Gibson1014: Absolutely love the story so far! / Thanks, so I'm assuming you weren't put off by Annabeth's death?

Ltowls: Please try to update this is really good and I love it! / I have a lot of exams coming up so updates are going to be slow.

Guest: this is AWESOME! Please update as soon as possible! :) / Thanks.

Matt: Actually my opinion changed and I liked it until you had Annabeth die, now I'll continue to read it to see if it gets better. P.S. The only reason(in my opinion) you still have readers is probably because they're jerks and like seeing horrible stuff happen to good guys. /

emma: percy was able to almost kill a godess in tarturus... (godess of poison?) by sufficating her and sucking out the water from her body. why the hell couldnt percy do that to kronos? just saying. srry for being a downer. i just think that it should be realistic based off of info already writen. / This is definitely realistic about that. Akhlys (the goddess) is a goddess, yes, but Kronos is a Titan. The Titan King. He's not going to be easily taken down (whilst in his own body) by a little demigod who was physically and mentally exhausted after thirteen years of running around Hell. Also, don't you remember in one of the earlier chapters Kronos wasn't affected by Jason's lightning? After that what makes you think Percy will be able to affect him with water?

prince of the seas: excellent ..thalia or bob / Yup, Thalia. Here's a cookie (::)

11,000+ views, 99 favourites, 161 followers! Thanks everyone.

Disclaimer: Absolutely nothing has changed since the last chapter - I still own nothing except the plot.

Man on a Wire – The Script is the song for this chapter. As you should be able to tell by now, I'm not doing a song for every chapter, just ones that have a good song that go with the mood.

Chapter 10 - What Happened?

Percy jolted awake as realised he'd been screaming in his sleep. No, not sleep. Flashback. Of the first few hours he'd spent in Tartarus alone. "Percy?" A calm voice asked, but Percy could hear the slight tremor in her tone. He'd had to learn the most discreet emotions in order to be able to tell what Lord Kronos was going to do to him in their 'sessions'.

He shook as he looked up at the girl above him, his mind blank for several moments before the face registered in his mind. Thalia hovered above him, her eyebrows furrowed in concern as she inspected him, and a relieved smile crossed her face when she saw him awake. "Kelp Head, welcome back. We were getting worried."

Percy blinked, his eyes flitting over her shoulder, and his breath caught in his throat as his gaze landed on golden eyes, remembering another pair that gleamed maliciously in the dark, he looked down to see two golden eyes staring up at him, his foot having pierced the golden sac surrounding the body, and a sinister smile formed on the Titan's face as the sac imploded, covering him completely and forcing the son of Poseidon to wipe fluid off his face as he stumbled back, opening his eyes to see the Titan King stalking towards him, golden armour gleaming and gold drops of liquid dripping onto the ground, a smirk adorning his face as Percy gripping his sword, steadying his nerves as he readied himself to defend at all costs – "Percy!"

Percy took in a sharp breath, banishing the memories to the back of his mind as he pointedly looked away from the golden-eyed demigod. Thalia was unnervingly close to him, obviously trying to be comforting, but Percy tensed up and shifted away from her slightly. If she noticed she didn't show it and Percy was grateful for that, he didn't want any attention focused onto him as it was.

Percy frowned as he glanced down, realising he was wrapped up like a burrito in – was that drakon hide? "What – where?"

Jason grinned at him, relief prominent in his electric blue eyes. "The hut of some Giant, Bob – I mean Iapetus - brought us here."

"Damasen?" Percy murmured weakly and shifted so his arms were no longer squished against his sides, but out of the drakon hide, he turned his arm so he couldn't see the letters engraved.

"Yeah," Leo said, "bane of Ares, actually pretty kind – for a Giant."

Percy blinked, "Damasen – where is he?"

"Outside," Clarisse said dismissively, "talking with Iapetus about something or other." She studied Percy closely, "I'm more interested in you, Prissy. What happened?"

Percy flinched back, mentally building walls around the memories that threatened to overcome him, like he had for the past two hundred and eighty seven years. "I – I don't." He shook his head, "No!"

"Percy, calm down," Piper said soothingly, infusing her voice with charmspeak to force Percy to do as she had said. "Everything's fine. We're going to get you out of here, just calm down."

Percy relaxed, the tenseness of his muscles fading away as he lay in the bed that he'd lain in three centuries ago. Leo awkwardly cleared his throat, "Uh, I'm just going to go get Bob – I mean Iapetus – and Damasen. Tell them he's awake."

Thalia nodded slightly and reached towards Percy arm, ignoring his flinch as she grabbed his wrist and turned it around to reveal the two words on his forearm. She glanced at Percy, his eyes staring at the slightly golden letters in a daze. "Percy," she said carefully, "please tell us what that damned bastard did to you. We need to know, if he's-"

"What the Tartarus do you think he did?" Percy demanded as he wrenched his hand away and tucked it back in the burrito of drakon hide. "He t – tortured me. For two hundred and eighty seven years I've been with him, hoping that you'd come down to free me. None of you ever did." He hissed angrily, knowing he was probably overreacting, but not really caring. He'd been down there for longer than he cared to remember with pent up emotions, too afraid to let anything show for fear of Lord Kronos mocking him and capitalising on any weaknesses that slipped through his defences, he figured he had a good reason for acting like he was. He had to get it out somehow, and this seemed like the best moment.

"Percy, we tried to get to you so many times," Frank said, "we would have, but there was no way into the Pit. The Doors of Death had to be open and in the right place for us to come down."

"So you could have had an escape route if it all went to Hades," Percy snapped, "and now, you're all wishing you didn't come, aren't you? Because Annabeth's dead. Annabeth's dead because of all of you!"

The demigods looked taken aback as Percy's anger grew, and Thalia narrowed her eyes, bringing her hand up to deliver an electrified slap. Percy flinched back, his eyes wide with fear quickly filling them, mind retreating into survival mode. He cowered away from the daughter of Zeus, averting his eyes to look down in a sign of submission.

"Oh gods, Percy," Thalia breathed, "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have done that."

Percy blinked mutely, not daring to look up at her. "Percy," Nico's voice said surprisingly gently, "you're fine, ok? You're safe. Kronos isn't going to hurt you anymore. We're your friends; you don't need to be scared of us. Thalia didn't mean anything, she's not going to do it again, she didn't think about what would happen."

"Guys, move away from him," Leo called, "you're crowding him. You shouldn't do that if someone's just been tort – I mean had a bad experience."

The demigods all took a few steps back and Percy let out the breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding as Leo shoved his way to the front. "Wow, dude, you look like crap," Leo grinned and hurriedly added, "not that it's a bad thing. Crap could be good, you never know." He frowned slightly, "Ok, that came out wrong."

Percy forced a small smile onto his face, though he knew it was more like a grimace, he hoped it would put their minds at rest a bit. "Perseus," a calm voice said and Percy looked up to see kindly silver eyes studying him, he swallowed slightly at the similarity between Lord Kronos and Iapetus.

"Bob," Percy croaked, "you're alive?"

Iapetus smiled, "Thanks to you, Perseus," he nodded and inclined his head, "I am in your debt, my Lord."

Percy shifted slightly, uneasy with the attention from his fellow demigods. "I'm not your Lord, Bob," he eventually said, "no one is."

Iapetus shook his head, "Tartarus had killed me. He planned to give me eternal torture for what I had done, your plea stopped him and he allowed me to reform. I am eternally in your debt, Perseus."

Percy shook his head so fast he was surprised he didn't get whiplash. "No, you're not," he said firmly, his eyes suddenly gleaming, "and if you even were in the first place, as far as I'm concerned that's now void for your help in getting me out."

Nico blinked at Percy's sudden change in attitude. "So, you're alright now, Perce?"

Percy shook his head, focusing on the roof of the hut as he tried to not think about the time he'd spent with Lord Kronos. Nico quickly understood his silence and gave Percy a comforting look, "Don't worry, Percy." A smile formed on his face, "You're going to love Camp, Aquaman, everything's been upgraded and there are a lot of new campers that are all dying to meet you."

"Obviously," Leo piped up, "you've sort of been out of the loop for a few years, but that doesn't matter. We'll quickly get you back into the swing of things, don't worry."

Percy forced a smile onto his face, just for show to stop his friends from being so worried about him. He refocused on Leo's grinning face, "How long was I out?"

"A couple of hours," Jason answered. "Not too long."

Percy nodded slightly and tried to push himself up onto his elbow, but Thalia quickly pushed him back down, ignoring his flinch as she touched him. "Hold up, Kelp Head, you're not strong enough to go running around Tartarus as you please quite yet." She frowned slightly, her eyes scanning his face, "That'll take a while to heal."

It didn't take Percy long to figure out what she was talking about and he suddenly went quiet, his hand reaching up to touch the new scar on his face. He swallowed nervously, his voice hoarse, "It won't heal. There'll be a scar, there always is."

"What do you mean?" Piper asked carefully.

Percy fisted his hands; his fingers tightening around the drakon hide bed. "That's enough," Iapetus said firmly, "you can't coerce or trick him into telling you so soon, demigods. He will tell you all what happened to him… in time."

The demigods nodded and Percy avoided their searching stares. Iapetus cleared his throat, "Damasen is warding his swamp so the defeated ones can't find us easily," he paused slightly and Iapetus looked at Percy, "Perseus, your help would be appreciated."

Percy nodded, happy with the excuse to get out of the bed and away from his old friends as he swung his legs off the bed. "Whoa," Thalia said, "you can't get up yet, Kelp Head."

Percy briefly looked up at her, his eyes narrowing into a glare, before he looked at Iapetus, "Help me outside," he ordered.

Iapetus raised an eyebrow, but quickly allowed Percy to lean on him as he helped the son of Poseidon outside. "Wait, how can Percy help set up wards around the swamp?" Jason asked.

Iapetus ignored him and just continued out the hut with Percy still leaning on him. "Remember how to do it, Perseus?"

Percy nodded, "Of course."

Iapetus carefully stepped away from Percy and let him approach Damasen himself. "Don't overdo it, Perseus."

Percy turned to look back at him, "It's too late for that, Iapetus."

Iapetus looked sadly at the son of Poseidon. "Percy, step carefully. Your path holds many hardships no matter what you do."

Percy shook his head, "Look, Iapetus, I know. Just… let it go, okay? Please?"

Iapetus frowned, wanting to press the matter, but decided against it. "Very well, Perseus, I shall leave the conversation for later, however do not think it will never happen. We will be having it at some point."

Percy rolled his eyes, "Honestly, Iapetus. I know what 'my path holds'. Tartarus told me."

"He gave you hints," Iapetus corrected. "You do not know your full destiny-"

"And neither do you," Percy shot back, curling his fingers into a fist. "I don't care about my destiny; the Fates have played with me too much. I make my own future." He quickly strode out of the hut to where Damasen was waiting.

"He's different," a voice said from behind Iapetus said.

Iapetus snorted, "You know nothing of what happened to him whilst he was with my brother. I would be surprised if he was the same as before after what was done to him."

Nico's eyebrows furrowed as he looked at Percy talking with Damasen, "Why does he seem at ease here? After what we saw Kronos do I was expecting him to be insane if it had been happening for however long he's been down here. And he's healing so quickly, the cut on his face has already scabbed over and the rest of them have become scars."

Iapetus frowned, "He will tell you if he wishes, but know this. The Pit is currently protecting his mind from going insane, and when he gets out of here there will be nothing to shield him."

"How's the Pit protecting him?" Nico asked in confusion, "I thought it kills demigods."

"Why aren't you dead then?" Iapetus chuckled, "You are half-immortal so you have some protection from the atmosphere and our surroundings… Perseus however is completely immortal. My brother apparently decided he didn't want the child suffering from age and acted on that. You must be incredibly careful. For now he is just immortal, but from the time he has spent around Kronos he would have gradually started becoming a Titan. Keep him around demigods, and that will be countered and he may start to be a god instead. Since he is immortal, the Pit protects him as it does us – Damasen and I, along with the other Titans down here."

Nico nodded, "Basically like Tug of war then? But with an immortal instead of a rope."

"Yes," Iapetus said as he watched Percy slam his hand into the ground and a shockwave spread out, a calming feeling descending over the swamp and Nico felt safer than before, "the son of Poseidon has a great future still to come. War is once again brewing between Othrys and Olympus, and his allegiance shall decide the outcome."

Nico frowned as he watched Percy jog over to them, grinning widely with no clue of what had just transpired between the two beings. Damasen strode over after him, "We are safe for now. Perseus has raised barriers around the swamp that no monster or Titan can pass."

Hearing that, Nico glanced back at Iapetus who was watching him with a dark expression on his face. If Percy can do that… what happened to him down here? He thought to himself as he caught Thalia's gaze.

Sort of a filler chapter here, but we see a bit of Percy's abilities here. So, how is Percy doing it? How has he got these abilities?

The next chapter won't be up for a few weeks (I have a lot of exams coming up), this is a heads up so you don't start spamming me with reviews ordering me to update. Basically, whoever writes a review asking me to update won't have read this very small note.