All rights belong to Rick Riordan

Chapter 8

In Memoriam

(Frank)

I had just been returning to the ship when the lightning had struck me. The shock of the blow caused me to lose all sensation in my body, so I didn't even feel when I hit the oars. I was far too busy trying to regain some feeling in my enormous body and control my descent, however my wings refused to respond as I continued to tumble end over end. With each revolution the earth continued to grow larger as if to greet me.

Slowly feeling returned to my body and I could feel that one of my wings was in ruins, the thin membrane stretching across it was badly tattered from when I had hit the Argo II's oars. Making me realize that the form was going to be useless, which was a shame. I was starting to like it and it would have been great to use in the coming fight. However, my immediate concern was my diminishing energy as I continued to lose blood from the wing forcing me to change quickly or not at all.

I chose a golden eagle for its great eyesight and the wingspan would help me glide to the ground without wasting too much energy.

When I had finished changing, I was only a few hundred feet off the ground, I looked up hoping to see the Argo II beginning to descend, instead I was greeted by a sight that horrified me. The ship was leering to one side and seemed to be in a rapid descent but there was no sign of my friends on the deck or any sign of them escaping into the air. As the ship continued to descend, I noticed something in the distance. There were the figures of several giants throwing boulders at the ship trying to crush it, most missing harmlessly or bouncing off the hull plates leaving dents in the once magnificent ship. I finally noticed some movement on the lower hull cargo bay doors as they began to open, I expected to see my friends using the emergency parachutes or something like that.

I was not however expecting the sight of a several ton statue falling from the heavens. With what was obviously a horse stuck to the side by lengths of rope and chain. Just before another bolt of lightning rose from amongst the giants ranks and hitting the boat amidship, causing a chain reaction as the once proud vessel broke in half at the point of impact and the ship exploded showering the area in debris.

I looked back from the fallen wreckage to the statue, I was amazed to see that parachutes had deployed above it. With the increased eyesight this form provided I focused clearer on the descending effigy; I began to make out smaller figures holding onto it which I guessed were my friends.

I decided to ignore my injuries for the moment and fly towards them in case they needed help. As I got closer, I noticed something truly worrying. I could only see seven humanoid figures around the statue, and one seriously upset looking horse which meant someone was not there.

I was hoping it was Jason making his own way, but he was next to Piper flying alongside fastening a strap the had come loose if the blond hair was anything to go by, which meant someone had not made it aboard the impromptu escape craft.

(Annabeth)

I had just finished securing myself with Percy's help when he began to strap himself in. However, before he was finished, he had seemingly noticed something and quickly reversing his actions. I could not believe what the seaweed brain was doing, we were running out of time, but then again Percy had always done things like this. Rashly with little thought and we had always made it however even this was going to be too close. I watched Percy cross the deck before reaching down and grabbing something from behind a crate. Which I recognized as a familiar golden ball of fur and he turned back only to fall when the deck was struck by something.

I was about to shout for him to hurry when the support cradle above us began to groan and deform under the stress. I could only hope it lasted long enough for him to get back when another blow struck the ship. With that impact, one end of the cradle collapsed, and we began to fall through the keel. I only had time to shout his name before we were gone and into freefall.

I was ready to shout at Jason to fly up and get him when the lightning bolt struck the ship and it exploded and I knew there was no way he could have survived. Curse of Achilles or not, no one can survive being inside essentially an enormous fragmentation grenade, which the ship now resembled as it fell apart or burst into flames. Something would hit his mortal point, be it the flames or debris. Any remaining hope ended as the ship remnants struck into the earth at terminal velocity ploughing a trench in the Greek soil before exploding in a miniature mushroom cloud. The ship carried enough weapons and Greek Fire to fight a small war after all.

Our rate of descent had dropped when Leo had activated the parachute system as well as the emergencies. However, all I could think was that I wished that it had failed, at least the fall would have reunited me with Percy in the Underworld. All I could do now as we descended safely was cry in disbelief of how suddenly everything can change. We had gone from a complete victory in the battle in the skies to nothing in the blink of an eye and now Percy was dead.

With Percy by my side, I felt anything was possible, but now all I could see was the fall of the gods and humanity before my mind focused on one simple concept.

Revenge

If we were going to die, I was going to take that bastard Porphyrion down with us. It had been him that had used the lightning that struck Frank and the Argo II and killed Percy and Nemea. If Gaia wanted her victory today, then she would have to earn it and I silently swore an oath that I would kill Percy's murderer whatever the cost.

(Jason)

I couldn't believe what had happened, I don't know what Percy was doing that was so damn well important. All I knew was the cost it taken after we fell and I watched the ship explode. I had been ready to unfasten myself and go back and get him until the bolt struck and I knew it was no use, no one could survive that.

Yes, we had our ups and downs but I had to admit it was a result of my pride demanding attention after a lifetime of it and I saw him as a threat when it could be nothing further from the truth. He had been nothing but a friend to me and I began to doubt him after one incident because my pride demanded it and his words had stung me with the truth.

The truth was I hadn't ever considered others, I had led Reyna on for years only to get with Piper after a few weeks and the look on her face in New Rome had shown me that. I was always taking credit for the victory at Orthrys even though it had been a legion wide effort, I had simply struck the finishing blow to Krios.

The things Percy had done were so numerous and amazing and yet he took no credit for them, often insisting it was due to others help and that was why the Greeks looked up to him. While the Romans had respected me as the camp leader it was more due to my father and rank, rather than as one of them who would take command when the going got tough.

He was not stuck down with the bureaucracy of Roman politics and the game that I and Octavian played, thirsting for power over others for our own prestige. It was on his own merits that he had earned the Praetorship and that was only accepted as a means to an end to welcome the Greeks.

All I knew now was he was dead, and the world had lost a true hero.

(Annabeth)

After we had landed, amazingly with the statue on its base. Although this resulted in us falling several feet to the ground when we were unharnessed and resulting in a completely vexed Arion having to fall the furthest as he had been secured near my mother's chest.

From the angry whinnying and neighing coming from the horse he was not too happy. According to Hedge he promised that if anyone told Pegasus or his children about the experience, he would trample us into the ground.

Not that I cared, I was busy staring at the flaming wreckage in the distance and thinking of my now dead boyfriend before Piper stood in front of me and started to talk.

"Annabeth you don't know that he is dead, he did have the curse after all, perhaps he managed to survive?" She said hopingly though whoever she was trying to reassure it was not me.

I looked back at her with a look that could have stopped Medusa, before pointing at the blazing Pyre that was now our ship.

"Do you really think anyone could have survived that? Because if you do you are delusional. All it would take is one piece of shrapnel hitting his weak point and he would die." I replied with tranquil fury as I began to plot a battle in my head for when I fought the Giant King. I did not know how I would do it, but I would have his head before this day was done.

"Well, we can't give up hope, you never know." She said her annoying smile returning for a split second until I turned towards her.

"Yes, we can, Leo get over here." I shouted to the small Latino boy.

"Annabeth I am really sorry; it is all my fault I really am an idiot." He said apologetically seemingly on the brink of tears. Tears were not going to bring the Son of Poseidon back.

"I don't care about your apologies; all I want you to do is heat this pool of water over here so that it turns to steam." I demanded to which he silently began to comply.

"Annabeth what are you doing?" Piper asked worryingly but with some charmspeak as well. However, her emotional state was a mess and I was able to resist the power.

"O Isis goddess of the Rainbow show me Percy Jackson." I said to the cloud of steam before throwing a drachma in from my emergency supplies.

"I am sorry the person you are calling is not available, please try again later." That proved it, I was thankful in the end. As I was half expecting to receive an image of Percy's broken body in the wreckage, or it burnt too much for me to recognise. The message had been the same after he had been lost at Mount St Helens. But it still meant he was gone, and I was all alone now. Slowly my mind focused back on my mission of retribution.

"Guys I have one question; it is kind of important." Frank asked while Hazel hastily bandaged his wounded arm with the supplies in my pack.

"Well what Frank? I am busy planning my vengeance against Seaweed brain's killer so hurry up. I snapped back angrily those closest around me stepping back as if I was radiating some sort of aura. As if I was going to go through them to get to the Giant King."

"Yeah, about that, to kill a giant we need a gods help right?" To which the others nodded, and I continued to stare waiting for Frank to make his point.

"Well, where are they? Unless we are expecting Arion to help kill all of them." He asked nervously and throwing my thoughts through a loop. I had been so focused on revenge I had forgotten that key point.