I was sure I was going to die. Dangling over the depths of Tartarus itself with my shattered ankle in its crude splint weighing me down, I had never been more sure of it - even with Percy clinging to my very fingertips with all his strength. My death, I could stand, but not his.
Percy gasped under his breath as the ledge he was gripping by his nails began to give way under our weight.
"Percy, we're going to fall. There's nothing you can do," I whispered, half-hoping he wouldn't hear, "lets just let go - the doors need to be closed from within, too, remember?" His pale face turned to me with a hopeless expression of defeat, before his sea-green eyes hardened with a sudden resolve that, honestly, scared me a little. I saw his eyes drink in everything from my ratty, once-blonde curls to the fear in my grey eyes before he replied;
"Ok. We'll go together, but first, let me try something." I nodded, though as he closed his eyes a new feeling of nausea opened a further pit in my stomach - I had an uneasy feeling this wouldn't end well.
For a moment, nothing happened, but then I nearly yelled in surprise as I felt deliciously cool water start to seep into my shoes. Looking down, I could see it was glowing with a million golden tones, unlike any liquid I had seen before. As it crept further up my leg, I could feel my strength and courage returning to me, my injuries, incredibly, healing. It felt as though the water was lifting me up.
But wait... It was! I could feel myself begin to drift higher every second, and in panic, I turned to look at Percy.
He looked awful. He was growing paler as I watched, the sickly pallor contrasting with the bruise-like shadows under his dimming eyes. He was shaking violently all over, his shivering muscles betraying the weak smile of forced-calm I knew was there only for my sake. As I watched his chapped lips mouth 'I love you, Annabeth', I knew. He was sacrificing everything in him to save me from hell.
"No!" I screamed soundlessly, struggling as my hand was torn from his.
"I'm sorry," he pleaded, struggling to keep his eyes open enough to see me, "I couldn't let you do this. I promise, I'll see you on the other side, Wise Girl."
By the time my feet had touched the Earth next to Leo's ship, tears were streaming down my quest-worn face and I was shuddering with horrible, heartbroken sobs the like of which I'd never known before. I watched as the last of Percy's strength drained, every last ounce given in sacrifice to me, and he disappeared into the endless darkness.
It took all of Jason and Franks strength, every strongest note of Pipers charm-speak and several of Leo's enchanted chains to stop me jumping into the pit after him. They all tried to convince me that if I did, Percy's efforts would have been in vain, that I would surely die.
I don't care, I thought desperately, let me die! Anything other than this crushing pain would be welcome, even hell itself.
"He said we'd go together!" I screamed at the air, the words hitching in my throat as I choked back more heart-wrenched tears. Never had I felt so inconsolable. Never had I felt so alone, even wrapped in the arms of my five other dearest friends. Nothing came close to losing Percy again.
I was not surprised, then, when my relentless grieving eventually drove me into a deep, dreamless sleep that's usually brought to me only in illness.
I say dreamless - I can't count watching Percy fall into an empty pit again and again as anything other than my darkest nightmare.