Perseus "Percy" Jackson is a fictional character, the

title character The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piece. The title of ...

and

narrator Narration is the use of a written or spoken commentary to convey a story to an audience. Narration is conveyed by a narrator: a specific person, or unspecified literary voice, developed by the creator of the story to deliver information to the a ...

Rick Riordan Richard Russell Riordan Junior (; born June 5, 1964) is an American author, best known for writing the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series. Riordan's books have been translated into forty-two languages and sold more than thirty million co ...

's ''

Percy Jackson & the Olympians ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' is a series of five fantasy novels written by American author Rick Riordan, and the first book series in the '' Camp Half-Blood Chronicles''. The novels are set in a world with the Greek gods in the 21st centu ...

'' series. He is also one of seven main

protagonists A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

of the sequel series ''

The Heroes of Olympus ''The Heroes of Olympus'' is a pentalogy of fantasy-adventure novels written by American author Rick Riordan. The novels detail a conflict between Greek demigods, Roman demigods, and Gaia (Roman name Terra). In the fourth book of the series, ...

'', appearing in every book except ''

The Lost Hero ''The Lost Hero'' is an American fantasy-adventure novel written by Rick Riordan, based on Greek and Roman mythology. It was published on October 12, 2010, and is the first book in '' The Heroes of Olympus'' series, a sequel to the ''Percy Jacks ...

,'' and appears in the ''

Trials of Apollo ''The Trials of Apollo'' is a pentalogy of fantasy adventure and mythological fiction novels written by American author Rick Riordan that collectively form a sequel to the ''Heroes of Olympus'' series. It is set in the same world as the Riordan ...

'' series, making him one of the few

characters Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

to appear in all three series of the Camp Half-Blood chronicles. He has also been a narrator and protagonist in Riordan's Greco-Roman/Egyptian crossover stories, part of the ''

Demigods and Magicians Richard Russell Riordan Junior (; born June 5, 1964) is an American author, best known for writing the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series. Riordan's books have been translated into forty-two languages and sold more than thirty million co ...

'' collection. The character serves as the narrator in ''

Percy Jackson's Greek Gods ''Percy Jackson's Greek Gods'' is a collection of short stories about Greek mythology as narrated by Percy Jackson. It was written by Rick Riordan and was released on August 19, 2014. It features Percy Jackson giving his own take on the Greek myth ...

'' and ''

Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes ''Camp Half-Blood Chronicles'' is a media franchise created by author Rick Riordan, encompassing three five-part novel series, two short-story collections, two myth anthology books, a stand-alone short story, three crossover short stories, an es ...

'', also by Rick Riordan. Percy Jackson is played by

Logan Lerman Logan Wade Lerman (born January 19, 1992) is an American actor. He is known for playing the titular role in the fantasy-adventure ''Percy Jackson'' films. He appeared in commercials in the mid-1990s, before starring in the series ''Jack & Bobb ...

in the film adaptations and by

Chris McCarrell Chris McCarrell (born January 9, 1991) is an American theater and television actor and singer. He is best known for portraying Marius Pontmercy in the Broadway revival of ''Les Misérables,'' and for originating the titular character in '' The Li ...

in the

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

Walker Scobell ''The Adam Project'' is a 2022 American science fiction action comedy film co-produced by Skydance Media, Maximum Effort, and 21 Laps Entertainment. It was directed by Shawn Levy from a screenplay written by Jonathan Tropper, T.S. Nowlin, Jenni ...

is set to portray the character in the upcoming

TV adaptation An adaptation is a transfer of a work of art from one style, culture or medium to another. Some common examples are: * Film adaptation, a story from another work, adapted into a film (it may be a novel, non-fiction like journalism, autobiography, ...

for

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...

Creation and conception

Development of the character Percy Jackson began when Rick Riordan started inventing stories for his son Haley Riordan, who was diagnosed with

ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by excessive amounts of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that are pervasive, impairing in multiple contexts, and otherwise age-inapp ...

and

dyslexia Dyslexia, also known until the 1960s as word blindness, is a disorder characterized by reading below the expected level for one's age. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, r ...

in the spring of 2002. When Haley was in

second grade Second grade (also called grade two, corresponding to Year 3 in the United Kingdom) is a year of primary education in Canada and the United States. Second grade is the second year of primary school. Children are usually aged 7–8 at this grade l ...

and he was studying

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

, he asked his father to tell him bedtime stories based on those myths. When his father ran out of ideas, Haley suggested that he make up new stories that combined existing mythological characters with new ones. This led Riordan to create the fictional character of Percy Jackson and the story of his travels across the United States to recover Zeus's lightning-bolt. Haley then suggested it be written as a novel. Riordan received input on the manuscript from some of his

middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

students before taking the idea of Percy Jackson to a publisher. Riordan has said that Percy Jackson's original character was "inspired by my son's own struggle" at school. Haley and Percy have been cited as the "same age" and share several character traits, though they are by no means the same person. Riordan has also stated that Percy has " issense of humor" and is also "based on many of the students

e has E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plura ...

had in the past."

Character

In the story, Percy Jackson is portrayed as a

demigod A demigod or demigoddess is a part-human and part-divine offspring of a deity and a human, or a human or non-human creature that is accorded divine status after death, or someone who has attained the "divine spark" ( spiritual enlightenment). A ...

, the son of the mortal Sally Jackson and the Greek god

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as a ch ...

. He has

and

, allegedly because he is hardwired to read

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

and has inborn "battlefield reflexes". Percy's birthday is August 18. In the first novel of the series, ''

The Lightning Thief ''The Lightning Thief'' is a 2005 American fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology, the first young adult novel written by Rick Riordan in the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series. It won the Adult Library Services Association Be ...

'', he is twelve years old. His personality is described as "changeable like the sea" and hard to predict — with the important exception that he is dangerously loyal to his friends and family. The goddess

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...

describes this as his

fatal flaw The term ''hamartia'' derives from the Greek , from ''hamartánein'', which means "to miss the mark" or "to err". It is most often associated with Greek tragedy, although it is also used in Christian theology. The term is often said to depic ...

. Percy's "powers", which start small and develop as the books proceed, include controlling water, making hurricanes, breathing underwater, and talking to

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...

-like animals and fish. He also becomes an accomplished sword-fighter and leader. Throughout ''

'', Percy grows more confident and brave.Shrijith, A. "The World Of Percy Jackson And The Lightning Thief." ''Language In India'' 12.3 (2012): 518-523. ''Communication & Mass Media Complete''. He serves as the first head counselor of the Poseidon cabin at his demigod

summer camp A summer camp or sleepaway camp is a supervised program for children conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as ''campers''. Summer school is usually a part of the academ ...

– Camp Half-Blood. After ''

The Last Olympian ''The Last Olympian'' is a fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology by Rick Riordan, published on May 5, 2009. It is the fifth and final novel of the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series and serves as the direct sequel to ''The Battle ...

'', the next time Percy is seen is in ''

The Son of Neptune ''The Son of Neptune'' is a 2011 fantasy-adventure novel written by American author Rick Riordan, based on Greek and Roman mythology. It is the second book in '' The Heroes of Olympus'' series, preceded by ''The Lost Hero'' and followed by ...

'', the second book in the sequel series ''

''. He has

amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use ...

and slowly struggles to regain his memory over the course of the novel. For a while in the book he cannot remember anything other than Annabeth Chase, his long-time friend. He arrives at a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

establishment called Camp Jupiter, and is elected

praetor Praetor ( , ), also pretor, was the title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to a man acting in one of two official capacities: (i) the commander of an army, and (ii) as an elected '' magistratus'' (magistrate), assigned to discharge vario ...

as a result of the help he offers them on a quest. During the remaining three books in the

third person Third person, or third-person, may refer to: * Third person (grammar), a point of view (in English, ''he'', ''she'', ''it'', and ''they'') ** Illeism, the act of referring to oneself in the third person * Third-person narrative, a perspective in p ...

his character develops significantly. He develops an irrational fear of

drowning Drowning is a type of suffocation induced by the submersion of the mouth and nose in a liquid. Most instances of fatal drowning occur alone or in situations where others present are either unaware of the victim's situation or unable to offer a ...

; is humbled by weakening sword-fighting skills; and expresses a new tendency to make ambiguous moral choices in defense of his friends and family. One of the character's darkest moments comes in ''

The House of Hades ''The House of Hades'' is a fantasy-adventure novel written by American author Rick Riordan, based on Greek and Roman mythology. It was published on October 8, 2013, and is the fourth book in ''The Heroes of Olympus'' series, preceded by ''The M ...

'', when Percy discovers that he can control the water in a person's body, and uses it to torture the goddess Akhlys. Percy's girlfriend

Annabeth Chase A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

is present and brings him to his senses, but remains haunted by his readiness to use that new power. At the end of ''

The Blood of Olympus ''The Blood of Olympus'' is an American fantasy-adventure novel written by Rick Riordan, based on Greek and Roman mythology. It was released on October 7, 2014, is the fifth and final novel in '' The Heroes of Olympus'' series. It is followed by ...

'', Percy and Annabeth reveal plans to finish their senior year of

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

together in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, and then attend

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

in New Rome (a demigod-only city located in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, guarded by Camp Jupiter). In ''

The Hidden Oracle ''The Hidden Oracle'' is a fantasy novel based on Greek and Roman mythology written by American author Rick Riordan. It was published on May 3, 2016, and is the first book in ''The Trials of Apollo'' series, the second spin-off of the ''Percy Ja ...

'', Percy has been accepted to the college with a full scholarship, provided he can pass his SATs and graduate on time despite the semester he spent away (while missing during ''The Lost Hero''). Percy's concern for his future and family leads him to uncharacteristically turn down Lester Papadopoulous's request for help on a quest to regain his godhood (Papadopoulous being the mortal form of the god

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

Friends and family

Family

Percy is the son of

; his mother, Sally Jackson, married a man named Gabe Ugliano when Percy was young. Ugliano was abusive towards Percy and Sally, the latter of whom leaves him in ''

''. It is later known that Sally married Ugliano as the latter was so mortal and human and gave off such a stench that no monster would roam anywhere near his surroundings. As Percy was a strong demigod (a son of Poseidon, one of the "Big Three") and such demigods attract monsters more than usual, she had to marry him to protect Percy from danger. Between the time of ''

The Battle of the Labyrinth ''The Battle of the Labyrinth'' is an American fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology written by Rick Riordan. It is the fourth novel in the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series. The novel was first published in the United States on ...

'' and ''

'', Sally marries Paul Blofis, a man she met in a writing seminar. Percy likes and respects his new step-father and eventually reveals to him that he is a demigod. Though understandably shocked, Blofis still stays with the Jackson family and accepts Percy's complicated life. In ''

'', Sally is seven months pregnant with Paul's child, and later gives birth to Estelle in ''The Tower of Nero'', making her Percy's half-sister. Percy has a half-brother named

Tyson Tyson is a male given name of old French origin meaning 'high-spirited', 'fire'. It is from this that a surname arose 'son of Tyson'. Surname *Alan Tyson (1926–2000), British musicologist * Barbara Tyson (born 1964), Canadian actress * Bill Tys ...

, who is a

cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; el, Κύκλωπες, ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguish ...

. Though Percy is related to virtually every character and creature in Greek mythology through his father

, Tyson is one of the only beings whom he acknowledges as family. Percy first met Tyson at a school called Meriwether Prep, and did not learn of their relationship until much later. Percy is also distantly related to

s, pegasi, some other monsters, and numerous gods and demigods through his father. Significant examples of this would be that he is technically a grandson of Kronos, nephew to

Hades Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D� ...

, and numerous other Olympians, as well as the half-nephew of

Chiron In Greek mythology, Chiron ( ; also Cheiron or Kheiron; ) was held to be the superlative centaur amongst his brethren since he was called the "wisest and justest of all the centaurs". Biography Chiron was notable throughout Greek mythology ...

Friends

Percy's oldest friend is

Grover Underwood A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, a

satyr In Greek mythology, a satyr ( grc-gre, :wikt:σάτυρος, σάτυρος, sátyros, ), also known as a silenus or ''silenos'' ( grc-gre, :wikt:Σειληνός, σειληνός ), is a male List of nature deities, nature spirit with ears ...

originally tasked with protecting him and bringing him safely to Camp Half-Blood. His next-oldest friend is

, whom he meets when she helps nurse him back to health after his first fight with the

Minotaur In Greek mythology, the Minotaur ( , ;. grc, ; in Latin as ''Minotaurus'' ) is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "pa ...

. The two accompany him on his first, and most of his subsequent, quests. Percy is also close to many other characters in the book series. His closest friends include

Thalia Grace A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, daughter of

and leader of the Hunters of Artemis;

Luke Castellan A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, son of

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orato ...

(at first Percy's friend, then his enemy, and finally Percy's friend at the time of his death); Nico di Angelo, son of

;

Rachel Elizabeth Dare A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, a mortal

Pythia Pythia (; grc, Πυθία ) was the name of the high priestess of the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo at Delphi. She specifically served as its oracle and was known as the Oracle of Delphi. Her title was also historically glossed i ...

, or host of a prophetic spirit;

Hazel Levesque A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, daughter of

Pluto Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the S ...

;

Leo Valdez Leo or Léo may refer to: Acronyms * Law enforcement officer * Law enforcement organisation * '' Louisville Eccentric Observer'', a free weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky * Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Arts a ...

, son of Hephaestus;

Jason Grace A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, son of

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but ...

;

Piper McLean A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, daughter of

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols include ...

; and

Frank Zhang A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, son of

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...

. Frank Zhang is also a descendant of

Periclymenus In Greek mythology, the name Periclymenus (; Ancient Greek: Περικλύμενος ''Periklymenos'') may refer to: *Periclymenus, a Pylian prince as the son of King Neleus (the son of Poseidon) and Chloris. He was one of the Argonauts. His grand ...

, descendant of

, and so distantly related to Percy. Percy also has a unique relationship with Clarisse La Rue, daughter of

Ares Ares (; grc, Ἄρης, ''Árēs'' ) is the Greek god of war and courage. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. The Greeks were ambivalent towards him. He embodies the physical valor necessary for success in war b ...

and Camp Half-Blood's resident bully, whom he allegedly dislikes but often helps.

Romantic relationships

Percy's oldest romantic relationship is with Annabeth Chase. Their relationship gradually changes throughout the first series, with the goddess

first insinuating that it was romantic in ''

The Titan's Curse ''The Titan's Curse'' is an American literature, American fantasy literature, fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology written by Rick Riordan. It was released on May 1, 2007, and is the third novel in the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympian ...

'', when Percy undertakes a quest to free Annabeth from the Titan

Atlas An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth. Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geographic ...

. However, Percy's first move towards a serious relationship does not occur until the final pages of ''The Last Olympian''. Other romantic relationships are shown to have been possibilities before this however. As the final battle with the Titans approaches after ''The Battle of the Labyrinth'', Percy spends time with his mortal friend Rachel Dare. Their relationship causes Chase to become jealous and helps enact the events of ''The Last Olympian''. Towards the end of the book, Rachel realizes that her attraction is not to Percy, but to the mythological world he is in, because of her destiny as the next Oracle of Delphi. Three other characters in the novels are romantically interested in Percy, though he remains mostly oblivious. Nico di Angelo's hero worship of Percy turns into an ever-worsening crush on him; at the same time, Nico resents Percy because he believes that Percy had allowed his sister

Bianca Bianca is a feminine given name. It means "white" and is an Italian cognate of Blanche. Variants * Blanche: French * Bianca: Italian * Bianka ( Polish, Hungarian, Slovak, German, English, French, Icelandic, Finnish, Dutch, Norwegian, C ...

to die

in battle In Battle is an extreme metal band from Sundsvall, Sweden. The main lyrical themes of the band focus on Norse mythology and war. History The original line-up consisted of John Frölén on guitar and bass, John Odhinn Sandin on vocals, Håkan Sj� ...

. The second is Calypso, who was banished to the island of

Ogygia Ogygia (; grc, Ὠγυγίη, Ōgygíē , or ''Ōgygíā'' ) is an island mentioned in Homer's ''Odyssey'', Book V, as the home of the nymph Calypso, the daughter of the Titan Atlas. In Homer's ''Odyssey'', Calypso detained Odysseus on Ogy ...

. The third is Reyna Ramírez-Arellano, who, while is silently attracted to her comrade Jason Grace, finds herself attracted to many of Percy's similar traits.

Magical animal companions

Percy has several animal companions. The first is

Blackjack Blackjack (formerly Black Jack and Vingt-Un) is a casino banking game. The most widely played casino banking game in the world, it uses decks of 52 cards and descends from a global family of casino banking games known as Twenty-One. This fami ...

, a black

pegasus Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...

that Percy liberates from the ''Princess Andromeda'' in ''

The Sea of Monsters ''The Sea of Monsters'' is an American fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology written by Rick Riordan and published in 2006. It is the second novel in the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series and the sequel to ''The Lightning Th ...

''. Blackjack is referred to as a "

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...

" in ''The Sea of Monsters'', but is called a

stallion A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...

in all later books. Blackjack becomes Percy's personal steed and companion. Blackjack is unfailingly loyal to Percy, and on several occasions manages to save Percy's life. Blackjack always calls Percy "boss" and is quite fond of sugar cubes and doughnuts. Percy's second magical companion is Mrs. O'Leary, who is introduced in the fourth novel, ''Battle of the Labyrinth''. She is a

hellhound A hellhound is a mythological hound that embodies a guardian or a servant of hell, the devil, or the underworld. Hellhounds occur in mythologies around the world, with the best known examples being Cerberus from Greek mythology, Garmr from N ...

whom he receives from

Daedalus In Greek mythology, Daedalus (, ; Greek: Δαίδαλος; Latin: ''Daedalus''; Etruscan: ''Taitale'') was a skillful architect and craftsman, seen as a symbol of wisdom, knowledge and power. He is the father of Icarus, the uncle of Perdix, an ...

before the inventor dies. Though Mrs. O'Leary is described as "the size of a tank", the magical veil known as the Mist causes her to appear as a poodle to mortals. Percy often refers to her as "his dog". Percy sometimes uses Mrs. O'Leary's ability to "shadow travel" to cross large distances almost instantaneously. His brother Tyson and friend Charles Beckendorf are Mrs. O'Leary's other caretakers, though she is also fond of Nico di Angelo. Percy also knows a

hippocampus The hippocampus (via Latin from Greek , 'seahorse') is a major component of the brain of humans and other vertebrates. Humans and other mammals have two hippocampi, one in each side of the brain. The hippocampus is part of the limbic system, a ...

named

Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

, who likes Tyson. It first appears in ''The Sea of Monsters'', where it helps Percy and his friends enter Luke Castellan's boat ''Princess Andromeda''. It later saves Tyson's life and returns to help the two brothers on several occasions. Percy has also traveled with a small calico kitten called Small Bob by Bob the Titan. Small Bob was accidentally created by one of

's servants who was attempting to summon a group of

spartoi In Greek mythology, Spartoi (also Sparti or Spartae) (Ancient Greek: Σπαρτοί, literal translation: "sown en, from σπείρω, ''speírō'', "to sow") are a mythical people who sprang up from the dragon's teeth sown by Cadmus and were ...

. When Percy is trapped in

Tartarus In Greek mythology, Tartarus (; grc, , }) is the deep abyss that is used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked and as the prison for the Titans. Tartarus is the place where, according to Plato's ''Gorgias'' (), souls are judg ...

during ''

'', Annabeth, Bob, and he find and travel with the kitten. He is fond of Bob and protective of the traveling group, leading Bob to call him "a good monster". Small Bob can transform into a full sized saber-toothed tiger at will and occasionally appears as a skeleton for a few seconds at a time. His purr is disproportionately loud for an animal of his size. Small Bob remains in Tartarus with

Iapetus In Greek mythology, Iapetus (; ; grc, Ἰαπετός, Iapetós), also Japetus, is a Titan, the son of Uranus and Gaia and father of Atlas, Prometheus, Epimetheus, and Menoetius. He was also called the father of Buphagus and Anchiale in other ...

to help hold open the Doors of Death. It is unclear if he lives or dies, but he is not mentioned again.

Description

Percy is described as handsome, with messy jet black hair, a Mediterranean complexion, and sea-green eyes like his father

. His mother notes that Percy looked just like his father, and his friend

Hazel The hazel (''Corylus'') is a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K. (1999). ...

says that he has the looks of a

Roman god Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans. One of a wide variety of genres of Roman folklore, ''Roman mythology'' may also refer to the modern study of these representat ...

Abilities

Like most demigods, Percy has

and

, the former because of his godly battle instincts, and the latter because his brain takes more naturally to

than to English. After being trained at Camp Half-Blood, he has developed a Greek fighting style (described as unpredictable by New Romans) and is an expert

swordsman Swordsmanship or sword fighting refers to the skills and techniques used in combat and training with any type of sword. The term is modern, and as such was mainly used to refer to smallsword fencing, but by extension it can also be applied to a ...

. After bathing in the

River Styx In Greek mythology, Styx (; grc, Στύξ ) is a river that forms the boundary between Earth (Gaia) and the Underworld. The rivers Acheron, Cocytus, Lethe, Phlegethon, and Styx all converge at the centre of the underworld on a great marsh, whi ...

, Percy was given the curse of

Achilles In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus ( grc-gre, Ἀχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the greatest of all the Greek warriors, and the central character of Homer's ''Iliad''. He was the son of the Nereid Thetis and Peleus, k ...

, making him invulnerable except for the small of his back. He loses this power when it is washed away in the Little Tiber surrounding New Rome, as part of his acceptance there. In addition, he has an "empathy link" with his first friend from Camp Half-Blood,

Grover Grover is a blue Muppet character on the popular PBS/HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street''. Self-described as lovable, cute and furry, he is a blue monster who rarely uses contractions when he speaks or sings. Grover was originall ...

. As a son of

, one of the " Big Three" (the others being

and

), Percy is more powerful than most of the gods' other children. He also has a degree of authority over his father's subjects. Percy is gifted with several semi-divine abilities: the ability to manipulate water and currents; enhanced strength/energy and senses while near the water; the ability to breathe underwater; the ability to operate old sailing ships with his mind; mental communication with

marine animals Marine life, sea life, or ocean life is the plants, animals and other organisms that live in the salt water of seas or oceans, or the brackish water of coastal estuaries. At a fundamental level, marine life affects the nature of the planet. M ...

equine Equinae is a subfamily of the family Equidae, which have lived worldwide (except Indonesia and Australia) from the Hemingfordian stage of the Early Miocene (16 million years ago) onwards. They are thought to be a monophyletic grouping.B. J. MacFa ...

animals, water nymphs, and some of his relatives; and the creation of small earthquakes and hurricanes. All of Percy's abilities correspond to the myths about and abilities of his father.

Weapons

Percy's main weapon is ''Anaklusmos'' ("Riptide"), a sword made of celestial bronze given to him by

the centaur, on the instructions of Poseidon; the sword's history goes back to

Heracles Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive ...

, who was gifted that sword by the nymph

Zoë Nightshade A description of most characters featured in various mythology series by Rick Riordan. Overview List indicator(s) * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the property or that the character's presence in the property has yet to ...

, a daughter of

. Riptide can change shape; when it is not a sword, it appears as a ballpoint pen engraved with its name. It reappears in the character's pocket when lost. Since it is made of celestial bronze it will harm gods, demigods, and monsters, but simply passes through mortals. Percy has also used magic javelins made by his brother Tyson, magically camouflaging armor made by Charles Beckendorf, and the wand of Carter Kane. In ''

'', his half-brother Tyson gives him a wristwatch that changes into a shield covered with designs, but the watch is damaged in ''The Titan's Curse'' and lost in ''

''. Percy has several magical items obtained from battles against monsters. The first of these is the horn of the

, which he obtains after killing the beast on Half-Blood Hill. Another is the head of

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...

, which he cuts off after killing the gorgon. He gives the head away several times, finally leaving it with his mother, who "disposes of it". He also obtains a bullet- and sword-proof lion skin coat when he killed the Nemean lion, which he later sacrifices as an offering to Poseidon in order to save Annabeth.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Perseus Camp Half-Blood Chronicles characters Child characters in literature Literary characters introduced in 2005 Fictional characters with water abilities Characters in American novels of the 21st century Fictional characters from New York (state) Fictional swordfighters Fictional characters with dyslexia Fictional demigods Male characters in literature Teenage characters in literature Fictional characters from New York City Fictional characters with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Creation and conception

Character

Friends and family

Family

Friends

Romantic relationships

Magical animal companions

Description

Abilities

Weapons

See also

References