And we are back! This time with part two of the killer one-shot On the Dark Side.

For those who haven't read part one, this short story follows a lone Percy as he travels through Tartarus on his own, encountering Nyx and other beings alike.

Jump right in and read on!

His shock caught him by surprise, and Bob and Damasen froze as their blood bubbled under the imposters' skin and then they kneeled against their will in front of the new god.

----

Annabeth cried.

She knew she shouldn't, but she could not help but let the tears fall.

Annabeth could hear the cries of monsters and the roars of Tartarus, and it only made her cry harder than her Seaweed Brain was fighting or maybe dying amid the chaos.

Suddenly, the Doors slid open, and Annabeth stifled a scream. A slimy hand was prying the Doors open, and Annabeth was rooted to the spot.

Frozen, all she could do was gape at the thing, then when she heard another scream from below, she grabbed her drakon bone sword. With one slice, the hand no longer belonged to its owner, but it dissolved into ashes.

Breathing heavily, Annabeth sank back to the ground. She studied the Doors from the inside and held up her sword. Any monster could appear from the gap at any time.

Dropping her sword, Annabeth forced the Doors together. One hand pushing each side towards the other. She smelled something and gagged.

It smelled something like Smelly Gabe.

With all her might, Annabeth held the Doors together but after sometime, she began to tire.

Wise Girl.

Annabeth's eyes widened.

Percy.

Wise Girl... I'm sorry. But one thing I know for sure is that you can do it.

Hearing Percy's voice made a lump appear in her throat, even though it was only in her head.

She had to make it out alive.

"I'll tear Gaia apart with my bare hands," Annabeth growled.

She had to.

For the world.

For Percy.

----

"Annabeth! Oh gods, Annabeth wake up!"

Annabeth groaned and sat up straight. She rubbed her eyes, adjusting to the new light. Above her, she could see Piper's relieved face.

"Piper?"

Piper hugged Annabeth, crushing her in a hug. Annabeth could smell Piper's lemon-scented shampoo in her hair and being once again in her friend's embrace, Annabeth cried, for what seemed the millionth time that day.

"We were so worried!" Piper said, still holding Annabeth. She was vaguely aware of the rest of the seven and Nico standing around her.

Piper finally let go, and Annabeth looked at everyone in the eye.

Her grey eyes met Piper's multicoloured ones, Jason's electric blue ones, Nico's dark ones, Frank and Leo's warm brown eyes, Hazel's solid gold, but she could not find the one she was looking for.

The pair of bright sea-green ones she had fallen for all those months ago.

It was real.

Percy was gone.

-----

"Percy stayed back," Annabeth whispered. "He stayed back and fought with Bob the Titan and Damasen the Giant. He stayed back to help them against Tartarus."

Leo's eyes widened. "The monsters or...?"

Annabeth looked down at her plate. "The primordial god."

For a few moments, the room was silent. Everyone was lost in their thoughts, horrified by what Annabeth had just said.

"He'll make it. I know he will."

All eyes turned to Nico di Angelo, who was leaning against a wall in the darkest corner of the room. He had been so quiet that everyone had forgotten he was there. Again.

Nico cleared his throat before he stepped into the light. Upon Hazel's insistence, Nico reluctantly sat at Percy's empty spot.

"As I have told you all before, Percy is the most powerful demigod I have ever met. His aura was one of the strongest, attracting the most monsters and even scaring them away. It was so strong that the children of certain gods can even sense it," Nico twisted the silver skull ring on his finger as he continued to speak.

"Like me. I can sense death. I can also feel the aura of demigods, especially powerful ones like Percy Jackson.

"And I could sense his aura when he was there, but now... it's become stronger, like he's..."

Nico's face paled. "No..."

Annabeth's brows furrowed, as her eyes shone with worry. "What?"

"Almost like he's... immortal"

----

Annabeth closed her eyes.

Those dreams were true.

The visions were true.

Whatever Gaia had told her, whispered in her ear, was true.

----

"We came out to find you once she said you were awake. Follow us. Nyx has shown us a pathway to the mortal world. We must go there and stop Gaia!"

Then Percy froze. Why did Bob have streaks of gold in his hair? If Percy remembered right, Damasen had lilies in his hair, not sunflowers.

"Who are you?" he said, backing away.

"No, no, no no!" Percy said backing away. Just looking at their eyes, Percy could tell they were not his friends.

His shock caught him by surprise, and Bob and Damasen froze as their golden blood bubbled under their skins and then they kneeled against their will in front of the new god.

----

They fell to their knees, screaming in pain. They felt pain never felt before. They took huge breaths, but even that felt uneasy. The blood in and around their lungs and hearts was moving slowly. It felt... restrained.

Then suddenly there was a loud bang, and before they blacked out, they saw a pair of glowing, fractured sea-green eyes and the grin of a madman.

----

"Bob! Damasen!" Percy cried out.

"Percy! Are you okay friend?" Bob asked.

Gasping, Percy said, "We need to get out of here! NOW!"

Bob and Damasen looked at him confused, but they ran after him anyway. Sprinting, they made their way to the throne of Nyx.

----

"Nyx!" Percy fell to his fours, still wheezing.

"Perseus!" Nyx exclaimed. She levitated off her throne and gently grasped Percy's shoulders, propping him up against the base of her throne.

Percy took a few deep breaths before speaking again. He raised his gaze and looked into Nyx's eyes.

"Outside my room, when I left to find Bob and Damasen, I saw that they both were there. Except that it wasn't them. They were lookalikes, but they had features completely wrong. Damasen had roses in his hair and Bob's eyes were gold.

"I... I controlled their blood. Made them kneel. Let them feel pain when they didn't answer my questions." Percy covered his face with his hands.

"I made them explode. Forced their blood to push outwards, but the main reason I came to you was to tell you that their blood wasn't red. It wasn't ichor of the gods either. It was a dark purple."

Nyx gasped. "Are... Are you sure? It could have been black. Blue is possible too-"

"I know it's not black, it glinted in the light, and I'm quite sure I know my favourite colour well,"

"Then Percy, leave the Underworld as soon as you can," Nyx said, staring into the distance.

"Why?"

"Well, the Underworld must prepare for war,"

----

"Erebos is rising from the Void. If his minions, the purple-blooded, can rise from the Void, and break through the enchantments placed on them, it is only a matter of time Erebos breaks through as well.

"When Hades commanded the armies of Erebos during the Second Titan War, he weakened the bonds. Erebos was upset that his army was used to fight against the side he supported. I told Hades not to do so, but stubbornness runs in our ichor. Erebos weakened the enchantments greatly. It's a wonder what anger can do to you,"

"Relatable..." Percy said, still taking in the story.

"But... I can also help!" Percy exclaimed.

"No, young one. You have a battle to fight elsewhere. But, if we require your assistance, we will call out to you," Nyx sadly whispered. She was really going to miss this son of Poseidon.

----

"Bob! Damasen!" Percy exclaimed, running towards them. "We made it,"

Percy, Bob, and Damasen took their first step onto the lush green grass of Athens.

The night sky was ablaze with a myriad of stars, each one twinkling and glimmering like a precious jewel. A gentle, cool breeze swept through the air, causing the trees to sway and rustle their leaves in a graceful dance under the celestial canopy.

Bob reached upwards, with tears in his eyes.

"Hello," he whispered. Damasen was also staring at the skies with an awestruck look.

It had been so long.

"Let's go and find Annabeth," Percy said, still not being able to believe that he had made it out of Tartarus and that Bob and Damasen were finally free.

"Percy Jackson," Gaia's voice whispered, sending a chill down Percy's spine. He moved closer to Bob and Damasen, his sword ready.

"All this while, I waited for the most powerful demigod to come before me, but instead, I got a powerful, new god and a Titan and Giant. Ah, my darling Nyx, I must thank you at the next family dinner. You have made my life so much easier,"

Before Percy could say another sentence, the Earth swallowed him, and all went dark.

----

At that moment Annabeth Chase sat up straight on her bed and knew, somehow, that her Seaweed Brain had gotten himself into trouble again.

What an amazing story if I do say so myself. Storm () really outdoes herself, so give her all your praises in the comments!