NEW BEGINNING LETS GO WHO'S READY!?

Annabeth ran, her worn shoes smacking against the cold pavement. Get away, her brain told her. Run. Annabeth didn't stop, although her lungs burned and her feet ached. Her backpack jumped from one side of her back to the other with every step she took. Sirens blared in the distance. She could see the blue and red lights illuminating against the sides of tall buildings. Annabeth took a sharp turn into an alleyway that was lined with old broken boxes and crates. I need a place to hide… Annabeth thought. She crouched behind one of the boxes. Annabeth had never been this close before. Annabeth Chase, nineteen-year-old fugitive since age seven. She calmed down her breathing and surveyed her surroundings. The alley was a dead end. She sighed. Annabeth heard the sirens get louder. There was no time to flee and nowhere to go. Suddenly Annabeth spotted a fire escape on the side of one of the brick walls. She smiled. Annabeth heard the sirens getting close; she figured they were about a block away. She jumped from behind the box and started to shimmy up the fire escape. Annabeth had been running for 12 years and therefore had tons of practice. Her deeply calloused hands flew to each rusty rung. Swinging her legs up, she reached the third level just when three police cars swerved into the alley. Three police burst out of the cars, guns cocked and ready. Annabeth pulled her black hood over her honeysuckle curly hair and crouched between the bars. Her hand immediately shifted to her sweatshirt pocket and pulled out a well-worn shooter; her favorite, and only, weapon. Annabeth was well prepared to fight her way out of this. She observed the cops. They looked younger, maybe just peaking adulthood. Two of them had darker hair, one raven black that was hard to see in the night, and the other had more brownish hair. The last cop had light blond hair and electric blue eyes. Annabeth shivered nervously. Something about that specific color made her uncomfortable, but Annabeth couldn't put her finger on it, or even had time to for that matter. She slowly started to rise, still keeping her eyes on the figures. It being dark outside, Annabeth could barely see the cops, with little help that the black uniforms. She kept focus on their eyes. The officer with the black hair had strange green eyes, like they came from the ocean itself. Annabeth watched him with great interest. She took a few silent steps across the fire escape, praying to any god there was to keep her feet quiet. Annabeth kept her eyes on the men, who had started taking small cautious steps around the alley. Suddenly, a loud snapping sound broke the silence and Annabeth found her foot falling through the bars, the sides of the metal scraping the sides of her leg. The beam had snapped and she cursed to herself. Dammit! These stupid old things... The police turned on the heel and started shooting in Annabeth's direction. It was highly unprofessional. Annabeth yanked her leg out of the bars and scrambled onto the ladder leading to the fourth level. There were only five levels of the fire escape. She flew up the ladder, guns still shooting and them police started yelling at hers, with things following like; "Get down here!" Annabeth's heart raced as she made it to the fourth level. A sharp pain exploded in her side and Annabeth cried out in pain. She immediately brought her hand down to her hip. It came away red. The bullet only grazed her side, but still left a nasty wound. Blood had started to surface. Annabeth cocked her gun and started shooting at the officers. She didn't want to shoot them, but just back them up. The cops started cursing and took hesitant steps back to the cars. One of her bullets hit the windshield of a car and glass shattered, spraying the brown-haired cop. Annabeth scurried up the last ladder while the green-eyed cop started up the fire escape. The blond was still shooting, his face looking grim. The cop climbing the ladder was a lot faster than Annabeth anticipated. He was already on the third level when Annabeth was just reaching the top. She looked around the roof. There was nowhere to go. It was a five-story jump from any direction. Annabeth's side ached and she started to panic. The officer was on the ladder leading up to the last level. Annabeth took two steps backward, nearing the edge of the building. She grasped her side with one hand, and the gun in the other. The cop appeared over the ladder, and made his way onto the roof.

"Percy, be careful!" One of the officers yelled. "She's armed!" He, or Percy, looked down at the other officers. Then he turned to Annabeth. She raised her gun, now placing both hands on it to steady herself.

"Drop your weapon Chase!" Percy yelled, his face dark. Annabeth cocked the gun again. She supposed she was nearly out of bullets, but she still held the gun up. He advanced on her with a quick motion, making Annabeth loose her balance and fall onto her rear. The officer loomed over her, his eyes wide with shock.

"Jesus Christ you're a girl…" He muttered. She looked at him in surprise. In the process of falling, her hood must've slipped off her head. She struggled to sit up, but managed to keep her aim. He cleared his throat and pointed his gaze at her weapon. "I said drop it!"

"Make me." She retorted. Annabeth's arms were firm. She shifted her finger over the trigger. If she shot him, there'd be no way of him surviving. He was only, what? Two feet away from her barrel? He cocked his own weapon, a gun only slightly bigger than hers. She didn't like this guy.

"I've heard about you Chase," He began. "I've heard several things about you." His stare almost softened. "I've heard you're crazy. I've heard you're a drug addict. And I've heard you murdered your family at youth." She grunted, shifting her aim.

"Oh yeah?" She sneered. "And do you believe everything you hear?" He laughed, a rich and sincere laugh.

"In this case, yes." He responded sternly. "See this situation we're in? Bad right?" He raised his brow. "And we can fix it easily, avoiding any other problems. If you just…" He started to crouch down, lowering the gun, and most importantly taking his finger off the trigger. Annabeth saw the perfect opportunity and despite her condition, acted fast. She sprung at the fool, kicking him in the chest. The shocked police officer slid back maybe five feet. Annabeth jumped off the side of the building, the open air flying underneath her and hope for survival on her mind.

While I edit chunks of the story, I will be taking chapters out of the original updates so don't panic! -MJ