I'm sorry the chapters are getting more and more spaced out, they take a little longer to write because I'm not trying to copy Rick's plot lines.

Enjoy this chapter though!

~Wise Girl~

Percy IV

"The Son of the Sea shall travel far West,

To find the lost God and complete his request.

Beware of the journey, lined with many dangers,

Do take head the advice of love's strangers.

For Olympus to see the rise of morrow's sun,

Love must take two and make it one."

Rachel had finished the prophecy and I caught her before she could fall to the ground and helped her into a chair.

"There's your prophecy" Rachel said, rubbing her head, "I hate that part."

"Okay so Percy has to go far west. California? What's in California that appeals to Eros?" Thalia asked.

"Oh" Aphrodite sighed softly "Santa Barbara."

"Why?" I asked, making a face not really excited with another trip to California.

"Ugh!" Aphrodite rolled her eyes "it's beautiful and it's been ranked one of America's most romantic places."

"So it looks like I have a quest to Santa Barbara" I sighed quietly "one of America's most romantic places."

"You have to pick two people to go with you Percy" Chiron said and I looked around. I didn't want anyone to go with me. It was my job to keep Annabeth safe and now it was my job to get her back.

"I'm going alone" I said, shaking my head.

"Percy" Chiron sighed "I understand you feel this is all on you but Annabeth meant a lot to everyone. It's disrespectful for you to not pick 2 more people."

I looked around the room at everyone sitting there. I thought of each line of the prophecy and I landed on Thalia.

"Love's strangers could mean a Huntress. Thalia will you go with me on my quest to find Eros?" I asked her and she nodded her head.

"Of course" she said "who's our third?"

I looked around the room when it hit me. I looked at Luke and set my jaw. I didn't trust him entirely yet but a quest would be a decent opportunity to determine how much trust I had for him. I also remembered the moment on Mount Olympus when Kronos was defeated. It wasn't me that brought Luke back enough to control the Titan, it was Annabeth. She laid there, almost dead from injuries and exhaustion but she had pleaded with Luke to end it. They had promised each other to be a family.

"Luke" I said and he met my eyes. I half expected to see the gold of Kronos but they were the startling blue eyes of the Son of Hermes. "I want you to be my third."

I noticed Chiron's jaw set and I noticed a few others shifted uncomfortably in their seats. I expected someone to speak up but no one did. I liked to think at this point everyone would be done questioning my actions.

"I'll go" he answered but he seemed a little hesitant.

"Meeting adjourned" I said "Thalia and Luke come with me." I walked out of the Big House with Luke and Thalia at my sides "I understand this may be difficult to work together given the history but I chose you two because you're closest to Annabeth and I need that to be the number one goal."

"We understand" Thalia said and I turned to Luke.

"I need you to understand that Annabeth means more to me than anything in the world. If you get in the way of that I promise you'll regret it. Do you need a refresher?"

"No" Luke shook his head "I did go to Elysium and my Elysium is being able to practice sword fighting as much as I wanted."

"Do you need a sword?" I asked him and he shook his head again.

"I have Backbiter" he said and my jaw clenched "in sword form."

"How?" I asked him and he unsheathed it to prove to me.

"I'm not entirely sure" he shrugged "when I came back I had it and it was a sword."

"Fine" I said and kept walking "I want to leave today. Go get packed."

I turned and headed to my Cabin. I walked in and jumped when I heard my mom's voice.

"Percy is everything all right? Chiron wouldn't let us in the meeting" she said and I saw Paul playing with Ethan. My mom had a worried look on her face.

"Mom" I said quietly "maybe it would be safer if you go home. There is about to be a war again and I don't want you guys getting involved."

"So the other mortal parents have been talking" my mom started and I had a feeling I wasn't going to like what she had to say "we aren't leaving. There is a couple that want to leave but it is because they have young children. We can see through the Mist and we've been discussing fighting alongside with you."

"No" I shook my head "if something happened-"

"Percy" Paul cut me off "I watch your mother panic when she doesn't hear from you after so long. We can't just leave knowing you're about to fight in a war again."

"What about Ethan then?" I asked "he certainly can't fight and I won't let him stay here during the fighting."

"He's going with Paul's mother" my mom said "you can't force us to leave."

"I'm leaving" I said "I have a quest to find Eros."

"We will get Ethan to Paul's mother and then we will be back" my mom said "we will help in anyway we can until you get back."

"It still makes me nervous" I said but I knew she was right, I couldn't force her to go "but if you insist I want you to take real lessons from someone. I'll ask someone from Athena cabin to step in."

I started to pack a bag. I included a few toiletries, as many golden drachmas as I could fit in a smaller pouch, some mortal money, a sleeping bag, a magic water bottle that stayed filled I got from Poseidon on my 20th birthday and a change of clothes. It had been a few years since I've been on a legitimate quest so I was out of practice but I wasn't going to let it stop me from finding Annabeth.

"I don't know when I'll be back" I looked at my parents as I shouldered my bag "but I'll update you as much as I can."

"Just please be safe Percy" my mom hugged me, then Paul and finally I hugged Ethan goodbye "we love you."

"I love you guys too" I said and headed out the door. I met up with Thalia as she walked out of Artemis's cabin.

"Are you sure you want Luke with us?" she asked me as we matched strides "what if he isn't entirely on our side?"

"Then we make a pit stop in the Underworld" I said simply and looked at her "he loved her. I haven't had a chance to determine if it was as a sister or as more but if there's anyone or anything he's loyal to it's Annabeth. She talked him into killing Kronos, she was the only one that could. She means something to him and I'm hoping that is the number one thing on his mind."

"If you say so" Thalia sighed and Luke stepped out of Hermes cabin. We all only had one bag on us and just as we started to walk towards Half Blood Hill Malcolm came running up to us.

"Percy!" he shouted and I turned to him "she didn't have this on her when she was taken, I'm sure she would want you to have it until she gets back."

He handed me her Yankee's cap. I smiled softly and swung my bag around to put it in.

"Thank you Malcolm" I said softly and zipped my bag back up "do me a favor and pick someone else from your cabin to give a couple lessons to the mortal parents that want them. I want them to be able to protect themselves if they insist on fighting."

"Will do" he nodded "I'll ask Thomas if he'd be willing. Be safe. We can't handle losing you too."

I nodded and he walked away as Luke, Thalia and I walked up the hill where Chiron was waiting for us.

"I suggest avoiding the air still" Chiron said "Chaos can be anywhere and the last thing I would want is a plane to go down, killing innocent mortals in her wake."

"I understand" I nodded and noticed Argus was waiting for us by a car "bus it is."

"One more thing" Chiron said "she has the power of creation, there is a strong chance she will revive certain monsters you have faced to get a rise out of you."

"If I've been them before I can beat them again" I said simply and he nodded "but we'll be careful."

"That's all I ask" Chiron nodded.

I nodded and we headed to the car.

"First thing's first" I said as we got in "bus station."

"This is going to be one hell of a trip" Thalia said as she sat between Luke and I.

"Cross country on a bus?" Luke asked "could be worse."

"Don't get comfortable" I said "the last time I tried to go cross country on a bus Three Furies were on it and it ended up getting struck by lightning."

"Lightning isn't a problem" Thalia said.

"Three Furies might be" Luke shrugged "for a 12 year old. We're a lot older than were were then."

"They serve the gods" I said "maybe they won't be on Chaos's side?"

I snorted. "Yeah good luck with that" I said "Chaos probably has a lot of monsters on her side."

"You know" Thalia said "maybe it's a good idea to go over the monsters you've killed. I feel like we can almost guarantee that she'll bring all your past nasties back to get a rise out of you."

Now I really laughed. "Thalia" I said "I've killed so many monsters, it would take us until California to name them all."

"The big ones" Luke said "who are the big ones?"

"Well," I said and crossed my arms "the Minotaur, Medusa, Echidna, all three Furies, Geryon, Arachne, and a million monsters."

"I didn't even know Arachne was still around" Luke said.

"It was a rough moment for Annabeth and I don't want to talk about it" I said quietly, thinking about the only other time in the world that I actually thought I might lose Annabeth.

"What happened to Annabeth?" Luke asked. It had been dawning on me that Luke and Annabeth had history and I worried how she'll react when she sees him again.

I sighed quietly and looked to Thalia for help.

"Annabeth went on a quest to find the Athena Parthenos" Thalia started "and she found out that the reason so many children of Athena have died on that quest was because Arachne herself was guarding it. She tricked Arachne into a trap and it caused the whole lair to collapse right into Tartarus. Arachne swore that if she was dying she would take Annabeth with her. Percy got there just in time to catch Annabeth as she fell but didn't have the strength to pull her and himself up so they fell into Tartarus together."

"And you survived?" Luke asked, amazed.

"Even after Kronos my life has not been easy" I grumbled "and lately its been centered around separating Annabeth and I."

Argus pulled into the bus station and we all got out. We bought three tickets west to California and I had a sinking feeling we wouldn't even make it to Pennsylvania. We boarded the bus and, despite my objections, we sat in the very back. We each sat in our own seat and I arranged my bag to use as a pillow so I could sleep. I closed my eyes and sleep overtook me fairly quick. I was back in the dungeon they were keeping Annabeth. She wasn't laying on the ground like she had been the last time I dreamed about her, this time she was up and scanning the walls, looking for a weak spot.

"It's pointless little hero" Chaos snickered "you'll never escape my prison."

"I know who you are" Annabeth said "I'm not worried about you. You're no match for Camp Half Blood and Olympus."

"I scare them enough to bring enemies back" Chaos chuckled and Annabeth stopped pacing.

"What enemies?" Annabeth asked and came up to the bars.

"Wouldn't you like to know" Chaos chuckled "but I will give you a hint."

Suddenly Annabeth's dagger fell at her feet but I wasn't sure where it came from, it looked like it appeared out of nowhere. Annabeth looked down at her dagger and the realization hit her.

"He's dead" she said and gritted her teeth "he's been dead for 5 years."

"Apparently the Son of Poseidon is desperate to get you back enough to raise the dead" Chaos responded "love is such a weakness."

"Says the mother of the god of love" Annabeth picked up the dagger, her thinking face on.

"I am the mother of creation" Chaos snapped "that is it. I am the mother of everything."

"Gaea thought that too" Annabeth said and her voice cut off in a gasp. She doubled over, clearly in pain but refusing to show just how much pain she was actually in.

"Gaea is weak!" Chaos shouted "I made Gaea! I will do everything that she couldn't do! I will level Mount Olympus and burn Camp Half Blood to the ground!"

"Heard that before too" Annabeth managed to get out and I wanted to yell at her to shut up, afraid of her getting more hurt.

"I will take everything you all love and destroy it" Chaos said dangerously but was cut off by another voice whispering.

"He's left the Camp" the voice whispered "he's fair game."

"Excellent!" Chaos answered "it would seem as though your hero has left the safety of that Camp you all love so much. Let's see how he fares against the trials I have in store for him."

"You can't beat him" Annabeth scoffed.

"I have a great bargaining chip" Chaos said smugly.

"Percy!" I was startled awake by Thalia shaking me. The bus was still moving so I knew we were still on track.

"What" I asked and blinked "where are we?"

"Still New York" she said "but you were talking in your sleep and it was starting to worry us. What did you dream about?"

"Annabeth" I said "she was still in her dungeon but she was awake and talking, or more so taunting, Chaos. Chaos knows we brought Luke back" I glanced at him "and she knows we left Camp. There was also another voice, a new one, and I think that's her informant."

"Well it could be Nyx or Erebus" Thalia said "it's not like we can always be without darkness."

"Nights are going to be extremely difficult then" Luke said "if Nyx is really aiding Chaos Nyx will be more active at night."

"We only travel by day then" I said and looked out the window at the setting sun "we need to get off the bus."

"Wait, was there anything else in the dream?" Thalia asked and I glanced between the two of them.

"It only applies to me" I said "but she plans on using Annabeth as a bargaining chip."

I looked Thalia in the eyes, knowing she was remembering the talk we had in the arena.

"Looks like we need to find and rescue her before Chaos is given the opportunity" Thalia said quietly.

"We also need to get off the bus" I said and glanced at the setting sun outside the window "we need to get off the bus or innocent people could die."

"Cause an emergency" Luke said "it's the easiest way to get the bus to stop so we can get off."

Thalia smirked "I got an idea."

She took out a lighter and a shirt out of her bag. She lit the lighter and held the flame against the shirt and pretty soon there was a fire. She threw the shirt into the bathroom and not long after there was a decent amount of smoke coming from the bathroom.

"Help!" Luke shouted "fire!"

The other passengers started to panic and the bus driver looked back and almost swerved into traffic passing us.

"Everyone please remain calm" the driver got on the intercom "once it is safe to pass I will pull over and we will all evacuate the bus."

He managed to get us pulled over and opened the doors for us. The three of us were the only ones that grabbed our bags. As the group formed on the side of the highway and some people pulled out their phones to call 911 we slipped away into the woods. We walked for a couple hours in the direction the bus was traveling in before we decided to stop and gather our thoughts and sleep.

"So I think it's safe to say we need a watch at all times while we sleep on foot" I said and laid out my sleeping bag. Thalia gathered some sticks and pointed her finger at the pile, a spark of electricity sprouted from the finger and set the sticks ablaze, easy campfire.

"I'll take first watch" Thalia said as she rolled out her silver sleeping bag.

"No" I shook my head "I will. I slept on the bus and I can't handle another dream about Annabeth right now."

"Your dreams might be our only clue" Luke argued but I still shook my head, I really couldn't handle seeing Annabeth alone in a dungeon. I knew she wasn't scared but it still hurt me. The woman I love was not with me and I had no idea where she was.

"I can't handle it" I said again and leaned against a tree.

"Percy" Thalia said, she looked like she was thinking "this last dream, did Chaos talk to you?"

"Just Annabeth" I responded to her "I was more of a bystander."

"Were you addressed at all?" Luke asked, seeming to be on the same page as Thalia.

"No" I shook my head "not even when the messenger mentioned me."

"Then it's not Chaos summoning you" Thalia said and smiled, which worried me "it's your bond with Annabeth."

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.

"Chaos would not have summoned you then explain half of her master plan to Annabeth knowing you were there" Luke explained "it was Annabeth." He said the words almost like they were hard to get out and my fear of the feelings he had for her being stronger than just family came back to the front of my mind.

"Unconsciously" Thalia said "she probably misses you and it's linking you to her."

"So every time I sleep I'll see her" I asked.

"More than likely" Thalia nodded and I laughed shortly.

"Now I'm really not sleeping" I laughed.

"You can try talking to her" Thalia said "she might hear you. Let me take first watch and just try."

"No!" I said, getting annoyed "the woman I love, my fiancé, is being held captive and I can't handle seeing her like that! Let me take first watch. Eventually I'll crash and I'll try then."

"Fine" Thalia said and glanced at Luke "no offense, you're not taking any shifts on your own."

"I understand" Luke nodded "but I'll sit up with Percy during his watch."

"Can't force you to sleep" I said and nodded.

Not long after conversation died Thalia was asleep and it was just Luke and I up.

"I haven't got a chance to thank you yet" Luke said after a long uncomfortable silence.

"We could use all the help we can get" I said simply and looked at him.

"It's a chance to redeem myself" he responded and looked back at me. There was only one question on my mind and I didn't think I could go on without asking.

"Do you love her?" I asked and his jaw set. He got a look in his eyes and he didn't even have to answer because I knew.

"Yes" he admitted "at first it was just as a sister but she grew up and I realized it was more than that. But I knew even if she wanted to love me back she couldn't."

"She did" I said "she loved you until the end."

"Now she loves you" he said and we both looked at each other again "I mean, you're marrying her. You're connected to each other in ways I can't even understand. You fell into Tartarus for her."

"There is nothing I wouldn't do for her" I said "absolutely nothing."

"What if, there's still something there?" Luke asked and my face went board straight but he had a little bit of hope in his voice.

"You mean for you?" I asked and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah" he cleared his throat. My heart clenched at the thought of her choosing him over me. That just might be the nail in the coffin.

"I'd let her go" I said through clenched teeth "I wouldn't fight you or her. If that's what made her happy then I would let her go. But just so you remember, and I promised myself I wouldn't do this to you so forgive me for this one time, you chose Kronos over her every time except the last time. I held the sky for her, I used her to as my anchor when I went into the River Styx, I gave up godhood for her, I lost my memory and could only remember her, and I fell into Tartarus for her. Pick your battles Luke."

"You're probably right" Luke said but now I knew how he felt about Annabeth and I knew he wouldn't let the issue go as easy as I would if it came down to it.

We sat in silence again before there was a series of howls and I shot up to my feet.

"Hellhounds" Thalia sat straight up and Luke jumped to his feet. Almost on instinct we stood back to back to back, covering all sides. Thalia notched an arrow and tapped her bracelet to bring out Aegis, Luke took out Backbiter and I uncapped Riptide. The growling and howling got closer and the leaves and branches shifted as huge things ran through them. Thalia let her arrow go and not even a second later we heard a yelp. Then more hellhounds burst through the trees, surrounding us. They growled and started to circle us.

"di immortales" Thalia whispered "6 of them?!"

She let another arrow go but the hellhound she was aiming at jumped to the side and arrow embedded itself into a tree. I swiped my sword but they just jumped back from my blade.

"Big Three magic would be nice right now you know" Luke said and swiped his sword at one who lunged at us from his side.

"Thalia can you make it rain?" I asked and dodged another hound.

"Your dad is Stormbringer!" Thalia shouted and ducked as another hound jumped at her.

"Your dad is Lord of the Skies!" I yelled back and stabbed a hound who disintegrated into dust but another just replaced it.

"Someone make some damn rain!" Luke yelled and stabbed another dog.

I willed some rain, not sure how it would work because I've never tried to summon rain, and then thunder started and rain came. I inhaled deeply as I felt more strength surge into me. Thalia screamed and a bolt of lightning shot down and blasted two hounds into dust. Luke was stabbing and slashing but the hounds were getting smarter. I willed the rain falling around me to gather into one massive wave and I yelled as I forced the ave down on a group of three. They bust into dust and I turned just in time to stab another hound. Lightning struck and water slammed into the ground as we worked our powers against the hellhounds. Eventually I stabbed Riptide into the neck of a hellhound lunging at me and then realized there were no more.

"What the fuck was that?!" Thalia screamed after were done. Luke and her were soaked but I was perfectly dry.

"I lost count of how many there were" Luke said and ran a hand through his hair. They only had a few cuts and bruises, the water healed any cuts I had.

"We have to move" I said and looked around. Our sleeping bags had been ripped to shreds but luckily our bags were safe where we stored them in a tree, Thalia's idea.

"After tonight I'm going to hate the night time" Thalia said.

I'm going to do a POV from someone at Camp so give me some suggestions of a POV you want to see!