The day was cloudy as the Queen Anne's Revenge sailed to Catalonya, a western port that Ares was expecting one of his many brigantines to be waiting for him. The Lord Castellan of England had sent him a letter notifying him of their intent to depart the fleet by month's end, making the weeklong sail to the Caribbean from Port Elizabeth in the upper continent. Ares' reputation had become that of legend, one of the most notorious pirates in the west, up with the likes of Jason Grace, the man he'd mentored, and Perseus Jackson. Ares hated that name, the man who'd taken every lick of glory from him in the killing of King Boston. Castellan promised him Jackson's head personally as an agreement for his working with the East India Company. Ares knew he'd be shunned by every pirate living once word of his betrayal got out, but he knew it better to be on the winning side than the losing side, no matter what.
"Cap'n, we've got a ship coming up on our starboard." a crewmate said from the below the helm, and Ares grunted, turning and looking out to sea with his telescope. A colorless galleon was on their tail, unclear if it was chasing or not. Ares' first mate, Deimos, came to his side from the wheel.
"No colors." Ares grunted, handing the telescope to Deimos.
"That's the Athena's Heart." Deimos said, and Ares ripped the telescope out of his hands, looking back the ship. He barely recognized it, but Deimos was right. The sails kept perfectly, the hull lined with red.
"Aye it is." Ares hissed, turning to the deck. "Full canvas! Load the guns! We've got company!" he yelled, and the deckhands rushed around, lowering the sails to full canvas, giving the Queen a slight speed boost.
"Captain, we can't outrun the Heart." Deimos said.
"No we can't, but we can buy ourselves time." The Queen had just gotten out of a skirmish with a frigate near King's Head that'd done some serious damage, and she was still recovering.
—-
Percy stood at the bow of the Heart, staring down the Queen Anne's Revenge as they lowered their sails. The Heart would catch them in no time, but the Queen's armament heavily outnumbered the Heart's. Percy stood confident, knowing he had the trump card.
"How long do we have?" Jason said, coming up behind Percy.
"No more than minutes before we're by their side, then we take Ares." Percy turned to Jason. "Jason- before we go into battle here, I must remind you that to make the trip requires the soul of someone you care deeply for. Your mentor qualifies no doubt, but you cannot have second doubts here."
"And why do you care?" Jason asked, eyes locked on the Queen.
"I like to make sure we're all fighting for a common goal, Jason." Percy said simply. "We're within firing range." Percy said, turning around. He signaled to the helm, and gunports on the bow opened, firing two shots. One missed, behind the Queen, and the other made contact with the large quarters on the stern of the ship. Percy raised his telescope once more.
"They've taken damage already." He mused, "Must've just come out of battle." Jason did the same.
"You're right."
—-
The Heart caught up fast. Ares barked orders to the crew, preparing for the inevitable.
"Raise the canvas!" Ares said.
"But sir, they'll-" Ares waved off Deimos.
"It was only a matter of time, Deimos. We must face the enemy." The Queen's sails raised, and the ship slowed to a stop. The Heart matched the gesture, raising half the sails, keeping a small pace, as the chasing ship crept up to the starboard side of the Queen. Ares stared down the ship of Annabeth Chase, waiting to come in line.
"Fire!" He roared, and the Queen let off the guns, just as the Heart did. Both ships rocked with impact, and the crews immediately got to reloading.
"We're in swinging distance, captain!" A crewmate said, grabbing hold of a rope tied to the ship's mast.
"Board at your own peril! We will not go down easy, gentlemen!" Ares said, as members of both crews swung over to the opposite ship. Women from the Heart landed on the deck of the Queen, starting to cut down some of the crew, but the Queen hastily fought back, defending the lower gundecks. The two ships traded more fire, but the Queen had taken too much damage. Ares growled, preparing to cut his own rope and go to the Heart, but a man landed in front of him, all-black robes matched his hair, and he immediately drew his sword.
"Jackson."
"Been a while, Ares?" Jackson said, parrying a slash from a crewmate and stabbing him in the heart. "Your brigantine sends it's regards." Ares growled, and charged Percy. Ares was a good swordfighter, immediately applying pressure to Percy, but Percy's defense was impenetrable. Ares tried combo after combo, but every strike was mirrored with an equal parry from Percy.
"What's got you onboard that ship and hunting me down, Jackson?" Ares spat.
"Someone else needs 'ya, Ares." Percy said, nodding behind Ares. Ares turned and was met with the blue eyes of Jason Grace, staring regretfully at his old mentor.
"Jason…" Ares spoke, but Jason just attacked, a set of angry strikes that Ares barely managed to counter. Slashes into jabs that barely missed Ares' lower stomach. Overhand blows that would kill any other man, but Ares managed to hold on-barely.
—-
"Stop firing!" Annabeth yelled, and cannonfire from the Heart ceased. The few men who tried to jump ship to the Heart had been killed instantly, and the fighting was happening on the deck of the Queen. Annabeth watched from midship as the Queen broke into chaos.
"Are we going to finish them off?" Thalia asked.
"No. I want the Queen in my possession." Annabeth said, and Thalia just smiled.
—-
Percy had begun to attack Ares as well, and the older man could not take the pressure from either side. Jason slashed, Percy jabbed. Percy slashed, Jason tried to cut Ares' hand from his body. Ares parried two quick strikes before finally a jab from Jason got through his guard, and cut his arm. Ares fell to a knee, sword clattering beside him. He looked up to Jason's sword at his nose.
"Yield, Ares." he said simply. Ares looked around, his men were being slaughtered.
Ares nodded, his day had come. "I yield." he said loudly, and the fighting on the ship stopped in an instant. "What is it you want, Jason?" Ares asked.
"Nothing you can give me, Ares. You are just a piece in the puzzle." Jason said. Ares kept kneeling as Percy moved behind him and tied his arms up.
—-
Annabeth stood at midship of the Heart still, looking at the Queen. Percy stood over the railing, signaling the victory. Cheers shot up from the Heart.
"Bring us in!" Annabeth said to the helm.
—-
Percy inspected the members of the Queen's crew. Longtime pirates, all of them.
"Never did I think that three of the seven would come to seek me out." Ares said from his kneel, back to the mast.
"Not here by choice, Ares." Percy said, stalking up to the man. Ares spat in Percy's face.
"You're pathetic, Jackson. A weakling posing to be something more." Ares laughed, his smile bloody. "Whatever you're going to ask out of me, it's not coming." Percy chuckled.
"I'm not going to ask anything of you. Nobody will. The only person who's going to miss you, Ares, is Jason." Percy smirked at Ares.
Ares frowned, eyes flicking between Jason and Percy. "What does he mean Jason?"
"I mean, to retrieve something you love most, you must sacrifice something equally as dear to your heart." Percy spoke slowly, and Ares' eyes grew wide.
"N-No! You can't! Please, anything but that. Anything but the desert!" Ares pleaded. Percy felt Jason come up behind him.
"You've subjugated thousands to the desert, it's only right you pay your due." Percy said, and the Heart's boarding plank landed on the railing of the Queen. Annabeth was the first over.
"I'm going to assume for your sake that none of mine were killed in the battle?" she asked first.
"Not that I'm aware of." He said. Annabeth brushed past him and knelt in front of Ares.
"You bitch." Ares spat. Annabeth slapped him immediately.
"Take him to the brig." Annabeth said, standing. Two women came forward immediately and grabbed Ares' tied arms, dragging him aboard the Heart.
"The rest of them?" Thalia asked.
"We're a day away from Catalonya?" Annabeth said, looking to Percy. "Could they swim?"
Percy smirked, "With a couple of barrels, maybe."
—-
The Heart and Queen sailed side-by-side for the next two days to Oceanus's Cove. Annabeth didn't know exactly what she was going to do with the Queen once Piper returned, but she knew the ship's value, a dozen men would pay her an infinite amount of money for that ship. She and Percy sat in her quarters as they had for most of the trip, in complete silence. She didn't know if she could trust the new man, but having his company after all this time was all she needed.
"We're coming up on the cove." Jason said, barging in to the quarters. He saw Percy and Annabeth, opposite the small table. "Sorry, did I interrupt?"
"No, Jason." she spoke. "Tell Thalia to set anchor just offshore, and we'll go over the plan." she nodded to Percy, who took a sip of the tea she had set out. Jason nodded and left, racing to the helm.
"Are you sure you can go to the afterlife and come back, Percy?" Annabeth asked, and Percy nodded into his cup.
"Jason needs to be the one to say the incantation to open the Trench, but yes, we can. The hard part is not getting into the afterlife, it is coming back." he said, setting his cup and plate down. "Piper will be a strong addition to the pirate strength once we've retrieved her. Stronger than Ares was." Percy said.
"How can you say that, like you fight with us?" Annabeth asked.
"Annabeth, despite that-" he pointed to the chest behind her, "I am still one of you. I know that I'm bound to something not of this world, but that does not mean I will not take up arms when push comes to shove. I see the looming threat- even Ares himself was in bed with the English." Annabeth stood from across him, coming to his side of the table and sitting in front of him. He pushed his chair out slightly, almost encouraging her to sit with him.
"All of this about the English has me wondering if…" she trailed off, but Percy knew.
"He'll do you no harm, Annabeth. Not while I breathe." Percy's hand reached up and felt her leg through the pants she was wearing. "We may not be what we once were, but everything I've ever said to you stands true. No man will take advantage of you the way he has."
"The day before you left us, you told me that more than anything in the world, you wish you could run away with me, away from all of this, and we could settle in some town in France and have a family…" Percy remembered. "Were you lying?"
"No." Percy shook his head. "I'd say the same thing to you right now."
"But you can't leave anymore." she said, and Percy nodded sadly. The ship lurched forward with the dropping of the anchor.
"Annabeth, I may be different, but my love for you is as strong as ever. No matter what happens in this conflict we've got coming, I'll always come back to you." he said. Annabeth nodded, trying to walk past him, but Percy caught her wrist and brought her into his chest. Annabeth's breathing was heavy as Percy leaned down and kissed her. His hands wrapped around her waist, and hers snaked up his shoulders.
Annabeth pulled away first, "For a dead man, you still aren't bad." she said.
"I'd hope not." he returned, and Thalia came into the quarters.
"We've dropped anchor, Captain." she noticed the look on Percy's face and quickly realized. "Should I-?"
"No, bring Jason in and Percy will inform us, finally." Annabeth shot Percy a look.
—-
"It's a simple incantation, we tie Ares to the mast, and the Trench will open up."
"It's that easy?" Jason asked.
"The easy part is getting in, Captain Grace." Percy responded.
"The hard part is getting out." Annabeth finished.
"And what of when the Trench opens up?" Thalia asked.
"Hold on for dear life." Percy said.
"Shall we, then?" Jason asked nervously. Percy looked around the room to the other two, who shrugged.
"The sooner we get started, the better."
—-
Ares sobbed on the mast, a day later. The Heart and Queen were just west of Oceanus's cove, above the Mariana Trench. Percy put a bowl in front of Jason, burning wood inside of it, as Jason spoke the incantation on a kneel. Ares cried for him not to, begged for him to send him anywhere but the desert, but Jason just continued. When he stopped, there was silence, until the sea rumbled, and a hundred-yard gap in front of the Heart opened up. The crew rushed to the bow to look over. The water was separated- two walls split clean, all the way down to the Trench's floor.
"What now?" Jason asked.
"We sail into the depths." Percy responded. "Full Canvas!" he yelled, but nobody moved. Annabeth stared at him for a moment.
"Full canvas!" she reiterated the order, and the crew lowered the sails. The Heart gained speed, the bow of the ship hanging off the edge of the water over the ravine, before the entire ship fell into the depths. The ship fell for minutes, One of Percy's hands locked stone-white onto a rope, the other locked in Annabeth's, before he saw the bow hit water, and the world went black.
—-
Biana Di Angelo was sent on a brigantine to Tortuga in search of Annabeth Chase. The English gave her no info, as she assumed they had none on the infamous pirate, no resources except some coin and a sword. Once Bianca landed, she turned to no place else except the one man who might know where she is.
Bianca stood in front of Jackson's Forge.
She knocked once, no answer. Knocked twice, no answer. The third time, she cut the lock and kicked the door in. The forge was empty. Bianca frowned- Percy swore to never leave the forge. She went down the stairs and into the pit. The coals were cold. He'd been gone for some time.
"He's not here, y'know." a voice spoke from the door. Bianca turned and saw a familiar face; Leo Valdez. "Has been gone for a week and a half now. I found his coat on a sloop, and had never seen him again." Leo took steps into the forge and closed the door behind him.
"Have you asked his wife?" Leo shook his head.
"Annabeth had no idea where he'd gone. Say, isn't it weird that English ships start showing up in these seas, and you too? Fresh out of an English prison, are you not?" Leo slowly trotted down the stairs.
"I served my time. Three years, to be exact. Not going back." Bianca spat.
"Aye, that sounds more like the Bianca I know. I've got wind your brother is in line with Ares and the Queen, have any idea on that?" Leo asked, fiddling with the hilt of a sword.
"He got let out earlier than I did, seems he made it back home before me." Bianca said, and Leo drew his sword, pointing it at Bianca.
"Bullshit. Rumor says Luke Castellan is leading the English charge into the Caribbean and he is not one for just letting someone like you go. He'd first have your head for helping us set Percy free." Bianca huffed.
"I need to find Annabeth. Not on the orders of an Englishman, but my own free will. She will lead me to my brother, and that is what I seek." Leo nodded, sheathing his sword.
"Come. This isn't a safe place to talk."
once i get past chapter 6/7ish i'll go to weekly, until then you get daily just to get the story going.
once again R&R let me know what you think :D