Half-Blooded Harmony: The Lightning Thief

The group considered themselves lucky the Coast Guard had their hands too full to wonder how they made it into the middle of the bay like they did. All they did was pick them up off the buoy, give them merch, and drop them at the Santa Monica Pier. Percy was just glad he’d somehow willed himself wet and given his shoes to Grover, or the Coast Guard would’ve asked too many questions they couldn’t answer.

They stumbled onto the beach, watching the sun rise against the city burning with Hades’ anger, exhausted like they’d come back from the dead – which they had – while Percy was weighed down by the Master Bolt in his backpack… and from having to leave his mother behind.

“I don’t believe it…” Annabeth gasped in exhaustion. “We went all that way-”

“It was a trick,” Percy said bitterly. “A strategy worthy of Athena.”

“Hey!” Annabeth snapped.

“Prove him wrong,” Twilight argued quickly. “Don’t you get it?”

Annabeth sighed, her eyes falling. “Yeah, I get it.”

“Well, I don’t!” Grover said seriously. “Would somebody-?!”

“Percy…” Annabeth started. “I’m-” Pinkie set her hand on Annabeth’s shoulder to cut her off – she knew what she was about to say, but it was clear Percy would cry if they talked about that right now.

“The prophecy was right,” Percy said angrily. “‘You shall go west and face the god who has turned’.”

“But it wasn’t Hades – he himself admitted to not wanting war among his brothers.” Rarity agreed. “Someone else robbed Olympus for the Master Bolt, and him for his Helm.”

“And framed Percy because he’s Poseidon’s kid.” Rainbow nodded. “Both sides blame him and if we don’t get to Olympus by nightfall, all three sides go to war and it’s all our fault.”

Grover just shook his head, clearly mystified. “But who would be that sneaky? Who would want war that bad?”

Twilight just narrowed her eyes as everyone looked down the beach. “Why don’t you ask him yourself?” And sure enough, there on the far end of the beach, waiting for the group, was Ares, leaning against his bike with an aluminum baseball bat on his shoulder, the headlight of his bike casting a red light on the sand.

“Hey kids.” he greased, seeming almost genuinely pleased to see them. “You were supposed to die.”

“Terribly sorry to disappoint.” Rarity said sarcastically.

“You tricked us,” Percy said angrily. “You stole the Helm and the Master Bolt.”

Ares just grinned arrogantly. “Well, now, I didn’t steal them personally. Gods taking each other’s symbols of power – that’s a big no-no. But you’re not the only hero in the world who can run errands.”

“So who did you use?” Rainbow asked. “Clarisse? She was on Olympus for the solstice, wasn’t she?”

Ares just chuckled. “Doesn’t matter. The point is, kids, you’re impeding the war effort here,” he explained. “See, Jackson here’s got to die in the Underworld. Then Old Seaweed will be mad at Hades for killing him. Corpse Breath will have Zeus’s Master Bolt, so Zeus’ll be mad at him. And Hades is still looking for this…” He retrieved a ski cap from his pocket and placed it between the handlebars of his bike, and immediately it transformed into an elaborate bronze war helmet.

“The Helm of Darkness…” Grover gasped.

“Exactly.” Ares grinned. “Now where was I? Oh yeah; Hades will be mad at both Zeus and Poseidon, because he doesn’t know who took this. Pretty soon, we got a nice little three-way slugfest going.”

“But they’re your family!” Annabeth protested.

Ares just shrugged as if he didn’t care. “Best kinda war. Always the bloodiest. Nothing like watching your relatives fight, I always say.”

Twilight almost believed he did indeed always say that. “You gave me the backpack in Denver,” Percy remembered. “The Master Bolt was in there the whole time.”

“Well… yes and no.” Ares countered. “It’s probably too complicated for your little mortal brains to follow, but the backpack is the Master Bolt’s sheath, just morphed a bit. The Bolt is connected to it, sort of like that sword you got, kid. It always returns to your pocket, right?”

“Wait, how did you know that?” Pinkie asked, almost genuinely surprised he knew that.

“He’s the God of War.” Rainbow reminded, glaring at Ares. “It’s his business to know weapons, isn’t it?”

“Ten points.” Ares grinned at Rainbow sarcastically. “Anyway, I tinkered with the magic of the sheath a bit, so the Bolt would only return to the sheath once you reached the Underworld. You get close to Hades… bingo, you got mail. If you died along the way – no loss. I still had the weapon.”

“Then why not just keep it to yourself?” Spike pointed out. “If it’s as powerful as everyone says it is, why send it to Hades?”

Ares’ jaw twitched a bit in response to that, and for a moment, it almost looked like he was listening to another voice from deep inside his head. “Why didn’t I… Yeah… with that kind of firepower…” He held the trance for a few seconds; long enough for the group to exchange nervous glances.

“Uh… is he okay?” Pinkie asked quietly.

“I’m honestly not sure…” Fluttershy shrugged in return.

Ares’s face cleared as he looked back at the kids. “I didn’t want the trouble,” he said simply. “Better to have you caught redhanded, holding the thing.”

Applejack just narrowed her eyes at the god as she adjusted her hat. “You’re lyin’,” she said. “Sendin’ the Bolt down to Hades wasn’t yer idea, was it?”

“Of course it was!” Ares barked, smoke drifting up from behind his shades like his eyes were about to burst into visible flames.

“You didn’t order the theft.” Percy guessed. “Someone else sent a hero to steal two items. Then, when Zeus sent you to hunt him down, you caught the thief. But you didn’t turn him over to Zeus.” The girls could see Ares getting angry as he dissected everything that happened. “Something convinced you to let him go. You kept the items until another hero could come along and complete the delivery. That thing in the pit is ordering you around!”

That gave Rainbow pause; what was in the pit and why did those sneakers Luke gave them go straight down there? She didn’t have much time to think about that though, because Ares looked like he was ready to explode. “I am the God of War!” he bellowed, his eyes burning under his shades. “I take orders from no one! I don’t have dreams!”

“Aha!” Spike laughed with a grin. “We never said anything about dreams.”

Ares looked shocked and agitated, but he tried his hardest to cover it up with a smirk as he looked at Percy. “Let’s get back to the matter at hand here, kid. You’re alive. I can’t have you taking that Bolt to Olympus. You just might get those hard-headed idiots to listen to you. So I’ve got to kill you. Nothing personal.”

“It feels pretty personal to me,” Rainbow argued, but Ares didn’t listen – he just snapped his fingers and the sand at his feet exploded to let a massive angry wild boar charge out, even bigger and uglier than the one whose head hung above the door of Cabin 7 at camp.

Fluttershy stepped back, not even bothering to try to talk to the beast – it would probably never listen to her anyway or just get overruled by orders from its master – as it pawed at the sand, glaring at Percy with beady eyes before it lowered its head, its razor-sharp tusks poised and ready for the command to kill.

Percy just scowled as he stepped into the water, the surf lapping at his ankles. “Fight me yourself, Ares.”

The god just laughed, but Pinkie could very easily sense an unease in it. “You’ve only got one talent, kid, running away,” he smirked. “You ran from the Chimera. You ran from the Underworld. You don’t have what it takes.”

Percy just smirked. “Scared?”

“In your adolescent dreams.” Ares scowled, his sunglasses telling a different story as they started to melt away from the heat of his eyes. “No direct involvement. Sorry, kid. You’re not on my level.”

“Percy, run!” Annabeth screamed as the boar charged. But it was clear Percy was done running as he stood firm in the water. He drew Riptide and slashed upward, severing the boar’s right tusk in one fluid swing as it fell into the water at his feet while the disoriented beast charged into the ocean.

“Wave!” As if responding to Percy’s command, a huge wave surged up from the ocean and grabbed the boar, dragging it out to sea as it squealed in terror before it was swallowed.

Rainbow and the other girls grinned as they walked over next to Percy, raising their own weapons. “Still think he’s not on your level, old man?” she asked.

“Are you going to fight me now?” Percy asked. “Or are you going to hide behind another pet pig?”

Ares’s face was purple with rage – almost the exact same shade as Twilight’s coat. “Watch it, kid.” he threatened. “I could turn you and all your furry freak friends here into-”

“Cockroaches.” Percy interrupted. “Or a tapeworm. Yeah, I’m sure. That’d save you from getting your godly hide whipped, wouldn’t it?”

Flames danced on the tops of Ares’s sunglasses. “Oh man, you are really asking to be smashed into a grease spot.”

“Then what are you waiting for? Do it.” Twilight taunted. “You and Percy, one-on-one, right now. If you win, turn him into whatever you like and take the Bolt. But if he wins, the Helm of Darkness and the Master Bolt go back to their owners. And you get lost.”

Ares simply turned to Percy and swung the baseball bat off his shoulder. “How would you like to get smashed: classic or modern?” Percy just held Riptide forward, the light of the sunrise glinting on the blade. “That’s cool, dead boy. Classic it is.” His baseball bat shifted in his hands into a huge, two-handed sword with a large silver skull with a ruby in its mouth for the hilt.

“Percy!” Annabeth said seriously as she moved to his side. “Don’t do this. He’s a god.”

“He’s a coward.” Percy countered.

Annabeth just gulped and took off her necklace. “Wear this, at least. For luck.” She tied the necklace around Percy’s neck – five years of camp beads and her father’s college ring all there at his throat. “Reconciliation. Athena and Poseidon together.”

Percy blushed a bit, but he managed a smile. “Thanks.”

“And take this.” Grover smiled and handed him a flattened tin can he’d probably been saving in his pocket since Half-Blood Hill. “The satyrs stand beside you.”

“Grover… I don’t know what to say.”

“Then don’t say anything.” Rarity smiled as she raised her rapier. “It’s been my experience that actions speak louder than words.”

“You all done saying goodbye?” Ares asked as he approached Percy, his coat trailing behind him as his sword glinted like fire in the sunrise. “I’ve been fighting for eternity, kid. My strength is unlimited and I cannot die. What have you got?”

“He’s got us,” Twilight assured as her friends gathered around her. “And we know that as long as he’s got friends behind him, Percy’s never going to lose.” Before Ares could respond, Twilight was suddenly enveloped in a bright magenta aura. Her ears shifted into purple pony ears atop her head, her hair extended into a long ponytail and the back of her shirt opened up to let her wings pop out. Then her crown appeared atop her head with the bright purple gemstone on the top – the last of the Elements of Harmony, returned as if by the grace of the other gods.

Ares scowled at this and stepped back away from the girls. “All right. Honor. I don’t totally trust that. One-on-one, remember?” He snapped his fingers again, and this time, a group of undead soldiers from Hades’s palace rose from the ground. “Play nice and die quickly for these guys; I’m callin’ you a present for Hades.”

“Not gonna happen.” Rainbow smiled as she drew her swords.

“Took the words right out of my mouth.” Twilight grinned and raised her spear. She roared to sound a charge against the undead soldiers, their weapons clashing hard as Ares swung at Percy, only striking air as the young half-blood moved, keeping his feet in the water.

Everyone fought with their raw instincts, blades clashing hard against each other and battlefield reflexes doing their movements for them. Percy nearly got a good strike in at Ares’s spine, but the god deflected it with his own sword very easily. “Not bad, not bad.” Unfortunately, it got worse from there. as he drove Percy out of the water and wouldn’t let him back in.

The girls weren’t having much better luck as they fought the undead warriors, clearly all much stronger than them, but they remembered all of Luke’s lessons from combat training to put them on the back foot as Percy was suddenly launched into a large dune in the beach. “Guys! Cops!” Annabeth called.

Rainbow had just delivered a powerful swooping strike at her opponent’s wrist, and glanced up in response, seeing the red lights flashing on the shoreline boulevard and hearing people yelling about the news. “Oh no. Twilight, we need cover!”

“All right. Let me try something.” Twilight nodded and swung her spear upward, the tip now striped like her horn and glowing with her magic aura. No one could really see anything for a second, but then the girls’ undead opponents flickered into the image of normal humans, dressed similarly to Ares. “Huh. Guess I can control the Mist. Good to know.”

With the cover established, the girls dispatched their undead opponents very quickly before they turned to watch Percy get back into the water during his duel with Ares. Then a cop started yelling over a megaphone. “Drop the guns! Set them on the ground! Now!”

This was confusing, but they saw Ares’s sword flicker to the image of a large shotgun and back – probably the Mist at further work. Though Ares didn’t seem to enjoy the attention. “This is a private matter!” he bellowed. “Be gone!” With a swing of his hand, a massive wall of red fire rolled over the cop cars. The cops and witnesses barely had time to roll clear before the vehicles exploded and Ares roared with laughter. “Now, little hero. Let’s add you to the barbecue.”

Percy was certainly handling himself well as the tide hit him in the back, Ares wading in after him. Twilight could easily see what their friend was planning as the water roiled around him. Then a huge wave shot behind Percy and he rode it straight over Ares, a six-foot wall of water smashing him full in the face. “Incoming!” Rainbow yelled as the wave shot toward the girls.

Quickly they all dove for cover as Percy jumped and swung at Ares, feinting perfectly to get in a strike at the god’s heel, making him let out an ear-splitting roar in pain as his golden blood flowed into the water. Ares’s face was a mask of absolute shock and anger that he’d actually been hit as he limped toward Percy, muttering ancient Greek curses… when something stopped him.

It was almost like a massive cloud rolled over the sun, but it was far worse – light itself faded as sound and color drained away, a cold and heavy presence passing over the beach. It felt as though time itself was slowing down, the ambient temperature dropping to freezing and an overwhelming feeling passing over everyone to make them feel as though fighting – life itself – was hopeless.

Then the darkness lifted and Ares looked stunned. “Uh… what was that?” Rainbow asked seriously, scared and confused.

Ares just lowered his sword as he glared at Percy. “You have made an enemy, godling,” he said bitterly. “You have sealed your fate. Every time you raise your blade in battle, every time you hope for success, you will feel my curse. Beware, Perseus Jackson. Beware.” Then his body began to glow.

“Percy! Girls! Don’t watch!” Annabeth shouted.

Everyone quickly took the warning and shielded their eyes as a massive wave of light emanated from Ares, revealing his true godly form. The whole group had the distinct feeling that if they even peeked at the sight, they’d probably be vaporized. The light faded and as the group looked again, they saw Ares was gone. The tide rolled out to reveal the Helm of Darkness, which Percy picked up and walked toward his friends… but he didn’t make it.

The Furies drifted down in front of him with flaming whips and lace hats. The one in the middle – Mrs. Dodds, as she had once been known – stepped forward with bared fangs, but not in a threatening way; more disappointed, as if she’d been planning to eat Percy, but had decided against it. “We saw the whole thing.” she hissed. “So… it truly was not you?”

Percy just tossed her the helmet, which she caught in surprise. “Return that to Lord Hades,” he said. “Tell him the truth. Tell him to call off the war.”

She hesitated but as Twilight and the girls walked to flank Percy, she nodded as she ran her forked tongue over her green leathery lips. “Live well, Percy Jackson. Become a true hero. Because if you do not… if you ever come into my clutches again…”

“If that happens… then may the best warrior win.” Twilight threatened.

Mrs. Dodds just cackled, as if savoring the idea. Then she and her sisters shot into the sky on their bat wings and disappeared.

“Percy…” Grover said as he and Annabeth stared at him and the others in shock. “That was so incredibly…”

“Terrifying,” Annabeth noted.

“Cool!” Grover corrected.

“I think you both mean ‘totally awesome’!” Rainbow pointed out.

Percy certainly didn’t feel awesome – everyone could tell he was drained. “Did you guys feel that… whatever it was?” he asked.

“Kinda hard to miss,” Applejack noted as everyone else nodded.

“Must’ve been the Furies overhead,” Grover said uneasily.

“You and I both know that there’s no way that’s what that was,” Rainbow argued – whatever that was, it was probably a hundred times more powerful than the Furies at least. Percy glanced over at Annabeth, and an understanding passed over the two of them and the rest of the group. It was the being from the pits of Tartarus, that had been in Percy’s dreams.

Rainbow grabbed the backpack from Grover and opened it up again, looking at the Master Bolt inside. The next world war was about to start, and all over a big rod of bronze. “I think we all know the next step,” she said to the others.

“Yeah.” Percy nodded. “We have to get back to New York. By tonight.”

“That’s impossible,” Annabeth argued. “Unless we-”

“Fly.”

Annabeth just stared at Percy. “Fly, like, in an airplane, which you were warned never to do lest Zeus strike you out of the sky and carrying a weapon that has more destructive power than a nuclear bomb?”

“Yeah.” Percy nodded. “Pretty much exactly like that.”

“That is the single dumbest idea I have ever heard,” Annabeth said firmly.

“And I suppose you’ve got a better idea?” Annabeth glanced out to sea at Applejack’s question, giving her the answer. “That’s what I thought.”