A/N: Just a few more chapters and the Titan's curse arc of this story will be over. I thank you all for staying by my side and supporting me from the start of this story. I hope this chapter exceeds expectations and tell me what you think about it, alright? I'll try to be more consistent in my updates and I would like it if you all visited my personal profile and checked out a few of the stories I will be releasing soon. Leave a vote or kudos if you liked the chapter and a comment or review to tell me what you think. Thanks for reading!

-TripleHomicide.

LUKE glanced around him, biting his lip anxiously. Calypso was hiding away from the world, in this secluded town. She had told him only a few gods knew her location and that was it. The daughter of Atlas had attacked him with her magic when he'd said her name. And he hadn't been able to defend against her because who had ever heard of a sword cleaving through a choking spell? He had managed to tell her he was a demigod and not a Titan or monster and she had let him go, although still wary. He honestly didn't know how he had ended up in the small house she lived in, at the edge of the small town. Luke and his faithful companion, Blackjack, had followed her there and she had given the pegasus some food.

He did not trust her—not after what he had seen from Perseus' memory. Not after what he'd watched her do to Thalia's friend. As he stared at the titaness, he got a faint feeling that she looked like someone he knew. But he could not, for the life of him, remember. Calypso had allowed him to stay the night and after a lot of hesitation, he had. But he hadn't slept. Not one wink. Now it was dawn and she had called him down for breakfast.

The girl set a plate of bacon, toast and eggs in front of him, with a glass of juice. "Eat," she commanded. He eyed the food, not touching it.

"If I was going to kill you, Luke, don't you think I would have done so last night while you dozed off in your attempt to stay awake through the night?" Oh. So he had slept.

He still didn't touch the food, though. "I promise it's not poisoned, son of Hermes," The caramel haired girl took a seat in front of him. At his silence, she huffed. "Fine, if you're not going to eat, you can start answering my questions. How did you find me?"

He was still wary and uneasy. But he found himself speaking, although he didn't want to divulge anything important to her. She might have been an ally to the gods during the first Titan war but she had used deception to aid them to win. She could switch sides at any moment. "It wasn't intended," He said, looking into her almond eyes. "I was travelling to San Francisco and happened to stop here to rest." Calypso didn't look like she believed him.

"A demigod, travelling to San Francisco of his own accord? That's a bit hard to believe, boy." Her words made him lick his lips and he suddenly remembered who she reminded him of. Zoë Nightshade had the same angular and lithe features as Calypso, but with different hair and eyes. He frowned as Calypso cleared her throat. "Tell me the truth, Castellan."

"I am," He said, lips pursed. "I'm on a quest. I got separated from my quest members somewhere in New Mexico, in the Junkyard of the Gods."

She leaned back, eyes narrowing. "You're part of the quest to find Artemis and Apollo, are you?" He nodded his affirmation.

Calypso sighed, standing, "So you are all going to meet your death, then? Like the thick, stupid demigods you are." He frowned again, eyes glinting dangerously. He didn't care if she had magic or was one of the greatest sorceresses in the world. Sure, the life of a demigod was hard and brutal. But who was she to judge? She was a titaness, fully immortal, with some wicked powers. She didn't have to worry about being killed if she so much as took a wrong step while walking.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," He snorted at the girl. "And I'm sorry to disappoint you but no one is going to die on The Mountain. We're going to rescue the Olympians, find Annabeth and then decide whether to pull the ruddy sword out of the stone or not." He didn't know why he said what he did. But instantly Calypso turned rigid, her head swinging to him, eyes widening in shock at the same time. Luke met her gaze head on, cursing himself for mentioning anything related to the Titan of the Earth. He hadn't really decided on what to do yet. He'd been conflicted the whole flight over. Thalia said Perseus was good now. If Luke pulled out the sword and Thalia was right, he would help take down his family in a matter of minutes. But if she wasn't, he would turn on them and Luke and Thalia would be the cause of the destruction of the world.

"What did you say?" Calypso managed.

"It was nothing," Luke stood. "I'd best be going now. Thank you for your hospitality." Calypso's brow creased and she waved a hand. Luke felt himself plop back down in his seat. "What do you mean you're going to pull out the sword?" She looked dangerous. Rage and a little bit of fear passed through her eyes at that moment and despite himself, Luke shrank back.

"I didn't mean anything by it," He said, clearing his throat. "Just my mouth moving faster than my brain." She was still tense, looking on at Luke in unease.

"You're in contact with Perseus," she let out in a shallow breath. When he didn't answer, Calypso waved an arm again, muttering something under his breath. Luke's mouth was forced open and the words tumbled out against his will.

"I'm not. A friend of mine is, though. Thalia, Zeus' daughter. She's the only one who can see him and she's been able to see him for four days ago or so. Apparently, he's good now. All he wants to do is get off his Island. He doesn't want to fight the Olympians, so Thalia says. But I don't trust him. He might be playing us."

He glared at the sorceress. She had used magic to force him to tell her what he was thinking. She realised a shaky breath. "You're smart, Luke Castellan. Wise, for not trusting him blindly. Perseus can never be trusted. Not unless you want the world as we know it in shambles. His release will rip this earth apart."

He arched an eyebrow, as if asking what she meant. Calypso looked distraught now. Almost nervous. He understood. If Perseus was set free, he might take revenge on her for her betrayal. That's why she looked so anxious. Finally, she said, "You say your friend is the only one who can see him but how can you be so sure?"

"What do you mean?" He asked, cocking his head to the side.

"The Olympians would never allow for even a fragment of his soul to be out of Ogygia. Whoever has been allowing his through is powerful—and not an ally. How do you know if he's in contact with the Titans if you can't see him? How do you know your friend isn't bewitched or brainwashed?" Luke felt the doubts form in his mind. Calypso was right. What if Perseus had been communicating with Kronos?

"No matter what you do, Luke Castellan, do not pull out the Sword from the Stone," She warned. "Do not set him free." Luke frowned, worriedly, more doubts forming in his head.

-X-

PERSEUS was fascinated with this San Francisco place.

It was beautiful. Full of green hills and trees and forests and he felt the earth humming in anticipation when they landed on the ground. He could feel the power course through his veins at the contact. San Francisco was surrounded by fog and there was a whole lot of earth. Perseus glanced at Thalia. They had been travelling for the entire night and she had fallen asleep on his shoulder while they rode the pegasi. Granted, it was not voluntary, seeing as she was still mad at him but he had liked it anyway, for some very weird unknown reason. He had had several hours to think about what he had done. Several hours alone to feel guilty about the position he had put her in. Several hours to try to convince himself that it was for a greater cause—his freedom. He had apologised to the sleeping girl silently, trying not to feel worse for trying to separate and turn her.

"We're in San Francisco," Grover breathed out. "We made it."

The atmosphere was tense. They had gotten to where they needed to go. But now it seemed no one knew what they had to do next. Thalia folded her arms, speaking, "Let's find Nereus, like Hermes suggested. Then we can finally make sense of what the prophecy meant by the banes of Olympus."

Zoë nodded, fiddling with her knives. "The Old Man of The Sea. He is very knowledgeable. A complete thickhead, but wise."

"He's never going to give up information so easily," Phoebe shook her head. "The last time we met him, we had to put a knife at his neck and tie him up with ropes, then douse the ends of those ropes with greek fire." Perseus shuddered involuntarily. The hunter's stories were always so…violent.

"It will be hard to find him, but not impossible," Zoë said. "Just follow the smell."

"What?" Thalia blanched, eyeing Zoë.

The huntress sighed, then glanced around her. "Come. I will show thee."

They followed Zoë for a while and after a few minutes of walking, Grover's nose scrunched up in distaste. "What the hades is that smell?" Thalia was frowning and Phoebe's features contorted into a grimace. Perseus inhaled, then gagged suddenly. He didn't know where it was coming from or what it was coming from, but the smell was horrible. It was just nasty. They continued walking and as they did, the smell intensified. Zoë spoke again when they stopped at a wooden pathway to the water.

"He's down the pier, among the homeless vagrants." She nodded towards a group of men in the distance. "Who shall go find him?'

There were a few heartbeats of silence, then Thalia said, "I will." It was sad, really. If Luke had still been with them he would have obviously been the one to seek information from the old man. "How do I know which is Nereus?"

"He'll smell different," Phoebe answered. "Grab him, with all your strength, and don't let go." Zoë nodded in agreement. Thalia exhaled, then took a step forward. Perseus found himself following after her as she walked down the pier. He lingered behind, wary about walking too close to her in case she snapped and tried to electrocute his head off.

"You don't have to follow me, you know," She said when they were out of hearing distance.

He was silent for a few seconds, then said, "But I want to." She didn't reply. Perseus sighed, then ran a hand through his hair. "Look, I'm sorry for yesterday, alright?" She did not say anything. "How can I make it up to you, Thalia?" She frowned, then stopped, turning to him. "There's no need to apologise, Percy. You just showed me reality…it was harsh but, that's what's real." He licked his lips, her words making him feel bad all over again. He could see she wasn't in the mood to talk about what had happened or listen to his half-arsed apologies.

He jogged forward to catch up with her, saying, "How are you going to catch Nereus? From the stories I've heard, he'll jump into the water once he sees you coming. And neither of us are water people." They were marching past numerous homeless people, trying to ignore the overpowering smell. Thalia paid the old men around them no heed, walking forward and trying to spot Nereus. Her reply was short and clipped. "We'll just have to keep him from going into the water, then."

Suddenly, she stopped. Perseus halted next to her, brows creasing. The smell was bad. Horrible, but…different. It smelled like the ocean. Like poisoned water. Their eyes drifted over to a man with white hair and a large white beard, wearing torn and dirty clothes. His eyes were shut and he was basking in the sunlight, at the very edge of the pier. Perseus tried to figure out a way to help his friend. There was no earth to encase him with and Thalia hated heights so she couldn't fly into the air with him. There were several mortals around so doing anything with weapons would be risky.

The man's eyes suddenly flew open and landed on them. His lips curled in distaste and he hissed, standing. "He's seen me," Thalia murmured. "He's going to escape." Before he could speak she was running, tearing down what was left of the pier and racing for the old man of the sea. Just as Nereus turned to go into the water, Thalia jumped, tackling him from behind. They tumbled off the edge of the pier and Perseus found himself unfreezing the shock he had gone into when Thalia began running. He was chasing after her a second later, her name on his lips, worry and panic flooding his veins.

"Thalia!" He came to a stop at the edge of the pier, peering down into the blue liquid. "Thalia!" He could see bubbles; she was under. How could she breathe? A daughter of Zeus in Poseidon's domain? If the water didn't drown her first, Poseidon surely would. He counted. One, Two, Three. "Thalia!" He was fretting, calling down to her. Four. Five. Six. No response, no sign of her being there anymore. Seven. Eight. Nine.

He muttered an obscene curse word he had learnt from Apollo and prepared to jump into the water. Thalia wasn't surfacing and although he knew that going into the water would alert the god of the sea of his presence outside Ogygia, he would risk it. He would risk it to save the life of the only real friend he had had in six millennia. Suddenly, she burst through the water, gasping for air, but still clutching to the man, who had seemingly stopped struggling. Perseus barely registered the others coming to stand next to him.

"You caught him," Zoë said, sounding impressed.

"Oh, thank Gaea, you're alive," He sighed in relief. "You scared me, Thals." Thalia gave him a forced smile, then turned to glare at Nereus. "Now answer my question," she snarled. "Who are the banes of Olympus?' Nereus grumbled angrily, then said, "It's quite obvious, you stupid girl. The first one stands before you, stripped off most of his powers and exiled to solitude on an island. The second is his pet. He's right there." Thalia turned to the side and Perseus' eyes widened when he caught sight of the bull-serpent hybrid—the Ophiotaurus. Thalia blinked, then turned to Nereus again.

"Where are Artemis and Annabeth?" She was glaring at the man, although Perseus wasn't sure he was the one she was angry with.

"Only one question per capture," Nereus snapped. "That's the rule! The deal is complete!" With a loud POP he turned into a small fish and swam away.

-X-

THALIA was mad. She was mad at Nereus. She was mad at Percy. She was mad at herself. Nereus had said Percy was the bane of Olympus. She had been certain about that already but she couldn't believe he had lied about the fact that he knew that the Serpent Bull was the second bane. He had lied—he told her he didn't know what it was. And all this while it had been his bloody pet? She jumped out of the water and stalked towards him. She didn't care that she would look mental. She had to ask.

"You lied to me." She came to a stop in front of him. "Why?" Perseus looked down, biting his lip. Thalia wanted to smack someone. She narrowed her eyes when he looked up, his green eyes shining with guilt and remorse like he was struggling with something.

"He's dangerous. Sacrificing the Ophiotaurus' entrails in fire would bring down Olympus. I didn't want you near him. Especially not when Kronos has been trying to turn you."

Thalia took a step back in shock as Percy's pet mooed. "You expect me to believe that? How can I know you've not been working for Kronos all this time? We needed to find the monster Artemis was hunting, you knew that. Besides, what do you have to gain by helping Olympus?"

"Are we missing something here?" Phoebe's hands were on her knives. "Who are you talking to, Thalia?" Zoë's eyes were wide and glinting dangerously, like she was just realising what was going on, Nereus' words still resonating in her head. Thalia frowned, turning to the others. The bull mooed again.

"The Ophiotaurus says she's talking with…Perseus. His protector," Grover's voice was uncertain. "Thalia, please tell me he's not referring to the Titan."

Thalia sighed. She supposed it had to come out. "I have something to tell you all. I'm sorry for keeping this to myself but he's been here since that first time in Maine. And—"

"And he 'as failed," A voice with a thick French accent came from behind them. Thalia spun, eyes widening. "He has failed Lord Kronos. Perseus has failed to turn you and the Crooked One is unhappy." Thalia barely processed the monster's words. Her eyes were wide as she took in the number of mortal mercenaries around them. She faintly saw the Ophiotaurus submerge. They had been so busy talking they had gotten distracted. Her hand went to her canister of mace and she tapped her silver bracelet and watched it enlarge into her shield. She glanced at her friends, who looked equally alert. But she could see hurt shining through Grover's eyes and complete rage in Zoë and Phoebe's. They were all angry at her—angry that she had kept such vital information from them. Angry that she had been working with the most dangerous Titan for all these days.

Thalia turned away from her friends, facing Dr. Thorn. He looked just the same as before, his lips stretched thinly into a smile. "Thalia," She heard Percy's voice from beside her. "Let me help you."

"Sod off, you bloody arsehole," She snarled. Her fingers shook as she processed the manticore's words. Luke had been right all along. Perseus was not to be trusted.

"Thalia—"

The daughter of Zeus flipped him off then hurled her mace canister into the air. It fell and she grabbed her spear, then launched herself forward, anger clouding her sense of reasoning.

XMX

THALIA didn't know how long they did battle. But she knew that things were definitely not going their way. Already, Grover had been incapacitated and knocked out. Phoebe and Zoë were trying to take care of the overflow of mercenaries whilst Thalia had a rematch with the Manticore, Dr. Thorn, who had transformed into his monster form. Thalia frowned, jabbing forward at him with her spear. The beast sidestepped her attack, his hands slashing forward.

She raised her shield and the lion paw slammed into it, pushing her back a few feet. Thalia felt anger surge through her veins and then she was launching herself forward again, stabbing at Thorn. He stepped back, but she was quicker. The daughter of Zeus spun her spear, slamming its non-business end into the lion's head. Thorn roared, but she was having none of it. Thalia dodged under his paw once again, anger fuelling her reflexes and instincts. She bolted up, using her shield to slam into Thorn's face. The Manticore hissed at her, but his tail lashed out and Thalia barely avoided being used as a pincushion.

And then he started throwing his tail-missiles.

Thalia grunted when one grazed her, tearing through her jacket. All around them the homeless men and other people were screaming and running. Grover was still out cold whilst the Ophiotaurus mooed. Thalia raised her shield to block another missile but was pushed back a few feet once again. Thorn hurled a flurry of the projectiles at her and she grunted when they completely threw her off her feet. Her mind went back to days ago when Perseus—who had been an enemy all along, according to Thorn—had helped her and shielded her from this beast.

She stood, wiping blood from her lips. She ached all over and was feeling groggy and tired. Thalia scowled as she took in her surroundings. Phoebe had a bullet in her leg and was bleeding out on the ground whilst Zoë tried to protect her friend. They were losing the battle and that too, quickly. The blue-eyed girl inhaled. She would never allow them to be killed or taken. Not willingly. Her eyes drifted to Perseus, who was just standing still as if he was in shock.

Her scowl hardened and she jumped forward, to attack Thorn once again.

-X-

PERSEUS stood still as a statue, a mountain of emotions slamming into him repeatedly. He frowned as he watched the battle, unable to get involved because his mind was still processing the daughter of Zeus' words. Thalia probably hated him right now and she had clearly asked him to sod off, whatever that meant. He had seen Grover being knocked down by a burly man and he had done nothing but watch as the others were overpowered.

Guilt flooded through him, bringing along remorse and pain. Misery was his companion as he stood, all alone, like he had been doing for millennia, whilst everyone hated him. But this time, everyone was Thalia. He had betrayed her trust and he felt sad and guilty for everything he had done. He had placed doubts in her mind and tried to separate her from the others, so the Titans could have her captured and turn her with the promise of unparalleled power.

He felt angry that Dr. Thorn had come. Angry that he would probably never be free. He felt mad that he had allowed himself to be used by Kronos once again, just like he had been used by Gaea and the other Titans thousands of years ago. Just like he had been used by Calypso.

The Titan of The Earth heard the loud bang and then a scream pierced the air. Phoebe fell to the ground and he was reminded of the scene a few days before when a similar thing had happened. Zoë was battling so frantically, trying to protect one of her best friends from further harm. He watched as the mercenaries closed in on Zoë, backing her to the edge of the pier. The huntress of Artemis was running out of arrows, which was normally rare, seeing as her quiver was enchanted. She looked panicked and angry and worried all at the same time. Percy felt anger at being so close, yet unable to help as he watched powerlessly. His shock seemed to have shut down his powers. He couldn't do anything to help them. Thalia would hate him even more if he tried to aid them. She would say he was two-faced.

She would never trust him again.

So there he stood, best friends with guilt as she tried to overpower him, like she had been doing for days without end. She had come with remorse, making him feel sorry for what he had done. Pain, always their faithful companion, had made his guilt worse as he watched Zoë's bow snapped into two; she was bested by the numerous mortal men she and the other hunters hated so much. Anger and rage, sisters in arms, overtook him once again. Fear and panic, brothers in battle, came, the only males in his mountain of emotions, and for the first time in a while, the strongest Titan feared for someone else's life. He heard his pet moo and he unfroze.

He couldn't allow him to be taken by the Titans. Percy was tearing down the pier like Thalia had done, phasing through nameless and faceless mortals, trying to get to the Ophiotaurus. He was sure he had lost Thalia's friendship but he wasn't going to let his pet be killed.

He watched Zoë turn her back to the men in a flurry and whisper something under her breath, which she heard with ease.

"Go, find Lord Poseidon, tell him what has happened," Zoë ordered.

Moo. No, I can't leave without Perseus. That was his pet, faithful to the end. He remembered fighting against Kronos when the King had ordered that the Ophiotaurus, a gift from Pontus, be killed. He remembered being overpowered as all the Titans worked together to restrain him, in an attempt to destroy the upstart gods. But then it had happened and he had resigned himself to the Ophiotaurus' fate. The entrails were to be sacrificed to fire and he had thought, at least his sacrifice would not go in vain. They would finally have the power to defeat the Olympians.

Do as she says, He sent the instructions mentally as he ran.

Moo. But-

Just go! I can't lose you too. I can't let you be taken. He watched as the mercenaries grabbed Zoë Nightshade and one attacked her with the butt of his weapon. She was knocked out cold a second later.

Perseus stopped running, resigning himself to the fate of the others. He turned, watching them pick up Phoebe, Grover and Zoë. He watched Thalia attempt to fight against Thorn, sluggishly and slowly. She was winded, tired but still very angry. She was not going down without a fight and Perseus berated himself as he stood, watching. How could he have betrayed the only one he had called friend since Hephaestus, in six millennia? How could he allow this to happen?

A large mortal car skidded to a stop a few feet from them. Perseus watched Thalia take a manticore missile to the leg. Thorn's tail flung outwards and slammed into Thalia, knocking her out cold. Perseus watched them load the questers into the back of the large car thing.

He watched Thorn turn to him, smiling savagely. And the manticore turned away, morphing into a human.

Perseus always picked fight over flight. But right now, he knew what he had to do. He had to find Luke. He had to rescue Thalia. And he had to make things right. He shut his eyes, concentrating. He felt the earth beneath him turn to sludge and he began sinking. Thorn didn't care. The beast watched him go, thinking he was running away.

The last thing Perseus saw was the car moving away at unimaginable speeds, and then the earth swallowed him whole.

-X-

LUKE jumped off BlackJack, moving towards the door. He tensed suddenly when the atmosphere became electrified. He turned, and his eyes widened in surprise as Perseus was chucked out of the ground. He raced down the front steps, running to the clean-looking Titan of the Earth.

"Perseus!" He stopped next to him. "What—Why are you— Where're Grover and Thalia and the others?"

"You can see me?" The Titan asked in confusion. Luke nodded, not explaining that Calypso had cast an enchantment to help him see the Titan. "What's going on? I was just about to knock on the door."

"They're not there," Perseus looked down. When he raised his head, remorse shone in his eyes. Luke took a step back when The bane of Olympus said, "They were taken. By Dr. Thorn and some mortal mercenaries."

He took a few seconds to process the Titan's words. And then he snarled, "What did you do?"

The black haired immortal being grimaced. "Let's go inside. I'll tell you. I'll tell you everything."

-X-

THE GIRL turned when her mother and Aphrodite entered the room. She had folded her hands behind her back and her grey eyes shone with impatience as Dr. Thorn trailed after the goddess of wisdom.

Annabeth Chase arched an eyebrow. 'Well?" The Manticore smiled, lips stretching wide. "We have the daughter of Zeus like you commanded, Miss Chase." She nodded her approval, then said, "Lord Kronos is pleased with you, Thorn. You are dismissed." The beast slunk away.

Athena walked up to her, a smile on her face. "You have done it, Annabeth." Her mother held her shoulders. "You have made me proud." Annabeth tried to still the turmoil of emotions stirring inside her. She nodded to her mother, then looked towards the sarcophagus in the centre of the room. In the distance, she could hear Artemis, labouring under the sky whilst Apollo was being tortured by Lelantos. It was time for things to change.

The Olympians were going to fall. Annabeth would tear down the city in the skies, brick by brick. And then she would rebuild a new one, in the Earth and Sky and Sea, that would be theirs.

She would make a monument that would last forever.

She would have all the knowledge in the world. And knowledge is power. Annabeth Chase smiled to herself, then marched out of the room.

A/N: This chapter was short, I know. But it was extremely vital. I'm sure most of you didn't see Perseus' true intentions being revealed to Thalia coming so early. But you definitely knew it was Annabeth and Athena, didn't you? Them fanfiction folks are so perceptive. They saw right through everything. Thank you all for sticking with this story, two more chapters to go and this arc is complete! If you like, leave a vote, comment, kudos or review. Enjoy your day/night.

-TripleHomicide.