The Rising Dawn

by Demititan28

Percy didn't just survive after his sacrifice, he thrived. Locked in ice for over 20 years the world he comes back to is not the one he left behind. But he doesn't have time to mourn his missed years, a threat is rising in the east and the survival of humanity is on the line. If Olympus has any hope of survival, it rests on his shoulders. Eventual Pertemis

16. Everything the Ice Touches is My Kingdom

Chapter 16: Everything The Ice Touches Is My Kingdom

Percy was bored. Bored enough to the point where he no longer felt like he was actually participating in a Capture the Flag game.

The plan was simple enough: Attack straight down the middle while covering the flanks. The strongest demigods would be in the centre of the attack and at the rear of the flanks. Since everyone was agreeing to follow the Athena cabins plan it meant Jett and his entourage would be at the centre of the attack, whereas Percy was stuck on the far right side of the forest, protecting the creek. He was considered one of their strongest fighters, but this was Jetts camp, so he took a backseat to the son of Zeus.

The rest of the plan consisted of Mason and a couple other children of Hephaestus protecting the far left side. To their right was Chloe and a few Athenian campers. To their right was the attack, which consisted of 6 of the strongest Ares campers led by Jett, Alice, and Axel. Behind them was the defence, which was a combined force of 10 from the Apollo and Hebe cabins. To the right of the attack was Olive, Scarlett, and Benjamin from the Hermes cabin. To the right of them was Percy, and he respected that at least they had trusted an entire flank of the defence to just him, but it left him cut out of most of the fight. Apparently they thought he would be best next to the creek, since he was a son of the water god, and while he agreed with the principle, he disagreed with the result.

All of this meant that he was sitting on the edge of the creek for about 45 minutes, listening to the sounds of skirmishes filling the forest, but unable to leave his post. One of the sons of Hebe had run to check on him about 20 minutes in, telling him the initial camp attack had been successful, but that they were getting bogged down by Hunters traps now they were on the Hunters side of the forest. The left side of the flank was where the Hunters had focused their attacks, and a couple Apollo campers had gone to reinforce that side. That was 25 minutes ago now though, and the sound of fighting had spread throughout the rest of the forest. Everywhere, that is, except where Percy was standing. Maybe Thalia had warned them to avoid the creek because of Percy, but he also wondered whether she would give his power that kind of respect. He had been gone a long time, and he was sad it was looking like he wasn't going to get a chance to remind her of his power.

The sound of thunder roaring in the distance knocked him out of his stupor and the ground shook slightly. He knew Thalia would have been sitting right in front of the flag, waiting for Jett to show up. The attack on the left flank would tie up most of the forces, but the real battle was happening between the campers attack force and the Hunters defence led by Thalia. Percy desperately wanted to be part of that fight, to see what they were capable of, but instead he was stuck on the periphery of the fight. Completely useless.

He glanced back at the small stretch of trail that led up from the creek behind him. If he left it would be easy for even a single huntress to sneak through and have a clear shot at the flag. But if he stayed, he would likely miss the entire fight and have gained nothing from the night. A yell to his left made his decision for him, and he sprinted off in the direction of it. If a huntress did come this way, they would still have to deal with the Hebe or Apollo campers.

He sprinted through the forest, weaving through trees towards whoever had yelled. This was the section of forest that Olive, Scarlett and Benjamin were defending. He had wondered how the three of them had been clumped together, especially considering how weak they seemed as a group, but maybe the Athena cabin had expected the Hunters' attack to come on the left. If they had though, then all the more reason for it being stupid that Percy was stuck all the way on the right.

He was running so fast that he ran into Scarlett. She let out a screech as he hit her and she was sent flying into the bushes.

"Oh my gods, I'm so sorry!" Percy said, leaning down to look through the bushes.

Scarletts head popped out, and while she was covered in leaves and twigs, she otherwise seemed unfazed, "Look where you're going butthead!"

"I heard a yell. What happened?" he asked, finally taking in his surroundings and seeing one of the hunters unconscious on the ground, "Did you do that?"

"No, Asmodeus did."

"Whose Asmodeus?"

"One of my demons. Ben got bored and went to join the fighting. Two hunters attacked and Olive and I got separated. I took care of this one, that was who screamed, but I don't know where Olive is," she paused for a second before adding, "Belial says you've been standing around doing nothing. Is that true?"

Percy sighed, "I was following the plan."

"Belial says the plan sucks."

"Tell Belial he should mind his own gods damn business. Come on, let's find Olive."

Percy checked the Hunter to see if he recognised her, and he remembered her face from the table. Someone had called her Aurora. She was breathing, but was out cold, so Percy decided to leave her be.

Scarlett fell into step behind him as they wandered around, listening for any sound of fighting. He heard a snap behind him and whirled around as Scarlett was sent flying into the tree canopy. She screamed as she disappeared above him and Percy uncapped Riptide. There was silence for a moment before Scarlett dropped back down through the trees, tied with a rope and left hanging from one of the branches upside down.

"You're still just standing there? Help me!" She yelled.

"What do you want me to do? You stepped on a trap."

"I'm 10! I'm gonna step in traps from time to time. As my cousin it's your job to protect me."

Percy sighed, "I didn't sign up for this."

Nonetheless he recapped Riptisde and began to attempt to scale one of the trees, using the branches as handle holds and making use of his improved upper body strength. Scaling the tree caused his muscles to burn slightly, but it was the biggest workout he had gotten so far in this game so he'd take it.

Just as he was getting close enough to cut the rope an arrow slammed into the tree bark a couple inches from where his hand was. It was accompanied by a frantic beeping, and Percy had just enough time to register that there was a countdown on the side of the arrowhead when it exploded in a white flash that hit like a flashbang. A blinding burst of light erupted, accompanied by a thunderous shockwave that rippled through the air. The world transformed into a chaotic symphony of disorientation. His ears pounded and his eyes burned from the intensity of the light. In the midst of this sensory maelstrom, his grip on the tree weakened, and the world spun around him as his fingers slipped.

He registered weightlessness and then a jarring pain down his left shoulder. By the time he was able to blink away the spots dancing in his eyes he realised he was tangled in the roots of a tree. He looked up at Scarlett to see she was yelling something at him, but his eardrums were still throbbing, and nothing was getting through. He looked around to orientate himself with his surroundings and managed to time it so that the fist heading towards him hit him straight in the chin. The feeling of weightlessness returned, and he found himself back against the roots of the tree once again.

He saw the hunter that had just punched him approaching with rope in hand, likely to tie him up and keep him out of the fight. Maybe he should have done that with the hunter Scarlett had beaten. Still groggy from the flashbang and punch his head slumped to the side, and his eyes saw something amongst the roots that didn't look right. In between two of the thicker tendrils was a twist of bark that seemed to resemble a face that seemed kind of familiar.

He blinked a couple of times to see if he was losing his mind, but the face remained. When it winked at him he knew he was going crazy, but then it started moving. Just as the hunter got in range a figure, seemingly made of tree bark, burst from amongst the roots and tackled the hunter. The two rolled away, and Percy took the time to stagger to his feet.

The bark figure was wrestling with the hunter, who managed to pry one of her arrows from her quiver and hold it up to the bark figure's head. A disconcerting buzz started emanating from it and it built up in noise until the bark figure fell to their knees. As the volume increased the bark began to fall away from the figure, revealing the girl underneath.

Olive was clutching her ears, which meant that she wasn't able to cover the rest of her body, which was unfortunate considering that she was naked underneath the bark. The shock of seeing her naked form, and the sudden rush of blood to both his face and elsewhere, sharpened his focus, and he shook off the grogginess of the flashbang. The noise arrow was annoying, but only seemed effective in close range.

He uncapped Riptide and threw it towards the hunter, forcing her to jump backwards, giving Olive the momentary reprieve needed to dive into the bushes and back into the cover of the treeline. The hunter tried to follow but Percy used the distraction as an opportunity to run at her. Just before he could tackle her though she pulled a new arrow from her quiver and another flashbang went off.

White light filled his vision again, and the hearing he had just begun to use again vanished. Almost as soon as his knees hit the ground though his head began to pound. He swung his arms out and one of them caught the hunter, who had been standing closeby to hold the noise arrow to his ear. His vision was white light and blackspots, and his hearing was non-existent, but he took deep breaths and steadied himself. If the headache returned it meant she was within range, and if she was in range he could hit her.

He waited, counting his breaths and doing his best to blink away the spots in his vision, when a faint pounding in his head began to intensify. The more intense it was the closer she was, and so he waited, drawing her in despite the immense pain in his head. He just needed to be patient, to bear through the pain. It was getting stronger…and stronger…and stronger…now!

He lashed out, swinging his foot in a 360 degree kick, hoping to catch her. However, as he kicked out an explosion erupted next to his face, knocking him to the side and sending him sprawling. It hurt, but it also knocked him away from the noise arrow, relieving the pressure that had been building in his brain. His vision was finally beginning to clear up, and he saw the hunter retreating, notching another arrow as she did say. She kept her focus on him, but this meant she didn't notice the root growing behind her that suddenly launched out and wrapped itself around her ankle.

The hunter let out a shriek and tried to jump away, but the root tightened its grip and pulled, sending her to the ground. She pulled out a hunting knife and began to cut at the root but as she did so black smoke began to form in front of her, shifting in the wind. Soon though it began to condense and solidify, morphing until an eight foot demon towered over the prone huntress. Bleeding devil horns looked like they had ripped themselves out of the sides of his head, and its eyes glowed red with hate. It snarled and leant over the hunter, reaching down towards their face.

The hunter let out a scream of pure terror, and their eyes rolled in the back of their head. They slumped to the floor, and the root that had curled around the leg now spread to completely imprison the hunter against the ground. Percy let out a groan and got back to his feet. As he did so Olive brushed past him, still naked as the day she was born, and made her way towards one of the trees. Percy's gaze followed her, obviously interested in what she was going to do and absolutely nothing else. She reached behind one of the trees and pulled on what appeared to be a rope counterweight. Scarlett was slowly lowered from the canopy and came to rest on the forest floor.

"You're still just standing there. That's crazy." Scarlett said, frowning from the ground.

"I couldn't see," Percy complained, retrieving Riptide and cutting through the rope.

"Always with the excuses," Olive said, joining them, "Girls really be doing it all."

"For real," Scarlett giggled, "Imagine the great Percy Jackson being taken down by one hunter."

"It will be even more embarrassing when we tell them he was only saved because of a ten year old girl."

"She's a daughter of Hades," Percy moaned, "She's not an ordinary ten year old. She just summoned a demon."

"We do not care," Scarlett said.

Olive nodded, "Agendas must agend."

"I hate you guys. I came to save you."

"We saved ourselves thank you very much," Scarlett interrupted, "You just stood there."

"You did kind of just stand there," Olive agreed, "But you did it so sexy."

Percy was once again reminded that Olive was completely naked and blushed, doing his best to look at everything but the daughter of Demeter in front of him.

Scarlett looked back and forth between the two of them before rolling her eyes, "You guys are so cringe. Belial says L + down bad + ratio, but I don't know what that adds up to."

Olive giggled, "I think he's just insulting us, Scar."

Scarlett frowned, "He said that you will burn in hellfire for your provocativeness."

"Belial likes his hellfire," Percy noted.

Olive ran her hand down his chest and winked, "I can think of a couple more sins to commit."

"You're so gross." Scarlett said, "Belial is right you are down bad."

Olive scoffed and hit Scarlett lightly, "That's it, early bedtime for you."

Scarlett pouted, "Are we done with fighting yet? You promised ice cream."

"A little longer, sounds like the main fight is still happening," Olive turned to Percy, "If you hurry you might still be able to make it. I don't think anymore will come this way, and if they do then Scarlett and I can handle it."

"We won't just stand around," Scarlett added, shooting a pointed look at Percy.

Percy stuck his tongue out at his cousin before turning to Olive…who was also technically his cousin now that he thought about it…which made having her naked in front of him and openly flirting all the more weird. Then again he did date his second cousin for a while. Man it got weird fast on the godly side.

"Are you sure you'll be okay here?" he asked.

Olive shrugged, "You've seen what Scarletts are capable of, we'll be fine. Plus I need to find my clothes. I always forget where I put them after I summon my armour."

"That was really cool," Percy said, remembering how she had emerged from amongst the roots of the tree, "I wish it had lasted longer."

Olive winked, "That's what she said. Now go on hero, I know you're dying to watch Jett fight the hunters lieutenant."

Percy thought about arguing, but realised she was right. Besides, it seemed like Olive and Scarlett could handle themselves. Scarlett had been tied up hanging from a tree and still took care of one of them. The ten year old was turning out to be quite formidable.

"Okay, I'm going to head in the direction of the lightning, seems like a good bet considering they're both children of Zeus."

"Gonna go stand and watch?" Scarlett asked, raising an eyebrow as she did so.

Percy rolled his eyes but couldn't keep the smile off his face as he started walking away from them and towards the sounds of fighting. It sounded like it was coming from deep within the Hunters side of the forest, so he began making the trek deeper and deeper into enemy territory. He kept an eye out for traps, but there didn't seem to be any on this side of the Hunters flank. The rumbling had not quelled during his previous fight, instead it seemed to have intensified.

He soon found himself on the path that the campers' attack must have taken, judging by the damage that was done to the surrounding area. Lightning had left burns across a number of trees, and one was still burning. He quickly put that out with water from a nearby stream, keen not to see the whole forest burnt down due to demigods getting ahead of themselves. He stumbled across what looked like the sight of a fight. A few Ares campers were unconscious, tied to the stump of trees. There was only one Hunter, and one that he recognised.

Reyna lay slumped against a log, a trail of blood running down the side of her face. She wasn't conscious, and judging by the pool of blood that was gathering at her feet she had been lying there a while. She wasn't tied up, just abandoned, so he scooped her up in his arms and began to walk towards where the creek curved deeper into the forest. As he stepped into the shallow waters he felt a surge of energy, and so gently lowered Reyna into the creek. He felt a tug in his gut, and the water began to churn around her, working to repair her wounds.

He still wasn't great at using water to heal people other than himself, but being in the water helped, it felt as though he was directing the water where on her body to heal the wounds. The cut on her forehead knitted itself back together and the burn marks down her left side, which had been pretty bad, faded from a nasty black to a more manageable pink. Her breathing, which had been sporadic, steadied. She took a deep breath and then opened her eyes, her black ones meeting his icy blue.

"Percy," she gasped, barely able to produce the strength to say his name.

"It's okay, you're okay," he reassured her, "If you have the strength, what happened?"

She took another breath and closed her eyes, "Jett…Alice…they ripped through us. We…we beat a lot…slowed them down…but Jett made it to Thalia. She's…in danger…he's…stronger than last time."

He lifted her up from the creek, and placed her gently against a tree, sitting her up to help her breathing.

"I don't have to tie you up right?" he asked, "You're not going anywhere?"

"Sounds like you want to tie me up," she teased, chuckling a bit but then wincing as she did so, "I'm not going anywhere, go find Thalia."

He nodded and, after double checking to make sure she could sit up on her own, began walking down the creek. He knew that the creek bent inwards deeper into the forest, and if he followed it deep enough it would lead him to Zeus' Fist. The rock formation was an obvious location for a flag, and he was sure that Thalia would find it funny that her and Jett would be fighting in the shadow of the landmark named for their father.

As if affirming his thought process, the sounds of fighting grew louder the closer to Zeus' Fist he got, and as he emerged into the clearing where the Fist sat he finally found where all the action was happening.

The clearing itself was pretty big, and off to one side, rising high above the battle, the Hunters flag flew lazily atop Zeus' Fist. Beneath it the Hunters and Campers that were still standing were locked in battle. Alice was off to one side, fighting one Hunter with magic, while Axel was closer to the creek, battling it out knives against knives with one of the huntresses Percy recognised as Elysia. In the centre of the clearing stood Thalia, brandishing her spear and Aegis, facing off against Jett, who had a sword that was sparking with electricity. The two children of Zeus were taking turns channelling lighting bolts and hurtling them at one another, but so far seemed locked in a deadlock. However, his arrival came just as Alice defeated the huntress she was up against. She drew a glowing rune in the air, which left an imprint floating for a moment before it flew at the huntress. As it got closer it transformed into a net and wrapped itself around the hunter, using the momentum of the transformation to throw the hunter against a tree and leave her trapped. It was then that Percy noticed the figures around the periphery of the battle.

Hunters and campers lay strewn about, most of them unconscious. A fair number had lighting burns on them, both campers and hunters alike, suggesting that it was Thalia and Jett carrying the fight for each side. Alice ran towards Thalia, summoning a staff from thin air as she did so. As she got closer the tip of the staff began to heat up and from the end a torrent of fire was unleashed at the hunters lieutenant. Thalia took it in stride though, summoning wind around her hand and sending it to counter the flames. Wind met fire and the force of Thalia's attack forced Alice back. However, that left an opening for Jett, who lunged inside Thalia's defence and brought his sword down.

Thalia managed to catch the blade with the edge of Aegis, sending sparks flying but keeping her in the fight. Some of the sparks flew into her face, and she was forced backwards as well. Alice's intervention had broken the stalemate though, and now Jett pressed his advantage. He kept Thalia on the defensive, unable to escape and with every clash of his sword with her shield more sparks flew in her face, blinding her. Thalia staggered backwards, but held her spear up to the sky, summoning a bolt of lighting that she redirected towards her brother. The bolt caught Jett square in the chest, and sent him flying back into the treeline.

Now Thalia turned on Alice, and the wind picked up until Thalia was standing in the centre of a small tornado. A flick of her wrist sent the tornado hurtling towards Alice, who frantically scribbled a rune on her wrist that encased her in a bubble. The bubble was picked up by the tornado and was tossed around at high speed, but Alice seemed to be unharmed inside the bubble. Thalia summoned another lightning bolt, this one aimed towards the bubble, but before she could fire Jett shot out of the treeline. He quite literally flew towards Thalia, slamming into her and sending the bolt of lighting flying harmlessly off into the sky. He knocked the spear out of Thalia's hand and then grabbed her by the collar, shooting into the sky and dragging Thalia with him.

It seemed Jett could fly just like Jason was able to, but flight was something that Thalia had never been able to master due to her crippling fear of heights. She let out a scream as they burst through the forest canopy and up towards the clouds. The tornado faded and Alice bounced harmlessly to the ground, quickly breaking out of it and running towards Axel.

Axel and Elysia were locked in combat that was so fast Percy struggled to keep up with what was happening. They each wielded two knives, and the silver flashed through the air, tracing intricate patterns as steel clashed against steel. Each strike was met with a swift parry, the blades ringing out with a melodic symphony. Their footwork was precise, allowing them to dodge and weave through the dense undergrowth, avoiding roots and fallen branches. Leaves fluttered as they kicked up a whirlwind of motion, their bodies twisting and turning with the fluidity of dancers engaged in a deadly ballet. The forest now echoed with their grunts of effort and the occasional gasp as a blade came too close for comfort. They fought with equal skill and ferocity, each understanding the other's moves as if they were mirror images. The fight had clearly been raging for sometime now, with beads of sweat dotting their brows and their breathing growing heavier. Yet, neither yielded an inch. Alice once again served to break the deadlock.

She whispered something under her breath as she approached, and her staff disappeared. She drew another rune in the air, but this one gloweed black, and when it shot towards Eysia her eyes turned black as well.

"I can't see!" Elysia yelled, staggering backwards and reaching up to her face, "That's cheating, don't disrespect the one vs one."

"I'm here to win," Alice snarked as Axel moved in, knocking Elysias blades away and twisting her hands behind her back. Unable to see she could barely resist, much less fight back. Her shoulders sagged in defeat and she fell to her knees. Alice drew the rune he had seen earlier and another net was summoned, entangling the huntress.

"Where's Jett?" Axel asked her as Percy approached them.

Alice pointed upwards, and Axel and Percy followed the direction of her finger to see Jett hovering a considerable distance above the canopy, holding Thalia by her ankle as she screamed. It looked like she was having a panic attack, but Jett didn't seem to care.

"He beat her," Percy said, "Tell him to bring her down."

Alice frowned at him, "I don't take orders from you."

Percy stepped forward, towering over her, "Tell him to bring her down, or I am going to knock him out of the sky."

Axel stepped towards him, putting his hand against Percy's chest, "Now, now big guy, don't forget which side you're on."

Percy turned on him, shoving him with a little more force than he intended and sending the son of Ares sprawling, "I don't care about this game. Tell Jett to bring her down right now or I swear I'll knock his ass out!"

Now Alice was in his face, "Looks like you're playing for the other team. Maybe we need to put you in your place."

Percy could feel himself getting angry, and he could see his eyes glowing through the reflection of Alice's eyes. He felt a tug in his gut and the creek responded, churning angrily as the wind picked up. "Tell him now…or I'll kick your ass too."

Alice grinned. Her hands started glowing and she began drawing runes in the air but Axel stood and grabbed her wrist. "No need to fight," he said, "We're on the same side."

He walked into the middle or the clearing and cupped his hands together, yelling, "JETT! DROP HER!"

Jett seemed to take that literally, and let his grip on Thalia's ankle slip, sending her hurtling towards the forest floor. The creek exploded behind him, surging towards Thalia and catching him before she hit the floor. The water then retreated, leaving Thalia on the ground, shaking and her face white with fear. Jett slowly descended, landing atop Zeus' Fist and holding the Hunters flag up victorious.

"Looks like we finally put these bitches in their place," he gloated from above.

Thalia stood slowly, water dripping off of her parka. "No one likes a sore winner," she called up to Jett, "Couldn't beat me without help from your little girlfriend."

Jetts face twisted into a snarl and he raised his sword above his head. An arc of lighting that shook the clearing connected with its tip, and he levelled it at Thalia.

"Beat this bitch!" he yelled, unleashing the full might of the bolt at the huntress.

Light filled the clearing, blinding them as a roar of thunder assaulted their ears. The bolt caught her square in the chest, with the shock only intensified by the fact she was covered in water. The force of the lighting was so intense that Percy was pretty sure he saw a flickering of Thalia's skeleton underneath her skin before she was sent flying into a tree. Smoke curled off her body as she slumped unconscious against the bark.

Jett laughed and Alice snickered. Percy felt something snap inside him, and if his eyes weren't glowing before they sure were now. He felt a fierce tug in his gut and the entire length of the creek exploded upwards, surging towards Jett. The force of the water knocked him off Zeus' Fist and sent him falling towards the ground below. Right before he hit the ground though a pocket of air caught him, holding him for a second before gently lowering him to his feet.

Lighting flickered around Jetts eyes and he turned his attention to Percy. "Who the fuck do you think you are?" he yelled, levelling his sword at Percy.

"They guy who's gonna kick your ass," Percy answered, uncapping Riptide and launching himself at Jett.

The ground shook and thunder boomed overhead as the two crossed swords. Lighting arced off Jetts blade towards Percy but the force of the storm that he was summoning around him kept the sparks at bay. The water of the creek began spinning around him and soon he was standing in his own personal hurricane, forcing Jett back as he tried to maintain his footing. Every clash of blades caused the ground beneath them to shudder, and Percy poured his energy into driving Jetts into Zeus' Fist.

Jett was fast, and his reflexes were the best Percy had gone up against since probably the Annunaki guard. But Percy's blows were heavier, and he was physically stronger than his counterpart. Jett could keep himself in the fight, but couldn't do much else as his back was pushed up against the rock face.

"Back off!" A voice yelled behind him, and Axel jumped at Percy, baring his knives.

The force of the storm increased, and battered Axel back, preventing him from hitting Percy. However the distraction from the swordplay gave Jett the chance to summon the winds, and soon he was standing in the middle of his own storm. A hurricane met a tornado as the two clashed again, and the force of the winds was so intense that some of the trees began to bend past their breaking point. One trunk snapped and began hurtling through the air towards the demigods. It was caught in Percy's storm and sailed towards Jett before getting caught in Jetts storm and sailing back to Percy. It got caught between them, the pressure of each of their powers causing the trunk to slowly splinter before shattering above them.

The intensity of the battle was attracting the other members of the Capture the Flag game, as hunters and campers emerged from the treeline to witness the son of Posieon face off against the son of Zeus. Even Scarlett and Olive showed up, clearly deciding that defending the flank was not as important as watching what was unfolding. Reyna also staggered into the clearing, and quickly ran to Thalia to tend to her injuries. She had to hold on to one of the tree roots though, because the winds whipping through the clearing were getting dangerously high.

The force of the storms were about equal, so once more Alice decided to step in and break the deadlock. Her knack for timing was starting to get on Percy's nerves, but before he could turn his attention to her she dove through the storm and pressed her hand against his chest. Her hand was glowing, and it left a wider imprint of her hand against his chest.

"Hand of Gemini!" she yelled, and Percy felt as though a blast went off against his chest, followed a split second later by a second identical blast. He felt his ribs cave in momentarily before being sent flying across the clearing. He was midair when he heard Jetts scream.

"Heavenly Fury!"

A bolt of lighting, larger than even the one that had struck Thalia, split the sky open and arched downwards. Time seemed to slow as the bolt descended from the heavens, its crackling energy carving a fiery path towards Percy. His eyes widened in terror, realising too late that he wasn't going to be able to avoid it. He felt a tug in his gut and willed the water to harden around him, forming his ice armour just in time for the bolt to connect.

The lightning struck with an explosive force, engulfing Percy in a searing blaze of light. The crackling sound filled the air, mingling with the anguished cry that tore from his lips. In that moment, the world stood still, and every living thing held its breath, witnessing the merciless embrace of Zeus' fury. His body convulsed as the electric current surged through him. His muscles seized, contorting his limbs in unnatural ways. The scent of singed flesh mingled with the acrid smell of ozone, permeated the air. The ground trembled beneath him, bearing witness to the sheer power of the lightning's wrath.

And then it was over. The light faded and Percy fell to the ground. His breastplate had been completely annihilated, and his chest was burnt. If it weren't for the armour though, Percy would probably have been dead, and he sent a prayer to his father that he hadn't been killed. As his senses returned he heard laughing…Jetts laugh.

He looked up to see the smug looks of Jett, Axel and Alice, and a blind fury raced through him. He remembered the feeling of letting loose his anger against Triton, of pouring all his rage into his abilities and letting loose. That anger had been hot, it had been a burning rage. What overtook him now was nothing like that. It was a fury that was cold and calculating, and spread to every fibre of his being. It was the same feeling of being in the ice… cold… calm… peaceful… but with an intense and patient fury that took his breath away. He couldn't yell, his body wouldn't allow it. Energy bubbled underneath his skin and it took everything he had to keep it from exploding out of him. His ice gauntlet, which was still encasing his fist, shattered as the intensity began to ramp up. He took a deep breath and then slammed his fist into the ground.

He had never named one of his powers before, mostly because they all seemed to be the powers of his fathers domain. It felt wrong to name a power that wasn't his. But the power he was emanating now was his, and he was inspired by his opponents names. As his fist connected with the ground a scream tore its way out of his throat.

"ICE KINGDOM!"

Ice exploded from where his fist made contact, almost instantly caking the clearing and the surrounding forest in a layer of ice. Something he had worked for hours with Triton with, to generate ice separate from himself, finally manifested itself in a form he could use for combat. The temperature plummeted, to the point where the hunters and campers watching began to shiver. The wind, only moments ago tearing through the forest, died almost instantly. The water that had been in the air turned to hail, and began swirling around Percy. His armour began to repair itself, healing the burn on his chest and fixing the breastplate. It couldn't fix the gauntlet though, because the power radiating from his fist refused to allow it. Ice building up to fix it was shattered as soon as it came too close to his hand.

As he finally got to his feet everyone's eyes were on him. His ice armour sparkled due to the reflection of the ice around him, and his eyes glowed blue beneath his helmet. His fist was pulsing, the muscles in it throbbing, but Percy didn't notice. His eyes were on Jett.

When he moved, it was instant. All the extra strength and speed he had gained from being in the ice felt like it had been magnified tenfold in his Ice Kingdom. He was on top of Jett before the son of Zeus had time to react, and with his non-pulsating fist he landed a punch square to his jaw. The blow knocked Jett clean of his feet, and a satisfying crunch echoed out across the clearing. Almost as soon as Jett was down though Alice was upon him.

Her staff was back and from its tip flames roared towards him. He melted his left gauntlet and willed the fresh water to counter the fire. Water met fire and suddenly they were both hidden by the steam. Alice retreated, holding her defensively.

Percy waited, he didn't need to rush this. Rushing could lead to a mistake. If he took his time…if he was patient…if he was cold and calculating…then the moment would present itself. She had multiple spells, multiple weapons. The staff had fire that could counter him. She could summon objects…a net…but maybe something more? Unlikely…it was a different brand of magic from her offensive ones. And why did the Gemini attack not require the staff? Her powers were unique, which made sense considering Clarisse's warning that she was one of the most powerful witches of her age. She had the bubble…how powerful was it? Could it survive his onslaught? Doubtful. Axel needed to be considered though. Where was he? He had moved from his-

Percy dashed to the side, narrowly avoiding being impaled by Axel as he dove through the stream towards him. Percy backed away, keeping both Alice and Axel in view as he distanced himself from the fading steam.

He was processing too much…he needed more time. If he let himself get lost in his thoughts he wasn't going to be able to act. He had all the information but wasn't able to utilise it flawlessly in combat. He could feel everything around him, sense every movement, the combined input of information was overloading his senses. Everywhere the ice touched was within his domain…was within his control…but he couldn't yet discern what the different movements related to. Axel was moving, but so were campers along the periphery. They were making so much extra noise, they were blocking Percy from being able to hear where Axel was. No…it wasn't noise. That wasn't how Percy was tracking Axel. It was something else…a different sense. Was it touch?...No, Percy couldn't feel him in the physical sense…but maybe it was ethereal. He was overthinking it. He needed to just move!

Percy darted towards Axel, letting his reactions take over. Axel reacted quickly, bringing his knives down towards the gaps in Percy's helmet, but he was too predictable. Percy could read his movements almost before he did them, and even without knives of his own Percy engaged in close quarter combat. Hands against knives, blades against fists. He needed action, because action provoked a reaction, and reaction provoked mistakes. Axel made his first mistake when he overreached on what particular slice, and almost as soon as his arm extended Percy grabbed it and twisted hard enough to rip the shoulder out of the socket. There was a discernible 'pop' and Axel let out a scream as he fell to his knees.

Axel had bought Alice enough time to prepare though, and now she raised her staff and yelled, "Charge of Aries!"

From the tip of the staff fire began to solidify, merging into the form of a ram that charged towards Percy. But it was in his domain, and the ram was fairly slow moving. A shiver ran across his back and from the frosty ground a wall of ice shot up, shielding Percy from the oncoming assault. The flaming ram crashed into the wall, melting straight through the wall but dying out as it did so. Percy felt a buzz in his chest and fed into the primal need to dive forward, through the wall and through the steam towards Alice. A spark of joy shot through him as he flawlessly glided through the hole and found himself bearing down on Alice from above. He was finally able to flex his power, to demonstrate the limits of his body and abilities to people who were trying their best to beat him. This didn't feel like a game, or even practice, the stakes felt real in this one.

As he briefly floated above Alice he pulled his left hand back and allowed the ice around it to sharpen into a blade. As it finalised he punched downwards, driving the tip of the blade towards Alice's chest. She threw her staff to the side and wrapped her arms around herself.

"Womb of the Virgo!" she yelled, and dirt covered ground broke the icy covering on the ground to wrap Alice in a protective embrace. Percy's ice blade stabbed straight through the dirt cocoon, but there was no blood, just dirt. He yanked his blade free and leapt backwards.

It was a simple spell, but a primal one. The power emanating from the cocoon was the same kind that he had felt when going toe to toe against Gaea. His blade should have drawn blood, the fact that it didn't made him think that maybe he wasn't able to damage her while she was inside. He pouted, suddenly upset at the prospect of no longer being able to fight her. Thankfully, the boredom was only momentary, as a frustrated yell from behind him signified that Jett was ready to continue the brawl.

Percy turned and took in the son of Zeus' appearance. Blood dripped from the corner of Jett's mouth, and couple with the wild look that now gleamed in his eyes he looked like a rabid dog. Lighting flickered around his hands, his sword abandoned to the side.

"Percy Jackson…Son of Poseidon…Hero of Olympus…Bane of Titans…the more people spoke about you the less you seemed real. Your life was just one straight action movie. And everyone kept telling me how much I reminded them of you." Jett's eyes sparked and he spoke coldly from across the clearing, "I keep asking for a quest…to prove myself…to get out of your shadow…and instead you come back again…to make it all about you."

"I didn't choose to come back…honestly after meeting you I'd rather have stayed in the ice." Percy shot back.

Jett shook his head, tutting, "When I met Thalia…I was disappointed. I was told children of the Big Three were the most formidable demigods around…but for all her training she's just a little girl. Too scared to tap into daddys real power. A daughter of Zeus…scared of heights!"

His voice echoed across the clearing, and everyone's attention turned to Thalia's unconscious body. Her fear of heights was a secret that she guarded dearly, and for Jett to just out it like that made Percy's blood run cold.

"So my sister," Jett continued, "Who is scared of heights…keeps talking about this son of Posiedon who put all the other demigods to shame. A child of the Big Three who lived up to the title."

The temperature was now in freefall, cold turned to freezing as Percy felt his anger building up at Jett.

"Obsessed with the Hunters…I'm not sure whether you're purposefully uninterested in the camp you fought so hard to protect…or if you're just a simp!" Jett spat.

Percy willed his armour to melt away, he didn't want it for this fight, and it formed a puddle at his feet before freezing from the temperature around him. The closer to Percy the colder the temperature, but he didn't feel cold…he felt awake.

"If you're as powerful as everyone keeps telling me," Jett grinned, further increasing the manic look he was giving off, "Then taking care of a mere demigod should be child's play."

The wind, having been killed by Ice Kingdom mere minutes ago, now roared back into life, centering around Jett as lightning crisscrossed the length of his body. His eyes sparked and he began to levitate off the ground, floating in the midst of his own personal tornado. Rain and hail began slowly but soon came down in a torrent, turning the clearing into the epicentre of a storm.

Percy didn't move, he just stood there watching as Jett rose higher and higher above him. He remembered what he had yelled at Alice: that he was going to knock Jett out of the sky. Looked like he was finally going to get his chance to do exactly that.

The storm raged around him, but he barely noticed. As he stared at Jett he remembered his fight against Jason shortly after they met each other. They had been possessed by spirits at the time, but it had still been an impressive fight. Demigods were supposed to get more powerful the older they got….he wondered how powerful Jason would have become if his life hadn't been cut so cruelly short. Jett was powerful…maybe enough to rival Jason at his peak but he doubted it. Jason had been formidable enough to scare Gaea…his powers forged from constant battle and warfare. Jett was a kid…trying to play god.

Triton had kept telling him to control the anger, to channel it but not let it take over him. The Ice Kingdom hadn't been controlled, it had been the result of an explosion of rage. But now, standing amongst his creation and feeling its power radiate around him, he took a deep breath and began to concentrate.

No more uncontrollable rage, from now on he needed patience and precision. If he had this kind of power at his disposal, then it was his duty to understand how to control it. The storm faded away and lost in his thoughts the world around him grew quiet. Soon he could only hear his breathing…steady but tired. That feeling…the one he kept trying to relive of being in the ice…that was the anchor he needed to hold onto. He remembered when he went into the River Styx to gain the curse of Achilles. Annabeth had been his anchor then, but he didn't have one now, so he needed to forge his own.

He thought of his mom, of the look on her face when she saw him for the first time. Of Paul's face when he walked through the door. Of the excitement in Estelles face when she realised he had come back from the dead. He thought of the moments they had spent together as a family, giving him the home he had always longed for. He had spent his whole life yearning for that, and now he finally had it. If there was anything worth using as an anchor, it was family. He remembered the words Hestia had said to him before his battle against Kronos, that hope survives best at the hearth. He had his hearth…his home…THAT was his anchor.

Suddenly the assault on his senses from the information was no longer so visceral. The information being imputed was through Ice Kingdom…and it was because it was an extension of his will…of his power. He could finally process what was happening around him through pure will alone. He remembered sitting upon his fathers throne…of feeling the domain of the seas. Ice was his domain…his kingdom.

The roar of the storm returned as Percy zoned back into reality. Jett was still above him, a lighting bolt in each of his hands. Percy smiled, he had asked for a chance to show what he was capable of, and he was grateful. He knew gods would be watching this fight, not just Artemis, Apollo and Mr. D, but the rest of the Olympians. A battle between a son of Zeus and a son of Poseidon. A battle between the old world and the new. Time to give them a show. He felt a powerful shiver run down the back of his spine, and then he leapt towards Jett.

Author's Note: Hey guys, sorry for taking so long with this chapter. I've had a busy couple weeks and that coupled with some negative reactions to the story hurt my motivation to write. I'm sorry if the story isn't going in the direction you hoped, but I have a vision for this story and I'm going to stick true to it. I want to be authentic in my writing style, and I can't do that unless I trust myself and my vision.

In regards to the story this chapter was a lot of fun to write. We get a taste of other characters' powers, but most importantly Percy's new powers. The end of this chapter was an enormous power spike for him, so starting the next chapter you'll get a taste of what he is capable of. The next chapter will be the last chapter before the Annunaki storyline begins, and from then on you'll be able to see my vision unfold. I hope you like it, and for those that don't, I'm sorry.

I also decided to switch back to T for a little bit. I will eventually push it up to M, but I realised my language isn't that bad and the M rated scenes will not come until later.

So please review and help my bruised ego lmao. I'll work on the next chapter and hopefully it won't be as long until that one is out