Half-bloods, hunters, and wizards go east, west and descend,
A god's warrior appears when the first meets their end,
The bane of the gods lies with the world's first high,
At the price of the cherished never seeing the sky,
A parent's mistake leads...
Nico's group captures Melinoe. The war continues to escalate.
BEGINNING NOTES
Chapter Rating: General Audiences Content Warning: Cursing, Sexual Themes (mild) Word Count: 3909
Macaria is pronounced Mah-kah-RYE-uh. And Mnemosyne is NEO-sign.
Oli's at a sports tournament, so she couldn't get to today's chapter. We miss you, Oli!
I also included two images at the end of the chapter. I based one character description on a painting, so, you'll see the painting. I also included the map of the Underworld that I'm using since Riordan has no canonical one.
This is the last one for today.
And all the characters are owned by JK Rowling, or Rick Riordan.
Credits at the end.
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____________________NICO____________________
Cerus dropped them off at the banks of the River Lethe, gave Nico a big, slobbering kiss, then sprinted home to the Palace of Hades. Nico didn't speak to anyone on their way there. His friends kept asking what was wrong, but he pretended not to hear them. Will was just as silent.
"Did something happen, guys?" Percy asked. "Please tell me you didn't break up. Jason and I have a bet going about your wedding and--"
Nico shot Percy a perfect ten death glare. He shut his mouth.
But, now that they'd arrived, they had a mission to complete, one that required teamwork. As much as Nico wanted to shadow-travel to the other side, he couldn't take four people with him. Even if he could, there was no way Hades wouldn't sense dark magic so close to his palace. It was dangerous enough for Nico to be in his realm. Until they reached the surface, all child of the Underworld special features were turned off.
"How do we get across?" Blaise asked. "Percy, could you...?"
Percy shook his head. "I could barely hold it when it was just Nico and Thalia crossing. I can't risk it; if I lose my strength, that's it."
"One drop and everything's gone," Nico confirmed. "No, I have a better idea... how do you feel about petting zoos?"
Just west of Elysium, where the waters of the River Lethe met the waters of the River Mnemosyne, in the outskirts of the Fields of Asphestol, the parts where only the bravest and stupidest spirits dared to rome, the god Menoetes, one of the few damions who fought Heracles and lived, ferociously guarded a flock of Hades' sacred animals: a bunch of midnight-black cattle.
It was truly one of the biggest question marks in all of Greek mythology.
"Stay away from the cattle," Nico warned. "You get anywhere close, and Menoetes will end you ."
