All Heroes Fall

"Holy crap, Annabeth. I knew you were a little nuts, but I didn't know you were trying to get us all killed!" Leo was pacing back and forth in front of the rest of the group muttering in Spanish. "Todos vamos a morir. Soy demasiado joven para morir . . ."

"Valdez, shut up." she said. Annabeth had gone pale and sickly over night. It hurt to see her like that. And Leo wasn't making her feel any better.

"She's right Leo. I think that's enough," I said soothingly. He looked from me to Annabeth and took his seat looking ashamed. Jason stood and addressed the group.

"If we're going to do this right, we'd better do it now." Piper stood and took his hand. Together, they boarded the Argo II. Frank, Hazel, and Leo all left next, leaving me and Annabeth by ourselves. I crossed the room and took her into my arms. She rested her head on my shoulder and squeezed tighter than I thought she had the strength for.

"This is all my fault." she whispered. "I was too caught up in getting you out that I was careless. I could feel it too. I could feel that there was something wrong." I took her by the shoulders and forced her to look me in the eye.

"I would have done the exact same thing. But it would be a whole lot worse. It's kind of nice to have you screw something up for a change. Now it's my turn to help you fix your mistake." We both smiled lightly and approached the ship where Leo was manning the controls. As we set foot on the deck, Leo lifted us into the air, and we flew away. Back to the Doors of Death.

~

"Are we there yet?" I whined to Leo. Leo glared at me to shut me up, but that wouldn't stop me. "I'm hungry. Can we stop at Monster Doughnut? I'm in the mood for a fight. Let's go antagonize some monsters. Gods, I have to use the bathroom. I don't want to get up. I bet Monster Doughnut has a bathroom. They have doughnuts too. And you know what Doughnuts go well with? An empty bladder. This deck looks dirty. When's the last time you cleaned this thing, Valdez? I should tell Jason -"

"OKAY, PERCY. I GET THE POINT. WE'LL TAKE A BREAK SO YOU CAN PEE AND SATISY YOUR DOUGHNUT CRAVING" Leo sharply turned right and roughly landed us on top of a bank across the street from the nearest Monster Doughnut.

"YAY!" I said. I enjoyed acting childish. It got on Leo's nerves. And it amused Annabeth. I hopped off the ship and jogged to the bank door. The mist would probably make the ship look like a large flock of birds had landed or something. At least the rest of the gang were safe. I made my way through the bank, none of the adults questioning my presence. Running across the street, I entered Monster Doughnut. Inside it looked like any other Doughnut shop would. Aside from the fact that it was full of mythical creatures.

After relieving myself in the restroom, I stood in line to buy two dozen donuts. One dozen glazed, the other chocolate glazed. I paid for the doughnuts and was about to walk out the door, when a familiar hiss echoed directly behind me. Turning my head, I gasped.

Nononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononono.

This was impossible, it couldn't be happening.

"It is so good to see you again, Perseus. I was beginning to fear I would never see you again. Shutting my eyes, I stood as still as I could. But her snakes kept nipping my neck, leaving behind a sting that couldn't possibly be ignored.

"I killed you once, I'll do it again if I have to." I said reaching for Riptide in my pocket.

"There will be no need for that Mr. Jackson. I was just saying hello. You may carry on with your sweet treat to the rest of your friends." Her snakes continued to nip, more frantically.

"Not today girls. Percy has a quest he must complete," she soothed her snakes.

"What?" I asked. Medusa would not just let me go. Not after what I did to her. I could hear the vicious smile in her voice.

"You are doing me a favor son of Poseidon. Why would I kill you before you could carry it out. I will save the killing for another day." She brushed her snakes against my neck. I could hear the click clack of her heels as she slithered away. I slowly opened my eyes. This day was getting better and better. First doughnuts, and one of my mortal enemies had let me go. This day also seemed to be getting worse and worse. Well for one, one of my mortal enemies had let me go. Why? How would closing the Doors help her? She had escaped from hell. Why not let some of her friends out as well? Medusa wouldn't pass up an opportunity like this, though. Unless she thought she wouldn't have to do it herself. That meant someone else would.

And if Medusa knew someone else would, she also knew who, or what, that someone was.

Notes