Lies

Chapter 45

**Artemis**

With two of the most powerful demigods out, this fight was not looking good. To my surprise, and everybody else's, Percy stood up and stamped his foot. The earth shook in the strongest earthquake I'd ever felt since Poseidon and Zeus fought each other. Waves crashed over Tartarus. Then he collapsed, his power still going. Zoë grinned and concentrated. Tartarus was pushed back over the edge of Half-Blood Hill with Zoë's power. Thalia electrocuted him and Nico held him in place with the shadows. They ran forward and as one, they stabbed their weapons into his heart, killing his essence so he could rise for a very, very long time, if at all. Zoë then fell unconscious, having used too much energy. Thalia and Nico looked on the verge of collapsing, but Will, Apollo a few of his siblings and I scooped the five of them up and ran to the infirmary. An hour later they were all healed, apart from Zoë, who we were still working on. Thalia's scar had tired us out, but it was a relatively easy fix. Finally Zoë was all fixed up. She and Percy didn't wake up until three days later. After a genius idea from Atalanta, the camper and Hunters lined up in front of the infirmary. The minute the two walked out, chains shot down off the roof, snapping shut around their wrists. Artemis and Chiron were first in line.

"Hi Artemis. Ow! You're meant to -ow! - be a teacher and it's not the 1800s. Hey Annabeth - Ow! - nice to see - Ow! - you Nico. Ow! That hurt Phoebe. Hey! Are you trying to kill me?" Zoë glared at Jason. "Ow. Ow. Ow. You're not strong enough to make it hurt yet. Sheesh, are you Ares' kid? Hey Bianca - Ow! - can you stop them?"

Percy's cries for help were filled with ow's! It took a while but finally everybody had slapped the two of them."OK then. What do you like doing best?"

"Hunting."

Annabeth laughed. "Silly me. Of course that's your favourite thing. You're a Hunter."

Slowly Zoë's hysteria went away as Annabeth continued talking. After a while Annabeth stood up.

"I have to go now," she told the daughter of Atlas.

Zoë nodded. "OK."