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PERCY

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in these stories except the plotlines and those characters I have introduced myself.

As Percy sipped the drakon-broth, he realised that things probably could get worse down here in Tartarus. Judging by his luck, they probably would get worse. But he was content to just sit with his friends in a hut made of drakon-leather and bones for the time being.

Finding Annabeth's things were a plus he hadn't counted on. He had to remember to make it up to Bob later on. How, though? Take him to McDonald's? That wouldn't end well. Yeah, 40 Big Macs please?

He still felt horrible, leaving Damasen and Bob down here. But his guilt was reduced by the fact that they didn't blame him, and that they were alive. He needed to get them to tell him how they survived that, though. But Damasen hadn't seemed to keen. It'd take some time for the giant to open up.

"If we're gonna be stuck down here forever," Leo suddenly said, jolting Percy out of his reverie. "There could be worse ways." Percy smiled, but Damasen suddenly boomed. "No, you will not be stuck here forever." Percy looked at him quizzically. "The Doors of Death are gone," Percy stated coldly. "There are other ways out," Bob piped up. "Yeah," Percy admitted. "But for monsters. We – Leo and I, can't use those."

"But there is another way," Damasen said calmly. Percy looked at him in confusion. "A way that monsters cannot use." "And what would that be?" Leo added helpfully. "Bob and I," Damasen continued; "have been looking for ways out. The two of us would never make it out through the monster exits, as we are now seen as traitors, but there is one last hope."

"The river Acheron," Damasen stated matter-of-factly. Before Percy could react, Leo had already asked the obvious question. "The River Ache- what?!" "River of Pain," Percy said almost absent-mindedly. "Are you talking about Charon's ferry?" Percy asked, putting two and two together.

"No," Damasen said calmly. "Wait, wait, wait," Leo stammered and Percy could already sense the question. "Since when does Chiron have a ferry?" "Charon, Leo," Percy said exasperatedly. "Chaaaaaaron." Leo's mouth shaped into an 'O' in response and he went silent.

"No, not Charon's ferry," Damasen said calmly. "The river itself, otherwise Bob and I would have left long ago." "Why can't you leave now?" Percy asked stupidly before slapping his forehead in realisation. The Acheron was deadly to monsters, and despite their inner beauty, Bob and Damasen were still monsters.

"Now that you are here, we can leave that way," Bob said excitedly. "But, Perseus," Damasen began, ignoring Percy's wince at his full name. "Why are you down here?" The memories flooded Percy, threatening to drown him in his own emotions. He began telling the story to Damasen and Bob, how he'd gone looking for Leo and gotten killed by him. The two were good listeners; Bob exclaiming in shock when he heard Percy had died. He skimmed over the rituals his father had performed to revive him, but said nothing of the warning his father had given him.

"There is a reason you must live again," Poseidon had said gravely. "But there will be consequences for what we have done here."

Percy's voice cracked when he came to the part where he fell into the chasm for the second time. The memory was only too fresh and painful in his mind. The ghost of the kiss he and Annabeth had just shared tingling on his lips, her stormy grey eyes filled with tears as she saw him grasp at the edge of the pit, and the cheesy joke he had said goodbye to her with. But he'd known, give it a second more and she'd fall in with him – and he couldn't let that happen.

He recounted how he'd dunked Leo in the Phlegethon (the person in question wincing at the memory), and how they'd managed to kill Kampê together (Damasen made an impressed expression at this) and then how they'd been cornered by the three giants. The rest was history that Damasen and Bob knew.

Percy inhaled deeply, steeling his nerves for the question he knew he had to ask. "Your turn," he finally croaked; looking Damasen straight in the eye. The red giant's eyes seemed to harden for a second before they fell again, his shoulders slumping. He grunted and got to his feet, gesturing towards the Titan. "Bob will tell you."

Percy whirled on Bob who didn't seem all too happy to have been handed the baton – as it were. "Hiya, Percy," he piped up in an attempt to change the subject. "Hi, Bob," Percy replied, playing along. "Now spill." Bob looked thoroughly confused, before reluctantly turning to the cauldron and placing a hand on it.

"NO!" Leo shouted. "He means to tell." Bob's mouth formed in an 'O' and he removed his hand from the cauldron. Percy nodded gratefully at Leo and then turned to Bob again, who suddenly seemed very interested in his tattered janitorial uniform.

"It was bad," the Titan suddenly said in an uncharacteristically serious voice. Percy got up and walked over to him, placing a soothing hand on Bob's forearm. The Titan smiled appreciatively at him before looking away. "As I held the button, Tartarus' monsters charged at me as Damasen attacked him himself."

The Titan's eyes were sad and haunted as he spoke. "Small Bob protected me," he said in a small voice as he scratched behind the ears of the definitely not Small skeletal feline. "But he could not for long. I had to resort to using my Titan energy, which weakened me as I had revoked those ways." Percy felt tears drip down his eyes as he realised what he had put Bob through when he should have stayed down here with him and defended him as Annabeth zoomed back to the world.

"When the dust cleared," he continued in his haunted voice. "All the monsters nearby were gone, but I was too weak to do anything except hold the button. Tartarus had Damasen cornered, the drakon dead. I did the only thing I could. I threw my broom at him."

That last part would have been funny; except for the seriousness of the situation and that Bob's broom was one of the wickedest weapons Percy had seen. Percy saw Leo trying to stifle a snicker out of the corner of his eye.

"The broom cut his heel," Bob went on, pain evident in his voice. "He roared really – really loud and fell to one knee. Damasen, bleeding all over managed to get up and throw his spear at Tartarus. It went straight into his face."

Percy heard a retching sound behind him and saw Leo making dry heaving. "Saw that once," he murmured. "Not pretty."

"Not pretty," Bob agreed solemnly. Percy shut his eyes as he imagined the sight. Tartarus hadn't had a visible face, more like a vacuum cleaner. It had been a black maw which sucked in everything around it, a vortex vacuum cleaner.

"The spear hurt him – a lot," Bob continued. "He roared and screamed, and suddenly, he went into his divine form." Bob had closed his eyes now, tears falling from his eyes. "Everything burned. It felt as if my very skin was being burned off, and I died."

"Wait, what?" Percy heard Leo cry out behind him and had begun wondering the same himself. "Tartarus' defeat released a wave of energy that resurrected every single monster ever to have been killed, just as they had been when they died. That is why I am still Bob, and not – not Iapetus," he said, hesitating slightly at his real name.

Percy turned around to look at Leo. "Every single monster ever?" Leo gulped. Percy looked at Bob and the Titan nodded solemnly. Percy whimpered. If every single monster ever killed had been resurrected at the same time – well, let's just say they were gonna have a hell of a time.

"I'm glad you're here, Percy," Bob suddenly said, placing a huge hand on Percy's shoulder, causing his knees to buckle.

"So am I," a chilly voice spoke up from the edge of the hut; causing Percy, Leo and Bob to jump up. Percy peered past Bob's immense form to see a person of equal dimensions standing in the entrance. He couldn't make out the face, but the body was a sight in itself. Rippled with muscles, the person's torso was riddled with lines as if he had been cut up and rejoined. The lines were an angry red, and trickles of gold could be seen around them. Percy heard Bob gasp.

"Kronos," he said.

The Titan laughed evilly as he looked back at the trio. "Move aside, brother," he said in his cold voice. "I have to see Mr. Jackson here." Percy gulped and placed a hand on Riptide, drawing it and holding it out in front of him defensively. He heard a flash and saw Leo ignite his hand on fire. "Perce," Leo whimpered. "Yeah," Percy whispered back, looking at the Titan warily. Kronos' lip curled cruelly as he looked in between Leo and Percy.

"Get them," he said to two people behind him and Percy saw another Titan with ram-horns on his helmet walk towards the three. "LEO, NO!" Percy shouted as Leo launched a fireball at Krios. Time seemed to slow down. Wait, no. It actually did slow down. Percy felt a sweat break out on his face as he raised his arm, too slowly to do anything. It was almost as if he were frozen. Bob was frozen too, one leg off the ground as he tried to intercept his brothers. The fireball was moving extremely slowly through the air, and a normally walking Krios easily walked past it. He drew his sword and hit Bob over the head with the pommel, causing a trickle of ichor to begin leaking out, Bob keeling over ever so slowly. He walked over to Leo and socked him in the face, causing a sickening CRACK! Percy saw Kronos walking over to him out of the corner of his eye. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't break out of Kronos' spell. He felt a hand rest itself on his shoulder. "This feels good," Kronos whispered coldly before Percy felt a hand whack his neck and he crumpled to the ground, time returning to normal.