Six

Labyrinth

Percy felt as if he'd been walking for days when Annabeth finally decided she was ready to head home. He'd been training for months now, but when the daughter of Athena was on a mission, nothing got in her way. The boy had to suppress a small smile at how a like they were.

They'd spent the last few hours traversing the tunnels that seemingly interchanged like that of a maze. One moment they were in the subways of New York, the next they were in the sewers of San Francisco, with tons of different places in between. It was like they had traveled the world as he observed the passing architecture. He swore some parts of the tunnels reminded him of the Greek Architecture displayed in camp. Percy was just about to comment about it, but Annabeth beat him to the chase.

"Hey Percy? Is it just me, or do you some of this stuff looks...Greek?" The blonde questioned, a small aura of fear escaping with her words.

"I thought so too, but what would the Greeks have been doing here in America? They didn't even know of it, right?" He replied, interested in where his closest friend was taking this.

"I think I know what we've been walking through the past few hours... do you remember anything about the Labyrinth?" Annabeth asked, turning to face him as she relaxed against one of the nicer sections of the walls.

"Of course. It was a maze created by Daedalus, guarded by the Minotaur. Perseus navigated it using the string from... I can't remember her name, but it was one of his quests. Are you saying that we are IN the Labyrinth?" Percy responded, growing a little more fearful as he realized what the daughter of Athena was getting at.

"To be honest, I'm pretty much one hundred percent sure we are. As we've been walking, I've noticed little triangles carved into the walls as random intervals. The triangle, or Delta as the Greeks called it, was known to be Daedalus' symbol, especially when it came to the Labyrinth." She said, running a hand through her hair. Percy could feel the fear flowing off the girl in front of him, and he couldn't blame her. He was scared himself. They were in a maze that was dead set on killing them, known to be unnavigable without the famous golden string.

"Gods Of Olympus, I think I'm done with the mythological world for today. Do you think we have a chance of getting back?" Percy asked, mentally compartmentalizing his fear. It would do him no good to let his brain wander on the 'what ifs' of this place.

"I've been tracing our steps this entire time, so if the Labyrinth is forgiving enough and hasn't changed yet, then we should be fine. If not, we take the first exit we can and travel back to camp through mortal means." Percy blanched at the idea, but agreed that it was their best option.

"Lead the way then, oh smart one!" He said with a slight bow, hoping it would get rid of the fear surrounding them, suffocating them. It seemed to work for a moment when he felt a hand smack him on his head, before Annabeth let out a small giggle.

"Gods you can be so sarcastic, I think we're gonna have to call you Persassy Jackson from now on." She said letting out another round of laughter. While fear was racing through her head because of their current predicament, she was also extremely grateful for it.

Even though they were just friends, and that's all they ever planned to be, she had come to deeply care for the son of Poseidon. It had hurt in more ways than one when he'd closed himself off to the world, from his friends, from her. She had been scared he'd changed forever, but small moments like these had dashed those thoughts, and she was glad she'd been wrong.

"As long as I get my blue cookies, then I don't care what you call me." Percy said, a far off look In his eyes.

That was the last they spoke to each other as they walked the tunnels of the Labyrinth, ever so slowly making their way back home. Annabeth couldn't help but marvel at the architecture and how flawlessly is translated from different cultures across the world. The walk back seemed to be considerably shorter than their walk when exploring, but the sight of a subway tunnel ahead gave her hope that they'd made it back.

Maybe a few steps into the subway, Percy pointed out a light coming from overhead, something she begged to the god's lead to Zeus' fist. With Percy as a boost, she managed to reach the upper lip of the ledge above them, before pulling herself up and over. After catching a quick breath, she turned back to help Percy up, only to watch as he sprinted before leaping for the ledge, just barely catching it. The blonde hurriedly grabbed his wrist, before helping him clamber up.

"Thanks Wise Girl, thought you might leave me down there." Percy said, draping an arm across her shoulder, letting his weight shift over.

"Maybe I should have." The daughter of Athena replied as she glared at him. The boy gave a quick chuckle before removing his arm.

The two of them squeezed back through the gap in the rocks, only to find themselves on a group of campers. They seemed to all be in a dreadful mood, looking like somebody had kicked their puppy.

"Umm, did something happen?" Annabeth called out, confused by how everyone was acting. The first person to notice her seemed to jump in surprise before rushing over to wrap her in a hug. The girl barely had time to realize it was her half-brother Malcom before she was hugged to death.

"Where have you two been!" Malcom shouted, pulling back to hold her at arms length.

"Well, we kinda got overwhelmed by the scorpions, so we..." Percy started only to trail off. It would better if the whole camp didn't know about the entrance to the Labyrinth. They'd already had enough information leaked to the Titans, no need to give them something as vital as this.

"Everyone get back to your daily activities, the search is concluded. You two," Chiron said, pointing at the duo with a stern look on his face, "come with me."

The two friends trailed after the centaur as he lead the way to the Big House, feeling like scolded children. They'd received many surprises and awed looks from campers they passed, but for the life of them, they couldn't figure out why. The walk was relatively short, but that just meant they'd be chewed out sooner rather than later.

Chiron gestured for the duo to take a seat at the table in his office, while he rolled his wheelchair behind it.

"Care to explain where the two of you disappeared to for six hours? The camp was worried out of their mind looking for you. Some had though you'd switched sides, others thought you been killed." Chiron said, his voice low and threatening, warning them to tell him the truth.

"Look, we were just hunting scorpions like everyone else, but got overwhelmed at Zeus' fist. Annabeth while trying to escape ended up finding something that could ultimately lead to the destruction of camp if we don't do something about it." Percy said, laying everything out on the table.

"Chiron, the Labyrinth is here. It's right under the camp, and if the Titans find out about it, they could very well use it to attack camp." Annabeth added, wincing as the look of shock came over their mentors face.

"Sir, we should ask for a quest. Let me and Annabeth lead it. We've already been down there. If the Titans get a hold of this information, it could be the end of camp! Maybe we can find a way to shut down the Labyrinth, or at least collapse the tunnels." Percy started, hoping the centaur would agree with his reasonings.

"I guess you're right, Perseus. Whenever you're ready, head on up to the attic. I think she should still be in the same spot." Chiron said, deciding to go along with his student's idea.

It took Percy less than a minute to make his way up to the attic. He could still remember his first time up here, searching for a way to find that stupid bolt. The place was still just as crowded with trophies and spoils of war as always, something Percy couldn't help but take a peak at. He had always wondered if he'd be one of the Hero's to bring back the spoils after a battle, to go down in history as a famous demigod. He'd had the chance for spoils thrice now, but the Minotaur horn had been a personal keepsake, while the fleece had gone to Clarisse for her quest, and the Neman Lion's hide had gone to Artemis.

The boy let out a sigh as he reminisced his few quests, before pushing everything down. Sitting in front of him was the Oracle of Delphi, still as mummy like as ever. He'd barely taken another step towards it, when that same sickly green mist started to swirl around him, showing glimpses of his past.

"I am the Oracle of Delphi, servant of Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach seeker and ask." The Oracle called out, beckoning the boy closer.

"How do I save camp?" Percy questioned, hoping he'd asked the right thing. It would matter little, but the more information he could gather, the better.

"You shall delve in the darkness of the endless maze,

The dead, the traitor, the lost one raise,

You shall raise or fall by the ghost king's hand,

The child of Athena's final stand,

Destroy with a hero's final breath,

And lose a love to worse than death."

Percy could feel his heart start to race, his nerves starting to clash in a frenzy of anxiety. He had heard the prophecy clearly and had memorized it, but all that mattered was Annabeth, there was no way he was taking her on this quest.

He'd already promised himself that none of his friends would ever be hurt again, but he could already tell this quest was going to be his most difficult one yet. Not that it mattered. Percy would just add it to the top of mountain. He would scale the structure alone, he would bare the pain on his shoulders if it meant saving everyone.

"To the Labyrinth I go.."

So... this quest is going to be Really different than that of the one you are used to. There's no chance in Hades that Percy will let Annabeth on this quest. Plus, as you'll see, Daedalus isn't going to be as nice and helpful. Things are going to be much harder from now on. Also! Calypso won't be coming into the picture, I have a very different place for Percy to go, one where we might see the beginnings of the book's pairing.

Hope you all enjoyed!