"No," Percy said realizing something. "There is another way."

"Bob does not understand," Bob said.

Annabeth looked at him, her face a mask of concentration; she wasn't sure where he was going with this.

"You guys have to go ahead."

Recognition appeared on Annabeth's face. She nodded her head in a mix of defeat and resolve. "You need to go we will guard the doors."

"But Bob's friends will die," Bob said.

"We know. But it will mean more to the group to have a titan and a giant to help them than just two demigods." Percy knew that sometimes you didn't have to lose friends, sometimes the right things to do is to know when to step away. Being a hero means being able to do the right thing. The truth was his friends deserved a second chance. The world needed his friends more than the two of them. Even though he was also dooming Annabeth with him, he knew she wouldn't leave him. This was the best option for everyone.

"But the prophecy?"

"It still stands. Whether there are some others or they really include us. We answered the call. We did what we could. Now you must choose. You deserve another chance. Our journey ends here. I'm going to try to burst Tartarus' heart."

"I'll press the button," Annabeth added. "Now go, we don't have time. Percy can you open a vein of the Phlegethon, we'll need enough for a last stand."

Just like that the tables have turned, they knew what needed to happen for them to win the war. The gods could not be trusted, but friends can be. Damsen drew away from Tartarus and unleashed the Maeonian drakon on him. Bob helped to clear a path to get them to the doors. Having already drank from the fiery river they stood ready to help their friends reach the House of Hades.

"Bob, Damsen, tell our friend we demand they kick podex!" Percy yelling running to a vein where he directed pressure to build up in the giant's heart.

"Goodbye," Annabeth said giving each a quick hug. Damsen, Bob and Small Bob stepped into the elevator. Bob had tears in his eyes and Small Bob was trying to reassure him by rubbing against his legs. Damsen had a proud look on his face.

"We will make you proud."

Smiling sadly, she pressed the up button and got ready to fend off monsters.

Percy seeing that their friends were in the elevator burst a few veins and arteries. At first, Percy wanted to see what would happen if the heart would stop but that only slowed Tartarus down. The drakon was fighting purely out of fear now, Damsen made him fight and now the drakon either lived or died. Running away would only mean death. The only chance for it was to get Tartarus away from his troops and away from demigod who was popping veins like confetti. Unfortunately for the drakon he knew well enough to stay away from any and all rivers.

"Percy look out!"

Percy dodge fast enough to avoid the javelin thrown right at where he was just a second ago. "Thanks!"

Just like that, they fell into a pattern. Annabeth warned Percy of any projectiles while Percy guarded the doors. As Annabeth got restless she picked up a spear that fell near the doors and threw it back in the monsters' direction, it impaled an empousa in the side making it trip up a Cyclops and the two went down. After that Percy put a few projectiles near Annabeth's position to pick off those that got too close.

Percy considered the Lethe. Could a primal force be forced to forget? If he drained the rest of the rivers and only used the Lethe? Or if he simply made this form of Tartarus' forget or at least for twelve minutes?

Monsters backed off as Percy burst a vein filled with waters of the Lethe. After the first few times, Percy realized he could tell the rivers apart. Now the monsters couldn't cross the moat that was being created with the Lethe water. That should stall for some time.

"How much longer?" Percy asked Annabeth over the roar of the falling waters colliding. The Phlegethon and the Lethe combined to create steam…which gave Percy an idea.

"Eight more minutes!" Annabeth answered, she tried to keep her voice quiet enough not to be overheard by the monsters but that was unlikely.

"I think we can manage that." Percy burst another large vein of the Phlegethon directing it near the moat of Lethe water. It created a smokescreen making it hard for monsters to throw their javelins and spears at the demigods. On the downside, it means the demigods also weren't sure when a missile might be thrown at them until it was high above the steam.

Percy cupped another handful of the Phlegethon water. This was a terrible idea but he won't be able to go on without it. He hoped he had one more trick up his sleeve. Watching Tartarus he burst a vein of Lethe water. It slowly inched its way towards Tartarus. He himself seemed to forget the demigods as he fought the drakon. Either he thought they were already there or in his vessel he can't multitask or he adrenaline was keeping him focused on the drakon, either way, worked for Percy and Annabeth.

Lastly, as Annabeth waved her hand at Percy he realized they had another five minutes. Seeing the drakon losing he got ready to give the old man Tatarus a heart attack. Not the way you should treat your elders but Percy figured this case was an exception. He didn't know how they would get out of this but they knew one thing, they would stay together.

As the drakon finally lost out and Tartarus went about leisurely untangling himself from the drakon the demigods knew it was now or never. Percy got ready for one last explosion, this time taking everything out and away from the demigod's direction.

Tartarus knew that the demigods were alone, he also knew that where ever his son went Gaea would not stand for it. Or he could always throw them into the void by cutting off the blond demigod's finger from the button with just a throw of a knife. Well maybe not, his control over his vessel may not be that accurate. Maybe he could just throw an axe and sever her hand or shoulder. That would work too.

"Prepare to die slowly and painfully demigods."

"Nah, you first, age before beauty as they say," Percy replied.

"I cannot die," Tartarus bellowed.

"True, but maybe you can forget then?" And with that Percy tore open Tartarus' heart putting everything into emptying it right at the enemy side.

"What are you doing! You cannot…." The last was done out as Tartarus stumbled. It might not kill him like it did some monsters but it could push him back just enough to….

POOF!

With a loud pop, Annabeth found herself leading on empty air. The Doors of Death were gone and the javelin and sword she leaned on them dropped to the ground. Quickly she picked up the javelin she thought might work the best for her. She started to go to Percy but the ground started to rumble. Oh-oh. "The heart! Where do we…?" The rest was droned out as the ground started to droop downward like a deflating balloon. The demigods found it difficult to keep their footing. Percy called the Cocytus to gently lift them up. It made him feel cold and miserable but he used all those feelings to push them farther away from the gaping crevice between them and Tartarus. Now on one side of the heart, he looked to see Tartarus standing on the other. At this point, the heart looked a bit like a peach. Percy tried not to think about it. His legs gave out, and Annabeth held him up.

"We have to get out of sight of the monsters. We need to regroup." Except that it was only them so the monsters are the ones who would be doing most of the regrouping, but that went unsaid.

"What do we do now?" Percy mused. He was in no shape to be going anywhere. He tried to ignore it but he was starting to feel the aches and the exhaustion from using the rivers.

Then Annabeth thought for a moment. "Percy if this is the heart, further that way was the toes then the head must be in that direction."

In a moment like this Percy thought of his friends. If they had Piper, she could have tried to make Tartarus fall asleep. If they had Leo, he could have tried to blow up the heart. Or maybe that could be arranged on the head.

"Why was he unaffected to the Lethe water?" Percy asked.

"I don't know. But if he is immune, maybe we'll find something at the head?" Annabeth said. "If only we could make him fall asleep. Even Gaea can be slowed down that way. She can't awake often because of her mass. But what are Tartarus' limits?"

"Maybe we can knock him out?" Percy said absentmindedly. He could barely focus on the conversation.

"Yeah, a coma," Annabeth murmured. "but that can't work. You blew up a chunk of his heart and he seems-" She looked around the bend but now that she thought of it, what was Tartarus' reaction? He was a primordial deity. He could not die, or so he said. There were others before him, there were others after. Maybe he could die, and he just doesn't want us knowing that. Pan went into the void. Ouranos was cut up into pieces…Maybe Tartarus could too. That's a bad idea though. If he was to die, what would happen to the monsters? Would they be sent to Hades? Hades would hate them for the inconvenience. They had no choice now.

"If only we could get to Hades from here…." Percy murmured. Annabeth ran her fingers through his hair to relax him. She looked around for the Phlegethon.

"Yeah, if only. We should have asked if there was an exit here." Annabeth thought out loud.

"Then we could just get to Hades and ask politely for a ride home," Percy said, at this point, he wasn't really thinking about anything he was saying. He was seeing stars, and that made it hard to focus. Annabeth finally spotted a puddle of burning water. She lightly rested him again a wall and quickly picked up some water. It burned like Hades but Percy needed to keep move. After getting another helpful dose of flaming water he finally was able to sit up on his own.

"Not sure if there is any way, but maybe we could pray to Hades. I'm not sure how he could help."

"Maybe he could lead us to an exit," Percy said hopefully. It was unlikely but Tartarus was still part of his realm. The waters themselves also were in Hades…

As Annabeth silently prayed to Hades, they notice something happening in the water. It wasn't that noticeable, but the Cocytus started to call to them as never before.

Come with us.

Yes, follow the river. You will feel true misery as never before.

Hades says to jump in the river, idgits.

On that odd note, Annabeth looked to Percy and silently asking him. "Do you think?"

"When in doubt, follow the sound of wailing," Percy said.

Off they went. Stumbling in the direction the waters seem to direct them. The demigods kept looking over their shoulders that none of the monsters were following them but they seemed to be regrouping because there were not many and those that they found they just hid from them.

Upon arriving at a point where the river went under some rocks (Percy figured this must be Tartarus' chin) and then the voices changed.

Jump in the water!

Yeah, jump in the water, cakesniffers!

Join us!

"Maybe this was a bad idea?" Percy said.

"We have no choice," Annabeth thought, "maybe this river can lead us out of Tartarus."

"If not?" Percy asked.

"Then I'll pinch you and you can get us out of there," Annabeth squeezed his hand.

"Together?" Percy asked.

"Together," Annabeth answered.

The demigods jumped into the river. Feeling the current Percy propelled them faster in that direction. He channelled all the hopelessness he felt into pushing them further. He let the river have his misery as long as it got them out.

As the rocks above became to close in more, they had to submerge themselves fully under the water. Then the cave opened up and with the addition of Percy's commands, the demigods were spat out of the mouth of Tartarus.

Shaking, disheartened, and exhausted the demigods slowly got up and saw that just below them was a sizable ravine just below them. The water must have angled down, Percy thought, he felt the peak of the river before it slopped down, probably further up the pharynx and into the brain. The force of his push must have hurled them out of there.

As they finally were getting their breathing back to normal, the ground began to rumble. They looked to see an approaching dark chariot.

"Get in the chariot, honey," Alecto commanded Percy and Annabeth.

"What?" Percy looked surprised to see Mrs. Dodds again. She seemed just as happy to see him, which is to say none at all.

"I said get in the chariot. I'm to throw you out need the exit that Orpheus took. You know the drill."

Annabeth was already ahead of Percy. "Never look back."

"Good," Alecto said. "If you die, then you're not my problem."

"Wait die?" Percy asked getting on the chariot seeing as they had no other choice.

"I thought you said you knew the drill." Alecto was getting annoyed, she spurred on the horses.

"We look back and the other doesn't make it back," Annabeth guessed. She turned to look at Percy with fear in her eyes. She grabbed his hand, and he squeezed to show his support.

He knew that it might not work for them. Annabeth would be tempted to check and double-check. Percy was too loyal to contemplate that he might leave her behind. He gulped. "So where will we be dropped off anyway, in the mortal world that is?"

"Cape Matapan, from there you can use Nico's emergency kit to Iris message your friends to pick you up. That is if you don't drop dead before you can let the ambrosia do its job."

As Annabeth looked down, she saw a backpack on the floor in the shadowy part of the chariot. Alecto had her foot on the shoulder straps. This way the backpack wouldn't fly out of the chariot when it changed acceleration. As Alecto took her foot off the straps Annabeth took the backpack with one hand, the other holding on to the chariot, and Percy used one hand to open the backpack. Inside it's just as she said, a demigod's emergency kit. There wasn't much ambrosia, not when split between the two of them. As Percy was about to reach for the ambrosia Alecto's voice stopped him.

"Don't eat it before you get to the mortal world. You're more dead than alive. I can still smell the remains of Death Mist on you. What were you demigods thinking?" For a second Mrs. Dodds almost looked proud of Percy. Almost. "If you end up in the Fields of Punishment, I might just let my sisters whip you instead."

"Thanks, I guess," Percy said looking at Annabeth if she heard what he did. Annabeth just shook her head subtly.

The chariot slowed and then stopped; the demigods took that as a signal to get out.

"Beware, as soon as you go enter the tunnel do not look back," Alecto warned. "I hope Hades did not waste his time on you."

"It's the prophecy isn't it?" Annabeth asked. "Hades is more scared of Gaea than he is of Tartarus, isn't he?"

Alecto thought for a moment. "She is rising. Tartarus is lethargic. He does not take action often. He does not go beyond his kingdom. He knows to send his monsters instead. Just get through this moment first. Don't waste this chance, you will not get another."

On that note, the dark chariot disappeared, and the demigods turned to the dark tunnel. At its center, it seemed to lighten into a grayish colour.

"One thing left to do." Annabeth turned to Percy and held out her hand.

"Seems so," Percy replied. "We're staying together, Wise Girl."

"Just don't look back, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said, her eyes glittered with the fear of never seeing him again. They are close to home, yet so far away at the same time.

Percy hugged her one last time. Holding hand they marched into the tunnel looking forward.

A/N: I got the idea of this after rereading HoH. I'm not sure about the rating so anyone thinks otherwise just mention it in a review or PM me.

Also: I have very little knowledge of how the anatomy of the head. I didn't want to write the esophagus, so I just wrote "pharynx" which seems to be the general name for that part is above the esophagus on diagrams.

And Yes, one of the references is to Carmelita from A Series of Unfortunate Events.