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As a Moments subpage, all spoilers are unmarked as per policy. You Have Been Warned.
The Lost Hero
  • Jason, still thrown for a loop with his amnesia, manages to put up a fight with a few hostile wind spirits.
  • Jason demonstates his godly lineage for Camp Half-Blood by turning his coin into a spear and lobbing a bolt of lightning into the bonfire.
  • Leo taking out two Cyclopses with a robot crane, and then a third one by dropping an engine block on her.
    • And later on, he fights a goddess. Not a demigoddess, a full-blown goddess. Granted, she wasn't exactly high level, but still, THE MAN FOUGHT A GODDESS ONE ON ONE. Still not as impressive as Percy who fought and defeated an Olympian though...
    • Adds to it that he's a son of Hephaetus, not one of the Big Three. Meaning he's one of the few kids of the lesser-powerful gods that can take on a goddess.
  • Piper using Charm Speak to break Leo and Jason out of Medea's control.
  • Jason defeating King Midas's son in hand-to-hand combat, and then showing his capacity for guile by tricking Midas into helping his son up, turning him into gold. Then he brings down a lighting bolt that caused rain to fall into the house, freeing all the people that Midas had turned to gold.
  • The confrontation with Enceladus contains many.
    • Leo taking out five Earthborn with construction equipment.
    • Piper compelling the last earthborn, then cutting its arms off. Also doubles as a CMOF due to the Earthborn's Major Injury Underreaction.
    • Jason fighting Enceladus despite the fact that Enceladus is a giant, and the very ground was working against him.
    • Leo hitting Enceladus in the chest with a giant hydraulic axe blade.
    • Jason finally finishing off Enceladus with a lighting bolt from Zeus.
  • Jason Grace: Bad-Ass!
    Jason: "I'm the son of Jupiter! I'm a child of Rome, consul to demigods, praetor of the First Legion. I slew the Trojan sea monster. I toppled the the black throne of Kronos, and destroyed the Titan Krios with my own hands. And now I'm going to destroy you Porphyrion, and feed you to your own wolves."
    Leo: "Have you been eating red meat?"
  • Piper standing up to Drew and taking her place as senior counselor, through sheer force of personality and charm, proving herself a true daughter of Aphrodite.
  • Thalia makes a subtle implication that one of these might be going on behind the scenes, when Zeus/Jupiter's ban on contact with the mortal world is mentioned.
    "Artemis plays by her own rules."
    • Make that two. Hephaestus talks to Leo via pirated technology, and has the audacity to say Zeus excels at being a jerk.

The Son of Neptune

  • Percy is on an I.V. of awesome with hints of badass mixed in. Let's start with the fact that he talked nothing but smack to Mars/Ares, in front of the Roman Camp, of which he's the second most powerful god. The next time he meets Juno/Hera in a dream, he dunks her in the river, mouthed off, and showed no respect. He takes no lip from them.
  • When the amnesiac Percy and Nico first meet. Hazel had been convinced that Jason was the most powerful demigod she knew until she met these two, and when they first encounter one another, she was terrified of what would happen if they started a fight. Percy was tensing up because he couldn't remember Nico and he knew he should remember him, while Nico was tensing up due to the fact that until then, Percy was M.I.A., and he suddenly showed up in one of the worst places for him to be. Added to the fact is that he's running into his crush after so long, both of which made it seem like they were sizing each other up. Hazel did not want to be anywhere nearby if the two drew weapons. It's pretty awesome when you can make a trained soldier cower with a handshake.
  • Similarly, Percy's arrival to Camp Jupiter, and him accidentally broadcasting it in a big way. He smashed two gorgons to death with fists formed of water and dissipated their essence in the river so they couldn't reform anytime soon, demonstrating a power that the Romans haven't seen in ages, and consider fearsome. And later, when we get Hazel's POV, she admits the reason she didn't immediately try to kill him was because she thought she was experiencing a Greek-style Angel Unaware. That's right, Percy's auto-aura of power is so obvious, even when he's been on the run for months and is exhausted, she thought he was a god.
    Juno/Hera: Romans, I present to you the son of Neptune. For months he has been slumbering, but now he is awake. His fate rests in your hands.
  • "Again, Frank waited for the god to strike him (Percy) down, but Mars just grinned like they were two old buddies talking trash." That's some Worthy Opponent vibe going on there. It also counts as a Funny Moment.
  • Percy proving that sometimes amnesia is incapable of eliminating how badass you are, especially when you have monsters after you.
  • Percy's Batman Gambit against Phineas. He uses himself as blackmail against Gaea to force her to influence Phineas to choose the wrong vial of gorgon blood. A little spacey, he may be, but Percy does have his moments of outwitting his opponents.
    • He also earns serious respect from Hazel and Reyna by deducing that they've lost their eagle, just by putting together a few scraps of conversations. Percy's definitely no idiot, even if he sometimes acts like one.
  • Percy's initial moment of awesome in the Roman camp during the war game, where he broke through a legion of Roman demigods through sheer speed, strength, agility, and his less organized, wilder combat style. Sure, he wasn't there alone, but Frank stated that Percy was part of the problem keeping the Romans from organizing to fight. The other part of that problem was the Fifth Cohort's war elephant.
  • Hazel turning down Gaea's offer of a peaceful Lotus-Eater Machine replica of her life, the life she's been heartbroken over losing since before we met her. But the price is leaving Frank alone and letting Gaea take Percy for her own plans, so not only does she turn it down, she screams in the face of Mother Earth herself.
    Hazel: I will never cooperate with you. LET—US—GO!
  • Percy in the climax of Son of Neptune. He holds off an entire army of re-forming ghost soldiers by creating a hurricane and sheer badassery until Frank can free Thanatos, then breaks a freaking glacier and survives the resulting fall no problem. He then rides to Camp Jupiter and manages to take down a giant with nothing but his sword and a statue's head scarcely an hour later.
  • Frank rendering Alcyoneus Not So Invincible After All by dragging him across the border to Canada. While smacking him with a shield, all the way. In the face.
    Frank: Here's a tip, Alcyoneus. Next time you choose the biggest state for your home, don't set up base in the part that's only ten miles wide. Welcome to Canada, idiot.
  • In her first lifetime, Hazel finding out what was actually happening on the island and killing herself and her mother so it wouldn't work, as well as destroying the island. Then, once she gets to the Underworld, she gives up Elysium so her mother won't go to the Fields of Punishment. This was as a 13-year-old girl, with no explanation of her powers, and no explanation of what was happening, other than if she didn't stop it, Things Would Be Bad.
  • Tyson during the battle.
    Tyson: Bad Cyclops Lady! General Tyson says GO AWAY!
  • Percy has a few spectacular quotes when using the Twelfth Legion's eagle standard.
    Percy: Romans! Rally to the eagle!

Mark of Athena

  • Sammy stopping Rufus from bothering Hazel by pretending to be a film director.
  • Frank Turning into a Dragon.
  • Percy and Jason combining their powers to push back the Romans.
  • Though the circumstances were... odd, Percy, who had trained only in summers since he was twelve, manages to match Jason, who had trained under Lupa the wolf goddess and then year-round at Camp Jupiter since he was TWO.
  • After Annabeth throws her knife into the water, Percy (who was in the water) immediately understood and just wipes the Romans into the water. Doubles as Funny Moment.
    All around the Romans, Charleston Harbor erupted like a Las Vegas fountain putting on a show. When the wall of seawater subsided, the three Romans were in the bay, spluttering and frantically trying to stay afloat in their armor. Percy stood on the dock, holding Annabeth’s dagger.
    Annabeth: I love you!
  • Percy managed to save the Argo II and its crew from dolphin pirates with diet Coke and a little acting.
    • While he loses, the fact that he's able to go toe-to-toe with a swordsman who has centuries, if not millennia, of experience on him is no small thing.
  • Annabeth finding the statue of Athena and outwitting Arachne, especially considering she did so on a broken ankle.
    • And the fact that she was terrified to her absolute limit.
    • Let's make it clear on how she outwitted Arachne. She made Arachne weave something that was just a bigger version of a Chinese finger trap, and then tricked her into getting inside of it, causing her to be trapped inside. Well done, Annabeth Chase!
    • And let's not forget that the underlying reasoning for this plan was that Annabeth and Arachne share the same fatal flaw: hubris. Annabeth recognized this and played Arachne accordingly. Essentially, Annabeth turned her own greatest weakness into the lynch-pin that ultimately took her enemy down.
    • Annabeth gets one earlier while defeating a gang of nine ghosts solely through her powers of observation and knowledge of architecture.
  • A Heartwarming Moment and a Tear Jerker, Percy deciding to fall into Tartarus with Annabeth was undeniably awesome. You Are Worth Hell, indeed.
  • Give one up to Chrysaor, too! The guy just walks up onto Argos II and Percy Jackson takes out his sword ready for a big battle. What does Chrysaor do? He literally knocks it out of his hands in one blow! Not even Luke or Ares have been that good! Percy had one heck of an Oh, Crap! look when he realized his Invincible Hero streak just went down the drain.
    • Repeat: Chrysaor curb-stomped the dude who had, with a week of training and at twelve years old, fought the freakin' God of War to a standstill.

House of Hades

  • Frank becoming a praetor and leading a legion of undead Romans against Gaea's army. Getting the blessing of Ares/Mars was just the icing on the cake.
  • One for Rick Riordan: the revelation that Nico di Angelo is gay and has/had feelings for Percy. In a series most associate with being for kids. Uncle Rick fears no Moral Guardians!
    • He posted here in his FAQ with what he wanted to accomplish with the reveal, and it's amazing.
    • Credit where it's due, the editors, publishers, and various in-between people could have edited it out, but instead chose to take the risk.
  • Percy and Annabeth manage to go through Tartarus, and come out not just alive, but with their sanity intact. Though it probably help that they had a Titan AND a Giant on their side, who both know the way around.
    • And retroactively, Nico's trip through there is this, and even more so since he went in ALONE. And even more so since Percy speculates that Nico, being a son of Hades, didn't have the luxury of only seeing what he could comprehend.
    • Not to take too much away from Nico, but it is clearly stated by Nico that he was captured almost immediately upon entering Tartarus. So, he didn’t spend anywhere as long in Tartarus as Percy and Annabeth, who also glimpsed the true form of Tartarus.
    • Retroactively made more awesome again by the revelations in The Sun and The Star where his time in Tartarus is elaborated on. We learn that he didn't get captured immediately but wandered for a while before stumbling into the domain of Nyx who is so powerful even the Gods fear her. She proceeded to literally tear away the veil that kept Nico from seeing the truth of the world before handing him over. This should have shattered his mind completely but he's back and fighting shortly after being rescued and because he just won't stay down.
  • Piper having to face Khione on her own after all her friends are incapacitated. She not only manages to curb-stomp Khione by reviving a mechanical dragon with some hyper-drive charmspeak, she delivers a memorable Pre Ass Kicking One Liner before she does it, too.
    • It gets better. Khione is gripping her arm shortly afterward, about to freeze her over... however, Piper proves that The Power of Love is more than just Charmspeak; she literally melts the ice with her willpower.
      Piper: Still underestimating me, I see? You need to work on that.
  • Heck, why just heroes? Give it up for the bad guys too! Tartarus! He only shows up in one scene, but man does he manage to leave a mark. Let's just say that while the books are filled with gods and superpowers, Tartarus is the first being to show to be "god-like", as in he took out two Titans with just a blow! The ONLY reason he didn't kill Percy and Annabeth is because he hasn't gotten use to his physical form yet... let's just say that Typhon really is a chip off the old block.
  • Speaking of bad, Percy snapping during his fight with Akhlys and laying the smack down, turning her own poison against her, drowning her on dry ground, and deadpan-taunting all the while. One of his most brutal and terrifying moments, sure, but also one of his most powerful. Creepy Awesome, meet Percy Jackson.
  • And back to Khione. She shows up on the ship, and the first thing she does, completely out of left field, is fire Leo in the clouds to (as far as his friends know) God knows where when he doesn't come back down.
  • Frank versus every monster in Venice at once. Frank wins.
    • Just Frank's character development in general. He goes from a fat kid who's been teased at camp ever since he came to a praetor of Rome with the blessing of Mars and a body figure similar to a football player's. Aside from his physical development, his confidence grows and he manages to accomplish so many tasks that he would have seen impossible in the second book. Plus, he manages to get over the fear of his stick that supports his life with the pouch Leo gives him! Downright, the BEST character development EVER seen in a Percy Jackson book.
  • Crossed with Heartwarming Moment:
    Leo: I'm coming back for you, Calypso. I swear it on the River Styx.
  • The true meaning of foes bear arms at the Doors of Death. A Giant and a Titan fighting with Percy and Annabeth against an entire army of monsters accompanied by the avatar of Tartarus.
    • Special mention goes to Damasen showing up in the nick of time to fight Tartarus while riding the Maeonian Drakon that he had managed to tame.
    • Bob's development too. He struggles with the clash between his new self and his past as Iapetus, unsure of who he should be, until finally he decides who he truly is and chooses to fight Tartarus despite knowing he can't win, just to let Percy and Annabeth escape.

Demigod Diaries

The Blood of Olympus

  • The Hermes kids stealing the live land mines around the Ares cabin to defend the camp.
  • The Hunters consider the escape of Hazel, Frank and Percy in The Son of Neptune legendary and epic.
  • Piper is prepared to take on all of the Giants gathered in the Parthenon by herself, armed only with a jagged metal sword and her charmspeak.
  • Reyna gets a string of them in the climax. She throws herself on an explosive arrow fired by Orion to protect the Athena Parthenos, a bunch of pegasi, and some sleeping mortals, unsure if her body will contain the blast. Doing so gains her the blessings of both Bellona and Athena, who transforms Reyna's cloak into an aegis. Reyna then uses it to strangle Orion to death.
    "You will die at the hands of a girl."
    • Her Shut Up, Hannibal! moment against Orion, who mocks her about Jason not really being interested in her and Percy letting her down:
      She forced herself to meet the giant's gaze. "I don't define myself by the boys who may or may not like me."
    • It's stated over and over that giants can only be killed by a god and demigod working together. This is bent several times— Polybotes is defeated by Percy using Terminus' statue, while Bacchus and Hecate both wait for the demigods to beat the giant into submission before delivering the final blow. When Reyna fights Orion, the "working together with a god" clause is stretched to its thinnest. No god appears to help her. The only assistance she gets is Athena turning her cloak into an Aegis and Bellona sharing her strength. Granted, Orion is the smallest of the Giants and, by that notion, the physically weakest, but considering he was able to tank a car...
  • The Seven circling up, Back-to-Back Badasses Avengers-style, during the final battle.
  • During the final battle, Leo manages to turn the entire framework of the damaged Argo II into a new metal body for Festus.
  • Leo's entrance takes the cake for funny and awesome:
    Leo: [booming over the Argo II's PA system] SURRENDER! YOU ARE SURROUNDED BY ONE SPANKING HOT WAR MACHINE!
    Enceladus: [howling in outrage due to remembering the last time they fought] Valdez!
    Leo: WHAT’S UP, ENCHILADAS?! NICE DAGGER IN YOUR FOREHEAD!
  • Leo blasting Gaea with fire, after she made him kill his mother by accident, trying to dissuade him from joining the quest to destroy her. Hoist by Their Own Petard indeed.
    “Potty Sludge! Dirt Face! THIS IS FOR MY MOTHER, ESPERANZA VALDEZ!
    • Octavian, surprisingly, being the fire that defeats Gaea... he unintentionally catapults himself to death.
  • Nico forcibly turning Bryce into a ghost and sending him to the underworld just by talking was this as much as it was Nightmare Fuel.
  • Gleeson Hedge, Plucky Comic Relief, uses his contacts to pull some string and summon a whole flock of pegasi to help them carry the statue. Not bad at all.
    • And Pegasus himself (as in, the immortal father of pegasi) joins them, but he doesn't come for Hedge. He comes for Reyna, as a reward for how well she treated her own pegasus, Scipio. She's the daughter of war goddess, and yet she managed to conquer an immortal's favor by sheer kindness and loyalty. "Horse Friend" is apparently the highest honor bestowable from a horse.
  • You also have to give Leo credit for successfully incorporating dying heroically into his plan to rescue Calypso from Ogygia. You can only see go there once a lifetime. But if you died then got revived...
  • Will Solace calling Nico out on the self-inflicted portion of his angst and proving that, yes, people really do care about him.
    • Also, Will proving his usefulness in combat (despite his role being the healer) by weaponizing a whistle.
    • He tells off Octavian, in front of the entire First Legion, for claiming that he is a descendant of Apollo:
  • Speaking of Nico, not only did he shadow travel the Athena Parthenos across like half the globe, driving himself to a point where one more jump would've permanently dissolved him into shadows, he still manages to lead a sabotage operation against the Romans and then proves his status as an all around badass by protecting Will from six demigods at once with just hand to hand. He can't even stand straight anymore at this point but it's not stopping him.
  • How about all the gods and goddesses finally getting their shit together and helping the demigods save the entire world from the giants?
    • To put it clearly, seven demigods attacks the giants and their whole army, and even if they are clearly outmatched (and incapable of killing the giants) they give them one hell of a fight. Then, just when the tide is turning against them, thanks to Reyna restoring peace between the two camps and healing the gods' split personalities, ''all'' the Olympians comes out to battle (preceded by a Pre Ass Kicking One Liner from Nike, in all caps), and each of the seven is joined by his/her divine parent. Cue an epic curbstomp.
    • The Moirai joins the fight, too. Thoon was the giant meant to slay them. Instead, they kill him by beating him to death in their old ladies' form.

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