DEVOTION, percy jackson

The Prophecy Is Complete

The plants woke Tallulah up around sunset, so she really couldn't be mad. Their screams were like a chain throughout camp. 'Help!' they yelled.

Tallulah scrambled out of her bed and threw her old shoes on her feet. She ran over to the Athena cabin and threw the door open. "Annabeth! Something's wrong!" Tallulah yelled.

Annabeth came barreling through her cabin toward the door. "What do you mean something is wrong?" she asked exasperatedly. "Somewhere in the forest someone is in trouble. We have to go now." Tallulah explained.

Now you might be thinking, Tallulah, why would you waste time to get Annabeth? 

The answer is simple. 

She didn't want to be alone.

The two girls ran through the forest, Tallulah listening to where the loudest calls were coming from. After a much too long amount of running they found who they were looking for.

Between the trees Tallulah could see Luke and Percy facing each other. Percy looked beyond confused, while Luke looked malicious. They exchanged words.

"You make it sound like you're leaving." Percy told Luke. The two were still oblivious to the girl's presence. Luke gave him a twisted smile. "Oh, I'm leaving, all right, Percy. I brought you down here to say good-bye."

He snapped his fingers. A small fire burned a hole in the ground at Percy's feet. Out crawled something glistening black, about the size of Tallulah's palm. A scorpion.

Percy reached for his pen but was cut off by Luke's warning. "I wouldn't. Pit scorpions can jump up to fifteen feet. Its stinger can pierce right through your clothes. You'll be dead in sixty seconds."

"Luke, what-" Percy started to say but cut himself off. Percy and Tallulah seemed to have realized it at the same time. The obvious was hitting the daughter of Demeter like the bus hit Regina George at the end of Mean Girls.

'You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.'

"You," Percy said. Betrayal and fear radiated off of Percy and Annabeth, who was still as a statue next to Tallulah.

Luke stood and dusted off his pants. Tallulah wanted nothing more than to stab him, but she figured that the scorpion would kill Percy a lot faster and she could kill Luke.

"I saw a lot out there in the world, Percy," Luke said. "Didn't you feel it-the darkness gathering, the monsters growing stronger? Didn't you realize how useless it all is? All the heroics-being pawns of the gods. They should've been overthrown thousands of years ago, but they've hung on, thanks to us half-bloods."

The bitterness Luke gave off felt like it was closing Tallulah's windpipe. Luke, driven to the brink by his need to be recognized by someone who should have always given him the attention he deserved. His own father.

Percy looked absolutely astounded. "Luke ... you're talking about our parents." He laughed. "That's supposed to make me love them? Their precious 'Western civilization' is a disease, Percy. It's killing the world. The only way to stop it is to burn it to the ground, start over with something more honest."

"You're as crazy as Ares." Percy told him. His eyes flared. "Ares is a fool. He never realized the true master he was serving. If I had time, Percy, I could explain. But I'm afraid you won't live that long."

The scorpion crawled up Percy's pant leg. "Kronos," Percy said. "That's who you serve." The air got colder.

Tallulah turned to Annabeth. "What's our plan, Brainiac" Tallulah whispered. "We have to wait until Luke confesses to doing Kronos' bidding. Then we can confront him." Annabeth said in a choked voice.