Hey guys...

Yeah, I realize it's been a long time. About two weeks of nothing, and I apologize! After my birthday, that whole week I was super busy with I don't even remember what. And then, after that, the next week I left to go on something called EFY (Especially for Youth). It's where you go to a church camp for a week and meet other people with the same faith as you. One of the best experiences of my life.

ANYWAY, enough about that. I'm not preaching. I'm back and ready to write! WOO. Let's get it started, shall we? Since I held out on you for a while, here's a long chapter for all ya'll.

Let it commence.

"They're back? What do you mean, 'they're back'?" I snapped, suddenly turning angry.

"Jason, Piper, and Leo just showed up on the tables during lunch. They're a mess. We're just waiting for you and Rachel to get back to camp before we can talk about what they did," Butch said.

I jumped to my feet and started pacing, shaking my head. "No, no, no-no-no-no! They can't be back..." I muttered.

"Why not? They're back by the solstice. Honestly, I thought they would be dead by now. It's amazing."

I rounded on him. "I haven't found Percy, that's why! He's still gone, and I am in freaking Utah! I went all this way for nothing." I started to sob dryly, sitting down hard.

Butch looked sympathetic, and a bit uncomfortable. "Annabeth...we're all upset that he's gone. But I have a feeling that these guys might know something about Percy's disappearance. I just...know they do." He cleared his throat. "Blackjack can get you back quickly with his travel-warp. If he isn't too exhausted, that is."

His words reassured me, and I took a deep breath. "I...I'm sorry. I've just been through a lot, and I took it out on you."

He nodded. "We've all been through a lot, Annabeth. But there's no need to worry. We'll find Percy."

I smiled weakly. "Thanks, Butch. You've helped me a ton. I appreciate it. I'll be back soon."

He smiled back and I waved my hand through the image, breaking the mist apart.

I turned and faced Blackjack, who had stood up. "Are you ready to get back?"

He flicked his tail in response.

I scowled at him. "You don't need to act like that. What if I gave you a box of sugar cubes, and maybe some apples when we get back. Would you do it then?"

He trotted over and stared at me.

"Okay, fine, no apples."

He snorted happily and, after checking to make sure I wasn't leaving anything behind, clambered on his back. As he bounded forward and snapped his wings out, catching to the air and taking off. I looked behind me, spitting hair out of my mouth, and glanced at the blackened area where the Eagle had exploded.

I blinked a couple times, and then turned away from it, leaving it behind me.

I patted his neck. "Hey, buddy, I'm thinking that you've been working hard. We can do the travel thing tomorrow. We can stop at a store and I can buy you those sugar cubes today."

He neighed happily and he beat his wings harder until we broke above the line of clouds in the sky. The sun rays bounced off the top of the clouds, and the sky was impossibly blue. Blackjack's hooves skimmed the top of the clouds, and I lifted my hands up in the air, smiling like a lunatic.

I'd been riding an emotional roller coaster, and I finally decided that I was getting off. I was done being sad. A determined feeling crept into my heart and I punched the air and let out a scream.

I couldn't wait to get back to camp.

xXx

We were back in the forest. I set up a campfire and leaned against Blackjack, handing him sugar cubes in my hand.

I started to think about what Jason might have discovered while he was gone. Did he know where Percy was? Maybe he knew about that ruined house in California. He could confirm that it was related to Percy in some way and settle my suspicions.

Blackjack interrupted me by nosing my hand, looking for more cubes.

"Whoa, boy. I'm not letting you get a stomach ache because you ate too many. I'll give you more tomorrow."

He stared at me, and then flopped his head down on the ground, closing his eyes.

"G'night," I muttered, putting my head on his side, and slowly closed my eyes.

I flicked the reigns of the chariot, and it lurched ahead, leaving my stomach behind. We were about to round the last corner when I heard a small thunkof something landing in the chariot.

"Percy!" I yelled, not wanting to take my eyes off the track.

He took his sword and flipped the Greek fire out of the chariot, flicking it over to the Hephaestus chariot. The driver yelped and dove out right as it exploded.

I yanked the reigns to the side, making the horses skitter and make the final turn to the finish line. We crossed and the crowd roared.

When the chariot skidded to a halt, everyone jumped off the stands and mobbed us.

"Hold up!" I shouted, so everyone could hear me. "Listen! It wasn't just us! We couldn't have done it without somebody else! We couldn't have won this race or gotten the Fleece or saved Grover or anything! We owe our lives to Tyson, Percy's..."

"Brother!" Percy shouted. "Tyson, my baby brother."

The crowd cheered, and heart pounding nervously in my chest, I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, my lips tingling. Blush flooded Percy's cheeks, and he was grinning. The crowd roared even louder, and we were lifted up on their shoulders.

xXx

"Annabeth!" Percy yelled in my ear.

I clamped an invisible hand on his mouth, and his face looked shocked. "Shh!" I hissed. "Do you want to get us killed?" I yanked him behind a bronze cauldron.

He groped around with his hand, feeling for my head, and pulled off my hat. I scowled at him. "Percy, what is your problem?"

"We're going to have company!" he whispered hurriedly. He told me about the monster orientation class. I was shocked.

"So that's what they are," I muttered. "Telkhines. I should've known. They're making...Well, look."

We peeked over the edge of the cauldron.

"What is that?" Percy exclaimed.

I shook my head. "They keep talking about fusing metals. I wonder-"

"They were talking about the greatest Titan weapon. And they...they said they made my father's trident," Percy said.

"The telkhines betrayed the gods. They were practicing dark magic. I don't know what, exactly, but Zeus banished them to Tartarus."

"With Kronos."

I nodded. "We have to get out-"

The classroom door exploded, and young telkhines poured out, looking confused.

"Put your cap back on! Get out!" Percy yelled.

"What?" I shrieked, scared. "No! I'm not leaving you!"

"I've got a plan. I'll distract them. You can use the metal spider-maybe it'll lead you back to Hephaestus. You have to tell him what's going on."

"But you'll be killed!" I cried, tears pricking my eyes.

"I'll be fine. Besides, we've got no choice."

I glared at him angrily. Then, I did something unexpected. I leaned forward, eyes closing, and kissed him on the lips. I felt him relax slightly underneath my lips, and I pulled away.

"Be careful, Seaweed Brain," I murmured, staring at the dumbfounded expression on his face, and slipped on my cap, vanishing. I lurched away from him and ran down the catwalk, tears streaming down my face, my fingers touching my lips.

I blearily blinked my eyes awake, and shadows from leaves fluttered across my face. I stretched, popped my back, and sat up.

The fire had gone out during the night, leaving charred remains of smoking wood. I nudged Blackjack while stuffing some beef jerky I'd picked up from the store in my mouth.

"Hey, wake up. We've got to get back to camp today."

He didn't move.

Rolling my eyes, I pulled out a sugar cube and waved it in front of his nose. His eyes snapped open, and, like a vacuum, sucked up the sugar cube.

"Ha ha," I laughed sarcastically. "Come on. Get some food and let's go."

He stood up and stretched his legs, and then trotted around, looking for a good patch of grass to eat.

When he finished, I had stamped on the fire and was waiting for him. He walked over slowly and yawned, shaking his mane.

"You always know how to irritate me," I told him, hoisting myself on his back.

Once finding a good opening for us to leave the blanket of trees above us, we were soon soaring through the sky.

"Are you ready to do your thing?" I asked him.

He didn't answer, so I took it as a yes.

I twisted my hands through his mane and clenched my feet against his side.

"Okay, I'm ready!" I shouted, squeezing my eyes shut.

I felt him put on a burst of speed, and I felt like I was being shoved through a tube, my stomach flipping over itself.

The sensation passed slowly, and when I cracked open my eyes, I saw him circling over Camp Half-Blood stables.

"You did it," I gasped, sucking in air.

He was beating his wings weakly and he landed sloppily.

Horns started to blare, and I heard people yelling at each other, and soon kids in orange t-shirts had rushed over to us.

"Annabeth! You're back!"

"Percy! Where is he?"

"I'll tell Chiron you're here!"

"Do you know where he is?"

"Leo threw up in the burnt offerings!"

I jumped off Blackjack and shoved through the crowd, leading him back to his stables. He entered gratefully, and after giving him a couple more sugar cubes, practically collapsed on the ground.

Leaving him feeling comfortable, I was mobbed again by campers.

Suddenly, Piper appeared at my elbow. "Come on, I'll take you away from this. You've got to make it to the meeting. Everyone's waiting for you."

She grabbed my hand and towed me away, leaving behind dissatisfied campers.

"I've got to go get Jason. Rachel is here, too. Just head to the meeting," she said, and walked off towards the Zeus cabin.

Brushing my hair back into a ponytail, I walked inside the Big House and sat down in an empty chair around the Ping-Pong table. Everyone looked at me, some sympathetic, some expecting something. Pulling out my knife and twirling it my hands, I ignored them and ran the blade under my fingernails.

Jason, Piper, and Leo came in and took the last seats. I glanced up, staring at him, almost trying to extract information out of him.

"Let's come to order," Chiron said. "Lou Ellen, please give Miranda her nose back. Travis, if you'd kindly extinguish the flaming Ping-Pong ball, and Butch, I think twenty pencils is really too many for any human nostril. Thank you. Now, as you can see, Jason, Piper, and Leo have returned successfully...more or less. Some of you have heard parts of their story, but I will let them fill you in."

Everyone shifted their gaze to Jason, who cleared his throat and began telling his story. He talked about Festus, and Boreas, the Cyclopes, Medea, King Midas, finding Thalia and visiting Aeolus, and finally the fight on Mount Diablo and a ruined house.

My heart skipped a beat when he mentioned it, but I didn't say anything.

He finally ended with Hera's visit right before the meeting, saying that there is another group of demigods...following Roman tradition.

"So Hera was here," I said. "Talking to you."

He nodded. "Look, I'm not saying I trust her-"

"That's smart," I interrupted.

"-but she isn't making this up about another group of demigods. That's where I come from."

Everything suddenly fell into place-the reason that Jason knew the gods, but in their Roman form, and why he could speak Latin, and how he had a coin that could turn into a sword. The burn marks on his arm with the Roman motto.

"Romans," Clarisse said, chucking a Snausage to Seymour. "You expect us to believe there's another camp with demigods, but they follow the Roman forms of the gods. And we've never heard of them."

"The gods have kept the two groups apart," Piper said, "because every time they see each other, they try to kill each other."

"I can respect that," Clarisse said. "Still, why haven't we ever run across each other on quests?"

"Oh, yes," Chiron said, looking sad. "You have, many times. It's always a tragedy, and always the gods do their best to wipe clean the memories of those involved. The rivalry goes all the way back to the Trojan War, Clarisse. The Greeks invaded Troy and burned it to the ground. The Trojan hero Aeneas escaped, and eventually made his way to Italy, where he founded the race that would someday become Rome. The Romans grew more and more powerful, worshiping the same gods but under different names, and with slightly different personalities."

"More warlike," Jason said. "More united. More about expansion, conquest, and discipline."

"Yuck," Travis gagged.

Mostly everyone looked uncomfortable about the idea, but Clarisse shrugged.

I put my knife on the table and started twirling it around. "And the Romans hated the Greeks," I put in. "They took revenge when they had conquered the Greek isles, and made them part of the Roman Empire."

"Not exactly hated them," Jason said. "The Romans admired Greek culture, and were a little jealous. In return, the Greeks thought the Romans were barbarians, but they respected their military power. So during Roman times, demigods started to divide-either Greek or Roman."

"And it's been that way ever since," I guessed. "But this is crazy. Chiron, where were the Romans during the Titan War? Didn't they want to help?"

Chiron tugged at his beard. "They did help, Annabeth. While you and Percy were leading the battle to save Manhattan, who do you think conquered Mount Othrys, the Titans' base in California?"

"Hold on," Travis said. "You said Mount Othrys just crumbled when we beat Kronos."

"No," Jason said. His eyes flashed in remembrance. "It didn't just fall. We destroyed their palace. I defeated the Titan Krios myself."

California...I knew there was something...off...about that place. Especially around... "The Bay Area. we demigods were always told to stay away from it because Mount Othrys was there. But that wasn't the only reason, was it? The Roman camp-it's got to be somewhere near San Francisco. I bet it was put there to keep watch over the Titans' territory. Where is it?"

Chiron shifted uncomfortably in his wheelchair. "I cannot say. Honestly, even I have never been trusted with that information. My counterpart, Lupa, is not exactly the sharing type. Jason's memory, too, has been burned away."

"The camp's heavily veiled with magic," Jason said. "And heavily guarded. We could search for years and never find it."

Rachel laced her fingers together. "But you'll try, won't you? You'll build Leo's boat, the Argo II. And before you make for Greece, you'll sail for the Roman camp. you'll need their help to confront the giants."

"Bad plan," Clarisse warned. "If those Romans see a warship coming, they'll assume we're attacking."

"You're probably right," Jason agreed. "But we have to try. I was sent here to learn about Camp Half-Blood, to try to convince you the two camps don't have to be enemies. A peace offering."

"Hmm," Rachel murmured. "Because Hera is convinced we need both camps to win the war with the giants. Seven heroes of Olympus-some Greek, some Roman."

I nodded, thinking hard. "Your Great Prophecy-what's the last line?"

"And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death."

"Gaea has opened the Doors of Death," Annabeth said. "She's letting out the worst villains of the Underworld to fight us. Medea, Midas-" The Lamia, I thought. "-there'll be more, I'm sure. Maybe the line means that the Roman and Greek demigods will unite, and find the doors, and close them."

"Or it could mean they fight each other at the doors of death," Clarisse pointed out. "It doesn't say we'll cooperate."

Everyone fell silent, and I started to think hard. Jason mentioned a peace offering. And if he's the leader of the Roman camp-

"I'm going," I almost shouted. "Jason, when you get this ship built, let me go with you."

Comprehension dawned on his face. "I was hoping you'd offer," he said. "You of all people-we'll need you."

"Wait." Leo frowned. "I mean, that's cool with me and all. But why Annabeth of all people?"

I looked at Jason, and I knew we were thinking the exact same thing. The same horrible thing.

"Hera said my coming here was an exchange of leaders," Jason said. "A way for the two camps to learn of each others existence."

"Yeah?" Leo said. "So?"

"An exchange goes two ways," Jason said. "When I got here, my memory was wiped. I didn't know who I was or where I belonged. Fortunately, you guys took me in and I found a new home. I know you're not my enemy. But the Roman camp-they're not so friendly. You prove your worth quickly, or you don't survive. They may not be so nice to him, and if they learn where he comes from, he's going to be in serious trouble."

"Him?" Leo asked. "Who are you talking about?"

"My boyfriend," I said grimly. "He disappeared around the same time Jason appeared. If Jason came to Camp Half-Blood-"

"Exactly," Jason said, nodding. "Percy Jackson is at the other camp, and he probably doesn't even remember who he is."

Yay! Recycled cliff hanger! I don't know. I really couldn't find a good place to cut this off, and anyways, I promised you a long chapter!

Thank you to everyone who follow this story and added it to their favorites list. All ya'll are just incredible, and super nice, too!

Okay, this isn't even that awesome, but when I uploaded this with out all of the A/N, it was 3,000 words exactly! For some reason, it just made me happy.

Alrighty bo-bighty slo-vighty, drop me a review! Tell me what you think.

TRIVIA QUESTION JUST BECAUSE I WANT TO:

Who exactly is the last Olympian?

Leave your answer in the reviews or private message me! I'll mention your name if you get it right.

Okay, I think that settles it. Until next time!

OKAY BYE.