Ch. 1

Cracks drove through the concrete, deepening a ravine that spanned the entirety of Manhattan. Percy watched their chaotic origin kneel into a riverbed as Typhon struggled vainly against the enchanted chains in which Poseidon had bound him. Eyes on the father of monsters, the demigod missed the large foot flying towards his chest. The foot, however, did not miss him and crashed into his stomach hard enough to rattle his spine, launching him straight into the windshield of a parked car.

"Taking your eyes off an opponent during battle – an amateur mistake!" Percy wasted no time, rolling off the hood an instant before a flaming spear shattered the web of cracks he'd left behind, welding parts of the debris to the steering wheel and dash. The weapon proceeded to then melt straight through the engine and ignite the fuel line. Ah, Hades. The vehicular explosion launched Poseidon's son like a skipping stone, past the sidewalk and into a nearby park.

"...Ow." Percy kept his eyes forward, trained on his assailant as he peeled his back off the grass. The ringing slowly faded from his ears. "Maybe, huh? Then again, you used the foot first instead of the spear." The titan marched closer, fiery weapon streaking back to an extended hand. "Fire and light; I'm guessing Hyperion?"

"Indeed. And I want this fight to last." Sparks and pops hissed off the titan as he cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders. "Thanks to that pathetic sea god, this battalion shall likely fall before Lord Kronos crushes Olympus. It's only fitting that his spawn suffers for Typhon's defeat!" He then extended his hand, light glaring from flared fingers.

The beam shone extremely bright, so much that even with his forearm raised and eyelids clenched, Percy could make out the veins beneath his skin. He quickly thumbed his wristwatch, hiding behind the shield while rapidly blinking the spots out of his eyes. Around his sneakers the grass wilted, patches shaken to ash as monstrous footsteps pounded towards him, and soil crumbled to dust. The demigod tossed himself to the side, barely evading a titanic swing that cleaved through sand, millimeters from his back. Had he fought this battle five years ago, he would have contemplated the logistics of fighting that which was essentially a two-story building. Instead, he spun left, jamming the shield's rim at Hyperion's knee. Gya-aah! What the - Some kinda giant made of flame but his skin is stronger than steel?!

As they clashed through further exchanges, Percy found his opening when his opponent attempted a stab. Standing far taller than the demigod, the titan struck higher than intended and allowed the boy to slip under the fiery shaft. He marched back, swatting at the pest, when a large discus collided with his nose. Amaurotic by pain, the warrior could not prevent his foe from severing both of his achilles tendons.

Percy pushed past the subsequent monstrous outcry, slashing at the forearm that swept outward, and quickly backpedaled when a burning spearhead came dangerously close to his nose. Three steps kept him within the titan's arm reach. The 4th step crumbled to ash, quite literally, beneath his shoes. This is oddly shaped like a footprint.

"I have you now, damn bastard!" On his knees, Hyperion crawled towards the boy, spear and armor scraping loudly against the ashen field. His enemy made a futile attempt to retreat, darting back like some insignificant crab. The Titan of Light moved faster, sweeping out the shrimp's puny legs, plucking its moronic shield, and tossing it away like a clam shell. "Nowhere left to go, boy! Let your father hear your screams!"

The spear fell and Percy immediately understood that Riptide would not help him. He dropped the ancient weapon and clasped the spearhead before it reached his chest. Even as a child of the Big Three, his strength could not have matched the titan's and the weapon crashed full force onto his chest...

...and seized.

The flaming tip dug towards his heart, threatening to break skin and vaporize six of his ribs along with the organs they protected. His hands shivered against tongues of fire, metal hissed on his palms, and steam rolled off the gaps between his fingers. Ah, hot! Hot! Hot! Hot!

Yet still, the weapon wouldn't kill him. HOT!

"How?!" Hyperion bared his distress openly. "How do you do this?! What magic keeps you from impalement and roasting like a-" A look of recognition flashed across the titan's face and his brows furrowed in determination. "Insolent brat! Even if you obtained the curse, Styx cannot save you from my wrath!" He quickly jerked back, hoisting it over a shoulder as one might a rocket launcher, and pointed the tip towards his enemy's head. "The light will show me your fatal weakness!"

The weapon grew brighter and heat raged so intense that Hephaestus would have recoiled. Percy felt reminded of Annabeth's words about clichéd occurrence when on the brink of death, something to do with life flashing before one's eyes, not that he could remember the exact phrasing. The Titan of Light definitely brought the concept closer to reality. The roar blossomed and each petal swirled into a dense, torrential spire. Something changed in Hyperion's expression, eyes narrowing and and teeth baring a more malicious edge. I'm not safe anymore.

A series of explosions tore away the titan's chance at vengeance, quite literally, as three arrows sprouted between his knuckles, several more thudded along his back like porcupine quills, and a final silver streak pierced both cheeks. All bolts met their marks in the span of a millisecond and the total concussive force tossed him into a nearby streetlight.

Percy rolled away, conveniently over Anaklusmos, and rose to one knee rearmed. Silver haft and feathering, not gold. Another shaft whistled over his shoulder and struck Hyperion's knee, toppling the golden warrior before he could fully pick himself up. "Mucking about with this filth, Percy Jackson? I don't know what would make Poseidon's son waste time playing with the enemy." The lunar goddess strode to his side. "I dare not imagine you actually losing to an overgrown matchstick."

"Of course not, Lady Artemis. Just catching my breath." Despite her harsh words, he could just make out a hint of concern in her tone. "I myself am surprised by your use of explosives. You didn't seem the type to use such weaponry."

"Trying times, boy. The Father of Monsters demands desperate measures from any of his foes. Your father's efforts have left me many spares." Percy quickly did a once-over of the goddess, noting the three quivers she wore on her belt along with another two strapped to her back. Complex insignias embroidered each, symbols of moon and water with the rest not recognized. All of them were full to the point of weighing several pounds, were the arrows inside even standard quality. "Many spares"? Understatement of the century. "That oaf makes quite the ruckus. It's very annoying." Her words brought him back to the fallen behemoth, spewing curses while he regained his bearings. Artemis drew out two arrows, each from different quivers, and quietly nocked them together. "Go silence him, will you?"

Percy nodded. "Of course, My-" Silver flashes interrupted him, rushing from both sides and after a moment, Poseidon's son saw several hunters rushing the glowing colossus. "-...Lady?" Turning to her for an explanation, he was met with a mild, unrepentant shrug.

"The 'Early Hawk' and whatnot."

He'd paid for wasting time before and charged towards the Titan, albeit far slower than his allies. Two bolts flew over his shoulders, hitting his target in the foot and hand that wielded a weapon, freezing the former in place and disarming the enemy in one go.

"DAMN YOU, FOUL B*TCH!" The ice became water vapor so quickly that an explosive cloud blew back some of the silver frontrunners. Hyperion thrust out his hand yet again to summon back his weapon only for an agile weight to settle atop his shoulders and an entirely different spear to puncture through his wrist. A smaller body dragged the shaft down, pinning the limb to the asphalt.

Eyes of an electric blue bore into the sockets of fire. "It is not wise to speak of Lady Artemis in this way, especially when challenging her hunters." The burning warrior flexed his arm, undeterred by the demigod's words, and froze (ironically) as thunder rumbled overhead. Light cannot withstand lightning and the titan yowled in anguish as bolts of electricity struck the spear trapping him, racing along his body like a chilling flame. He fell to his knees, tearing at his wrist with his spare hand, while the girl sprinted up his arm.

"THALIA!" She recognized Percy's voice, even after two years of separation, and saw the disk-shaped mini-UFO in time to catch it. She paused and inspected the object. He threw me his shield? Seriously? Why?! "CYMBAL MONKEY!" "Symbol Monkey"?... What the- Ooooooh. SWEET. Zeus's daughter brought out her own shield, the sheen a black of midnight as opposed to a regular bronze, and positioned both so that the insides of the shields faced each other. She whipped them back with a maniacal grin before swinging them towards the opposite sides of the Titan's head. BONG!

*KWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG!*

On impact, her new weapons rang Hyperion's helmet like a church bell, the air reverberating between the metal surfaces to the point of being nauseous. The titan jerked back his spare hand, twitching his fingers as though to grasp some imaginary fruit, and opened the gates to attack. Silver arrows struck immediately, aggressively pelting his breastplate. Percy leapt through it all and aimed Riptide towards what he assumed was the Titan's heart. The enchanted blade sank deep, a hot knife carving through butter, causing the flaming general to topple. The demigod continued on, sliding past the legs before reaching out towards the Hudson. He felt a familiar tug in his gut and the tide rose higher than the nearby buildings. Hyperion never saw the final stroke before it hit him.

His victory in hand, Poseidon's son walked back to see a group of fuming girls, several wringing the water from their braids, most shivering, and all glaring bloody murder at his face. Huh. In hindsight, I could have controlled the wave better. He didn't bother dodging the electric slap to his cheek his cheek, though the girl who did waited for his response.

"Uh… sorry?"

"Damn right you better be!" Thalia stalked past him, kicking the steaming shell of their former foe. Despite the impromptu shower he'd received, Hyperion lay completely dry with wisps of steam rolling off his skin. "At least it did the trick." The hunters didn't stop giving him death glares, even as their goddess gracefully joined them.

All eyes turned to him, causing some level of internal strife, and he coughed awkwardly into his fist. "Luke is probably going to rush the Empire State Building now. We should regroup with Annabeth and Grover and the others before-"

He had no explanation for what happened next. One second they'd been casually discussing strategy next to a fallen opponent and the next, the heat rose from room to a forest fire. How many times, in however many different ways, can a guy get interrupted in one day?! He was also trapped in a bearhug with a flaming helmet bearing down on him. Ah, hot! TOO HOT!

"Enough! I will be denied no longer!" So close to Hyperion's bellow, Percy felt a non-water liquid begin pooling in his ears. "I will not go back to the pit empty-handed! I don't care what it takes, YOU'RE GOING WITH ME!" The blaze grew brighter and the titan began to glow.

"Hunters! Shield your eyes!" That's more than redundant at this point. They'd all experienced flashes from immortals, mainly Olympians, but this would be the first from a titan. They expected the light to reach its peak before fading and they would be safe so long as their eyes were closed.

However, the Titan of Light didn't plan on doing a simple light show and the glow increased exponentially.

"Why is it growing?!"

"Hasn't he reached his limit yet?!"

The giant boomed out a string of guffaws. "Fools, all of you! Nothing in this war will be won without sacrifice!"

"Hunters, fire on him! NOW!" By voice, it appeared that Artemis had given the order instead of Thalia. Something sounded odd in the tone, seeming as though the goddess expressed fear, and that terrified the son of Poseidon. The volley flew, enough arrows launched to eclipse the sun, but upon coming within ten feet of the pair, the wood disintegrated instantly and molten arrowheads harmlessly flopped onto the ground.

And still the glow grew. THIS IS GETTING REALLY HOT RIGHT NOW!

Thalia voiced her outrage. "Father Almighty! I have my eyes shut and an arm up and I can still see! What in Hades is he doing?!" Her voice sounded distant now, maybe a little muted. His head was starting to hurt but the pain was going away. Too hot… really… tired… The noise gradually died down and Percy could barely even feel his skin anymore.

The last thing he remembered before the world went dark was something colliding with him, knocking him out of the fire. He only noticed because whatever did hit him felt colder than ice.

/-/-/-/

So, yeah. That's the new Ch. 1 for A Loss of Identity. Hopefully, it's written just a bit better than the original. The next two updates are labeled so put what you will.

Please remember the rules of criticism:

1) Don't express love or hate

2) Don't label the work

3) Don't suggest ideas for future plot

4) Mention both what works and what could be improved