Drowning in the Siren's Song

Chapter 29

"Huff.... Ah! Please...no more.... stop!!" Percy managed to breathe out, clutching his ribs which were pulsing with sharp spikes of pain. Now that he'd stopped, hands on his knees and panting like the wolves who'd run with him, the tiredness crept up in him. He was completely exhausted. 

Zoe had dragged him to the grasslands where he'd usually lure the monsters, but instead of hunting them, he was the one being hunted. Not in reality, but it felt that way. She'd made him run laps, making sure he was doing it diligently by making the wolves run with him. 

"Come on, Percy... You're not done yet." Zoe insisted, shaking a fist in encouragement whilst trying to smile. He couldn't even be bothered to reply to get soulless words, deciding to just give her a look which meant- 'not done yet? do you see me wheezing in pain right now?' 

Zoe sighed in response, dropping the pointless charade. "You know you have to do more. You have zero strength." She deadpanned, each word stabbing him right in the chest.
Why did it hurt? Maybe because it was true. 

"And running like wild boar will help??" He'd caught his breath now and had decided to sit, deeming standing to be too much work. 

"Yup." She nodded seriously. Percy had noticed before but his humor didn't always seem reach her. Though he wasn't what they would call a modern child since he was half- raised by ancient beings, Zoe was too much of an old soul for jokes even by their standards. 

But he had to admit that she was right. After comparing himself with the hunters, he got to know that he indeed was lacking in the muscle area. Oak had made him do a lot of physical exercises, but after coming to the reserve he'd slacked off (a little bit) in some of the departments. 

Because he'd spend all his time in the forest, he was used to being on trees more than having his feet on the ground. He was used to moving by jumping from branch to branch and not walking. He was used to throwing thin knives than confronting and hitting. 

As a result, he became really good at some things and really bad at other things. Agility, precision, balance, wit, flexibility— no one could beat him. He could rival Zoe when it came to spending time on tress motionless. 

He had a lithe body, small and easy to hide, with wiry muscles tensed and ready to pounce if threatened, but what he needed was a rigid body ready to attack. He had built himself for defense because all he needed to do was protect himself, but now he knew that attack was one of the best defenses. 

But to attack, he needed muscle. And, surprise- surprise! He had no muscle. 

He had the dryads when it came to heavy lifting and the animals when it came to moving anything like boulders or rocks. Not to mention his powers, both with water and the earth which were more powerful than 10 men in their primes. As a result, he became so dependent that he never went beyond his limits. 

The same went for his stamina. The forest was a big place, and simply patrolling it took a huge amount of energy. In addition, using and practicing his powers also took quite the tool on him, and after doing the same thing for years strengthened his heart to stone. He had an incredible stamina, but what he lacked was utilizing it properly. 

He was used to a leisurely routine with occasional breaks and chats with the animals or spirits. So when he was forced to do some high- intensity workouts, he fell flat. During his years in the reserve, it was only his stamina which grew but not his muscles. He could go on with the exercises for as long as required, but his muscles burned in protest.

Nevertheless, he was still a demigod. No matter how much he neglected his physical body, it pulsed with ancient blood. His whole body was already enhanced more than an ordinary human just by having a god as a father. And his blood had the power of not only Poseidon and Neptune, but also Pan and the nature spirits. 

Oak had mentioned something similar. She'd said that to fully use the dormant potential in oneself, they must first make themselves a vessel worthy of the potential. He'd never really understood everything she'd said and had simply etched her words in his mind, but he suddenly recalled them now that he finally understood what she'd wanted to convey. 

Now all he had to do was build himself up even more using the secure base given to him. To protect himself, he needed to truly make use of himself to the fullest.