sky blue ● jason grace

me

"Tartarus," Jason finished slowly. "The deepest part of Hell."

Nico nodded. "They pulled me into the pit. The things I saw down there..." His voice broke. Daria felt a pang of heartbreaking sympathy. What had Nico gone through?

Hazel pursed her lips. "No mortal has ever been to Tartarus," she explained. "At least, no one has ever gone in and returned alive. It's the maximum-security prison of Hades, where the old Titans and the other enemies of the gods are bound. It's where all monsters go when they die on the earth. It's...well, no one knows exactly what it's like."

Her eyes drifted to her brother. The rest of her thought didn't need to be spoken: No one except Nico.

"Now I understand why Hades hasn't been able to close the doors," he said. "Even the gods don't go into Tartarus. Even the god of death, Thanatos himself, wouldn't go near that place."

Leo glanced over from the wheel. "So let me guess. We'll have to go there."

Nico shook his head. "It's impossible. I'm the son of Hades, and even I barely survived. Gaea's forces overwhelmed me instantly. They're so powerful down there...no demigod would stand a chance. I almost went insane."

Daria supposed at some point she needed to tell him that she was Gaea's daughter at some point. She started fidgeting with one of the rings, nervous until Jason covered her hand with his, when she looked up, she realized with a pang that it was a subconscious gesture. One that he hadn't even been aware of; her heart started beating a little faster.

"Then we'll sail for Epirus," Percy said, confused. "We'll just close the gates on this side."

"I wish it were that easy," Nico said. "The doors would have to be controlled on both sides to be closed. It's like a double seal. Maybe, just maybe, all eight of you working together could defeat Gaea's forces on the mortal side, at the House of Hades. But unless you had a team fighting simultaneously on the Tartarus side, a team powerful enough to defeat a legion of monsters in their home territory—"

Daria caught Frank staring at her with a malicious expression. "What if we send Daria in?"

"No," Jason snapped immediately. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" Frank cowered behind Hazel who seemed determined to roll her eyes for the duration of their trip to the Emmanuel Building.

"Why would we send Daria in?" Nico asked. Well, there was no time like the present.

"Gaea's my mother," Daria said, like it was a one of those facts you said on your first day of school.

"Christ," Nico blinked. "Well, that makes sense."

"We'll figure out the Tartarus problem later," Percy decided as the shadow of a building came into view. "Is that the Emmanuel building?"

"Yeah," Leo confirmed. "Bacchus said something about a parking lot. This must be it."

Hazel grabbed her spatha. "Next move?"

"We have to get her out of there," Percy said, already moving. They were still in the sky however, so Daria didn't see where he was going to go.

"But..." Leo started, then wisely choosing to backtrack, "There's concrete."

"Coach Hedge's got it covered," Piper suggested.

The faun grinned with a wild readiness. "I knew this day would come." Jason touched his side as if remembering the last time Hedge had tried to use the cannon. Too late. The goat was already on the move, muttering as he stuffed ammunition into the ballistae.

He aimed it without warning, and before anyone said anything, the weapon blew through the parking lot. Most of the crew took a second to get over the aftershock, but Percy had already lept over the railing, a height that was at least 15 feet, if not greater. He stumbled as he hit the floor, and Leo took the opportunity to lower the rope ladder.