IX. ANNABETH

Annabeth thought she knew terror. She thought she'd faced the worst of it beneath Rome, in Tartarus, in the Temple of Fear in Sparta. But nothing compared to stumbling alone through the Labyrinth, the image of her friends' golden eyes burned into her brain. She wanted to stay and help Piper and Hazel, but when they raised their swords she had no choice but to run; there was no way she could fight both of them at once.

She sprinted for the stainless steel tunnel. Yes, Hazel had said there was something dark down that tunnel, but she'd also said it was the quickest way back to the guys. And Annabeth had to find the boys so that hopefully they could help Hazel and Piper. She tried not to think about the fact that the eidolons had only been repelled last time because of Piper's charmspeak.

But as she rounded a bend in the tunnel and saw what lay ahead, every other thought went out of Annabeth's mind. She froze, unable to believe her eyes. Her voice was weak as she said, "Luke?"

His form was vaporous, but it was definitely Luke. The same blond hair, the same blue eyes, the same scar. He was blocking the corridor in front of her, arms crossed, wearing a very angry expression. "How could you let this happen, Annabeth?"

"Wh-what?" she stammered, taking a step back.

"You failed your friends again, just like you failed me." Luke took a step forward, his eyes blazing with anger. "I trusted you. We all trusted you. HOW COULD YOU BETRAY ME?"

"I-I didn't." Somewhere in her numb brain, Annabeth realized this wasn't really Luke. It was a shadow, almost a mania. That thought gave her the courage to say, "I never betrayed you. You betrayed me. And you're not Luke. Now get out of my way!"

She shoved past the image of Luke, which wailed and reached for her, but its vaporous hands couldn't grab her. Choking back a sob, Annabeth jogged away down the corridor, the howls of the mania ringing in her ears.

The tunnel turned into a limestone shaft, sloped like a mine shaft and slippery with moisture. Then the floor became marble, the walls lined with frescoes. After that was another corridor lined with tree roots. Annabeth nearly died a dozen times from traps in the walls and floor. She felt seven years old again, stumbling alone and terrified through the Cyclops's mansion. She reached for Riptide in her pocket, just for the comfort of a familiar object, but the pen was gone; it must have returned to Percy when she wasn't paying attention. Which probably means he's not tied up in that room anymore, Annabeth thought with relief. She put on a new surge of speed to avoid being barbecued as flames shot from the ceiling of the maze. If she could just find the guys, they could figure out a way to save Piper and Hazel from the eidolons.

Annabeth emerged into a new tunnel, this one narrow and crooked, with rough walls and the damp smell of a cave. She drew her sword, keeping it in front of her as she made her way through the twisting tunnel. The tunnel was empty for the first hundred feet, but then Annabeth came around a bend and saw a familiar figure standing with his back to her in the middle of the corridor.

Relief surged through Annabeth as she recognized the dark hair, the stance, the t-shirt. "Percy!"

He turned to face her and ice flooded Annabeth's veins.

His eyes were pure gold.

"No," she whispered. Her sword suddenly felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, dragging her arm down.

Percy's face was pale, his expression hard and cold as he took a step towards her.

"This isn't real," Annabeth said weakly. "It's a trick, like with Luke."

Percy gave a deep, booming laugh that sounded nothing like his own. His voice echoed strangely as he said, "This is no trick, Annabeth Chase. We, the eidolons, have returned, in even greater numbers. We will destroy you worthless demigods, in the name of the Dark Lady!"

Annabeth's knees were shaking, but she forced her voice to stay steady as she asked, "Where are Jason, Frank, and Leo?"

"That does not matter," said the eidolon controlling Percy. He drew Riptide from his pocket and uncapped it. The sword sprang to life. "Prepare to die, Annabeth Chase."

Had Annabeth thought things were bad before? Nothing, nothing, could possibly be worse than this, watching her boyfriend walk toward her with his sword raised, the expression on his face positively evil.

Annabeth had no choice but to parry the attack as Percy, no, as the eidolon controlling Percy, swung the sword at her. However, she didn't go on the offensive; she did just enough to keep herself alive, but it was hard. The eidolon had all of Percy's skill. Within seconds, the eidolon had backed Annabeth into a crevice in the rock. She had nowhere to go.

The eidolon hissed. "Trapped, daughter of Athena. Now—"

Percy grunted and doubled over like he'd been punched in the gut. When he stood up, his eyes were flickering between gold and sea-green. He braced himself with one hand against the stone wall, his face contorted with pain. "Annabeth—"

His voice was hoarse, but it was his own. Her heart leapt. "Percy, are you—"

"Annabeth." Percy gripped her arm; his eyes were rapidly flickering from green to gold. "You need to get out of here."

"What? I'm not leaving you!"

"You have to. I can't—" Percy winced and his eyes turned solid gold again for a moment, before returning to green. "I can't hold the eidolon back for long. Please. Get out of here."

Annabeth wanted to sob. She felt like her heart was breaking. It was Mount St. Helens all over again. But, like then, she knew he was right, as much as she hated it. She locked eyes with him. "I love you. I'll find you. Promise."

Percy nodded just as his eyes returned to solid gold. The eidolon snarled. Annabeth ducked under Percy's arm and raced away down the tunnel, wiping tears from her cheeks as the hideous laughter of the eidolon echoed off the stones.

She lost track of how much time passed as she dodged traps and ducked down one endless corridor after another. She had no real destination in mind; she had no idea how to help her friends. The only thing she could think to do was to keep moving. And pray.

In a corridor lined with marble blocks the size of compact cars, she whipped around a corner and ran smack into something large and solid. When she regained her balance, Annabeth realized the large, solid something she had run into was Frank Zhang. And his eyes were normal brown.

"Annabeth?" Frank said incredulously.

"Frank! Thank the gods!" Annabeth was so relieved, she threw her arms around the big guy, who seemed just as happy to see her.

"Where's Hazel?" Frank asked. "And Piper?"

Annabeth fought down a sob. "Eidolons."

The color drained out of Frank's face. "Oh, no."

"They got the guys, too, didn't they?"

Frank nodded. His hands clenched into fists. "How did you know?"

"I ran into Percy." Annabeth's voice broke, but she forced herself to stay in control. "He—he held it back just long enough for me to get away, but…"

"We'll figure it out." Frank gripped her shoulders. "We just need to make a plan. There has to be a way to save them."

Annabeth swiped her hand over her eyes. "First we need to find them. They're probably all over the maze. We should—"

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that," a new voice interrupted. "Your friends are all in one place."

From around the corner, Euryale and Stheno appeared, grinning horribly with their boar-tusked mouths.

"And they're waiting for you," Stheno finished with a crazed giggle.

Before Frank or Annabeth could react, the gorgons lunged forward and had their claws at the demigods' throats.

"We'll take you to them," Euryale hissed in Annabeth's ear. The gorgon reeked of snakes. "Right this way."

The gorgons marched Frank and Annabeth down several more corridors, stopping before a massive bronze door set into the wall. Stheno opened the door and Euryale shoved the demigods through with a cackle.

When she saw what was waiting on the other side of the door, Annabeth wanted to curl up on the floor and cry. They were in a massive room with obsidian walls. Greek-style columns carved out of the pure black stone lined the edges of the room. Perched on a dais in the middle of the floor was a throne made of the same obsidian as the columns. A woman wearing a long black veil that covered her face was seated upon the throne. And on either side of her stood Percy, Piper, Hazel, Jason, and Leo, weapons drawn, faces pale, eyes golden. Frank's jaw clenched. Annabeth didn't give into despair easily, but at that moment, she nearly did. Especially when the woman on the throne rose and said, "Welcome, Frank Zhang. And Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena—it has been far too long."

Medusa.