Antaeus

"I am his favorite son! Behold, my temple to the Earthshaker, built from the skulls of all those I've killed in his name! Your skull shall join them!"

- Antaeus to Percy Jackson

Antaeus (Ἀνταίος in Ancient Greek) in Greek and Berber Mythology was a half-giant, the son of Poseidon and Gaea, whose wife was Tinjis.

History
Greeks of the sixth century B.C, who had established colonies along the coast, located Antaeus in the interior desert of Libya.

He would challenge all passers-by to wrestling matches, kill them, and collect their skulls, so that he might one day build out of them a temple to his father Poseidon. He was indefatigably strong as long as he remained in contact with the ground (his mother earth), but once lifted into the air he became as weak as other men. Heracles, finding that he could not beat Antaeus by throwing him to the ground as he would regain his strength and be fortified, discovered the secret of his power and, holding Antaeus aloft, crushed him in a bear-hug. The story of Antaeus has been used as a symbol of the spiritual strength which accrues when one rests one's faith on the immediate fact of things. The struggle between Antaeus and Heracles is a favorite subject in ancient and Renaissance sculpture.

The Battle of the Labyrinth
Antaeus is first mentioned in the book by Chris Rodriguez, who was talking to Clarisse at this time. Chris had said, "A thousand skulls. The earth keeps healing him." Later Percy and his friends encounter Antaeus who is the ruler of an arena and Percy is given up as a warrior. Percy first fights a collection of monsters, then the demigod Ethan Nakamura. Percy then challenges Antaeus to a fight, and forces him to promise on the River Styx that if he wins, Antaeus will have to set him and his friends free. Before the fight, Annabeth tells him that he is a son of Gaea, but Percy at first doesn't see the importance of this statement. After cutting Antaeus with Riptide had no effect, with the Earth itself rising up and healing any wound inflicted. Percy saw that he could not kill him as long as he was touching the Earth, for Gaea kept him alive. So Percy wrapped a chain around Antaeus, and lifted him in the air, and then stabbed him. However, with Antaeus dead, his promise on the Styx was no longer valid and Luke was ready to kill them had they not found a way to escape.

Debatable Species
Some say that because Antaeus was the son of Poseidon and Gaea, and that he was a god thus he should not have been able to be killed at all, calling this instance a 'mistake' in the series. Others claim that since Antaeus was killed in the actual myth by Hercules that he lost some of his immortality, which in turn could be associated with his death at the hands of Percy Jackson. It may be possible that gods can be 'killed', but will form again in another time, just like monsters, explaining how Antaeus could come back to fight Percy.

Another explanation is that he was extremely strong and nearly unbeatable, but as a price to that, would be able to die unlike other gods. This is slightly similar to the way monsters die, and are reformed after recuperating. This is highly debatable and without comment from the author, will remain unclear. Monsters in the series disintegrate into dust after being fatally wounded, gods on the other hand simply explode into unbearably bright light after wounds, and can almost always teleport as a side ability. The way Antaeus died was a very unique way, and despite dying in the myth, he was still resurrected to fight Percy, a characteristic commonly used to explain monsters.

Abilities
Antaeus was one of the greatest warriors of his time who specialized in unarmed combat, and was only defeated by Hercules. Being the son of the lord of the seas and mother earth he was a very powerful being. He had superhuman strength, speed, endurance, and stamina. His greatest power was that with every injury he received he would heal at an accelerated rate due do being a son of Gaea and can only be defeated by being killed in midair.