Percy Jackson and the Dark Elites

XIV

Piper

Piper lost her faith in the gods when she lost her powers.

Two weeks. Two weeks ago Annabeth came to tell her that they would burn Percy's shroud. Then Annabeth said that she wanted to make his shroud, but not alone.

So rather than doing it with her cabin mates, she wanted Piper, Juniper, and Hazel's help.

Piper was so surprised to see her give up. It had been three years for them, but to Annabeth it had only been one.

Piper thought she would continue on until it killed her. But maybe the fact that no one around her had tried a hard as she did when she woke up made her accept it sooner.

Percy Jackson was dead, and Annabeth had left for Camp Jupiter. She would tell the Romans that they were going to burn Percy's shroud in person, as well as ask Hazel to help with the shroud.

Then the infamous Ruin had appeared to Frank and announced an attack on camp Jupiter was in play, by the very same man that Annabeth believed was their sole connection to the missing Percy Jackson.

Then Octavian dragged Annabeth into the woods, with clear intent to take her and no one else, and ran away for hours with her in captivity to a secluded spot.

Grover fired his weapon at Octavian, but he missed and hit Annabeth. Ruin dived over the falls and disappeared.

No one had seen any of the three for over two weeks.

So another search had begun.

First For Leo after the giant war. Then Percy. Now Annabeth. It was never going to end.

The people of Camp Half Blood and the people of Iretomb in a panic. They were all so worried that they would slowly disappear and never turn. That whoever had destroyed their lives and country was coming for them.

The valley in long island and in California were soon to be far from safe.

Iretomb, the town in Camp Half Blood had been created after the first wave of terror in America. When people were losing jobs and starting to feel uneasy about the country's security.

They created a town similar to the one in Camp Jupiter for the Greek demigods to stay. When the country closed off a year and a half ago, the gods let their children invite their mortal families to a place where they could sleep, eat, and be in a home free from constant fear.

Maybe the camps wouldn't be free from fear for much longer.

She was very aware of this now. It was July first, and Piper laid down in Jason's bed in cabin one. His hand was running through her hair, and the other was tracing lines on her arm.

She sniffed. Piper wished more than anything that peaceful moments like this, wouldn't have to feel like a grenade.

"I don't want this to end," Piper said.

He smiled sweetly, like he was waiting for her to say something like that. "It doesn't have to."

"But it will," Piper said firmly. "This war is going to hit us soon."

"It might not." Jason kissed her cheek. "We haven't been involved so far. We might be left alone."

Piper wiped a tear off her cheek. "So what's the price this time? Annabeth?!"

Jason brought her closer to him. "No. I didn't mean that. No. Just forget about the war... please."

Piper wrapped her arms around his chest, burying the side of her face in his clothes. His heartbeat was slower than usual.