The Forgotten Daughter

Of Sword and Sea

Percy stalked towards Ares, his sword - Riptide - in his clenched fist.

The others watched from the dock as the two opponents sized each other up. Percy was a lanky little sixth-grader with a magic pen sword. Ares was the god of war with a massive build and huge broad sword. The odds were not in Percy's favor.

The pair fought in the surf of the beach, small waves crashing around their ankles. Percy was actually holding his own against his godly opponent. That is, until Ares forced him out of the water and into the sand. Percy blocked a heavy blow that forced him to the ground.

Annabeth flinched forward, but Aliana grabbed her arm. "If we interfere, then the deal is off."

"And what if Ares wins?" Grover watched Percy anxiously, shifting his weight from hoof to hoof.

"Then we interfere." Aliana's shoulders relaxed as Percy got to his feet. He wasn't out of the game yet.

Ares battered the son of Poseidon as he struggled to hold his sword aloft to block the incoming attacks.

"Percy! Get to the ocean!" Annabeth shouted over the clang of metal on metal.

Ares bashed Percy with his sword, knocking him to the ground.

Percy caught himself, his hands squishing in the wet sand. Wet. The farthest reaches of the surf washed around his fingers. Reenergized, he jumped to his feet and lured Ares farther into the water.

Ares, either unaware or unconcerned, continued until the water was halfway up his calves.

Unlike what you would suspect, Percy maneuvered much smoother and more easily in the knee-deep water, dodging Ares' clumsy swings and finally darting forward and stabbing his blade down into the water.

Ares let out a cry to rival a thunderclap. The water around his feet rushed away, revealing Percy's sword through his foot. He turned, wild-eyed and furious on the boy, who was astounded by his small victory.

As Ares made a move to attack again, a massive wave crashed over him, washing him to shore like a beached whale.

There was a lot of chaos in the parking lot off the beach, where Ares had lit several cop cars on fire. Thankfully, the flames had taken the attention off of Percy and Ares' fight. So no one saw the unnatural wave.

Ares growled as he pushed himself to his feet. "You'll regret this, Perseus Jackson." Ares threatened. "From now on, every time you raise your sword in battle, every time you hope for success, you will feel my curse." His body started to radiate a bright golden light.

"Percy, don't watch!" Annabeth shouted across the beach.

They all turned away as Ares revealed his true form and vanished into the night.

When Aliana looked up, Percy was walking towards them with Hades' helm under one arm.

A trio of Furies dropped from the sky and cut him off. After a short exchange, they took the helm and flew away into the night.

Percy ran up to them on the dock.

Aliana chuckled. "Not bad Water Boy. You survived, for now at least."

He met her gaze a big grin plastered across his face. "That last parts going to bite me in the butt one of these days isn't it."

"A curse from the god of war." Annabeth jumped in. "Definitely."

"We'll worry about that later. Right now," Aliana gestured to the crowd of people bustling towards them. "we have other things to worry about."

"Great." Percy grumbled. "I'm going to get arrested."