Sorry for the short chapter! I just had a really great idea for the next Tartarus chapter so I'm going to write a lot today so I can bring my idea to life! :) Thanks for reading!

PERCY

Percy lay on the ground with his arm around Annabeth. Lexi sat on his other side, drawing in the dust.

"What's that?" He asked.

Lexi jumped and wiped her hand through the picture. "N-nothing."

Percy raised his eyebrows at her. "Now I want to know even more."

"It was just a picture." She said.

"You draw?" Percy asked. "I've tried to draw before, but I think I'll stick to sword fighting."

Lexi laughed. "Sorta. I'm not very good either though."

"Well, you're probably not going to get better with your hand and rock dust. Do you have any paper here?"

"Yeah, but I don't have any pens." Lexi said sadly.

Percy smiled. He pulled Riptide out of his worn out pocket. He had found out a few years ago that if he tapped the opposite side of his sword, that when he uncapped it would be a regular pen.

He handed Riptide to his sister, her face lit up when she saw the pen. She accepted it and pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket.

For the first time, Percy studied her closely. Lexi was wearing a Camp Half-Blood shirt, the same as him. She had dark jeans and bright blue flip flops that matched her eyes. Her long blonde hair had streaks of brown.

Percy could tell Lexi was concentrating on her drawing, her eyes sparkled the same way Annabeth's did when she was reading.

Percy lay back on the floor. Annabeth had fallen asleep already and he figured Lexi would keep them safe.

Percy's eyes closed. His dreams, of course, were horrifying.

He was standing in a dark tunnel. In front of him was a giant brown door. It flickered with energy and sparks danced across the frame. The door was wide open, but he couldn't see what was on the other side.

Percy stumbled backwards. He ran into something solid and warm. He spun around, and behind him was Hades himself.

"Jackson, I see we meet again." He growled.

Percy just stared at him.

Hades sighed. "You know what you must do in Tartarus, right?"

"Uh, escape?" Percy guessed.

"Well, yes. But I'm talking about the whole 'Gaea rising' problem."

"Oh," Said Percy.

Now Percy knew what the door was. It was the immortal side to the Doors of Death.

"Won't it be kind of easy to close them?" He asked.

"It seems that way, but the doors must be closed with a sacrifice."

Percy didn't like how he said the word 'sacrifice'.

"What kind of sacrifice?" He asked.

"Sadly, the Doors of Death will only close with a death. Blood will have to be spilled to stop the rising of Gaea." Hades frowned.

Hades faded and Percy awoke to the sound of singing.

Annabeth was still asleep at his side, quietly snoring. He kissed her cheek, and then he got up to see where the singing was coming from.

In the other room, Lexi had Riptide in her hand. She was drawing a picture on a piece of paper that was stuck to the wall. She sang while she worked.

Percy quietly snuck closer. He stood behind Lexi, studying her amazing art. She also had a beautiful voice.

Percy didn't recognize the song, but he could tell what the drawing was. It was himself on the ground, with Lexi kneeling next to him. It was the first time they had met.

"Wow," Percy breathed. "This is incredible."

Lexi screamed and turned around. "Why would you scare me like that?"

"Sorry, didn't mean to." Percy said.

Lexi sighed. "It's okay. Where's Annabeth?"

"She's still sleeping." Percy's stomach growled as he spoke.

"I'll go find some food." Lexi laughed and then she was gone, leaving Annabeth and Percy alone once again.

He went back into the room where Annabeth was sleeping.

She wasn't sleeping anymore though.

"Good morning!" She said. "Where were you?"

"I was watching Lexi draw. You should see the picture she made. It's amazing." Percy replied.

"Oh, Percy, I need to talk to you." Annabeth said. "I had a dream last night, about our quest."

"That's weird. I did too." Percy thought back to his dream last night. The memory sent a shiver down his spine.

"You first." Annabeth stared at Percy, waiting for him to begin.

He told her the story of Hades and the Doors of Death. She sat there, not even the most scariest parts stirring her.

When Percy had finished, Annabeth said, "We had the same dream."

"Well, what are we going to do? There has to be a death." Annabeth tried to interrupt Percy but he kept talking. "and it won't be you, Annabeth."

"Well it can't be you!" She yelled.

"It won't be either of us. We have to find another way." Percy said.

He now realized how bad of a fatal flaw that loyalty was. Once again, he was risking the world to save his friends.

What if this time I can't save both?