A/N: Important! Please read! So this is chapter 9! I decided to change the way I write the story by stopping the whole POV thing. I will only write in Percy's POV because I found that easier. When I write in different POVs, I have to make sure that everything lines up on the timeline, which is really time consuming. Anyway, enjoy!

Chapter 9

"Ow, watch it seaweed brain!" Someone to my right that sounded like Thalia hissed at me.

"Sorry!" I whispered back to the fuming daughter of Zeus.

Well, I mean I understood where the anger was coming from. After all, this was the fifth time I stepped on her, but in my defense, it was really dark. We didn't dare to ask Artemis to light up any sort of flare because the brightness of the flame would be enough for anyone to spot us. As a result, we ended up searching through the dark with Piper's guidance, and occasionally stepping on the daughter of Zeus.

With a sudden stop from Piper, the three of us bumped into each other and fell, which ended up with Thalia and Artemis piling on top of me. I was glad that the darkness around us was able to cover up my now heating face because the position was quite awkward for me. Needlessly to say, the feeling was mutual among all of us, as both Artemis and Thalia quickly shuffled away from me after recognizing the embarrassing moment we encountered few seconds ago.

Jason's death seemed to change Piper entirely, since the cheerful girl we once knew was now replaced by a blank, expressionless daughter of Aphrodite. She merely glanced at us and whispered "We're here" with an emotionless tone.

Well, since it was dark, I couldn't make out of the place we were currently at. Although it was dangerous, I tapped on Artemis' shoulder and motioned her to give us a small flare. With a small nod, she snapped her fingers and a tiny, but warm silver flame came alive. Fantastic, we could see each other's faces now, and of course, the enormous steel door that stood in front of us.

From the outside, it looked nothing like a bunker. In fact, it was so well hidden that it blended in perfectly along with the trees and bushes. It was impossible to estimate the actual size, considering the fact that the doors were the only part of the bunker than were presented before us. The body itself was either covered up by the trees, or hidden with godly powers from Hephaestus himself. After all, this was supposed to be a well concealed and safe zone during a war.

We all looked at each other, hoping to find a solution to crack open the door in front of us. We could always rely on Artemis' godly power, but the sound of explosion would alert the entire camp, and declaring our presences to the sleepy demi-gods was the last thing I would suggest.

"Is there a doorbell or something?" Thalia asked, which I facepalmed immediately. Any intellectual being should know that no military base would install a doorbell for the enemies to ring on it. It was as if asking, 'Ding Dong. Hey do you mind if I attack you right now? I promise it will be quick.' After participating in countless battles and two major wars, one thing I learned was the art of surprise. Even though it might be dishonored sometimes, taking down my enemies in the fastest and cleanest way had always been my top priority. I guess the daughter of Zeus was different and prefered to face the enemies straight on in an honorable way. The moment I facepalmed myself, she glared at me harshly while wearing a innocent smile on her face, which in return, I scratched my head nervously and quickly dismissed her by saying "No, no. Not at all."

"How about I try to melt the door down?" Artemis suggested to us.

None of us disagreed since this was by far the more logical solution than ringing on a nonexistent doorbell. The moment Artemis placed her hand on the door, instead of burning it into silver flame like I imagined, the door simply creaked open. We all exchanged looks nervously, but decided to venture into the bunker anyway, since this was our only option.

Honestly, this was way too easy. No one caught us sneaking around in the forest, not even Dionysus, the camp director who supposedly could sense the entry and exit of all living being. The fact that the door itself was unlocked and unguarded didn't ease my suspicion as well. In fact, that made me wonder if this whole mission was a collaborated trap.

We were running short on time. As soon as Apollo began to drive his chariot across the sky, our chance of escaping alive would be nullified. I had to make this choice right now: Follow or pull back. With any luck, we would locate the missing puzzle piece in a short amount of time and flee the camp before the sunrise. On the other hand, if there were obstacles or even ambush in the bunker, we would be delayed significantly. and that would result in death once all the campers and Gods showed up.

Well. I guess I liked to bet against the odds. I pushed the thoughts away and joined the rest of the group. As expected, it was dark in the bunker, but since there was no possible way for any third party to spot us, Artemis flicked her fingers before summoning torches out of thin air.

We slowly advanced down the hallway with cautious, afraid of some nasty surprises that await us. Oddly enough, the trip down the main hall was peaceful, not even a trap from Hephaestus sprung. After about half an hour, a decision was forced to be made. Two tunnels were presented in front of us, with one leading to the left, and the other to the right.

"Thalia and I will go left, and you two will go right." Piper said before I could voice my own opinion. As if reading my mind, Piper said out my own concern. "We have no choice here. The best way is to split up to find the main room. I'm sure the thing we are looking for will be there."

Splitting up. That was the only thing I didn't want to do. Fight Zeus? No problem. Fight Kronos? No problem. Fight Gaia? Bring it on. But split up in this dark and dangerous bunker? No thanks. We were basically in the enemy territory, and if there were unseen traps or ambushes in the bunker, we would be heavily outnumbered. By staying in a group of four, we could always look after each other's back. Deep down, I knew Piper was correct. Time was running out, and the most efficient way to find the main room was to split up in groups of two.

Reluctantly, I nodded at Piper's request and stepped into the right tunnel with Artemis. Like the main hall that we walked through half an hour ago, the path we were on now was equally quiet and smooth, except the atmosphere was quite awkward. Well, to begin, I felt slightly uncomfortable with Artemis. It wasn't because of the fact that she tried to kill me in the past. All she ever did was follow her father's order until she realized the true intention of capturing me. Ever since the meeting on Olympus, Artemis voiced out her own disagreement on this matter and decided to change sides. I was glad that we got a Goddess as our ally, but it wouldn't be enough to face off the other eleven Olympians.

I guess the reason I was uncomfortable with Artemis was because of ...her. Out of the seven Olympian Goddesses, including Hestia, Artemis would definitely be the top three attractive Goddesses on my list. While she may not be as attractive as Aphrodite, her morals and personality made up for the lack in physical appearance. With all the hunting and trainings, she developed a slim but firm body that many people dreamed of. After Annabeth's disappearance and the note she left me, I went through a depression. I had many regrets in my life, and leaving and not caring enough about Annabeth was one of them. I shut myself out and refused to communicate with anyone. I knew I needed to cool off and spend some time alone to sort things out. I didn't care much or take note of other girls. I simply wasn't interested in any of them. None of them could replicate the cheerful and excited feelings that Annabeth used to give me. All I wanted was to have Annabeth back, but no matter how hard I was willing to try, I knew she was forever gone from me, Then Artemis came into my life.

I didn't know what to make of her in the beginning. Sure, she was attractive, but she did try to kill me. Then after all the misunderstandings cleared out, she kissed me on the cheeks. I was curious about her, but mostly confused. Many times, I looked back into my life and noticed how much I had to depend on Annabeth as she would assist me through daily tasks and counsel me when I felt distraught. She was my wise girl and my best friend. Artemis was the only one that made me feel slightly more motivated and alive ever since the breakup. Her mere presence was able to sooth my annoyance and frustration that had been growing for the past few months.

"Hey Percy," a voice that had to be Artemis broke the silence and brought me back to reality. "I have a question for you."

"Hmm?"

"I'm sorry that you lost your power," she said apologetically. Well, it really wasn't her fault to begin with. It was my father's decision to cut the ties with me, furthermore, take away my demi-god power and my trustworthy weapon, Riptide.

"No. It's ok. You had nothing to do with it." I replied to Artemis with a genuine tone to reassure the Goddess of moon that the root problem was from her corrupted family members.

She let out a relieving sigh and said, "Well, that's good to know. But if I remember correctly, aren't you Hestia's champion? Shouldn't you have affinity over fire?"

Dammit. I had to curse myself for my forgetfulness. How did I forget about my flame power, and most importantly, my patron? I felt extremely guilty for not using Hestia's power, and no doubt she was also disappointed in me. This was the power from the first child of Kronos and Rhea. Theoretically, it should be more ancient and more powerful than the power that Poseidon granted me, but I completely forgot about it and never used it besides summoning homemade food.

"Yea, I do." I said sheepishly. "But I forgot about it."

"How can you possibly forget that Hestia is your patron?" Artemis snorted and questioned me

I tried to come up with an excuse, so that I would be able to escape from this embarrassing situation. However, Artemis wasn't really fond of that idea and continued to mock me.

"Ah I see. Like I said, males are incompetent. Don't worry, you are not as bad as most of them, but definitely not as bright as my youngest hunter."

"Thanks for the compliments." I replied her sarcastically, which she returned with something like 'tsk-tsk'.

"You should practice those powers. I'm sure it would come in handy in the near future."

I nodded at her request. My affinity over fire was the remaining factor that separated true- sight mortal from I. After losing my original power, I would take whatever I had to use it against the Gods. I could not afford to lose this battle.

"I mean, if you need help, you can always ask me nicely. Then if I feel like it, I will assist you with your training." Artemis added cheekily after a long pause.

I rolled my eyes and before I could come up with a response, I heard a desperate scream down the hall. And it sounded like …

"Thalia!" I yelled and began to sprint towards the darkness.