The Blood of Olympus

They’re in the ruins of Poseidon’s old palace, and the woman is Kymopoleia, a daughter of Poseidon who is banned from her father’s new home. She resents the Romans for not worshipping her and resents her father for having arranged her marriage to the giant Briares against her will. Percy notes that Briares is a friend of his whom he freed from Alcatraz, but Kymopoleia doesn’t appreciate this since she hates her husband. When the boys realize that she must be working for Gaea, Percy warns her that Gaea won’t keep her promise, but Kymopoleia doesn’t care, since the Olympians use other gods too. Percy responds that the Olympians are trying to mend their ways but admits that he has never heard of her. Percy lists his positive track record fighting goddesses, but Kymopoleia notes that she won’t kill him. She has simply lured him here for the giant Polybotes, who appears and releases basilisks into the water.

The basilisks circle Percy, ignoring Jason, who summons a lightning bolt and kills them, enraging Polybotes. Percy rushes at the giant, who releases poison into the water. The ventus, in which Jason is encased, filters out the poison, but Percy is immediately incapacitated. Polybotes traps him in a net, where—the giants boast—he’ll die after paralysis and hours of excruciating pain. Jason stalls for time, fighting and dodging the giant with the help of the ventus. He begs Kymopoleia to save them. When she asks whether he has a better offer than Gaea’s, which is unlimited power, Jason reminds her that once all of human civilization is gone, no one will be left to fear her, and she’ll remain unknown. The argument appeals to Kymopoleia, who enjoys being feared by mortals. Jason promises shrines and banners at both demigod camps—and a Kymopoleia action figure. Persuaded, Kymopoleia helps Jason kill Polybotes.

Jason releases Percy from the net. Kymopoleia prophesies future pain for the boys: Percy hasn’t yet faced his fatal flaw, which is “being unable to step away” (209), and it will trick Jason. She also reveals that “the forces of the ocean are at war” (209) and that the merpeople whom Hazel helped are fighting to prevent Gaea’s allies from reaching Long Island. She plans to follow their progress and hopes that Jason, who amuses her, survives. When he asks for pointers, she reminds him of the primordial god Ouranos. She calls Jason pontifex, meaning priest, which initially surprises him, though he later realizes that his promise to build shrines for Kymopoleia (and other minor deities) fulfills the job description. Before he and Percy leave, Kymopoleia tells Jason that his ventus servant hopes to be freed for helping Jason.

After they leave, Percy thanks Jason for saving his life and asks what Kymopoleia meant by bringing up Ouranos. Jason explains that the Titans defeated him by luring him “away from his home territory” (211). Privately, Jason reflects that if it comes to this, Percy could end up being more hindrance than help. When Percy notices that Jason looks better, he checks his wound and realizes that it has healed. Having decided “to honor the gods at both camps” (212) has given him a future path and healed him.