The Betrayed Hero of Olympus

Chapter 12

*Percy's POV*

           After the fight with James, I had to get away from everyone and anyone. I had never felt so angry before in my life. I have never wanted to kill someone so badly in my life. I looked down below me and saw the forest whizzing past. I was riding Blackjack over the forest. I looked back at my wings and saw more blacks than ever before. I only had a dozen or so green feathers left, and even though I never told anyone, I was scared of what it would mean if all my feathers turned black. I rolled off the side of Blackjack, falling towards the forest, before expanding my wings and gliding in the air. I ripped the hood of my cloak off my head, feeling like I could breathe for the first time since I arrived back at camp. I loved the feeling of the wind on my face.

Blackjack and I kept flying for about an hour before I heard something from the forest below. I turned for another pass, and heard someone below me, crying. I quickly put my hood back up, and land soundlessly on a lower, tree branch, big enough for both Blackjack and I. What's going on boss? Nothing Blackjack just thought I heard someone crying. I jump to the ground and walk in the direction that I know is the creek. I enter the clearing and see a blonde haired girl, crying in front of a statue. I look closer at the statue and I am so shocked, that I have to take a few steps back. There, in the very creek where I was claimed, was a statue of me. It looked like it was from when we were fighting the battle of Manhattan. I was telling people where to go and what to do. It made me look like a true hero, and leader. But I was neither. The amount of people we lost that day, how many of them were my fault? Charles, Silena, Ethan, Luke. Sure we got most of them back, but I still got them killed. How can I be a leader when I get that many people killed. That was one thing I know I've improved on while being in the army. I have really focused on people's strengths and weaknesses, and put them in a position they can handle. So far I haven't gotten anyone in my army killed, knock on wood. I took a step toward the statue in awe. The carving looked so real. It was made from marble, but was still carved to the point it looked almost human. I kept walking forward until I was standing just behind the crying girl. She still hadn't noticed me, so I took the time to study her, but the closer I looked, the more I realized that this was Annabeth. Annabeth, who hates to show emotion, was crying in front of a statue of me. But she's the one that broke up with me. She's the one that broke my heart. She does NOT get to cry over me. I took another step forward and cleared my throat. Annabeth didn't even flinch.

          "You know, it isn't polite to sneak up on people," she said in a strained voice.

          "I heard someone crying, and came to make sure everything was okay," I simply replied.

          "Yeah, everything's just great," she muttered, sarcastically.

          "Who is this?" I asked, nodding to the statue, playing dumb.

           "This is Percy Jackson, the greatest hero to ever live, and the one I love," she said quietly, her voice cracking on the last word.

          "Ah, so this is Percy Jackson," I said, "From what I've heard, he wasn't much of a hero." She turned around so violently, I was worried she would get whiplash.

           "Tell me who said that and I will kill them myself," she said violently. She was right up in my face, so I took the time to really look at her. Right in front of me is the only girl I've ever loved. The one girl I still DO love, even after everything she'd done to me. No matter what she did though, I would always love her. But right now, she didn't look anything like the Annabeth I knew. Her golden blonde hair was a mess; her eyes were red and puffy, from what looked like hours of crying. And her grey eyes were the darkest grey I've ever seen them, and they looked so empty, much like mine do.