{1} Princess - P. Jackson 🔱

"Captain, we lost one."

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As the most intelligent person in the world, Percy had a reaction that shocked a total of zero people.  He said, "Um... okay."

That was nothing compared to Grover, who gasped then knelt hastily in the snow and started yammering, "Thank you, Lady Artemis! You're so... you're so... Wow!"

"Get up, goat boy!" Thalia snapped. "We have other things to worry about. Annabeth is gone!"

"Whoa," Bianca di Angelo said. "Hold up. Time out."

Everybody looked at her. She pointed her finger at all of us in turn, like she was trying to connect the dots. "Who... who are you people?"

Artemis's expression softened. "It might be a better question, my dear girl, to ask who are you? Who are your parents?"

Bianca glanced nervously at her brother, who was still staring in awe at Artemis.

"Our parents are dead," Bianca said. "We're orphans. There's a bank trust that pays for our school, but..."

She faltered. I guess she could tell from our faces that we didn't believe her.

"What?" she demanded. "I'm telling the truth."

"You are a half-blood," Zoë Nightshade said. She sounded old-fashioned, like she was reading from a really old book. "One of thy parents was mortal. The other was an Olympian."

"An Olympian... athlete?"

"No," Zoë said. "One of the gods."

"Cool!" said Nico.

"No!" Bianca's voice quavered. "This is not cool!"

Nico danced around like he needed to use the restroom. "Does Zeus really have lightning bolts that do six hundred damage? Does he get extra movement points for—"

"Nico, shut up!" Bianca put her hands to her face. "This is not your stupid Mythomagic game, okay? There are no gods!"

I was drowning myself in worry about Annabeth, and Bianca's tone with Nico made me feel more unsettled.

"Hey, go easy on him." I said defensively. "Look, I know it's hard to believe. But the gods are still around."

I remembered what it was like for me when I first learned I was a demigod.

Thalia must've been feeling something similar, because the anger in her eyes subsided a little bit. "They're immortal. And whenever they have kids with regular humans, kids like us, well... Our lives are dangerous."

"Dangerous," Bianca said, "like the girl who fell."

Thalia turned away. Even Artemis looked pained. I clenched my hands, feeling my nails digging into my palm.

"Do not despair for Annabeth," the goddess said. "She was a brave maiden. If she can be found, I shall find her."

"Then why won't you let us go look for her?" I asked.

"She is gone. Can't you sense it, Daughter of Aphrodite? Some magic is at work. I do not know exactly how or why, but your friend has vanished."

I still wanted to jump off the cliff and search for her, but I had a feeling that Artemis was right. Annabeth was gone. If she'd been down there in the sea, Percy would be able to feel her presence. Right?

"Oo!" Nico raised his hand. "What about Dr. Thorn? That was awesome how you shot the arrows! But the pink wind? That was insane!"

"He was a manticore," Artemis said. "He could have been destroyed for now, even if they never truly die. They re-form over and over again, and they must be hunted whenever they reappear. But as we saw, some complications happened." She looked at me. I felt my cheeks burning, and it was not from the cold.