AN: Before I begin this chapter, I want to let you guys know that I'm sorry...about not letting you know about the delay. (I'm going to be completely honest, I'm not sorry for not updating. Shit hits the fan and then you gotta prioritize.)

Also, I did not rate this Fiction T because I was bored. This chapter in particular, contains some rather gruesome scenes. Note that I will most likely never write lemons.

Anyways, I should probably get on with the chapter before the AN is longer than the actual chapter...What are you still here for? Go, go, go! :)

(Questmates are Zoe (I got tired of the dots above the e), Phoebe, Thalia, Bianca and Clarisse.)

Bianca sat bolt upright, drenched in her own sweat. In her haste to get up, she hit her head on the bunk above her, waking up Percy. Within two seconds, Percy had rolled off the top bunk and drawn his sword, scanning the room for any possible threats. After a few seconds, he sighed and sheathed the deadly weapon. "Negative. Dammit Bianca, let me sleep for once…" he scowled as he realized how childish he sounded.

Bianca couldn't help but let out a low chuckle. "I just hit my head on the bunk. After years of training you've gotta be able to discern between that and threats," she teased him.

Percy sighed again. "So what was it? Another nightmare? You haven't had one in a while."

Bianca shook her head. "No nightmares, but there's a nagging feeling. Like something bad's going to happen on this quest."

Percy glanced at the clock. 1:39. "A nagging feeling? Sleep on it. You have a good four hours until dawn." (AN hehe not-really-a-Halo-reference)

Bianca nodded, then promptly crashed back in bed. It took little more than seven seconds before she fell back into unconsciousness.

Percy gazed at her sleeping form, mentally shaking his head. I swear, I will never understand her, even if we were immortal… Without another thought, he too, quietly fell asleep.

Bianca woke again, after what felt like mere seconds, to find that the sky outside was still dark. Quietly, she rose out of bed. 13:62...wait, what? As far as she knew, the hours only went up to 12, and minutes up to 60. No sooner had that thought crossed her mind that the clock flickered out of existence.

Well, this is strange… she mused. Deciding to sleep some more, she turned back to the bunk, only to notice a chilling fact.

Where Percy normally slept was empty. She climbed onto the top bunk, and there it was: no Percy. Only a single slip of paper on a pillow.

Bianca. Ah, I knew you would find this. Your brother is $^&# and will be ^%$* %. Come to the pine at the border of camp ASAP, and go alone. Percy's life depends on it.

-Karl

Dropping the note with shaky hands, Bianca grabbed her bow and quiver, then rushed out the door to the cool night air. Sprinting as fast as her legs could take her, Bianca ran until the pine was in sight - and with it, a sight that had frequented her nightmares.

Percy's limp body was impaled on one of the branches, along with a second note attached to his right foot. Ignoring the note for now, she rushed forward and cradled Percy in her arms, sobbing, muttering phrases that would have appeared incoherent to anyone who may have passed by.

"You're late."

Bianca raised her head to see the man who just spoke. He was tall, maybe about 6'5", with dirty blonde hair peeking out from the edges of his midnight black hoodie. Casual jeans with sneakers adorned his lower half. With a start, she realized that his eyes were...very unique.

His iris was a powerful shade of blue, like the kind you would expect to be emitted from a 2100s piece of technology. With no pupils, and a dark sclera, Bianca immediately went on the defensive.

"Karl?" Her voice came out meekly, and she mentally kicked herself for appearing so weak in the presence of who was likely her brother's murderer.

He smiled coldly, revealing perfectly aligned white teeth. His canines were longer and sharpened to a fine point, she mused warily. "Yes, I'm glad you remembered. Although I can sense the doubt rolling off of you in waves."

"I doubt your name is actually Karl."

'Karl' gave Bianca a chilling glare, before throwing his head back and laughing. Once he had calmed down enough, he gave her a look that said everything. 'No shit Sherlock, now hurry up with the damn accusations.'

"You killed him." It surprised even her, the owner of the quote, which the ease in how it slipped out of her lips.

"Yes." Equally as calm.

"Why?" She cocked her head about 20 degrees. "He never did anything to you, as far as I know. You had no provocation, no?"

Unlike the first smile, this one was filled with pain, regret, sadness and - was that sadism? Maybe she'd gone loony. But it flickered away after a second.

"You're next." The words had barely left his mouth and into the cognitive part of Bianca's mind before he lunged forward, severing both of her arms from her body. She remembered screaming in absolute agony, with only the ability to think of survival, nothing else. Blood, well Chaosdamnit, the blood was everywhere, shooting out in all directions from her shoulder sockets, flowing up Thalia's pine, and Karl, dammit she got distracted, staring at her flailing armless body in mild amusement - wait, why is blood going up Thalia's pine?

The pain subsided, barely enough to read the words written in her own blood. You failed. That's the message. She growled, but as fast as her momentary bravery (in her plan to take down Karl of course) came, it was gone, and absolute pain came back to fill it.

Her consciousness lifted out of her body, surveying the sight. Bianca - herself - lay twitching , almost unrecognizable if it weren't for the randomly helpful scars that spelled out her name on her chest. When did she get those scars? In her former state of agony, she hadn't seen Karl slip away, like the coward he was, and now he was nowhere to be seen. Percy, still as dead as ever, that is, until he slipped off the branch with an ease she didn't know he possessed. Walking right up to her until there was a mere three feet between them, he fell to his knees, suddenly looking impossibly weak.

"Why? Why did you do it? I thought I could trust you with my life, Bianca. Never in the three years together did the thought of you being a - a traitor cross my mind." Each word felt like Percy was punching her with her own guilt. Nothing came close to this pain - mentally and physically.

"I - I…" she struggled to find words, partially because she was still strained from the pain, partially because she had no response.

"I HATE YOU!" Those three words said everything else. Turning on his heel, Percy ran, still with parts of the branch in the gaping hole in his body, blood trailing his path.

"Bianca!" She turned and ran. One.

"Bianca!" Collapsing at the base of the hill, she finally let out the pent-up storm of emotions she had been feeling ever since that weird 13:62 time. Two.

"Biancaaaaa!" Tears rolled freely down her face, marring normally beautiful cheeks and eyes. Three.

And...a resounding SLAP! Echoed through her head. She raised a hand to her face, finding a red hand print.

A cacophony of voices sounded out, seemingly from nowhere. Short phrases she could make out, for a time, then everything just drifted in and out of her senses.

Apparently, her consciousness decided to make a break for it, seeing as she fainted on the grass shortly thereafter.

Finally, godsdamnit, I'm done. By this point, I'm ready to punch a wall or two (and get fired from my job rip).