by Rick Riordan
Zeus Greek god of the sky and king of the gods. Roman form: Jupiter
Zoë Nightshade a daughter of Atlas who was exiled and later joined the Hunters of Artemis, becoming the loyal lieutenant of Artemis
WOW!
WHAT AN ENDING, RIGHT?
BUT HOW WOULD YOU HAVE DONE IT DIFFERENTLY?
Puffin Books challenged Movellas readers to write an alternative ending to Rick Riordan’s brilliant Heroes of Olympus series.
And here’s the winning entry by
ELLEN KNOWLES!
Read on to find out what happens in Ellen’s version of the story …
Percy kissed Annabeth; he hoped not for the last time.
‘Seaweed Brain.’ She smiled, though it looked strained.
The cave entrance in front of them was impossibly large and decorated with the bones of prized kills. Many, Percy guessed, were demigod bones. It was unguarded, not a great sign.
‘They’re waiting for us,’ said Jason.
‘Thank you, Captain Obvious,’ Leo teased.
Percy glanced at the crew of the Argo II, his friends. If any of them died . . . well, it would be on him.
‘Hazel, can you tell what’s down there?’ he asked.
All eyes flicked towards Hazel. She looked pale. Frank squeezed her hand reassuringly.
‘There’s a series of tunnels and a lot of movement, but it does lead to the temple,’ she said finally.
Dread filled Percy’s veins. His throat tightened. The giants would be there to meet them. Blood would be shed. He wanted to crawl into the sea and hide in its depths. But no – he couldn’t and wouldn’t leave his friends.
It was 1 August, the feast of Spes, and one of two things would happen. They would all die, Gaia would awaken and, promptly after, Doomsday would occur. Or the better option: they would all live, put Gaia to sleep for, like, ever, and he and Annabeth would go and get a cheeseburger. He smiled at that idea. Then, from behind, a thunderous roar sounded that made Percy’s teeth chatter.
‘Canadians!’ he shouted.
Barrelling towards them was a horde of Laistrygonian ogres. Frank shot him a dirty look.
Percy shrugged. ‘Well, they’re from Canada anyway,’ he said wryly.
‘Food!’ the ogres chanted.
Their shaggy hair flopped up and down as they clambered towards Percy and his friends.
Leo was the first to come to his senses and took off at a hasty dash, while Percy grabbed Annabeth’s hand and started running. The others quickly followed suit. Percy knew that the Laistrygonians were herding them into the cave, pushing them onwards. He let go of Annabeth and ran ahead, hoping to lead his friends away from the monsters.
Suddenly Piper tripped, sending her and Jason tumbling into Frank. As they fell in a messy heap, the ogres cheered. Their yellow teeth were covered in saliva; they were dribbling.
Percy glanced back and saw the largest ogre breaking away from the group. A tattoo of Betty Boop on his hairy chest was clearly visible as he held a boulder above his head. Percy turned and ran back to protect his friends.
By the time he reached Annabeth, who was helping Piper get up, the ogre was almost on them. In a panic Percy threw Riptide with all his might. The blade sliced through the air, lodging itself into the ogre’s neck, and the Laistrygonian promptly dropped his boulder and exploded into a pile of green dust. The rest of the ogres howled in fury. Percy guessed he had just taken down the Big Boss Canadian.
He and Annabeth pulled Piper, Jason and Frank to their feet, and they hurried to join Hazel and Leo, who were standing outside the cave’s entrance, breathless.
‘Come on!’ Percy yelled.
Without stopping, he plunged into the oppressing darkness of the cave. The Laistrygonians’ roars could still be heard, so on they ran, delving deeper into the pitch-blackness.
Leo summoned flames in his left hand and held it up high so they could see. Being a human torch made Leo really useful at times like this. Percy found it strange how much Leo had changed from when they had first met. He rarely told jokes any more and acted really weird whenever Percy was around. Percy had tried to ask Leo what was bugging him, but he would just laugh and shrug it off, pretending like he didn’t know what Percy was on about.
They came to a halt at a five-way intersection. The tunnels just oozed homeyness, what with their jagged rock floors and uneaten limbs strewn wildly.
‘Hazel? Which way?’ Percy asked.
She stepped forward. Her golden eyes shone in the light of Leo’s fire.
‘That one,’ she said, grimacing.
She pointed to the middle tunnel, where blood was smeared across the ground. Glowing eyes stared out at them from the darkness, then receded and faded on the group’s approach.
‘Ladies first,’ Percy offered.
Annabeth, Piper and Hazel shoved him forward.
‘Just a suggestion,’ he smirked.
‘Wait,’ said Hazel. She turned to the intersection and worked her magic. The Mist shimmered, and distant ghostly figures of her friends appeared in one of the other tunnels. ‘Let’s give those ogres a good bit of this maze to look around.’
‘Nice,’ said Percy. He then took a deep breath and led the group down the tunnel.
‘Hazel,’ Frank whispered as they walked, though Percy could hear it clearly. ‘If I die –’
‘Listen, you are not going to die. None of us are, and if you leave me you’ll regret it,’ Hazel interrupted, her voice choking with tears.
Percy gripped Annabeth’s hand tighter. He wouldn’t be separated from her again.
‘Leo, how’s it going?’ Jason asked.
‘Mhhh,’ Leo grunted, barely looking up.
He was trying to build a machine with only one hand, while the other lit the path they were taking. He kept passing mechanical things to Piper to hold. Percy had tried to think of a better plan, but even Annabeth couldn’t come up with anything. It would all depend on whether Leo finished his techno gadget.
Percy took a step forward and immediately regretted it. He tumbled into a deep ditch that hadn’t been there a second before. He landed with a thump, and Annabeth fell hard on his back.
‘Oww,’ he groaned.
‘Sorry,’ Annabeth said, rolling off him.
Jason’s head popped over the side.
‘You guys okay?’ he called down. Then the ground at his feet crumbled and he, too, crashed into Percy at the bottom.
‘Oww!’ Percy repeated.
Jason got up and pulled Percy to his feet.
‘Gaia’s messing with us,’ Hazel stated from above. ‘That hole appeared from nowhere.’
The earth at their feet rumbled in reply. It crept up, latching on to Percy, Jason and Annabeth. All three recoiled in fear – and began to sink.
‘Help!’ Annabeth shouted.
Piper, Hazel, Leo and Frank jumped into the ditch. Leo handed his gadget to Piper and shot a controlled blast of fire at the soil that was enveloping Percy. It scattered, and Frank helped Percy to get up. Leo repeated the process at the earth smothering Jason and Annabeth. The dirt seemed to melt away, and they were free.
The group climbed out of the ditch, breathing hard. Within seconds the hole sealed up and was, once again, covered by rock, matching the rest of the floor.
‘Thanks, man,’ Percy said to Leo, while the others patted him on the back.
‘I’m just awesome that way,’ Leo replied with a grin, his mood vastly improved by the adrenalin coursing through him.
Hazel spread her hands in a wide arc, and precious stones appeared on the floor and walls, coating the tunnel. ‘That should stop her at least for a while. I’ve surrounded the tunnel in millions of stones.’
‘Good thinking,’ said Piper.
Even covered in dirt, Piper looked stunning. Percy still found it strange how a child of Aphrodite could be such a tomboy. His thoughts were interrupted by the roar of the Laistrygonian ogres, echoing all around.
They were closing in.<
br />
‘Time to go,’ Annabeth remarked.
Percy took the lead and dashed down the tunnel, the others closely behind.
‘When this is over, we’ll be fit enough to win the Olympics,’ Leo joked.
No one laughed. Fear clung to them all.
The tunnel slanted upward slightly and they came to the foot of a staircase made of stone and soil. At the top, they all knew, would be the temple. It was where Gaia would rise, or she would fall.
‘Nice knowing you guys,’ Leo mumbled.
‘It’s been awesome,’ was Percy’s reply.
‘Don’t get all sappy on us!’ ordered Piper, and Percy feigned dramatically wiping tears from his eyes.
They started their ascent. The stairs were steep and soon all of them were worn out. Their footsteps reverberated off the walls.
Suddenly Leo yelped. Percy turned just in time for him to see him slip and fall forward, face first, into the steps, extinguishing the flames in his left hand.
‘Leo?’ Jason called.
No answer.
‘Leo, are you okay?’ Piper asked.
They were relieved to hear Leo groan, and the flames reappeared in his hand. He rose, rubbing his nose. It had been bashed pretty badly. He picked up the gadget he was working on and grumbled that a few screws had come loose.
‘You all right, man?’ said Frank.
‘Yeah, my nose hurts like crap, though,’ Leo replied. ‘At least I still look better than you.’
‘Hey!’ But Frank was too nervous to pretend to feel insulted. ‘Come on – let’s keep going,’ Hazel said with a small smile. They continued with their ascent.
‘I know a song that’ll get on your nerves, get on –’ Percy sang.
‘Please stop!’ Annabeth begged.
‘I know a song that’ll get on your nerves and it goes something like this!’ Piper laughed.
Soon all of them were singing, even Annabeth after much complaining.
‘I know a song that’ll get on your nerves, get on your nerves, get on your nerves . . .’ they sang, not at all in tune. ‘I know a song that’ll get on your nerves and it goes something like this!’
On and on they went, singing like strangled cats. Percy was glad he had managed to lighten the mood.
After the tenth round, they took a short break, consuming what little water they had left.
Percy glanced up and noticed a glimpse of dim light. They were near the top! He surged forward, moving further from the group, but Annabeth was soon at his side.
‘You should slow down. You won’t have any energy left to save the world,’ she cautioned.
‘We have to hurry,’ countered Percy.
‘I know,’ she said. ‘We only have a short amount of time left, but we always manage it someho–’
Her words were cut off as a huge calloused hand appeared, reaching down from the top of the steps and blocking the light. Before anyone could so much as blink, it had Percy and Annabeth in its fist and was dragging them away.
Jason charged forward. He leaped and brought his sword down with bone-breaking force. The blade sunk to its hilt above the knuckle of the hand’s index finger. A booming voice roared in anger. The hand spasmed but did not let go of Percy or Annabeth. Frantically they struggled and kicked but to no avail. Jason yanked his sword out, and the wound healed almost immediately. The hand swatted him away as if he were no more than a pesky fly, and he slammed into the others. Like bowling pins, they all went down.
The hand withdrew up the stairs from whence it came, with Percy and Annabeth firmly in its grasp.
Brought into the light, they could see that the giant was at least forty feet tall and humanoid from the waist up. Like the rest of his kind, he had scaly dragon legs, which were the colour of lima beans. He had green hair, braided with the weapons of defeated foes, and startling white eyes.
As he held Percy and Annabeth up to his face, he burst out in laughter, spit flying everywhere. ‘Kronos was defeated by the likes of you?’
‘I’m tougher than I look and, man, do you need a mint,’ rebuked Percy.
‘You will show me respect, Perseus Jackson. I could crush you in an instant!’ warned the giant.
Percy was finding it hard to breathe in his grasp. Annabeth was having the same trouble.
‘Why don’t you crush us then, or are you afraid?’ taunted Percy.
‘I am Porphyrion. I fear nothing!’ the giant roared boastfully. ‘I’ve heard of you,’ said Percy. ‘You ran away from the goddess of marriage.’
Porphyrion squeezed tighter. Both Percy and Annabeth turned a harsh shade of pink. They couldn’t breathe.
‘Stop!’ Annabeth pleaded.
The giant smirked and loosened his grip. They gasped, trying to get enough air into their lungs, and then Porphyrion tossed them into the air. However, before they hit the ground, he snatched the pair back into his hand. Percy’s head spun, and he saw spots.
‘Behave,’ ordered the giant.
He turned, still clutching them, and revealed the temple that he occupied. It was menacing to say the least: a large cavern that stretched out as far as the eye could see. Pillars of ivory and gold held up the ceiling, which was adorned by stalactites. On the walls hung silk tapestries; Percy could tell from Annabeth’s face that they’d been woven by Arachne, mother of all spiders. They depicted scenes of the giants slaying the gods and Gaia rising to her full majesty. They were breathtaking.
Sitting around the room were Porphyrion’s fellow giants, or at least the ones that hadn’t been defeated. Some were shorter than others, but they all had dragon legs and stupid-looking hair.
In the centre of the cavern was an altar, carved from bone. Percy shuddered. He knew that was where the ‘sacrifices’ would be . . . well, sacrificed.
‘Our friends will come for us, and they will bring the gods with them,’ Annabeth lied.
She was trying to buy time. The likelihood of the gods coming to the rescue was slim, to say the least.
‘Yeah, my dad is on his way right now – he told me so himself!’ Percy shouted for all to hear.
The giants snorted. They were not buying it. Percy tried to reach for Riptide but couldn’t; the giant’s grip was too tight.
‘You will die today, and the gods will not care!’ one giant bellowed.
The others cheered. They pumped their fists into the air and swung their weapons with glee. Annabeth managed to reach for Percy’s hand.
‘Ready?’ she whispered.
Percy nodded. He wasn’t sure what she was doing, but she was the smart one so he knew to follow her lead.
Stealthily Annabeth pulled out the drakon’s fang from the pouch in her belt and stuck it into Porphyrion’s finger, swiping downwards. A greenish goop spilled out, drenching Annabeth. The giant growled and shook his captives but loosened his grip. Percy managed to pull Riptide from his pocket. He uncapped the pen and it grew to its full size. He, too, stabbed Porphyrion’s hand, shoving the blade in deep, up to its hilt. With a yank, he freed Riptide, then repeated the action. The giant yelped and dropped them.
As they fell, Percy grabbed on to one of the huge scales on Porphyrion’s shin and caught Annabeth.
‘Good idea,’ he said, grinning.
He released his hold, and they slid down the giant’s leg, landing with a thump at Porphyrion’s feet. They groaned and, before the other giants could react, dashed towards to the entrance to the stairs. They had to regroup with their friends.
Porphyrion roared in anger. He turned and attempted to step on Percy and Annabeth, but they dodged the giant foot and dived into the stairway.
The pair toppled down the steps, two at a time, whacking their heads on the stairs as they fell. When they finally stopped, Annabeth somehow managed to stand. Their friends were nowhere in sight. They must have retreated to find a better – and safer – way into the temple when she and Percy were snatched. She heaved Percy to his feet. His head felt like it might fall off. Nasty bruises were already form
ing. Then the stairs shook as the giants headed for them.
‘Come on, Seaweed Brain,’ commanded Annabeth.
Percy, with what little energy he had left, ran down the stairs. He could hear Annabeth behind him. A loud rumbling sounded, and the earth above their heads began crumbling. Percy stopped abruptly. As Annabeth barrelled into him, rocks and clumps of mud crashed down onto the stairway above and below them. They were trapped.
Gaia’s laughter echoed all around.
‘No!’ Percy yelled.
Frantically he slashed at the wall of earth before him. His efforts were pointless. Behind them, the mud seemed to be crumbling away. Through the growing gap they saw Porphyrion’s hand draw near.
‘Percy,’ Annabeth whispered. ‘Percy, just stop.’
He faced her. In the dim light he could see tears trailing down her cheeks.
‘The others can’t get to us now. We’re on our own,’ she said. Percy pulled her into a tight embrace. ‘I love you, Annabeth. I won’t let you die.’
He’d barely got the words out when Porphyrion once again grabbed them and pulled them back into the temple. Repeatedly he shook the pair and tossed them into the air. His hand had completely healed.
‘Mother!’ the giant called. ‘The time to sacrifice the mortals draws near!’
He placed Percy and Annabeth on the altar. With one hand he held them in place and with the other he picked up his staff. He was going to crush them with it.
Percy struggled to no avail, but Annabeth had lost most of the fight in her. Percy tried to calm his nerves. He concentrated hard and felt a tug in his stomach. The moisture from the soil on the stairs and the surrounding earth gathered and formed a small trickle of water. Percy pushed harder. The small trickle became a stream, and the water soon filled the stairs up to the entrance of the cavern. The water slowly made its way inside.
The giants sat in silence, unaware of the encroaching stream. Porphyrion was waiting for Gaia to give the order to strike.
Suddenly one of the walls of the cavern exploded. Rocks cascaded across the ground. In the breach, Leo and Hazel stood side by side. Leo had softened the rock, and Hazel had blown through. Behind them were Jason, Piper and Frank.