I don't have an excuse for why this is late except that I'm a terrible lazy person

I almost smiled I could now recognize my mother.

The woman who threatened to kill my unborn son if I didn't fight on her side in a war.

Annabeth POV

I crossed my arms in defiance I wished I could wake myself up but sadly I couldn't.

"Don't be so cross I have some rather, good news," Mother remarked.

"How can I not be 'cross' you killed him!" On the last word my voice wavered. The tears in my eyes gave my surroundings a shiny film. I blinked the tears out of my eyes, not wanted my mother to see my weakness.

"He's alive!" she snapped. The color drained out of my face.

"I swear on River Styx that he is alive." Thunder boomed in the distance.

"How do I find him?" I asked.

"That sea scum has been lying to you, he knows." She mused. I couldn't help but grit my teeth, was Percy really lying to me or was it just my mother trying to turn us against each other.

The dream changed and I was in a cavern of red rock. Despite the lack of sunlight I was sweating, outside the barren landscape appeared to be a desert.

Death Valley.

In the shadows of the cavern, a voice like a snake's hiss said,

"The plan is working, I have almost everything I need to resume power."

"What about the boy? Master, the prophecy says he has the ability to defeat you." The servant cowered in the shadows. He was dressed in rags but familiar. His eyes looked like a contained fire, one that shouldn't be released.

"Quiet Sisyphus! Or do I need to return you to your rock?" the figure hissed.

Sispyphus was an anicent king confined to Tartarus by Zeus. I racked my brain to remember the details of his punishment. He was a murder and in the underworld he tricked Thantos into chaining himself up and he escaped the underworld a couple times before he was punished by having to push a rock up a hillside just to have it fall down right before he got to the top.

I tried to think of how he got here, maybe he tricked the gods again and escaped, maybe his master helped him. I thought that this was Thalia's captor. He said remuse power.

For a second I couldn't move thinking that it could be Kronos.

No, impossible besides this person's voice is exactly like a snake's hiss. Kronos's voice was deeper.

"Sisyphus, it seems we have a guest, Annabeth Chase step out of the shadows and introduce yourself." He regarded slyly.

I bolted up on my bunk bed, fast enough that I knocked my head into the bed over me. I clenched my teeth, trying not to curse as I rubbed my now slighty black and blue forehead. I went into the small kitchen ajacent to the tiny room with the bunks in it. I could hear Percy and Tyler talking, they didn't know I was awake yet.

Their backs were facing me but I could sense Percy's anguish.

My eyes narrowed at him. He lied to me! He told me that he was dead. I took the baby's death hard. I eas going to demand an answer from him.

He ran his fingers through his messy raven hair slowly as Tyler stared at him, clearly irritated.

"You have to tell me sometime, you know, or I'll just ask around." Tyler said crossing his arms.

"You've already guessed who it is, you don't need me to confirm your guess. Besides why do you want to know so bad." Percy glared at Tyler. His left hand gripped the arm of his chair like he was driving his nails into it.

"If my grandmother is who I think she is then you know exactly why I want to know." Tyler remarked.

"Did you know that she has been trying to track me down for the past 12 years trying to send me to Tartarus? If you think she'll ever love you like a grandmother should then you're wrong, she'll want you in Tartarus with me and Poseidon!"

Tyler turned as white as a sheet. That's when I spoke up.

"Who are you talking about?" I asked. They both looked surprised to see me leaning in the doorway.

"Oh, good you're awake, dinner is starting soon." Percy said completely ignoring my question.

I stepped in front of him, blocking the door.

"Tyler can me and Percy talk, alone, we'll meet you in the dining hall." I said through my teeth. He warily nodded and left. I wondered if was trying to listen through the door.

"Percy, what happened to the baby? The truth this time."

"You told me he died of heart complications or he was killed…" he started I could tell he was lying.

"You're lying what did you do to him." my fingers lingered on my new knife. That reminded me of that time where we found him. after the fight he somehow got a hold of my knife, and he got away. At the time I was happy he was safe, my not that much when I learned he stole my knife.

"I didn't do anything to him." he said stiffly.

I opened my mouth to reply when the door landed on the ground next to us, like someone kicked it down.

In the doorway, a 12 year old girl with auburn hair and a silver aura was surrounded by girls around her age. Something was different about her though. Her silver eyes seemed tinted with a flickering red. One of her hunters was gripping Tyler, but she was holding him as far away from herself as possible. I recognized the girl in the front as Artemis. Her hand stiffened on her bow as she saw Percy. I bowed of course, but Percy stood rigid.

"I'm surprised Zeus didn't kill you and send to Tartarus along with your father." Artemis sneered. She seemed like she was far away, like she wasn't entirely focused on us but thinking of something else.

Percy didn't say anything but he kept his fists clenched as his sides.

"What no bow?" she teased her voice was hollow and distracted. She stared intently at Percy until his knee buckled and he fell into a bowing position. His body trembled and his forehead broke out in sweat.

"Lady Artemis what brings you to our quest." I asked drawing her attention away from Percy.

" You're on a quest to save my lieutenant, and I wanted to see for myself that Zeus allowed you," she said pointing at Percy, "to stay alive."

Her vile words didn't even make Percy flinch. His face was drained of any emotion except for a hint of anger. He acted like he went through this before.

The hunter released Tyler and he raced to Percy's side; half standing his ground and half cowering behind Percy. Artemis looked to Tyler and back to Percy and I saw her steal a glance at me. I wonder what she was thinking…

"Who is this?" she said gesturing towards Tyler. She seemed less angry and less intent to kill Percy. Also the red light in her eyes was dull if not completely gone.

"My half brother Tyler." Percy was quick to answer but still Artemis still looked confused.

She didn't look satisfied and I was getting nervous with the hunters waiting for an order. The order could either be to kill us or Percy or to raid the snack bar. I knew I needed a distraction but Tyler beat me to it.

"Can you offer us any advice?" His courageous voice reminded me of Percy's.

Artemis fell back into a her unfocused distracted daze her eyes returned to their former red haze.
"This should be an easy quest for you demigods. Don't overestimate the enemy its probably a minor monster who caught my lieutenant when she was unfocused."

Now I was confused, the prophecy said a forgotten evil almost impossible to defeat

That certainly wasn't a minor monster. And I could believe the goddess of hunting hadn't helped us more she seemed like she was rather here to see our progress and to assess us. None of this makes any sense.

Nothing makes any sense anymore said the annoying voice in the back of my head that reminded me of Aphrodite.

Percy POV

The rest of the day she 'helped' us. She helped us train and about what we should expect. I felt like she was trying to confuse us, trying to sabotage the quest. It was a quest to save her trusted lieutenant so why would she be trying to stop us?

It was full moon that night. And Artemis started telling us things that made sense. But if I tried to ask her a question about what she said earlier she'd pretend she never said that. She seemed more like the goddess I meet all those years ago before any of this happened.

One thing that irked me was that just before she left she whispered in my ear,

"My brother is the god of truth, he told me about Tyler."

Review and I'll update SUPER fast! That sounded cheesy even for me…