The Blood of Olympus

Chapter 23: Annabeth

Soooooo here's the next chapter! Enjoy!!!

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        To be honest, Annabeth was way past being scared by death threats.

       Maybe five years ago if a shriveled old hag who had severly injured one of her friends had threatened to rip her to shreds, Annabeth might have cowered, or at the very least given up completely. But after having gone through the Titan War, the quest for the Mark of Athena, and Tartarus, Annabeth could practically feel her brain relaxing. Like ok, this is familiar territory.

        But if being told that she would be killed relaxed Annabeth, she was alone in that particular sentiment. While the gears in her brain turned rapidly, she watched as Jason, Percy, and Frank's faces reddened.

        "Sorry to disappoint you," Jason said angrily, "but you're not leaving this ship alive Not after....whatever you did to Hazel."

        "Admirable sentiments," Arakus agreed, "but I'm afraid your time is up. Look."

        She pointed to the spot where Hazel was lying, unconscious, in a pool of blood.

        Hazel disappeared.

        Frank roared in rage, "What did you do to her?"

        "She was blocking our way. I merely sent her...elsewhere. And now, if you don't step aside now, we will kill you painfully," said Phonoi with a wide smile. Annabeth counted exactly two rotted teeth. "and if you let us past...well, we'll kill you anyways."

        "Tempting," Percy agreed, but Annabeth could hear the note of danger in his voice, and alarm bells started ringing in her head. She had fought side by side with Percy so many times, that she had gotten used to the fact that he was actually pretty smart about fighting. But sometimes, when he was really mad, he got reckless. He attacked without thinking. And just by the look on his face, Annabeth could tell that if she didn't do something and fast, now would be one of those times, and she had absolutely no desire to see Percy on the floor alongside Hazel, who's eyes were rolled back in her head, blood gushing from her stomach. 

        They couldn't beat the Adroktasai with swords, or force, that much was for sure. In fact, Annabeth wasn't sure that they could beat them at all. How were they supposed to beat monsters that were invincible?

        No, Annabeth corrected herself mentally. Not invincible. Because no one, not monsters, gods, titans, or even Gaea herself was truly invulnerable. However invincible the Adroktasai seemed, they had a weakness. They always did. It was just a matter of finding it.

        Percy's hand was starting to drift to his pocket, where he kept Riptide, his sword.

        "Percy!" Annabeth interjected hastily, trying to scream stop! with her eyes, "Don't you think you're being kind of rude? I mean, what's the point in fighting? You saw what happened to Hazel, they're invincible."

        Percy shot Annabeth a look that said clearly are you crazy? but thankfully seemed to conclude that it was just another one of Annabeth's Crazy Ideas. But Jason and Frank seemed to get what she was doing.

        "Exactly," Frank agreed, though he sounded like he was reading from a teleprompter, "completely invincible. No...weaknesses."

        "The Athena and Ares spawn have wisdom," Traika said grudgingly, "they recognize greatness when they see it."

           "Indeed," Phonoi said, "maybe we won't kill you quite as painfully as we planned."