So I'm going for a little more character development than I did last time around if you can't tell.

Chapter 10: The second battle

Raven:

The second day of battle brought fresh horrors from the monster army, and another strategy from the Athena cabin. We advance outside the border, and get them riled up, ready to come in after us, then we fall back inside the borders. With any luck, they'd run right into the traps we'd set up in the woods the night before, then right into the traps we'd reset from the previous day, and if all else failed, we had more than still had yet to be set off.

We marched right through the woods, leaving a small team of Romans ready to pull down the fleece when we came through. If anything, that barrier saved our lives, it was the only thing keeping a constant stream of them from pouring through the camp's defenses.

"Steady!" I heard Reyna call to us as we moved forward

After yesterday's success, people weren't as nervous as they had been, in fact, they seemed eager to take the fight right to them. Despite that, I still didn't have a very good feeling about anything that was happening, but neither did Percy, or Jason, or Leo, or any of the others for that matter, and everything had worked out okay for them, fighting the actual Earth had probably been a lot more nerve wracking than this, still didn't help to convince me.

We stopped just outside the border, barely able to see the shadows of the monster army as they massed less than a mile out from us, ready for another fight. I didn't know if they could see us quite yet as it was barely the ass crack of dawn, but I was pretty sure monsters didn't see in the same way we did, either way, it didn't really matter.

"DEMIGODS! HUNTERS! NATURE SPIRITS! AMAZONS!" Reyna called to us in a loud, commanding voice "TODAY! WE AVENGE EVERY DROP OF BLOOD THAT WAS SPILLED YESTERDAY! WE WILL MAKE THEM FEEL THE PAIN WE FELT! SHOW THEM THEY WILL NOT TAKE US WITHOUT A FIGHT! ATTACK!"

Almost before she had even finished her words, the entire army erupted in a battle cry, holding every bit of anger, resentment, hate, and loss that we felt, and, for just a moment at least, I felt a small pang of sympathy for the monsters, before remembering all the friends I had lost yesterday, then I was just as angry as everybody else.

We surged forward, row by row. The monsters, which looked much smaller in numbers than they had the day before, seemed shocked as we burst through the trees into the open fields behind Camp Half-Blood, barely having their weapons ready as we crashed into them. I had ditched my shield that morning, deciding it wasn't really my fighting style, and I felt much more comfortable this time around, or as comfortable as one could be.

I rolled as a Cyclopes swung his battleaxe at me, stabbing him in the ribs as I came up. Another monster rushed me and I blocked his sword, grabbing it's wrist and pushing my shoulder into him, dropping him to the ground and stomping on his face. Already, the field was filled with the dead, covered in gold dust. All around me, the sound of blades meeting blades, or blades meeting flesh echoed through the valley. Cries of the wounded and dying, the roars of monsters, it was the most deafening thing I'd ever heard.

"BEHIND US!" I heard somebody yelled

I risked a glance to my back and immediately wished that I hadn't. Another massive army was emerging from the woods behind us, and I realized why their numbers were much smaller. They had divided themselves, and then they had surrounded us. Beside me, Percy and Tyson were trying to get everybody back to back, knowing that we had messed up big, and were about to make our final stand.

Amber:

"THIS IS BAD!" I yelled to Thalia as we watched the army mass behind us

"OH REALLY?" She asked, rolling her eyes "WHAT GAVE YOU THAT IDEA?"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Raven release a torrent of silver light, blaster twenty or thirty of them to smithereens, and sending a few more waves, but he wasn't making much of a dent in them. I fired off a few arrows, not even stopping to see if they hit their mark, as was one of my guilty pleasures, but there wasn't any time for it. I reached back to my quiver and found one, final arrow, an explosive arrow. I let it fly, leaving a crater in the field and taking out twenty or so of the monsters, but they still kept coming.

I shouldered my bow and drew my knives, bracing myself for death, ready to embrace it, as all Hunters should, with dignity. I charged, slashing the throat of a Telkhine as he rushed me with a spear, and I soon found myself back to back with Raven. We worked together, as if reading one another's minds, Raven using his sword to keep the monsters at bay while I got in close and struck them down. I knew we couldn't keep it up forever though, and the two of us would eventually be taken down.

"ANYTHING YOU'D LIKE TO PULL OUT OF YOUR ASS?" I asked him "NOW WOULD DEFINITELY BE THE TIME!"

"HATE TO BREAK IT TO YA!" He shrugged "BUT I'VE GOT NOTHING!"

I cut down another monster as Raven slammed his fist into the ground, a wave of silver light shooting out and knocking monsters all around us off of their feet. A demigod behind me fell as an arrow pierced his neck, and another in front of me was swept to the side by a Cyclopes with a warhammer. Everything was starting to go south, Jason and Leo came into view, trying their best to give us all the support they could from the air. Two of Leo's warships fell from the sky, four of the Pegasi came crashing down as well. Whoever was piloting one of the warships did his best to steer it into the monster army as it fell, and the fuel reserves and greek fire on board took out at least a hundred of them, but they still kept coming.

"THERE'S TOO MANY OF THEM!" Annabeth yelled from behind Percy, stabbing a monster as it rushed him "WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!"

"DO WHAT EXACTLY?" Raven demanded

"ATHENA ALWAYS HAS A PLAN!" She yelled back

"WELL WHAT THE HELL IS IT?" Percy yelled to her, using Riptide to take down a Gorgon

"WORKING ON IT!" She called back

Piper rolled by me, cutting a Cyclopes at the knee and jamming her dagger through his throat as he dropped. I saw a massive bear, I assumed to be Frank, tearing the monsters apart, but even he was beginning to be overwhelmed. It was then that I noticed Reyna, who was laid out on the ground, an arrow through her shoulder and a gash on her forehead, her armor was also torn and dented up around her chest area, and I knew she was hurt badly.

"Raven!" I yelled, nodding my head toward her

He understood and the two of us rushed to help, but we were too far away and cut off by the other monsters. Even so, Raven fought with renewed strength, it was even more spectacular than watching his fight with Tartarus. He had always worn his emotions on his sleeve, but this was different, I could physically feel his anger, his hate, clear in every strike. His need to get to Reyna, to save her and Frank before the were overwhelmed and killed, seemed to radiate off of him, and I really did feel sorry for the monsters standing in our way.

Suddenly, the smell of ozone filled the air, and every hair on the back of my neck simultaneously stood on end. For a moment, I froze, unsure of what to do, before I heard Thalia, panic very clear in her voice, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"GET DOWN!" She screamed "NOW!"

Artemis:

"Father," I begged "We must help them."

"No," Zeus said "We cannot interfere with a mortal battle."

On the orb in the center of the room where the battle was being displayed for the entire council to see, and it sickened me. The fact that we were forced to sit here, in this meeting, watching our children die as though it was some reality TV show.

"But this is part of the prophecy," I said desperately "Father, they are surrounded, they will all be killed. Don't fool yourself in thinking the other side plays by the same rules."

"You didn't even tell them the whole prophecy." Hera said

"I told them enough," I countered "They know what must be done."

"Enough," Zeus snapped "We are not going to interfere, they will survive on their own, or they are worthless to us."

"Unbelievable," Poseidon raged "Brother, my son, your son, all of them, have saved our skin countless times, and you would have the audacity to call them worthless."

Zeus said nothing, but watched as the orb showed a group of Demigods, dressed in armor and waving a grey banner with an owl. There were only eight of them, but they held no fear in their eyes as they stood their ground against the overwhelming monster army.

"FOR ATHENA!" One yelled, and the others echoed his call

They rushed forward into the crowd, and fought bravely. But one by one, the eight boys were cut down. One was hit by an arrow, the others were killed by the monsters. another was tackled by a hellhound. I spared a glance to Athena, who had closed her eyes and lowered her head, unable to stand and watch her children die.

The view shifted again and somebody screamed in pain as two boys walked by carrying another boy in between them. I didn't know where they were trying to go, but the seemed desperate just to move their brother away from the fight, then they suddenly were swallowed by a massive ball of greek fire.

The wounded boy must've been killed, but the other two came running out of the flames, both of them on fire, screaming in pain. One of them was killed by a passing Ogre, and the other dropped on the ground and tried to roll around, attempting to put out the flames burning his flesh, but greek fire never went out easily.

"DAD!" He yelled "MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE, JUST MAKE THE PAIN STOP!"

I looked to my brother and saw him sitting with his eyes shut tightly, unable to look at what was happening. One of my Hunters stopped, tears brimming her eyes as she pulled back an arrow and it pierced the boy's heart, he jerked and then went still, the flames still licking around his body.

"Don't you see?" Poseidon said angrily "This is what happens when you become prideful, they are all going to die, and we will be destroyed!"

"I am not prideful," Zeus spat at him "There are ancient rules we must abide by."

I couldn't watch any longer, I'd had enough, and I knew what needed to be done. I'll admit, it's true what they say, about your children teaching you just as much as you teach them. I never ever would've admitted this to either of my sons, as it would've contradicted the lessons I had been trying to instill in them, but taking a page out of their book often yielded much better results than being patient and waiting.

"If there's one thing I've learned from my sons," I said, rising and drawing my knives "It's that rules are meant to be broken. I'm sorry, Father."

"Daughter," He began in warning "What are yo-"

I lunged at him, knocking two of his guards to the side as they raised their weapons to stop me. My father was so shocked, he made no movement, but Hera was always his opposite, jumping into action quickly at the chance to 'put me in my place' as the mortals say.

A short sword appeared in her hand, but she was never much of a fighter, and I disarmed her quickly, kicking her in the chest and sending her falling to her back. As I turned, my father stood, leveling his master bolt at me, but a Trident slammed into it, forcing it away from me before my Uncle stood in front of me, staring down my father.

"Come now, Brother," He said reasonably "We've done this before, how did it go the last time?"

My father snarled and raised his bolt, but a a golden arrow pierced his wrist, sinking into his throne and pinning him to it. He cried out in pain as ichor began dripping from the wound, and I looked behind me to find all of the other gods on their feet, weapons drawn and standing at my back, staring at Zeus and Hera with loathing.

"No more!" Hephaestus growled "No more of this! You are a poor excuse for a king, it's time for a change."

"You'll pay for this," Zeus spat angrily "All of you! I will make you rue this day."

"Yes, well," Hades shrugged, picking up the master bolt and turning to me "Artemis, I believe this honor belongs to you."

I took it, and aimed it through the clouds, knowing it would strike true no matter what. I let a few bolts go, knowing that was all they need, and turned to the orb, watching them strike on the ground and tear a massive hole in the valley and wiping out hundreds of thousands of monsters all at once. My father was right, there was rules we had to abide by, we couldn't do this for them, but we could help them out, at least. Just for fun, I let two more go, wiping out some of the ones behind them, wiping out another hundred thousand ensuring the monsters would be too scrambled to give chase to the retreating demigods.

Thalia:

A massive boom rocked the valley as the entire monster army in front of us was swallowed by a massive tendril of lightning, a few seconds later, two more hit behind us, wiping out the ones behind us. For a moment, time seemed to stop, and nobody moved, unsure of what happened or if we were okay to move, then I heard Lady Artemis' voice in my head.

GO

"GET UP!" I yelled, grabbing an Amazon and pulling her to her feet "GET UP! GO!"

I saw Amber grab Reyna in a fireman's carry and we started to retreat. The monsters were scattered, dazed, most of them still trying to recover from what had happened, some looking like they didn't even know where they were at.

We bolted back into the woods, some of the monsters trying to give chase, but the majority of them were still trying to regroup. We made it into the forest and back across the border, where the Romans were waiting to take down the barrier, but Frank stopped them as they reached for it.

"NO!" He yelled "LEAVE IT!"

They looked confused, but they obeyed and followed us. In the confusion, we had been able to gather up our wounded, and while most of the ones still left in fighting shape, we all agreed that we had done our fighting for the day, and it was time to fall back and rest.

So here's an issue I'm kinda running into. Should I keep the same number of chapters or add some? Because I feel like these battle scenes are a bit shorter than I'd like them to be, but it's kinda like writing a TV show and having to stay within your run time, but then I just realized I don't actually have to do that. I don't know, I suppose I'll just write the story and if we need more then we need more.