Oh. My. God. The Mark of Athena, was SO AWESOME! I loved the ending, so much. There just aren't words to convey how I feel, so just read.

Warning: MAJOR spoilers ahead.

They freefell hand in hand, like their fingers were glued. He wrapped one arm around her and tugged her to his side.

Annabeth pressed her face into Percy's shoulder, feeling the air whip past them, stinging her cheeks.

"You idiot," she muttered.

"Together!" he called over the rush, ignoring her, "No matter what! Promise!"

The speed of their decent was making Percy dizzy, but he inhaled her lemon soap scent and felt calmer.

"No matter what," she agreed. They pulled each other nearer, trying to get as close as possible. Tangling themselves together so they were like one being.

Together, they fell into that endless abyss of nightmare.

The darkness swallowed them.

"C'mon guys!" Leo said halfheartedly, trying without success to cheer them up just a little bit. They were all sitting dejectedly in the lounge, to upset to eat anything, so the ice cream had melted a long time ago.

"They'll probably start sucking each others faces off, and then these monster guards will be like, Um, excuse me, but you're disturbing the horrible, heart rendering, torturous atmosphere with your puke inducing gooeyness, and the neighbors have been complaining. I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Or maybe, they'll break some rule about sneaking out to see your lover when you have an appointment to be tortured, and they'll be punished with chocolate and sunshine!"

Everyone stared at him.

"It's a possibility!" he defended himself.

"Not really," Nico muttered, "But you are right about one thing. With those two together, Tartarus won't know what hit it."

"If they survive," Hazel said, her lip trembling. "If they're not driven mad, or-"

"Thank you, queen of optimism," Leo rolled his eyes.

Frank glared at him and put a comforting arm around her.

"Listen to me!" Nico insisted. "As long as those two are together, they'll be all right. As good as you can be when you're trapped in the most despicable place in this and any other world."

"How do you know?" Jason shot at him. He didn't like the way he acted as if he was leading the group now.

"Because, I've known them the longest," Nico pointed out calmly, giving him a long look. "I've known then since before they were together and they fought and defeated the Titans. And despite the stubbornness and constant fighting-"

"Fighting?" All the others looked surprised.

"Yeah, they fight all the time, fierce as a pack of wolves. Have you seriously never seen them really go at it?"

"We haven't known them that long," Frank muttered.

"Well anyway, despite all that, I know for a fact that those two have no limits what so ever when it comes to each other. Seriously, if the sky, an army and the king of Titans can't stop them, not to mention everything else, now that they've admitted their feelings, there is no stopping them."

"He's right," a familiar voice said from the doorway. Piper walked into the room, lugging a box the size of a microwave. She set it down on the table and then looked around.

"It's very easy to see, so easy I'm almost jealous," she continued. "They'll be all right. We just have to rescue them fast, before they get kicked out for good behavior."

"What are those?" Jason asked curiously.

In answer, Piper held up one of the objects for them all to see.

"Candles?" Hazel looked dubious as they were passed out.

"Yes. We're going to pray for Percy and Annabeth."

"With candles. When they're not dead." Hazel wasn't the doubtful one.

"It's an old Cherokee tradition to do this for people who have lost their way and wandered into hell. Maybe it'll, help. At the very least it might make us feel better."

"Or we might walk around town like a bunch of depressed idiots, waving candles and saying things like 'return the lost ones! We'll be arrested for lunacy!" Leo muttered.

"Do you want me to charm speak you into jumping off a cliff?" Piper demanded.

"At any rate," Frank interrupted, "Percy and Annabeth aren't dead or lost. They fell. So how exactly can this help?"

"It's symbolic," Piper insisted. "Are you going to help or not?"

There was some muttering, but they all agreed, even Nico.

Piper handed them each a candle, and Leo lit them.

"Just follow me," she told them, and then walked slowly off the ship into the night streets. Everyone followed.

Nico caught up with her and walked at her pace so he could say something that had been bothering him.

"He could've let go and saved himself, but he didn't. He chose to fall with her," he stated.

"Yes."

Piper began to sing softly, a crooning tune that sounded like shifting sand and a wolf howling at the moon. It was so inhumanly sad and despairing, that tears began to course down the others cheeks without their permission.

You could distinguish words in the song, but they were not English. Either she couldn't remember the real words or didn't know them, because it was Greek, and then the same thing in Latin.

"θα, θα βρείτε, δεν δίνουν την ελπίδα σας,
παραμείνουν ισχυρά, είμαστε έρχονται, υπόσχομαι φίλοι μου.

Volumus, inveniemus, ne spem tradendum,
manere fortis, erant 'venientem, spondeo amicis meis."

Her voice grew louder, and then suddenly Nico joined in, adding his weaker tones to the endless chant. The others took it up as well, and the sound swelled and broke, like a sirens call.

People who had been wandering around at night stopped and stared at the strange procession as it made its way down the street. The candles gave it an unearthly glow, and they seemed more like ghosts than anything else.

Suddenly, a car screeched to a stop and a group of teenagers tumbled out, raising their weapons and looking around. The Romans had come.

The others eyed them warily, but Piper ignored them and continued on. This seemed to confuse the Romans, they shifted uneasily, like they were trying to decide whether or not to attack.

Then Reyna appeared at the front of the group. She glanced at the procession, seemed to realize what was missing. Or rather who.

Curiously, she took out her ear plugs. The song seemed to break something inside her, and even though she didn't cry, there seemed to be something in her eyes, because she kept blinking. She gestured for her warriors to lat down their weapons, and then slipped into line with Piper and her friends. Leo handed her a candle and she took it without complaint.

The other Romans wondered what that was about, and removed their own ear plugs. They too were deeply moved by the sound of grief, and stood by silently as the group passed. Then another Roman joined them. It was Dakota. One by one, they ignored Octavian's frantic cries to kill the traitors and followed the tiny parade, adding their own voices and little fires.

Slowly, they marched along the streets until it ended in a beach. Piper led them to the waters edge and then waded in herself until the spray touched her knees.

Some people faltered in their song, others gasped outright. The ocean was alive with ghostly greenish points of light. The sea creatures had had the same idea. Their cries mixed with the human's song, giving another layer of inhuman mystery.

Pausing in her singing only to mutter a prayer to Poseidon, Piper set her candle on the surface and gave it a push. The water rippled, but held it up, and it floated out towards the horizon. Around her, the others did the same, whispering a prayer and then sending the light out.

The under water glows followed the candles path underneath, until the waves seemed to be on fire.

Reyna came up beside her.

"I'm surprised you participated," Piper told her quietly, without turning her head.

Reyna did not look away from the captivating sight either. "They were good people. They do not deserve what has been done to them. Perhaps, in a different, simpler life, we would have been friends."

"Are you going to kill us?" Piper asked softly.

Reyna glanced at her swiftly, but her expression was serine as she stared out into the water and sky.

"Go back to your ship, Piper McLean. Tonight, Rome is not your enemy." She turned to go back. "Tomorrow, however, will be different," she promised.

Piper closed her eyes.

"Tomorrow," she agreed. The Roman's left, but she and her friends stayed until the wave of brilliance became as distant as a star in the heavens.

Greek- tha , tha vreíte , den dínoun ti̱n elpída sas ,
parameínoun ischyrá , eímaste érchontai , ypóschomai fíloi mou .

English- we will, we'll find you, don't give up your hope,

stay strong, we're coming, I promise my friends.

REVIEW! Seriously.