Annabeth pulled a bronze disk the size of a tea saucer out of the motor and stashed it back away into her pack. She could look at it more closely later. But for now, she had to get back to the Argo II.
"Going somewhere?" a familiar voice drawled. Annabeth froze, her hand still in her in the process of closing the motor, and turned to look at him.
It was Percy, clad in full golden battle armor, absentmindedly leaning on the pommel of his bronze sword as he lazily stared at her.
She could tell that it was all an act, though. He was alert and tense, ready to spring into action under that thin guise of sloth.
"Percy, please, I can explain. It was Eidolons, Leo didn't mean to fire-"
"Save it for the trial," her childhood friend snapped. It struck her in that moment how tired he seem- no, how tired he was. "I need to do my duty and bring you in. The legion wants you Graeci to stand trial."
"You're letting Gaea drive the two camps apart!" she retorted. "This is what she wants! We're weaker with infighting!"
Percy scoffed. "I'm between a rock and a hard place Beth. The legion wants blood. Even with Reyna and I doing everything we can, we have to go to war. The spear has already been thrown. Maybe, just maybe if one of you Greeks is taken, and given an unfair trial, they'll be satisfied. Beth, it doesn't even have to be you. If we can argue that you helped-"
"I'm not going to do that!" Annabeth shouted. "I would never do that to anyone on that ship. You're talking about me turning traitor. They're my friends."
"I somehow knew that this would be your response," Percy sighed, straightening up from his lean, holding his sword out threateningly toward her. "New Rome was fired upon. They're scared even with your warship no longer hovering above our city."
Annabeth glanced around her, looking for a way out. "I can't let you just capture one of us," she responded. "Percy, I need to follow the Mark of Athena to Rome. If I can, if I succeed, I can fix this rift between our two camps."
"You don't even know what waits for you, do you?" Percy laughed, sadly. "Beth if you go, you're not coming back."
"I need to try," she insisted, tightening her resolve and her grip around her dagger. "The two camps need to be united against Gaea."
Emotions flashed through Percy's face, too fast for her to pick out. Was that concern in his eyes? He sighed.
"I did tell you one month. I'll stick by my word. I'll slow the legion down as much as I can, but even I can't stall them forever, even with Reyna helping," Percy stated, standing to the side, sheathing his bronze sword. How had he acquired Celestial Bronze?
Annabeth sent him a relieved look. "You're letting me go?"
Percy's face stoned over, and he turned to walk away from her. "I hope you know what you're doing, Beth. Because the next time we meet, I won't be as lenient. We'll be enemies."
Annabeth stumbled as a sharp pain struck her leg. She began to be pulled away from Bianca's side. Following the strand of spider silk she now realized was attached to her leg, she stared at the looming pit straight to hell.
"Annabeth!" Bianca cried, grabbing hold of her hand, the only thing between her and falling. The momentum carried both of them toward the pit. Annabeth dimly noted that she just barely managed to grab hold of a ledge.
Annabeth's mind, her most prized possession, was clouded in a haze of pain.
"It's her leg, cut it!" Hazel desperately called out, stuck on the role ladder. A silver arrow struck the wooden panel next to her ankle but barely missed the strand of spider silk. Another arrow accompanied it a second later, landing only inches away from her foot.
"My sword," Bianca hissed. She couldn't reach for it without letting one thing go.
"Bianca!" a familiar voice cried out. Annabeth looked away from Tartarus towards Nico, who was stumbling away from the rope ladder, rushing towards them.
"Bianca you need to let me go," she rasped. "There's no way you can pull both of us up. You can't do this to Nico. Not when-"
"You're my best friend, Nico has- Nico has Will. But you're my best friend." Bianca retorted, before looking back at Nico, who was desperately grabbing onto thin air. He was too far up. The two of them had fallen far, far, too low.
"We'll reach the doors on the other side, understand?" Bianca demanded of her little brother. "We'll see you there. You better lead them to the mortal side Nico, alright?"
"Bi-" Nico protested, only for her to shut him down.
"Us children of Death know better than anyone the importance of closing the Doors of Death. There's no other way. Promise me!" Bianca again, demanded, staring intently at her brother. Knowing her, she was trying to burn his face into her memory. After all, it was likely that this would be the last time the brother and sister pair would meet.
"I'll lead them there," Nico promised. "But Bianca-"
Annabeth saw the daughter of Hades smile softly at her brother. "Credi in te stesso, sii forte," she said. "We'll make it back. Ti amo, fratellino."
The two siblings, having been separated for so long exchanged one last look. Bianca tightened her grip on Annabeth's wrist.
'A one-way trip. A very hard fall.'
Annabeth distantly heard Nico and Hazel's screams for help. It was as if she was listening to them underwater. She knew their screams would be in vain, though. It was far too late for the two of them.
"To the end?" Bianca asked her, smiling as if they weren't dangling above Hell itself.
"You're an idiot," Annabeth weakly laughed.
Bianca let go.