Hey guys! Thank you so much for all the reviews, we managed to get the target in one day! I knew you could do it :)

adebisi980: Thanks for that very nice review! I too am sad that it is nearly ending, but there may be some stories afterwards! I only ask for reviews because the more I get, the better and quicker I write. if it hadn't been for all these reviews, this chapter would not have been written as quickly!

astroboyosh: Aww thanks! I checked out your story, it was very good, the idea of it was very interesting and original!

tiger: thank you :)

I will post the next chapter after I reach 23 reviews! I know you can do it easily, you achieved the last target so quickly! Read, Enjoy and review! :)

Annabeth

Annabeth's eyes fluttered open. They felt like lead. She felt like the world was spinning round and round. Slowly she regained consciousness, and finally she could sense a numbing pain in her arms and legs, and then a burning sensation. Her eyes only saw blackness and Annabeth could feel a leathery cloth over her face: she was blindfolded. Her brain spun as she tried to sort out jumbled memories and answers for this pain.

Rope burn. That meant she was being tied up. That meant she was being held captive. Annabeth gasped in horror as she remembered what had happened. They had been fighting, with the gods. Annabeth had killed a giant herself with her mother. Then… then… Annabeth struggled to remember, fighting in her mind to see the memories. Then it hit her, and she couldn't breath. The gods had been banished, and there were still two giants left. The pale giant, Thoas, and Porphyrion, who hadn't been sighted yet. But Ananke had come… had she killed Thoas? Annabeth couldn't remember; all she could see in her head was her being knocked unconscious. She had been fighting some chimera, along with Percy. She vaguely remembered seeing some laistrygonian giants, and then she had been slammed in the head from behind, and everything had gone black.

Realisation that they had failed hit her like a bullet to the head. They had been captured. Her and Percy, their blood would raise Gaia.

Annabeth had no idea where they are, but she could feel that they were moving. Annabeth could feel herself going unconscious again. Her last thought before she blacked out again couldn't have been much more pessimistic: Gaia was about to rise. And the world would suffer.

…..

Dark spots appeared in her eyes as they reopened. She tried to open her mouth but felt something choking her, squeezed to the back of her throat. A gag.

The blindfold and finally come off, and soon her vision cleared. She sighed inwardly as she saw Percy in front of her, tied up in the same arrangement. He was conscious too, and he smiled at her, trying to reassure her. For a second she felt relief. Then she felt a crushing horror. Percy was here.

And that meant he would die too.

Annabeth knew that she had never been in a worse situation. She took a deep breath. She forced herself to calm down, and think about this logically. That was the only way to help Percy. Where were they? She looked around and noticed white everywhere. That made sense, since they were on top of a mountain. That confirmed her fears. They were at the stones of Mount Olympus. She noticed a large stone, about 10 feet to the left, pointing upwards. The stone was old and weathered, but stood strong. The rock naturally seemed to form an image of woman's face, from the way the rock curved in and out. Gaia. She saw the rope which tied her up. She was standing up, the toughest ropes she had ever encountered around her waist, tying her arms too. She was tied to another rock, though this one was thin and cylindrical, essentially a pole made of the earth. Percy was a few feet in front of her. He was tied to an identical pole, and they were left facing each other. She felt like a sacrificial lamb here, waiting for slaughter. Then it struck her. She was a sacrificial lamb. She was going to die. With Percy. Anger flushed through her body. She could not, would not, let Percy die.

Suddenly she felt the ground rumble, and the pounding of heavy footsteps. No ordinary being, monster, human, even god, could make the ground shake like that.

"Hello, demigods." The voice was deep, and cruel, and hearing it made Annabeth shiver. Though she had never heard the voice before, she knew whom it belonged to. A giant. Porphyrion.

He stood between Percy and Annabeth, towering above them. He was the tallest giant Annabeth had seen so far, and the most muscular. He was clad in bronze armour, and beneath his waist were scaly dragon legs. His dreadlocks were a dark, earthy green, and it was braided with weapons: swords, daggers, hammers, axes. The remnants of dead demigods. His eyes were the scariest part though. They were completely white, showing no emotion. A cold, killing machine.

Anger surged through her body like a tidal wave; she clenched her fists and kicked her feet out. He spoke slowly and sneered every word. "You cannot hurt me foolish demigod." He paused, and as if to add insult to injury, "You will be the sacrifice to Gaia, giving Rise to the Earth Mother. You should be honoured to be doing such a thing." His voice rose in a crescendo, giving it a repulsive dramatic effect. She heard Percy groan loudly as the giant crunched his boot into Percy's shin.

"I will take out your gags to hear your screams ring out across the world, signalling the end of the gods, and the rise of The Earth Mother." He removed their gags and instantly Percy cursed him rudely. But Annabeth stayed quiet. If they were going to get out of this they needed to hear Porphyrion's speech, and of anyone, Annabeth knew that it would be a glory speech. His plan to victory, which if they were to escape, they needed to know. She held his arm as if to tell him to shut up. As Percy stopped shouting, Porphyrion continued.

"A small briefing on how this will work, honoured candidates," Porphyrion started. Ironic, Annabeth thought, how they were so called, 'candidates'. "Your rich, demigod blood will be spilt as I, with little pain, don't worry, cut you and spill a few drops of your blood onto the stones of Olympus. When your both of your blood reaches that stone," he pointed at the stone with the image of Gaia, "Gaia shall begin to rise. She will rule the world properly, and place I and many others in charge of keeping the puny mortals in control. Nothing is more powerful than her and nothing will stand in her way. She will make the Earth a better place, repair ruins, stop problems and poverty. She will stop starvation, make better yields, and give homes to the homeless. She will allow the poor creatures which help her, who are innocent and benign, to integrate into life, without the looming sense of death as they are shot dead." Annabeth knew these were all lies, and Porphyrion knew it to. He was saying it like some sick joke, rubbing it in because it was never going to happen. Suddenly the grandeur seemed to come to the end. The pretence disappeared. As much as Annabeth hated this bit, it was better than him pretending that they were candidates and that the Gaia wouldn't harm them. She preferred the truth.

He continued. "She will slay EVERY demigod alive. She will start by burning the camps, and then hunting down the rest, and will not cease till this deed is done." He smiled wickedly and then his voice dropped a tone. "And then she will raise the giants, once more using the doors of death. She did it before, what's stopping her doing it again? And then the giants will attack the gods. The giants can kill them, but they can't kill us. Why? Because they need demigods to kill us. And all the demigods will be dead. And then she will wipe out the gods. Every last one. She will cast them far below Tartarus and into Chaos itself, where even Ouranos and the primordial deities cannot rise. OLYMPUS WILL BE DESTROYED!" His roaring laugh went on for five seconds, but the echoes continued it, as it haunted every bone in Annabeth's body, making her every hair stand on end on her body. She felt ill. Porphyrion continued. "The weak mortals will be forced into submission. They will be our slaves. If any of them step out of line, thousands will be killed. The Earth Mother shall rule once more!"

Annabeth was disgusted. Porphyrion was talking about mass genocide as if it was am exciting thing. And the worst part was, Annabeth, who had spent her whole life fighting against such evil, would help cause it.

For the first time Annabeth noticed that the sun was low. The light was fading slowly. When was this going to take place? As if reading her thoughts Porphyrion continued with his last portion. "The sacrifice will occur at dusk, as the sun dies. About half an hour from now. Your blood is very near seeping into the Earth to raise Gaia herself." He smiled smugly.

Annabeth thought quickly. She put on a sarcastic voice to convince the half-witted giant. "Even the Earth Mother must take hours to rise to the Earth." She said pretending to not know that this was far from the truth, although she most definitely did, and that's what scared her the most.

Porphyrion through his head back and laughed, "Never, it'll take her just a few minutes, before she rips you to shreds!" Annabeth changed her smile to a grimace, then a frown.

Percy, who had quickly caught on as to what they were doing, continued the game, "Well, our friends will save us!" he said confidently. Porphyrion, who had walked off, whipped round and replied, loud as ever.

"What, the ones who just walked over the mountain to the other side and left you? I think not." Porphyrion didn't seem worried at all, and he continued walking off, before working on something that Annaveth could see, his back to them.

Annabeth smiled inwardly as she realised that Percy had made the monster convince himself that there was no danger at all. But Annabeth knew that it was unlikely that their friends would be able to save them in time- they had to raise Ouranos. Suddenly it became a lot darker. And as time passed it became darker and darker, until the terracotta disk of light hovered, wavering above the line, which ended everything.

All Annabeth could think of was negative. Her dad would die, not having accomplished his dream. All her friends, from Camp half blood were going to die. And she was about to raise a horrible monster that would bring the rise to a terrible nation, which would bring terror to the lands. All because she failed. And Percy. Her love. The most important person to her in the world, who she had met at Camp Half Blood all those years ago. Who had helped her all the time. Who had saved Camp with her to get the Golden Fleece. Who had saved her from the harpies. Who had helped her retrieve Daedalus' laptop, who-

Annabeth finally thought of something good. Daedalus' laptop! Of course! It gave her one thing. A plan. Well, at least it had reminded her, of her secret backup. But she knew it was most likely hopeless.

"Percy," Annabeth began. "I'm sorry, I failed, I-"

Percy interrupted her. "No, Annabeth. You've never failed, don't you even dare say that. You're the best person in the world, and I love you. I love you so much, and it's killing me that it has to end this way." Suddenly, Percy shook his head. "No. It won't end like this. I will not let you die, not now."

Tears brimmed in Annabeth's eyes at his words. Of all people why Percy? He was amazing and deserved anything but death. He deserved godly hood. He deserved a happy life. And in that moment she knew she couldn't let him die. She reached her wrist up. The rope only allowed minimal hand movement, but hopefully it was enough. In her coat pocket, she had installed safety measures, using the plans on Daedalus' laptop. She managed to tear through the fabric, and the dagger fell in her hand.

Percy looked at her quizzically. She whispered for him to not say anything, before balancing the dagger in her hand. She had to get this exactly right. Using her wrist, she managed to flip the dagger right at Percy's hand, who thankfully managed to catch it. Annabeth had noticed that his rope was a bit higher around the wrist, and he had the highest chance of cutting free. Percy immediately got to work, but the rope was tough. Annabeth wasn't sure if he would be able to cut it.

As he worked the sun finally dipped below the horizon. She heard footsteps, right on cue. Annabeth prepared to die.

…

The sword hissed as it skidded out of the scabbard. It's sharp edges looked death black in the darkness. Porphyrion gave it a few test swipes before he was satisfied. "ALL HAIL GAIA!" His holler must have been heard for miles around. Annabeth looked at Percy, who was subtly still working on the rope. She raised her eyebrows in question. He shook his head.

Annabeth could have cried. He wasn't going to be able to do it in time. They would die, and Gaia would rise.

Porphyrion walked over to Percy, a cold smile on his face.

"You first. It will be a small cut. You won't die. Gaia plans on saving you for later." The giant smirked. Relief flooded Annabeth. Percy would survive. She hoped that he would find some way to destroy Gaia, and live happily. As long as he survived now, there was still hope.

Porphyrion, quick as a snake, cut Percy's neck. Crimson blood started to leak, as Percy tensed with the pain. Porphyrion grinned, and dipped his dirty finger, with disgustingly yellow, sharp nails, into the blood, before holding it over the ground in front of Percy. The blood dropped from his fingertip.

The blood burned into the ground, and slowly started snaking its way towards the rock of Gaia. After an agonizing minute, it finally reached the rock, leaving a path of blood. Annabeth was sure magic was at work. When the blood reached the rock, it sizzled, and stained the rock with red.

Porphyrion laughed in delight. "And now, the lovely Annabeth." The giant approached her, a sadistic smile on his face. "You shall not be as lucky as your boyfriend over there. First I will cut you, and then your blood shall awaken Gaia. But, you see, while Gaia wants Percy alive, she wants his spirit broken. And the best way to do that, is to make him watch the person he loves most in the world die, right in front of him, while he can do nothing but helplessly watch."

Percy cried out. "Don't you touch her, or I swear, I'll kill you! You'll burn, if you touch her, I swear you'll pay!" He thrashed against the rope that tied him. Annabeth had never seen him look so angry. But all Annabeth felt was a dull horror. She had known this moment would come. All she wished for is that Percy would survive.

Porphyrion lifted the sword, and cut Annabeth on her arm, a slow, drawn out cut. But he didn't dip his finger in it. Instead he made another gash. And another. And another, until there was a line of bleeding cuts, running down her arm. The pain gnawed at Annabeth.

"Stop playing with her, and just take the blood!" Percy spat, yelling. Porphyrion just smiled, and ran his finger down her arm, smearing the blood. He lifted it one more, and once more the blood began to approach the rock.

Time seemed to slow down as it neared the rock. Annabeth knew Gaia was about to rise. Then it would be over. Everyone would suffer.

The blood touched the rock, and immediately the ground started to rumble. The rock seemed to grow, and it began to take shape. Annabeth knew that in 5 minutes, perhaps less, Gaia would be awake.

Porphyrion yelled ecstatically. "She will rise!" Them he turned back to Annabeth. "Time to say your last words!'

Annabeth locked eyes with Percy, who was struggling with the rope. "Percy. Percy, I love you." Percy closed his eyes in grief.

"I'll always love you, Annabeth. Always."

Porphyrion pressed the cold sword to Annabeth's neck. "Goodbye Percy," Annabeth managed to choke out.

Percy shook his head. "No. No you're not leaving me! Remember our promise?" Porphyrion lifted back the sword, ready to swing. "We're never leaving each other again. Ever. It was a promise."

An oath to keep with a final breath. The line flashed through her head. So it was her final breath. The thought was the last to run through Annabeth's head, as Porphyrion swung the sword towards her for the final time.

All Annabeth heard was a clang, as Porphyrion's sword was deflected. It scarped her neck, causing a light gash. Percy stood in front of her, Riptide raised. He slashed at Porphyrion pushing backwards, in the same swipe releasing Annabeth's hands from the rope. For a second she stayed still, shocked at how she wasn't dead, before she recovered her senses, as she saw Percy clash with the giant. Her hands now free, she quickly untied the rope around her waist, and stepped forward with her drakon bone sword. Porphyrion roared and raised his spear.

"How did you escape?" she yelled at Percy, joining the fight. His eyes trained on Porphyrion, he yelled a quick response back.

"The rope was mostly cut using the dagger. When he was about to kill you, I managed to break through the rest."

Annabeth was shocked. The rope was really tough. To break the rope would have required lots of strength… or the rush of emotions Percy had probably had. Adrenaline.

She bolted forward and darted towards Porphyrion, as he parried Percy's strike. As she went to stab him he sidestepped, letting her fall too much forward. But he couldn't press home his advantage as Percy continued his furious onslaught of blows. Annabeth was now directly next to the giant. She had easily overcome his outer defences. She drew her drakon bone sword and hurled it into his neck. He staggered backwards and roared in agony. They had defeated the king of the giants. But he was far from dead. They continued their pursuit and as she sparred with him, Percy snuck behind him and leapt on his back. He aimed for his head and stabbed downwards, for the final blow-their best chance was to knock him unconscious, as they couldn't kill him without godly help.

BOOM! A colossal shake in the earth displaced Percy, stopping him, mid-blow. The snow on the mountain slid off. The tip was just ripped from the top, and the mountain rocks and grass and snow was tugged off and formed in a cloud of dust. And suddenly out of the mountain emerged a creature, at least 100 feet tall. It let out a mighty roar as it rose to its full height. At its head was rock and horns. It's eyes swirling cauldrons of fire, shining thought the darkness. Its arms were as six feet thick, and as long as the block of flats. Its legs must've been able to fit at least a thousand tree trunks within it. Annabeth cowed in terror as the monstrous creature laughed, shaking the earth itself, reverberating into Annabeth's bones.

If Gaia wakes, that's it. Game over.

The demigods had failed.

Gaia had risen.

Uh oh, its happening! Climax approaching! What's been happening with the other demigods, and how will they get out of this situation!

23 reviews, and then I will post the next chapter! So review to read on! I know you can do it just as quick as the last target! :)