Percy Jackson: The Knight of Chaos

Revelations

(A/N: a short, but much-needed chapter! Enjoy! Thanks for all of the reads, votes, and comments!)

"Who are you?" Zoe stepped in front of me, protectively -- she was like my big sister. Her bow was already drawn, aimed threateningly at the approaching figure. In turn, they raised their hands above their head and stepped closer to us, and instantly I knew who it was.

"Annabeth?" I gasped.

"Why do you have Percy Jackson's sword?" Annabeth repeated, unwavering. Lowering her hands, it looked like she wasn't walking out of here without an answer.

I decided to bluff my way out of this. "Who is Percy Jackson?"

Tiny tears glistened at the corner of Annabeth's eyes. I frowned -- I thought she hated me. Or rather, the old me. She explained, "Two years ago, he was one of our best campers, a son of Poseidon who was instrumental in the defeat of both the risings of Kronos and Gaea. Then, a month after that, his brother Troy arrived. I guess you met him already. When Troy arrived, it was like a spell was cast over the camp. All of a sudden, we hated Percy." She paused, taking a ragged breath, "It was like we thought everything was his fault. I remember despising him, believing it was his fault so many of our campers were dead. It was like a fog over my eyes. I couldn't really control anything, but I was conscious of it all. I remember attacking him one night, with a bunch of campers. I remember the horrible words I said to him, the kicks and punches I hurt him with, the cuts I left trailing down his arms and legs. He was my boyfriend, he had always been there for me -- and I crushed him. I fell under Troy's spell. And I remember .... I remember waking up and realizing that because of our actions, he was dead."

"He's dead?" I echoed.

Strangled sobs escaped her, as tears snaked down her face. "I don't know how. No one ever stepped forward, and his body was never found, but no one's heard from him since. The only people who believed his innocence--a boy named Nico and his sister Hazel--were both killed by a rogue Ladon. Jason Grace barely escaped with his life. When Percy died, the spell was gone. It had disappeared, and we all realized the horrible acts we'd done in cold blood. Nothing's been the same since. Now, we just hope that he'll make it to Elysium, but we know none of us will see him there. Not after what we did."

Her eyes flickered to Riptide, still in sword form, hanging at my side. Hastily, I capped the point of the sword, and buried it in my pocket. "And you still haven't answered my question. Why do you have Riptide?"

Rubbing the back of my neck, I addressed the rest of Alpha Force. "Take a break, guys. I'll talk to you later." They tried to talk to me through telepathy, but I blocked them off before they could convince me not to do this. I could feel their frustration and anger radiating off of them, yet there was also an undertone of respect and acknowledgement that I knew what I was doing. If only that were true.

As the rest of my team strolled away, I looked back at Annabeth.

"Omega?" She frowned.

With one single movement, I pushed my hood backwards, revealing my face.

"Hi, Annabeth."