AN: Hey everyone, it's been a while huh? Sorry for the long wait, but here is the next chapter.

Thalia's POV

I was practicing archery when Artemis called me to her tent. She seemed rather distant and distressed, so I put away my bow and followed her quickly.

Artemis' tent was large and comfortable, covered with animal pelts on the walls. She sat in the middle of the tent, eyes closed as she stroked a deer with glittering fur and silver horns. Although Artemis was usually reserved and calm, she now looked at me with concern and sadness. I sat across from her uneasily, unsure why Artemis called me to the tent.

"Welcome, my lieutenant," Artemis said. "I fear we have much to discuss."

"What is the matter, my lady?" I asked. "You seem distressed."

Artemis paused for a while, as if she were carefully choosing her words to avoid a fight. "I am needed on Olympus. Typhon has finally risen from the mountain, and it will take all of our strength to defeat him"

I nodded. I already knew that Artemis would have to leave soon. "I understand, my lady. I will make sure the hunters are safe during your absence."

Artemis shook her head sadly. "No, Thalia. I am afraid you have a different role in this war. You are the hero of the prophecy."

I stared at her in confusion. What did she mean I was the hero of the prophecy? I had already given up the role to Percy a year and a half ago. Stubborn and dumb as he is, I knew Percy would be the best choice for the prophecy. "What are you talking about, Artemis? Isn't Percy the one to fulfill the prophecy? His birthday is next week."

Artemis shook her head again. "Due to some unfortunate circumstances, you must take up the role. I will remove your immortality temporarily so that you may turn sixteen as the prophecy foretells."

"What unfortunate circumstances? What happened to Percy? He wouldn't just abandon us."

"Thalia, Percy died yesterday," Artemis said with a grave look in her eyes.

I gasped, sadness and shock overwhelming my mind. As much as the kid pissed me off at times, Percy was still one of my closest friends. Tears threatened to pour out of my eyes before Artemis moved forward and hugged me. I cried into her shirt while Artemis said, "No, you mustn't cry Thalia. Percy died a true hero, sacrificing his life to destroy the Princess Andromeda and save another demigod's life. We must honor his sacrifice by fighting for him and making sure that we win this way. We will not let his sacrifice be in vain."

Artemis pulled away from the hug and held me at arm's length, looking into my eyes. "Your actions will determine the fate of Olympus, now. I am counting on you to make the right decisions in this war."

I nodded, blinking away my tears. I would fight this war for Percy, for all the pain Luke has caused me, and for Olympus. "I understand, my lady. I will make you proud."

Artemis smiled for the first time in that meeting. "I have no doubt you will."

Standing up, she continued, "Now come, I must take you and the hunters to Camp Half Blood before I travel to Olympus. Your immortality may take a few days to wear off, so you still have time before you turn sixteen. Use this time wisely."

Artemis dropped us off at Camp Half-Blood and blew the hunting horn to signify our arrival. She hugged each of the hunters quickly before she left to Olympus.

Camp Half-Blood seemed oddly empty. No campers and satyrs were playing volleyball or racing up the climbing wall. Travis and Connor weren't out playing pranks on the other cabins and Clarisse wasn't sticking a new kid's head in the toilet. I thought the place was deserted until I saw a distant fire burning in the amphitheater.

At the amphitheater, Chiron and all the campers were gathered. The fire, which changed based on the campers' emotions, was a deep black and barely over one feet tall. In the middle of the amphitheater, Chiron held a gorgeous sea-green shroud with a large Trident embroidered in the center. Before he burned the shroud, Chiron noticed me and the hunters.

"Thalia and the Hunters of Artemis, how nice of you all to join us," Chiron announced. As he trotted towards us, I noticed that his eyes held deep bags under them as if hadn't slept at all last night.

"You may find a seat at the amphitheater if you wish," Chiron told the hunters. They didn't seem happy having to sit next to so many males, but the hunters understood the heroics of Percy Jackson and still wanted to pay respects to him.

Then, Chiron turned to me. "It has been far too long, Thalia. How have you been doing?" Chiron asked.

"Well, other than the fact that I was just told one of my best friends was killed and I have to be the hero of the prophecy, just wonderful," I muttered sarcastically.

Chiron smiled slightly. "Yes, I wish we could have talked under more pleasant circumstances, without a war on our hands."

I swallowed nervously. "How bad are things Chiron?"

Chiron sighed and his face seemed to age 20 years in the past few minutes alone. "Very bad," he responded. "The entire camp is in low spirits with Percy gone, especially Annabeth. She hasn't been seen out of her cabin ever since yesterday's council meeting. I suspect she hasn't eaten in the last 24 hours."

"That doesn't sound like Annabeth. She is one of the strongest and most determined people I know."

"Percy's death has hit Annabeth especially hard." Chiron said. "We all tried to comfort her and get her to help burn Percy's shroud, but she remains in her cabin emotionless and broken. I fear Annabeth no longer has her will to fight."

"I'm going talk to her, Chiron. If anyone can comfort Annabeth, it's me," I said determinedly before I ran off to the Athena cabin.

The Athena cabin was dark and cold inside. The usually organized cabin had tissues covering the floor and books thrown all over the place. Annabeth laid under a cover of blankets in the middle of the mess. Her eyes were red and puffy from tears, which continued to flow down her cheeks. When I walked up to her, she glared at me with her stormy gray eyes. "If you're here to tell me how pathetic I am, just forget it. The whole camp already tried," Annabeth murmured, her voice raspy and barely audible.

I glared at her back. "What the hell are you doing, Annabeth? The Annabeth I know would never let anyone see her so miserable. She would be fighting and leading this whole camp when they need a leader to step up. She would be trying to get everyone's hopes up, not bringing them down."

"Just do me a favor and shut up Thalia. You don't understand how much it hurts to know that you caused your best friend to die," Annabeth shouted.

Confusion replaced my anger. "Why would you think it's your fault that Percy died?"

Annabeth's eyes looked like glass, fragile and shiny with tears. "I should have been there with him. For the last four years, we always protected each other. The one time I wasn't there with him, he gets himself killed. If I had only been there, I could have convinced him to not sacrifice himself or I could have thought of a plan for all of us to escape. Instead, I was a coward and let him die."

I slapped her to knock some sense into her. How could she think that any of this was her fault? "Stop that right now. You know that idiot is loyal to a fault. When his friends are in danger, he'll do anything to save them. You couldn't do anything to stop him from sacrificing himself."

"I never even got to say goodbye," Annabeth said. "The last time we saw each other, I gave him the cold shoulder and left him alone on Half-Blood hill. He probably died thinking that I didn't care about him when, in reality, he's my whole world. I loved him, Thalia, but I never got to tell him that."

At this point, Annabeth was full out breaking down. My eyes softened as I brought my best friend into a hug. "Hey, Annabeth, don't think that way," I said softly. "If I know Percy, I know he loved you more than anything in the world and would never think for a second that you didn't love him back. You're the greatest thing that ever happened to him, and his last thought was probably how thankful he was to have you in his life."

I took a deep breath before continuing," We need to win this war for Percy. We need to avenge his sacrifice and make sure that his death wasn't in vain. We need to show Kronos exactly who he's messing with and make him regret ever touching Percy."

Slowly, Annabeth's eyes regained their fire and determination. "I'm going to rip Kronos into a thousand parts with my bare hands," she said through gritted teeth.

"Glad to have you back Annabeth. Now come on, we have some revenge to settle."

Percy's POV

I woke up in a huge, dark cavern with a horrible headache. When I tried to sit up, all of my limbs seemed to sting in complaint. My clothes were in taters with burn marks everywhere. As I tried to remember where I was and why I was here, my mind seemed to come up a blank. All I could recall was my name and a blond girl with gray eyes named Annabeth. I wished I remembered more about her, but all I knew was that she was important to me somehow.

Suddenly, a young man with golden eyes and blond hair walked out of the darkness. I ignored my pain and uncapped the pen in my pocket, as if I had done it a thousand times. Somehow, I knew that this man was dangerous and that my pen was actually a sword.

When I went to strike him with my sword, the man easily blocked with a long sythe that gleamed evilly in the darkness. The man shook his head, "Now, now, Percy is that the way to treat your savior."

"What are you talking about?" Percy shouted. "Who are you and what do you want from me?"

"My name is Kronos, but you shall refer to me as master," the man said coolly. "I saved you from those treacherous demigods who left you out in the sea to die. I saved you from a prophecy that predicted your certain death and offer you complete safety. I saved you from a camp that fed you false lies about heroics and serving the gods, even though all the gods only use their children to do their dirty errands."

I narrowed my eyes and asked, "How do I know you are telling me the truth? I can barely recall anything."

Kronos raised his hand and said, "I swear to the River Styx that everything I have told Percy Jackson is true."

Thunder boomed in the background, and I somehow know that such was a promise was sacred and unbreakable. I lowered my sword and knelt down to one knee. "Thank you, master. I was simply confused, but now I know that I owe you my life."

Kronos smirked and his eyes gleamed with happiness. "No gratitude is needed. Repay me by fighting in my army against those treacherous demigods and gods."

I nodded my head. "Yes, master."

AN: Wow, this chapter was a lot of fun to write and hopefully it was a lot of fun to read too. A little short, but I think this was a good place to end it. And if any of you were wondering, the reason why the River Styx didn't punish Kronos is because he technically did speak the truth but just exaggerated and manipulated it a bit. Thank you all for reading, and please review, favorite, and follow.