Humanoid Monstrosities by _Silena_

They've arranged themselves on the field. A small unit, made up of seventy or so people. Seventy or so genetically modified teens, each no more than thirty years old. And yet, they are the only hope for the world. "Commander" Percy stands in front, his hands loosely clenched; you can see the raging storm of emotions in his sea-green eyes. His eyes are trained on the departing enemy, who had come under a flag of truce.

"We're never giving up," he'd said, but they were so close. It had been a hard few years, stationed at Camp Half-Blood, one of the few remaining refugee camps for those discriminated against. Zeus, the army's commander, had ordered the Demigod Division to protect it. So here they were, in the bitter cold, protecting the camp from the Monsters. The Monsters were yet another group of genetically modified soldiers, though they were evil and bloodthirsty.

The Monsters had haunted the streets of New Manhattan long before former dictator Kronos began trying to take over. Divided into sections that happened to resemble Greek monsters, they walked the streets of New Manhattan, beating up just about anything alive.

Lately, these random attacks seemed to have stopped. Instead, reports came of the Monsters all congregating in the City Square, all seemingly listening to a single being. Kronos; it was confirmed, then. The Monsters were allied with Kronos' spirit. Everyone's hopes dropped steeply, and the chances of a comeback were practically diminished.

How ironic. Kronos was now just a revived spirit, a wonder of modern technology. From the reports, though, everyone had realized that his "host" was Luke. Luke Castellan, a former Demigod.

Weeks had passed, and Monsters were heading from everywhere in the world. They were also gathering in New LA, though most of them were in New Manhattan. They gathered in empty lots, in deserted plazas, even in old and decrepit malls.
Summer had arrived, and tension was strong, almost tangible; everyone knew something big was about to happen. The final battle was going to take place soon. The battle that determined the outcome of Earth; if the Demigods failed, the world would be lost forever.

Seventy demigods, against the odds. Seventy teenagers, people who should've matured years later. Seventy kids, with more experience and more maturity than most adults. Seventy young adults, protecting the whole world.

At the head of their small army was Commander Perseus Jackson. Determined gleam in eye, Riptide in hand, he raised his weapon and yelled, "FOR OLYMPUS!" The armies charged toward each other, yelling. Demigods and Monsters screamed, some dying and some victorious. Blood stained the roads, corpses littering the ground. Most of them were dead Monsters, but the remaining Demigods were hopelessly outnumbered. Armor was beat down, swords were swung madly, bows drawn and fired in the blink of an eye. However, even with their best efforts, the Demigod army was slowing.

With a shriek, Lieutenant Hazel was smashed against a boulder. She remained there, her broken form splayed on the rocks. Her boyfriend, Lieutenant Zhang, cried out and let his rage out on the Monsters, destroying them, an insane look in his eyes. Whenever a Monster tried to fight him, he used his shape-shifting powers to kill it. Later, he was picked up by another Giant. The Giant raised him up, then let go.

Time seemed to slow. Though he had plenty of time to turn into a bird, Lieutenant Frank Zhang plummeted to his death, a peaceful smile on his face, eyes closed. I'll be with Hazel again, he thought. With a sickening crunch, he fell onto the road, just another victim of the war.

Percy Jackson shook his head, decimating Monsters as he went. He understood. Without Hazel, Frank's life wasn't worth living. Their advantage was rapidly disappearing. Drawing on his anger and fear, Percy became a monster himself. He used his water-bending abilities to their utmost advantage, creating a deadly hurricane around him, killing any Monster that came across his path.

The Monsters were slowly disappearing; the Demigods were fighting back furiously, using their torn emotions to their advantage. But even that wasn't enough. Generals Jason & Piper fought back to back, and in a moment of supposed peace, Jason relaxed. Not paying much attention herself, the female general could only make a startled noise when she saw the Monster closing in on him. Too late, Jason realized what was happening. The Monster's sword tore into him, and he fell. "Love you, Pipes," he managed, in a whisper, before he, too, was gone.

Piper McLean died inside that day. She fought, yes, and she fought valiantly. She swung Katropis, her dagger, hitting every enemy she could reach. But after the war, nobody could help her. Jason was gone, and Jason was her best friend, the boy she loved, even though she hadn't realized it. She hadn't known until it was too late, until he was dead. Even the most powerful person to ever exist couldn't bring him back.

So many were lost that day. So many Demigods, fighting bravely. They didn't go down without a fight; that much was taken care of. Demigods in the enemy army were also slaughtered, no longer considered family, though it still must've hurt. Silena Beauregard, an "Aphrodite girl" whose boyfriend had died in an earlier battle, was unveiled as a traitor. She'd been the spy for the Monsters, but was forgiven. Luke had threatened to kill Beckendorf, who was now dead. Silena gave up, too. She turned back to the Demigods, and stood at the front, using her charm-speaking powers to convince Monsters to kill themselves. She screamed at them, voice laced with power, yelling at them to kill themselves just like they'd killed Charlie. When she died, she died with the respect of all of the Demigod Division. Second-in-Command Annabeth Chase herself gently closed the fallen girl's eyes.

Soon after, Annabeth fights with Luke Castellan, parrying his sword with her dagger. "Family, Luke," she growls, "you promised." Luke suddenly stops, staring at her with wide blue eyes.

"Annabeth."

Luke's voice changes. It's no longer the gruff, commanding tone he uses with the Monsters. It's the voice of a scared teenage boy. "Help," he pleads, "he's controlling me." His eyes flash gold, and his sword comes up to strike her again. Quick as lightning, her dagger is up and Annabeth is deflecting the blow. She notices that Luke's eyes are flashing between their normal blue and the unnatural gold-probably Kronos trying to take control. Percy joins her, slashing and blocking.

In the end, Luke wrestles back control long enough to take Annabeth's dagger and plunge it into his side, effectively killing Kronos, although it takes him along for the ride. Annabeth sinks to her knees beside his corpse, and Percy closes Luke's eyes.
When most of the Monsters are gone, Annabeth turns to see Percy suspended in the air, a Giant's hand enclosed around his neck. She tries to save him, but once again, it's too late. Percy looks her in the eye, smiling slightly. Then the Giant lets go of him, and Perseus Jackson, commander of the Demigod Division, was dead.

Annabeth thinks she's lost enough already; it couldn't possibly get worse. But it can, because the limp, lifeless form of her boyfriend (and best friend) lays spread-eagled on the ground in front of her. Rising up, her glare is so fierce that even her comrades don't dare to look at her. Her stormy eyes are swirling with anger, and with just a hint of insanity.

They say she fought like she never had before. They say that Second-in-Command Annabeth Chase, "daughter of Athena," ripped through the Monsters' ranks, leaving no enemy alive. She fought for her fallen friends, for the boyfriend she never got to say "I love you" to, for her family-her brothers, her dad, her stepmom, whom she never really got to know.

The Demigods joined her. They decimated the Monsters, even killing those who tried to escape. They fought for a better era, for the peace they never got as children. They fought for their fallen siblings, for everyone who'd died in the Second Titan War.
The war was over. All the survivors gathered in the empty "Poseidon" cabin at Camp Half-Blood, the cabin Percy had inhabited. So many had died, so many were gone. Gone because of an unclear cause, because of the harsh reality of war.

"Was it worth it?" Annabeth's voice was quiet, but it pierced the silence like the sharpest of knives.

"I don't know, Annabeth."

"It was for the humans, wasn't it? It's always for the humans." Her voice broke, and everyone realized just how much the war had shattered her. The air still smelled like him, like the familiar salty-ocean scent that lingered on his clothes.

Later, as Annabeth walks alone in the garden, a wisp of light flickers to life in front of the newly erected statue of Commander Perseus Jackson. She glances up, startled, as the light starts to solidify. Once it's settled, Annabeth can only gape. Percy. She runs toward him, but skids to a stop as she realizes that Percy isn't exactly real. He grins at her, his patented troublemaker grin, and Annabeth can only smile back, tears trailing down her face.

Percy reaches out to wipe them away, but his ghostly fingers only dissolve into mist when he tries. Then, his form flickers, and he's fading. I love you, Annabeth, he says, just before he disappears completely. The words echo in Annabeth's brain as she sinks to her knees, sobbing.

"Love you too, idiot," she whispers bleakly, hopelessly, before a new round of tears bring her down.

Almost ironically, only thirteen humans died. There were only thirteen human casualties, but forty-seven of the Demigods had died. In the end, it's always the bullies that survive, isn't it?

It's funny how the humans scorned the Demigods, teased them and taunted them. Then the war came around, and they hid like scared rabbits, leaving their former victims to face a threat almost too big to handle. It's funny how easily they reverted back to their original lives, making no acknowledgements to the group of teens who had saved their lives.

It's funny how the human race is twisted and evil without even thinking about it. It's funny how we're selfish but most of us don't see our own faults.

Maybe we're no better than the Monsters, filled with nothing but spite and evil.

But at the end of the day, that might just be the only thing we have to call our own.