I raised my shield, just as the Storm Guard collided with us.

Imagine being rammed by someone, like you were in a hurry to get to work when it's an important meeting. This was like getting rammed by a freight train, because the full force of Proculus's men almost sent the front line of our soldiers – and us – flying backwards. Even though I had my shield strapped on to my wrist, my wrist ached from the strain of trying to push the enemy backwards.

I raised my sword and started to stab at some of Proculus's men. There were screams of agonised pain and then the floor started to become covered in dust and broken glass.

Chloe started firing her explosive arrows at any enemy she can aim at, with Chiron and a few of the Whirlwind Hunters helping her out. Jake called forth lightning from the sky and, with a loud rumble of the storm clouds, jagged bolts of pure thunder shot from his golden sword and zapped several Storm Guard soldiers to cinders.

Katie was using her two daggers against several of Proculus's soldiers at once. I'll tell you something, she was fighting like she was dancing – her fighting style was graceful and fast, like she was performing a mix of ballet and street dancing with daggers. She didn't get a single cut on her as she completely reduced the warriors around her to ashes.

A lover and a fighter, I thought to myself. I think I'm falling in love with this girl!

I raised my shield to deflect a spearmen's javelin, and swiped my sword across the Guards neck, making him break apart like a glass sculpture. Another came at me, but I whacked the edge of my shield into his groin, making him clutch it while he let out a high pitch squeal, like he was trying to sing soprano. As he collapsed to his knees, I slashed him into dust.

Poseidon and Maximus went on to fighting Proculus himself. Poseidon threw his weighted net over Proculus, who screamed in utter rage as he tried to shake the net off. Maximus raised his sword and brought it down on Proculus, but the Cyclone Prince wasn't done yet. He threw the net off his head and blocked Maximus's strike. He seemed to be holding both his old general and father off expertly on his own.

I found myself side by side with Kane, who was jabbing his spear at Proculus's men. The guy was good in battle, which made me wonder how Proculus managed to beat him so easily.

A loud, snarling roar made both of us turn around and we found ourselves face to face with the most massive Cyclopes I have ever seen. It was well over six metres tall and was carrying the most massive club I have ever seen – a large metal club with spikes at the club end.

"This is just not my day," I muttered.

"Tell me about it," Kane grumbled.

Together, we charged at the one eyed monster. Kane went left while I went right, confusing the Cyclopes about which victim to strike. It finally decided to attack Kane, but before he could even raise his club, I struck the beasts legs with all my effort. The creature roared in annoyance as it tried to swing its club around, but Kane slashed its back, causing it to cry out in utter rage. Finally, I stabbed the thing in its eye, making it clutch it with both its hands in pain as it collapsed to the ground in a heap.

Then I turned around and saw another unpleasant sight – Jalen.

"This is REALLY not my day," I grumbled, as Kane saw the ex–Whirlwind Hunter.

"Dimascio," the soldier said. His hair had been newly cut and most of his injuries were healed.

However he was still an idiot to me.

"Still alive are ya'?" he asked mockingly. "Well, let's fix that!"

He rushed over to slash at me, but Kane tripped him over so he landed on his stomach. He went to do a Chinese getup but I grabbed him around his neck and quickly and forcefully snapped it backwards. Jalen collapsed to the ground with his neck broken and windpipe crushed. His last expression was one of pure surprise.

"Go to hell," I growled at his broken body. It turned to dust and was scattered in the wind.

Maximus cried out from the other side of the battlefield. I saw him collapse to the floor, while Proculus blasted my father back with a ball of fiery energy. Poseidon smashed into the side of the palace and fell to the floor.

"No!" both me and Kane shouted.

We both rushed forward.

We rammed into Proculus before he could stab Maximus in his gut. Proculus stumbled backwards, but that just annoyed him, because he blasted Kane backwards while I engaged Proculus head on.

I raised my shield to deflect Proculus's sword, but the shield got shredded by the sheer strength of Proculus strike. I threw the pieces to one side. I rolled to one side as Proculus lunged at me. I started jabbing at Proculus, but he easily deflected every attack I made.

I made my big mistake quickly – I tried to do an uppercut slash with my sword, but the Cyclone Prince just stepped to one side and punched me in the face, catching me just below my right eye. I fell backwards and crashed onto my back, causing my back to feel like it was on fire.

Proculus's blade hovered above my chest. The Prince was breathing heavily through gritted teeth like a feral animal. He was covered in as much sweat as I was and was generally ticked off.

"This has gone on long enough," he snarled. "I've let you live too long. You have so got to die."

He raised his sword, but a small dagger thudded into his shoulder.

He screamed in pain and looked at his attacker. It was Katie.

Katie clutched her other dagger in her right hand, looking like she had been through an ash storm. Her face was dirty and her armour was covered in scratches. Her hair blew in the wind.

Proculus yanked the dagger out of his shoulder and threw it to the ground. His hand and shoulder was covered in blood, but that didn't seem to affect the Cyclone Prince because he just started stalking towards Katie like he was about to kill her.

"Foolish girl," he spat. "Who are you to stand up against me in order to save this pathetic boy?"

"Katie Grace," she answered. "I'm the daughter of Demeter and Johnathan Grace."

"Protecting your boyfriend?" Proculus sneered. "Not good enough."

He raised his sword, but I did a Chinese get–up and launched myself at him, making the two of us slam into the palace wall.

As I wrestled against Proculus, I looked at Katie and yelled, "Katie, go help the others!"

Katie looked hesitant but she turned on her heels when I gave her a very pointed look and charged back into the thick density of the battle.

I really hoped she would be alright.

Proculus yelled and punched me in the gut, making me clutch it, which was a big mistake, because Proculus slammed his fist into my jaw.

I stumbled backwards, raising my sword to defend myself.

But Proculus kicked it out of my hand, leaving me without a weapon.

I started dragging myself towards my father, who was trying to get up onto his feet. He had a nasty gash on his forehead, and his shoulder armour was barely attached.

"Father," I croaked. My voice came out as a rasp, since Proculus punched me in the gut. "Get up."

"I'm trying," he told me.

Proculus laughed. "Well, ain't this a sight to see – father and son lying there looking defeated and beaten. Oh, this is just too easy."

"Who said anything about 'easy'?"

Proculus spun around as a middle–aged man (probably looking the same age as my father) slammed his fist against Proculus's face so hard that Proculus was thrown to one side.

The man looked at me and I was in awe about what I saw. He was wearing the armour of a gladiator and had a long black and grey beard, like the colours of a thunderstorm. His eyes were electric blue and beneath his armour, he wore a white toga with a pair of bright blue jeans.

On his left wrist was the legendary golden shield Aegis, the terrifying image of Medusa carved into the metal, her snake–like hair slithering all over her head. The shield radiated an aura of fear so intense that it made me want to crawl into a very cramped space and hide.

In the man's right hand was a long rod of metal made of bronze and gold. Both ends of the rod were capped with what looked like miniature nosecones, but I knew better than that – they weren't nosecones; they were god–level explosives. The thing hummed with energy, which made me think it was what I thought it was: a lightning bolt.

"Zeus," I said in a star struck voice. It was him – the Thunder God of Olympus. I was staring at my uncle in the flesh.

The king of Olympus nodded. "No one hurts a family member of mine like that. You have our help, if you will accept it."

He raised his hand and my sword flew right into it. He tossed it to me, to which I fumbled around with it until I caught it in my hand.

Zeus looked at his brother. "Come on, Poseidon. You rest now in the heat of battle? Get off your lazy backside and fight for your city!"

He let loose his thunderbolt and several long tendrils of power and energy zapped themselves out of the capped rod of divine power. Several Storm Guard warriors found themselves going to the Underworld sooner than they expected, because they were all reduced to ashes.

Then, across the battlefield, I noticed that some of the new warriors that had arrived were all glowing gold, just like Zeus was. All of whom I noticed from their sizes and the aura they gave off.

Ares, the God of War, rode in his chariot pulled by fiery steeds. He wore bulky bronze armour and fought with a long, two–handled sword made of fire and gold.

His eyes were ablaze with glee as he trampled over the Storm Guard, his fiery steeds screaming in defiance. He gave off an aura of battlefield courage.

Across the battlefield, was his sister–in–law, Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, wearing an elegant dress made of silver fabric as well as golden armour with an image of...was that a barnyard owl in the centre of her armour? Her hair was a bright blonde and she had a sterner face than Ariadne has. She carried a long spear with an iron barbed tip.

Next to her was Nike, the Goddess of Victory. She wore a crown of laurel wreaths, and had the most serene face I have ever seen. She looked about the same height as Athena and she had wings on her backs, shining brilliantly as the sun.

Across the other side of the battlefield were the twin archers, Artemis and Apollo, the Gods of the Moon and the Sun. They let loose their arrows at the enemy, sending them into a panic, both of them wearing their silver and gold armour.

So many immortals and I thought that my mind was about to explode with awe.

Poseidon got up on his feet and picked up his trident and weighted net. "I'm not one to quit a fight."

He raced back into the battlefield alongside his brother.

Proculus and I eyed each other. And just before I started to speak, taunting him about why he just won't give up, Proculus rammed into me and we both flew into the air.

The next thing I knew, Proculus and I were bashing and slashing each other through the open air, which was as cold as pure ice.

Proculus drew his sword back and slashed me across the arm. Pain exploded in my right arm like it was on fire. The sky turned black with storm clouds as lightning flashed here and there. The winds picked up so powerfully that my raven black hair blew everywhere.

Before Proculus struck me again, we ploughed into the side of the temple of Poseidon. Rubble went everywhere as the entire side of the temple collapsed. Several pillars fell to the floor and broke in half, the broken parts rolling across the marble temple floor.

I fell onto my back, as pieces of the wall fell on top of me. I dragged myself out of the mess and stood up shakily, clutching my sword in my hand, coughing into my hand as dust settled over me. I looked around us and saw the full detail of the temple. It was huge by standards, with the great statue of Poseidon in the centre, standing over ten metres tall. The gap in the centre of the wall was big enough to fit the Times Square Jumbo–Tron.

Proculus was already up, but he was dizzy with pain, so he was staggering all over the place like he had too much to drink. He still looked at me with uncontrolled anger.

"This has gone on long enough Proculus," I muttered. "Too much damage and death has been done because of you. This has got to end now."

"It will never end," the Prince yelled at me. "Nothing is over while I'm breathing!"

I smiled slightly. "I was kind've hoping you'd say that."

I raised my sword just as Proculus brought down his sword on my silver blade. Sparks went all over the place.

We fought for several long minutes. I put all of my concentration in the fight, putting everything I've learnt from my father – combat, martial art, kick boxing – into this one fight that I knew I was going to have trouble with.

Proculus was just as skilled as I was, but he was faster than I was. With the power as the Cyclone Prince and the pent up power of an immortal, he proved to be extremely tough.

I did a side step so I could jab Proculus in his wounded shoulder, but he expected that I would go there, because he defended it with his sword. He pushed me backwards and advanced onwards, spitting out vile curses and threats that I thought my mother wouldn't approve of.

Then I made the most stupid move ever – I tried to slash his face, but he ducked and punched me in the face, sending me backwards into the wall

I collapsed to the ground, sucking in deep breaths of air.

"HA!" Proculus laughed. "I can read your every move, Dimascio!"

He grabbed my hair and pulled me upwards, but before he could hit me in the face again, I stabbed downwards with my sword and the blade went through Proculus's leg. He screamed in pain as he released me, while I retracted my sword from his leg, the blade covered in gold ichor.

"Didn't read that, did you?" I taunted at him.

Proculus bellowed in fury as he resumed hacking at me with his serrated sword.

Sparks continued to fly as our swords clashed against each other. I noticed that my sword, Tsunami, was glowing and humming like a content cat. But that didn't mean a thing to Proculus, because he spun around and kicked me in the chest, sending me back two steps. Before I could regain my footing, Proculus slashed at my sternum, creating a thin line of red across my chest.

I cried out in shock, thinking how the hell Proculus could be able to beat me, even if I was invulnerable? Maybe I underestimated the power of immortals – maybe they have more abilities than I thought. Whatever the reason, Proculus was steadily overpowering me.

I clutched my chest with my left hand, holding out my sword with my right. Proculus was eyeing me menacingly, his sword stained bright red. At this rate I was going to lose to Proculus if I didn't find a way to beat him.

"Getting tired, Dimascio?" he sneered. "You should be. You know, I never would've thought a mortal demigod, such as yourself, to be such a troublesome little fool. You never give up, do you? You just keep ignoring the wisdom of others and just keep going. When will you ever give it a rest for one day?"

"When you're in Tartarus," I growled. At this point, I was getting really fed up with this guy.

Pouring all my strength into my sword arm, I swung my arm overhead with a very loud scream. The blade came down on Proculus's blade so hard that it cleaved the serrated edge of the blade in two parts.

Instantly, the blade exploded with black gas. The transport spell broke with the impact of Tsunami's strike, until the open air blew it away. The Cyclone Princes ruined sword clattered to the floor.

"Hey!" Proculus exclaimed. "That was my favourite sword, you dimwit!"

"That's too bad," I snapped.

Proculus quickly reached behind him and brought out a spare sword, made out of the same metal as my sword. "Well, this might just get a bit more interesting."

We both charged, clashing our swords together, silver against silver.

I felt a familiar routine stir inside of me.

It was a memory that was at the back of my mind, yet I can't remember what memory it was, and why it felt so helpful.

Proculus went to slash at my face, but I ducked his strike and jabbed at his side, which only caused a loud grunt. He swiped the butt of his sword against my face, causing my vision to go red with pain and fury. This guy is REALLY starting to get on my nerve.

But then suddenly, my vision changed and instead of Proculus...I was facing my father.

He was carrying his spare sword and was looking at me, smiling with his fatherly smile. Then he said, "Keep at it, son. Put some effort into it!"

For one moment, I was temporarily shocked.

But, doing as I was told, I lifted my sword and started to spar and slash at Poseidon. I knew that it was my father assisting me, so I was thankful for it. I guess he wanted me to visualise the training he gave me so it could help me concentrate.

I knew it was Proculus I was fighting, but me thinking that I was training with my father made it seem and feel a whole lot easier.

Poseidon – Proculus – raised his sword to do an overcut strike, but I rolled to one side, despite my shoulder flaring with pain. Faulting off my knees with all my strength, I jabbed the point of my sword into my opponents shoulder. Proculus grunted with pain – three stabs in the same shoulder can't be good for one person to withstand. Whatever the case, Proculus was starting to tire.

We kept clashing and bashing, but soon I was getting the advantage. Before I knew it, Proculus made his ultimate mistake – the same mistake that my father made when he was training me. He went to jab me in the stomach, but I got inside his thrust, narrowly dodging the point of his sword. I forced the sword out of his hands, elbowed him hard in the nose and breaking it, and tripped him over, making him crash into the floor hard.

He groaned as he tried to get up, put I kicked him in the face and slammed my foot hard on his chest. My sword hovered above his unprotected face.

Suddenly, my vision cleared and I was staring at Proculus, whose bloody face was staring at me in stunned surprise. His nose was broken and he had a nasty looking cut on his cheek. His shoulder was gushing out blood, like I severed an artery or a muscle.

"How did you do that?" he hissed at me.

I just smiled. "You shouldn't have fought a demigod who had training from his Olympian father."

I bashed him in the head with the butt of my sword, so hard that the marble floor beneath Proculus cracked with the force of the impact.

I looked down at the unconscious form of Proculus, wondering how I managed to beat him so easily. All that training seriously helped me, though I didn't know exactly how much.

I grabbed him from under his shoulders and dragged him to the bashed in wall, whistling as loud as I could. In one short moment, Ventus came souring out of the clouds, landing right in front of me with his wings outstretched.

Need some help? Ventus asked me.

"Yeah, but you ain't gonna like it," I said as I draped Proculus over Ventus's back. "Are you up for it?"

Ventus snorted and bobbed his head.

As soon as I got onto the stallions back, he chargedright into the sky, going faster than I thought possible. Proculus was barelysecured on, but at this point I really didn't care.