Chapter X

Mark and Reyna's widened eyes told Percy that he might've blurted out the wrong thing to add to the conversation. They were just dreams. Sure it was weird that he dreamt about specifically Roman soldiers and their battles, but his latest dream didn't feature any Roman figure that he knew of. Right?

All of a sudden engrossed in his web of thought, he didn't catch the look Mark and Reyna shared, with a slight nod from Mark, Reyna turned and started walking towards the maintenance closet at the end of the gym.

"I'm interested to hear about your dreams, Percy. Very much so. Yet we only have the rest of the period here and we need to get to work as soon as we can." Mark said, snapping Percy out of his trance.

Right. Training. Whatever that meant. Dreams could wait for later. It's been a while since he did anything physical. The school didn't have a pool, and he could only swim in summer. Well, maybe now he could swim whenever he wanted, considering his circumstances. He'd have to try it out one day.

"So what first, Magister? How do you even win against whatever tries to attack you when you're a mere human and it's a creepy muscle-bound hunting machine thirsting for your blood?" They say humor helps with coping. So far Percy wasn't sure.

Mark looked stunned again for a second before his composure returned. "How come you use the Latin, Percy? Not that I mind," He started.

Percy never even noticed that he used the title Reyna used to refer to their teacher. Was she effecting him now?

"The first thing we'll teach you is basic close quarters combat and weapon proficiency. In regular Latin hours we'll talk about Roman life, beliefs and culture, so that you know your legacy, and what you're going into." Mark continued.

"But how do you know all of this? Who taught you?" Percy was still unsure about his mysterious teacher, and the little info he could find about him didn't help.

"I told you Percy, the gods are the reason I'm here, to serve and protect, and to revive. All I can tell you is that you must trust me, and that I can help you become what you were meant to be. With Reyna's help of course."

As if on cue, the door of the maintenance closet opened, and out came Reyna, equipped with what looked like a small armory made of wood. A large wooden shield rested on her back, as well as what looked like two thin and long spear points, secured to the shield. In her hands, she held two wooden short swords that Percy recognized from his dreams.

The double edged blade was wider than most swords Percy knew from playing video games and watching various movies, and he was sure that while dull, a solid hit from this wooden weapon would hurt no less than a baseball bat straight to the head.

When she arrived, and with a nod from Mark, she placed the swords on the floor, followed by the large shield and lastly the two wooden spear tips, which – now unobscured – turned out to be what looked like short spears.

"This is a crash course, Percy, so pay attention," Reyna's voice caught his attention, now different from the melancholic tinge that it held when he entered the gym. Percy looked at her and nodded. He'd do his best to learn what she could teach him.

"The sword right here is the usual legionnaire issued weapon. Good for both stabbing and slashing, its design helped shape the Roman army and its empire. Romans called it a-"

"Gladius." Percy said. The Legatus in his dreams made sure they were ready with them before the attack. Sharp and poised.

"Yes. Good I see it's popular enough that even you know what it is." A small snicker left her lips before Mark gave a small cough.

"Anyway, moving on, the large shield here is again normal issued. It help protect both you and your comrades on the battlefield, and can be maneuvered to preform different tactics for both attacking and defending. It's named a-"

"Scutum." Percy beat her again. He almost felt the heft of it as he watched the cohort in his dream form into a defensive tactic that its name he didn't quite catch.

"Yep. Two for two. I though you didn't know much about Romans, maybe just the Latin?" Reyna seemed to cheer up even more now. Percy though that it might have to do with him having prior knowledge about deadly weapons.

"Now the spears are quite tricky and most people get it wrong. You see-"

"Pila are used to get rid of opposing shields. The thin metal that penetrated the shield makes the rest of the pilum bend, making efficient use of the shield very difficult to impossible, allowing an opening in the enemy ranks." Percy just spewed knowledge that came from what he saw. It wasn't pretty, but it was effective. Very effective.

Reyna, stunned, just looked at him for a few seconds. "How did you know?"

"Told you, I dreamt of it. A big battle full of Roman legionaries. It's like you took the same weapons and carved them out of wood." Percy answered.

"Reyna?" He asked.

"What?"

"Why are there wooden Roman infantry weapons inside of the gym maintenance closet?"

"Because we need to keep up with our training Percy, and I couldn't start you off with a bladed weapon now could I?" She responded.

"How come no one took the away by now?" If he was a janitor that spotted weapons, no matter the material, he probably would've taken them and alerted the principle straight away.

"They think they're brooms."

"What?" No way.

"Later, Percy. For now, pick up a gladius." Reyna instructed.

Following her instruction, Percy picked up the wooden weapon from the ground. The hilt's rough texture made his grip strong and the weight seemed balanced for him. Neither too light nor too heavy. He inspected the weapon for a few moment before looking back at Reyna.

"Okay what now?" Some kind of stance, or footwork? A basic strike? Maybe Reyna could get a training dummy from the closet that people usually mistook for a cotton candy machine. Everything could be possible.

"Now defend yourself." She said

"Wait what?" Percy only managed to utter his confusion before he saw Reyna explode into action. With two quick steps she was close enough to strike him from every angle she wished. But from where? Percy was having difficulty analyzing the situation he found himself in. The focused look on Reyna's face told him that she'd hit him no problem. She saw him as an enemy. He was actually in danger.

Then suddenly, without warning, his mind cleared up, and he knew what to do, almost like an instinct. He took a swift step back, ducking in the process quick enough to hear the violent sound of hardwood cutting through the air where his head was just a moment ago.

Automatically his body reacted again. This time trying to defend itself, and to keep danger away as far as possible. With another swift step, he closed whatever small distance was left between them and raised his gladius with a slashing motion, down towards Reyna's face. Feeling the weight behind his attack, Percy was actually worried he could hurt her. He didn't want to.

His hesitation cost him greatly as Reyna parried his strike with ease, opening him up for her best chance to score a killing strike.

Whatever took hold of Percy's actions before disappeared when he hesitated to carry the attack through, and he felt like he couldn't move, speak, even breath.

With a swift and decisive motion, the tip of Reyna's wooden gladius was a paper's width away from completely destroying his wind pipe, and he closed his eyes in panic, waiting for the pain.

A second. Two more. The pain never came. Percy opened his eyes to see Reyna, her weapon at her side, and a soft smile on her lips. The soft light that came through the window indicating the late afternoon was turning into evening gave the image an even more surreal look for Percy.

"You dodged it." She said.

"What? What do you mean I dodged it? You nearly had me dead by your second strike Reyna." Percy was confused.

"Exactly." She let out a laugh. "Demigods work on instinct. We're faster, more powerful, we have abilities. We're different from the rest." Her smile was still plastered on her face. "No normal mortal could avoid a strike that fast Percy. Your instincts took over." Whatever was going on, Percy still didn't quite get it.

"Okay, I think that's enough for today, Percy." Mark's voice reminded Percy of the fact that he was still in the room with them, and it made Percy somewhat embarrassed.

"Remember, we'll meet here for training every day we can. Salvete, discipuli." With that, his teacher left the gym. Ever the mystery.

Percy turned to Reyna who looked more collected and somewhat more somber than a few moments ago.

"What happened?" He asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean your smile. You hardly smile. And when you do it's for a moment before you're back to your neutral attitude. What happened Reyna?" As long as he got some time, he'd like to figure it out. They were in this together, if what they told him could be true.

Reyna turned down her gaze and a few moments of silence passed between them. "I see hope in you, Percy." She finally answered in a low voice, almost a whisper.

"Hope? Hope for what? And why me? Look at me I almost got killed off yesterday."

"We all start from somewhere. And I know you can do great things. You're powerful. Even if you don't realize it yet. And that's why I smile so rarely."

"You smile because I'm powerful? Shouldn't I be smiling about that?" He asked.

Another snicker escaped her lips. "I smile, Percy, because of the hope in you. I believe in you, and so does the magistre." She said as she picked up the equipment and returned it to the closet. Percy didn't know what to say.

From there she continued to the gym door, slid it open and turned to him once again. "Please don't make lose hope again." She gave a small wave, and the last thing Percy saw before she left was another small smile on her lips as she walked away.

That night, laying on his bed, Percy was deep in thought. He was still processing the information dump of the last day. He was half a god, so was Reyna. His Latin teacher definitely has some unresolved mysteries about him, and he was giving them both hope for the future for some reason. Did that anything to do with what he saw before? That woman who told him about 'the son of the sea'?

With those thoughts in mind, Percy drifted off to sleep.

The warehouse door creaked heavily as they opened. Alerting the men inside of the newcomer. The men turned to see whoever came running towards them at a quick pace. Clearly he was panicked.

When he reached them, the man fell to the ground and bowed deep. His head lying on the gravel before the men.

"Is it done, Servus?" One of the men asked, his voice distorted and unnatural.

The groveling man before them could be heard drawing deep breaths and letting them out in quick succession. He was clearly panicking.

"Please, Master, forgive the foolish one who though that a single monstrum would be enough to take down a dawning godling." The man spoke quickly and timidly.

"Domina would be most displeased, servus. You know how hard she's working to expel any sort of remnant of Roman trash that pops up around here right?" The man's voice became even more distorted, and a sinister tone made itself known as he finished talking.

The bowing man simply remained silent, his body beginning to shiver.

"Send something better for him, servus. After all you don't break a diamond with a hammer. And this time you better hope that the he's wiped from the face of the earth, or you'll take his place. Are we clear on this?" The voice asked.

"Yes, master. Clear as crystal. Domina won't have to worry about him for long." The bowing man answered.

"Oh I hope so. Or you'll regret ever saying the Domina's name in my presence again. Leave." The voice commanded.

With a whimper, the other man quickly got up, left, and closed the door behind him, its creaking echo burned into his mind.

Hey guys and girls and welcome to the tenth chapter of GP.

Almost a hundred favorites, never thought I'd reach that.

As usual thank you for your feedback and reviews.

Enjoy!

See you next time,

T.I