I'm going through a bit of writer's block, so instead of working through it, I'm publishing another fic.
Hey, and ATLA/PJO crossover can't go wrong!
CHAPTER ONE: I BEAT UP A BLIND GIRL
The last thing Percy remembered was fire. Fire everywhere. Lava erupting around him, suffocating heat pressing on his chest, and then... nothing.
When he came to, he was lying face-down in dirt. Not volcanic rock, not ash, just dirt. Groaning, Percy pushed himself up, wiping earth from his face. Around him was a rocky landscape, unfamiliar and distinctly not the Labyrinth. The air smelled fresh, not acrid with sulfur, and there was no sign of the fiery explosion that had nearly killed him.
"Great," he muttered, looking down at his ragged, half-burnt clothes. "Where am I?"
In the distance, he heard loud cheers and the sound of… boulders crashing together?
Percy decided to follow the noise to an enormous underground arena. The place reeked of sweat and excitement, with spectators yelling at the top of their lungs. He slipped into the crowd, his confusion growing as he saw people hurling massive rocks at each other in a gladiatorial contest.
"What's this? A wrestling match with rocks?" Percy muttered under his breath. Before he could figure out what was going on, a burly announcer with a booming voice spotted him.
"Who's that? A challenger sneaking in to Earth Rumble VI? Folks, it looks like we've got ourselves a surprise match!"
The crowd roared, and before Percy could protest, a pair of guards hauled him into the ring.
"Wait, wait, I'm not even-"
"FIGHT!"
Now, Percy had just made a literal volcano explode. He was not in the mood to fight.
It appeared he didn't have much of a choice.
Percy stood in the center of the arena, hands instinctively raised, his eyes scanning the crowd. The guards, still towering over him, shoved him forward with surprising strength.
"Fight!" the announcer bellowed again, his voice booming across the vast underground space, sending a fresh wave of cheers through the spectators. Percy's mind raced. This can't be happening. What the hell did I just get dragged into?
The ground trembled beneath his feet, and a giant figure strode forward from the opposite side of the ring. The fighter was enormous, easily twice Percy's size, with muscles bulging out from beneath his worn leather armor. He cracked his knuckles with a grin that could only be described as malicious.
Great, Percy thought. Of course. This is the part where I get my face pummeled into the dirt.
The giant dude raised his hand, and before Percy could react, a massive boulder was ripped from the arena floor, flying toward him at incredible speed.
Percy's reflexes kicked in, and he leaped to the side, narrowly avoiding the boulder as it smashed into the ground behind him, sending dirt flying in all directions.
"Nice dodge!" the announcer shouted. "But can he do it again?"
Percy's eyes widened as the giant hurled another boulder, this one coming straight for his chest. He barely had time to react before the rock slammed into his side with a bone-jarring impact. He grunted, feeling the sting of the hit, but he managed to stay on his feet.
With a quick glance around, he spotted the remnants of some smaller stones scattered across the ring.
I don't need to dodge. I need to fight back.
His hands clenched into fists, and without thinking, Percy did what came naturally, he called upon the water, the flow of it, the way it responded to his every command. But there was no water. Just dirt, rock, and more rock.
Damn it, Percy thought, frustration mounting. He needed something, anything, to stop this guy. His instincts had never failed him before, and this time, they weren't about to start.
He reached into his pocket, pulling out Riptide. Percy gripped it tightly, the familiar weight of the pen-sword a small comfort. The weapon flickered into its full form in his hand, its steel gleaming in the dim light of the arena.
Would Riptide even work against… whatever this guy was?
"What's this?" The announcer said. "A sword?"
But as Percy raised Riptide, ready to fight back, the giant's next move caught him off guard. The ground beneath him rumbled once more, and with a deafening roar, the giant stomped his foot down hard enough to crack the earth, sending another wave of rocks flying toward Percy.
Percy's instincts screamed at him to dodge, but there was no way he could avoid them all. He slashed with Riptide, cutting through a few smaller rocks mid-air, but the larger ones kept coming, overwhelming him. One hit him in the shoulder, knocking him sideways, but he recovered just in time to parry another rock heading straight for his face.
"Okay," Percy muttered to himself, "this is getting old."
He needed to turn the tables. Fast.
He glanced up at the giant, who was gearing up to throw another boulder. The sight of the massive stone in his hand gave Percy an idea, an untested one, but it was all he had. His dad wasn't the Earthshaker for nothing, right?
Percy stamped his feet on the earth, and the arena shook.
Percy felt the ground tremble beneath him, his pulse quickening as the power surged through his legs. This is either going to work... or I'm going to get buried by a mountain of rocks, he thought grimly.
His feet dug into the dirt, his breath steadying as he focused all of his energy into the earth around him. The arena seemed to grow eerily still for a moment. The giant paused mid-throw, eyes narrowing, clearly sensing the change in the earth.
"Nice try, kid," the giant snarled, but his voice was unsure.
Percy's mind raced. His father had commanded the earth, so why couldn't he? After all, the Earthshaker wasn't just a title. He had to have inherited something. His fingers tightened around Riptide as he stamped harder, focusing on the feeling of the earth beneath his feet.
He could feel it. The pulse of the arena. The heartbeat of the land itself, as if it were a living thing. The rocks, the dirt, everything was connected, and Percy was connected to it now. The arena wasn't just a battleground; it was a part of him.
Then, with a deep breath, Percy willed the earth to respond.
The ground beneath the giant's feet began to shift and rumble, not in small tremors, but with the violent force of a shifting tectonic plate. The giant's feet sank deeper into the earth as if the very ground was trying to swallow him whole. He stumbled, his feet slipping, and for the first time, his opponent's confident grin faltered.
The arena shook again, this time violently.
Cheers erupted. The announcer's voice shouted: "Look at that! An earthbender!"
Percy was most definitely not an earthbender, whatever that was, but he wasn't about to say anything.
He barely had time to register the attention as he turned back to the guy, who was slowly getting back to his feet, shaking off the rock shards. He had a smug grin on his face, though it was clear that he wasn't too thrilled by the outcome.
"Not bad, kid," the giant growled, cracking his neck. "But this ain't over."
Oh, I think it might be, Percy thought.
With a shout, the giant lunged forward, his massive arms swinging in a wild arc, another boulder appearing in his hands, ready to crush Percy. But this time, Percy wasn't going to wait for the attack to land. He was in control now.
As the giant brought the rock down toward him, Percy moved in the opposite direction, his feet pressing hard into the earth. He commanded the ground to respond. The rocks beneath him shifted, groaned, and then surged upward in a wave, meeting the boulder head-on with a force that made the earth itself seem alive.
The impact was deafening. Percy's hands trembled with the effort, but the power in his veins surged as the boulder split in two, large cracks forming down its center. Pieces of rock fell in all directions, but Percy wasn't done. He raised both arms, and the earth shook once more.
The giant roared in frustration, trying to shield himself, but Percy kept pushing, manipulating the very ground beneath them, controlling the flow of rocks and dirt like it was nothing more than water.
"Get him!" someone in the crowd yelled.
But Percy didn't need the encouragement. The giant was too slow, too distracted by the barrage of rock.
With a quick flick of his wrist, Percy sent the ground crashing into the giant's chest, sending him sprawling backward, the force of the impact pushing the wind out of him.
For a moment, the arena was silent, the giant lying stunned on the ground.
"Is that it?" Percy panted, staring down at the motionless form.
The crowd held its breath, waiting for the giant to rise again. But before he could, the announcer's voice rang out. "It's over! The challenger wins!"
Percy didn't hear much else as the crowd erupted into deafening applause. He lowered himself back to the ground, his heart racing, his muscles sore from the exertion. The adrenaline was wearing off, leaving a dull ache in its place, but the exhilaration of victory kept him from caring.
As he stood in the center of the ring, catching his breath, the giant finally stirred, pushing himself up with a grunt. He wasn't happy about losing, but he didn't look like he was about to fight again. Instead, he shot Percy a glare that would've made most people run for cover.
"Not bad, kid," he muttered, retreating toward the edge of the arena.
"Next challenger!" The announcer said. "The Blind Bandit!"
Percy had not been aware that there were more challengers.
The crowd erupted into cheers once again. The atmosphere became electric, and the once-rowdy spectators grew quiet, as if they sensed something different was about to happen. Percy looked toward the entrance of the arena, where a small figure stepped forward.
The new challenger was a girl, barely a teenager. She stood confidently, her hands clasped behind her back, her feet planted firmly on the earth as though she'd been there her whole life.
Percy furrowed his brow, unsure of what to make of this new fighter. She didn't look like she could throw boulders around with the same strength as the giant, but the crowd's reaction told a different story. They were whispering excitedly, some even chanting her name.
"Toph! Toph! Toph!"
Percy couldn't help but be intrigued. The girl made her way toward the center of the arena, her movements smooth and sure. She had short, dark hair, and though she was clearly young, there was an undeniable presence about her.
As she reached the center of the ring, the announcer boomed, "And now we have the Earth Rumble VI's reigning champion, the Blind Bandit herself, Toph Beifong!"
Percy blinked in surprise. He'd never heard of her, but the way the crowd reacted made it clear that this was no ordinary opponent.
"Who will win! The newcomer, the Earthshaker, or our very own Blind Bandit!"
Was he meant to be the Earthshaker?
Toph's lips curled into a small, confident smile as she aced Percy, her expression unreadable. She didn't even seem to notice the giant still retreating toward the sidelines.
"Well, well," Toph said with a cocky grin, "you've got some moves, Earthshaker. But let's see how you handle this."
Percy's eyes narrowed, but he didn't have time to dwell on it as Toph's stance shifted, her feet sinking slightly into the earth. There was no dramatic gesture, no flashy movements, just a quiet confidence that immediately put Percy on edge.
Before Percy could react, the ground beneath him trembled once again, but this time it wasn't from him. It was from her. The ground surged upwards, but it wasn't boulders flying at him; it was sharp, jagged rocks that shot up like spears from the earth, each one narrowly missing Percy's torso by inches.
"Whoa, hey, that's cheating!" Percy shouted, dodging to the side. "You could've warned me!"
Toph smirked. "Where's the fun in that?" She didn't even flinch as another wave of rocks flew at Percy, forcing him to duck and roll to avoid being impaled.
The arena was alive with excitement, the crowd roaring in approval at the spectacle. Percy, however, had no intention of being some punching bag for a cocky earthbender.
She was good, no doubt about it. But Percy wasn't about to let someone walk all over him.
He stomped his foot, commanding the ground to shift beneath him, but rather than just pushing rocks into the air, he focused his power, making the arena itself come alive beneath his feet. The ground cracked open, but not with jagged spears like Toph's. Instead, it twisted and rolled, sending massive tendrils of earth toward her.
Toph's eyes widened slightly, an unusual reaction for someone so confident, but she was quick to respond. With a simple flick of her wrist, she twisted the ground beneath her feet, sending a wall of rock up to block the tendrils before they could reach her.
"Not bad," Toph said with a smirk, "but you'll have to do better than that."
She was right. He couldn't out-earthbend someone who'd been doing it their whole life without the element of surprise.
He needed to level the playing field, and if his gut was right, there was one way to do that.
A deep rumble filled the arena as Percy reached into the ground, focusing on the water beneath the surface.
Water was everywhere, right? That was what the Naiad had said, back in the Labyrinth. Water was everywhere.
And Percy was it's master.
With a final, decisive motion, he slammed his hands to the ground.
Water.
He could feel it, hidden under layers of earth, veins of it running through the ground, deep and hidden but still there. It had always been his connection, his element, his strength. It didn't matter that he was surrounded by rock and dirt; water could be anywhere, and he could command it.
The arena trembled as Percy's will shaped the earth beneath him, coaxing the water from deep below the surface. The moisture collected and rose, twisting and turning with purpose. Water began to surge through the cracks in the dirt, pooling around his feet, rising up.
Toph, for the first time, froze. Her eyes narrowed as she felt the ground shift in a way she hadn't anticipated. "What are you doing?" she said, her confidence faltering for just a fraction of a second.
Percy smirked.
The water, rising like a beast unleashed, surged forward in a massive wave. It crashed toward Toph, curling around the rocks she raised to block it, flowing between her defenses and sweeping her off her feet.
"Here we go," he muttered under his breath.
Toph, however, wasn't backing down. With a laugh, she stomped her foot, sending the earth beneath her feet to meet the oncoming attack head-on.
The two forces collided in a massive explosion of water and rock, the arena shaking as if it were about to collapse entirely.
The crowd gasped in disbelief. The spectacle had shifted in an instant. This wasn't just an earthbender versus an earthbender anymore. This was something different. Something none of them had ever seen.
They wanted a show? He'd give them one.
Toph quickly regained her footing, though she looked rattled. "Water? Seriously?" she grinned, wiping water from her face. "Well, this is new." Her posture shifted again, and the ground beneath her began to rumble as she prepared for another counterattack, but Percy wasn't going to give her the chance.
With a swipe of his hand, the water rose again, swirling like a cyclone, pushing and pulling against the earth beneath Toph's feet. The wet earth was slick, making it difficult for her to maintain control.
The crowd's cheers were deafening, the energy in the arena so thick you could feel it vibrating in the air. Percy took a breath, focusing his energy, his mind clear. He had a small window, Toph was distracted, her attention split between defending herself and attacking him.
Percy had what may have been the dumbest idea since he blew up a volcano.
With a sudden motion, he snapped his fingers. The water surged in response, splashing around her, and with it came a sharp burst of ice. It shot up in jagged spikes, freezing the surface of the earth around her, locking her feet in place.
Toph gasped as she felt the cold bite into her skin, but she didn't panic. She was, after all, Toph Beifong, the Blind Bandit, the undefeated earthbender.
Well, not undefeated for long.
With a swift movement of his hand, Percy sent a sharp wave of water crashing down, shattering the ice with a force that sent the pieces - and Toph - flying in all directions.
The Blind Bandit groaned from the ground.
"And victory goes to the Earthshaker!" The announcer said, though he sounded confused. "Or should I say, the waterbender?"
Percy ears were assaulted by the cheers.
"Waterbender?" the crowd echoed, voices rising.
Percy stood there, panting. His heart was racing, but his lips tugged into a smirk. He didn't bother correcting the announcer. Let them think what they wanted. Waterbender, earthbender, it didn't matter. He had won.
Just what he had won, he had no idea.
Toph, however, was already picking herself up. A groan escaped her as she dusted herself off, shaking off shards of ice like they were nothing more than specks of dirt. "Alright, that's it," she said, planting her hands on her hips. "You win this one, water boy. But don't think for a second this is over."
Percy raised an eyebrow. "You're a sore loser, huh?"
"Sore? Ha!" Toph barked a laugh, stomping her foot for emphasis. The ground trembled slightly. "You're just lucky I went easy on you."
He chuckled, wiping sweat from his brow. "Yeah, sure. Easy."
The crowd's excitement hadn't waned, and the announcer's voice rose above the noise. "What an upset, folks! The Blind Bandit has been defeated! And by a... well, whatever this guy is! Give it up for the Earthshaker!"
Percy resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the nickname. The crowd clearly loved it, and as much as he wanted to correct them, he figured it wasn't worth the effort. He just wanted to sit down and maybe not feel like his limbs were about to fall off.
Toph approached him, a sly grin on her face. "You're alright, Earthshaker," she said, extending a hand. "For someone who doesn't know what they're doing, anyway."
Percy raised an eyebrow but accepted the handshake. "Thanks, I think? You're pretty good yourself. Though, for a second there, I thought I actually had you. You can just call me Percy, by the way."
Her grin widened mischievously. "You wish."
The crowd's cheers were still going strong, but Percy's exhaustion was catching up with him. He glanced at the jagged remains of ice and disrupted earth scattered across the arena, marveling at how intense the fight had been. "You've got some serious skill," he admitted. "How'd you even know where to aim?"
Toph's grin turned into a full-blown smirk. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
Percy frowned at the cryptic response. "Okay, now you're just messing with me. Seriously, though. You were dodging and countering everything like you could see it coming."
Toph tilted her head, clearly amused. "Who says I can see anything?"
That caught Percy off guard. He stared at her, the realization dawning. The Blind Bandit. "Wait, you're-"
"Blind," she finished nonchalantly, as if stating the weather. "But don't worry, I get by."
Percy blinked, momentarily stunned. "You're telling me you just fought me without being able to see?"
"Yup." She leaned on her heel, clearly enjoying his reaction. "You should see your face right now. Well, I guess I can't see it either, but-"
"Okay, okay, I get it," Percy interrupted, shaking his head. "I just beat up a blind kid. Thanks for making me feel worse."
Toph laughed, crossing her arms. "Hey, you did better than most. Maybe next time, try not to be so predictable."
"Predictable?" Percy spluttered. "I literally pulled water out of the ground and froze your feet!"
"Exactly," Toph said with a shrug. "Saw it coming."
"Unbelievable," Percy muttered, though he couldn't help but smile. Toph's confidence was infectious, and despite her teasing, he found himself liking her. If this place had more people like her, he figured he was in for quite the adventure.
"So," he said. "How did you… fight me?"
Toph grinned again. She seemed to be doing that a lot. "My very own, patented, seismic sense!"
"Your what?"
"It's how I know where everything is," Toph explained, stomping her foot on the ground. Percy felt the faint tremor beneath him. "The vibrations in the earth tell me what's going on. Where people are standing, how they're moving, even the shape of their faces if they're close enough."
Percy's eyebrows shot up. "That's… incredible. You mean you can feel everything around you?"
Toph smirked, clearly enjoying his amazement. "Pretty much. It's like seeing, but better. I don't need light or color to know when someone's about to eat dirt." She tilted her head, her grin widening. "And you, water boy, gave yourself away every time you so much as twitched."
"Great," Percy said dryly, folding his arms.
Toph shrugged. "Eh, you did alright. That ice trick was clever. It's not every day I have to deal with someone who can waterbend like that."
"Not waterbending," Percy corrected automatically, then sighed. "But I guess it doesn't matter what you call it."
"Oh, it matters," Toph said, raising a finger. "Earth Rumble VI doesn't exactly have a 'water' category, you know. You're lucky they let you fight at all."
Percy glanced at the crowd, who were still chanting "Earthshaker!" at the top of their lungs. He couldn't help but roll his eyes at the nickname. "Yeah, real lucky," he muttered. "Not like they forced me to fight or anything."
Toph laughed, slapping him on the shoulder. "Don't look so grumpy. You just won your first match in the big leagues. Not bad for someone who's probably never been in an earthbending arena before."
"Is it that obvious?" Percy asked, brushing some dirt off his pants.
"You don't exactly scream 'professional,'" Toph quipped. "But hey, I've got to admit, you surprised me. Most of the guys I fight are all muscle, no brains. You've got… something different."
Percy couldn't tell if that was supposed to be a compliment or not, but he decided to take it. "Thanks, I think."
"Don't get too comfortable," Toph warned, jabbing a finger in his direction. "Next time, I won't go easy on you."
Percy snorted. "You keep saying that, but from where I'm standing, you didn't hold back much."
She smirked again. "You'll know when I'm serious. Trust me."
They walked out of the arena. "Hey," Percy said. "Maybe you could teach me how to use this seismic sense thing."
"You don't even bend the same way," Toph said. "I control the earth, but you just… push it."
Percy tilted his head. "What?"
Toph shot him a sideways glance, her grin wide and mischievous, instead of answering the question. "You think you can handle it?"
"The seeing without seeing?" He raised an eyebrow. "You telling me you can teach me? I mean, I'm all for learning, but the idea sounds pretty... out there."
Toph shrugged, her hands behind her head as she walked, clearly unfazed by the idea. "You're gonna have to work for it, Earthshaker. It's not something you can just pick up. Takes years of training and even more stubbornness than you've got." She glanced at him, her lips curving in that playful smirk. "And trust me, you've got a lot of stubbornness to go around."
Percy snorted, a grin tugging at his lips. "I can be stubborn when I want to be." He thought for a moment, then added, "But seismic sense, huh? That's pretty impressive."
"It's a gift," she said "But it's not easy. Not a lot of people can handle it. If you want to try, though… I'll teach you."
"Deal," Percy said, his voice determined. "I'll take whatever you can teach me. Maybe I'll surprise you."
She let out a short laugh. "Oh, I'm not worried about that. You've already surprised me once, and I'm pretty sure it's gonna take more than a few moves to top that." She paused for a moment. "But don't think I'll go easy on you. You might be a quick learner, but I don't hand out freebies."
Percy nodded, more serious now. "I wouldn't want you to. I'm not looking for a free ride."
They walked in silence for a moment, the roar of the crowd dying down behind them.
Whatever adventure was waiting for him, it wasn't over yet.
"So," Percy said, his voice light, trying to keep things casual, "How does one go about sensing the world around them without using their eyes?"
Toph's grin returned. "Later, Earthshaker. I'm beat."
And for the first time since he arrived in this strange place, Percy felt a sense of security. He might have been in a whole new world, but he'd manage.
He was, of course, wrong.
Yes, this is Percy/Katara. Thoughts?