Okay, I guess, finally getting into SOME action. I apologize for the boringness of these last few chapters and hope this chapter will be much better.

One thing I have to remind you guys is that the winter break is approaching, meaning that updates will be on temporary hiatus.

Occasionally, I'll make it someone's POV, but for now, they're all going to be third person. Oh, and, there is gonna be some violence in this chapter.

Let's just say, Thalia wasn't ever going to doubt her dreams anymore. Not even the ones about the pink fluffy unicorns going over the rainbow. And if life was going to get any worse, let's just say it has already.

Percy was locked up in his room, sending papers of notification to every galaxy. He was cracking under the stress, being the commander of the whole palace seeing that Chaos was off on equally important matters. As Thalia brought some more papers into his room that just arrived here from the galaxies to whom Percy had notified, she could really see that Percy was being wore down.
He hadn't slept in a full seventy-two hours, the strain of a possible universe-wide war pressurizing him till he felt like a tiny dot in the midst of a sea of giants. There was nothing he could do except prepare for war while pursuing peace. The peace idea was most likely and definitely going to fail. The army needed to be trained, galaxies informed, and while there was hundreds of other people who could do that for him, he chose to do it himself.

Percy yawned, and rubbed at his sore and tired eyes. The remaining work could be done tomorrow, as there was no hassle. As he wearily dragged himself to the arena for training, having received papers from Thalia earlier, exhausted sea-green orbs squeezed shut for the moment.

He didn't want to be involved in another war, especially concerning his commander, but for the sake of possibly the universe, he was going to live through it. Especially since it was against Order. Yes, the Order that had saved him and revived him when he was alone and dying. Order was there, but alas, ambitions can take over one's mind and cancel out one's heart.

But, he couldn't say even half of the stress was from the war. At least three quarters of it was from a single plot. Order had plotted that the first planet to go down was Earth. While Percy hated their guts, the planet did hold his concern and his rightfully so. Even though he didn't care the least about them, there was hundreds upon billions who where innocent and did not have the right to die. Just because of a few gods and godesses and some demigods, Percy couldn't just leave the rest to suffer though they didn't have anything to do with it. And, plus, the demigods and the Twelve Olympians that he did not want to meet still held a place in his heart. No matter whether the place was full with heartbreaking memories or sunshine and strawberry fields, they still where just...there. And nothing could change that.

Annabeth...Jason...Frank...Hazel...Piper...Leo...Though they all turned their backs to him, they still hit him like tidal waves. No matter how bad they seemed, they seemed to always be there. Always there to help. To smile with. To play with. To duel with. To eat with. Their deeds had reserved a permanent sunshine-filled lot in his heart. Yes, it burned sometimes, nearly destroying in the process that summer, but as it was, it always remained. Just like their friendship.

Percy blinked in realization.

Without him noticing, his feet had brought him not to the arena, but rather...to Chaos's office. He frowned. Why would he be here? Chaos wasn't even here. He examined the door frame, chiseled with a clear hue of blue, and was polished in oil. Why did something seem off...?

"H-eeello there!" A stumpy elf, as it seemed, popped out of the door. Percy jumped a mile.

"W-Who are you? I'm pretty sure Chaos doesn't have elves..." Percy asked, although even if it did give him an answer, he was sure it wasn't gong to be reassuring. The elf had stubby, knotty knees, that seemed to just be filthy, wrinkly skin above the bone. It had flappy ears the hung limply.

"Ah, Chaos? Well, I'm afraid you are NOT in front of Chaos's door," The elf replied mischievously. "As far as I am in knowledge, you are at ORDER'S -may he long live- door, not Chaos's. You are just about to enter his office for an appointment, it seems." Percy frowned.

"What...?"

"Groven, send the boy in!" A deep voice that was definitely Order's bellowed.

"Yes, M'Lord," The elf replied obediently. "I will send the boy in as you requested." He opened the door with a sneer. "Welcome to your doomsday," He whispered. Percy, having not heard that last line, walked in. As he passed several mirrors, he noticed that he was not in his pajamas, but rather the outfit that he wore to council meetings. His hair was slicked back and a hood was over his face. He had on his black cloak and cape., with his greased arna armor, with the metal named after the village it was first found in. (AN: That is NOT true.)

He walked past shelves after shelves of books, where the only source of light was a small, faint orb. It was somewhere Annabeth and her siblings would dwell. The room was dimly lit and the corridors seemed to be endless. His feet rapped on the stone floor. Percy frowned again. When he was at the door frame, he was sure the next door was right in front of him. So why...?

Percy entered another door that he had seen earlier. Looking back, there was only one shelf of books. That was weird...

Unfortunately, that one glance back had him up against the wall, an Order grinning manically at him. "You think you petty teenagers can slip past ME? The mighty Order? NO. Tonight, you shall pay for all the deeds you three have committed. But first...let's have fun." He grinned with a malicious glint at him.

"Groven!" He barked.

"Yes, Master?" The elf appeared at the door frame, materializing from an apparent nowhere. He looked warily at the now shackled teenager. "What may I do for you? Bring the knives? Or perhaps sharpen Your Majesty's weapons?"

"Bring me all my weapons and that," Order ordered. (AN: NO PUN INTENDED.)

"Yes, M'Lord," He backed away into the shadows.

Percy tried to break free, but with his mouth occupied with a rag, nothing could be done. He winced as the shackles seemed to have purposely stabbed him with a stray wire dangling from it in the ankle. By concentrating, he could feel the trickling of blood along his foot.

Great, they busted my ankle. Now what? It's just gonna sink deeper if I try...

"Here they are right along," The elf announced. Opening one eye, Percy saw a bundle of even more than razor-sharp blades. He desperately tried to inch away from Order. The wire sank deeper into his ankle, grazing the bone.

That wire just isn't gonna come out, is it?

Now his ankle was numbing up, and he was hobbling to keep balance on one ankle. The other one was no use. He grit his teeth as Order selected a relatively dull one if you compared it to the other ones. He strolled up to Percy, as if he had all the time in the world. Percy eyed it somewhat warily, although he knew one stab wasn't going to hurt him; as long as it wasn't going to be special types of metals he'll just heal automatically.

Order lunged.

On instinct, Percy attempted dodging, only to cry out in pain as the wire all but penetrated his entire foot. He toppled over, and Order took that for granted by stabbing the dagger into his thigh. Percy gasped in pain as Order, smirking, twisted the bladed in. This wasn't some ordinary metal. It was the type he couldn't heal...

He grinded his teeth, forcing the pain away.

If he could just escape...

"Well, boy, how was that? My metals are very useful, eh?" Order gloated. Percy looked him straight into the eye.

"You are not going to hurt my friends, do you promise?" Percy asked.

"If you'll stay," He offered.

"I'll stay, just leave them alone," Percy replied. Order nodded.

"Very well." Without further ado, he sheathed a second one and stabbed it into his other ankle. Percy clenched his teeth as he felt bouts of pain wash over him in tidal waves. Never in a million years had he thought a simple dagger could cause so much pain. His ankles seemed to be disconnected.

"What..." Percy croaked. He swallowed. "What is that? A...promise?"

"Yes, boy. I will keep you here. Your ankles are gone, how do you run? You can't!" Order guffawed hysterically.

Why is it always like this? Why are the people I trust always turning out like this?

So, I know, relatively short chapter. This is the final chapter for the year. I meant to make it longer, but I really gotta go to skiing now. Bye.