Then she had her arms around him and his were around her which were just as solid and warm as anyone living. "How are you- but how did you- you're alive!" Annabeth finally gasped out with her face pressed against his shoulder.

Annabeth had left Percy on the ground and he stared in awe as well as some disbelief at Luke, but an even stronger emotion was beginning to shine through all the others… "I don't understand," Percy murmured under his breath, unable to hold back everything in his mind that was running through it. Luke had died. Percy gave him the very knife that Luke had used to sacrifice himself to save the world from Kronos. Annabeth had held him during his last breaths… how could he be here?

"I… Annabeth-" Luke tried to say something, but Annabeth interrupted him, running her mouth in her shock.

"I just can't believe you're here! I thought I'd never see you again, but here you are and now you can come back with us, Luke! Everything's going to be okay now!"

Percy saw it in Luke's features, but Annabeth was too blinded by excitement to see it. There was a catch to all of this. They had to begin to realize that there were no happy endings for them down in this pit. "Annabeth," he started, but before he could go on Luke cast a glance his way, a pleading glance, that quickly shut Percy up.

"Right, wise girl. Everything's going to be fine." Luke's fingers slowly stroked Annabeth's blonde hair as a sort of deep sadness came to those crystal blue eyes; something Percy hasn't ever seen.

Percy rose then and crossed his arms, watching Luke wearily like at any minute he was going to begin floating and disappear as the ghost he's supposed to be. "So… that was you? Contacting Annabeth?"

"Right." Luke's eyes rose from Annabeth and landed on Percy. "I was able to channel my power through the river Acheron. When you fell through into Tartarus… it was like a beacon, the power of two mortals appearing in the land of the dead. So I followed it like a path and it led me here, but I couldn't go inside. It's like there's a barrier around the opening of the cavern…" He said softly, slowly releasing Annabeth and wandering toward the mouth of the cave, his hand beginning to outstretch until it was obstructed by an invisible wall as he had said. "Tartarus is… alive. It watches us all, makes sure we have no means of escape." Luke turned back to them and pointed, "Which is why I channeled you through the river."

Percy looked to in the direction of Luke's finger and found what he hadn't been able to see before. A black snake slithered from behind the cavern and down the slope, stretching to the horizon, as far as the eye could see: the river Acheron. "Great," Percy muttered as he reached up to rub his aching temple. He could feel the doom and gloom of the dark waters whispering from where he was standing; he didn't exactly look forward to having to listen to that all the way to the Doors of Death.

"Percy…?" Annabeth questioned, returning to him from Luke's side and resting a hand lightly on his shoulder. "You okay-?" He looked a little sickly; his skin was taking on a sort of grayish undertone and when she touched him she realized his skin was ice cold despite the heat in the new environment.

"I'm fine," Stubborn, Percy reassured her he was okay. After all, if he wasn't, what were they going to do about it? They had to keep moving, but he did begin to realize a sort of burning pain that began to throb in his lower back. "Let's just keep moving, alright?" His tone was final and he hoped that Annabeth didn't ask any more questions or try to oppose him. He just didn't have the strength.

Annabeth watched him suspiciously as something was definitely wrong with him, but at this particular moment they had other things to worry about. "Fine." Sighing, she turned back to Luke. "I don't suppose you know how to get to the Doors of Death, Luke?" she asked.

"I do." Luke said, but the emotion on his features became a little more than worrisome.

"I suppose there's a catch in there somewhere," Annabeth guessed.

"As always. It's a very long walk from here to there. In fact, it's probably similarly like opposite corners on a checker board," Luke regrettably admitted. He wished he could have brought better news.

Annabeth felt her heart sink and she looked to Percy who looked equally hopeless. It seemed like forever for them just to get out of the cavern… how long would it take them to make this journey? An even better question may be just what will they encounter on the way? Annabeth's fingers reached for Percy's slowly, lacing them and squeezing comfortingly. "Well, then we'd probably better get started, shouldn't we?" She said, her eyes still on Percy, waiting for any sort of response from him. His eyes eventually found hers and even though there was only dim lighting within them, he still nodded his head and even squeezed her fingers back which sent her heart soaring. There was fight in him yet.

"I suppose we should. So, which way, Luke?" Percy asked.

ΩΩΩΩΩ

Towards the river. Of course it had to be toward the river. And worse yet? They had to cross it.

"You're sure there's no way around it?" There was a hint of almost desperation in his voice for an alternative. He had some bad feelings in his gut back in the cavern, but what he was feeling now? Dread. Every instinct he had was telling him to cut and run the opposite way.

"Does it look like it?" Luke snapped as they walked ahead. "Just calm down, Percy. I'll get you across. Last time I checked you were the son of Poseidon. This should be right up your alley."

A muscled in Percy's jaw ticked as Luke said this, almost mocking him and he had to bite the inside of his cheek to control the flicker of anger that threatened to flare into a full out forest fire. "It's different here. I don't like this," Percy insisted, but his feet kept him moving with the both of them.

Annabeth could tell how tense Percy was about this, and in an attempt to calm him down she squeezed his hand again, leaning over and pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek. "I'll keep you safe, seaweed brain. Nothing to worry about." She grinned lightly, her eyes gentle as a doe. She had to get him to relax.

"Right. Now come on." Luke urged, bringing them up to the banks of the River Acheron, their shoes crunching on not sand, but what appeared to be broken shards of glass. "There should be a raft around here somewhere…"

"A raft conveniently for us? Oh, how nice." Percy muttered under his breath, finding his fingers tightening slowly around Annabeth's for courage. His skin once again began to pale and his hands became clammy with his nerves. Slowing his pace as they came closer to the water's edge, he felt a sick churning in his stomach and abruptly stopped as he stared into the black swirling waters. His eyes slowly began to focus on images that appeared like ghosts in the fog; his fingers slowly loosened on Annabeth's, on reality, not conscious that he was kneeling down closer and closer to the water-

"Percy!" Annabeth yelled beside him, feeling the solid grip of her fingers on his arm as she tugged him back to the physical world.

His eyes blinked sluggishly as if he was just waking up from a deep sleep, turning his head to focus back on her, "Huh?" He asked casually, feeling a darkness in his chest that made him feel empty, like he was nothing but a shell.

"Percy… are you okay?" Annabeth's voice was urgent and coated with worry, keeping a tight grip on his fingers. She wasn't going to let go of him again. "Percy you… you look like you've seen a ghost. What happened..?" She asked, reaching up to his cheek, slowly guiding his eyes back to her, but they were as empty as his expression. "Luke!" She called, biting her lip hard as she pulled Percy close to her side. "Luke I don't like this. Percy's right, something's wrong here!" She spoke harshly, trying to make him realize they had to get away from here. Now.

But it appeared Luke wasn't listening. "Annabeth, if we don't cross it now we'll have to sometime along the way. It's inevitable. Don't you trust me?" He asked, looking back at her as he began to drag a boat from black weeds that had hidden it by the bank.

Annabeth furrowed her brows slowly as she looked from Luke, to Percy, then back to Luke, nodding after a moment. "Of course… but Percy…"

"He'll be okay, Annabeth." Luke promised, tearing weeds from the bow of the boat as he tugged it along to the water's edge, checking to make sure everything was in check, including making sure there were no holes in the bottom that would sink them. "Let's just get him in the boat."

With the combined effort of Luke and Annabeth, they managed to drag him into the boat and when Annabeth sat on the little wooden bench beside him, she realized he was shivering uncontrollably. She swallowed the lump that was forming in her throat and slowly wound her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder. "We'll be out of this soon, Percy. I promise." She felt the boat rock as Luke hopped in as well.

"Grab an oar, Annabeth. The sooner we cross this the sooner Percy can get back to his senses." He glanced to Percy who slouched, his skin looking almost grey in the dim lighting, having been silent since he dazed off back at the shore. His eyes never left the black swirling waters.

Annabeth did as he said, grabbing an oar, grunting as she dug her oar into the shore, pushing the boat off, a sense of foreboding creeping up her spine as they surrounded themselves in the black oily water. "Percy, just stay away from the edge." She warned, but he made no response as to have even heard her because he had other dark thoughts clouding everything around him.

This feeling… of guilt, of helplessness, of the failure to come… I can't do it… I can't do it..

His eyes darted to the water as he thought he saw a flash of movement, and sure enough, there were the images again… or rather the people. Ghostly figures staring up at him, bright against the inky liquid in which they floated and slowly their features became defined, recognizable; he knew these people…

A girl floated beneath, her eyes as dark as the water, pinning him down with her gaze. "You couldn't save me, Percy… even though you promised to look after me…" Her mouth moved beneath the water, fluid, her words as clear and sharp as a blade.

"Bianca…" He whispered, his eyes growing wider as his skin became paler. "I… I never meant for… for you to get hurt…" He murmured, his heart growing colder and heavier, sinking like lead to the bottom of his stomach.

"But it happened. You were responsible. You let me die." She accused as she slowly began to sink to the depths to be replaced by someone else. "And me." Another girl, long white hair flowing behind her, colorless, but Percy could still recognize her by her features.

"Zoë…"

"Save it, Percy. You were always making excuses. Even when I was alive." She then turned from him as well, disappearing.

"Stop… wait please stop!" Percy called, his eyes wide as he leaned dangerously over the side, catching Annabeth's attention.

"Percy!" She grabbed him and sternly sat him back down. "Percy what's wrong?" She asked, but he wouldn't even look at her, his eyes trained on the water.

"They're here… they're all here…" he murmured under his breath, his eyes wide, witnessing yet more ghosts as they passed by, some that didn't even say anything before disappearing, but he still knew every single one. Charles Beckendorf, Silena Beauregard, Lydia Drakon… his friends, yet he had led them astray and had gotten them killed. Then, her voice. Annabeth…

You let us down, Percy. And you'll only let more of us down. You're no hero…

Percy closed his eyes tightly, shaking his head slowly as his fingers gripped tightly onto the boat's side, the tips of his fingers turning white with the pressure. "You're right…" He murmured, acquiring strange looks from the actual Annabeth sitting beside him.

"Percy-?"

End it now. Before anyone else gets hurt.

"Percy, talk to me!" She screamed as he pulled out riptide and pulled off its cap, revealing the soft glow of the blade, showing off the etched sharp angles of his features, the deep shadows beneath his cloudy eyes.

"Must end it now…" He murmured almost as if in a trance, angling the point of his sword toward his throat.

"PERCY NO!" Annabeth screamed, lunging at him, the boat groaning as it teetered dangerously to one side, nearly casting Luke overboard.

"What in the name of the gods-?!" Luke spun to the other side quickly to balance the boat, looking back to witness Annabeth pin Percy's wrist down to the side of the boat, watching as he struggled against her, surprisingly strong.

"Percy snap out of it!" She yelled at him, her eyes desperate as she felt his warm blood ooze against her fingers holding the wrist down to the edge of the boat. "Let it go!" She jerked his hand into the edge of the boat, and even in his trance the pain was enough for him to loosen his hold, Riptide dropping from his fingers and plopping into the inky water below as he cried out in pain.

But that wasn't the end of it. Percy seemed determined yet to throw himself overboard, wrestling with Annabeth to free himself… then thwack! His body went slack and he sunk to his knees, falling forward, motionless.

Annabeth looked up to see Luke there, holding his oar which he had used to hit Percy, looking down at him with a bewildered look in his eyes. The son of the sea god had always been a calm and collected kind of guy despite being a goofball, but he'd never seen Percy act like this…

"We need to get across this fast. Preferably before he wakes up." Luke suggested as he moved around Percy to go back to his spot, leaving Annabeth on the planks of the boat where she sat, gasping for her breath. She didn't know what had gotten into him… neither of them had experienced this yet, where one could not make the other come to their senses… and it almost cost Percy his life. It just went to show how vulnerable they actually were down here.

"Right…" She whispered, biting her lip as she reached to carefully sit Percy in a less awkward position, but she stopped dead at what she saw. The way he fell, his shirt had ridden slightly up his back, enough to reveal black tendrils reaching out from the angry black dagger wound at the base of his back.

"My Gods…." She breathed, panic slowly beginning to envelope her. "Luke… Luke there's something wrong with him.. Luke!" She screamed, reaching for Percy with shaking fingers as Luke hurried to her side, seeing the gruesome wound, his stomach flipping upside down in the process.

"Annabeth… Annabeth calm down!" he urged, his arms going around her as he pulled her to his chest firmly even as she flailed against him to get to Percy. "Annabeth listen to me. He's hurt, but we can't treat him here, do you understand me?"

Annabeth finally relaxed against him with a heart-broken sob, but before she could let her emotions get the best of her she took a deep breath and nodded. "Alright… alright… let's just get to shore." She said, pushing herself away from him, taking her spot on the bench and picking up her oar, paddling as fast as she could with Luke; the image of Percy's injured form burned onto her retinas.

Hello my readers :) I kind of left you hanging there for a bit didn't I? I'm sorry, I've just been very busy, but I hope this addition was satisfying enough and worth the wait. I've also seen that I've gotten a couple more followers and I was so excited! So hello, thanks for following, I appreciate it. Please keep reviewing and I'll update as soon as I can. This story can't last too much longer, but we'll see. Then I'll have to start something new in the world of Percy Jackson, but don't worry, I'm thinking there'll be at least 20 chapters to this if not a couple more. Anyways, please enjoy and stayed tuned I'll update again soon. And thanks for sticking with the story so long I'm glad you're enjoying it!