[Third Person’s PoV]

Percy was the first to attack, thrusting his trident toward Annabeth. She deflected the strike with her metal bands, sparks flying from the impact. As she parried, she followed up with a monstrous punch.

Percy barely managed to block by raising the staff of his trident, but Annabeth’s sheer strength sent him flying. He tumbled across the ground, landing with several heavy thuds. Groaning, he pushed himself up, his body trembling from the impact. His hands, however, shook the most, making him look as if he had Parkinson’s.

“YOU GORILLA!” Percy yelled in pain. “Why are you so freaking strong?!”

“WHAT THE HELL DID YOU CALL ME?!” Annabeth screeched. Her hair lifted as the ground trembled, rocks rising beside her.

Seeing her murderous glare, Percy shrank back, but before he could apologize, the rocks shot forward like bullets.

He winced as they sliced across his exposed skin. Reacting quickly, he slammed his trident into the ground, summoning a sphere of water around him. The rocks lost momentum the moment they sank into the shield.

Percy then thrust his trident forward, sending the water shield surging outward. It twisted into a spiraling torrent at the prongs’ tip before erupting toward Annabeth in a pressurized jet.

Annabeth acted instantly—her metal wings shot forward, covering her protectively. The razor-sharp feathers dug into the ground, anchoring her against the attack.

Then, one wing pushed against the water jet while she used the other to pivot and twirl out of the way. The thrusters in the middle of her wings ignited, propelling her straight toward Percy.

Percy cut off his attack and swung his trident at the incoming Annabeth. She blocked with a wing, sending more sparks flying.

As Percy pressed forward with one hand, he reached into his pocket and uncapped his pen. At the same time, Annabeth thrust her second wing toward him.

More sparks burst as both wings clashed against both of Percy’s weapons.

Annabeth leaned forward, smirking. “Look at that—both your hands are occupied.”

“My legs sure aren’t,” Percy shot back.

Without hesitation, he pushed off Annabeth’s wings, flipping up and double-kicking her in the face. She staggered back, clutching her nose in pain.

Meanwhile, Percy crashed onto the ground with a groan. “I should’ve planned my landing…”

Annabeth lowered her hand, her expression dark. A drop of blood trickled from her nose, which she wiped away with a single finger.

“You should also start planning your funeral, you fish-brained bastard,” she said coldly. “Because you’re dead.”

Percy’s danger instincts flared. Without thinking, he rolled to the side—

BOOM!

Annabeth had leaped at him, slamming her fist into the ground with full force. The earth shattered beneath her, chunks of stone flying in every direction. Her stormy grey eyes gleamed with a crazed intensity as she turned toward Percy.

“ARE YOU CRAZY?! IF THAT LANDED, I WOULD HAVE DIED!”

“Not my problem,” Annabeth retorted flatly.

…

Lucian stood at the center of a swirling vortex of razor-sharp wind, his hair rising far past its resting length. The violent gales sliced at his skin, but tendrils of darkness spread from his body, closing the wounds as soon as they formed.

He looked up at the raging tornado trapping him, more cuts appearing and vanishing in an endless cycle.

“You know… this is giving me another idea,” Lucian mused, tilting his head to the side just in time to dodge Thalia’s surprise punch.

“You can’t be serious,” she snapped, irritation flashing across her face. It wasn’t just his comment—it was the fact that despite her relentless attacks, Lucian kept dodging with casual ease.

“Step out for a second. I want to try something,” Lucian said. “But keep the tornado going.”

“What?” she snarled. “You want me to just stand back and let you become stronger?”

“I’ll kiss you as payment~” Lucian teased, amusement lacing his voice.

“I hope you suffocate to death in here,” Thalia retorted coldly, stepping out of the tornado. Without hesitation, she began extracting all the breathable air from the center.

Lucian instinctively gripped his throat. ‘If she mastered this, she could’ve knocked me out in one go… terrifying~’ he thought, making sure to conserve his oxygen.

Closing his eyes, he concentrated on his idea.

Outside, Thalia crossed her fingers. “Be knocked out and fail. Be knocked out and fail…” she chanted under her breath, hoping to see him collapse.

Then, her expression shifted.

Lucian’s shadow had begun to expand, stretching to match the tornado’s radius.

Her eyes narrowed. ‘That bastard—he’s trying to absorb my attack with his shadow.’

But then, her jaw dropped.

Lucian’s shadow wasn’t just absorbing the tornado—it was spinning in the opposite direction.

Thalia watched, slack-jawed, as his shadow swirled faster and faster, countering her tornado’s motion. The stronger his vortex became, the slower hers spun.

Her hands clenched into fists, shaking with frustration. She was furious—not just because he was unraveling her tornado, but because it was damn impressive.

“That… bastard…” she muttered, her lips twitching between a scowl and a grin. “That genius bastard… He’s mimicking the power of wind using nothing but his masterful control over his own shadow.”

Her tornado intertwined with his, its vibrant blue fading into the darkness. Moments later, her wind completely disappeared, leaving behind only Lucian’s swirling shadow vortex.

Thalia’s eyes widened as she watched the vortex slow and unravel.

And then—her heart skipped a beat.

Lucian stood at the center, his eyes still closed, his body gradually being freed from the dark wind. His hair, once defying gravity, floated down in soft waves, and the edges of his shirt, untouched by his armor, settled gently against his skin.

For a moment, he looked almost celestial.

Then, his ruby-red eyes opened, glowing with an eerie intensity.

Thalia’s cheeks burned.

‘Damn it. Damn him. Why does he look like that?’ she cursed inwardly, furious at both herself and him for making her feel this way.

Lucian, noticing her reaction, inwardly chuckled. ‘Too easy.’

“How…?” was all Thalia managed to ask.

Lucian smirked, already knowing what she meant.

“It’s a simple concept, really—one that you could apply to your wind or lightning,” he explained. “Wind is versatile, defined in many ways. At its core, all wind is just rapid motion of air. Now, what if I replaced air with something unnatural—in this case, my shadow? By controlling the rapid motion of darkness, I can generate and manipulate wind. Though I’m still limited in how I can wield it, the principle is the same. If you understand the mechanics of other elements, you can replicate their effects using only one.”

Thalia’s eyes sparkled with understanding. “I think I get it… Like, for example…”

She extended her hand, summoning a small breeze. But this time, she focused—not on the entire wind, but on a specific aspect of it.

Her brows furrowed, sweat forming at her temple as she concentrated.

The air swirling around her hand shifted. Tiny ice crystals began forming within the wind, accumulating in the summer heat. Thalia narrowed her focus further, pulling in only the cold winds while pushing the warm ones away.

Slowly, the icy wind condensed, forming a delicate snowball in her palm.

Lucian stared in disbelief. His lips twitched before he clicked his tongue.

“Cheater…” he muttered.

Thalia puffed out her chest, grinning triumphantly. “Look who’s talking.”

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