Annabeth
Poseidon blasted the stone wall with a burst of blue energy. It shuddered, then cracked as Poseidon slammed it again with force. It crumbled into pieces, stirring up sea silt. The sea god strode through the rubble and entered the room, Annabeth and Thalia following closely. Annabeth bit her lip nervously and she gripped her knife tightly as her eyes adjusted to the darkness.
The room was small, and the stone walls had seen evident wear. There were gauges and cuts on the walls and floor. In the middle of the room, staring at them incredulously, was the giant Annabeth had seen in her dreams. At least thirty feet high, he glared at them with a humanoid face but with hair riddled with basilisks.
Behind him, a dark-haired figure was slumped back limply against the stone wall. Annabeth's heart began to pound deafeningly loud, and she could only stare at him. Percy Jackson, the boy she had been searching for. After nearly a year, she had found him.
Annabeth completely ignored the startled giant and the surprised shouts of Poseidon and Thalia. She sprinted to Percy and knelt beside him. His skin was pale and there was a cut across one of his cheekbones. Riptide was nowhere in sight, and he seemed barely conscious.
"Percy..." She whispered. Annabeth reached forward with a trembling hand and stroked his hair. He was real. He was here. Percy stirred faintly under her touch, but his eyes remained closed.
Crashing and shaking suddenly echoed in the room, and Annabeth whirled around to see the battle. Thalia and Poseidon were pressing the giant with blasts of energy and slashes. Poseidon, his trident boiling the surrounding water, summoned handfuls of brilliant, burning blue water to throw at the giant. Thalia, abandoning her bow, had a knife in each hand and was stabbing the giant whenever she could.
Polybotes roared defiance and his stout sword changed; he soon grasped a weighted net and a trident. Annabeth knew that they were tricky weapons to fight against, and started to get up to help them.
"Circle him!" Poseidon shouted.
"I am born to defy you," Polybotes growled. "You will not be able to defeat me!"
"Think again!" Thalia yelled, before driving her knife straight into his side. The giant spat in outrage and pulled out the knife. He threw it back at Thalia, but the hunter ducked and it stuck in the wedges between the bricks in the stone wall. Annabeth ran to stand side by side with Thalia, ready to fight.
Golden ichor poured down the side of the giant, and with renewed force Poseidon sent his trident flying straight into the giant's leg.
Polybotes hissed with anger. Basilisks flew from his hair and began to writhe and encircle the demigods. Annabeth had to lunge to avoid the teeth of a biting basilisk.
"I'll get the basilisks!" Thalia shouted. She pulled out a fresh knife and started to fight and dodge around the basilisks.
Turning back to Polybotes, Annabeth ran in to slash at the giant's thigh. She ducked to avoid his trident, gripping her knife. Poseidon impaled his trident again into Polybotes. The giant twitched, but began to fight with a new force. Hate burned in his eyes.
Suddenly he started forward, pressing so hard with his trident that Annabeth was backed against the stone wall. Percy was lying at her feet, unresponsive. The giant raised his trident to deal the death blow.
"No!" Poseidon roared. He was behind Polybotes, too far away to help her.
Annabeth could only stare up at the trident that began to fall down towards her -
Then suddenly, she was pushed to one side with a gasp. Falling to the ground, she glanced up to see Percy standing where she had been a moment before, Riptide in one hand. He was pale, lined with pain and exhaustion, but upright and fighting.
"He lives!" Polybotes laughed, scorn clear in his eyes. "I thought it was all over."
"It's over for you," Percy said. Annabeth revelled in hearing his voice again. Percy then leaped up, Riptide raised. He stepped off the giant's knee and drove Riptide straight through the giant's breastplate, sinking his sword hilt deep into Polybotes' chest.
The giant gasped out in pain, dropping his trident. Before Percy could step back, Polybotes made a last, desperate effort – and kicked out, sending Percy flying into the back wall. Riptide was still buried deeply in Polybotes' chest. Annabeth watched in horror as Percy hit the wall hard and fell to the floor, motionless.
Before Polybotes could do anything more, Poseidon raised his trident. The giant was weakened by Percy's blow, and all the sea god needed to do was finish the job. Poseidon released a final, brilliant arc of blue energy. The room was filled with bright light, incinerating everything. The last of the basilisks, mostly destroyed by Thalia, disappeared. The giant melted away into nothing.
In the ravaged room, silence finally fell.