Revised edition, with a few corrected grammatical errors. Sorry for any OOCness you may encounter. Enjoy! :)


I see the last hazy pierce of sunlight disappear through the darkness as the black engulfs me. The sensation of falling is harsh against my face and the wind whips my skin like a lash. My hand is still connected with Percy's but I can feel the pressure making my hold slip. I feel a momentary burst of panic at the thought of letting him go and I struggle to tighten my grip. I can tell by the sheer pain in my palm that he is struggling as hard as I am to keep holding on. I am falling faster than I should but I knew it was accountable to the fine thread of silk still connected to my foot propelling us both downwards. The pain is so harsh that my body has numbed it out. I didn't think it was possible but it continues to get darker as gravity pulls us further within its hold. Everywhere is total darkness and I feel the fear creeping up inside me. Besides us cars and trucks freefall into the total abyss, windscreens crashing, lights smashing and the creaking of metal as the structures slowly collapse. Chunks of asphalt swirl around me and in a fleeting burst of strength Percy pulls me up so that we are both the same level. He shields me with his body as best he can with a mounting pressure of the fall. Small spiders fall from the sky like drizzling raindrops. I would shriek if I had the energy or if my voice could have been heard over the ruthless bluster of wind.

I hear the loud thump of a distant crash. I immediately know that the surface is near and with the speed we are plummeting downwards our chances of survival our close to null. The crashes continue to get louder. I hear the crunch of smashing metal mingled with the piercing sound of exploding glass and somewhere right below us the fallen cars meet their end. Even as I hurtle towards the earth I can feel Gaia's cold laughter creeping up my neck.

Such beautiful sacrifices

Beautiful sacrifices to wake the goddess.

In a last moment of helplessness Percy pushes me against him tightly, twists us around and takes the impact head on to cushion my fall. I let out a moan as the impact sends us hurtling apart and then there is nothing but total blackness. Somewhere in the back of my mind I hear the laughter amplify.


My eyes flicker open painfully. I am aware of nothing but the constant throbs of pain pulsing through my body. Second after second memories start to flood my brain and at the end of it I sit up abruptly and flail around, my breath ragged and my eyes wild. I search out the space beside me but I find no one. I want to laugh because Tartarus doesn't even have a floor or a solid base or anything. My hands flit through air. I feel like sitting on a dark fog and if I even take a step out of place I would fall through. My hands come out completely empty.

"Percy?" I cry out. The panic is already setting in and my voice comes out trembling and high pitched.

There is no answer. I have to take deep breaths to stop myself from hyperventilating. I stand up shakily but the pain in my ankle is like acid burning through my flesh, coursing its way through layer after layer. A strangled cry escapes my lips but I can't give up. I remember how he tried to protect me, tried to cushion my landing by taking it head along himself. I pray to whichever god is listening to keep him alive, to let me find him, except Her Most Annoying Majesty. I haven't sunken that low. They don't call hubris my fatal flaw for nothing.

"Percy? Where are you?" I call out again louder, shriller. I can hear the clear desperation seeping into my voice.

I hobble around in the darkness calling his name, my tone getting louder and more desperate each passing second. My voice is bordering on hysterical when I hear him groan painfully. I immediately turn around and my broken ankle twists achingly. My eyes sting with the agony piercing through my limbs but I force myself to stumble to the source of the voice. My heart lifts in relief as I spot him and I hurry to his side until I am crouching besides him. I immediately assess the damage. His skin is scratched and clawed, covered with dirt and grime. His hair- showered in dust- looks a shade lighter and his mouth his set in a frown. I exhale a breath I didn't know I was holding. There is no critical damage that is visible but the sheer force of the impact has left him unconscious.

As I look at him, I realize what he has done for me. After he gave up immortality to stay with me I would never have thought that there could ever be a greater sacrifice and yet he was here with me in the shadowy depths of Tartarus literally following me to the ends of Earth. I know that without him I couldn't even have hoped to continue on my own. I know that this would have been my end. As I try to gently shake him awake I realize how important he has become to me. My own words echo through my brain.

As long as we're together

His eyes flutter open and I find myself staring at the mesmerizing pool of sea green they have always been. As he regains consciousness I feel like a great burden has been lifted off my chest and I refrain myself from tackling him afraid of hurting any internal damage he way have gotten. As he finally registers his whereabouts the only things he says is,

"For the love of Styx"

I curse him for his ability to make me smile in times like this but it is such a Percy-ish response that I can't help it. His eyes come across me and I know that just like me, he is analyzing the harm to my body. I imagine what I must look like tight now. Scarred, bloody, sweaty covered in dirt and grime. But I can't really pull off an Aphrodite in Tartarus. He frowns as his eyes reach my ankle and he gently touches it with his fingertips. The flinch overcomes my features before I can resist. His brow furrows in concern.

"Annabeth, are you-" he starts to say, his voice filled with worry but I cut him off.

"Really, Percy. I'm fine. I think I can walk." I am lying through my teeth. I barely managed to stumble to where he lay but I'll just have to grit my teeth and bear the pain because we sure aren't getting Ambrosia in the deepest pits of hell.

I can immediately tell from his face that he hasn't bought my lie even for a second. After six years of having each other's back it is no surprise that he can read me like an open book. I would've been disappointed, instead of the fact that I have the ability to read him even better. Athena isn't the goddess of wisdom for nothing. At the thought of Athena something strikes me suddenly. My naturally wired brain starts to work overdrive and I can feel my Athena instincts take over.

"Percy…" I say slowly "we just fell about a thousand feet. Why aren't we hurt?" I suddenly realize it is Percy that I am asking and he wouldn't have known the answer anyway. He looks at me weirdly.

"Have you seen your ankle, Annabeth?" He says it like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

I sigh impatiently, "That's not what I meant. I mean, we aren't anymore hurt then we were when we fell down the edge. At the rate we had been falling, we should at least have a dozen broken bones, rock tears and we should probably be buried under huge chunks of asphalt." I tell him doing mental calculations in my head.

He gives me the look again where he can't possibly believe that all this is coming from my head. He then stops to ponder on my words. I watch him as he thinks. The way his eyes don't focus on anything in particular and the way his eyebrows scrunch up together. I force myself to concentrate on the situation at hand. I can only think of one logical reason as he answers.

"I don't know Wise Girl, thinking is your territory." He gives me a half shoulder shrug. I don't really mind his answer because I know it's the truth.

"I think… that the gods are trying to help us." I tell him "even they can't come down to Tartarus. And we have to be alive to save their sorry butts, right?

Percy grins at me and it's so familiar to me that suddenly memories of camp flash before my eyes. Sword-fighting in the arena, picking strawberries in the field, racing canoes beneath the always blue sky. Standing here stumbling and bruised these memories seem like they belong from another world. Where the both of us don't have to constantly battle for our lives, where the burden of humanity isn't placed on our shoulders. I realize from the past year how much I have learned to crave those days. The memories seem bittersweet in my mind.

Percy helps me detach the fine thread of spider silk still tethered to my ankle with riptide. Seeing the bronze blade glow in the utter darkness makes me long for my own knife. The cursed blade. It was the knife I have had since I was seven and it had become a part of me like one might feel for an arm. My backpack is nowhere to be found either. I feel the immense loss of all the hoards of knowledge stored in my laptop. But I would give my laptop up a hundred times if it would get me and more importantly Percy out of this alive. As the thread finally comes free we set off taking a random direction in the total void.


My foot contacts with something sharp and I fall to the ground on all fours. Dark spots cloud my vision and for a moment everything is black. My breath is coming out in short; sharp wheezes and I painfully swallow the bile rising up my throat. My head spins as the world revolves around me. Which way is up? Which way is down? Even as my vision returns I can't see properly. Mist as dark as obsidian swirls all around me. I feel an insistent tug on my hand as someone tries to help me up.

"Come on, Annabeth."

Percy. He pulls me up and we start running again. My mind is clogged up. Why are we running? Where are we going? The cruel pain in my leg makes it hard for me to think properly. Black spots dance before my eyes and I want to stop and collapse right there but I hear it then. The sharp and persistent snap! of pincers, the scuttle of multiple legs following us. I can almost feel the cluster of eyes staring at my neck. Her voice makes me want to scream.

"You can't run forever, my lovelies!" Arachne cries in a delightful tone.

On hearing her voice a deep hatred wells up inside me. If only I had my knife. Besides me Percy's face is gaunt and he is using half his energy to run and half of it to support me beside him. I hear a sharp twang! ring through the air and we both duck just in time to avoid the fine string of spider silk shooting towards us. Arachne is drawing closer with little spiders littering the space besides her like an army of minions. I can feel some of their little legs scurrying and scratching across my skin. My shriek dies in my throat as I stumble over my weight again. We have to run but there is no time. She is too close.

Percy twists around in one wild movement swiftly pulling out Riptide. He cuts through a strand of spider silk arching towards us through the air and disarms a whole army of spiders. The only defense I currently have is a long, pointed piece of rock that I am using as a makeshift knife. I use it along with my foot to stab and crunch spiders scampering towards me. I cringe every time my foot contacts with a spider. I feel like the crunch is seeping through my limbs and I want to crouch down and throw up whatever is left in my stomach. Arachne is still inching closer at a leisurely pace, laughing and taunting us. She thinks that we have no chance to escape and as the spiders crawl all over my body, I agree with her.

I feel faint as I battle the spiders off and I can hear Arachne cackling madly in the background. All I can see are hoards of hairy legs, round squat bodies and sharp pincers snapping together in a wild chant. For a moment I think that this is it. It's only fair isn't it? The proud daughter of Athena meets her end in the hands of her mother's arch nemesis. It's just like the dreams I used to have. Spiders engulfing me from all around, swallowing me whole, clogging my breath until I can't breathe and then consuming me raw. Somewhere back in my mind I register the utter madness of my thoughts but at that moment I could hardly form any coherent thoughts. Somewhere I hear Gaia's mad laughter mingle with Arachne's.

My eyes connect with Percy's and suddenly I feel jolted back to reality. I cannot let this happen. I have to protect him. Through the masses of spiders our eyes communicate silently and just like that we both know what to do. I shakily stumble closer to Arachne, my body screaming at me to back off. As the smile on Arachne's face widens, Percy falters in his step and lurches downwards. I fight against my own will to run towards him and continue closer to Arachne. By the time there is only a few feet distance between us Arachne's multiple inhumane eyes are locked on me. Her razor sharp teeth are easily visible through her ghastly smile.

"My, my. If the daughter of Athena doesn't learn her lesson already. As wise and as proud as her mother. It was a shame really when I beat her. And I am going to finish you too. There is nowhere to run now, my sweet."

Arachne drawls in a fake sweet voice. She is entirely too close. I can almost feel her stale breath against my face. I clamp my hands to my sides to stop the tremble.

"Fine." I say. My voice comes out loud and clear. "But you will never win. What happens when you kill us? You will live here for eternity. You will rot here in the deepest pits of hell."

I don't know if I imagine it but there is some shock on Arachne's vile face. But it is gone as soon as it came. Her wretched grin widens.

"The doors of death are wide open, my sweet. It will be easier than making a cobweb." Arachne tells me, laughing at her own lame attempt at a joke. I detect a certain glee in her voice of having outsmarted a child of wisdom.

I already knew that but I had hoped Arachne didn't. The gears are churning in my head again and I immediately try to conjure up an answer.

"Our friends are already near Greece. The doors will be closed in no time. And what will you do then?"

"You underestimate my knowledge, daughter of Athena. Do not hope to fool me." Arachne snarls. She is still edging closer and it is taking all of my willpower to stay rooted on the spot. Her spiders are still crawling all over me. I fight back a sob.

"What happens then? You will be hideous for the rest of your pathetic life. Your work will never be better than Athena's. You will live the life of a monster, forever scorned upon, and forever feared."

I tell hear my voice rising slowly. I know part of it is a lie. Her tapestries were beautiful, intricately threaded together in colorful waves and patterns. It had been a shame to watch them collapse.

Arachne's face is furious at my words. She growls and sends a strand of spider silk hurling my way. In the quickest of movements I raise the long, jagged piece of rock I hold in my hand to defend myself. The silk connects with it and I immediately twist the rock around so that the string coils itself around it. I pull the rock towards myself. Before Arachne has time to comprehend what has happened she falls face first into the ground as one of her legs is pulled in with the strand of silk.

"Now!" I yell

In an instant Percy is behind Arachne. His face and arms are bruised and scratched and Riptide is raised above his head. He plunges it downwards and the scream Arachne releases is all the confirmation I need. I start running to his aid. Spiders crawl and bite every inch of his visible skin and Arachne is releasing thread after thread tangling anything and everything in her path. I brush and squat away spiders as I approach them. Arachne is still alive and well. I know that it will take a much larger bruise to finish her off. I analyze my situation and attack the most vulnerable spot I can see. My pointed stone sinks into her eyes one after another and just as the spiders back off, just a little, Percy thrusts his sword into her abdomen. She explodes in a burst of glittering dust. Her spiders scurry away before the gold settles to the ground.

Even days after every time I close my eyes I can feel tiny legs biting and scampering across my skin.


Percy releases a long breath. "What is that?"

I shake my head numbly because for the first time I am as clueless as he is. Right ahead of us there is something in the air. It feels like for the first time I have seen a color other than black in Tartarus. It's bright yellow. No, gold. The black mist that swirls here internally has been replaced by gold. Soft, glittering tendrils that waft through the air, shining and illuminating the world beyond. It casts an eerie glow over everything like the soft rays of sunlight as the day breaks. Bright particles shimmer perpetually flickering here and there. It is the first beautiful thing I have seen in Tartarus and I am immediately wary of it. Beauty is deception.

Percy starts to move forward but I instantly grab his wrist to hold him back.

"No, we don't know what it is. It could be dangerous." I tell him. It sounds stupid because this is Tartarus. Of course it is dangerous.

Even as I say it the haze is begging to shift forward until it is all but engulfing us. I squeeze Percy's hand tightly and inch closer to him. It is moving too fast and suddenly the fog is clouding my vision. Beside me Percy is blinking rapidly. The haze has swallowed us up so fast that suddenly I feel blinded. I breathe in a cloud of gold and a coughing fit overwhelms me. I can hear Percy struggling to breathe besides me. I wave my hand to swipe the gold dust away. Dust. Monster dust! I finally understand what it is. These are the remains of all the monsters that have ever been slaughtered until they reform. I see Percy's eyes widen and I know that he has understood it too.

"Monster dust." We both whisper together and we both start running.

I know that we can't run fast enough because the glowing tendrils are swirling around us swiftly and we are caught in their hold. The ringlets press against us like the vines of a poisonous plant grasping and clawing until we are trapped in its clutches. All my senses feel numb. I am running blindly and I can't feel the ground beneath my feet. The dense fog is clouding my nostrils and clogging up my trachea. The dust feels like venom travelling fatally through my system. Panic is building up inside me threatening to burst out of my system. Percy's hand clutching mine is the only thing anchoring me to reality.

Soon my strength runs out and we are both doubling over in a fit of coughs. It's only then with the dust fully penetrating my system that the hallucinations start. At first everything is black, empty and hollow. Voices start to call out from the shadows. Cruel and harsh voices, cackling evilly, calling out to me, lurking from the depths of darkness. The voices start to scream and the sound is like torture to my ears, high pitched screeching and wailing. I clamp my hands over my ears in a vain attempt to stop them. But they are still there threatening to drive me insane. The world starts to revolve and I stumble over, trying to get my bearings.

Hands grasp out of the void and stretch forward to reach me. No matter how hard I try, I can't run from them. They grab hold of my arms and pull me forward clawing and scratching ruthlessly on my skin until thin streaks of blood run down my body. Still there are more, more hands and more fingers tearing at my flesh. I scream myself raw but the pain and horror doesn't stop. As the hands start to fade away more things materialize, the claws of the empouse I once vaporized, the tentacles of hydras I slaughtered and all the other monsters I was once proud to kill. I realize what they want. They want to destroy me like I once destroyed them; they want me to vaporize into thin sparks of gold like they once did. I see blood. Dark red bubbling blood is pooling around me and somehow I know it's mine, mingled together with Percy's.

Percy

I suddenly snap out of the nightmares. My throat hurts and my face is streaked with tears. The fog is struggling to take over again and I fight hard for control because I have to reach Percy. My head spins and I don't know anything except that he is lost somewhere in the golden haze and that I have to find him. I flail around widely until I spot him, crouching down on all fours, breathing raggedly, screaming and scraping at his own skin. I fall down beside him and shake him crazily until he opens his wide green, haunted eyes. He grasps my arm forcefully like he is trying to reassure himself that I am really there. I pull him up and we start running

We still can't see. After I snapped out of the hallucination I lost all sense of direction. We run blindly hoping against hope that the fog ends somewhere. I clutch to the only logical thought in my brain: the doors are open; the monsters are reforming on the earth, there can't be too much monster dust. Multiple times I have to snap Percy out of his state of delirium and multiple times he has to snap me out of mine. As we emerge out of the mist and run far away it is the first time I am glad to see the darkness.

We both collapse to the ground and hold each other. I close my eyes tightly but I cannot stop the trembles wrecking through my body. Vivid images still flash clearly across my mind and I still have to fight against my control on reality. Percy is still clutching on my arm like a lifeline. His hand is turning blue from my too strong grip. At that moment, just for a while I lose it. Crouching beside me Percy shakes uncontrollably. Right there something changes between us.


We have been running for how long, I don't know. But there is no scarcity of things to run away from. Both of us are exhausted to the point of collapse, scared out of our minds and maybe we have gotten a little insane along the way. The only plus point was that I had been able to retrieve my dagger and now we were both armed. My ankle is still aching but the throb is so constant that I have become almost used to it. I imagine what I would see in the mirror right now. My clothes are more or less rags covered in blood, sweat, grime, slime, dust and other things that I can't bother listing. My hair looks almost brown from all the dirt that had managed to settle in and my arms and legs are covered in gashes and bruises. Percy doesn't look much better. His shirt is torn from several places. A laceration peeks out from a particularly huge gash at the front of it. There are deep bags under his eyes and the once sparkling sea green now holds a half-mad look. His cheeks are gaunt and hollow, his face a mere reflection of who he used to be. I imagine that the look on my eyes won't be too different.

From what we have heard we are close to the Doors but in the endless void it doesn't feel like it at all. I pause in my steps only to notice when something is wrong.

"Percy, look below us." I say.

Percy registers my words and looks downwards. At first he looks quizzical but then realization dawns upon his face.

"Stone." He breathes out a single word and I nod.

After eons of walking on nothingness our feet have touched rock for the first time. It looks hard and grey from what I can see through the dark mist flowing over it. I don't know if I should feel grateful or this is the sign of something bad.

A burst of cruel, sharp laughter breaks through the air.

You have reached far demigods. Such bravery, such strength. You will make beautiful sacrifices for the goddess.

Gaia's voice startles me and sends a shiver down my spine. It feels like cold is spreading throughout my body, numbing my veins. I look down again and grasp the realization all too late. Gaia is the goddess of the earth. We were standing on rock.

"Stone." I echo Percy's words.

Before we can even lift our legs, fissures start to appear on the hard surface, spreading and multiplying in a thick network of cracks. Huge tremors shift through the ground and we struggle to maintain balance. All around us the earth is collapsing. We run wildly, stumbling and jumping over splits and fractures. Behind us the world continues to disintegrate and I somehow know that there would be no fall this time, only eternal darkness. Gaia is still laughing at us and provoking us. Her voice is penetrating through my mind and messing with my head making me lose focus. The quavers travelling through the earth are so violent I feel like the ground is going to topple over.

I stumble on a fissure and fall to the ground. Percy runs a few more steps before he realizes that I am not by his side. He turns around and starts to run back but it is a few steps too late. A giant crack opens up the earth between us and we are separated by a pit of dark abyss. I don't even know if there is something deeper than Tartarus but this is a fact I don't want to find out. Percy reaches out to me wildly and I can see my panic reflected in his eyes. This isn't going to happen. Not again.

He grabs at my wrist and pulls me forward forcefully. The inertia sends a sharp rock digging into my stomach and I let out a scream. The fissure is widening and a sob escapes my lips. It is taking all his energy to pull me and I fear it won't be enough. His face is gaunt, furrowed in concentration as he gives it all his might. The crack continues to widen and his fingers slip from my wrist slightly before regaining his grip. The crack is too much to hold on too. I can feel Percy's strength faltering. But the only thing that goes through my mind is that I can't die like this. After everything that has happened I couldn't die like this.

In a last effort of desperation I push myself forward giving me a rough edge as Percy pulls me ahead. My body flies over the chasm and I land face first into the rock beside Percy, my legs dangling over the edge. Percy hauls me up, our eyes connect and suddenly both of us are laughing. I know that it is completely out of the situation but we have escaped death so many times that our minds have started to find the fact comical. The hysteria is taking over but after such a long time it feels good to laugh. Somewhere along it my tears blend with the laughter. We both cry and laugh in utter madness, but gods,

We are alive


The both of us stop and stare because we are finally here. My mind is finding the information hard to grasp because somewhere it had accepted the fact that there would be no end to Tartarus. Yet we stand there on the threshold of the Doors of Death staring blatantly at it. Our limbs are somehow still intact and our bodies somehow still working. I raise my dagger and right beside me Percy slowly lifts up Riptide. We charge headfirst into the fight.

Our weapons are blending together in a ferocious dance as we cut through the layers of monsters, his sword slashing my knife stabbing. We fight back to back as we have always done and together we are a force to be reckoned with. All around us monsters dissolve into bursts of golden sparks but we have to move quickly before they start to reform. I have come to know of his moves like the palms of my hand even his newly acquired Roman strategy has become familiar to me. Fighting together is easy when he knows my next move even before I do. We cut through the files of monsters that Gaia has assembled to guard the gates from both sides. Tremors wreck trough the ground after only brief intervals.

But even as we vaporize hoards of creatures marching our way, we both know it won't be enough. They are too many and they are reforming too soon. Somewhere beyond the gates I here Nico shouting and a lightning bolt crashes through the sky just as a giant eagle flies away. I immediately know that the others are already on the other side. Jason whips around just in time to spot us. The relief on his face is palpable. He turns around to shout at the others and I hear the faint shouts of replies. Percy turns around with a swift stab at the abdomen of a monster and catches Jason's eye. They both communicate silently and Percy nods once.

"This isn't working Annabeth, they are too many. Distract the monsters and lead them away while I close the door."

Percy says.

I immediately protest, "No I'll close the doors and you distract them."

Percy sighs impatiently "Your leg is still bad, Annabeth. You won't be able to slip out quick enough"

Even as he says it, I know it's the truth. But I don't want us to separate even for just a while. He promptly reads the emotion on my face and his voice softens as he grabs my hands.

"Hey, we'll be alright okay? It's almost over." He tells me "meet you on the other side."

With that he plants a kiss on my forehead and reluctantly runs away. Before they can move I distract any monsters that try to follow him. It's almost over. His voice echoes through my mind. It is the only thought that keeps me going, keeps me up on my feet and fighting and dicing anything that comes my way. I quickly cross the threshold of the doors and the agonizingly white light is the indication that I am on the other side. Piper suddenly materializes beside be but I barely have the time to pass on a greeting. A slow rumble courses through the field as the doors start to move. Jason has started the move from one side and Percy from the other. Once given a push the doors fall into a rhythm and gain speed. Gaia's shrieks angrily and the ground hurls.

Percy is running at full speed now. The crowds of monsters lagging behind him are a sight. Gaia emits another shriek and with that the earth quavers so violently that even monsters fall over. Percy's foot stumbles and he trips to the ground. By the time he stands up I know that it is going to be too late.

I start running to the doors. I have to reach him. He is giving in all his effort but I know it's not going to be enough. I scream at him and I yell at Nico to stop the doors but nobody is able to do anything. My eyes connect with Percy's and I see something flash in them. It's acceptance. Acceptance at what is happening, acceptance of his ultimate fate. As our eyes lock I am unable to do anything as my life slips away from my grasp.

His eyes hold all the emotion I need to know. Fear of his fate. Loss at the situation. Longing for the future. But most of all, I can see his love for me. He is still silently urging me one, giving me hope telling me to hold on. With the inch of space between the doors left, I can see him staring at me, trying to memorize my face like a last memory to hold on too. I stand there paralyzed unable to do anything. As the doors close I see him say something. His voice gets lost over the thump of the gates but his lips had formed the unmistakable outline of three words.

I love you.

My knife falls to the earth with a clang and my knees buckle to the ground.

You're not getting away from me. Never again

As long as we are together.

Only then would I understand the words of the prophecy sharp and clear ringing through my head.

An oath to keep with a final breath

In a single second my world collapses.


That's it! Sorry I just had to do that, it was too tempting hehehehe :D anyway look at that nice little box down there. It would be such a shame to leave it empty

With your demigodeshness and all that, peace out!