Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Percy Jackson and the Olympians/ Heroes of Olympus.

I wanted to have a go at this for a little while! Hope you enjoy:)

Hazel, Annabeth, Piper and Elson traipsed through the forest, their eyes narrowed as they scanned the thick canopy of trees around them; they had been walking for what felt like hours, clambering uphill into deeper and deeper forest, searching for the
/demigods they were meant to be bringing back to camp. Around them, the sky was slowly turning from deep pink to a dusty grey as darkness swept over the forest, and a chill crept through the air, making the four teenagers shiver in their thin t-shirts.

Annabeth could sense the glances being exchanged behind her, as Hazel and Piper silently voiced the question that she had pushed to the back of her mind: what if they're already dead? She could tell Elson was thinking it too- the young satyr had
/been mournfully chewing on a seemingly endless supply of coke cans for the past hour and a half- and she felt a pang of pity for him. It was his first quest, and she knew what it felt like to be searching for a lost cause.

But they're not a lost cause, she reminded herself. The distress signal had been pinpointed to this exact forest just two days previously, and Elson had said he definitely sensed demigods nearby when they'd arrived. They just needed to have hope.
/Gods knew it had gotten her through enough. She powered on, pushing up the hill, branches snagging on her ankles and scratching her skin. The ground was starting to level out now, which was a stark contrast to the steep, slippery slopes they'd first
/trudged up, and Annabeth was thankful; she could feel her body tiring the higher they climbed. But as the darkness really started to creep in, the trees bathing them in shadows, so did her desperation. She found herself whipping her head back and
/forth looking for any sign of life, but it was as if the forest were a dead land, void of anything had been appearing for weeks now- scattered all across America, the trail heading North. Annabeth didn't know why they were all appearing
so suddenly now, but she had a feeling it wasn't good and since they didn't have enough satyrs to spare, demigods had been asked to help retrieve them. It was dangerous work, but still all the demigods she'd been sent to retrieve had come back safely.
Until now.

"Annabeth," Piper began uneasily, placing a gentle hand on the blonde girl's shoulder. They had reached a small clearing in amongst the thick crowd of gnarled trees. "Maybe we should start to-"

"We are not giving up." Annabeth interrupted, setting her jaw determinedly. "We have to keep looking, they could be anywhere around here."

Piper sighed. "That's the problem-we're just searching aimlessly. We need to take a break and think things through. We've searched the whole area that the signal came from. They're not here."

Annabeth's eyes were stormy grey with determination; not for the first time, she wished Percy was here. He would understand her need to help these kids. He understood just as much as she did what it felt like to feel very, very alone. Besides, she could
/use some comfort right now, and Percyalways seemed to know how to make her smile."The signal was picked up two days ago. They could easily have moved further on since then."

"But in what direction?" Piper asked, gesturing around the forest. "The trees carry on for miles all around us. We've found no tracks, not a trace of human life. I think we should head back, or make a plan."

Annabeth's expression changed then, her shoulders sagging as the tiredness she'd been trying to fight leaked into her eyes. Part of her knew Piper was right; this was pointless. But the other part of her couldn't stop thinking of all the times she'd been
/in trouble, and how desperate she'd been for help. It didn't feel right leaving these demigods out here, alone in the dark, when they were so close to a rescue.

She turned to Elson. "Do you sense anything now?" she asked, her voice tinged with desperation. "Can you smell the demigods?"

Slowly, he lowered the can he was about to take a bite out of and took a deep sniff. He shook his head somberly. "No, I don't smell any demigods. Just monsters."

Hazel frowned deeply- an expression that looked alien on her usually gentle face. Instincitvely, her hand moved to rest on the hilt of her sword. "Monsters? How strong is the scent?" she asked.

Piper waved her hand dismissively. "Forests always smell like monsters. Chiron said they hold their essence in the trees."

Annabeth nodded absent-mindedly; her mind was far away, her thoughts whirring like gears. She wished there were more of them here, so they could pan out and search the area in groups, but she definitely didn't like the idea of separating in the dark with
/a team this small. It was too risky with the threat of monsters, and they'd just end up losing each other. Maybe Elson could use some tracking magic? she wondered, but in reality Annabeth knew it wouldn't work; Elson was only young, and she
/kept forgetting that the satyr wasn't as advanced as Grover. She sighed internally. They needed to make a plan, and quick.

Hazel's gaze softened as she watched the older girl, engrossed in her thoughts as usual; Annabeth's determination was admirable, but Piper was right- it was futile to keep searching. Hazel knew that Annabeth must know this, wise and as clever as she was,
/but she presumed it was more a matter of not wanting to believe it. "How about we set up camp here?" she offered. "Chiron's not expecting us back until tomorrow evening, so we can search tomorrow too. If we don't find anything, we can make
/a decision about what to do then."

Annabeth visibly relaxed, her eyes clearing in that way they did when a clear plan was set out. But still, Hazel could see the tinge of hesitation in the grey flecks of her irises as she nodded. "Okay." she replied.

Piper seemed relieved too, setting down her rucksack on the dried-out ground and rubbing her hands together. "Right. I'll put up the tent. Elson, do you think you could-"

But, just as she spoke, a roar exploded from the trees- a sound so bloodcurdling, it turned Annabeth's stomach to ice.

"Quick! Get behind me, the three of you." She had already drawn her knife and she watched as the others did the same- Hazel drawing her sword, Piper clutching Katoptris, and Elson holding a short tree branch carved into a sharp point. He looked frightened,
/his eyes flitting nervously around the wood, but his hands were steady.

Annabeth watched the trees warily. The forest seemed to be mimicking her, lingering, watching, waiting for something to happen. Her heart was thudding so forcefully in her chest it hurt, and her fingers were white around the hilt of the blade. She'd fought
/monsters hundreds of times, yes, but something felt different this time. Wrong, somehow. She had a painful prickling sensation at the back of the neck, as if something very, very bad was about to happen. Gods, she wished Percy was here. Just
/his presence calmed her nerves, and the knowledge that he was close, that they were in this- whatever it was- together, made her feel stronger.

But she couldn't think like that; she was strong. She shifted, scanning the woods for any sign of irregularity, but the forest was completely silent. No movement, no noise. She couldn't even hear the bristle of the trees. The forest seemed to be
/holding its breath, waiting for an entire army to come charging through the bracken, and Annabeth held her breath with it.

And then he stepped into the clearing.

"Luke." she breathed.

Hope you enjoyed it if you made it this far! Don't worry, I'm going to try and stick to info that's canon, so the story line won't be too far fetched, I promise. Please review! X