Chapter 12: You Must Be Lion

Chapter 12: You Must Be Lion

...

Tyson and Hades stood before the Ultimate Weapon, staring in awe at its sleek, spiked spinal architecture as it pulsed with an overwhelming amount of condensed divinity.

The pressure emanating from it made the air feel like ice. Hades sensed his divine spirit waver. Every cell in his body screamed at him to get as far away as possible.

"ROOOOOAAAR!"

A lion's proud roar reverberated through the chamber. Tyson and Hades snapped their gazes upward to lock eyes with a pair of glowing predatory eyes locked onto them.

"Now what?" Hades narrowed his eyes.

The beast moved.

A blur of yellow dropped from above, slamming into the ground with force that caused spiderwebbed cracks beneath its paws. Each one tipped with claws as white as polished ivory and looking sharp enough to cut celestial bronze like a hot knife through butter. The golden mane shimmered under the reflection from the Ultimate Weapon's light. The lion's body was big and muscular, its biceps large enough to break buildings.

Standing almost as tall as Tyson's larger form, the beast blocked their path. "Lion of Nemea." Hades revealed its identity.

It was none other than the Nemean Lion. An ancient monster said to have an indestructible hide that fought Hercules as the first of his labors and fell by the demigod's chokehold.

And here it was, blocking their path to the doomsday device.

Because it was a monster, no matter how many times it was slain in battle, it would always reform in Tartarus and return.

The ancient monster fought countless demigods until encountering Perseus. They faced each other in a one-on-one showdown. Needless to say, the winner from that confrontation was the son of Poseidon who, instead of taking its life, decided to take it as his pet and made the lion his familiar.

A familiar was a magical being or creature like sprites, animals, insects, etc., contracted to a master to serve and obey their every command, and if they ever disobeyed their master, they would suffer severe punishment. The summoned creature has no choice in the matter.

That's how it normally went, but Perseus had a different idea. He altered the familiar spell so that the golden lion would have a choice whether or not to heed his order, giving it more freedom than no sorcerer would ever normally allow.

The reason why he did that was because the silver demigod became fond of its wild and unyielding nature, even when faced with his power, and immediately knew he wanted it.

The silver demigod chose it because he became fond of its wild and unrelenting nature, even when faced against his power, and immediately knew he wanted it as his pet.

It was easier said than done. The first time Perseus summoned it, the Nemean lion lunged at him the first chance it got, only to get beaten up moments later. Again and again it lashed out against the son of Poseidon every time it was summoned to tear his throat, no matter how futile it was.

It was completely defiant and refused to submit, and that's exactly why Perseus wanted it to be his pet. From their constant fighting, the lion came to learn its master was just as defiant as him.

In the end, it was successfully tamed, and he named it Regulus.

Since then, Regulus's behavior had changed. It became loyal to him. Willing to tear his enemies to shreds and curl on its master's lap like an average housecat.

Regulus was actually his second familiar. Before the war, Perseus had freed her to keep their pantheon separate and keep her safe. She too is a feline like Regulus. Egyptian.

Back to the story. Regulus's eyes scanned the intruders. It paid Tyson a little mind, as it was already familiar with his scent.

As for Hades, on the other hand, the golden lion let out a low growl, baring its fangs. Its claws scraped against the floors with its blazing eyes locked on him as if daring him to get past.

"Regulus!" Tyson called out happily.

The lion's glowing eyes flicked toward him for a brief moment only immediately snap back to the God of the Dead.

Hades hardened his gaze. The Nemean Lion. Since he was always busy managing the dead, he hasn't had the opportunity to ever meet it when it became grown.

"You know each other?" He turned to his one-eyed nephew for an answer.

Tyson beamed. "Yeah. It's big brother's familiar!" He replied. Then, with a quick glance at his uncle, he added, "It's also his favorite pet too."

He said it as a warning. A subtle one, but enough to make Hades stop and think even for a moment.

The Lord of the Underworld gave a double take. He rarely went out of his domain, and it's been thousands of years since he last saw the Nemean Lion, but he could swear he never heard it to be this large and imposing.

Shaking his head at the momentary astonishment, Hades exhaled sharply and leveled his Bident at the golden lion. "Out of the way, spawn of Typhon and Echidna." He demanded in an icy tone.

But Regulus did not heed his warning.

The lion's muscles tensed, veins pulsing under its hide. The air around it rippled. There was no discussion to be had. It was ready for a fight.

Hades frowned at its behavior. He had no time for this.

Hades stepped forward, going to put the beast down without killing it. Darkness exploded out of his fist. But it was strange. It was considerably weaker than before. 'Odd?' He thought for a second but didn't stop.

He would bring the overgrown cat down in one strike. Thanks to its indestructible hide, it would survive.

"ROOOOOAAAARRR!" Regulus let out a massive roar.

Regulus's body ignited, divine power erupting from its core. Its mane flared outward like a wildfire of pure gold, whipping violently in the air. It was enough to send tremors everywhere as the floor shattered more beneath it.

Hades stopped, bewildered.

"That power—it's almost… Olympian!"

It increased its strength to a completely different height. Where it once could threaten minor deities with its claws and fangs, it now was a threat to the Olympians themselves, not counting the Big Three or the Three Sisters.

A familiar contract was a special kind of magic that bound master and servant. When done by a professional, it had mutual benefits for both parties. Because of the spell, Regulus had become stronger by inheriting some of Perseus's abilities to a lesser extent.

A special mutation had occurred.

Regulus's strength had grown further. Where it once threatened minor deities with claws and fangs, it now stood one step above them and could hold its own with Olympians. Save for the Big Three and the Three Sisters, there were few who could match it.

Hades own aura flared, his grip on his weapon tightening. Before they could brawl, Tyson stepped between them.

"Wait!" The Cyclops raised his massive hands, his eye wide with urgency. "Don't fight!" Then, turning to Hades, he spoke with a firm tone. "Hades, put down your weapons."

Hades hesitated at first, but now wasn't the time to argue. Wasting time fighting the overgrown cat was not in his best interest. Listening to his nephew, he stopped the flow of his aura to this nephew and dropped his weapon and helm on the ground.

Tyson mouthed a silent thank you before shifting his attention back to Regulus. Slowly, cautiously, he approached, his singular eye filled with warmth.

"Regulus, I know you." He murmured, his voice soft, soothing. "You care about Big Brother, just like me. That's why I'm here to stop him."

The lion's heavy breathing slowed, its massive frame losing some of its tension. Besides Perseus, it enjoyed Tyson's presence almost as much. But it couldn't just stand down. It had its orders.

'Protect the device at all costs, but listen to Tyson.' That's what its master had told it the day before.

An odd request. Why had its master ordered it to guard the strange machine and yet follow his younger brother's words?

The divine pressure of the Nemean lion's aura began to fade. Tyson took another step and stretched out his hand to pat it.

The massive lion nudged its head against Tyson's palm, letting out a deep, joyful rumble vibrating from its chest. Tyson grinned, his fingers sinking into the thick fur. "That's a good kitty."

Hades stared at them with a blank expression. Seriously? He had been this close—this close—to a full-fledged battle, and the Cyclops subdued it without so much as a hassle.

The scene reminded him too much of himself and Cerberus. He adored his three-headed mutt. His little Spot. He briefly wondered if the demigod thought the same about the cat.

"Are you done?" Hades asked dryly, tapping his foot.

Tyson grinned. "Almost. It's kind of addicting. Who's a good kitty?" He rubbed Regulus's giant neck, earning another pleased rumble. He turned to his uncle. "You want to try? He won't bite."

Hades shook his head no. "I'm more of a dog person." He answered flatly. The lord of the dead retrieved his weapons. "Tell it to wait outside or something."

"Sure." Tyson stopped striking the lion and said, "Regulus, you need to go now. Uncle and I have some business to take care of."

The lion growled lowly, its golden eyes filled with conflict. It was ordered to protect the device. But it didn't want to disobey its master's younger brother.

Tyson placed a hand against its head. "Please. It's for Big Brother." His voice was gentle.

Regulus ultimately nodded and let out a roar. Winds whipped as its body glowed. The massive lion grew smaller and smaller until it stood the same size as the average lion. It nuzzled Tyson's leg one last time before its body dissolved into golden stardust.

Hades raised a brow. "Where'd he go?"

He wasn't an expert in magic, having never needed to learn it before. He knew regular divine magic, but that was something every deity knew how to do, so it wasn't quite the same.

Tyson shrugged. "Probably back to Percy. But don't worry. I don't think he'll tell him what we're doing…" He paused, rubbing the back of his head. "Maybe."

Hades' expression remained unconvinced.

"Now," Tyson clapped his hands together. "Let's get back to what we are doing."

With the guardian neutralized, they turned to face the Ultimate Weapon. That's when the countdown flashed above them.

T-MINUS 20:00 UNTIL FIRING SEQUENCE ACTIVATION.

A cold, robotic voice echoed from the speakers.

Tyson and Hades exchanged a look.

The clock was ticking.

19:59…19:58…19:57—

They got closer to it until stopping at the base of it.

"Alright," Tyson kneeled, pulling out the two devices. "First, we place this one." He attached the first device to the base of the weapon.

*CLIP.*

The first device stuck to the weapon with an audible click. A low hum filled the chamber as the energy field around the weapon weakened before coming back with a vengeance along with a deafening sound.

*VOOM!*

An immense pressure unlike anything they ever felt hit them like a truck. It was hard to breathe. The two gasped for breath as they used their respective auras to barely resist it.

*LIGHTNING!*

*LIGHTNING!*

Electricity sparked wildly with insane amounts of divine power. They were far more powerful than Zeus and destroyed a large part of the ceiling, leaving a hole above them that stretched for who knows how long. Hades took a step back, shielding himself with shadows and darkness to assist in dealing with the pressure.

*RUMBLE!*

The floors shook as the multicolored lightning became more and more intense. A pressure was building, and the two were struggling to breathe. They felt their divine power leaking out of them and into the weapon.

Hades almost couldn't hear the Cyclops yelling at him. "Now we need to put it on top where all the divine particles were stored!" He shouted, handing him the second device while pointing upwards.

The Lord of the Underworld took it, and with all the strength he had in him, jumped up. He was soaring up to the middle. Before the pressure could get to him and bring him down, he conjured wings made of shadows from his back, helping him get up higher.

Hell flames sprang forth from them, and he commanded them to increase his velocity. The Ultimate Weapon was far larger than he anticipated, spanning almost as tall as the Empire State Building did, which made him wonder if his nephew built it like that to match it like he did his own palace.

Reaching the top was a struggle, but he made it. And when he did, he stopped and fell at the top, rolling to it. He was exhausted, and the closer he was to it, the more he felt like the weapon would take all of his divine energy. He was getting drained like a sponge.

Hades crawled further, where he let out his arm, which held the device. "Please work." He muttered before slamming it into the surface.

*CLICK.*

The final device latched on, sending a blue pulse throughout the weapon. The light the weapon was emanating died down. The dangerous amount of divine energy was dispersing harmlessly into the surroundings. It was a beautiful sight.

Hades felt his divine energy return and stood back up like nothing happened. Patting the dust off his cloak, he then shadow traveled back to Tyson, who was leaning on the floor with a sweaty face.

"…We did it?" Tyson asked.

The King of the Dead looked at the once bright doomsday weapon, now a dark visage, and let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. "We did it." He nodded, his lip quivering up in the slightest smile.

It was over. They stopped the weapon from firing ahead of time. It was almost too good to be true.

Tyson got up and went to his uncle with a huge grin and held up a hand.

Hades stared at it with a raised eyebrow. "…Are you expecting me to—?"

Tyson wiggled his fingers, smile ever present.

With a sigh of deep, soul-crushing reluctance, the Lord of the Underworld gave the most half-hearted high five in history. "You will breathe not a word to anyone about this."

"Yeah!" Tyson laughed, to which Hades grumbled.

The king of the dead then turned back to the ultimate weapon and held his palm out to it. "What are you doing?" The cyclops asked.

Tyson learned from the blueprints that the machine was made out of a new supernatural metal created by Gaia. It was completely unknown to anyone. Even if Hades wanted to, the accumulated divine energy hardened it to the point that it made it impossible for anything minus the power of a protogenoi to break it.

"Just some insurance." He said as shadows and darkness enveloped its entirety. "I'll be sending it directly to my palace. When I get back, I'll immediately lock it up where no one would be able to get to it."

Destroying it would be a much better idea, but he didn't have many options. The only thing he could think of that would disintegrate it would be the waters of Chaos located in Tartarus. However, that was the place where the primordial goddess of the night, Nix, and her children lived, so that was a bad idea.

The shadows completely absorbed the device, and it disappeared. "Thank you for your help. You have my respect, young cyclops. It must not have been easy to betray your brother for his sake."

"It wasn't." He gave a sad smile. "But that's why I had to come. I'll talk with big brother and try to convince him to stop all this. It won't be easy, but we can try to find a way."

Tyson hoped to have a meeting with his brother and Olympus to negotiate a peace treaty of sorts. If they could talk this out and make things clear to stop the fighting.

Hades nodded. "Things aren't that simple, Tyson, but I'll try my best on my side to knock some sense into the rest of the family. Who knows, it's possible we can get them to acknowledge your organization as an independent faction of sorts."

Internally, he wasn't sure his attempts would do anything. In fact, he was certain it was bound to fail. His family was far too shrewd and prideful to let this go. But the Cyclops had done a great service, so it was worth a try at the very least. If he wanted this to work, he had to make sure the pantheon had a tight leash on them. Maybe he should imprison Zeus to make the negotiations easier?

"Now let's just get back upstairs. Something tells me my brothers aren't doing so well." He murmured. "Let's use this giant hole that has conveniently appeared as a shortcut."

"Right." He replied. The floor became red as lava swirled. He jumped in the air like an erupting volcano.

Hades sank into the floors and tailed Tyson. Now that they put an end to this, it was time to go back and confront the silver demigod.

…

Back upstairs, Silba stood triumphant. He laid Zeus and Poseidon down and firmly handed them their asses. The weather disasters were all taken care of, meaning no more unnecessary distractions.

'Just a few more moments… and all of this nonsense will end.' The silver demigod thought as he stared at the broken ceiling, his golden left eye glimmering under the light of the moon.

Everything was going exactly as planned. With his temporal abilities, he commanded the time in the throne room to run faster than normal, lengthening the fighting and causing the two gods to exhaust themselves further. Kicking their ass and humiliating them was only the cherry on top.

T-MINUS 20:00 UNTIL FIRING SEQUENCE ACTIVATION. The voice of the intercom sounded out.

'About time.' The Titan of Time smiled, cupping his chin.

The aura in the throne room shifted as all three felt their divine energy drain from their bodies. Because he had moved it so far away from the throne room, it didn't steal as much as it originally would. Still, the amount they were losing was rising and rising fast.

Silba was no exception to this and also felt his energy leak out of him in small quantities. "…" Suddenly, he was forced to take a knee, breathing laboriously, sweat dripping down his face.

His expression wasn't showing it, but he was feeling the toll of this battle. If he didn't do anything, he couldn't keep up his transformation for much longer. It's no surprise. He was going at light speed and exerting far more power than he normally should to overwhelm the Big Three.

Though he had the power of a god when transforming into Silba, he wasn't a full-fledged deity. His body still contained a sliver of mortality in it, much like another demigod from Mesopotamia. It's just that his transformation put his Animus on overdrive so as to exercise power no demigod should. It was all due to Silver Water and his past mental stress that his transformation existed. However, it came with consequences.

His Animus, his soul, was empowering him to the point that his body was starting to give. If he kept fighting like this, his body would break down under the weight of his divine spirit. He was never meant to be born as a human.

There were times when the wounds to his body was so intense that he was forced to sleep for a while to recuperate from the damage.

This problem could've easily been remedied if he had turned into a full-fledged deity, but that was something he would never do. He'd rather die a thousand deaths.

It was bad for his health to continue like this, but that was fine. He had an out for his condition. After all, he still hasn't tapped into the divine power he stole from his grandfather. Everything becomes fine when he uses it. The power of time was bullshit.

"MMGHR!" His attention was caught by the sound of Poseidon struggling to get up as water was healing the majority of his injuries.

"…Huff…Huff!" The god of the sea grunted as he stood up, limping towards his son, commanding the water to swirl around his hurting body and heal him. "Perseus!"

"…" Silba simply stared at his father slowly making his way towards him. Just like him, he too was healing himself with water. He could also sense Zeus struggling to raise himself back up, charging up an attack if his senses were right.

'Well, well, well, looks like they still got a few more in them. It's a miracle they're still standing.' Kronos stated as he observed the two struggling forms with a dark glint in his eyes.

Before this, they fought against the father of monsters, whose physical defenses were far superior to theirs, and it took a toll on their bodies.

'It doesn't matter how hard they try.' Silba replied as bright golden veins appeared across his body. 'Let's finish this.' He let out his second reserve of divine energy.

Golden patterns spread across his body, like veins. The divine power he stole from his grandfather was releasing, fueling him with even more power as well as healing the damage he accumulated as if it never happened. He began transforming as golden, malevolent, dark gold divine energy surrounded him.

'This is what I'm talking about.' Kronos clapped his hands together.

Perseus was transforming. The malevolent golden energy of the titan of time died down, revealing an intricate, armored body composed of black and gold. It remained sharp and jagged with spikes across its body, with glowing golden energy coursing through its form. Its head had two deer-like horns. His hair became solid and grayer. His limbs are elongated and sharp, resembling celestial blades extending outward.

"…RAAAAAAGH!" He cried out an ear-piercing screech worse than as he let loose his power. Bringing down a pressure that eclipsed the previous.

The force of his divine energy swept the air and sent a renewed pressure across the structure. The Sea God clenched his teeth as the wave pressed on him. It was like a perfect replica of his wicked father's. Zeus shouted an incoherent curse at him as ichor spilled out of his mouth while he forced himself to get back on his feet.

Poseidon and Zeus looked in shock and fear, having never seen this form before, not knowing that in this form the demigod could see everything that would happen. The hundreds of possible timelines of this battle were like an open book for him. This battle became even more one-sided as time was at his fingertips.

*LIGHTNING!*

A huge arc of multicolored lightning burst forth from below the silver demigod, taking a huge chunk of the floor. Having anticipated it, he simply Asimi Rythmoe'd away from the danger.

Zeus and Poseidon avoided it just in time by jumping out of the way, using their respective elements to keep themselves afloat in the air.

Silba looked at Zeus. His claws gleamed, and in a moment's notice, he rushed towards the king of the gods, who rushed to him. Zeus let out his electricity and vortex-covered fists out to him.

Silba stretched out his own arm, and their fists clashed.

*LIGHTNING!*

*BOOM!*

A shockwave of electricity and blinding light appeared. Unlike Zeus, who was struggling to overpower his enemy, Silba wasn't having any trouble at all. "What's wrong, getting winded? You need a little break." He heard his father's voice tease him.

Shocked, Zeus threw his other fist at him, but Silba caught it like it was a baseball. The divine electricity hit him, but he shrugged it off and proceeded to crush the first between his fingers. Zeus gritted his teeth in pain and raised his other electricity-covered hand.

"Nice try." The Titan of Time retorted as Silba proceeded to counter that counter and hit him in the elbow with a quick jab, breaking it. He was going to make sure the king of the gods couldn't do anything.

"GAH!" Zeus shouted in pain as he reeled. Not giving up just yet, he wrapped the demigod in his arms with all the strength he could muster. "Haaaagh!" He shouted as he let out a discharge of electricity.

However, he couldn't let out so much as a stutter of static. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't bring out the discharge he wanted. He looked demigod with a bewildered look. The demigod had made him unable to let his power loose by making it go back to him with the power of time.

"What's wrong? Can't get it up." Kronos voiced mockery, coming out of the silver demigod's mouth. "Don't worry. Performance issues aren't uncommon."

"Kronos!" Zeus shouted the titan's name, increasing his hold ever more, but Kronos merrily chuckled as Silba tilted his head in amusement. "How are you even alive…answer me!" He demanded as he tried to send more lightning down from the ceiling, but like before.

"Like I'd tell a disappointment like you anything. Hahahaha!" He laughed mockingly, enraging his son even more. "I hope you said your prayers, you waste of sperm." He laughed some more before Zeus felt a headbutt crash into him.

*BOOM!*

In this state, Kronos could speak outside in person and even control this body if his grandson wanted him to.

Zeus with a bloody nose staggered back. He then felt a stabbing and searing pain in his abdomen. It was the silver demigod who had his arms wrapped around his waist. "Don't fret your thick little head, Zeussy. Percy is still in control and taking you to school while doing it."

Silba smashed the King of Olympus into the ground with a German Supplex into a flat surface he had made with silver water.

*BOOM!*

*RUMBLE!*

Silba didn't stop there and kicked his head, sending him crashing into the final pillar left standing. He still didn't stop and went after him, his figure blending into a whole new world of speed as he delivered a flurry of hits.

*KICK!*

*PUNCH!*

*KICK!*

Each of his strikes carried a force so overwhelming that even the air around him exploded unlike ever before. Zeus tried to block and counter where he could, but that proved futile. It's like the demigod knew his every move.

*CRASH!*

Zeus skidded across the floor. Silba jumped above him with Deeny in hand. The King of the Gods let out his hands as he summoned a tornado, further enhancing it with his electricity to increase its power.

Silba fired his divine spear. It pierced through the combined elemental tornado. It broke through at lightspeed, landing mere inches from where Zeus's head was.

A thin cut formed across his cheek, ichor dripping from the wound. Zeus was no fool. He knew that the son of Poseidon did that on purpose. Underestimating him. Him! "Bastard!" He cursed at the top of his lungs.

Poseidon commanded his hand as a surge of divine water enveloped them, healing their wounds. But healing wasn't enough. No matter how quickly they recovered, the silver demigod could do this all day.

Silba sent out his silver water mass. Its speed swarming the two gods as it came from every direction, fluid and unpredictable, pressing them back with every wave.

Zeus, enraged by the sheer audacity of his opponent, summoned his master bolt, divine lightning crackling around his arm as he poured everything into a single strike. The sky roared in response, the bolt igniting the battlefield in blinding light as it shot toward Silba with terrifying speed.

The shot of electricity continued its path towards him before stopping mere inches from his body. "Power of time, idiot." Kronos insulted, receiving an eye twitch from his son.

The silver demigod then teleported behind Zeus and thrust his spear forward.

*SHINK!*

The spear sunk into Zeus's ribs. The King of Olympus let out a strangled gasp, his ichor spilling from the wound. Zeus felt the effects of the spear take hold. Deeny had a negative reaction when its blade pierced through divine flesh. It was an anti-divine/anti-life weapon that weakened gods further, burning them of their divine essences almost beyond recovery and bringing with it a pain straight out of their worst nightmares. Compared to the master bolt, it didn't do much to the surroundings, but when it came to being an actual weapon, it was true to its purpose.

"Gods, you are pathetic." Kronos told him as his grandson pulled his weapon back and kicked Zeus across the face, sending him rolling to the floor.

Lightning crackled uncontrollably around his body as he staggered backward, gripping his side in shock. "This day is just so wonderful." The Titan of Time smiled. "Hey, Percy, how about you use some of—

"Shut up!" Poseidon roared in fury, running towards him.

*CLASH!*

The sea god's trident clashed with Deeny. He tried his best to push back, but it was impossible. Kronos hummed thoughtfully. "Hmm. Yeeeaah...No!"

"I said shut your mouth!" He slicked his blood-stained hair back as his body moved into the same stance Percy did against Hades. "Wrathful wave!" He summoned water around himself to increase his speed as he thrust his trident forward in a flurry of lethal strikes.

*SWISH!*

*SWISH!*

*SWISH!*

Silba did the same, and the two weapons began clashing, sending unending amounts of sparks and destruction around the battlefield. "You! You turned him into this, you scum sucker. You corrupted my son!" He shouted as he summoned icicles to assist in the gaps between his thrusts.

The icicle never even made it. "He was never yours, you brat." Silba continued upping the ante. "You failed him, not me. Unlike you, I've never disappointed this amazing boy!"

The clashing between weapons came to a halt. "I'll kill you!" Poseidon shot his trident toward the demigod's heart, its sharp points gleaming with the force of a god's wrath.

But the silver demigod caught it with his one hand while the other continued thrusting, not stopping once. Poseidon had made a shield of vortexes, but that can only do so much. It fell apart, and he pierced Deeney through Poseidon, who turned himself into water just before it hit and closed the distance between them.

The sea god ran around him, becoming a blur in an attempt to confuse him. Silba's expression remained unreadable, his fingers tightening around the divine weapon. "…" He simply waited.

Through his left eye he saw the future. One where Poseidon would get behind him.

Poseidon's speed grew faster and faster, moving about like a school of fish, with his vortex circle aiding him even further.

He dashed towards Silba's blind spot right behind his back, but that was only a diversion as he turned himself into liquid, passing through his son and solidifying. He swung his trident downwards.

Arm empowered with Earthshaker, he swung it down on his son. "Crashing Wave!" He shouted as he brought his weapon down.

Combined with Earthshaker, the power was delivered tenfold. "Fall!"

*BOOM!*

This was another of his trident techniques he picked up from Oceanus. Meant to slam down on the opponent like a hammer of judgment, breaking every bone in their body under the weight of both power and pressure.

*RUMBLE!*

Everything shook under the weight of the attack. Poseidon, however, was far from finished with the attack, and so was his son, who blocked with Deeney behind his back with a single hand.

"Try again." The Titan told him before Poseidon promptly took an uppercut to the jaw, sending him crashing into the ceiling. "Or are you just going to stand there like a clown? No wonder your boy sees me as his father and not you!"

"Go to hell!" Poseidon, who clutched to the ceiling, yelled. He looked downwards from his spot in the ceiling, stretching his neck to glare bloody murder at his titan father.

"Already been there, sport, but I welcome you to try." He egged him on as his grandchild spun his divine weapon in his hand in boredom.

Kronos got what he wanted. Poseidon let his hand go and fell, preparing his next attack.

Poseidon's eyes gleamed in fury. He raised his trident and unleashed another of his techniques at full force. At the same time, his son said, "12th chair, Sparta." Red and golden fire surrounded his arm and Deeney as it transformed into a red and gold spear.

At the same time, hundreds of golden figures appeared beside him. They, just like the six hundred soldiers of Ithaca, were also warriors of the ancient past. Three hundred in total, clad in very light armor. They too held shields and spears in their hands, adorned in the armor of their beloved homeland, Sparta.

That's right, these were the three hundred Spartans that fought till their last breath against the invading Persian forces of Xerxes.

The soldiers huddled together shoulder to shoulder around the silver demigod to defend him against the incoming onslaught. Standing next to Silba was a reddish-brown bearded man, their leader, Leonidas. "Raise your shields, boys!" He shouted.

"Awoo!" The soldiers sounded as they raised their shields up in the air.

"Endless Flood!" Poseidon struck his weapon down and became a blur as a relentless torrent of spear thrusts rained down upon them.

Red and yellow shields surrounded them in a dome shape as the attacks came crashing down on them. Each strike came crashing down like a merciless tidal wave, seeking to drown his opponent in an unending deluge of death.

*SHWAAA!*

*SHWAAA!*

*SHWAAA!*

The air whipped as the trident carved through each thrust, striking like thunder against the battlefield. Poseidon was like a man possessed as he attacked every inch of the dome, hitting every nook and cranny.

If only it were that easy. "WHAAAA!" The Spartans shouted as they fended off the attacks.

Each one was reinforced by the next, creating an incredibly tough nut to crack. With spirits of the three hundred housed in Deeny, nothing would bring this down. This was Silba's ultimate defense, 12th Chair, Spartans.

*CLANG!*

*CLANG!*

*KRSHH!*

The Spartans truly lived up to their name as they blocked every hit thrown at them. They fended off the god's every hit. Poseidon couldn't keep this up forever, and after minutes passed by, he stopped midair before promptly swinging it down.

*SMASH!*

*BOOM!*

The attack made contact, causing a giant shockwave to occur, but the shields remained sturdy even as they budged under the pressure.

Poseidon frowned. "Just break already!" He summoned a tidal wave that swirled violently as it crashed onto the shields. "Raggggh!" The Sea God shouted, exerting even more force into the water.

It didn't break through. But that didn't deter Poseidon, who, with his trident once more, increased his earthshaker to an even further degree. The sea god could feel his right arm shaking as it stored more power than it ever had before.

His ligaments felt like they would tear, and his bones were rattling, but he wouldn't let that stop him and once again slammed his trident downwards for another crashing wave. The Spartans yelled in unison as they prepared for another onslaught. "Haaaaaagh!"

*BOOM!*

Another massive shockwave appeared even stronger than the last as another earthquake trembled the structure. It was a miracle the place hasn't fallen to earth by now.

It's thanks to that attack that Poseidon managed to break a handful of the shields and create a hole in it. Seeing his opportunity, the sea god ignored the pain coursing in his arm. It was a worthy price to pay.

Now inside the dome, he unleashed his next move that inspired his son's Six Hundred Strikes. His own was different compared to Oceanus but effective nonetheless. "Wrathful Wave!" He ran forward as hundreds of thrusts made their way to Silba.

"We can do this all day, Barnacle Beard. Come on!" Kronos shot back as five shields came in front of them to shield them from the incoming attacks.

*CHINK!*

*TANK!*

*CHUNK!*

As Poseidon was about to release another wave of attacks, at that moment he failed to notice the red spear was no longer there, replaced by a right gauntlet of red and yellow. "Never mind." He used Asimi Rythmo to close the distance.

Silba stopped and grabbed the trident by his hand, moving it above Poseidon's head. His right fist was glowing brightly just like a charged earthshaker would. The sea god didn't have any time to react before feeling that fist strike his solar plexus.

What the demigod did was use his 12th chair's last stand's second ability. The first was its defensive power that can tank hits from the strongest of deities and then some, the greatest defense in his arsenal, while its second ability took in all that power to blast it back right at the opponent. Every hit the shields accumulated was storing the attacks thrown at it to deliver a mean counterattack. The best offense is a good defense.

And that ability was called—

"Counter." He heard his son say as he delivered a terrible blow to his stomach.

*PUNCH!*

*BOOM!*

Another shockwave appeared even stronger than the previous ones, all due to the collected physical power from Poseidon's attacks. Poseidon's eyes almost burst in pain as blood spilled out of his mouth. He couldn't move. He couldn't even breathe. His trident fell to the ground as he keeled onto his son. He would've fallen to the floor had his son moved away.

"…" His father mouthed something incoherent, which the silver demigod's heightened sense of hearing could more than make out.

He told him, 'Good punch, son.' Seriously, at a time like this?

"…" Silba stepped back and tapped him on the shoulder, bringing the smiling sea god falling backwards.

"That should take care of him." Silba said as his shields died down. Walking away, he passed Leonidas. Stopping, he said, "Thanks for your assistance. Later, you bunch of bastards."

He bid them farewell, and instead of taking it the wrong way, the three hundred snorted and laughed to themselves.

The King of Sparta especially gave a nod, smiling from behind his helmet. From one warrior to another. The Spartans banged their weapons together as they disappeared in a reddish wisp.

As that was wrapping up, the sound of lightning returned.

*LIGHTNING!*

"Oh brother." The Titan sighed under his breath, a sentiment his grandson wholeheartedly shared.

Zeus appeared behind him, his large arm in a chopping motion enveloped completely in electricity, but again Silba knew his every action.

Instead of dodging, he caught the arm, sinking his claws into it, tearing his divine flesh. "You're pathetic." They both said in unison before punching Zeus in the face.

Zeus flew but not that far before feeling his hair, only to get slammed face-first into the concrete.

*BOOM!*

Before the king of the gods could retaliate, Silba summoned chains made of silver water to chain Zeus and, to rub extra salt on the wound, stabbed him through the shoulder with Deeney.

"!!!" Zeus couldn't holler in pain because he was immediately shut down by a stomp to the head.

*STOMP!*

"Go to sleep." Silba stomped on his head a second time.

"Brother!" Shouted Tyson.

The silver demigod turned to where the person's voice called to see Hades and his little brother floating in the air. "Damn, we're too late." The lord of the dead frowned as his bident burst into flames.

...

..

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(Sup, everyone. Another week or two and another chapter down. I wanted to show Percy's transformation when combining the power of time he took from Kronos. It becomes golden combined with his natural silver. Originally, I was going to come up with a name for it, but I couldn't come up with anything good enough. That said, I think it looks nice. Hasta la vista)