The prophecy in the last chapter? Forget about it. It wasn't really important…or maybe it was. MUAHAHAHA!!!

As always, please R&R!

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"So," I said. "What's this quest even about?"

"Well," Rachel said from the tree, "There supposedly is this all powerful sword or something that we need to find. It's said to be the only weapon that will truly kill Kronos."

"And we're supposed to be looking for it?"

"Yep." She giggled to herself as she gripped the branch and climbed even higher. She looked down at me, her eyes bright under her ruffled hair.

"Be careful," I insisted when I saw her hand slip.

"I will."

"What are you even doing up there?" I asked, slightly confused.

"I always think better under the sky," she said dreamily. "The wind rushing through my hair, the birdsong. It's incredible. I think the Oracle likes it."

"So it helps you think. You think you might find out where it is if you sit up there forever?" I was appalled at the idea that Rachel might have to become a squirrel.

"Maybe." She sounded distracted.

A sleepy feeling stole over me, and I sank to the ground in exhaustion.

"Gotcha," a voice whispered in my ear.

* * * * * * * ** *

The drachma felt weighted in his hand. There was only one way he was going to figure out who this Ryley was, and that was to ask.

Surely she wouldn't get mad because he hadn't talked to her in weeks?

Finally he decided.

The drachma soared through the air, disappearing with a loud pop.

"Camp Halfblood, please. Annabeth Chase."

The vision shimmered before him as Isis granted his request. Suddenly there was a girl in front of him, leaning over a table. Her blonde hair shimmered as she lifted her head.

"Percy?" she whispered, her grey eyes lighting up.

"Hey Annabeth." He grinned.

"What are you doing?" Annabeth asked in a whisper, looking around the room wildly. "You know what Chiron said!"

"I found Nico and Thalia. And we're doing the quest."

"No!" Annabeth hissed. "You can't! Rach-the Oracle said one of you would-"

"I know. But we still have to do it. Trust me, Annabeth. Please."

Finally she nodded, visibly shivering. Percy wished he was there to comfort her. She looked so sad, leaning over the laptop Daedulus had given her. Which reminded him of the reason he had called.

"Annabeth, can you look something up for me?"

"Sure." She sounded confused. "What?"

"Look in the files." Percy gave her a huge wink.

"Oh. Alright."

"Look up Ryley."

He watched her slim fingers skim over the keyboard, her fingers slipping on the ys and the e. She was still upset, and there was no way he could help her being as far away as he was. He couldn't reassure her that he wouldn't be the one, because he had no way of knowing. It would break her heart if he were wrong.

"There's nothing on Ryley, but there is one Rylin."

"Click it." She did.

"Whoa. Whoever this girl is, she sure is mysterious. There isn't much on her."

"And?"

"It says here she's a halfblood, but her parents were unknown."

"Were?"

"Yeah. She died in the last war with the Titans."

"You're right. That long ago?" Percy felt disappointed. It meant that Ryley was exactly who she said she was, a mortal with the power to see through the Mist.

"Yep. It also says here that she was known for picking a fight with Kronos, but he never was able to kill her."

"You're joking, right?" He remembered the time he had fought Kronos; the Titan had been so powerful and he was almost killed.

"Well I doubt Daedulus or Chiron would be wrong. They were the ones who uploaded all this info."

Percy agreed. "How did Rylin die, then?"

"They don't know. The whole thing happened so oddly. She was seen before the battle, but not after, so they just assumed she was a casualty of war. It made sense, since she went after Kronos."

"Is that it?"

"Just about. Just one more thing. She…whoa."

"What?"

Annabeth's voice was hushed and full of awe. "Rylin was the owner of the legendary weapon you guys are looking for. She called it Aryryn, which stood for Rain in old Greek."

"That's impossible…"

"And there was a prophecy about her, and it's so old the only one who would remember would be the Oracle. If I were you I'd ask Rachel about that. It could hold the key to finding Aryryn."

"Thanks, Annabeth."

"No problem, Percy. And…please come back alive." Her eyes were wide and earnest, and Percy was suddenly struck by the urge to kiss her.

He found himself saying "I will. I promise."

The window closed.

What had he done?

* * * * * * * * * *

"Ryley!" Rachel was screaming. "Ryley! Wake up!"

I felt like I had swam for hours in a deep, dark ocean and was suddenly finding that I was drowning. Rachel's cry shattered through the illusion, and I was suddenly up on my feet, my hand snatching Aryryn from its sheath.

The only problem was, I didn't know who to point my sword at. There were at least fifty versions of the Titan grinning at me, and I couldn't find Rachel.

Aryryn thrummed angrily, humming against my fingertips.

"I had hoped you would stay asleep longer than that, demigod. You give me no choice but to kill you myself." The whisper echoed as all of the Titans closed ranks.

"Rachel, where are you?!" I cried.

"Here," Her voice was fading.

I narrowed my eyes angrily. The earth around me rose up suddenly and I bowled over at least half of them with small boulders. I twirled my sword, beckoning the rest of them.

"Come and get it!" I yelled.

"Oh dear, Rylin. As eager as always for a fight, I see. But there is no point this time; with a wave of my finger I could put you to sleep forever." The cold voice sliced through the mist, and my knuckles tightened around Aryryn, turning them to white.

"I can't let you take Rachel," I growled.

"Rachel? Is that the Oracle's name?" His voice sounded genuinely curious, but I knew it was his way of playing with his prey before he killed them.

"Yeah. And you better let her go."

"Kronos has been dying to see you, Rylin. He absolutely misses you."

"Forget it," I breathed, knowing he would hear me. "I won't go anywhere near that creep."

"I have a proposition for you, demigod. If I release the Oracle, you must swear on the river Styx that you will return to Kronos. No harm done."

I watched the mist, and I almost felt a heartbeat nearby. It could only be Rachel's. I would never find her in this mist; the Titan would kill her before I could react.

"Very well," I sighed, my breath misting out and curling about my head. "I swear on the river Styx that I will return to Kronos, whole and unharmed, so that the Lord of Time may kill me as he wishes. That good enough for you?"

"Very much so, demigod," a voice whispered in my ear. I turned to find nobody there.

"Ryley?" Rachel's voice asked.

I looked up to see Rachel in the tree just like she had been a couple minutes earlier. Her face was confused.

"Where'd the Titan go?" I asked, my eyes widening when I found Aryryn in its sheath.

"Titan? You have such an imagination, Ryley. There's no Titan here," Rachel replied, finally reaching the top of the tree. She leaned into the breeze, the look on her face pure ectasy and bliss.

I heard a rustling in the bushes, and Nico popped out. I raised my eyebrows at him, getting a look shot back in return.

"Percy has a few questions to ask you, Rachel," he said, turning to the Oracle. She nodded solemnly, no hint of pleasure on her face now. She made a pouting face as she climbed down, nearly falling several times from high branches. I was relieved when she finally touched the ground, brushing past Nico into the bush.

I sighed. My thoughts were on Kronos once again. What reason would he want me for, besides the fact that he wanted to kill me so bad?

"How did you know Hades is my father?" Nico asked me, his hands in his pockets. He leaned against the tree, a serious look on his face.

"I've met a kid of Hades before," I said carefully, then realized that he would wonder how. I was supposed to be only 15 years old. If Nico knew he was the only one to be born in the last century (which he was) then I would wind up in trouble.

But instead he was looking at me in shock. His dark eyes were wide, and I found myself looking into them longer than I would have liked.

"You knew Bianca? How…?" Nico was grappling with his thoughts. Unknowingly he'd just given me a way out. But who was Bianca…?

"Yeah, I did," I lied, knowing he would unconsciously give me more space to back into. Being alive for more than one century gave me excellent insights into how people act. It also allowed me to sense others' emotion, like I was doing with Nico right now.

"You knew my sister?" He seemed unaware that I had already answered him, his mind completely immersed in old memories. So Bianca was his sister. But how could that be possible? I would have known about it, unless she had become immortal somehow, like me. I instinctively knew when demigods were born, and I saw them as small flickers of fire in my mind. But there was a drawback- I could only see the flames if they were reasonably close, like within five miles or so. The stronger the immortal parent, the bigger the flame. I had already seen Nico's flame in my mind, and reasoned that I had never seen any like it. Even Lyss's fire had been different.

"Yeah," I repeated gently. I felt bad for the kid.

Nico's eyes closed as he sagged against the tree. I winced as I felt the emotions filling the air, pain being one of the most clogging. I waited patiently, knowing he would never accept my help.

Finally his eyes opened again, looking straight at me. They looked right through me, seeing everything I was ashamed of, laying out all my secrets. We stared at each other for what seemed like forever, in silence as his eyes examined me.

"Let's get back to camp," Nico said tiredly, closing his eyes as he beckoned toward the bush for me to go first.

His voice made it sound as if I failed something I should have passed.

* * * * * * * * * *

"I can't believe it!" Percy burst out, pacing back and forth across the tent floor. "She refused to tell me anything about the prophecy!"

"Ask again; the Oracle has never denied to give a prophecy before." Thalia said comfortingly. "Listen, Percy. You're obsessing over nothing."

"But she told me she'd only say it to the right person! And I can guess who that was," Percy added darkly, stopping in front of the Hunter.

"Ryley." Thalia said, her voice a collage of emotions. "But you seriously think it has something to do with Aryryn?"

"It has everything to do with Aryryn! The prophecy was about Rylin, who owned the sword at one time. Maybe it'll tell us where it is," Percy commented hopefully.

"I hope the Oracle doesn't tell us," Thalia said, grinning wickedly. "I still owe Ryley for what she said to me yesterday."

"Just don't hurt her permanently," Percy ordered. "We still need her."

"Oh, I won't." Thalia said with a secretive gleam in her eyes.

Revenge is ever so sweet.

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I said it once, I'm gonna say it again. MUAHAHAHA! I've never really liked Thalia, and apparently neither does Rylin! If you like Thalia, try to convince me by reviewing and telling me why the heck I should like her. Maybe I'll change my mind.