LoSP Side Stories Ch.14 :War and Thunder

Thalia's heart raced as Ares paced across the arena, swinging a great claymore. The blade throbbed with a faint red glow, slicing through the air in a trail of afterimages.“

“Easy for you to say,” Thalia grumbled. “You’ve been fighting and killing gods your whole life. His fucking sword is as big as I am. And he’s twice my size. And if you forgot, the motherfucking god of war.”

“You’re spiraling.” Percy sighed. “Don’t be afraid. Courage is half the battle.”

“You change that quote as it suits you, don’t you?” Thalia scowled.

“If you think you’ll lose, you’ll end up losing. Knowing your limits is one thing, and winning and losing is another.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Ares is stronger than you, tougher than you, faster than you, and even more skilled than you.”

“Thanks.” Thalia bit out, sarcasm dripping from her voice like a waterfall. “That fucking assures me.”

“I’m saying that he may be all that but you just have to work around it. Be quicker than him. Be smarter than him. And you have one thing that he doesn’t. Lightning.”

“Like I can even muster a bolt of lightning that can put him down.”

“You don’t have to put him down with one bolt,” Percy said. “You just have to use your bolts right, time your attacks, and make sure not to get hit by his.”

“Anything else, Obi-Wan-Kenobi?”

“Yeah, watch his legs. He has a mean kick.” Percy grinned. “You’ll work around the rest, I am sure. And good luck. Remember, it is just a spar which you’ve to learn from. Which means you can throw all you have at Ares like you would in a real fight. If you’re to lose, lose after giving your two hundred percent. ”

“Thank fucking you.” Thalia flipped him off, and stormed away, down the stair to the center of the arena.

“I take it that she was in a bad mood?” Artemis’ voice drifted over his shoulder.

“She didn’t exactly like her odds and you know the competitive streak she has. My advice— which might have sounded condescending in a few ways, didn’t help.”

“You advised her normally. You’ve fought Ares before and you know his tricks.” Artemis rolled her eyes. “But I suppose pride runs in the family and she won’t like losing in front of her friends.”

“She’s more afraid of being utterly humiliated, I think. Losing, she doesn’t mind. But I think that she thinks that she is out of Ares’ league and he’ll crush her in moments.”

“As much as I hate to say it, he could.”

“Nope, not to Thalia.” Percy smirked. “She’s tougher than she looks and more stubborn than I am, which takes some doing. She won’t go down easy. Not without getting a few good blows in first.”

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Faint beams of electricity arced across the gleaming blades of Thalia’s ax, as she rotated her shoulders and swung the ax, eyeing Ares. The god of war, stood on the other side, wearing a red T-shirt, sunglasses, and jeans, devoid of any armor or shield, lazily resting his elbow on the hilt of the claymore impaled in the ground.

Athena walked up to them, raising an eyebrow at Ares, before tapping her spear against the ground, a gong ringing through the arena. “Take positions.”

Thalia raised her shield, her muscles tightening while Ares tugged his sword out of the ground, the blade gleaming a brilliant red. The god gave Thalia a nasty grin, and she tensed, the arcs of electricity growing in brightness and size, traveling down her arm.

Athena’s gray eyes took note and she backed away. “Go.”

A massive bolt of lightning tore from Thalia’s ax, smashing into Ares’ sword, the god of war skidding back as the smell of pungent ozone filled the space. Sparks of lightning fell across the ground, the red glow intensifying as Ares straightened up.

“Not bad.” His voice rumbled. “But not good enough.”

He slammed the sword’s hilt into the ground, and the arena shook, cracks tearing through the concrete below, and Thalia leaped in the air. The winds picked up below her feet, carrying her forward, and she flew in a blur toward Ares who twisted away, dodging the slash of her ax.

Thalia hit the ground rolling, sparks crackling across her body as she came up in a crouch. Her shield rose instinctively to intercept Ares’ counterattack, his claymore slamming against it with a deafening clang. The sheer force drove her back several feet, her boots scraping furrows into the arena floor.

“I’ll show you good,” Thalia muttered, shaking her shield arm to dull the sting of the impact.

Ares grinned, his sunglasses catching the light of his sword. “You’re scrappy. I like scrappy.” He charged like a bull, his claymore cleaving through the air toward Thalia, who scrambled out of the way. “BUT YOU DON’T FIGHT LIKE A TRUE WARRIOR!”

Thalia leaped away from his sword, the wind around her pulling her back as Ares whirled around on her. Her heart pounded in her chest, and everything but Ares began to fade away, as her body went into overdrive. The wind roared in her ears and she felt every flicker of electricity over her body. She could see Ares’ muscles tense, and the tilt of his blade.

The wind around her changed as Ares lunged, his blade carving an arc through the air. 

Thalia darted to the side, her shield grazing the swing as she slashed her ax, its curved blade digging into Ares’ flesh. Electricity surged down the handle, snapping up at Ares’ exposed arm like writhing snakes. 

He snarled, pushing her away, his expression more annoyed than hurt, and spun, his foot lashing out. Thalia twisted, narrowly avoiding the strike, but the force of the wind alone sent her tumbling. She sprang back to her feet, her heart pounding.

“Fast,” Ares admitted, giving her a grudging nod. “But speed only gets you so far. Let’s see how long you last.”

And he attacked.

Thalia’s body went into overdrive, and she reacted on reflex, her shield parrying the first blow, her ax following the shield’s lead. She ducked and rolled beneath the claymore that threatened to cleave her into pieces as it left blurs of red in mid-air, meeting with her cracking blue ax.

She could feel his next move coming and see the blade move as she parried it, backing away. Her eyes darted at the blur of hands and feet to look for an opening to get in. 

A second later, she spotted it. As Ares lunged, she dove, her blade cutting through his red shirt, and digging into his skin, drawing ichor.

As she rolled to her feet, Thalia barely had time to raise her Aegis as Ares’ foot lashed out, hammering against her shield, its force sending her airborne.

She flipped in mid-air, wind flapping across her black t-shirt and scowled, wincing as she moved her arm and pain shot through it like a raging fire. She ground her teeth and raised her ax, pouring the rage and pain into her hilt. 

The weapon hummed and the arcs of lightning intensified, jumping off the blade in wild, jagged patterns. She felt the storm in her chest, rumbling like the sky, and pointed the ax toward Ares, who charged again, with reckless abandon.

Thalia yelled and jabbed her ax, a bolt of lightning shooting toward Ares in a blinding flash, followed by a thunderclap that rang through Olympus.

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Across the city, Zeus, Thalia’s father, looked up from his throne and smiled, feeling the power beneath the strike. 

In the arena, Athena averted her eyes, feeling the electricity prickle her skin. She dug her feet into the ground as the shockwave rocked the arena, smashing racks of weapons against the walls, the wood splintering.

Above her, Artemis looked through the eye of the lightning and grinned a grin that would’ve made wolves shudder and monsters run.

Beside her, her boyfriend, Perseus Jackson, hero of Olympus stood, the warrior’s helm covering his face, and shoved his hands in his pockets, burying the twinge of sympathy and worry for Ares, fully aware that he was still alive, his senses confirming the same.

Next to him, the rest of the demigods averted their eyes and closed their ears, stumbling back as the shockwave hit them, and the arena rumbled for the second time.

And above all, a pair of brown eyes across the city smiled and made a note with her peacock feathered quill.

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As Thalia staggered to the cracked ground and the spots in her eyes cleared, she laid eyes upon Ares, who still stood, his face covered with suit and hair standing up. Dark red armor with long spikes covered his body, a part of it smoking, looking barely damaged. 

A moment later, he only laughed—a deep, booming sound that rattled Thalia’s nerves.

“Now we’re talking!” he roared, gripping his claymore. The blade’s red glow flared brighter, pulsing like a heartbeat. The cracks in the arena floor widened, and the air grew heavy with heat.

Thalia clenched her teeth, her grip on her ax tightening. The god of war wasn’t just testing her—he was enjoying himself. And as exhilarating as that might have been for him, she knew she was running on borrowed time.

“That’s enough!” Athena stepped in between them, holding a finger up, and Ares stopped, the glow upon his claymore fading. “We don’t want any horrendous injuries now, do we?”

Thalia staggered back, feeling suddenly drained, as sweat dripped down her forehead, the flickers of lightning dying down. A fiery pain shot through her arm as she lowered her shield, and she winced, drawing Athena’s eye.

“Beyond the ones which have been already inflicted, that is.”

Ares smirked, his armor disappearing. He rested his claymore over his shoulder, its once-blazing hue subdued as the god caught his breath. “Not bad, Sparky. You’ve got fire—and thunder.” He rubbed his chest where the bolt had hit. 

Thalia glared at him, her legs trembling from exertion. “Don’t patronize me,” she ground out.

Ares barked out a laugh, loud and unrestrained. “Patronize you? Kid, I’m impressed. You actually drew blood and had me summon my armor. Something I’ve only done once against sea-boy here.” He gestured toward Percy, who raised an eyebrow. “Not many can say they’ve done that.”

Before Thalia could retort, Athena spoke. “Enough, Ares. This was a spar, not a battle to the death.” She glanced at the ruined arena floor, the shattered weapon racks, and the wisps of smoke curling in the air. “I think we’ve all seen enough destruction for one day.”

Ares shrugged, his claymore vanishing in a flare of crimson light. “Fine. You call it here, Owlhead.” He pointed a finger at Thalia, his grin more genuine than mocking now. “I’ll see you in the next spar, Sparky. Good fight. Hone those instincts. I’m sure Owlhead will lecture you more, but you fought like hell and didn’t pull your punches. I respect that. No holding back in a war.”

Thalia swallowed hard and managed a stiff nod. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Ares nodded and vanished, leaving them alone. As Percy and Artemis made their way down the stairs, Athena shook her head, stopping them.

“Infirmary, Thalia. That hand is broken into three. Everything else can wait until Apollo fixes you.”

She snapped her fingers and Thalia knew no more.

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AND… DONE! Hope you all liked the chapter!

This chapter was set at the beginning of the training arc (pre-Ichor Purge). Not much to go on about here, just some fun writing.

As for the update schedule, it’ll be Black Dawn next. Also, my exams are finally over, so, I have the next couple weeks free to write, plan, edit and do all sorts of things. I plan on updating a few extras around Christmas, and there’ll be a poll shortly for all patrons regarding the same. So, yes, it is in your hands what your gift will be. ;)

In regards to LoSP, I do think I should polish the first few chapters (the beginning of the fic), alongside the first few chapters of GotSIS. But for now, they’re just plans. I might or might not do it. Let’s see.

A huge thanks to Mughil for betaing this chapter!

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