Gaea was beat. She could feel her form fall away under the relentless assault of that accursed spawn of Hephaestus. In her last moments, she could only wonder where she had gone wrong. She knew, though it was the forge brat who would kill her, her true defeat fell on the hands of one Perseus Jackson, son of the Sea God. She was slipping back, never to wake again.

In her very last moments of lucidity, the eternal dream beginning but not quite started, she saw her son. Oh, how had he failed again? If only he had at least killed Jackson back when the boy was weak, she would rule this world now! "You…" she could barely whisper, the dream tugging at her with such incredible force. "Are dead." She finished, her eyes slowly falling, succumbing to sleep.

He reached for her then, and as dust formed fingers brushed against her cheek, he showed her a plan. Strange images rushed into her mind, broken, but forming quickly. A clock with 5 hands, moving the wrong way. Three old woman, pulling a thread that split in two. A bolt of lightning striking a sea of blood. She smiled then, understanding.

"But I am bested," she said, afraid of the darkness coiling around her. Another few thousand years of rest. "There is nothing I can do, how are we to accomplish this?"

'WE' ARE NOT

The thought slammed into her mind, the impact of a thousand hammers breaking into the core of her being. She felt the Valdez boy, his fire burning her up, but she wasn't there. She was fading, breaking apart into something else. Kronus stood before her, his form shifting and moving, as if the dust that now made his being was having trouble deciding how to reform. She felt her power, though distant from its source, drain away from her. The very essence of her godly being was being absorbed.

The very last thing she felt was her immortality. It was ever present, as she had never been born. Gaea always WAS, unlike the Olympians, unlike the Titans, unlike even the Sky himself. She was there, at the start of time. Her immortality was not something that could be taken, or given, it just was. Yet there it went. She felt her form disconnect from the Core, and her powers cease. She was mortal. Fire swallowed her, then, and a scream that shattered the Earth.

Percy swung Riptide in an arc over his head, slicing a gryphon through the left wing. The thing let out a terrible screech, before folding its one remaining wing in and crashing to the ground. Percy had no time to worry about that, as a small band of Telekhines were attempting to surround him. He quickly leapt into action, literally, as he jumped over the head of the one directly in front of him. In a sheathing motion, he thrust Riptide behind him, killing one of the dog faced beasts, before picking off the rest.

Gotta fight fast, this is important. Gah! Stupid gryphon! Don't you know how to die? He got right in its guard, slipping past the left swipe, and sliced into its sternum. It exploded. Agh! And now I've got something in my eye! This has got to be the lamest end of the world fight I've ever been in, and I don't even get to fight the final boss! Not that I'm seriously complaining about not having to one v one Gaea or anything…

His thoughts were cut short by the sound of a great fiery explosion overhead. He looked up, only to see flaming debris falling in all directions. He quickly ran toward a group of campers who were trying to fight off a few evil centaurs, and screamed, "LOOK OUT! THE SKY IS FALLING!" All of them immediately withdrew, watching the sky for the best ways to position themselves and avoid the certain death that rained down upon them. The Centaurs weren't so smart.

"Percy!" A voice, Jason he though, called somewhere to his left, "It's done! We kicked Gaea's butt!" Cheers went up all around, in both camps. The monsters had already started fleeing, but now they ran away full force. The news was passed all the way down the Legion, and shouted back once, very loudly, into Camp Half-Blood. Fleeing monsters were shot down in celebration, and various couples could be seen holding onto each other for dear life.

Percy went searching for Annabeth, hardly able to contain his excitement at the last battle being won. This was really it, no more stupid prophecy, no more stupid wars. With luck, nobody would come spouting some nonsense about the THIRD war of the Olympians that happened right after the Giant War, because he seriously needed some chill time.

"Hey, Seaweed Brain." He turned, a smile already lighting up his face.

"Wise Girl." He took a step in her direction.

"Kelp Head." She put her arm around his waist, her hand finding the back of his head.

"Annabeth… Seriously beautiful… Wonderful… Annabeth" He spoke softly, as if afraid each word might send her away. She smiled so wide, the fire and blood around him meant nothing. The wound in his side meant nothing. Nothing meant anything, outside of that smile.

"I love you." She said. He would never tire of hearing that.

"I love you to-". He was cut short by a terrible pain enveloping his entire body. It was like swimming in the Styx all over again, but with no lifeline. Annabeth started screaming, and the sound of it banished all thought from his body. SHE'S IN TROUBLE! I HAVE TO DO SOMETHING! His muscles screamed, ached, and fought as best they could, but whatever had him, had him good.

NOW YOU WILL ALL DIE. I AM BEYOND THE PUNY POWER OF MORTALS, BEYOND THE POWER OF GODS, TITANS, AND EVEN THE PIT HIMSELF. I WILL START WITH YOUR PATHETIC HERO HERE, THEN I WILL- AGH!

Thalia had apparently chosen then to toss a bolt of lightning into the mouth of the giant, angry, dust bunny. "Seriously? Right now? Can't you see we're trying to celebrate here?" she said, as she prepared another bolt, "What makes you think you're any different than the others? Why do you all keep coming, we're just going to keep kicking your ass!" With the last word, she tossed her bolt as hard as she could.

It stopped. No, not stopped, slowed. Thalias eyes went wide with recognition. "You…" her face contorted into rage as she starting shooting off bolts left and right, at incredible speeds. Not a single one moving past her first. "This is all YOUR fault, you worthless, obsessed, stupid, piece of shit! If you hadn't corrupted him, he would still be here! He was a good man until you came along!" she had tears streaming down her face, now. Her rage was being consumed by grief.

LITTLE BITCH! I WILL REJOICE AT THE THOUGHT OF KILLING YOU- TWICE.

Thalias face adopted a look of confusion for a moment, before all of her lightning started breaking down into little bits and pieces, just like the Titan in front of her. The dust her lightning had become was now churning with the mass of golden dust that was Kronus. Then he started to disappear, and Percy with him. "No! Percy!" Thalia screamed and launched one last bolt at Kronus as he was vanishing. Suddenly the hair all over her stood up, and the lightning that was vanishing with the Titan shot back at her, and then some.

She felt her whole body shift, like she was stepping sideways through a wall made of glass, and it had shattered around her, coating her skin in fresh cuts on every inch. Not a single bit of her felt okay, she wanted to scream but didn't seem to have a voice. Or lips. She was starting to notice the things she was missing, now. Eyes. Hair. Lungs. A heartbeat. The only things she could feel now were pain, and fear. But they weren't her feelings.

"Shhhh, it's okay, it's okay." She found herself saying, though through lips she distinctly remembered not having. There was a little girl. There was only a little girl. She was crying. Thalia put her hand on the girls head, "You wanna ditch this dump, kid?" she asked, smiling. The girl looked up, and electric blue met electric blue. The little girl clung to her, and then they both disappeared.

Percy felt like he was on fire. Normally, that'd be a good thing, but in this literal case, it was horrible. There had been a moment before, when he knew what was going on. He KNEW that, just second ago, the universe made sense. He had been on a beach. There was a happy thought, the beach. He loved the beach. What was a beach?

His head felt like it was splitting in half, and then being sewn back together. Life had stopped, started, stopped, over and over again. The glass door left scrapes against his- well, everything. The body was burned in fire, reborn in fire, but the scrapes never healed. They seethed into his flesh, even when he had none. How had this come to be? Seconds, JUST SECONDS AGO, he knew there was something else. He couldn't find it. Inside, there was nothing.

"Who are you?" Said a voice. A voice? I know what that is. I had one of those.

"I'm Percy Jackson, Son of Poseidon, Hero of Olympus. Where am I? What is this place?"

"Beats me, but I know one thing for sure. You're not Percy Jackson." Said the voice.

"You know that for sure, huh? Funny, cause that's just about the ONLY thing I know for sure."

"That's impossible, though. I'm Percy Jackson." Then the voice took a form. It had sea green eyes, messy black hair, and was wearing a ripped up, blue-green shirt. In its hand was Riptide, glowing softly despite the blinding light of- whatever the Hades this place was. He looked just like him, on the night he first came to camp. The night it all really started.

"That's crazy. I think. I'll be honest, I'm not at one hundred percent right now. I don't even know what one hundred percent is for me, anymore." Percy- the older Percy- said, while looking around, trying to think of a way out.

As soon as he thought of how to leave, he knew how. He walked to little Percy, who eyed him warily and lifted his sword. "Listen, dude, I'll use this on you if I have to! Stay back!" Little Percy thrust his sword a little for emphasis, but Percy ignored him. His memories were returning, now. This still didn't make any sense, but now he knew where to start.

"Don't worry, she's not dead. We're going to save her. She's going to get remarried, and live a happy life." Percy spoke softly, soothing the little him into lowering his sword. The supposed death of his mother would be a fresh wound for him, and Percy knew exactly what he wanted to hear. Closing the gap fully, Percy took little Percy into his arms, whispered that it was all going to be okay, and they both vanished.

Thalia knew something was seriously wrong the second she returned to the world. For one thing, she was outside Camp Half-blood, but at the foot of her tree, not down the beach by the army that wasn't there. For another, Percy was facing down the Minotaur. Except it wasn't exactly Percy. It looked like a little Percy, not ferocious or battle hardened at all. Also, he was standing still, his eyes glazed and vacant. The monster was starting to charge.

"Hey, ugly!" His ear twitched, but he was otherwise unimpressed with my arsenal of insults. "Hey I'm talking to you, you fat, stupid, COW!" That seemed to get his attention. His head swiveled in my direction, beady black eyes meeting raging electric blue. "That's right!" I said, "Come and get a piece of me, I've been itching for a steak dinner!" I continued to yell insults, and then, quicker than I had thought, he was charging at me. I smirked, ready to leap, but too late realized that I couldn't move an inch.

"Wha…?" I mumbled, my vision already starting to go. Seems like I only had enough time to talk trash to a cow in underpants. It didn't matter if this was death, or simply exhaustion, because that Minotaur was coming for me with a vengeance. The last thing I saw was a flash of light.

"Hey ugly!" I heard, somewhere in front of me. About 30 meters. "Hey I'm talking to you, you fat, stupid, COW!" Wait, that's Thalia! I had a terrible feeling that I knew where I was, but she was for sure not supposed to be there, too. Riptide was already in my hand, but I couldn't move my arm at all. It felt like my body was waking up, and some bits were working while others weren't. Good news? I could already feel the need to pee. Great.

The Ocean was close, though. I could already feel that my powers were infinitely weaker than they were just moments ago, but I had enough willpower to pull the tides harder. I wasn't trying to summon any water, I just needed to try to anchor myself to the Ocean. It seemed to be working, and heat started racing through my body. Blood flow? Check. Movement? I took a timid step forward, gave my sword a spin, and threw out my arms. Check. Now about the monster…

"That's right! Come and get a piece of me! I've been itching for a steak dinner!"

The Minotaur was obviously not happy with her. I was going to sneak up on it, but it darted forward, with more speed than it ever had before. I expected to see Thalia move away or jump up or, well, anything. Instead I saw her take a knee, obviously about to pass out. Speaking of passing out, my knees felt weak, and Riptide was suddenly too heavy for one hand. If I didn't do something, though, Thalia was going to die.

The Ocean was so close I could taste it, but I couldn't touch it, and I felt so tired that summoning its power was not an option. So, naturally, I did the only other thing. I sucked it up. The weight of the sword was so great that I was crying. One of my eyes was closed, unable to open, the other half lidded. My feet tried to drag, but I didn't have that kind of time, so I started sort of skipping.

Yes, here comes the fearsome Percy Jackson, half asleep, skipping towards the big bad Minotaur. I might have laughed if Thalias life wasn't at stake. As it was, I didn't know if I was going to make it, so I resorted to the other, other thing. I prayed.

"POSEIDON! DAD! HELP!" I screamed, hoping that it counted as a prayer. A flash of blue-green light washed over me, and suddenly the ocean wasn't so far away. Waves crashed against the trees, the tide way higher than it should have been. I took another step and leaped through the air, twisting into an upright position on top of the charging beast. "AHHHGG" I yelled as I stabbed it through its stupid face.

It let out a terrible half growl, half Moo, and then burst into dust. I dropped my sword. On the ground beside Thalia, who was now soaking wet and fizzing with electricity on the ground, was a single horn. I bent to pick it up, and then fell beside her. Just barely able to clutch onto the horn, I pulled it to my lips and blew for all I was worth. The sound was loud, and clear, resonating through the trees. I could just barely make out some lights in the night sky, before my world turned black.

In the very depths of the pit, a great stirring was underway. The pieces of the Once and Future King of the Titans were being gathered and placed inside of a golden sarcophagus. His Slumber had lasted thousands of years, and the time of reckoning was at hand. The most vicious monsters in all of creation were gathered here, at the heart of the pit, to witness the Rise of Kronus.

"My lord, it appears that Kampe has decided to join our cause. However, it also appears that the actual physical presence of the King is required before she will directly aid us."

Hyperion was only half listening to his seconds report, dismissing him. Something was… Wrong. The pieces of Kronus were all gathered, but his power was no longer present. Normally, Kronus would have whispered to him by now. A hint of what to do next. He was of the very few there who knew that simply gathering the pieces of his brother would not heal him. Kronus would rise again, but it would take so much more than this. Where WAS his brother? The last message he had received from him was months ago, when he gave the command to start entering the dreams of that Castellan boy.

While that had been easy enough, he had no idea how he was supposed to deal with Ares stealing the symbols of power from the Demigod. Supposedly that boy had managed to convince the War god that Kronus rising would be fun for him, which honestly did not surprise Hyperion. It was just all so risky.

"Krios." Hyperion whispered the name, willing the summons across the vast expanse of Tartarus.

It was only a few moments before the air around him began to shift, the constellation form and rams head of his brother forming together beside him.

"Brother, why do you call me?" A scowl adorned his face, and his tone was impatient. That attitude would not be tolerated with Kronus, but even implying equality to the King was punishable by death. Hyperion would have to settle with returning a glare of his own.

"Have you word from Kronus? He has been silent these past few months, and I begin to worry. His plans are coming together nicely, but without his direction I-"

"Oh please, brother!" Krios cut him off, "we are perfectly capable of handling things here ourselves." He turned to cast his glare on the creatures assembled below them. "Look at them all. Mindless, incompetent little drones." He turned back to Hyperion, "I'm tired of babysitting for him, Hyperion! If Kronus does not return soon I'm going to-"

What?

The voice filled their heads, and judging by the reaction in the valley below, the heads of every creature assembled. It felt as if a razor were slicing away tiny slivers of flesh, on the inside of their minds. Even in the terrible heat of the pit, a chill could be seen massing through the crowds. Hyperion himself shivered.

"W-what? Who's there? Show yourself!" Krios just barely managed to rasp out. His breath was fogged, which made no sense. His skin was growing paler, and his eyes had seemed to lose all spark. Hyperion watched as his brother aged. An immortal. Aging.

"Brother, what is this magic?" Krios was looking at his hands, now, watching as they withered into something he never thought possible. "Brother please, help!" Hyperion stood there, watching, waiting for the inevitable end. "THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE! I AM IMMORTAL! HYPERION YOU BASTARD DO SOMETHING!" And then his coughing took him. Blood sprayed from his mouth, covering his hands, his armor.

It wasn't until then that Hyperion noticed the armor. The Rams head had lost its shine, turning a dark, crusty gray. The stygian iron wrist bands and belt has begun to crack and crumble, eventually falling away to dust. Krios himself looked ready to turn to dust, in fact.

This is the power I have taken.

With the last, the pit grew darker. The usual red sheen that covered everything was gone, replaced with harsh shadows in all directions. Hyperion stood, waiting, as his youngest brother formed himself in front of him. How this was possible was beyond him, but it was not his place to question.

"Hello, brother." Hyperion said, as the new, hideous form of Kronus rose in front of him. His skin was pale green, with dark green markings covering his arms and legs. Parts of him were simply not there, swirling clumps of golden dust that refused to form. His hair had turned from a jet black to a very dark grey, and there was something in it. Something moving. Kronus turned to him, and for the first time, Hyperion felt real fear. It radiated from him.

"Ah, to have a mouth to speak from again. It does feel good, brother" He seemed to spit the words out, still not used to this body, and obviously in pain. The words did not match the mouth speaking, though. They seemed to come from the pit itself. Hyperion dared not mention it. Instead, he motioned his hand toward the horde amassed below.

"As you ordered, my lord. Kampe has agreed, but she-". Hyperion fell silent as Kronus raised his left hand.

"You have done well, brother." Kronus seemed to whisper, but the words came out like a scream from the air around him. "I already know of the forces you have gathered, and will gather. The demigod, Luke, is he here?" Kronus asked, his eyes already hunting the crowd. Disappointment was evident before Hyperion even replied.

"No, my lord. The boy is still stationed at that little camp for godspawn, where he awaits your orders."

"Brother… please…" Krios muttered, surprisingly still alive. Hyperion had no idea what sort of power Kronus had risen again with, but he could feel raw, primal power from him. The same kind he felt from Tartarus, or Gaea. Krios' condition spoke volumes of the new level of power his brother had attained. To be able to age a Titan…

"You dare to question my decision, Krios?" Kronus turned in his direction, a half-mad snarl on his lips that promised torture and suffering beyond belief. "If I wanted you alive, you would remain alive. I am your KING, worm!" Kronus spat at Krios before stomping on his face, over and over. "You will do as I say! You will obey! You will obey! YOU WILL OBEY!"

Kronus form seemed to be shifting again, drawing in the bits of Krios he was smashing apart, and pulling them into the unformed, swirling masses of Kronus. Krios tried to cry out, reaching up towards Hyperion, but Kronus was merciless in his assault. When he was done, there was nothing left of Krios. Kronus had just killed a Titan.

The whole world was on fire. Everything within sight was burning and dying, and she was at the heart of it all. Lightning flashed around her, but it wasn't her lightning, it was her fathers.

You cannot stop me, little demigod

The voice came from her father's mouth, but it was definitely Kronus speaking. She wanted to rip out her brains to stop from hearing him, it was so horrible. As it was, she was clawing at her ears.

Your world will burn, and your friends will die. I will swallow Hope, and bury Love! I will rain vengeance on you, the seaspawn, and all of the pathetic Olympian brats who have dared defy me! I have returned!

"Thalia! Stop!"

Thalia woke with a start, bolting upright and breathing incredibly fast. What she saw both horrified, and comforted her. There was Annabeth, her little hand holding out a few cubes of ambrosia. Thalia took them, hungrily shoving them into her mouth. She started choking a bit, not even noticing how dry her throat had been, before Annabeth handed her the glass of nectar, complete with colorful bendy straw.

Normally, this would have all been okay. Sitting here in the infirmary, next to Annabeth? Not exactly something that would shock her, no pun intended. However, that little hand, belonged to a little Annabeth. In front of her wasn't the battle hardened warrior that she had known for the past few years. It was the little girl she had lived with and traveled with, eventually sacrificing herself for on the hill overlooking Camp Half Blood.

Annabeth was looking at her with tears in her eyes. "You're really back… Oh gods Thalia you're really really back!" She jumped on her, then, embracing her like a long lost sister. It all felt so strange. Part of Thalia was irrationally happy to see Annabeth, and the other part had just seen her a few hours ago.

"Annabeth, it's so good to see you too, but first I need to ask you". Her tone turned serious, and Annabeth pulled back a bit to look her in the eyes, "There was a man with me, before. He has black hair and-", Annabeth pointed to the corner of the room, to a curtained off area Thalia hadn't noticed in her panic.

"He was there with you," Annabeth said. "Apparently Chiron knows him well, but I can't get a read on him. He's been in and out of conciseness these past two weeks, and he always looks at me like I'm dead or something. Sometimes he even cries, and whispers my name in his sleep. It's creepy."

Thalia was nodding her head, listening, but then something Annabeth said caught her attention.

"Wait, two weeks!? We've been out for a whole two weeks!?" Thalias eyes had gone wide, and she tried to climb out of bed. Too hastily, it seemed, as she fell to the floor.

"Thalia! You've got to be careful! We still don't even know what's wrong with you!" Annabeth pleaded with her, to no avail.

"Listen Annabeth, you don't understand what's going on right now, I get that. Things are happening fast and it's confusing, but right now, I need you to do me a solid and go grab Chiron. This is important."

Annabeth looked at her with longing, like she was being asked to leave her sick mother alone. She quickly regained herself, though, and wiped her tears on the sleeve of her Camp Half Blood Tee.

"I'll be right back, okay?" She called behind her, as she sprinted out of the infirmary. "Don't go anywhere!"

With her gone, Thalia limped over to where Percy was, having to grab hold of other beds to keep herself upright. As she pulled back the curtain, she had to hold back tears. Percy lay there, a small blue blanket coming up to his waist, and almost every visible part of his body covered in bandages.

She sat in the lawn chair that was beside his bed, lightly running her fingers through his hair. "What are we gunna do, Percy? This is insane… This can't actually be happening, right? This has to be some trick of the mist or… Anything…" she trailed off, not really believing anything she was saying. This was for real. Somehow, they had both gone into the past.

"Thalia…" Percy mumbled, still sounding tired, but otherwise fine.

"Hey, Kelp-head…" She retorted, half-heartedly, offering a weak smile.

"You saw?" was all he said, but she knew what he meant. It would be the only thing he'd care about for some time, she was sure. The pain was unimaginable.

"I did… She's here, but she's not…" She couldn't bring herself to finish. It was painful for her too. Everything was going to be different. Thalia could no longer stop the tears from falling, her teeth clenching together as she sobbed harder than she had in years. Her best friend was essentially dead, but she'd still see her every day.

"I can't, Thalia… Not like this…" And then he started sobbing, too. Thalia took his head in her hands, and held him close to her. After a moment, he wrapped his arms around her, letting her catch his tears, as hers fell into his hair. Nearly everyone they loved was alive and well, and none of them knew who they were.