YAY! I'm back from my holiday. And let me just say, it rocked. If you ever have a chance to hop on a cruise ship ... TAKE IT!

Anyway, this is a late update because my plane didn't come in 'till late, and then I had to unpack, and I had to finish writing. But I really wanted to update today, so its a late one.

This chapter is dedicated to IAm2pEngland for her comment, "OMG PLEASE UPDATE!!!!!!!!11 I LOVE YOUR STORY AND I'M CRYING MY EYES OUT YOUR CHAPTER ENDING WAS/IS JUST AS SAD AS PERCABETH FALLING INTO TARTARUS!!!!! I SAVED YOUR STORY AND EVERYTHING PLEASE UPDATE!!!! Oh and to answer your question I would be the god"dess" of cupcakes and loyalty! and my symbol would be a cupcake, of course." Thanks IAm2pEngland! All comments are appreciated.

This chapter mightn't be as good as some of the others. Well, Im sorry but Im tired.

Anyway, Im babbling (as per usual). Here's chapter 16 ...

Chapter 16: The Black Realm - Clarisse's POV

We travelled for what felt like forever.

Not that the boat wasn't cool. It was epic. I was especially anxious to check out the armoury, but we did have more important things to attend to. Like rescuing our friends.

Now, once upon a time, it would've been strange for me to care about anyone. But the Giant War and being in Chaos' army has really set my priorities straight. I really miss Percy and Bianca. And Leo ... a little bit.

As I l stood looking over the edge of the boat, I shivered in the cool air and wrapped my hooded cloak tighter around me.

'Cold?' Luke asked, appearing behind me suddenly and making me jump.

'Gods, don't do that, Iroas,' I used his code name because Jason, Reyna and Hazel stood on deck.

'Sorry,' he grinned impishly and stretched his arms above his head, 'What do you think will happen when we reach Knapp's Castle?'

I shrugged, 'Who knows? But I still think somethings up. There was nothing there, not even monsters.'

He breathed deeply. That was how I knew he was thinking serious and not joking around. He wasn't going to muck around when it was the lives of his friends at stake. He had changed so much since he worked for Kronos. But he hated us bringing that subject up.

'What are you thinking?' I asked softly.

He looked me dead in the eye. My hood was down, but his was raised, and I could sense his intense, earnest gaze fixed upon me.

'I honestly don't know,' he whispered.

Then he walked off to where Jason, Reyna and Hazel were assembled. I followed suit.

'Where's Sally and Bandit?' Luke mumbled.

'Here,' Sally called, coming up from below deck, Travis at her heels.

'There are some cool stuff down there,' Travis marveled.

Jason grimaced, 'Try not to touch anything. We keep everything as it is as a tribute to Leo.'

His voice was full of pain, but hope too. That confused me. He thought Leo was dead.

Or did he.

I shook my head, 'Anyone have any ideas as to what we'll find at the Castle?'

Jason, Luke, Travis, Hazel and Reyna shrugged helplessly. Sally cocked her head to the side.

'Somethings there,' she said, shutting her eyes tight, 'I can't see what; its cloudy. But something's there.'

Jason sat down hard on a crate. Reyna sat next to him and pat his knee comfortingly.

'You'll find her,' Reyna mumbled, 'You'll find them.'

He nodded absently, but I was feeling along the same lines as Jason. Only, I had to stay strong. Luke didn't want to be leader, and he needed my support. Wow, that feels strange.

'Land!' Hazel shouted, 'Hard to port!'

Festus snorted fire and headed in the direction of the large blob in the distance.

'San Francisco,' Reyna said, 'Home.'

Hazel and Sally nodded in agreement. I kept forgetting that Percy's mom lived at Camp Jupiter.

We all watched as the busy town of San Francisco passed below us. Buildings, cars and people all scattered around.

'There's the entrance to camp,' Jason said, pointing at a maintenance tunnel.

Doesn't look like much, I thought. But then again, looks can be deceiving. Camp Half-Blood likes like a regular strawberry farm to mortals.

Jason, Hazel, Reyna and Sally kept staring long after the city had faded. It wasn't long, though, until we saw our true destination.

'California,' I whispered, my voice echoing around the quiet ship.

The seven of us couldn't keep our eyes of the massive blur of lights and sounds. Neon signs blinked and flashed, easily visible even from a height like ours.

The noises of average mortals living their average lives sounded incredibly inviting. I suddenly wished, as I sometimes did, that I had never been born a demigod. Then I would never had gone into battle, lost so many friends, and I never would have died. By now, I probably would have finished college, maybe even met a guy. I could've had a normal life.

But then I never would've met Percy, or Annabeth, or Silena, or ... Luke.

I shook my head. I was the daughter of the war god. It was not my place to go all sappy. I couldn't afford to think about far into the future. All that mattered was the present, and at present, we needed to rescue our friends.

'Knapp's Castle isn't in California,' Jason's voice brought me back to the present.

Reyna nodded, 'It's nearby.'

'Lets hope Festus know's where we're going,' Luke chuckled. I found myself smiling.

Snap out of it, girl, I told myself.

The sounds and colours of California faded as we moved away from the city and towards the mountains. In no time at all, the ruins of Knapp's Castle loomed in the distance.

The vision from the Fates had told no lies. The place was as deserted now as it had been in the picture. Marble columns here and there, construction equipment scattered in between. You could tell it had all remained untouched because everything was coated in a thick layer of dust and strung with spider webs.

But like I'd said to Luke earlier, there were no signs of monsters, the missing six or Destruction.

Festus landed 100 feet from the ruins. We jumped out one by one and ran up to the Knapp's Castle. It felt bigger up close, but still very cold and empty.

I glanced at the others, 'Ready?'

'No,' Luke breathed deep, 'but we gotta do it anyway.'

With that, he took off and foraged ahead.

'Hey!' I protested, 'I was gonna go first.'

'Too bad, so sad,' I head him call back.

I crossed my arms and trudged after him. I glanced back at the others to make sure they were following, and all of them barely contained an amused smile. Rolling my eyes, I hurried after Luke.

When we caught pu to him, he was standing in the center of the Castle at what I guessed use to be one of those grand staircases that circled around on either side and joined in the middle at the top.

Luke was staring at the spot between where the stairs began. I was about to ask what was wrong when I felt it too. I exchanged a look with him.

'You feel that?' he asked cautiously.

I nodded, 'Something powerful at work here.'

Travis stared up at whatever was left of the stairs, 'I can feel it. Dark magic in the air. Gives me the chills.'

He shuddered and I couldn't blame him. The place radiated such cold, evil power that I wanted to turn and run back to the Argo II. It was only the fact that I knew my friends were close that kept me from bolting, and from the nervous looks on Travis and Luke's faces beneath their hoods, they felt the same.

Sally, Reyna, Hazel and Jason just looked confused. It was clear they had no idea what we were talking about.

'What in Hades are you going on about?' Jason asked.

Luke chuckled, 'Its a Chaos thing. When we entered the army, we got all these cool powers from Chaos. But right now, we can feel magic. Something happened here. That dark power still lingers.'

I nodded, 'Destruction. There's no other option.'

'But the Fates led us here,' Hazel said, 'They wouldn't lead us on a wild goose chase. Would they?'

Sally held out her hands and closed her eyes, 'No. The way is here. I feel it.'

'There must be a way into Destruction's Fortress,' Reyna muttered, 'a way in.'

Silence settled in. It took some time, but it finally clicked. The one place that Chaos told us we could never go. Most of the army thought the place was a story, made up by Chaos for a bunch of laughs and or scares. But now the place made sense.

I slowly turned to look at Luke and Travis. Judging by their hidden expressions, they had come to the same conclusion.

'No,' Travis gulped, 'Its not real.'

'Its the only place that makes sense,' Luke insisted, though he sounded unsure.

I nodded hesitantly, 'Chaos always said it was real, even when the others thought it was made up.'

'Yeah,' Travis agreed, 'And others includes me. Couldn't there be another place where Destruction hangs out?'

'No,' I argued, 'Chaos warned against going there and this is why. It's where he locked Destruction all those years ago. He's turned his prison into his fortress.'

'But why tell us about it if he didn't want us going there?' Travis countered.

'Because he didn't want us to mess around and accidentally end up there?' Luke pointed out.

'So why would we purposely go there if Chaos didn't want us to accidentally go there?' Travis whined.

'Stop!' Jason interrupted, What is "there?" And why can't we go there?'

The three of us turned to look at him, Sally, Reyna and Hazel. I was pretty sure we were all shaking. I mean, the place is so darn scary in Chaos' tales, what would it be like in real life.

'A place Chaos told us never to go,' Luke whispered, 'Most thought it was a legend made up to scare the children in the other divisions.'

'Other divisions?' Reyna asked.

I laughed, 'Do you think that we plus the others back at camp are the entire army? Of course not. We are just one division. The highest division; the Gennaios Squad. There are others, the youngest being the Junior division. Any parents on Chaos' planet who want their kids to join the army can put their child through training in the Junior division. The youngest kid there is Amy. She's four.'

'Wow,' Hazel murmured.

Luke clicked his fingers in front of my face, 'Getting off track. We were talking about the legend.'

'Right, right,' I shook my head, 'So, yeah. Everyone thought it was a legend.'

'Thought what was a legend?' Sally asked eagerly.

Travis stepped forward, 'The Black Realm.'

The four not from the army exchanged bewildered looks. They looked a little frightened. I mean, anyone could tell the place was bad just from the name. It even sounded scary.

'Im almost scared to ask,' Reyna said, 'But whats the Black Realm?'

'Chaos says its the most evil place to exist anywhere,' Luke replied, 'Its where gods, monsters and titans go when the fade completely.'

'Fade completely?' Hazel asked.

'There is a substance,' I explained, 'called Skotadi Metal. It is extraordinarily rare and has the power to disintegrate immortals so they can never return. It sends there essence to the Black Realm. There are only two beings in all the galaxies to wield a weapon made of Skoladi Metal.'

'And they are ...' Jason sounded wary.

'Chaos and Commander Epsilon,' Travis said, 'Only, Epsilon says that no one deserves to be vanished completely and unable to ever return, and never have the opportunity to change. He doesn't carry his dagger made of Skoladi Metal. He keeps it in his quarters the Barracks on Chaos' planet. But he never uses it.'

I sighed. Same old Percy. He is, and always will be, determined to save everyone.

'So,' Hazel said, 'About this Black Realm. You think its here?'

We shook our heads earnestly.

'No,' Luke said, 'We think an entrance is. But ... its super dangerous.'

'Why?' Reyna and Jason asked simultaneously.

'Because,' I shivered, 'The Black Realm is another dimension entirely.'

Jason's POV

That was a nice little revelation. There was silence as we all soaked in this new piece of information. Reyna was the first one to snap put of the shock.

'How do we save them?' she stuttered.

'Well, we could open a portal into Destruction's fortress,' Iroas said slowly, like he was expecting our reactions to be not-so-good. He was right.

'You want to open a portal into the Black Realm?' Bandit spluttered.

Drakon whacked Iroas upside the head, 'Oh, yeah. Just open the door for Destruction. Might as well tie a police siren around your head and start screaming, "Right this way, monsters!" Brilliant idea.'

'Is there any other way?' Iroas asked.

'He has a point,' Bandit stated.

Drakon turned to him, 'Who's side are you on?'

'Guys!' I interrupted, stepping between them, 'Does anyone actually have any better idea?'

Silence. Figures.

'Well, then,' I said, 'The portal it is.'

'It would take time,' Iroas said, 'and concentration. It most definitely wouldn't be fast.'

'Hang on a sec,' Hazel said, 'We're just going to march straight into a place you were told never to go?'

'She's right,' Bandit said, 'Entering the Black Realm is suicide.'

Drakon threw her hands up, exasperated, 'Make up your mind.'

Iroas clapped his hands together, 'There may be a way. I can try to coordinate the portal so it opens up next to Epsilon and the others. Doing that would take longer, but it would be a lot safer.'

I nodded, 'Then that's what we do. Our main aim is to get everyone out safely. That includes rescuers, too.

Sally nodded weakly, 'That would be great.'

'We won't be able to defend ourselves while we're doing this,' Drakon warned.

'We'll be your lookouts,' Reyna declared.

They nodded and grabbed each others hands, closing their eyes. For a while, nothing happened. Then, ever so slowly, a black speck appeared. It steadily grew lager and larger until it was a small circular ball of swirling darkness.

I looked back at the warriors and yelped. The were glowing with a ghostly light, making them look not of this world. They looked strange, alien, and very scary.

I turned back to the portal and watched it grow.

It could have been minutes, but it felt like years. Eventually, the swirl expanded and grew into a rectangular door of darkness. The three remained linked as we waited.

Reyna, Sally, Hazel and I rushed forward to help whoever made it though the portal. Seconds later Frank came tumbling through, followed by a cloaked figure, Piper and another cloaked figure.

Reyna helped helped the last cloaked figure up while Frank sprang to his feet and helped the other.

I grabbed Piper's arm and she gave me a fleeting kiss before joining Frank in supporting the boy in the cloak.

'Come on, Flames,' the girl who Reyna helped up said.

'Im trying, Angel,' Flames mumbled. Flames; Leo!

'Broken ankle,' Piper explained.

Angel and Frank got him to his feet where he swayed for a moment.

A sharp noise turned our attention back to the portal. That's when I realized that our numbers were still down by two.

'Where's Annabeth and Epsilon?' I shouted.

Angel spun to the door, 'No!'

I grabbed her arm before she could launch through.

'You can't go through there,' I told her, 'The others said that it was the Black Realm. Its suicide.'

'No,' her voice quavered, 'That's impossible.'

'Its not,' I assured her, 'But we have to trust that they'll make it through.'

The portal began to flicker and pop. It wavered dangerously in and out of existence. Flames/Leo inhaled sharply.

'They'll be killed! We can't let them die,' he half roared, half sobbed.

He tried to dart forward, but barely made it one step before he collapsed to the ground in agony, his hands locked around his ankle.

I dug a square of lemon ambrosia out of my pocket.

'Sorry if it's a bit crumbled, man,' I gave it to him and he scoffed it down gratefully, murmuring thanks.

As the portal began to fade, the ghostly form of Annabeth became visible for a moment, her hands outstretched as if she'd been pushed from behind. She fell through the portal before dissolving into mist.

We all stared at the portal in horror is it shrunk to the size of a pea and vanished with a small pop. As soon as it was gone, the three warriors collapsed to the ground with exhaustion. Their breathing even out, indicating that they'd passed out.

There was silence for a while as we took in what just happened. My guess was that Epsilon had tried to force Annabeth to safety by pushing her though the portal.

But it was too late.

The portal had closed and Annabeth was on the other side, and so was Epsilon. Two of the most powerful and dangerous people on our team were still in the clutches of our enemies.

'What do we do now?' Flames/Leo whispered. In his voice, I could hear the tears that he refused to let fall.

No one said a thing. We had no clue what to do. Three of our friends had passed out, we had four more injured ones, and two we'd had failed to rescue completely.

I felt horrible. Why couldn't I have charged in and helped them get out? We should've thought over our plan more. Now the chance was gone. Epsilon and Annabeth remained prisoners in Destruction's fortress.

And just because our luck was that bad, it started to rain.

Yay! That took forever to write. I know its pretty short, but its like midnight, so cut me some slack.

I just wanted to say, as well, that I went away for two weeks, and when I come back, I have over 7,600 reads. I had around 3,500 when I left. Man, you guys rock. XD

Anyway, I've been trying to ask questions to add some fun. Last chapters question was 'If you could be a new god/goddess, what would you be the god/goddess of?' Thanks to all those who responded. This chapter, the question is; what is your favourite Greek/Roman monster? And Im talking about the kind that eat demigods, not satyrs, nymphs, Chiron and good cyclops. My favourite would have to be the Chimera.

As always, please vote, comment and follow. The more the merrier, I say.

Again, you guys rock! Peace out peeps!