Annabeth POV
Moscow, Russia.
Lake Valor had rented out a 3-story building with multiple bedrooms and bathrooms for us to stay at. We were staying with the hostages who were all getting documented.
They needed rest and medical attention, more than the agents did.
Also, we had to contact their families and loves ones.
The surprising part was that many of the hostages were related to the spies and traitors that were at Lake Valor. They were forced to be traitors because they were trying to protect their family members from death at the camp.
Dr. Solace had flown out with his staff to provide medical help.
He was the one to stitch up my thigh. The pain killers were certainly having a positive effect. I was sitting on the couch in the second floor's main lobby.
Each floor of the building had a main lobby with several couches and tables. The elevators and stairs opening into the lobby. The hallways led out in all four directions with bedrooms.
You could imagine that it was like a hotel but with a large lobby on each floor.
Some of my team was also hanging out here.
We had obviously decided to leave the bedrooms and bathrooms to the prisoners who had been through so much. They deserved to clean up and get rest.
I looked down as my fingers continued to brush Percy's hair. Seaweed brain was asleep with his head resting on my good leg. His face was buried into my stomach as his body laid on the couch.
As soon as Percy rested against me, he fell asleep.
Gods, Percy was so cute when he slept. I didn't feel like waking him up even after people started to join us in the lobby.
"Hey, Annabeth, how are you feeling?" Thalai asked as she sat at a desk.
Her laptop was open, and she seemed to be looking at some Lake Valor files. She was helping Chiron organize all of the victims' files.
"I'm all right, Thalia. My leg's okay too," I replied.
Thalia smiled as she turned to me. She looked at me and Percy fondly.
"You know that Percy missed you quite a lot. I could literally see his heart aching because he wasn't with you," Thalia expressed.
I smiled as I continued to brush Percy's raven hair.
I was so glad that we were together again. He was right that even if we separate due to the cruel world we live in, we'd always find each other again.
Suddenly, a young woman started walking towards us from the east hallway.
Literally, three members of our team were sleeping. Everyone else turned towards the young woman, the same one that I saved at the camp.
"Hi, what can we do for you?" Jason asked kindly.
"I just wanted to say thank you," the woman said as she turned to me. "You saved my life and my dignity in the camp even though that blew your cover."
I smiled kindly at the woman.
"I was just doing my job, and it all worked out in the end. I am so glad that you're okay," I responded.
The woman smiled as she stood awkwardly.
"I propose that you should get some rest. It's gonna be a while till we can navigate everyone's contacts and families," Thalia said to her.
"I can't really sleep. I'm just so eager to see my parents and fiance. I'm a little scared though of how their lives are now. It's been 6 months since I had been kidnapped," she said sadly.
Piper got up and went to the woman. She gently wrapped her arms around the woman.
"They are going to be thrilled to have you back," Piper said genuinely. The woman smiled at Piper before pulling back.
"Once again, thank you all so much. Um, is that your boyfriend?" she asked curiously. The woman was just trying to make conversation now.
Jason smirked as Piper joined him on the couch again.
I could totally understand her reluctance to rest. Sleep and loneliness brought dangerous thoughts, especially after a traumatic experience.
"Yeah, we all work together as well," I said as I rubbed Percy's cheek.
His face moved into my hand. Even in his sleep, Percy could sense my touch, which was so sweet.
"Well, he definitely attractive. Plus, during the mission, I could see how much he loves you," the young woman expressed.
I smiled as I nodded at her observation.
Here's the thing. Even though I shouldn't like that another woman was noticing my boyfriend's looks, she wasn't saying it maliciously. As such, girls actually enjoyed it when other people complimented their taste, especially in relationships.
We made a few more minutes of conversation until Chiron joined us.
The woman excused herself as Director Chiron brought forth some official business.
"First of all, Annabeth, you have accomplished great feats. As such, Lake Valor thanks you for this mission. Actually, the entire team should be celebrating right now," Chiron said with a clap.
Leo cheered as he settled onto a free loveseat.
This effectively woke everyone up. Percy jolted up causing me to wince as a sharp pain shot into my leg from the sudden movement.
"Err, sorry, Wise Girl," Percy said as he brushed my leg softly.
"It's fine, Seaweed Brain, I hope you enjoyed your nap," I said before giving him a soft kiss. He kissed back. It was a quick, but sweet kiss since we were in public.
"Chiron, what's going on?" Jason asked at his serious expression.
Everyone's eyes turned to Chiron as he looked at a tablet.
"First of all, we are making great progress with locating all of the hostages' homes and families. Lake Valor is confident that they can all return to their lives safely," Chiron expressed.
"That's good news, but your face isn't showing that," Thalia said.
"It's because a message has been sent to MI6. Reyna, would you please share the message as a representative from MI6?" Chiron asked as he handed her the tablet.
Reyna had come up with Chiron. This was definitely something serious.
Jason and Reyna shared a kind look before Jason wrapped his arm around Piper. Jason and Piper were happy and in love with each other, but it would (nonetheless) be awkward considering Reyna was Jason's ex.
"Is this about the Apocalypse? Didn't we stop it?" Percy asked.
"We did, Agent Jackson. We have successfully stopped the bombs and weaponry. Thanks to your team, we had stripped WiCKeD and BlodgeHarm of everything," Reyna informed.
"So, what's the problem, Reyna?" I asked in confusion.
Reyna sighed as she pressed a button on the tablet. Then, she turned the tablet around for all of us to see.
A serious video started playing.
It was a message aimed towards Percy, and it was from Luke Castellan.
***
"Percy, pause and just listen for a few minutes," Jason shouted in frustration.
I watched as Percy rushed around the room grabbing various weapons. He was looking for his guns and blades. However, the entire team had basically unloaded their resources in the same room, and it was very disorganized.
"Jason, I don't have time to wait and talk it out," Percy snapped.
"Yes, you do. Just calm down and take a seat," Thalia exclaimed.
While Jason was a good leader, Thalia was a lot scarier. She practically smacked Percy across the head to get him to stop. Percy sighed as his gaze wandered to me as he took a seat. We were in one of the empty rooms at our Moscow building.
"Seaweed Brain, I understand that we gotta do this. However, we have to be smart here so that we can end this once and for all," I said firmly.
"Wise Girl, I have a deadline of just a few hours. I need to go now," Percy responded.
"This wouldn't be the first time that we had to operate under a time crunch," I replied smoothly.
"I only have one shot to finish what I started years ago. It was partly the reason that I joined Lake Valor in the first place: to destroy terrorists like WiCKeD and BlodgeHarm," Percy said.
"I understand, and we can still do that," I said.
I walked over to Percy who was sitting on the bed. Weapons and tech were scattered around the room and furniture. I gently took his hand in mine as he took a deep breath.
Jason and Thalia took a seat on the other bed.
Thalia took her laptop and started typing seriously. She was clearly looking for something important, and I had a good guess of what it was.
"Luke gave us 3 hours to meet at these coordinates," Thalia said.
"Can we even trust this intel? It could just be a trap to get you. Kronos probably won't even be there," Jason said.
To be honest, Chiron and the MI6 left this decision up to Percy. Percy had already done enough for Lake Valor and this mission. But, of course, Percy wasn't going to back down, especially if this was his chance to recapture Kronos and Krios.
"We know that Kronos and Krios don't lie. They didn't lie the last time either," I said firmly.
"Yeah, but we crumbled their plans. They could be vindictive now," Jason replied. That was true and a very real possibility.
"We have to take this shot. I've decided already," Percy expressed.
My gray eyes locked into his pure sea-green eyes. I smiled comfortably as his thumb rubbed against my hand.
"I've decided too," I whispered quietly.
Percy's eyes twinkled as he waited for me to continue.
"I've decided that I'm coming with you. We're not separating again. The team is also going to help us in this mission," I said warmly.
"Definitely, you're gonna go in this prepared and not alone," Thalia said with a smirk. "We're not repeating the stress and horror of your last two disappearances."
Percy chuckled as his attention traveled to his symbolic family. Then, he turned back to me.
"As long as we're together?" Percy asked softly.
"As long as we're together," I answered genuinely.
Percy leaned forward and planted a soft, sweet kiss on my lips. It was a passionate kiss that expressed how much we loved each other.
Our gazes lingered intensely as the kiss ended and we slowly pulled back.
We spent the next two hours preparing for the mission. The entire team was involved in this mission to make sure that we succeeded in capturing the terrorists once and for all.
We were risking it all together to make the world better and safer.
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I hope that y'all are enjoying this story. We're not done, yet, but we're nearing the end of the story (let's see what's going to happen).
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