Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson. It's sad, I know, but we all have our own burdens to suffer...

Hmm... What can I say? It's another update (yay!) and I feel like it was fast (shush if it wasn't). Also, thank thank thank you all for your support! I mean, look at it! My story has achieved over 145 Favourites and 165 Follows! Wow… Just wow… (This is for you guys!)

Anything to say… Nope, that's it. So, here be the responses!

The Invisible Pretender: I'M BACK! Yeah, I kinda made the 'Annabeth is getting betrayed' part kinda obvious… but yay! At least my mind can be translated by others (Thank the lord for that)!

Wrestling is my best skill: Meh, sorry I don't see Percy as the loner. And your favourite AU with Percy against the gods? Really? That makes me blush!

life is short so am I: Best name EVER! Anyway, I don't know what's happening to Annabeth (but I'm leaning to a certain decision). Percy has three personalities: Flirty (from his love domain), Normal (from being stuck in a white room for thousands of years - it'd make anyone bland) and his third from his fear domain (not spoiling the surprise!). No, I don't think he will open up to Annabeth. Maybe Zoë will open him up, just wait and see. Blackjack? Hmm… I don't know… Mrs O'Leary? HELL YES!

The Nutty Squirrel: NOM NOM TO YOU TOO!

Renu: Really? That good? Wow… Thanks… Wow, I'm blushing here… Anyway, Hylas absolutely hates the gods (and because he's immortal, they can't do jack) so he's a prat because of that.

Paradosso di Assassino: …I have no idea how to respond…

Menaphite: I know! There's like none where the Titans are just normal, and even less where Gaia is (albeit they are actually evil in Greek Mythology, but still…) and personally, I like it when Percy hates the gods.

Kb646: I forgot about them completely… No, he didn't (I'll give you that).

To the rest: Thank you! Your words make me feel good!

~Nom Nom :3

PS: I've found time to write, so don't expect lots of updates, but don't expect none either!

Bane of Khaos

Chapter 6 - Annabeth Goes Crazy

Luke, by nature, was a cautious person. Like all demigods, his body and mind were hardwired for combat, yet his was more so. Years on the streets had changed his son of Hermes instinct (which was usually either pissing about, stealing or both) to someone who relied only upon themselves. Now that he was the medium for Kronos to re-enter the world, it just amplified his own worry and paranoia about one thousand times. He felt the pressure from all directions (the gods, the titans, the campers) and was quickly becoming slightly insane with his paranoia, thinking everyone was out to get him (which they soon would be, but his mind smothered that thought deep down), making him to fall back to, once again, his instincts.

Yet, he was currently ignoring them. They were screaming him to leave quickly, that the longer he lingered the higher the chance that he would be discovered and suffer the wrath of the gods, but he still ignored them and approached the bane of his existence, the one place that really hurt him deep: Thalia's Tree.

Thalia… she had always been a sore spot for Luke. They were together for years, but then she up and 'died' on him or whatever the hell she did with the pine tree (his ADHD brain was leaning towards the word treekinesis) and that hurt him deeply. They were best friends, she was the only person his instincts allowed him to fall back onto, and that worked fine, even though he had always secretly wanting more (that bitch of a daughter of Athena was lusting after him, and he saw how it irritated Thalia).

Yet, right before they last say each other (and she pulled the whole pine tree fiasco) she kissed him. It wasn't like any of the other kisses they shared (accidental, she always said), but something deeper. There were open mouths, tongue and teeth clanking. It was that, and that reason only, that Grover was able to drag him past the camp border and into safety. Whenever he thought about it, he wondered if she did it only to allow him to be saved or if she wanted to be true to herself for a last goodbye.

Now though, he was doing something that he swore to himself never to do for years (not since he failed to retrieve one of the Golden Apples of Immortality from the Garden of Hesperides which he was hoping to use in a ritual to Hecate and Thanatos to hopefully bring Thalia back). Hope. He had hope, a hope to reunite with Thalia, to see her again. Because of a mere demigod's words (he knew he wasn't actually a demigod, but that meant nothing) he had hope. Hope to see Thalia again, and to finally be able to kiss her again. They were a family, and they were always together until Annabeth.

Annabeth was someone he hated from the deepest depth of his heart. It was all her fault, if she didn't act like that when they ran into The Army, Thalia would be alive now, and they would be happy. He shook his head - it does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live. That was Thalia's favourite saying, and it made him smile slightly.

He stealthily slipped out of Cabin 11 (not an easy feat) with his bag of supplies and made his way up the hill. It was midday, and it was only due to his father's skills that he managed to avoid being detected by anyone. When he reached the hill, he stopped and turned around, looking over the camp. This was the last look of it he would have while he was welcome, because no matter if Thalia did come back or not, he would leave for good.

He checked his watch and silently waited until it was time. It seemed to take forever, and he was almost at the point where he would start accusing Kronos of interfering with time when the watch beeped. It was time. He waited, watching the tree with suspense, but nothing happened. It was another false hope. He was mistaken yet again.

Right before he turned away, ready to walk away forever, he heard a voice.

Wait. It hissed.

It was the familiar sensation he had come to respect over the past few months; Kronos himself was speaking to him.

My Lord? He questioned.

Wait. Kronos repeated. Wait, young Luke, for my brother does not give gifts lightly.

G-Gift?

My elder brother rarely blesses anyone, be it immortal or mortal. Apart from myself, there are only four others have received his blessing, two from the last week alone. Your friend is one such mortal. Kronos smirked. Or should I say one such immortal?

Luke gulped and decided to wait. It didn't take long (he suspected his watch had been tampered with), only about an extra minute or so before the tree shimmered. It was only for a fraction of a second, but in that time, Thalia fell out from inside the tree, aged about 17. She looked how he always thought she'd grow up to be: short black hair, black clothes with various chains and skulls on them, and looking like she had just fallen out of a modelling magazine.

Luke smiled softly, the first true smile in years, and approached her, picking up her limp body. He was in Percy's debt, but he didn't care anymore. He had Thalia back where she belonged: with him.

The three of them spent the rest of their time in silence. After Percy returned with food, they ate and slept. Annabeth was beyond frustrated that night, and the two days following it, as Hylas had gotten 'inspiration from a poodle' and found a train heading west. So, for two days, they remained quiet in their train compartment, the silence grating at Annabeth's nerves. Then, she just couldn't take it. She snapped.

Without a thought of what may happen, she grabbed the necks of both Percy's and Hylas' shirts and jumped off the moving train.

In hindsight, it wasn't the best idea. For starters, this was a moving train (that was taking them directly where they needed to go) so the landing hurt. Second was the fact that she decided to jump out the door atop a hill, causing them to roll down like potato sacks, her grip on the two boys causing her more problems than she would've thought. Then it was where they ended up.

She had gotten word (AKA an Iris Message from Chiron) that The Army were in St Louis hunting the Chimera and Echidna, so she planned to avoid there completely. But the Moirai had a funny sense of humour, and they decided to let the city which they ended up in to be St Louis.

She had never liked The Army, especially Zoë Nightshade. It all started when she, Thalia and Luke crossed paths with them many years ago…

Luke, Thalia and Annabeth were walking through the streets of a small town in Texas. The air was hot and dry, and they were all soaked in sweat, their bodies refusing to stop wasting their precious water. They were being chased by a multitude of monsters - they had been since somewhere near Dallas - and were almost at the end of their rope.

Annabeth collapsed first. Her small seven yearold body wasn't able to cope with all tth stress, and her knees just gave out. Luke and Thalia stopped and helped her, but their pace slowed and the monsters didn't. Annabeth was sure it was the end, until a Hellhound exploded into golden dust.

The monsters didn't even have time to blink before they were swarmed with masses of people, all wielding swords, maces or spears, all a dull grey colour. For a moment she though it was steel and began to shout a warning, but the weapons had an effect on the monsters and they were harmed, a multitude of them turning into dust.

It only took about a minute, but the group dispatched all the monsters effortlessly and flawlessly, earning envy from Annabeth which quickly turned to shape. How dare she feel envious of those who saved them!

A young woman, looking about sixteen years old, approached them. She was wearing steel armour, plated so it looked more form-fitting, with an engraving of two crossed swords over her heart. Underneath it, in big gold letters read the word 'Lieutenant', covering her whole left breast. She smiled at them, and sheathed her long sword of steel.

"Hello." She greeted them. "I am Zoë Nightshade, Lieutenant of The Army."

"The Army?" Luke asked. "As in, the navy and all that stuff?"

Zoë merely smiled. "Ah, you do not know much of our world, do you young demigods. The Army stands for The Divine Army of Mankind, led by Heracles to rid the world of monsters."

"Heracles?" Annabeth asked. "You mean Thalia's half-brother who married Hebe? Heracles of the Twelve Labours?"

Zoë's eyes darkened at the mention of Hebe. "Heracles did not marry her-" She spat the word like it was an insult. "-but yes, that Heracles."

"Why did you save us?" Thalia asked, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. "My father doesn't care for me. None of our godly parents care for us."

"Lord Zeus doesn't dictate The Army's actions." Zoë said. "Heracles just wishes that another one of his half-siblings doesn't die because of Lady Hera's rage, or because of age old limitations."

Thalia nodded.

"And I am also offering you a safe haven. There are only two places in the whole world where all the gods agree on something. That is The Hunters of Artemis, and The Army. Because of the deeds performed by us and The Hunt, all gods let any demigods and mortals remain in their respective area, and because The Hunt only allows women, we thought that we could offer you a place here. Both you and your friend Luke will be able to join, and we can escort your friend Annabeth here to another safe place: Camp Half-Blood."

Annabeth froze. She was going to take away her family, and leave her all alone in a strange place. What was even worse was the fact that Luke and Thalia were actually considering it.

"We a-" Thalia began, but was interrupted by Annabeth.

"NO!" She screeched. "You will not leave me! YOU WON'T ABANDON ME!" She turned to Zoë. "You will go now before I call all the monsters here!"

"Annabeth, stop it!" Luke shouted, but she ignored him.

"Minotaur, Medusa, Mormo." Annabeth recited. "Harpies, Ichthyocentaurs, Stheno, Euryale, Lamia, Hydra-" Luke clamped his hand over her mouth, but it was too late. A monster roared in the distance, another one cackled, while a third hissed.

"You idiot child!" Zoë hissed. "Even we cannot fight all those at once! Goodbye, stupid mortal."

With those parting words, she was gone with the rest of The Army, leaving the three of them to deal with the monsters.

Now that she thought back on it, she acted like a child. She summoned too many monsters which ultimately lead to the death of Thalia… No, it wasn't her fault! It was Zoë's! She shouldn't have tried to steal her family from her! Thalia died because of her! If she saw her again, she would not let mere words pass between them.

Annabeth's thoughts were interrupted when she landed face down on a concrete pavement. Groaning in pain, she warily pushed herself up, getting ready to help both Percy and Hylas up, only to find that they both were watching her, looking both amused and angry.

"Care to explain?" Hylas asked, tapping his foot.

Annabeth chuckled nervously. "I wanted to be in St Louis because… Of the Gateway Arch… And also The Army is here!"

Percy looked pleased at that. "The Army? Good, there is someone I want to talk to in there..."

It escaped Annabeth's mind that Percy shouldn't know what The Army stood for.

They wandered about St Louis for about half an hour before they found something worthwhile: a fat woman walking a small Chihuahua. Normally, this would've fell under the category of worthless, but there were some problems with them both: the dog was drooling some form of black sludge, its eyes were completely black, and the woman had a forked tongue flicking out her mouth.

With a subtle look towards Hylas, Percy approached he woman while Hylas distracted Annabeth talking about knowledge or architecture or something like that. Without her noticing, the two began to gradually move away from him.

"Oh look son!" She smiled, her mouth revealing long, sharp white teeth. "Another little godling!"

Percy smiled. His mind shifted slightly - very much like a god's would when their aspect changed - to his third, most evil personality, one he had never used for over two thousand years.

"Well well…" He said quietly, his voice spreading like a thick, black fog. "Now I must say that this… This is a surprise…"

His voice was lower than it had been before, holding a deep menacing growl as an undertone, the words vibrating in her very bones. It made her freeze up, partially in fear while partially in recognition. She knew exactly who he was, as she has heard the voice so many times before, and no one else she had met had been able to prompt her body with such a fearful reaction.

She opened her mouth, closed it and swallowed then opened it again, her voice a small dry croak. "F-Father?"

He smiled, showing all his teeth. His body aged rapidly to one of an eighteen year old's, his clothes changing to black all over with chains and spikes coming off it. Tattoos covered his skin, black and red, forever shifting and changing like they were alive. He gained multiple piercings: for in each ear, two in his mouth and one above his left eyebrow. Now he looked intimidating to match his voice - a perfect example of what people in feared.

"Hello Echidna. What, no hug for you dad?"

He opened his arms wide, an invitation for her to run to him. She did just that without a moment's hesitation, her cheeks wet with free-flowing tears. In his arms, she changed back to her young, beautiful body that Percy had first created for her when he decided Typhon should have a consort. Her hair lengthened, and became a fiery red, and her skin darkened, so it became a deep brown colour. Her eyes remained black, but tears clouded them.

"Where have you been?" She whispered after she was able to calm herself.

Percy laughed, the noise making Echidna shiver. "Well you know… Here, there…"

She half laughed half sobbed in his arms. "No, but you left! When the Titans fell and Gaia fell into a slumber, you just vanished! Typhon was sealed, and I with our children were forced to be fodder for the stupid godlings! You didn't even contact me, or anyone!"

Percy narrowed his eyes slightly. "You think I wasn't planning? Khaos herself is behind them, and I am the only one who will be able to even stand against her." He suddenly smiled widely. "And here comes another stage in my plan."

Echidna quickly turned around and saw a young woman, about sixteen years of age, wearing steel armour, plated so it looked more form-fitting, with an engraving of two crossed swords over her heart. Underneath it, in big gold letters read the word 'Lieutenant', covering her whole left breast. She narrowed her eyes at them, and levelled her sword so that it was pointing at them.

"Echidna and…" She asked, her body tense.

"Now now…" Percy taunted, his voice making the woman flinch back a step and lower her sword a fraction. "If it isn't Zoë Nightshade, the Lieutenant of The Army." Percy took a step forward, so that he was now in front of Echidna, while Zoë inadvertently took a step back.

"Wh-Who are you?" She demanded bravely, if not slightly nervously. Percy admired the fact that even though she was scared, she still stood her ground. "This is no concern of you!"

"It is if you want my daughter." He said, smirking at the reaction he got. Her eyes widened, her sword lowered fractionally again so now it was levelled at his stomach and not his chest, yet she still stood her ground.

"You're… Tartarus?" She whispered, her voice small and cracking.

"Ah, people do say that I look like my father, but I have my mother's eyes."

Her brow furrowed in confusion. "Your father is Tartarus and your mother…" She looked at the glowing green orbs, but couldn't put her finger on where she had seen them before.

"Let me give you a hint." Percy said. "She had green eyes like mine, she's powerful… Oh yeah, they call her Mother Earth?"

Zoë took a few steps back in alarm and almost dropped her sword. Anything born from two primordial - especially Tartarus and Gaia - was extremely bad news. Percy ignored her hesitation and leaned in to her ear and whispered to her.

"Youre going to leave, and go back to Heracles. Tell him I know where Hylas is, and he will see him. Soon." He paused for a moment. "And I will see you soon too, Nightshade. Real soon."

Zoë blushed, and Percy flicked his wrist. The earth around her feet rose up and wrapped around her, covering her completely before it collapsed, her body disappearing. He turned back to Echidna.

"It feels like I'm sending everyone to Tartarus…" He muttered. He lent in and kissed her forehead, making her body disintegrate into dust.

Now that she was gone, Percy allowed himself to de-age back to his twelve year old self before looking at the Chimera. It was sitting patiently while Percy chatted with both its mother and The Soldier, sensing the power he had.

"I want you to chase us." He commanded, his voice back to its neutral state he had spent thousands of years in. "Make sure you do not catch us, but also ensure that the pesky daughter of nosiness does not catch on that you want to chase us. Make sure you chase us to where Ares is." The Chimera nodded understandingly before trotting off, getting into position. Percy sighed, and began walking away at a leisurely pace towards Hylas.

The redhead was in shock. She had just saw a boy age before her eyes, a woman change her appearance, another woman wield a sword before the man frightened her and performed at what looked like magic to the women to make them disappear, then he calmly talked to the giant lion/snake/goat creature before it trotted off. Then he de-aged like it was nothing and just walked off.

"Rachel!" A voice called from behind her. "We're leaving in a moment!"

She sighed but shouted back that she was coming before she thought about what she had just seen. Yes she had saw magic (that is what she dubbed it as) but didn't entirely hear what they said. There were snippets, but there were only four names (what she perceived as names anyway) which she heard clearly: Gaia, Tartatus, Echidna and Chimera. Sighing, she turned around to the limousine, thinking about all the research ahead of her to solve the mystery.

Annabeth felt cheated. Both herself and Hylas were chatting about architecture - something that even her siblings from Athena couldn't keep up with her - and they were doing fine until a loud roar from behind made her jump. Turning to look she saw a lion with a goat head on its hack and a snake for a tail running towards them. The Chimera, she cursed. It was exactly what they needed.

Wit beyond measure is a man's greatest treasure. She calmed herself down and let her logical side take over, rationally taking everything in. Then things went from bad to worse.

"Where's Percy?" She shouted as soon as they began running. Hylas quickly glanced around them before shrugging.

"I don't know. Maybe we forgot him?" He asked her, making her scream her frustration.

"He's your friend isn't he?"

"Well he can handle himself."

"It's great that you think that, but what if he's lying dead in a ditch somewhere?"

"It is nice to see such faith in my survival skills." Percy said from just behind them, making Annabeth almost jump out of her skin while Hylas merely smirked.

"Took your time, didn't you?" Hylas said, taking a risky glance to see Percy's face. One look was all it took, and he instantly knew that it wasn't a coincidence that the Chimera was chasing them. That made his mouth twith - it was so typical of him.

"I hate to say this, but it is getting faster. We need to run quicker." Percy calmly stated, making Annabeth almost tripped.

It would be a miracle if she finished the quest and she was still sane…

Ah I know it's not the best, but it had importance to it. Next chapter has Ares, so who knows what'll happen…

This is filler chapter. I'm sorry if it's not what you expect, but it makes certain points that I needed to make.

Ok, who Percy has blessed in order:

1 - Kronos

2 - ?

3 - Hylas

4 - Thalia

5 - Medusa

Who is number 2?

Yeah, this is just to make you think. Also, I've decided that there is no 'Sea of Monsters' in this, it'll just go straight to 'The Titan's Curse'.

Until next time…

~Nom Nom :3

PS; Anyone notice the three Harry Potter references, eh? I just couldn't help myself, they just fitted in!