Percy stopp and growled, 'okay, so moving forward doesn't help. What about...' Percy looked to the the walls. He approached it and ran his hand along it's surface. The walls felt freshly painted, wet. But at the same time Percy could feel power radiate off of it.
'Alright then, let's see if I can go through these things,' Percy put away Waverider and closed his eyes, releasing his strength seals;
STR— 0.146 (+11+20+75+2) = 108.146
Seal Release: Layer 10 Time: 1 1.2 Months
STR— 42,467,328 (+11+20+75+2) = 42,467,436
Percy grunted, he felt a rush of power go through his body. The seal tattoos on his arm vanished as he grunted, his arms felt hard, like iron. He stood up straight and took a deep breath to calm himself. He drew back his right arm and launched it forward.
BOOM!
The wall vibrated hard against Percy's fist sending shock waves across the wall. The white pods in the ceiling vibrated hard, shaking like a leaf on a tree. Percy felt the wall groan, but it refused to break.
Percy drew back his hand, 'okay, time to step it up,' he closed his eyes and began to channel his Body Form perk increasing his strength tem times over.
Body Form Activated: Full Body!
STR— 42,467,436 X 10 = 424,674,360
Percy gasped at the sudden rush of power that surged through his limbs. His muscles became more prominent, his kin started to stretch out. Percy took a deep breath and slowly let it out. Before doing something like this would have caused Percy immense pain, but thanks to his tactile telekinesis body enhancement he felt his body stick together in one piece.
However the demigod knew this would be enough, he needed to take it a step further. Percy hadn't used this skill in a long time, at least never like this. He focused on him mana, he felt it vibrate slowly as it came pouring out in dredges. Percy caught the mana and forced it into his arm and for the first in long time he felt himself hold back his vibrations in control.
Percy grunted his power back inside of himself, he hadn't needed this power in a long time, he had gotten off on pure strength alone. Percy looked at purple and red wall and drew back his right hand.
He charged his earthquake power allowing it to rumble with energy, he felt his mana circle around his hand. He felt the power, the pure destructive force inside his fist. He tightened his shoulder and threw his arm forward letting out an animalistic cry, "AH!"
BOOM!
The wall was pushed back by the force of the impact. The strongest punch a human ever made was around 5,000 Newtons, his strength points were at least 20. That's 250 Newtons per point. Percy had 424,672,360 points to his stat, that was over 106 billion newtons.
Combine that with his Earthquake powers and you get something far more devastating.
Attack = 424,674,360 STR X 1,200 = 509,609,232,000 Attack points!
That was well over 127 trillion Newton of force.
Ripples of energy went through the wall. Percy could see it trying to fight back, trying to hold together, dispersing the force behind the punch. He would have to hit it again.
Percy drew back his left fist and through the fist of colossal energy into the wall sending out another blast of energy.
BOOM!
509,609,232,000 Attack points!
The wall rippled again, spreading the energy wide and away. "ARGH!" Percy roared throwing punch after punch into the wall. The wall vibrated again and again like the bass speaker in club as it strained to spread out Percy's power.
'Just a bit more!' Percy roared out increasing the speed of his punches. His Rush perk activated causing his punches to slowly increase past human speeds, drawing unto the superhuman and then slowly breaking the sound barrier.
BOOM!
509,609,232,000 Attack points!
BOOM!
509,609,232,000 Attack points!
BOOM!
509,609,232,000 Attack points!
BOOM!
509,609,232,000 Attack points!
BOOM!
509,609,232,000 Attack points!
The fists blurred faster and faster. Each punch moved so past the air in front of it didn't have time to fully move aside causing small pockets of air to be crushed into the wall.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The walls vibrated over and over, Percy could feel it trying to fight back, but he didn't let up, he kept the punches going over and over, he could feel it straining under his might. And then, at Percy's 106th punch the wall cracked and suddenly exploded outwards.
BOOM!
Percy stepped back, supporting himself using his hands to keep himself upright. He looked at the giant hole in the wall and smiled. Panting he stood up straight and slowly powered down, he couldn't keep the flow of power going for long.
There was shadows dancing in the hole in the wall. Percy could see forms and figures appear and evaporate before he could identify them. It was like the darkness had a mind of it's own.
Percy could hear the roar of the wind, but there was no wind to produce such a sound. He felt numb looking at the darkness, it wasn't fear, no, it was just pure numbness. It was like there was something there, and that something was nothing.
Percy gulped and stepped forward. He grabbed hold of the broken wall and stuck his head into the darkness. He looked down and saw no bottom. He looked up and saw no top. Even the outside of the wall was blank, it was like he had punched a crack into the very fabric of this reality,
"I have to say Percy, you surprised even me with that stunt," a voice behind Percy spoke out.
Percy's eyes narrowed, "Morpheus," he turned around and found himself staring at a being with a shadowy silhouette for a face wearing a very expensive suit. Out of the man's back grew wings, black and white, three times bigger than his own body, power rolled off him, his very precise seemed to brighten the tunnel.
Percy didn't even have to look at the God's title to know who he was;
Morpheus, God of Dreams
Lv-?
The shadowy face nodded, "she said you would come for her....for them....I must admit though I didn't think you would."
"Then you don't know me at all," Percy's anger seeped into his voice as he was reminded once more of why he was here, his friends, his family. He came to take them back.
"Such anger, careful Jackson, it may just be your downfall," Morpheus tone sounded like he was teasing Percy, the demigod honestly couldn't tell, the divine being didn't really have a face to read.
"Where are they?" Percy asked.
"Kind of a redundant question don't you think?" Morpheus shrugged.
"Release them all," Percy demanded drawing out Waverider leveling it at the God, "or I'll make you."
The God sighed, "typical demigod behaviour, fighting before thinking. Tell me Percy, do you even know why I did what I did? Why I spent so much time and energy bringing the demigods here?"
Percy's eyes flashed from red to green, he was barely keeping himself from jumping the God, "no, but I'm guessing the reasons are complicated and twisted."
"No, not at all, in fact it's very straightforward," Morpheus explained, "I brought you all here in order to protect you. I made a deal with Kronos, if you all stayed out of the war then you will not be harmed, he gave me his word."
Percy's eyes went wide, "so you brought us in here....to protect us?"
"Yes....and something tells me you don't appreciate that."
"You're right, I think you're insane," Percy growled, "how did you know?"
"Because Thalia Grace said the same thing, she then punched me in the face," Morphs sighed, "something tells me you're about to do the same."
"Right again, but first tell me where she is," Percy's eyes trailed to the pods, "is she in there?"
"No, no she escaped," The god of dreams sighed, "she managed to free herself, how I don't know."
"Keeping so many people in here against their will must be hard for even a God," Percy shot back.
Morpheus' shadowy face lowered, "I...I must admit, I am impressed. All it took was one look and you figured it out...how?"
"Your pods, you're supplying mana into them, forcing them inside, and it's draining you isn't it?" Percy speculated, "you couldn't keep her in there because her will was too strong, she broke free."
"Correct," the God nodded, his wings flappings, "you certainly are a clever one."
"Thanks, now where is she?"
"Safe, I promise you, like everyone else in here," Morpheus spread his hands out, "do you not see what I am doing here Percy? I am saving them all, your family and mine. By bringing them here I have insured their lives, I'm doing this for us!"
"And what about the humans?!"
"Again and again about those stupid humans!" Morpheus roared, his wings flapped sending a gust of wind strong enough to knock down a tree. Percy however stood firm, to him it was just a breeze. "Why do you care so much about those filthy things?!"
"Because I am one of those filthy things," Percy growled, "and so is my mother. I have lived in that world for all my life, I have meet so many amazing people, why in hell would I ever leave them behind?!"
Morpheus growled, "you think they are amazing?! They are horrific! None of them are worthy of a single drop of demigod blood! They aren't worth the air they breath!"
"What gives you the right to say that?!"
"I'm the God of dreams boy! I see into their very deepest darkest desires and you know what I see?! I see death, decay, jealousy, lust, pain and so much hate! They are only happy when they cause others pain! They find satisfaction only in making others hurt! Those amazing people you know? Do you know what they dream about?"
Percy flinched, he was tempted, so very tempted, but he gritted his teeth, "does it matter?"
"What?! Of course it matters! It matters if the people you love and care for wish you dead!"
"But they don't do they! They never say that, or act on that impulse! I wish people dead every day, but I never say that or do anything in that way!"
"But you don't dream it do you!" Morpheus floated into the air pointing at a white pod, "this is a son of Ares, you know him I believe, Peter his name is. You know what his dream is? Of one day besting you and taking control over the camp!"
"If that's his dream then I can't blame him," Percy growled back, "he wants power, everyone does, but I know he would never act on that impulse because he's my friend!"
"Then what about this one," Morpheus pointed to another pod, "Clarisse La Rue, do you know what she dreams about? She dreams about a world where she was never a demigod, where none of you were ever a demigod, she dreams of a world where the gods died. She hates the very family she has sworn to protect!"
"And yet she stayed!" Percy shot back, "she could have left camp the moment we cured her off her scent and never looked back. She could have hide as an ordinary human for the rest of her life and never cared what happened to the Gods. But she didn't, you know why? Because we are her family, and she would never abandon family!"
"Open your eyes you arrogant fool! Not everyone is as loyal as you! Luke betrayed you the first chance he got!"
Percy knew that wasn't true, Luke never betrayed them, he was simply a spy, but he could never admit that. "Fine, so what? He did so only because he believed we would live better lives under Kronos's rule! He did it for us!"
"And what if one day someone else thinks they know better? What if one day Clarisse changes her mind? What if one day Peter decides to turn the camp against you? What if one day the very people you swore to protect decided to leave you?"
Percy stood silently, he thought and finally broke the silence, "then that day I'll will come to terms with what has happened. Our dreams are not reality, it's not who we are, it's what we want to be, but know that we never will be."
"That is where you are wrong boy, I'm the god of dreams, I have been so since eternity began. Believe me when I say this, the person one perceives themselves to be in their dream is the truest form of them. They are weak, they are cowardly, they hate and they steal. That is humanity, that is what you claim to protect."
"Then aren't demigods the same?"
Morpheus was stumped. He honestly didn't have an answer. He cleared his throat, "t-they can change."
"Then so can humans," Percy shot back.
The God of dreams growled, "enough of this! Don't you see?! I'm doing this for you people!" the God roared sending out a blast of mana right at Percy.
Percy jumped to the side and rolled. He got up and growled, "we didn't ask for this! We never asked for this!"
"You never did, but they did!" Morpheus pointed to the many pods around them, "they dreamt of not fighting in this war! Do you know what happens when they sleep? They always come into my realm, they visit, and I take care of them. I help them dream! I help them contemplate the problems of the day and I nurse them back to a stable state of mind in order to face the next day! And the next, and the next! I help them up, only for them to come crawling back, broken once more! I couldn't do anything to help them, I could never interfere! But now....now I can no longer simply stand by and watch! They dream of a better life, and I will give it to them!"
Percy looked at the god, and noticed a single feather slowly fall down. As the black and white death hit the ground Percy realised something, something important.
"Would you do that....even at the cost of your own life?" Percy asked gently.
"H-how did you know?"
"You're shedding," Percy pointing to the fallen feather on the ground. And now that he was looking for it he realised there were several feathers all over the place, a trail of them where ever the God walked.
"A God's form is absolute, not a strand out of place not a blister on their skin. But if you are losing your form...then that means you are growing weaker. There is so much power being supplied into those pods, you must be exhausting yourself forcing us all in here, making us stay. You....you're risking fading away aren't you?"
"How....,sigh, yes," Morpheus floated down standing before Percy, "I was never meant to bring so many of you here...it's not natural. My control over my own realm is slipping...that's why you managed to break it, otherwise not even Zeus could have done something like that. It's against nature, but....but if it means saving your lives then it must be done!"
"Morpheus....I understand why you are doing this," Percy lowered his weapon, "I do... You and I...we have the same flaw. Loyalty. But this...what you are doing...it" target="_blank">doing...it's just wrong!"
"You mean like you did when you went into the underworld to bring back the souls of 36 demigods?" Morpheus argued, "you were risking death in doing that, so if you, a demigod could act so noble, why can't I?"
