We ran outside following their path, where upon first glance the manticore was holding the new demigods hostage and Peter was trying to look all heroic holding his sword attempting to get the manticore to release them. However, not easily seen was the single silver jacket in the forest that just made a bird call saying target found. 

Now you may be wondering what's with the bird call. Well normally when we are in these types of situations each member of the hunt has an assigned position and and bird call so if it was a turkey for instance that would be south entrance for example. 

However, I don't know the assignments for this mission and only heard what I am 99% sure was a snow goose. Which is one thing I love about monsters, they don't recognize or study wildlife, even the smarter ones.

"Alright we" Annabeth started but I placed a finger to her lips. 

"Grover you wait here as you're unarmed and see about what you can do to hinder the manticore's legs with your reed pipes. Annabeth you use your invisibility cap and get the new demigods out of there and place them in cover back here, and don't try to do anything else please. Thalia you and I will work with shield and spear to distract the manticore, until the newbies are out of the way, and then go on the attack to cover their escape" I said 

"Annabeth" Thalia questioned

"It should work, to get the newbies out, but what about you two and the manticore, afterwards" Annabeth asked

"We'll be fine, assuming our shields work well, and we use our powers intelligently" I finished

Thalia teamed up alongside me, and pulled her spear out, and since her shield is a replica of aegis we agreed to pull out our shields at the last possible moment. 

As we moved in, I could tell Annabeth moved out from behind us to go and grab the new demigods. Of course, with the luck of being a demigod, that's when Thalia and I get spotted and we pull out our shields. 

Now I don't know what Annabeth said or did for the newbies but they were seemingly unaffected, as they started moving towards grover. Peter in his attempt to runaway, ran into Annabeth knocking her hat off and leaving it in the snow. Annabeth annoyed at him threw him off. However, the manticore turn and ran almost straight off the cliff but just barely stopped himself from falling over into the ocean. 

"come on you couldn't have made it easy on us and just jumped to you death" I asked the manticore, and well Peter, but he doesn't know that.

The Manticore then let out some sort of scream and started launching tail spikes out at us in a feeble attempt to kill us. "For Zeus" Thalia shouted.

I really should talk to her about finding a better war cry. Personally, I like stealth so I don't have one. But the best one I heard was hearing Tyson shout peanut butter when he found out he could have a peanut butter sandwich for every meal, and then again when he found out he could just have a jar of peanut butter instead.

Anyways, Thalia charged in completely forgetting the ranged side of her powers while I just shot some electricity at him. As Thalia neared though the manticore just turned around and hit Thalia with his Thalia, sending her, her spear, and her shield in three separate directions. 

"Gods dammit Thalia" I mumbled to myself, discharging the last of the electric charge at the manticore, and moving to cover Thalia and myself with my shield, as another wave of spikes flew at us. 

"Hahahahahah I would have thought the son of the huntress would be a far better fighter" the manticore boasted

"I thought the same about your mother but she and your brother Chimmy are dead now" I sassed

The manticore bellowed in rage, and sent a load of spikes at us, and somehow they either all missed or just hit my shield and feel off harmlessly.

I knew I need to keep his attention on us but Peter, well he's Peter what do you expect. "really you would rather kill that nobody who's done nothing, instead of kill the son of Poseidon, returner of the master bolt and helm of hades, the saviour of camp half blood" 

I shared a look with the Manticore, for this one, "Peter literally not a single soul living or dead calls you that" I stated 

"Just yield demigods. it's obvious you aren't going to defeat me" the manticore said, "your attempts will prove fruitless" 

"well I mean if I was willing to sacrifice the others I'm 60% sure I could, but considering I don't want to sacrifice others I think that, I will just stay here and keep sassing you protecting my unconscious friend" I said , buying time for my sisters to get into position as I noticed more and more silver jackets appearing in the trees.

The manticore seemed to find that funny and launched a spike into Peter's leg causing him to stumble and fall into the ocean side below the cliff...I hope it's shallow and/or rocky at the bottom. 

The manticore looked like he was about to say something, but the hunting horn then sounded off...oh yea they are finally going to attack. "no this isn't possible" the manticore mumbled. 

I decided to take another risk and peak up over my shield again, only to see in the blink of an eye a silver arrow appearing in the manticore's shoulder. "DAMN YOU" he shouted noticing the arrow in his shoulder, only to start firing his spikes into the forest at random points, some that would hit one of my sisters, the others not even being in the vicinity of any of them. 

Each spike was met with an arrow causing the spike to disintegrate and the arrow to vere off course into the ground. 

"It's The hunt" Annabeth shouted

"oh great" thalia muttered just seemingly waking up 

"Don't worry I'll teach you how to properly ignore Zoë someday" I whisper hoping that zoë didn't hear me, as she stepped up and out of the woods.

"permission to fire milady" she asked

"Stop! This is direct interference. It's against the ancient laws" The manticore said

"That's where you are mistaken wild beast, and the hunting of all wild beast are well with in the duties of the hunt to well hunt" I said, "Plus my job here was never anything to deal with the new demigods, it was to find, capture, interrogate, and then kill you" I finished sassing, giving a modified version of the speech my mom gave when ever we have ran up on other monsters in this situation, minus the extra demigods of course. 

"well put son. Permission granted Zoë" Mom said

The manticore seemingly running out of options charged Thalia and I, as she was dazed and I wasn't in the best of positions to move quickly and counter. Annabeth though charged the manticore and jumped onto it's back, "Annabeth NO" I shouted, but she didn't listen to me

"Annabeth get out of the line of fire dammit" Phoebe tried, but Annabeth was still on the manticore's back.

I seen Zoë look over at me, and I didn't have to see her face to know what she was asking. I just gave a slight nod hoping that Annabeth would survive and none of my sisters accidently shoot her. "Fire" Zoë said, but she didn't put the same authority into the word as she usually does, telling me she already felt sorrow regardless of the outcome.

The hunters fired their arrows none of them hitting Annabeth, thankfully, bu the manticore disappeared over the cliff.

"NO. ANNABETH" Thalia shouted, "WHY DID YOU ALL DO THAT THERE HAD TO BE ANOTHER WAY" I heard her continue. 

I, however, ran over to the cliff to see nothing but Peter almost finished his way climbing back up. "help" he asked. 

I scoffed, "If you're so great according to your own word then you can certainly climb a small cliff, boy" I said, and returned to my sisters, Thalia, and mom. All I did was shake my head no.

"Is she dead then Percy, Did Annabeth die" Thalia asked sobbing into my shoulder. 

I wrapped my arms around her and started rubbing small circles on her back. "There was no sign of either the manticore or Annabeth at the bottom of the cliff, not even golden monster dust" I said

"You have to let us save her" Thalia said turning to my mom.

Mom just looked at Thalia sadly, "I'm afraid, with what my son has said, that she is beyond our help right now, Thalia" mom said placing a hand on her shoulder, only for Thalia to turn and start crying into my shoulder again.

Thalia quickly stopped to glare at Zoë, "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT ZOË. IF YOU DIDN'T GIVE THE ORDER TO FIRE ANNABETH WOULD STILL BE HERE" Thalia shouted and turned to head over to Grover.

"Four half-bloods including thalia and a satyr" I told mom

she sighed, "I see Peter lived his fall then"

"Sadly" I said, which caused my sister to nod in agreement. 

"alright set up camp, and a small area for the demigods just outside our camp girls. Percy Zoë with me. Phoebe is in charge until our return and if that Peter boy enters camp castrate him" mom order and Phoebe cracked her knuckles like she hoped that Peter would be stupid enough to enter their camp.