| “ | Come on! You want to know what Frank Zhang is worth? Come on! | „ |
| ~ Frank Zhang. |
Frank Zhang, also known as Fai Zhang, is one of the main characters in The Heroes of Olympus book series. He is a camper at Camp Jupiter, a camp for Roman demigods and is the son of Mars, the Roman God of War and the late Emily Zhang and the Roman half-brother of Clarisse La Rue (the daughter of Mars's Greek form Ares).
He also has Greek heritage, as he is a descendant of Poseidon, the Greek God of the Sea and because of this he can shape shift into animals, so he is also a distant nephew of Percy Jackson.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Frank Zhang was born in Canada on June 5, 1994 to military solider Emily Zhang, and the Roman god of war Mars, and is the half-sibling to Clarisse La Rue, the daughter of Mars' Greek form Ares. On his mother side, he is a descent of Periclymenus, who is the grandson of the Greek god Poseidon, making him a legacy of the sea god, and distant relatives to Poseidon's children, which includes Triton, Percy Jackson and Tyson. Frank's family was blessed by the god with the power to shift into any kind of animal, mythical or living from their human form. Frank is considered a dangerous demigod, due to his ancestral gift combined with his divine lineage making him incredibly powerful.
On the night of his birth, Juno appeared to his family and pointed out a piece of timber, warning that if it burned entirely, he would die. Due to his father being absent, Frank was raised by his grandmother after his mother died in a military accident in Afghanistan. At his mother's funeral, his grandmother told him of their family history and that he is son of a Roman god, and explained that his life force was tied to the timber that she gave him.
His grandmother also told him to keep the piece of wood safe, and told him that he would leaving to go to Camp Jupiter. Lupa and her wolf pack arrived at the Zhang's mansion, and Frank went through the process of proving his strength at The Wolf House. Frank arrived at the camp a month after Jason Grace disappeared, and was on Probatio when Percy Jackson arrived.
When Frank arrived to the camp, his grandmother instructed him to go the Praetor and tell her that his great-grandfather was Shen Lun. Shen Lun had created an earthquake accidently that almost destroyed Camp Jupiter, thus Frank's grandmother told him to be for forgiveness to the Praetor.
Frank went to Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arellano, and she told them she judged people by their merits, but warned him not to mention Shen Lun to the other campers, as they would be less understanding.
The Heroes of Olympus[]
The Son of Neptune[]
Frank is on guard with Hazel Levesque when the amnesiac Percy Jackson first arrives at Camp Jupiter. Frank quickly befriends Percy and he, Percy and Hazel work together to beat the First Cohort during the Roman War Games. Frank is haunted by the fact that he is unclaimed, hoping that he is the son of Apollo due to his affinity for archery. He also struggles to figure out what his grandmother had meant about Frank having inherited a family gift. After the War Games, the Roman war god Mars appears to issue a quest to free the God of Death Thanatos from the Giants in Alaska. He also claims Frank as his son and gifts Frank with a spear that can summon a skeleton warrior three times as a weapon to use until Frank can figure out his family gift. With the legion's rules requiring that a centurion lead a quest and with former Fifth Cohort centurion Gwen retiring, Frank is promoted to the rank of centurion.
Accompanied by Percy and Hazel, Frank embarks upon the quest that his father gave him. During the quest, Frank leads his friends to his home in Canada which is under siege by the forces of Gaea. There, Frank's grandmother reveals his heritage as the descendant of Periclymenus, the prince of Pylos and a grandson of Poseidon to whom the god granted a unique gift that has been passed down in their family for generations. However, it is up to Frank himself to discover what that gift is. Frank, Percy and Hazel are forced to flee the house as it is destroyed, apparently killing Frank's grandmother. However, it's suggested that she may have used her own inherited shapeshifting power to escape as a bird. In Alaska, Frank is forced to burn a great deal of his stick to free Thanatos. Finally understanding his ancestral gift, Frank taps into his shapeshifting power for the first time to fight Alcyoneus. Having deduced that they are only ten miles from the Canadian border, Frank, Hazel and Hazel's immortal horse Arion drag the Giant into Canada where they are able to kill him.
Returning to Camp Jupiter with the legion's lost Eagle standard and Imperial Gold weapons, Frank, Hazel and Percy participate in the battle against the Giant Polybotes and his monster army. As Percy faces off against the Giant, Frank shapeshifts into a weasel to scare off Polybotes' basilisks, having been tipped off by the rainbow goddess Iris that basilisks fear weasels. After the battle, Percy and his friends celebrate Percy's battlefield promotion to Praetor and Frank's ancestor Shen Lun is exonerated for causing the 1906 earthquake as a reward for Frank's heroism. With Percy's memories restored and his friends coming on the Argo II, Percy promises to introduce his new friends to the others, having deduced that they are two of the demigods mentioned in the Prophecy of Seven.
The Mark of Athena[]
Percy's reunion with his friends is interrupted by Leo Valdez becoming possessed and starting a war between the Greeks and the Romans. Despite this, Frank, Hazel and Jason Grace agree to accompany the Greeks aboard the Argo II to the ancestral lands in order to defeat Gaea and her Giants. Frank continues developing a romantic relationship with Hazel and at one point gets trapped with Percy by the old sea god Phorcys in Atlanta. Frank's questions about Chinese Handcuffs later inspire Annabeth Chase in her fight against Arachne. However, although the Seven succeed in recovering the Athena Parthenos and rescuing Nico di Angelo, both Percy and Annabeth fall into Tartarus.
The House of Hades[]
While negotiating with the minor god Triptolemus, Frank is forced to face a legion of monsters in Venice. Single-handedly fighting them, Frank receives the Blessing of Mars which transforms Frank from a big burly, panda bear like kid, into a firm, tall, changed man. During the battle with Gaea's monsters in the House of Hades, Jason's wavering loyalty to the Romans causes the ghostly legion summoned through the Scepter of Diocletian to refuse his orders. Noticing that they obey Frank to a degree, Jason resigns as Praetor and promotes Frank in his place. Under Frank's guidance, the ghostly legion helps the Seven to defeat Gaea's monsters and reach the Doors of Death which they successfully close after Percy and Annabeth escape from Tartarus through them. After being reunited with the Seven on the ship, Reyna admits that she's pleased by Frank's promotion, believing him to be someone that she could lead the legion with. The two jokingly discuss what they will do with Octavian when they get back and how they will get the legion to accept Frank's rather unorthodox battlefield promotion before Reyna leaves with Nico and Coach Hedge to deliver the Athena Parthenos to Camp Half-Blood.
The Blood of Olympus[]
After defeating and capturing Nike, the goddess of victory who has been driven insane by the split between the Greeks and the Romans, the Seven seek out the Physician's Cure. To this end, Frank returns to his family's ancestral home of Pylos in search of one of the ingredients. Although Frank's shapeshifting relatives provide it to him and a clue to where they can find the second ingredient, he is left disappointed by how the visit went in general.
During the final battle with the Giants, Frank fights alongside Ares, his father in his Greek form. Together, they smash through an entire phalanx of Giants. After being sent to Camp Half-Blood by Zeus, Frank aids Reyna in rallying the 12th Legion against Gaea and her monsters, fighting side by side with the Greeks now that the return of the Athena Parthenos has healed the division between the camps.
Following Gaea's defeat, Frank officially takes on the role of Praetor and further pursues a romantic relationship with Hazel, earning him teasing from Hazel's half-brother Nico di Angelo. Nico reassures Frank that, although he doesn't know when Frank's firewood will burn up and kill him, he can sense that it won't be soon and that Frank still has a lot of life left to live.
The Trials of Apollo[]
The Dark Prophecy[]
The Dark Prophecy mentions "the Changeling Lord" which is realized to be a reference to Frank.
The Tyrant's Tomb[]
Alongside Reyna, Frank continues to lead the 12th Legion as one of the Praetors and continues his romantic relationship with Hazel Levesque. However, he has become more reckless, greatly concerning his girlfriend. Hazel also reveals that her curse is finally broken thanks Frank's love for her, thus fulfilling Pluto's prediction that a descendant of Poseidon would some day wash it away.
During the final battle against Commodus and Caligula, Frank leads the legion and he challenges the two Roman God-Emperors to single combat with Apollo aiding him. Frank is badly wounded before burning his stick to kill Caligula, avenging Jason Grace in the process, apparently killing Frank as well due to his life force being tied to it. His sacrifice injures Commodus badly enough for Apollo to finish him off.
After the battle, a grief-stricken Hazel sends Arion to recover Frank's body. Much to everyone's surprise and relief, Arion instead returns with a badly injured but very much alive Frank. Apollo theorizes that by taking his fate into his own hands, Frank had forged a new fate for himself where his life is no longer tied to the piece of firewood. Alternatively, Juno may have intervened to save Frank, but this is thought to be highly unlikely of the goddess to have done. Frank privately reveals to Apollo that Ella had been secretly telling him some lines from the Sibylline Books that had caused Frank to realize that burning his stick was the only way to defeat Commodus and Caligula. Reyna subsequently decides to leave the legion to join the Hunters of Artemis, leaving Frank and Hazel in charge as the Praetors.
The Tower of Nero[]
After becoming a god again, Apollo visits New Rome where Frank and Hazel have become the best Praetors that the 12th Legion has ever had. The two have also continued Jason Grace's temple building project, honoring their fallen friend and his wish to honor all of the gods.
Powers and Abilities[]
As both the son of Mars and a Legacy of Poseidon, Frank is a very powerful demigod, one of the most powerful alive. He is so powerful that the Fates themselves ordained that Frank's life force was to be tied to a piece of firewood and that he would die when it inevitably burned up one day.
Powers[]
- Shapeshifting: Frank has the ability to change or shapeshift into any animal, being it can be something made up or out of the ordinary (as it has to be a mythical or real creature). After receiving the Blessing of Mars, Frank's shapeshifting powers became more fluid and less tiring, being able to turn into an eagle, a dragon, a crow, a snake, a rhinoceros, and other animals. Unlike the rest of his powers which come from Mars, Frank's shapeshifting ability comes from Poseidon who had gifted it to Frank's ancestor Periclymenus, Poseidon's grandson and an Argonaut, who had subsequently passed it down to all of his descendants.
- Superhuman Strength: Being the son of the Roman god of war, Frank is strong for a human and demigod, and is probably the strongest physically out of the Seven.
- Superhuman Agility: Frank is extremely agile, being able to out maneuver enemies when fighting.
- Superhuman Durability: Frank is more durable to an average human, being able to take hits from monsters and demigods.
- Necromancy: Frank can control ghosts and skeletons of Roman Legionnaires, but his power isn't equal or superior to Nico's necromancy (due to the latter being the son of Hades).
- Blessing of Mars: Frank has the Blessing of Mars, a power that gives him massive strength and invulnerability, and it's similar to the curse of Achilles.
- Father's Voices: It's revealed in The House of Hades that Ares' and Mars' voices have been yelling inside of Frank's head since Leo started a civil war between both camps. Frank can control both voices to an extent, and can ask both Ares and Mars for advice during battles.
Abilities[]
- Leadership: Frank has shown himself to be capable leader, being able to lead the Fifth Cohort, and led the Seven to victory on multiple occasions.
- Tactical Skills:
- Fighting Skills: Frank is a natural and skilled fighter, and has defeated many Roman demigods in the war games, defeated an army of monsters in the House of Hades, and destroyed over a hundred of Katoblepones by himself with little experience.
- Master Archer: Frank is a master archer and bowman, with it being his weapon of choice. Due to him being the son of Mars, he is accurate and masterful in shooting, and has designed many kinds of arrows for different functions.
- Swordsmanship: Being the son of the Roman god of war, Frank is skilled swordsman, defeating over one-hundred Katoblepones with Hazel's sword, Spatha.
- Multilingualism: Though limited, Frank can speak some Canadian French due to having studied it in school, and can speak and read some Chinese, but is not fluent with both languages. However, as a Roman demigod, he can speak and understand a degree of Latin.
Gallery[]
Images[]
Trivia[]
- Frank is the first demigod in the Camp Half-Blood Chronicles to be Canadian with the second being Kayla Knowles, a daughter of Apollo.
- He is also the only demigod to not be dyslexic or have ADHD. Instead he is Lactose Intolerant.
- Frank had a fear of fire, due to knowing that if the timber he kept burned entirely, he would die. However, after he was freed from it, he could have lost his fear of fire.
- Due to being a descendant of Poseidon, Frank is a distant relative of both Percy Jackson and Tyson.
- Frank has a mixed heritage of Greek, Roman, Chinese and Canadian. His family started out Greek, the descendants of Periclymenus the Prince of Pylos and grandson of Poseidon. Then one of his descendants became a Roman who was captured in battle with his legion and settled in China. Frank's family then emigrated to the United States eventually before leaving for Canada due to his great-grandfather being blamed for the San Fransico Earthquake in 1906.
- In The Blood of Olympus, Frank is implied to have suffered from racism from his distant relatives on Pylos who didn't seem to like the fact that he was Chinese.
 Heroes
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