Who I Truly Am

Ch. 29 *Edited*

Annabeth POV:

"Annabeth, your actions ended up setting Hyperion free."

No. I didn't do that. Did I? Thalia's the one who hit the tree. I can't see anything. Shit. I hear a low chuckle and the light dies down. I slowly open my eyes, still seeing black dots.

When my vision finally cleared, Thalia and Percy were gone. Where did they go? I thought I could trigger Thalia's memory by talking to her. Who erased her memory in the first place? Why did they? Or was it triggered by her tree burning? No, she would've been with her hunters, they would have filled her in. She wouldn't have been left alone. I sit down on a bench nearby, my vision slowly coming back. Did she really get burned so badly that she lost her memory? Or did a god do this to her?

Cars roll by, going on with their days. How many of these people get hurt because of us? We need New York to evacuate, but we'll never get everyone out in time. Who would believe a bunch of kids that you have to leave New York City for your own safety? I stand up and start walking toward the Empire State Building, I'll have to talk to the gods to see what they can do. I can already hear them. 'They're only mortals' 'Why should we care for mortals?' The thought infuriates me. Just because they are mortals doesn't mean they don't matter.

I stare at the cracks in the sidewalk, avoiding eye contact with strangers. I can feel people staring at me, staring at the gray streak in my hair, it's been more visible since Tartarus. Staring at my dirty outfit, looking at the blood stain on the side of my Camp Half-Blood shirt. Looking at my sunburnt skin from Hyperion. Maybe they're staring at the cut above my eyebrow I got from fighting with Nyx. If I even fought with her. Percy didn't see Nyx, but she was there, I know it. Even if he didn't see her. She was there in the shadows; so maybe she manipulated Thalia and me into seeing her or manipulated Percy into not seeing her.

The sea of people gets thicker as I walk closer to the State Building. I'm walking upstream. All these people could be dead if we don't get them to evacuate before Nyx or Tartarus attacks. Or does Percy remember everything already and was manipulating me? No, he wouldn't remember everything that quickly. It would take another week or two for him to remember, which is why we need to end this war as soon as we can. But what if he already knows? He hasn't passed out as often, which has been a sign of him remembering.

I run a hand through my tangled hair, lightly brushing it out. I pull it back into a braid as I wander around New York, slowly making my way back toward the State Building. My hair was really tangled because I couldn't brush it when it was dry unless I wanted crazy hair. I do not want crazy hair, it would just get in the way more when I'm training or fighting, even thinking.

What the fuck is going on? I feel like everything we've done has backfired on us. One enemy down, oh here's a more powerful one for you to defeat. Why can't we just have some peace for once? Of course not. Why would we? Just take on a bunch of kids so they're so burnt out that you're going to win and take over eventually. Fantastic.

Order POV:

I take Thalia to the Empire State Building. A god messed with her memory. How can I get her memory back without the gods figuring out it was me?

"Thalia?" I look at her. She's sitting next to me on a bench. "There's no way to say this easily, but the gods are real. The Greek gods."

"Yeah, totally. Like Heron, Poseidean, Zagreus, and Harold? Totally real," Sarcasm leaks through her voice. I sigh. Maybe I can jolt one memory. That could cause a chain reaction and she'll remember everything without anyone being too suspicious of me! I put my index and middle finger up to her temple. Just one memory.Anything. Nothing. What about a memory I have of her? The first thing that comes to mind is when I first met her. I think of that memory through her eyes and take my fingers off of her temple.

Please let this work.

"Thalia-"

"Whattheactualfuckwasthat?" Thalia's eyes widen. "Was that me? Holy shit, holy shit. Holy Shit!"

She blinks a lot. I think she's remembering. Thank gods. But she slumps down in her seat, passed out. It worked. Thank gods. Annabeth steps inside. Sunburnt, like Thalia and I. From Hyperion. Her hair is now in a braid, something she does when she needs to focus better.

"Do you know where any aloe vera is? We're all sunburnt," I ask Annabeth. I could tell she was mad about something. I know we argued, but she's still angry about that?

"What? Uh, Just use nectar and a square of ambrosia," definitely distracted by something.

"We only have a limited supply, I'd rather not waste it on sunburns."

"Yeah, yeah do that," Annabeth walks into the elevator.

"This'll be yall's last trip up there for today, I can't have people questioning where a bunch of kids went."

"Ok," I pick up Thalia and set her gently on the elevator floor. "Jordan, Harley! Its time to go up!"

"Is there stairs? I hate elevators," Jordan asks.

"Not to the 600th floor."

Harley grabs Jordan's hand, "It's perfectly safe, if you get scared you can hold my hand."

"Thanks, Harley," They squeeze Harley's hand. Terrible music comes through the speakers as we make our way up to Olympus. The Pina Colada Song in particular. Annabeth and I tense up a bit. Elevators and this song were not a good memory. Thalia's still out cold, and Harley is distracting Jordan by playing rock-paper-scissors. Annabeth is standing with her eyes shut tight and teeth clenched. I watch as the numbers go up.

345

346

400

402

478

563

600

Finally, the doors open and everyone stumbles out. I grab Thalia and follow them. I set Thalia down near Artemis' temple before finding the others. They were settling down in Hestia's temple. Food was laid out buffet style for anyone that was hungry. Cabin leaders were directing their siblings to different rooms on the higher floors. I was in room 201, sharing a room with Jordan, Jason, Hazel, and Nico because we don't have a lot of siblings to share rooms with.

Annabeth walks off to the throne room. I follow her. What is she doing?

"Percy, please stop following me."

"What are you doing?"

"If Olympus is going to get attacked, so will the mortals. I need to convince the gods to do something to get everyone evacuated before Tartarus attacks."

"Ok, tell me how that goes. I need to try and get the others situated."

"Oh, uh, Percy? Could you make sure this gets to Malcolm for me?"

"Yeah, sure," Annabeth hands me a note. I take it and put it in my pocket. I let Annabeth walk into the throne room and I make my way back to Hestia's temple. 

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1,240 Words

Last One Edited!