Act II Epilogue II

"I don't get it," Annabeth whispered as she stared down at the table. Her hands were clasped in front of her, and she was squeezing them together tightly. "It's been three days, and we have found nothing! No one knows where she went. Not Lupa. Not Dionysus. We tried messaging the Amazons, and Kinzie doesn't know. I don't... I don't get it."

Annabeth stood and started to pace back and forth, "I don't get any of this. Reyna came to us like any demigod before. Instead of leaving, she stayed with us and helped us train demigods. She helped us. Together, we found Camp Half-Blood. We found the Oracle, and we made this camp how it used to be.

"But..." Annabeth trailed off. Then, she slammed her fist into the table. "Why would she betray us? Why would she steal the prophecy and disappear? Lupa says it wasn't for her, but who would it be for? Bellona? What would Bellona want with the prophecy?"

Annabeth knew she was looking at some kind of puzzle, but she didn't know what the solution was. The pieces of the puzzle did not match. Was she missing some? Or was she trying to match the pieces in the wrong way?

A deep sigh left Annabeth, and she sat at the table. She buried her face into her hands. Luke was gone. Her brother was gone. Her only true family was gone. And all she did was stand by as it happened. She buried her fingernails into her face.

No one knew where Reyna went. It was like she was a ghost. And Lupa had nothing to offer them. She just told them that she as well had no clue where Reyna went. How could a goddess not know?

"What am I missing?" Annabeth muttered as she lifted her head. She slowly stood. They should have chased after Reyna. With an injury like that, she could not have gotten far. That could be why she hadn't shown up. Too busy licking her wounds. Hopefully, there would be permanent damage.

A knock on the door caused Annabeth to turn. She felt her muscles tense on her. The last thing she needed was for the three siblings she found out about attempt to comfort her. Or Clarisse barging in and demanding to hear the story for the fiftieth time like that would change what would happen. And she didn't want to have to deal with Percy trying to comfort her.

Annabeth wanted to avenge Luke. And she couldn't take it out on May. May was just insane. She didn't know what she was doing when she tried to attack Percy. And Annabeth couldn't take it out on Percy, who was just pulled out of the way. No. The person to blame was Reyna.

Reyna was the one who pulled Percy out of the way. But, Annabeth kept playing that moment over and over in her head again. May had moved faster than she had any right to. Almost godlike. So maybe, she was influenced by something.

And what was it that May said?

I have to protect the world from you.

What did she mean by that? Protect the world from Percy?

Annabeth knew Percy's secret. He was the son of Poseidon: a forbidden child. There was a prophecy of some sort about him. And May somehow knew about that? Maybe she saw it when she was dealing with the oracle? But did she know what the prophecy was? And why did Reyna want it?

What could Reyna gain by giving the prophecy to her mother? Power? Protection?

What was she missing?

"I'm going to avenge you, Luke. I'm going to make her pay," Annabeth promised as tears began to flood her eyes. She heard the door open and tensed. "I don't want to talk!"

"Annabeth."

The voice alone made tears pour down Annabeth's eyes. She turned and threw herself into Thalia's arms. Thalia held her close, "I'm sorry I couldn't be here sooner. I came as soon as I could."

"I couldn't save him," Annabeth cried. Thalia rubbed her back gently. "It's my fault!"

"It's not," Thalia whispered into her ear. She kissed Annabeth's forehead. "It's not your fault at all. Okay? Don't ever blame yourself."

Annabeth wasn't sure how she had anymore tears in her body, but it didn't take long for Thalia's shirt to be soaked. She clung to the immortal girl like a child would to their parents. Her knees felt like they gave out at some point, which meant Thalia was practically holding her up.

"I'm sorry," Thalia whispered as she gently kissed the top of Annabeth's head. She allowed Annabeth to cry until the only thing she had left was weak little gasps and sobs. Annabeth finally pulled away. Thalia handed her tissues.

It took a minute for Annabeth to blow her nose, wipe her face, and attempt to compose herself. Thalia said nothing. She just watched Annabeth with a minor prickle of tears in her eyes.

"Thank you," Annabeth whispered. Thalia smiled sadly.

"I wish I could have been there," Thalia said. She sighed and looked down. "Luke and I didn't always see eye to eye, but he was a good man. He didn't deserve to die like that."

"And you heard about Reyna?" Annabeth muttered as she took a deep breath.

"Yes," Thalia said. She gently grabbed both of Annabeth's hands. Annabeth looked into her eyes. "I know it is hard, but can you tell us the story one last time? Every single detail you can remember. It won't be easy, but you can take your time. We just need to know everything."

"We?" Annabeth repeated. Thalia nodded and turned toward the door. Annabeth did as well. Embarrassment hit her as she realized that they had a visitor. A stranger had just watched her cry her heart and soul out.

"This is Annabeth Chase," Thalia introduced. Annabeth looked at the newcomer. She found herself looking at a twelve year old girl. The girl had auburn hair and eyes that almost looked silver. A bow hung across her back along with a satchel of arrows. There was something so regal about her. Regal and... ancient.

"Annabeth, this is Lady Artemis. Goddess of the hunt," Thalia continued. Annabeth found her body frozen in place. They had dealt with gods before like Lupa or Dionysus. But they just didn't have the aura that Artemis had.

"I, um…. It's a p…pleasure," Annabeth said nervously as she quickly bowed to the goddess. Thalia gave her a small smile. Artemis remained impassive as she studied Annabeth.

"Breathe," Artemis ordered. Annabeth found herself obeying. The goddess held no anger in her tone. Nor did she hold impatience. "Tell us what happened to your male friend. And about this prophecy that was stolen."

"Yes. Of course," Annabeth replied as she quickly nodded. She looked around. "We don't have a table but take a seat on the bed."

"Don't worry," Thalia whispered. "Artemis is cool."

Annabeth nodded, though the words didn't calm her. She didn't think the word cool would ever be used to describe a god. Annabeth sat on the bed, and Thalia squeezed her hand before sitting next to her. After only a moment, Artemis sat on the bed across from them.

The eyes of the goddess looked Annabeth up and down. She held no emotions on her face. In contrast, Thalia held all the concern in the world. As Annabeth forced herself to hold Artemis' gaze, the goddess' features softened ever so slightly. A deep breath left Annabeth.

And she told them the story.

This will be the last chapter for awhile as I have to plan out and begin to write act three. I am beyond excited to share it with all of you.