent's hand.

'If my father caused this, then fuck you father!' I thought.

Atlas was taking his time coming toward me. My sword was gone. It had skittered away over the edge of the cliff. It might reappear in my pocket eventually, but it didn't matter. I'd be dead by then. Luke and Thalia were fighting like demons, lightning crackling around them. Annabeth managed to kill a third Dracaena but was being held to the ground by two of the remaining three, with the third pointing her weapon at Annabeth, ready to strike.

"If you will not join Lord Kronos, then you must die, little hero." Atlas said and raised Artemis' sword to impale me.

"No!" Zoe yelled, and a silver arrow pierced Atlas's hand.

"ARGH!" He bellowed as he dropped Artemis' blade and turned toward his daughter.

I reached down and felt Riptide back in my pocket. And Artemis' sword was right next to me. But I couldn't fight Atlas, even with a sword or two. I didn't have the strength to fight anymore. But Artemis' sword made me think of someone who probably could.

The Titan's Curse one must withstand.

"Artemis, give me the sky." I said.

"No, Percy. You don't know what you're asking. It will crush you!" Artemis said, her forehead was beaded with metallic sweat, like quicksilver.

"I have to!" I argued.

"You will not last so long. You will die." Artemis countered.

"I'm dying anyways." I said, not waiting for her answer.

I took her sword and slashed through her chains. Then I dropped her sword to the ground and stepped next to her and braced myself on one knee to hold up my hands and touch the cold, heavy clouds. For a moment, Artemis and I bore the weight together. It was the heaviest thing I'd ever felt, as if I were being crushed under a thousand trucks. And all of my injuries didn't help at all. I wanted to black out from all the pain, but I breathed deeply and kept going on.

"Take your sword back and take down Atlas." I told her.

Artemis didn't seem thrilled by what was happening, but nodded her head in response. Then Artemis slipped out from under the burden, and I held it alone. It was the worst moment of my life. Every muscle in my body turned to fire. My bones felt like they were melting. I wanted to scream, but I didn't have the strength to open my mouth. I began to sink, lower and lower to the ground, the sky's weight crushing me. But I wasn't going to give up. I concentrated on breathing. I thought about Clarisse and the family we were going to have. For my girlfriend and my unborn child, I would hold the sky.

My vision turned fuzzy. Everything was tinged with red. I caught glimpses of the battle, but I wasn't sure if I was seeing clearly. There was Atlas in full battle armor, jabbing with his javelin, laughing insanely as he fought. And Artemis, a blur of silver. She, with her sword in hand, slashed wildly at the Titan, dodging and leaping with unbelievable grace. She seemed to change form as she maneuvered. She was a tiger, a gazelle, a bear, a falcon. Or perhaps that was just my fevered brain.

Zoe shot down the remaining three Dracaena and freed Annabeth. Zoe then went over to Annabeth to make sure she was alright. Thalia and Luke went spear on sword, lightning still flashing around them. Thalia pressed Luke back with the aura of her shield. Even he was not immune to it. He retreated, wincing and growling in frustration.

"Yield! You never could beat me, Luke!" Thalia yelled.

"We'll see, old friend." Luke bared his teeth.

Sweat poured down my face. My hands were slippery. My shoulders would've screamed with agony if they could. I felt like the vertebrae in my spine were being welded together by a blowtorch.

"Percy." I heard Artemis speak into my mind.

I raised my head in her direction.

"Your power over water, use it to help yourself. Get strength from the clouds." Artemis commanded.

I had no idea at first how power over water was gonna help me. But as I repeated "water" and "cloud" in my mind, I slowly began to put the pieces together. The weight of the sky included many clouds for its weight. Clouds are visible masses of condensed water vapor floating in the atmosphere, and I'm the son of Poseidon. Yet another something for me to pick up from Avatar: The Last Airbender. And I saw that Artemis was slowly leading Atlas back over to the sky. I figured out what she was planning, and boy did I love it.

Lifting my head towards the sky, I bit into the clouds and with my power over water, began drinking the water vapors in them. Not only did it fell refreshing and quench my thirst, but I felt my wounds fade away as well. The weight I carried didn't change at all, but the water vapors helped me from becoming a pancake.

"Get ready." Artemis spoke in my mind.

"You fight well for a girl. But you are no match for me." Atlas laughed.

He feinted with the tip of his javelin and Artemis dodged. I saw the trick coming. Atlas's javelin swept around and knocked Artemis's legs off the ground. She fell, and Atlas brought up his javelin tip for the kill. Atlas had a triumphant look on his face. Artemis seemed to be wounded. She didn't get up.

"The first blood in a new war!" Atlas gloated. And he stabbed downward.

"No!" Zoe screamed.

As fast as thought, Artemis grabbed his javelin shaft. It hit the earth right next to her and she pulled backward, using the javelin like a lever, kicking the Titan General and sending him flying over here, I saw him coming down on top of me and I knew now was the moment for me to do my part and finish Atlas. I loosened my grip on the sky and my bite on the clouds, and as Atlas slammed into me, I didn't try to hold on. I let myself be pushed out of the way and rolled for all I was worth. The weight of the sky then dropped onto Atlas's back, almost smashing him flat until he managed to get to his knees, struggling to get out from under the crushing weight of the sky. But it was too late.

"No! Not again!" He bellowed so hard it shook the mountain.

Atlas was trapped under his old burden. I tried to stand and fell back again, dazed from pain. Despite using the water vapor from the clouds to heal my wounds and help keep me strong, my body felt like it was burning up. No amount of strength I could have would ever be able to carry that weight.

"Percy!" Annabeth screamed as she rushed over to me with Zoe not to far behind her.

Meanwhile, Thalia backed Luke to the edge of a cliff, but still they fought on, next to the golden coffin. Thalia had tears in her eyes. Luke had a bloody slash across his chest and his pale face glistened with sweat. He lunged at Thalia, and she slammed him with her shield. Luke's sword spun out of his hands and clattered to the rocks. Thalia put her spear point to his throat. For a moment, there was silence.

"Well?" Luke asked, trying to hide the fear in his voice.

Thalia just trembled with fury.

"Don't kill him!" Annabeth said making her way over to the scenery.

"He's a traitor! A traitor Annabeth!" Thalia said.

"For once, I agree." I said as Zoe and even Artemis offered to help me up.

"We'll bring Luke back. To Olympus. He, . . . He'll be useful." Annabeth pleaded.

"Is that what you want, Thalia? To go back to Olympus in triumph? To please your dad?" Luke sneered.

"Just finish it, Thalia." I said.

Thalia hesitated, and Luke made a desperate grab for her spear.

"No!" Annabeth shouted.

But it was too late. Without thinking, Thalia kicked Luke away. He lost his balance, terror on his face, and then he fell.

"Luke!" Annabeth screamed.

Everyone rushed to the cliff's edge. Below us, the army from the Princess Andromeda had stopped in amazement. They were staring at Luke's broken form on the rocks. I wanted to believe he was dead now, but that had my doubts. Despite the fall being fifty feet at least and he wasn't moving, I thought him dead back at the Sea of Monsters, only to be proven wrong. I had a very strong suspicion he was still alive somehow.

Then, looking down right where Luke had stood, I saw something gold. I picked it up, and it looked like a sliced piece of apple. If this was where Luke was at before Thalia kicked him down, then my suspicion was correct. Luke was indeed still alive down there, and I knew how and why now.

"Kill them!" One of the giants looked up and growled.

Thalia was stiff with grief, tears streaming down her cheeks. I pulled her back as a wave of javelins sailed over our heads. We ran for the rocks, ignoring the curses and threats of Atlas as we passed. Just as we passed Atlas, Zoe suddenly fell.

"Zoe!" I yelled.

Everyone else saw her and rushed over to her. When we reached her, Artemis looked almost as grief-stricken as Thalia. Artemis picked her up. Zoe was breathing. Her eyes were open. But she was being to look pale.

"The wound is poisoned." Artemis said.

"Atlas poisoned her?" Annabeth asked.

"Not Atlas." Artemis answered.

She showed us the wound in Zoe's side. I'd almost forgotten her scrape with Ladon the dragon. The bite was much worse than Zoe had let on. I sighed to myself. She had charged into battle against her father with a horrible cut already sapping her strength.

"The stars, I cannot see them." Zoe murmured.

I looked at the golden apple slice in my hand. With the idea I came up with, I was gonna use it to heal myself from holding up the sky. But looking at Zoe, I decided she needed more than I did. I wasn't sure if this idea of mine would work given how it's an apple of immortality from the tree below us after all. But I knew I had to at least try. I owed her for saving my life, after all.

"Here." I said as I moved over to her and started to squeeze the apple slice over Zoe's wound.

It glowed gold as the slice's citrus juice, or whatever kind of juice was in this thing exactly, poured down from my hands and down on Zoe's wound. She gasped in pain. Then, once again bending the clouds' water vapors to my command, summoned water from the sky onto Zoe wound to, in the hopes it would help her. Zoe kept groaning in pain as this went on. Eventually though, Zoe's whole being started to glow gold for a moment. And as the glow faded, so did her cut and the ill look on her face. Zoe took a moment to catch her breath. Everyone else was shocked at what just happened. I didn't know if it was what I just did, or that I saved her life. But once again, pick one.

"Zoe." Artemis sighed with much relief as she brought Zoe into a sitting position.

Zoe then turned to me.

"You saved me." Zoe breathed out.

"I couldn't let you die like that." I responded, turning away from her and everyone else.

There was a moment of silence before I felt Zoe tackle me and wrap her arms around me with tears forming in her eyes, shocking everyone, especially me.

"Thank you. That was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me." Zoe sniveled in joy.

"You're welcome." I said as I awkwardly patted her back.

I apologize for not writing at all for the past few months. Freedom Graphics is still struggling with finding new people to work, as well as people who are willing to stay. And the more time it takes to recruit more manpower, the longer I must work a lot of overtime and come home too tired and exhausted to do more than eat my meals and sleep. I guess that's what I get for being one of their top employees. Anyways, I hoped you enjoyed the update. And as for Zoe not dying, well as I said before, it's all part of the plan for the story. Hope the update was a good read, and I'll hopefully have some more updates and even a new one-shot posted soon.