Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters (except the OC's) Percy Jackson & The Olympians, Heroes of Olympus, or Trials of Apollo. All of that belongs to Rick Riordan.

8. I Go Earth Diving

Ouranos was the one to make the first move.

After killing his counterpart unexpectedly, he launched himself at us, his feet just inches over the ground, spear in both of his hands reared back behind his shoulder.

All of us didn't know whether to jump back or forward. For half a second, we were caught in both, the former in fear, and the latter in what was left of our courage. We ended up staying put while Ouranos targeted Old Matt first, slinging his spear down to meet my godly protector's axe.

The clash was thunderous. I could say it was unlike anything I'd ever heard, all that mumbo jumbo, but you know, I think I've reached the point where I can safely say...I have heard this level of noise. Many times, actually. This was no different from your ordinary omnipotent being weapons struggle. The wind was enough to wipe out the human race, kicking up sand shrapnel that whirled into dozens of tornadoes, meshing the sky like mixing batter, making the green hue roll over in waves.

We were pushed back. Old Matt and Ouranos were stuck in their spots forever it seemed, neither giving one hundred percent, opposing expressions on their faces, Ouranos with a sneer, and Old Matt with a hateful frown.

Upon full realization of what was going on, Amaterasu and I attempted to ram Ouranos's sides with our new Heavenly Diamond weapons, aiming to meet the tips in the middle, gouging out his intestines.

But gouging is a luxury only meant for a select few. That didn't include Amaterasu and I. Ouranos was too aware and quick to be that distracted. He simply planted his feet and pushed against Old Matt, knocking him back and separating the two weapons. When he was free of the struggle, he tossed his own spear in the air and thrusted both hands out beside him, giving off a telekinetic reverberation that sent Amaterasu and I hurdling backwards, rolling on the sand like idiots. Well, at least I did. Amaterasu probably rolled a bit more gracefully.

I blinked the crud out of my eyes to see both Percy and Sera throwing projectiles of their respective powers at Ouranos, in the form of drilling waves and ice shards, but Ouranos just shielded his eyes with his forearm and tanked each blow, covering the distance between himself and Percy with a single hop, trying to squash Percy with his foot. Percy barrel rolled out of the way, and didn't stop there to narrowly avoid a spear cut coming his way too.

Ouranos didn't bother picking his spear up from the sand, he drug it across the ground to kick up the particles in Percy's face, temporary blinding him. Percy had enough battle experience to bring his sword up to block an oncoming attack. A powerful swipe of the spear, meant to erase him. It was successful enough to knock Percy ten feet in the air, and hard on his back with a thud.

Ouranos began stalking towards him, when a pink line of energy slapped him across the back of the head, doing little more than making him flinch and flex his shoulders. But it was also enough to get him to turn around and face the attacker. Harper.

Her face was filled with rage, and she brought her sword close to her, aiming the tip at Ouranos, ready to fight, and get revenge on the man who manipulated her brother for years, essentially causing his death.

Ouranos chuckled at the gesture, but decided to humor her, crouching down and getting in a stance of his own, feigning seriousness. They engaged each other at the same time, Harper coming in ferocious and sloppy, her anger quickly taking over and causing her to lose skill. Not that it would've mattered much anyway. At this point, none of us stood a chance against Ouranos alone, no matter how skilled we were.

He batted her attacks away with ease, keeping two hands on his spear and criss crossing the weapon in front of him, left to right, knocking her attempts back to her in deflection, but making it look good, as if she were really putting up a fight.

"Chips on one's shoulders weigh them down!" I heard him say to her, "But I must say, seeing this old side of you return is quite refreshing!"

That only sent her further over the edge. She reared her sword hand back and tried for another cleave, but Ouranos smacked the sword aside, a bit harder this time, leaving the air between them clear of weapons. He smirked, "But anger won't be enough to work in your favor."

He then promptly smacked her in the nose with the butt of his spear, bloodying it. Mind you, this entire exchange happened in a short span of time, ten seconds at most. Harper falling on her rear and seeing her bloody nose was enough to fill me with more energy. I started to bull rush the bastard, but Old Matt beat me to the punch.

"DON'T TOUCH HER!"

The yell was as thunderous as their first clash. Ouranos whipped his body around, only to be met with a shot to the gut. Old Matt dove in with all his weight and slammed his fist into Ouranos's midsection, causing the Primordial to double over, his eyes bulging out of his head.

A strong blow had been delivered. Now was our chance!

I jumped off the ground and leapt over Old Matt's crouched form, still in the aftermath of his punch. I delivered one of my own, swooping in and punching Ouranos across the cheek, planting my feet on the other side of the ground next to Old Matt. Upon stopping in a slide, we looked at each other. He nodded.

A mutual understanding passed between us, and without telekinesis, we spoke to each other silently, deciding our next move.

Moving in unison, we both curled our arms and struck upward against Ouranos's chin, two uppercuts packed into one blow. Ouranos went flying backwards, twisting his body in a backflip and landing back on his feet quickly, wasting no time in swiping his spear across the air, emitting a black line of energy. A manifestation of chaos, coming straight for us.

I stepped in front of Old Matt, unsheathing my shield to block the line of chaos. I felt the force of it hit the Universal Titanium, and bounce off, splitting into two smaller lines that flew away into the distance. Where, was unknown. I just hoped it didn't hit a rock or something and end up erasing the entire planet.

"Cannon!" Old Matt shouted, and I understood immediately. I sheathed my shield as quick as I took it off and locked my hands together, palms outward. Old Matt did the same above my head, and together, we launched two Red Beam Cannons at Ouranos. Dual pillars of red energy burst from us, reaching our target in less than a second. Ouranos's eyes widened in surprise, but he managed to block them with a spin of his spear, diverting their path in a similar way to my shield deflection.

But it wasn't over yet. Old Matt used his mind to warp the direction of the Cannons' course, twisting them back around and to Ouranos's behind. He dashed to the side, but they kept following him like missiles under Old Matt's will.

After a moment of zigzagging, a figure blurred out of nowhere and wrapped themselves around Ouranos's body, clamping him down completely and immobilizing his movement. It was Malachi...his arms around his father's, and his legs too, trapping him in a vise.

Ouranos probably could've busted out of the hold easily...if he had time. Once Malachi was locked in, the cannons caught up to them, and exploded right on Ouranos's back. The blast was destructive, and as wide as the foreseeable horizon. For a moment, I worried about Malachi's safety, but then quickly remembered his Achilles Curse, and knew that he'd be fine.

Sand and smoke billowed up in the air, the explosion's noise fading out. I began walking forward to keep attacking Ouranos, but Old Matt put a hand on my shoulder, "Wait."

"What?" I looked up at him, confused, "We need to keep-"

"No." He interrupted, "Charging in headfirst isn't always the answer. We've got the ball rolling. Let's continue to be smart."

I nodded reluctantly, and watched as the smoke cleared, finding Ouranos and Malachi stumbling in front of each other.

Old Matt told me to stay back, but the others obviously didn't share the same sentiment. They pounced on Ouranos like there was no tomorrow. Amaterasu jumped up and tried to cut Ouranos's head off, but he veered his head back and ended up getting his cheek cut, while Percy jumped from the other side and kicked him in the face. Harper went in too, and then Sera, and then Malachi. It was like a swarm of bees hounding someone after shaking the hive, and the attacks were having a similar effect. Not doing much more than annoying the Primordial.

"Your friends are giving a distraction." Old Matt said, "Use your Master Bolt, while I sneak behind to land a shot with the axe. Got it?"

"Y-Yeah...Yeah, I got it."

But just as he said it, Ouranos freaked out, and got pissed off from the attention. He yelled out a blood curdling scream of annoyance, flexing his aura and knocking my friends back, as if a grenade had gone off in the circle they'd formed.

Next thing I knew, the sand's flying next to me, a powerful wind knocks me off balance, and Old Matt's figure is flying in front of me to go after Ouranos, leaving me behind without a word. My counterpart collided with him, tackling him not on the ground, but flying upwards, like the climb of a roller coaster. Both of them left jet trails behind their bodies as they ascended, their punches and blows letting out shockwaves that parted the sickly colored clouds.

"What the hell..." I whispered, tempted to go up there and help, but glancing back at my friends' downed forms, my heart pushed me to run up to them and check their health.

"Guys, you okay?!"

No definite answer, just a bunch of groans. Amaterasu did dart up and spin around, her head aimed toward the clouds.

"We have to get up there. Your counterpart isn't enough to kill Ouranos."

I hesitated, "You're right." I turned to the others with my hand out, "Alright, everyone who can't fly, stay here."

I realized how stupid that sounded, but Talon had to point it out, "Uh...yeah, don't plan on going anywhere."

"You know what I mean! Malachi, Amaterasu, come on."

The two of them followed me up to the fight, Old Matt and Ouranos getting closer with each millisecond, their figures becoming more visible. Or at least, barely. They were fighting with such speed; I was having trouble keeping up. Blow after blow, dive after dive, they went at each other, focused on absolutely nothing else. I could tell Ouranos wasn't playing around anymore, and neither was Old Matt. Both seemed evenly matched.

But we couldn't stand by and do nothing. My guilt would get the better of me, for dragging Old Matt into the fray and possibly getting hurt. Something told me there was something else up Ouranos's sleeve anyway. Something that evened the gap between he and Zeus, helping him win. If things got out of his favor, he'd pull that out of his sleeve.

"Guys!" I yelled. Amaterasu and Malachi flew closer to me, "Split up! I'm going for a shot with the Master Bolt! Malachi, when he recoils from it, come from above and knock him down into Amaterasu's strike zone!" I turned to her, "You'll deliver a good blow with the labrys!"

She nodded, and Malachi zipped away off course, on the path I told him to go. I readied the Master Bolt, unleashing it in full length, holding it in my palm.

I calmed my breathing and slowed my flying. Placing my other hand out, I aimed, putting Ouranos in between my index finger and thumb, the bending of the L-shape, like an optic sight.

Old Matt did something to separate them, and I took my shot. I threw the Master Bolt as hard as I could. It zipped through the sky, but didn't hit Ouranos. The bastard must've sensed it, so he moved his head out of the way at the last second, but the bolt managed to graze him, and distract him long enough for Malachi to come in.

He came out of the sky like a bat out of hell, planting his feet into his father's shoulders, plummeting him toward Earth.

Amaterasu was waiting halfway between him and the ground, ready to slice him in half with the Labrys. Ouranos wasn't fazed enough to fall for it though, he placed a barrier of wind between he and the sun goddess, stopping his descension.

"Damn it!" Amaterasu shouted, quickly tucking her weapon arm behind her back and thrusting her free hand upward. Orange light sparked, turning into bright, wide fire that shot at Ouranos, like it came from a dragon. Ouranos spun his entire body around in a ballerina fashion...which, is a weird thing to think. Either way, it created a tiny tornado burst that dimmed the fire.

The four of us cornered him, forming a square. Old Matt shot me a look that said I thought I told you to wait.

I shrugged, I felt differently.

Ouranos regarded us, his breath running a bit faster than usual. He chuckled, and spun his spear around in one hand, briefly, but skillfully.

"Well don't just float there, come on!" He challenged.

The four of us went at him simultaneously, and in my head, there's only two things that he really could've done if he wanted to get out of the situation. Telekinesis to push us back, or teleportation to escape. Either one wouldn't have surprised me. But he must've known about a third option, because Ouranos went with something weird.

Or at least, it looked weird. Ouranos tilted his body to a horizontal angle, stretching his limbs out to kick Amaterasu and Malachi, while he pushed the shaft of the spear at Old Matt and I. The force of the blow knocked our own weapons into our faces, hitting us hard. He'd somehow countered each of our attempts with his own simultaneous attack, just using his body. No weird technique, just skill.

But we took the hits in relative stride, coming back again with simultaneous strikes.

Ouranos didn't go for his little stretching trick again, instead, he full on engaged us, becoming a whirlwind, dodging our attacks and parrying them with his spear, so fast that I was afraid to even get close.

Finally, he knocked us all back with a powerful twirl, the spear clanging against all of our weapons and pushing us several feet away from him.

Old Matt growled, "We need to stop being so linear. We have to confuse him if we want a simultaneous attack to work."

"Confuse him?"

He gestured with his chin, "I'll go high, and you go low. If that goddess you brought is smart, she'll match us."

I understood what he mean immediately, and nodded at him. Amaterasu and Malachi stayed back, gauging our little conversation, while Ouranos hovered, his eyes staying low, in the center of the strike zone, that way he could see every movement and anticipate.

Old Matt and I charged first, halfway between the line, he went higher, while I went lower. The change of direction and pace was enough to get Ouranos confused for a split second. That split second allowed our trap to slip in.

Old Matt's downward strike with the axe was blocked by Ouranos's spear, while my upward cleave with the sword was blocked by Ouranos's hand, wrapping itself around my wrist and immobilizing it. With both hands in use, he'd have to use his legs again to combat whatever Amaterasu and Malachi came up with.

Malachi acted quickly, and caught on to what we were doing just as fast. He went even lower than me, and aimed to grab his father's legs, but Ouranos tucked them into his chest.

After I saw that, I knew we had him.

Amaterasu was perfect in what she did. She came up behind Ouranos and swung the Heavenly Diamond Labrys at Ouranos's spine, as if she were chopping wood. I didn't see the impact, but I saw Ouranos wince and groan, his body flying forward from the force.

"Again!" Old Matt shouted.

This time, Amaterasu and Malachi knew fully what to do, as all of us were in on it now. Both of them teleported together, one ending up completely above Ouranos, and the other directly below. Both flew at him, like missiles ready for impact, but Ouranos dodged at the last second, dashing to the side.

Straight into Old Matt's grasp.

He caught Ouranos's arms and locked them in his own, a full nelson hold, bringing them up behind the Primordial's head. In the split second Ouranos was off guard, I reappeared in front of him and swiped at his stomach with the Heavenly Diamond sword Old Matt had given me, aiming to cut him open and spill his godly guts out. But Ouranos was too fast for that, he sucked it in enough to avoid a serious wound, but I did graze him, and leave a trail of golden blood.

Both strikes were enough to chip away two little pieces of aura, permanently. Nothing crazy to even the gap, but enough to spark hope within me, and let Ouranos know that we could hurt him. This wasn't just a game.

It pissed him off more than anything we'd done thus far. He locked eyes with me, and the look in them was pure fury. He snarled, broke out of Old Matt's hold and flipped him over his shoulders, throwing him directly at me.

Old Matt's body slammed into me, causing no pain, only disorientation. When I gained enough stability to peek over his shoulder, I saw, and felt, Ouranos doing something strange.

A black glow covered his own blue aura, shadowing it. The feeling was the same as reaching out to Heavenly Diamond, and allowing that poison to come in contact with your soul. It was chaos.

It took me a second to remember, and recognize what was happening. But as I felt Ouranos's aura skyrocket, his power become even more than before, I immediately flashed back to Zane. He was...imbuing his own aura with chaos, making himself stronger, but also damaging himself in the process.

Just like what Zeus alluded to. This was the technique that gave him the upper hand. And now that he'd been backed into a corner, he was going to use it here.

Ouranos's scream died down, and his face looked a little different now too, almost sickly, if you want to know the truth. Bags had formed under his eyes, like a raccoon, and his cheekbones were showing. Though his muscle mass hadn't changed, he looked...different.

Even his speed had increased. I knew once he flinched, Old Matt was going to get hit hard with that spear, so I pushed him out of the way, heart beating against my chest.

"Watch out!"

I shoved him to the side and placed my new sword out in front of me, barely blocking the shot of the spear. Ouranos was behind it, gripping it with two hands, pushing me towards the Earth.

"You know, I didn't think I'd have to use this on you!" He said over the roaring wind, "You've surprised me with your resourcefulness, Matthias! But I've had enough of these little games! I'm going to end this now!"

I couldn't even respond. The pressure of the spear's tip against the sword was so intense, I had to solely focus on not letting it slip. One wrong move, and that spear would cut me, and I'd be erased forever.

No amount of flight strength or telekinesis could save me from the speed and force of the descension we were going in. Ouranos was too strong, and I couldn't resist. I had to simply wait until we crash landed on the sand.

Two seconds passed after Ouranos's little compliment, and then my back made contact with the ground. I didn't even feel the sand, but I did feel the ground split open, and a loud noise ring out, like bones cracking, or the sound of a boulder being crushed from mechanical equipment.

Soon, the sky got smaller and thinner underneath the Earth, Ouranos and I dug through miles of dirt and rock like it was nothing, then magma, and then bedrock, until finally, we came out on the other side in a burst of elements.

Everything around me was black, with little gray dots littered throughout. One glance was all it took to recognize that we'd left the old battlefield completely. We'd entered outer space.

I flexed my aura, and the bolt's, to further protect me from the lack of air in space. Ouranos separated his spear from my sword and went for a downward swing, meant to cut me perfectly in half. Luckily, I kicked it out of the way, slamming the bottom of my shoe against the side of the spear to knock it to the side, and go for a similar strike of my own. Ouranos batted it away by hitting his forearm against mine. It was a dual block, no hits landed.

I created enough distance between us to take a look at the damage of the Earth in this universe. My eyes widened at what I saw. It was worse than I could've imagined.

Ouranos had pushed me so hard and far, that we'd literally went through one side of the Earth, and out of the other, not only splitting it in two, but causing a chain reaction that shattered the planet. Right now, it was separated into several pieces, chunks, if you will, just floating around mindlessly.

Gods, what was going on with my friends? Were they okay? Especially Talon and Annabeth. Talon was a mortal now, and Annabeth couldn't awaken her aura to protect her from the lack of air!

Those worries rushing through my head, I made a desperate attempt to rush after them and fly down, but Ouranos's aura flared next to me, as did his voice.

"You might want to pay attention!"

A glint of blue flashed in my peripheral, and I knew I had to block. His spear hit my sword hard, causing my entire body to vibrate. This was bad, my mind was split between two things. Staying alive, and wondering what the state of my friends was.

I may have sat there, or made an impulsive decision, but I didn't have time. Old Matt came to the rescue, and gave me enough time to go and check on them.

"OURANOS!" He roared, pitching a giant chunk of floating Earth at Ouranos, who easily cut it in two with his spear. But what he didn't expect, was the Red Beam Cannon that followed shortly after, soaring through the atmosphere like a sun ray.

Ouranos blocked it with his spear, protecting his face. But the Cannon was strong, and Ouranos couldn't just bat it to the side like before. But...as he struggled, more chaotic energy fed into his aura, coming from the spear itself, making him more powerful.

The spear glowed black, and with a jerk of his arm, Ouranos cut through the Cannon, dissipating it.

Just as soon as he did, Old Matt came flying up from nowhere, in the shape of a roller coaster drop, colliding himself with Ouranos.

I decided this would be a good time to check on my friends, and I rushed down, back to the destroyed Earth, searching frantically for their auras. It only took one ping of the radar to find them. I turned my head around and saw them in the distance, sitting on a small chunk of what used to be our home planet.

I reappeared in front of them, instantly gauging the situation. They were alive, and okay. Even Talon and Annabeth, who had protective barriers around them from Amaterasu, and Percy's auras, respectively. Nobody had died.

"Everyone's okay?!" I shouted, and they nodded back, Malachi responding.

"Where's your dad?"

"He's up there, fighting Ouranos! I wanted to come check on you guys!"

"Well, we're okay! Go help him!"

I nodded and jumped off the chunk, launching myself up to the battle, prepared to unleash all I had to help Old Matt. Now that his world was destroyed, it was very least I could do. In fact, now that I think about it, he had no place to live. We'd have to take him back to our world for his own safety, which...now that I think about it, sounds like a really good idea. It would be nice to-

SHINK!

That sound made my eyes widen, and my entire body stop in its tracks. Above me, I saw a sight that shattered every fiber of my being.

Ouranos had his hand gripped around the spear, and it was plunged...through Old Matt's chest, coming out of his back. He'd stabbed him, just like he did my father.

"NO!" I screamed, my body flinched, still unable to move.

Ouranos had a smirk on his face, while Old Matt was coughing up ichor. With one last bit of strength, he lifted his axe high above his head, and brought it down with all his might.

The curved edge slammed into Ouranos's shoulder, the soft spot between the bone and the neck, several inches deep. It wiped that smirk off of Ouranos's face real quick, making him groan out in pain.

I watched in horror as Ouranos angrily yanked out the spear from my counterpart's chest. He fell, and fell, the entire way, losing more of his body as it faded to dust. It was almost graceful, the way he fell and disappeared, like an act, something not real.

He looked at me, and in his eyes, I didn't see what I expected to see. I figured there would be regret, and sadness that his life had been cut short, but I was corrected. Very quickly. Peace was the only thing that shimmered.

I realized right then that this was what he wanted. To go out with a bang, protecting us in a way he couldn't all those years ago.

In my head, I heard his voice, you've got this kid. Be better than I was.

I couldn't even tell if that was my own thoughts, or his final telepathic message. Even so, I got it, and nodded at him, fighting tears from falling down my face. Old Matt closed his eyes before the disintegration took him over completely, turning his face into green dust.

(000)

Thanks For Reading!

Until Next Time.