And, since I know you all hate me for the cliffhanger, I decided not to torture you. At least, not for very long. :)

Here is the conclusion of the *current* Primordial conflict.

Happy Reading!

Also, at the end of this chapter, for those interested, there is a story from my daily life that I thought was particularly entertaining. Enjoy!

Chapter XXXIII

Frank

Thalassa slashes with her dagger, leaving a shallow cut across Percy's chest. Percy doesn't even flinch.

Frank releases his arrow, but it passes through Thalassa as if she were made of air.

"Why won't you be afraid of me, demigod?" Thalassa hisses, glaring at him. Percy meets her gaze easily.

"Because you don't scare me. Nothing does, anymore." He tells her. Frank has the feeling that's not entirely true, especially since Percy's eyes flicker, for one fleeting moment, to Annabeth. But he can't exactly blame Percy for not wanting to tell his fears to an enemy.

"Oh, yes, I'd imagine I seem tame after meeting Nyx and her children," Thalassa says, "but make no mistake, I am not one to be trifled with."

Percy pales a bit at the mention of Nyx's name, but Frank also sees a familiar gleam in Percy's eyes that had been missing before. A corner of his lips twitches up into a half-smile.

"No one says 'trifled' anymore, Thalassa. And you are definitely not Nyx." He says, a hint of amusement in his tone.

Thalassa seems to grow more solid as her anger grows. Frank can see hints of black in her watery hair, and pale white colors her skin, making it less see-through.

"Your death will be more painful than a thousand trips through Tartarus." She snarls through a mouth full of teeth. "And as for your friends, you will watch them die. Starting with your precious daughter of Athena."

Frank wants to do something besides stand there, but he knows he's powerless against Thalassa. Anything he tries to hurt her will just go right through her. He takes a step forward anyway, with Hazel at his side. But he falters when he sees the look on Percy's face.

It is beyond anger, beyond hate, beyond fury. The look on his face is pure, unadultered rage. More than that, even. Beyond just rage. But Frank has no words to describe it. Percy's green eyes blaze, burning into Thalassa's own eyes. She hesitates before dissolving-again-into a swirl of water vapor. A horrible, taunting laugh echoes around them.

Maybe I'm not much for hand to hand fighting, Perseus Jackson. Her voice is eerily quiet and low-pitched, unlike the way it has been, and it makes Frank shudder, because it sounds so much like Gaea. But as I said, I fight dirty.

The wind starts to howl, and the water swirls around them even faster. And then an invisible force pushes its way between Percy and Annabeth and tears them apart. Percy's manages to keep his grip on Annabeth's hand a little longer. But then a hand forms from the mist and swipes at Percy's hand with a dagger, causing his hand to spasm and let go. Annabeth is tossed into the wall, hard.

"Annabeth!" Percy's voice is anguished. From the pain in his eyes, you would think he'd been the one who hit the wall, not Annabeth.

Frank steps towards Annabeth, who's already starting to struggle to her feet, in order to help her, but the wind pushes him backwards. He finally stops moving when he crashes into something warm and soft.

"Owww." Leo groans. Frank is currently crushing him against the controls. He struggles to move, but the wind is still shoving against his chest, pressing him back even farther.

Hazel starts towards him, but is sent flying too. But there's nothing solid to stop her. She slides to the edge of the ship, scrabbling for a hold, but finds none.

"Hazel!" Frank cries out. He struggles even more against the invisible force pinning him down, to change his form, anything, but he's too distracted.

Finally, right before she would fall, Hazel manages to grab a hold of the railing. She dangles off of the side of the ship, gripping tightly to the railing with white fingers.

Percy is the only one still standing. The misty vapor swirls violently around him; the wind whips his hair into his eyes. But he stands firm.

Frank watches him with wide eyes. The rage is back in his eyes, but worse, if that's even possible.

"Thalassa!" He demands. "Show yourself!"

Oh, I think not. She says, her voice amused. It's so much easier to control you when your friends are in danger.

"Let them go, Thalassa." Percy orders. "They haven't done anything to you."

No, but you have. Thalassa responds. And my sister has promised me everything I could ever want in return for the capture of two, a boy and a girl. And the death of the rest.

"You aren't going to hurt my friends, Thalassa." Percy says firmly. How he can be so sure, Frank has no idea.

Says who? Thalassa asks in a teasing tone. She sounds like a flirty teenager. Gross.

"Says me." Percy answers. "And trust me, you really don't want to mess with me."

Oh, but I do. I really, really do. Her voice is like a caress, as smooth as silk. Gaea told me your fatal flaw is loyalty, Perseus. Her voice has dropped to a whisper, so that Frank has to strain to hear her.

"And that's a bad thing?" Percy demands.

Thalassa ignores him. She told me that you would destroy the world to save a friend.

Frank sees her face start to form in the air at Percy's shoulder, not solidly, but enough. The mists swirl to form her head, neck, and shoulders, although the rest of her body remains a cloud of vapor.

She puts her lips right next to Percy's ear. Is that true, Perseus? Is it true? Are you so loyal that you would choose your friends over the world?

Percy flinches sideways, away from her. "Why does it matter to you, Thalassa?"

Because, if it is true, I can imagine so many fun things we can do. She answers, her voice breathless, girly. I could make you watch your friends die. I could make you watch as I killed them, one by one.

Percy's face is like granite. He stares straight ahead, seemingly as if he can't hear her. But Frank can see the light of anger in his eyes, a certain set to his jaw that convinces him his friend is far from giving up.

I would save your daughter of Athena for last. Thalassa croons, as if reading a bedtime story to a child. Force you to listen to her screams.

Frank has stopped struggling by now and is watching Thalassa taunt Percy with a horrified curiosity. Leo is still shoving at his back, trying to get Frank off of him, but Frank doesn't even really notice.

You know, Gaea told me something else as well. Thalassa muses, pulling back from Percy with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"And what might that be?" Percy asks, in a voice that says he really doesn't care.

Something very interesting. She says, prolonging the moment. She said that you let two friends die for you in Tartarus, just so that you could escape. Her mist eyes glance over at Annabeth, struggling against the wind. And your girlfriend as well, I suppose.

Percy is frozen. There's pain in his eyes, anguish. Frank has never seen Percy look this way.

Of course, they were lesser beings. Thalassa dismisses them with a wave of her hand. Imperfect. I mean, a peaceful Titan and Giant? Who's ever heard of such a thing? They were of no use to Gaea. You did her a favor, really, letting them die for you.

Percy starts to shake, as if cold, and Thalassa doesn't seem to notice that it's from anger, not fear.

It intrigues me, though, that you would let friends die for you when your fatal flaw is loyalty. All for a girl.

Percy's grip tightens on his sword. His free hand clenches and unclenches into a fist.

She must be very dear to you, this girl, for you to do so much for her. Thalassa's voice has gone quiet again. I wonder how you will react to her death?

Her form starts to solidify, making her less vapor and more water. Color starts to seep into her form. Black hair, pale, pale skin, blood red lips. She wears shimmering indigo robes.

Because you must know it is inevitable, when everyone around you dies. You are cursed, Percy, cursed like that girl you abandoned on Ogygia.

Frank is confused. What is Thalassa talking about? But behind him, Leo goes utterly still.

Except that the ones you love won't leave you voluntarily. She adds. Their deaths will be completely your fault. But that's the end of the taunting. Now it's time for the fun.

Thalassa looks more human than ever. She looks like solid flesh and blood. But as she moves to take a step away from Percy, she pauses, and then steps back to him. During all of it, she's completely, inhumanly silent.

Oh, but one more thing. I have a secret to tell you, Perseus. And she leans forward until her blood-red lips are so close to Percy's ear that she practically kissing him, and she whispers something to him, too quietly for Frank to hear it.

Percy pales. But the anger in his eyes only grows.

As Thalassa pulls away, an evil smirk on her face, Percy whirls and plunges Riptide into her gut. Unlike Frank's arrows, the sword doesn't go through her as if she's made of water. A nimbus of blue-green light wraps around Percy's hand where it grips the hilt and twists down the blade like electricity.

Thalassa doubles over, her hand clutching the blade in her stomach, her red lips a perfect 'O' of surprise.

"I have a secret to tell you too, Thalassa." Percy says, as if he wasn't currently stabbing her. And he leans forward and whispers something in her ear.

A strange expression crosses Thalassa's face, something that Frank doesn't recognize.

Percy pulls back, his eyes stormy. "Suffer in Tartarus, Thalassa."

And then he pulls his sword out of her gut, stepping back.

For a moment, nothing happens. Then Thalassa's skin goes transparent again, but still solid, like glass. And the Primordial goddess of the sea shatters into a million pieces.

It releases the most horrible, high-pitched scream Frank has ever heard. He claps his hands over his ears in pain. The sound is like nails being driven into his brain.

Percy doesn't seem bothered. As the scream fades, the wind dies, and the water splashes back down into the ocean. Frank stumbles forward, barely hearing Leo's sigh of relief behind him, and races across the deck to the place where Hazel is still clinging to the railing. He grabs her hands and pulls her up, straining, and they both collapse into a heap, with his arms wrapped securely around her. She's shaking violently, her face pale. Frank helps her to her feet, but keeps his arms around her.

He turns just in time to see Percy lean down and pick something up from the deck, inspecting it briefly before pocketing it. He caps Riptide and then his expression changes back to the Percy that Frank knows best. He sprints over to Annabeth where she leans against the wall, looking dazed.

"Annabeth!" He cries. "Are you okay?" He grabs her by the shoulders and looks her all over for any injuries.

She nods weakly. "I'm okay, Percy. Thanks to you." Percy pulls her to him and hugs her tightly.

"I'll always be there for you, Wise Girl." He says softly, stroking her hair.

Frank looks down at his own girlfriend, at Hazel. And he holds her even tighter.

Story time!

Alright, I have no idea how we came to be on this topic, so don't ask, but my friend and I were messaging back and forth about babysitting.

So this is our conversation:

Me: Why do they call it 'babysitting' anyway?

Friend: idk

Me: Is that how they did it in prehistoric times so that their kids wouldn't run away and get eaten by a dinosaur?

Me: "Here, sit on my daughter, I need to go hunt dinner."

Me: "Watch out, she bites."

Me: Next morning: *teeth bruises all over 'babysitter's' bum

Friend:...

Friend:...

Me: Are you dead?

Friend: I just died laughing. Lol. :)

Me: You know, I honestly didn't laugh or feel amused by that until you told me you laughed. Then I laughed.

*END*

So, that was just a bit of randomness from my daily life.