I flipped out of bed, kicking Annabeth under the chin in the process. I drew my knife and readied myself for a fight. For some reason Annabeth didn't draw Riptide.

"What are you doing here?" I snarled.

Annabeth looked terrified. "I just want to talk," she lied.

"Nothing to talk about," I spat.

I slashed with my knife. Now she drew her own weapon and blocked my strike. I backed up and tried to go on defense, but there was nothing to defend against.

"Percy, I just–" Annabeth began.

I interrupted her with a strike from with my knife, which she dodged matrix style. While she was still bent backward, I kicked her and sent her stumbling. While she went backward, I created a vine rope on level with her ankles that tripped her. She hit the ground hard, and I threw my knife at her head. She moved her head to the side and the knife embedded itself in the ground.

I dropped down on top of Annabeth and grabbed my knife. She head butted me off of her and swung her sword, which glanced harmlessly off my side.

"Will you just listen to me?" she begged. "I'm on your side!"

"You're lying!" I roared.

I changed my knife into the sword form and sliced. She blocked and returned the strike. I blocked her sword and went on the offensive. I moved fast enough to keep her fighting for her life, but not with my full might. I was toying with her. And by the look on her face, she knew it.

"Did you really think you could kill me Annabeth?" I said threateningly.

She got in a lucky shot, and her blade skidded across my face. She stabbed me in the eye, but nothing happened. Even my eyes were invincible.

"I'm not here to kill you!" she tried. "Just let me explain."

"Explain what? You're sorry you almost killed me a year ago?" I asked, angry now.

"Percy, please. There's no one else I can go to," she told me, crying now.

"I know," I told her, not backing down. "They're all dead because of you!"

That's when I lost it. I fired off a lightning bolt, and Annabeth crashed to the floor, smoking. She dropped Riptide, and it clattered to the floor. I grabbed Riptide and crossed it with my own weapon. Holding both blades up to her throat, I let the fear flow through her.

"Percy...please. Just let me explain," she begged.

I don't know why, but I caved a little.

"Five minutes," I told her flatly. I didn't lower my swords though.

"I never meant for any of this to happen Percy. You have to believe me. I'm your friend," Annabeth said.

"YOU WERE NEVER MY FRIEND!" I roared. "It was a lie. It was all a lie. You were planning my death from day one."

"No!" she insisted. "It started that way but–"

"But nothing! I thought I could trust you Annabeth! Look where that got me! I'm stuck with the power of thirteen gods, and if that doesn't kill me odds are Kronos will! I thought you were my friend. I thought it was real. I thought...maybe..." but the words failed me.

"It was real for me too. Please you've got to believe me. I've been helping you. I've given up everything. For you." she told me.

You know maybe if she didn't lie so much I'd believe her.

"Name one time you helped me and meant it Annabeth," I ordered coldly.

"Mount St. Helens," she said.

I tried to take off her head with the swords, but she dodged and tried to run. I fired off a sun arrow, which exploded and sent her to the ground again.

"I meant when you freed Hephaestus. I was there. I helped you guys free Hephaestus, I rescued you from that Telkhine, I sabotaged the armory's defenses, I told the rebellion where Iris was, and I freed Blackjack. That was all me," she told me.

I softened up for a second. But only for a second.

"And what about everything else you've done? Castor, Silena, Beckondorf, Juniper, Micheal, Malcolm, Connor, all their deaths are on you! Not to mention all the demigods, nature spirits, centaurs, and Hunters who were killed when the Titans took over?"

Annabeth looked like I'd ripped her heart out of her chest. Good, she knows how I felt.

"Was it worth it Annabeth?" I asked.

She looked at me with tears in her eyes. "No," she answered. "But this was."

She lifted up her shirt. I was about to tell her seduction wasn't going to get her anywhere, but I realized that wasn't what she was getting at. She was showing me the scar that ran across her stomach.

"Kronos gave me that when I told him I failed to stop you at Mount St. Helens. He also broke two of my ribs and dislocated my shoulder. I lost so much blood. For you," she said sadly.

I lowered my sword.

"Annabeth..." It broke me to see her like this. She'd given up everything to help me. She looked into my eyes, and I looked into hers. I lost track of what happened after that, but next thing I realized we were pulling our lips apart.

"Percy...I love you," Annabeth told me, and the powers of Aphrodite confirmed it.

Annabeth Chase was in love with me.

And that's when it hit me...

"I love you too," I told her.

After that, I punched her in the face. She fell to the ground, unconscious. I left her in my tent with Riptide in her pocket and a blanket keeping her warm.

"But I can't trust you," I whispered.

And with that I went back to the training dome and cried myself to sleep.

Our ships slowly approached the center of the sea of monsters. All around me, people were busy prepping the ships for the dive. Torpedo launchers were loaded, boarding pods were refueled, and the hull was double sealed. I stared at Annabeth's hat, which had led us to Typhon's Prison. If only I'd gotten to it a second sooner, I wouldn't be in this situation.

"How long until we reach the Prison?" I asked.

"T-minus seven minutes," Ethan informed me. He'd miraculously avoided death on that fateful day one year ago.

"You ready for this?" he asked.

"Nope," I told him, and stabbed him in the stomach.

He collapsed, bleeding out. He looked murderously at me.

"Traitor," he hissed.

I readied my sword and turned to the rest of the crew. They were pumped and ready for battle against my friends. I was one guy...and I was going to take on and army.

"Not a traitor...a hero," I said to myself.