Chapter Twenty–Eight:

Heh, heh, hey guys! Um, remember me? Of course you do, you problem hate me right now. *gulps* I think this chapter will make up for it! So, please; DON'T KILL ME!

Diclaimer: Really glad I don't own yet? Heh.. Heh.. Yeah... *clears throat*


Third POV:

It has been two weeks since the quest and Thalia's death. A somber atmosphere has hung over the camp ever since. After the battle, Annabeth had led the others to her dad's house. Once there, they sent an Iris message to Chiron; filling him in on what had happened. After eating a meal— most of them picking half-heartedly at it— they set off for Camp Half–Blood on the pegasi. One of the hardest things they ever had to do was watch Marco Alvarez, with tears in his eyes, burn Thalia's shroud. Her shroud was, of course, golden and shimmering. A bow and quiver had been emblazoned on the front.

All the quest members were dealing with their grief in different ways. Leo had stayed holed up in bunker 9; throwing himself into work. He hardly ever took a break from the Argo II. If he did, then he had time to think. If he had time to think, he'd think about her. So, he spent as little time thinking as possible. The only thing Leo couldn't seem to keep out of his mind, was the pouch. 'What did Thalia give me?' He wondered. He felt like the little golden pouch was burning a hole in his tool belt. However, he could never bring himself to open it.

Annabeth had a similar coping mechanism to Leo. She buried herself in the search for Percy. On top of that, she also searched for any news of Nico. He still hadn't returned from his trip to the Underworld. 'Thalia told me I would find Percy, so I will.' Annabeth thought. When they had gotten back to Camp, Annabeth had taken it upon herself to unpack Thalia's backpack. She felt bad going through her things, but she had to get the leftover ambrosia and nectar out so she could return it to the Apollo cabin. Unzipping one of the inner pockets, Annabeth stumbled across a photo. It was definitely a picture of Thalia; the baby had her same exact features. However, her hair was blonde. Despite the terrible situation, Annabeth managed to smile.

Piper did the opposite of Leo; she spent most of her time thinking. She thought about what happened, what might have happened, what could have happened; but most importantly, she remembered. Piper reminisced on all the fun times they shared with Thalia; all of the laughs and little quirks that endeared Thalia to her. She didn't want to forget, so she chose to remember. Often times she would think about Thalia when she watched the Apollo kids either practice or teach archery. Despite Piper trying her hardest to think of Thalia in an upbeat way, her stomach still clenched every time she saw Marco Alvarez. He no longer had a spark in his eye, and his shoulders were always slumped. He looked like he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. Even though Piper knew there was nothing she could have done; she almost felt like it was her fault, like she should have brought Thalia home to her brother. 'Don't think like that!' Piper chastised herself. Still, the thought was hard to get rid of.

Jason wasn't ready to think and remember. He had just started to think of Thalia as the little sister he never had, before she was ripped away. It didn't seem right; Thalia was too young to die. Although, Jason knew that wasn't true for a demigod. Jason spent most of his time trying to act and do things as normally as possible. He wanted things to feel like they did before the quest. However, try as he might, he couldn't do it; he still noticed Thalia's absence. 'This is the second time I've lost a Thalia in my life..' He thought bitterly. Jason spent the other portion of his time checking up on Piper, making sure she was okay. After losing so many people in his life, Jason didn't want to lose anyone else.

Back to the present, Jason leaned against the Big House porch railing; Annabeth next to him. They didn't speak, just relished in the comfortable silence; each lost in their own thoughts. Suddenly, the sunlight dimmed, the temperature dropped slightly, and the shadows deepened. Then, out of the shadows, Nico materialized; stumbling to catch his footing.

"Wha- are you okay?" Annabeth asked, running up to him.

Nico trembled, his eyes wild. "She's gone.." He mumbled.

"Who's gone?" Jason asked, wondering what was wrong with Nico. Jason had never seen him like this.

"She-She's gone! I looked everywhere, but she was gone! She wasn't there!" Nico was close to hysterics.

"Calm down, Nico." Annabeth said, trying to soothe him. "Who are you talking about?"

"Thalia!" Nico yelled. "She's gone!"

"You mean... She chose rebirth?" Annabeth asked hesitantly.

Nico shook his head furiously. "NO! She never went to be judged! After crossing the Styx, she just vanished! No one knows where she is. She's gone."

Annabeth and Jason stared at Nico in shock; their minds reeling. Jason felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and chills run down his spine.

"If.. If she's not in the Underworld... Where is she?" Jason asked.

"I don't know." Nico moaned. He felt useless. He was the god of the dead's son, and he couldn't find one spirit? Not even the spirit of his friend? What good was he?

"Don't worry." Annabeth said, trying to keep her voice steady. Both boys could tell the gears in her mind were spinning; working overtime. "If Thalia's out there, we'll find her. But-" she looked straight at Nico, "we'll find her together."

Nico nodded reluctantly. He knew he wouldn't be able to find Thalia on his own.

"Nico, you keep searching the Underworld. Ask around, bribe Charon, do anything and everything you can to find out what happened to her. It might give us a hint as to where she went. Jason, Piper, Leo, and I will search for Thalia above ground." Annabeth's dark grey eyes flashed.

"We will find her."


COMING SOON:

Rising Embers

(Sequel to Hidden Hero)


See?! Thalia isn't in the Underworld! Whoo hoo! Seriously, guys; you have NO IDEA how long I've waited to write this plot twist! I had this planned when this story was still in development, waaaaay before I started posting (I know, how evil of me)! I just didn't know what was going to go in between chapter one and this one, haha. Even if Thalia died, I wasn't going to let her stay that way! Then the story would be over. So, let me know what you thought! *cringes* Hopefully you guys don't want to kill me anymore, or at least won't? Heh.. Heh..

Keep your eye out for Rising Embers!

Thalia Bolt