-Chapter 3-

Thalia Grace

"So, your plan is to throw a rock at the antelope and hope it gets scared enough to run toward us?" I asked the huntress in training.

Marie, our newest recruit tugged on her ponytail in nervousness and started to rapid-fire explain herself, "Well. I'm not fast enough to catch it yet, I can't aim right with a bow yet, I don't think I could stab the poor thing, and what if-"

"Whoa, whoa, slow down," I interrupted. "Its not a bad plan. The buck might not go in the direction you think. If you throw that rock above it, it'll most likely dart left or right."

"Oh, because it'll think it's being shot at! Logically it wouldn't try to run directly away from the shooter! I didn't know antelopes were that clever!" Marie's voice had carried all the way to the said animal and it immediately scampered off out of sight. Marie continued oblivious to the absence of the animal. "I'll just have to throw more to the left at a slightly more diagonal angle-"

I cleared my throat to stop her. She gave me a puzzling look and I nodded toward where the animal was.

"Oh," She said dejected.

"Its okay, you'll get the hang of this. Its trial and error."

Marie gave me a warm smile and said, "Thanks for putting up with me."

"Hey now, you are completely worth it," I said grabbing each shoulder with my hands and kneeling down to her level. "Now go on and scram, lunch is in about fifteen minutes." She nodded and headed toward camp. I began to follow her when a shimmering image of my patron god appeared before me in a misty rainbow. Lady Artemis was calling me privately. Normally if the goddess wanted to, she could send a telepathic message to every huntress. A message via Iris the Rainbow goddess was for important matters pertaining only to the lieutenant of the Hunters of Artemis. "My Lady," I greeted her.

"Thalia, your help is requested," she said formally.

I nodded, "Okay, what's the situation."

"Your cousin, Perseus, he's attacking the Empire State building."

"What?!" I said incredulously.

Lady Artemis let out a heavy breath, "I want you to know that I did not vote in favor of the Councils decision. But information was withheld from you and the other demigods who fought that terrorist alien two years back. Percy was just told today what had truly occurred and it did not bode well with him."

Two Hours Later

I gripped tightly to the reins of the Pegasus that was taking me to Manhattan. The feeling of being hundreds of feet in the air made me a little more than nauseous. When we landed I nearly threw myself onto the ground. The pegasus gave me what I believe to be an irritated look and flew off. "Whatever," I grumbled and rushed toward the growing mob of New Yorkers. I pushed past a group of middle schoolers and a over weight lady clutching several shopping bags.

Covering several blocks, the Empire State Building was quarantined by police tape and the NYPD. I ran up to the blockade where a police officer stopped me. "Hold it," he said. He was a gruff dude, easily over six feet tall with a brown handlebar mustache. "No one gets past this point, there's a situation going on, you need to step back."

I brought up my hand and snapped my fingers. "I'm with the FBI, you need to let me through," I said.

The man blinked a few times and held up the police tape, "Of course ma'am, go right ahead.

Rushing toward the building I caught my breath at what I saw. Artemis was right. It was like he was possessed. Before me stood a glowing Percy. There appeared to be this bright red energy swirling around him emanating from his right hand. The building's entrance was in shambles but still surprisingly structurally sound. No doubt magic was being used to stop Percy from entering the building.

"Percy!" I called out pleading. I ran and stopped about ten feet from him. Just standing this close I could feel this intense heat and pressure coming off of him. Oddly though, I didn't sense magic. I grabbed my mace canister and pressed down on the top. It then grew several feet into a celestial bronze spear. A faint trickle of lightning surrounded the tip. "Percy, you need to calm down!" I yelled out.

In response, Percy reared back his glowing red fist and with a rage filled cry punched the air in front of him. Amazingly a large red energy blast emerged from his hand rocketing toward the building causing a burst of rubble at impact. I could nearly see the entire structure shake. If this building were to fall…. I glanced back at the crowd of people in worry. Alright Kelp Head, if you won't listen to words then I guess I have no choice.

With a twirl of my spear I jabbed my weapon toward Percy sending out a burst of lightning in his direction. Incredibly, as soon as the lightning reached him, a second before impact, he used his glowing hand to shield himself from my attack. The lightning exploded around him seemingly not causing any harm. For the first time Percy acknowledged my presence. I had never seen Percy so pissed off. It was beyond rage, there was nothing but pure anger in his glowing red eyes.

I expected him to say some witty retort or tell me to screw off, but he just growled and swung his fist sending out a crescent shaped wave of red energy right toward me. Instinctively I activated my shield Aegis to block the attack. The energy was physically overpowering. Causing me to duck and slide back a few feet. I glared at the Son of Poseidon and brought up my shield in front of my face in hopes that the enchantment would take effect. It didn't. Percy seemed unaffected and with another roar of anger he shot several separate beams of red energy toward me. The way they were maneuvering… the energy beams were going to surround me!

"Dammit!" I said, blocking a couple beams before launching myself into the air using the air around me as a magic springboard. The red energy collided into the ground under me, causing an explosion and a dust cloud to form. Hovering slightly in the air I looked back toward Percy only to find him flying along side with me! "How the hell-" He then sucker punched me right in the jaw with his left hand knocking me out of the air and onto the hard asphalt ground. I landed hard, with a loud cracking noise. The ground under me had this spider-web shaped crack. I stood up rubbing my sore back and looked at the flying demigod.

Percy was breathing hard in frustration, for a second, he looked worried, then his face twisted in anger. "They… killed…" He grumbled out with difficulty. His right hand started glowing brighter. "Arrghh!" He screamed angrily and charged straight toward me!

I was prepared this time. With both hands on my spear I rose it up and summoned every ounce of power in me to summon a lightning bolt powerful enough to level a city block. "Ahhh!" I screamed as thunder boomed in the sky and a bolt of lightning struck my spear and then redirected itself toward Percy mid-flight. A huge explosion erupted, the thundering boom of the lightning strike between us launched me back several yards. I laid on the ground groggy from the force of the explosion and overuse of my power. I stood up shakily, using my spear as a walking stick. I glanced at where Percy was. Gods dammit! How is he still standing! I thought in anger. Then Percy's hand, it looked he was wearing a ring, glowed again. It looked like it was pulsating. Like a heartbeat. "What the fuck," I said tired. I tried to walk forward but fell to my knees. My spear falling out of my hand.

"Killed…. Her," I heard Percy mutter. He was much closer now. The red ring was pulsating ominously. In his right hand, was his pen, Anaklusmos. He pried off the cap with his thumb and the pen grew to its sword form. The energy from the ring trickled onto the sword and Percy held the now glowing red blade to my neck. He brought it up to the air in the motion to slice my head off.

I stared unafraid into his eyes and said, "Is this what Annabeth would have wanted?"

And his rage filled expression cracked and I saw the old Percy, the lovable goofball who loved his friends more than anything. He held so much sadness in his eyes now. The sword dropped from his grasp, the blade clattering to the ground. He looked down at his own hands and at the ring he wore. He just stared at it for a few moments before slowly gripping the ring he began to pry it off. He gritted his teeth in pain and fell to the ground, I just barely caught him, the ring wouldn't come off and I could see why. Red energy seeped through his veins in a way that was visible outside his body, it went all the way to his chest. I expected him to collapse on the ground, but he just breathed heavily and stared past my shoulder at nothing.

"Its okay," I said quietly. "Its going to be okay." I embraced him in a hug he didn't return.

A/N: I do not own Percy Jackson or The Justice League.

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