DISCLAIMER: I don't own PJO, but I'd love to. I only own my characters.


Truth and Death

Annabeth's POV:

Khione and her half brothers, the Boreads dragged us into an empty warehouse. One of them asked for the girl with the rainbow eyes, Piper. I choked back a sob. Khione didn't stop sending Leo glares, while receiving equally as much from Calypso. Percy just stared as we were dropped right in the middle of the warehouse. "The boss awaits you…" her smile was wide enough to fit a large size pizza in it, whole. I was disgusted by it. Khione waved her hand and a Cyclops behind her walked out of the warehouse through the back entrance.

I pictured Thalia, Nico and Reyna, dead. The thought overwhelmed me. I leaned on Percy and sobbed into it, as I remembered all the others who died for me, Piper, Phoebe and the Hunters, and all the others who might have died in that battle. Percy's shirt is wet from all the tears. Percy looked at me and held my face in his arms. I could see that he too was crying from all that has happened in the past two days.

The ground shook. Something was making its way towards us, something big. And I know just what it is. The very thought of it sent shivers down my spine. I saw Calypso and Leo huddled up together. They seemed terrified. I suppose they found out what is making its way to us. Tartarus…

I flinched at the thought of the name. It brought back so many bad memories, no not bad, horrifying. All it reminded me is of that one nightmare, of Percy leaving me. I couldn't bear it. I thought I had gotten rid of that nightmare. I haven't had a night's sleep without a nightmare. Not in the last 5 years.

And suddenly, all my nightmares have just come true. We all staggered to our feet and stood in front of a 20 foot tall Tartarus. Percy stared at Tartarus and then at the army behind him. We could see all the monsters we had fought, Kelli, the Minotaur, a few furies, the Arai, giants like Polyphemus, and even titans like Hyperion. My heart sank below Tartarus, probably into Chaos. I doubt we could fight Tartarus alone, even with the four of us, but the entire army AND Tartarus, all at once. If we win this somehow, the gods should have something worth the trouble. At least some peace… For the rest of our lives.

"We should fight…" I started.

"NO!" Percy shouted. That puzzled me. He was the sort to give up his life for the cause. He would never care about his life…

"Percy, I don't care what you say this time. I will die fighting if I have to." I grab my dagger tightly, waiting to attack.

"NO!" this time, all the three of them shout at me.

"You are too important." "You cannot die." "Don't do it"

Why are they all opposing me? Why do they all want me to live? What have I done that is so important? And definitely, Hera did not have a conversation with Leo and Calypso. Why are they telling me that I'm important, when Hera did not say anything to them?

I hadn't noticed the Tartarus army creep up behind the three of them, and capture them in their nets. I tried to save Percy but two other guards came up and stopped me from doing that. They took my sword and dagger. They tied up the three of them wit ropes and hung them from cranes. I was alone on the ground, weaponless.

"Hello, we meet again, Chase. I've been waiting to meet you again for many years now. The last time we met, you managed to escape me. I suppose this time, you won't be so lucky." Tartarus bellowed. I knew this would be my end. This is how I would die, in the hands of the God of the Pit, with my friends dead in front of me.

"Or maybe, let's try something else, shall we…" I pondered his words, trying to find out what he meant. I guess I realized it a little too late. Tartarus had shot a jagged rock at Leo, piercing him to death. Calypso screamed. "LEO…"

Leo fell to the ground, and Khione walked over to his side, and kicked his body, flashing him an evil grin. I could see the happiness in her eyes. She looked ready to kill him all over again. I just wanted to kick her face. I could see that Calypso wanted to do the same.

"Ah… poor guy, he just wanted someone to love. Too bad he had to kill my beloved Gaia's dreams to do that. That was for her…" Tartarus didn't have a face, but I could feel his evil smile. At least someone's happy. Calypso's wails got louder. I suppose that she had finally lost it. Leo had meant everything to her, and to see him like that, she might have just lost her mind.

"Silence…" Tartarus shouted, but Calypso paid no heed. I realized where this was going.

"NO…" I screamed. Calypso hang limp from her spot. Blood trickled down her body. Her wailing stopped.

I couldn't bear to watch her. I turned away from her, in an attempt to control my trembling hands or my leaking eyes or my crazy brain. But all hope of doing that was lost, after I saw who was next in line. Percy…

"I see that you realize what I want to do. But first, let me show you something." He waved his hand.

A bright screen appeared, and the image of the battle appeared in front of me. I saw that Jason was dead, holding an image, an image of Piper against his chest. Hazel and Frank died together, their arms locked together. Phoebe lay dead on a wall. Luke was stabbing the Cyclops who killed Carly, but he too was stabbed in the back, right in front of us. Hera lay on the ground, in a pool of golden blood, dead. I choked on a sob.

The scene changed, it was a view of Olympus, the new one. We could still see the half constructed buildings. Some of them which I left unfinished, while others, someone seems to have constructed it, but it could not match mine. Suddenly, the nearest statue, one depicting my mother holding a book, exploded into a Cyclops. My mother was fighting it with all her might, but I could see that she was leaking golden Ichor all over Olympus. The scene changed rapidly, showing all the gods, fighting a huge pile of monsters, all of them either fighting like mom, or dead like Hera. Then the ultimate weapon came in, the giants. They could not be killed, as there wasn't a demigod in Olympus. The gods will die now, and that is inevitable.

The screen dispersed, leaving me trembling at the guilt that felt upon my shoulders. The guilt was unlike anything I had felt before. I couldn't think straight, Hades, I couldn't even stand. I dropped to my knees, and tears rolled down my cheeks. We are done for, the gods are dying, Tartarus is taking over, and all I can do is watch. I certainly didn't want this life. I wanted to die now. But I remembered my promise to Percy, but I can't follow it now, Tartarus will surely kill me now.

"You might be wondering what I will do right now" I could feel his grin get wider. "I will destroy every demigod in the world, except one."

My stomach lurched. I whipped my head around so quickly, I was surprised that I didn't fracture my neck. I realized who that one would be. Me…

Tartarus would have nodded, if he could do that. As always, I was right.

"I want you to see the end of the world with me, and then-…" I tuned him out of his end of the world lecture. 'Why does every one want me to live? Why am I so important? What am I supposed to do that will change the world?' was all I could think of.

I tuned him back in when my ears heard the word Percy.

"I will start by killing Percy, your favorite." All that registered was 'Killing' And 'Percy'. My heart sped up. I hands started to shiver again. My Percy was going to get killed by the God of the Pit right here, in front of me. Suddenly, an empousa jumped in front of the crowd and addressed Tartarus.

"I want to have revenge on that boy, and his girlfriend." She shouted. A name crossed my mind, and it sent shivers down to my toes. Kelli…

"I want to kiss him, and then I will kill him myself." Kelli grinned evilly. My heart shattered. This was worse than watching him die. This was definitely worse. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. I was lost in the terror of seeing them. I decided to look away and pretend it didn't happen.

"And I want her to see it" Kelli laughed happily. 'That Bitch…' I couldn't take it any longer. Tartarus waved his hand in agreement. The guards picked me up and forced me to look at Percy. I didn't want to. I tried to close my eyes, but some magic was keeping them open. I was forced to look at him as Kelli kissed him on the lips. I dreaded it, I wanted to kill myself. I could probably bear to watch the world end but not this. Not after all we have been through.

I finally looked at him in the eye, one last time. His green swirling eyes, like the ocean. How I loved his eyes. How I craved their attention. I wanted to be able to stare into those eyes for the rest of my life. But suddenly, I noticed something I them. A small touch of blackness in them, that wasn't supposed to be there. I knew his eyes better than my own body. I knew the exact pattern. I found a difference. I saw that there was a different pattern in his eyes. I knew this was not my seaweed brain. My heart felt better, and I could think properly.

Kelli drove a knife through his heart, but I didn't care. He was not my seaweed brain. Now that I realize it, everyone was acting different. Jason hadn't mourned over Piper's death. Leo had not cracked a single joke. Hera was friends with me. Everyone told me that I was very important. Most of all, Percy did not act loyal to anyone, which is not something that he would do. Kelli threw the dagger away. It skidded to a halt right in front of me.

I remembered something, a nightmare that I had recently, Damasen's hut. I wondered why that felt so real, so alive and so much more believable than this. I remembered Gaia's words Come to me... COME TO ME…

That's when I knew. I knew the truth and why they are all trying to keep me alive. Why I am so important.

I picked up the dagger that was next to me, the one that killed Percy, Kelli's dagger. I stood up on my spot.

"Tartarus, I know what you want. And I will let you have it. You can have your revenge." I lifted the dagger above my heart. I looked at Percy. He was still clinging on to life, but just barely.

"Annabeth… You… promised…" He mouthed.

"Yes. Yes I did. Seaweed brain…" I drove the dagger through my heart…


This is my largest and possibly my best chapter yet. There is only the epilogue left. What will happen to Annabeth? Will she be right again, like she always is? Or will she make a mistake? Read, Rejoice and REVIEW.