Annabeth's POV
Annabeth had reached her terror limit. She'd been assaulted by chauvinist ghosts. She'd broken her ankle. She'd been chased across a chasm by an army of spiders.
Now, in severe pain, with her ankle wrapped in boards and Bubble Wrap, and carrying no weapon except her dagger, she faced Arachne—a monstrous half-spider who wanted to kill her and make a commemorative tapestry about it.
In the last few hours, Annabeth had shivered, sweated, whimpered, and blinked back so many tears that her body simply gave up on being scared. Her mind said something like, Okay, sorry. I can't be any more terrified than I already am.
So instead, Annabeth started to think. The monstrous creature picked her way down from the top of the web-covered statue. She moved from strand to strand, hissing with pleasure, her four eyes glittering in the dark.
Either she was not in a hurry, or she was slow. Annabeth hoped she was slow. Not that it mattered. Annabeth was in no condition to run, and she didn't like her chances in combat. Arachne probably weighed several hundred pounds.
Those barbed legs were perfect for capturing and killing prey. Besides, Arachne probably had other horrible powers—a poisonous bite, or web-slinging abilities like an Ancient Greek Spider-Man. No. Combat was not the answer.
That left trickery and brains. In the old legends, Arachne had gotten into trouble because of pride. She'd bragged about her tapestries being better than Athena's, which had led to Mount Olympus's first reality TV punishment program: So You Think You Can Weave Better Than a Goddess?
Arachne had lost in a big way. Annabeth knew something about being prideful. It was her fatal flaw as well. She often had to remind herself that she couldn't do everything alone. She wasn't always the best person for every job.
Sometimes she got tunnel vision and forgot about what other people needed. And she could get easily distracted talking about her favorite projects. But could she use that weakness against the spider? Maybe if she stalled for time...though she wasn't sure how stalling would help.
Her friends wouldn't be able to reach her, even if they knew where to go. The cavalry would not be coming. Still, stalling was better than dying. She tried to keep her expression calm, which wasn't easy with a broken ankle.
She limped toward the nearest tapestry—a cityscape of Ancient Rome. "Marvelous," she said. "Tell me about this tapestry." Arachne's lips curled over her mandibles. "Why do you care? You're about to die."
"Well, yes," Annabeth said. "But the way you captured the light is amazing. Did you use real golden thread for the sunbeams?" The weaving truly was stunning. Annabeth didn't have to pretend to be impressed.
Arachne allowed herself a smug smile. "No, child. Not gold. I blended the colors, contrasting bright yellow with darker hues. That's what gives it a three-dimensional effect." "Beautiful."
Annabeth's mind split into two different levels: one carrying on the conversation, the other madly grasping for a scheme to survive. Nothing came to her. Arachne had been beaten only once—by Athena herself, and that had taken godly magic and incredible skill in a weaving contest.
"So..." she said. "Did you see this scene yourself?" Arachne hissed, her mouth foaming in a not-very-attractive way. "You are trying to delay your death. It won't work." "No, no," Annabeth insisted.
"It just seems a shame that these beautiful tapestries can't be seen by everyone. They belong in a museum, or..." "Or what?" Arachne asked. A crazy idea sprang fully formed from Annabeth's mind, like her mom jumping out of Zeus's noggin. But could she make it work?
(Y/N)'s POV
They all stood there, in that dreadful silence, unsure of what they could do, (Y/N) stared into the eyes of his father, not angry or desperate, but hopeful. "He still has time, I'm not letting you take him."
He looked around, expecting a chorus of similar statements, and for Thanatos to be pelted with fireballs and jewels while a honey badger chewed his ankles, but found nothing.
His friends all sat, the same sorrowful look on their expressions, as Hazel held Nico in her arms, unmoving. It seemed to occur to Thanatos too, "Well, that's new." The spectre of death said, before slamming the end of his scythe on the ground, causing a shockwave to pass through the air.
Sudden weakness overtook (Y/N) and Nico's sword fell from his hand. Thanatos leaned on his scythe as if (Y/N) hadn't just pushed him away and stopped him from killing his friends. He looked at the Stygian iron sword.
"Odd. That weapon, it was used as bait for his sister, the last I saw it was in the workshop of the inventor to lure Hazel from the boy's trail, and yet, here it is to stop me. Looks like you aren't the only one aiming to twist the boy's fate."
(Y/N) suddenly thought about the god that sent him on the mission to save Nico, and to the titan that bore him. (Y/N) looked at his father in the face, finally, the two were of comparable heights when Thanatos appeared in his more human form.
He hadn't noticed that before, not until he stepped towards Thanatos, squaring up, and his father stopped leaning idly, "You won't stop me. There's no way I'll let you, you want him you go through me." (Y/N) frowned.
Thanatos looked sorrowful, a small smile on his face, "I will take him, if I must. You will not stop me from my duties. Just as you could not before." His eyes trailed down to (Y/N)'s wrist, to the patch of dead skin.
It may have sounded harsh and cold to anyone else, as if Thanatos was threatening Nico, but (Y/N) knew his father better, the fact that he hadn't just 'taken' Nico meant he was truly hoping that (Y/N) could make the most of that time he was given.
It was a warning between the two of them, less of a threat, more like 'look kid, I'm just doing my job, if you can't stop this from happening, neither can I.' They both stared at each other for a moment.
It was a simple irony that (Y/N) understood the message behind his fathers words now, and not back then, but he pushed the thoughts of his past failures to one side for a moment. "How long?" "A few seconds. Six, to be exact." Thanatos sighed.
"I can do a lot with six seconds, ask Annabeth." (Y/N) joked, Thanatos' lip curled, "I would rather not." (Y/N) chuckled, "I was kidding anyway. I'd rather you not be here, you make me nervous." He sad pleadingly to his father, who went invisible, still present, but no longer looming.
Not that it mattered, because the moment he did the world seemed to spin again. (Y/N) had six seconds. The first two seconds, he wasted. Like an idiot, he just blinked, taking in the feeling that passed through him and realizing that his friends truly hadn't seen his father so close to their sides.
He pushed past Frank and Leo towards Hazel and gripped Nico by the hand, doing the only thing he could think to do, healing him, trying his best to give Nico some strength, it was a much simpler task after he had just absorbed a stadium of ghosts.
It didn't help much, what power (Y/N) gave Nico was escaping his form just as fast, he didn't understand why, Nico wasn't injured, just tired. He should have recovered from this alone but he didn't. His body looked stronger, his eyes brightened and his skin regained some colour, but catching a breath seemed like an impossibility for him.
Even Hazel seemed to notice something was wrong, this was not her skillset, but she wasn't a fool. "What's happening?" "I don't know." "Is Gaea interfering?" "Maybe, I don't know." Nico reached up to (Y/N) and grasped his hand. Clawing at him desperately.
"Don't worry little guy, we got you." He promised, though the words felt like a lie even to him, six seconds had passed, Thanatos hadn't taken his soul yet, but there was something else interfering. Someone else.
Looking closer (Y/N) saw that any power that he poured into Nico to heal him was going into Nico, but then being drawn out just as fast, healing his body, but leaving his soul as it was, on the verge of dying. (Y/N) recalled the words of the seer. Melampus mumbling to himself. "Healing, healing then healing again. How long can it last? How long will you?
(Y/N) knew he had to get around this before all his stored power faded, two thousand Lares may have seemed like a good chunk of power, but whatever was taking that power was draining it fast. It was being drawn downwards into the underworld.
The trouble was, if he stopped healing Nico, the six, or now about two, second timer would restart, and Thanatos would have to claim Nico. He had to constantly heal Nico to keep that from happening, leaving the son of Hades in a sort of limbo state. Not dead yet, but barely alive.
(Y/N) thought of Hades warning. "You are draining yourself, you just haven't realised it yet. Years of your life have been torn from you already, years you now no longer have to spend after burning your thread of fate at one end" He knew that if this went on any longer, he would tap into his own life.
(Y/N) had to think of a solution fast, he couldn't keep this up forever, racking his brain and looking down at his desperate friend, a few solutions crossed his mind, the first obviously being that he would have to cut the connection between Nico and what was stealing his power.
He thought back to who it could have been, Gaea, Nemesis, Persephone, Melinoe, Midas. All seemed unlikely, they were either too weak to do something like this or it had no actual benefit to them. He could only think of one person that would do this and for one reason.
(Y/N) sat there for a few more seconds trying to figure out what to do before his time ran out, Hazel looked at him with pleading eyes. He knew he had no other choice, he couldn't sever that connection without doing one of two things, the first was killing Nico, which was a bust.
The second, he didn't even want to think about. The second thought only came to mind because it was Nico, the one who had wanted to attempt it so badly in the past. (Y/N) could attempt to soul trade himself for Nico.
Annabeth's POV
"What? Arachne demanded. "Nothing." She sighed wistfully. "It's a silly thought. Too bad." Arachne scuttled down the statue until she was perched atop the goddess's shield. Even from that distance, Annabeth could smell the spider's stink, like an entire bakery full of pastries left to go bad for a month.
"What?" the spider pressed. "What silly thought?" Annabeth had to force herself not to back away. Broken ankle or no, every nerve in her body pulsed with fear, telling her to get away from the huge spider hovering over her.
"Oh...it's just that I was put in charge of redesigning Mount Olympus," she said. "You know, after the Titan War. I've completed most of the work, but we need a lot of quality public art. The throne room of the gods, for instance..."
"I was thinking your work would be perfect to display there. The Olympians could finally see how talented you are. As I said, it was a silly thought." Arachne's hairy abdomen quivered. Her four eyes glimmered as if she had a separate thought behind each and was trying to weave them into a coherent web.
"You're redesigning Mount Olympus," she said. "My work...in the throne room." "Well, other places too," Annabeth said. "The main pavilion could use several of these. That one with the Greek landscape—the Nine Muses would love that."
"And I'm sure the other gods would be fighting over your work as well. They'd compete to have your tapestries in their palaces. I guess, aside from Athena, none of the gods has ever seen what you can do?"
Arachne snapped her mandibles. "Hardly. In the old days, Athena tore up all my best work. My tapestries depicted the gods in rather unflattering ways, you see. Your mother didn't appreciate that."
"Rather hypocritical," Annabeth said, "since the gods make fun of each other all the time. I think the trick would be to pit one god against another. Ares, for instance, would love a tapestry making fun of my mother. He's always resented Athena."
Arachne's head tilted at an unnatural angle. "You would work against your own mother?" "I'm just telling you what Ares would like," Annabeth said. "And Zeus would love something that made fun of Poseidon."
"Oh, I'm sure if the Olympians saw your work, they'd realize how amazing you are, and I'd have to broker a bidding war. As for working against my mother, why shouldn't I? She sent me here to die, didn't she? The last time I saw her in New York, she basically disowned me."
Annabeth told her the story. She shared her bitterness and sorrow, and it must have sounded genuine. The spider did not pounce. "This is Athena's nature," Arachne hissed. "She casts aside even her own daughter."
"The goddess would never allow my tapestries to be shown in the palaces of the gods. She was always jealous of me." "But imagine if you could get your revenge at long last." "By killing you!" "I suppose." Annabeth scratched her head.
"Or...by letting me be your agent. I could get your work into Mount Olympus. I could arrange an exhibition for the other gods. By the time my mother found out, it would be too late. The Olympians would finally see that your work is better."
"Then you admit it!" Arachne cried. "A daughter of Athena admits I am better! Oh, this is sweet to my ears." "But a lot of good it does you," Annabeth pointed out. "If I die down here, you go on living in the dark. Gaea destroys the gods, and they never realize you were the better weaver."
The spider hissed. Annabeth was afraid her mother might suddenly appear and curse her with some terrible affliction. The first lesson every child of Athena learned: Mom was the best at everything, and you should never, ever suggest otherwise.
But nothing bad happened. Maybe Athena understood that Annabeth was only saying these things to save her life. Or maybe Athena was in such in bad shape, split between her Greek and Roman personalities, that she wasn't even paying attention.
"This will not do," Arachne grumbled. "I cannot allow it." "Well..." Annabeth shifted, trying to keep her weight off her throbbing ankle. That was when the tremors began, rocking the entire room, almost throwing Annabeth to the floor.
Loud sounds of rocks shifting and falling echoed through the chamber, as if something beneath their feet was falling, Annabeth felt her stomach lurch, but didn't know why. A cold shiver ran down her neck as a new crack appeared in the floor, and she hobbled back.
"Careful!" Arachne snapped. "The foundations of this shrine have been eaten away over the centuries!" Annabeth's heartbeat faltered. "Eaten away?" "You have no idea how much hatred boils beneath us," the spider said.
"The spiteful thoughts of so many monsters trying to reach the Athena Parthenos and destroy it. My webbing is the only thing holding the room together, girl! One false step, and you'll fall all the way to Tartarus."
(Y/N)'s POV
This was insane, this was absolutely insane. He just didn't care. The same feeling as before washed over him, just as it had when he was facing his father, the feeling that now he had a plan, he had to act on it.
(Y/N) steeled himself. Placing his hands over Nico's, he didn't have time for a big ritual, and he couldn't stop healing Nico, but at the same time, he couldn't lose concentration on what he was doing either.
If his thoughts slipped, even for a moment, and he let out some of his normal power. Draining Nico of life...he tried to push the thoughts of Ethan Nakamura from his mind, though it was not easy, as it occurred to him that maybe Nemesis was playing a part in this somehow.
First, he had to get a hold of himself, his emotions were running too high again, he wasn't thinking clearly, and that didn't help anyone, he looked up at Hazel and made a choice as he saw the tears streaming down her face and the worried biting of her lip as she waited tensely for the outcome of (Y/N)'s intervention.
He had made too many mistakes by only thinking with his emotions, he wouldn't make that mistake again this time, not with so much at stake. He only had one choice. "I'll have to do what I did with Zoe." He said, preparing himself.
"What are you going to do?" Frank asked, (Y/N) didn't really want to answer, but he could tell those of them that knew him knew what he was about to attempt. Nico's eyes widened, if he had the power, her probably would have cursed.
Someone intervened for him. "No!" Zoe said, he looked up at her, shocked she would dare say a word against him saving Nico, but as she stared down at him with genuine concern in her eyes, any biting comment was pushed back behind his teeth.
"I've done it before. I can do it again, I'm stronger now." He said. She frowned at him, "No, not strong enough, before you had that...thing, to take the brunt of it for you, now you are naked against it." He smirked, "You wish."
"Wait can someone tell me what's going on!" Hazel said. Percy grit his teeth, "He wants to trade his soul for your brother's." "NO!" Hazel shouted, "Absolutely not! Nico doesn't want that!" "I can do it!" (Y/N) shouted.
He didn't know why her felt the need to die on this hill, for lack of a better term, it wasn't just stubbornness or pride, her couldn't let those get in the way of hurting his friend, perhaps it was trauma, a small part of him trying to make up for past mistakes.
It wasn't reckless, logically, it was the only way to save Nico. Sometimes plans just suck, reckless or otherwise they have no good outcome, but this was the best outcome he could think of. "I'm not just doing this as a last resort." He explained.
"This is the only way I can keep him from dying right now. Hades made me promise to keep him safe, maybe if I do this, he'll give me a pass and we'll both survive." "That is assuming that you are able to survive the initial process!" Zoe said.
Zoe made a good point regardless. "When I was brought back, that was not by you alone, you had the power of my father, the power of my lady, and even then, it nearly destroyed you. What will you have this time, what will keep you alive now? Long enough to return."
He hadn't thought about that, so concerned with Nico that he didn't think about what would happen to him. He didn't know exactly why he said what he did. "I'll have you guys. Plus Nico's not even dead, so it'll be much simpler."
"That's not enough!" Percy said, "SAYS WHO!" (Y/N) shouted. "I just need each of you guys to put a hand on me, nowhere inappropriate please, and keep it there, it'll ground both me and Nico here...I hope."
Even as they all relented and did so, Zoe frowned at him "Even with our aid, the strengths of mere demigods and the souls of ghosts will not be enough. Last time it took the power of gods and titans. The souls of the dead may empower you, but how far will that power stretch?"
"Let's find out." Nico squeezed his hand, and what little amount of strength he had left was clear in his eyes, looking back, it might have been Nico telling him not to do it, telling him that it was okay to let him die.
(Y/N) was too grief-stricken to see it as that though and instead took it as confirmation, closing his eyes shut, he focused on Nico's soul. Then his own, and found himself in a familiar place.
(Y/N) would have made a comment, or laughed about how the place hadn't changed much. However right now, he was in no joking mood. He was on a mission, to keep his promise and protect his friends.
He waded through the ghosts as if he were pushing through a normal crowd, heading towards what was likely to have caused such a disturbance in the waiting room, the VIP arrival. (Y/N) grabbed hold of Nico before the elevator opened.
"Not so fast little buddy, you aren't dead yet." He said, and the spirit of Nico Di Angelo seemed confused, "I'm not? But I thought-" He turned back, as if he were noticing where he was for the first time.
He was also the only human form here other than (Y/N), the rests were ghosts and spirits. More popped in every few seconds. "Let's go." (Y/N) said, taking Nico's hand and leading him away from the line. "You aren't staying here."
"That one there is mine, boy." a voice said as (Y/N) saw the grubby pale hand latching onto the other side of Nico's soul, holding it as he was, gripping it tightly by the shoulder. He looked up at the man and glared into the sunglasses of Charon. " 'and it over." "Bite me. He isn't even dead yet."
"Yeah well, with your mates, I got to take the initiative don't I? I knew you'd try something funny. You think I'm doing this again you're wrong boy." "I don't like how you say boy." "Get over it demigod. He crosses this threshold, he's mine." "Oh please, everyone crosses this threshold, it doesn't mean anything anymore, I've been down here a hundred times."
"A soul has to stay." "I know that old man, give me a minute. You'll get your soul." At this, Charon paused, releasing his grip on Nico. "You mean...you think you're..." He paused for a moment, (Y/N) expected gloating, he got worse, laughter.
(Y/N) ignored it, this time leading Nico out of DOA records despite Charon's grumbling, staying behind himself, he took a deep breath and imagined their souls switching places, as he did a single thread of light, no thicker than a spiderweb, sprouted from his chest and latched onto Nico's.
"(Y/N) you can't do this! Why are you doing this!" "Nico, if I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times. I'm smart, you're dumb, I'm big, you're little, I'm right, you're wrong, and there's nothing you can do about it." He winked as the soul trade was set in motion.
Pain rocked his entire body, the souls of the countless ghosts he had absorbed all burned up in an instant, he felt his friends hands pressed into his backs begin to burn on his skin like they were molten.
He could barely breathe or concentrate, slowly he saw the tether between the two souls begin to fray, as one stayed here to it's fate and the other was released. The thread slowly got weaker and weaker, until a twisting form of a humanoid figure stood between them and (Y/N)'s heart sank.
"You think it's that easy kid? You think he's ever letting you go that easy?" Charon said as his glasses flared. "You are his, not for me, not for the underworld, not for nobody but him." (Y/N) felt his power shudder. He looked at the thread between himself an Nico, slowly watching it unravel. But not in the same way, this time from Nico.
Nico looked on at (Y/N), stunned. "What's going on?" He asked, his voice trembling, laughter erupted through the halls of the DOA. (Y/N) watched in horror as Nico began to fade away, becoming a ghost like the hundred of others that awaited judgement.
"No, No! NO!" (Y/N) shouted as it happened. The twisting figure before him severed the connection before it was fully made, his puppeteer intervening so he could assure that the show went on. The laughter and joy of the presence got from taunting him was overwhelming, he was forced out.
The moment he was back in the land of the living (Y/N) began to panic. He looked down at Nico to see him lying still, "He was too weak." Hazel said in a minute voice as he returned. But (Y/N) knew the truth, he had stopped healing Nico, he had failed.
It was that that spurred him to try again "No, I can do it! I CAN!" He insisted. It was useless, (Y/N)'s heart broke into a million little pieces as he witnessed Nico's soul leave his body first-hand. "I can-" "(Y/N). I'm sorry." His father's voice interrupted. "His father will have him soon."
Thanatos had remained invisible, giving him that small comfort, however. As (Y/N) saw the boys soul floating there, awaiting return to Hades. He couldn't help himself. He thought back to that moment, when Gaea's power flowed through him, and he wondered about what he could do to save Nico.
He had come up with a plan, one he kept to himself. Because it was evil, barbaric, something Gaea would have wanted, though it had crossed his mind nonetheless. Looking at Hazel he was sure he could do it.
"Hazel." He said, his voice quiet as his ears still rang, "I can help him. We can still save him." "Then do it!" She shouted, "Listen." He warned, "This is what Gaea wants, it's what he, wants. I need you to decide. I can't make that choice, Gaea knows what I'll choose."
"It has to be you that decides. Gaea said it herself, you're our heart." He knelt down next to the two of them, clasping Nico's cold hands, "I need you to give me permission to do this." "Do what?" "Bury the underworld."
"I can stop him from going through." He explained, "Stop him from getting to judgement, even if he uses EZ death. If we're fast enough, he won't even make it past the lobby, he can come back, but Hades, the place, not just your father, is going to pay for it. Badly."
"It goes against the sanctity of death, of everything our families stand for, it could cause all of the underworld to collapse, it would displace thousands of souls old and new. If I'm honest, I don't even truly know the extent of the damage it'll cause."
"But it will get Nico back?" She asked. He answered with a nod. He looked to Hazel, who had tears streaming down her eyes, same as he did, and waited, expecting her to deny his request, to call him a failure.
There was silence for a single second, the daughter of Pluto grit her teeth, looked at Nico, and nodded, "Save my brother, I don't care how." That was all he needed to hear, he wouldn't break another promise.
He stood up and began walking away, speaking aloud mostly to calm his own nerves. "Hades is going to hate me for this, so is all of Olympus, but what else is new? I couldn't use them for the soul trade, they're too different from demigods their power corrupts too easily, but for this. I'll risk it."
He raised his hands over his head and prayed that this would work. He had to say, even he was shocked to see the souls of the two giants before him. Otis and Ephialtes both looked equally as shocked, but not for long.
"What the-" Was all they got out before (Y/N) phased his arms into shadow, reached into their chests and then unphased his hands, essentially popping them like balloons. Soon he just held the souls of two giants in his hands.
"What are you doing!" the others all shouted with varying tones of annoyance and confusion. "For once on this god forsaken trip. I'm doing something right." He said as he closed his hands hard, and felt the two giant souls crack in his palms.
Power rushed through him the moment he did. He felt like he was hooked up to the mains, and now had a much deeper appreciation for swan lake, but those weren't the important parts. The important part was that he could now feel the shift of the earth beneath him.
"Percy, get Fleecy by Iris, tell her I need a huge favour, and if she asks, agree to go on a date with her for payment-" "I'm not doing that!" Percy argued. (Y/N) sighed, "Fine, tell her I'll...help her meet Apollo or something. Tell her to get in touch with Nico, and make sure he stays aboveground."
He walked up to Hazel, explaining her part in all this. "I'll pull him back before he crosses. The rest is all you. Are you sure you're okay with this?" She nodded, "Are you sure you found all of them?" "All of them on the surface. Let's go save our boy."
The two of them clasped hands over Nico's body and both in tandem closed there eyes. This was it, the day that the fear for golden eyed children would be cemented into the legacy of both the underworld and Olympus forever.
Annabeth's POV
"-And believe me, unlike the Doors of Death, this would be a one-way trip, a very hard fall! I will not have you dying before you tell me your plan for my artwork." Annabeth's mouth tasted like rust. All the way to Tartarus?
She tried to stay focused, but it wasn't easy as she listened to the floor creak and crack, spilling rubble into the void below. "Right, the plan," Annabeth said. "Um...as I said, I'd love to take your tapestries to Olympus and hang them everywhere."
"You could rub your craftsman-ship in Athena's nose for all eternity. But the only way I could do that...No. It's too difficult. You might as well go ahead and kill me." "No!" Arachne cried. "That is unacceptable."
"It no longer brings me any pleasure to contemplate. I must have my work on Mount Olympus! What must I do?" Annabeth shook her head. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said anything. Just push me into Tartarus or something."
"I refuse!" "Don't be ridiculous. Kill me." "I do not take orders from you! Tell me what I must do! Or...or—" "Or you'll kill me?" "Yes! No!" The spider pressed her front legs against her head. "I must show my work on Mount Olympus."
Annabeth tried to contain her excitement. Her plan might actually work...but she still had to convince Arachne to do something impossible. She remembered some good advice Frank Zhang had given her: Keep it simple.
"I suppose I could pull a few strings," she conceded. "I excel at pulling strings!" said Arachne. "I'm a spider!" "Yes, but to get your work shown on Mount Olympus, we'd need a proper audition."
"I'd have to pitch the idea, submit a proposal, put together a portfolio. Hmm...do you have any headshots?" "Headshots?" "Glossy black-and-white...Oh, never mind. The audition piece is the most important thing."
"These tapestries are excellent. But the gods would require something really special—something that shows off your talent in the extreme." Arachne snarled. "Are you suggesting that these are not my best work? Are you challenging me to a contest?"
"Oh, no!" Annabeth laughed. "Against me? Gosh, no. You are much too good. It would only be a contest against yourself, to see if you really have what it takes to show your work on Mount Olympus."
"Of course I do!" "Well, I certainly think so. But the audition, you know...it's a formality. I'm afraid it would be very difficult. Are you sure you don't just want to kill me?" "Stop saying that!" Arachne screeched. "What must I make?"
"I'll show you." Annabeth unslung her backpack. She took out Daedalus's laptop and opened it. The delta logo glowed in the dark. "What is that?" Arachne asked. "Some sort of loom?" "In a way," Annabeth said.
"It's for weaving ideas. It holds a diagram of the artwork you would build." Her fingers trembled on the keyboard. Arachne lowered herself to peer directly over Annabeth's shoulder. Annabeth couldn't help thinking how easily those needlelike teeth could sink into her neck.
She opened her 3-D imaging program. Her last design was still up—the key to Annabeth's plan, inspired by the most unlikely muse ever: Frank Zhang. Annabeth did some quick calculations. She increased the dimensions of the model, then showed Arachne how it could be created—strands of material woven into strips, then braided into a long cylinder.
The golden light from the screen illuminated the spider's face. "You want me to make that? But this is nothing! So small and simple!" "The actual size would be much bigger," Annabeth cautioned.
"You see these measurements? Naturally it must be large enough to impress the gods. It may look simple, but the structure has incredible properties. Your spider silk would be the perfect material—soft and flexible, yet hard as steel."
"I see..." Arachne frowned. "But this isn't even a tapestry." "That's why it's a challenge. It's outside your comfort zone. A piece like this—an abstract sculpture—is what the gods are looking for."
"It would stand in the entry hall of the Olympian throne room for every visitor to see. You would be famous forever!" Arachne made a discontented hum in her throat. Annabeth could tell she wasn't going for the idea. Her hands started to feel cold and sweaty.
"This would take a great deal of web," the spider complained. "More than I could make in a year." Annabeth had been hoping for that. She'd calculated the mass and size accordingly. "You'd need to unravel the statue," she said. "Reuse the silk."
Arachne seemed about to object, but Annabeth waved at the Athena Parthenos like it was nothing. "What's more important—covering that old statue or proving your artwork is the best? Of course, you'd have to be incredibly careful."
"You'd need to leave enough webbing to hold the room together. And if you think it's too difficult—" "I didn't say that!" "Okay. It's just...Athena said that creating this braided structure would be impossible for any weaver, even her. So if you don't think you can—"
"Athena said that?" "Well, yeah." "Ridiculous! I can do it!" "Great! But you'd need to start right away, before the Olympians choose another artist for their installations." Arachne growled. "If you are tricking me, girl—"
"You'll have me right here as a hostage," Annabeth reminded her. "It's not like I can go anywhere. Once this sculpture is complete, you'll agree that it's the most amazing piece you've ever done. If not, I will gladly die."
Arachne hesitated. Her barbed legs were so close, she could've impaled Annabeth with a quick swipe. "Fine," the spider said. "One last challenge—against myself!" Arachne climbed her web and began to unravel the Athena Parthenos.
(Y/N)'s POV
Last time, Hades daughter had helped him push Zoe's soul back to the land of the living, this time, Pluto's daughter was the one giving him the power he needed to make sure Nico Di Angelo never left it.
His will, the reality he wanted for himself, the one he accepted where Nico Di Angelo would not die, had been shared between the two of them. That will would end up shaking the very foundations of the underworld to it's breaking point.
It started small, a few tremors, as the power of Gaea and the power of Pluto converged together, sinking into the earth. (Y/N) imagined his soul stretching through the earth, imagined that Hazel was transported with him.
It was easy, like breathing, he could hear the ebb and flow of the dirt, the vibrations of the rock, he felt so connected to it all, though as he went deeper and deeper, he felt them enter another domain, the underworld.
"Hazel, are you sure you're okay with this, if you don't-" His question was cut off by her answer, in the form of a two tonne boulder that was sent hurtling from the cavernous roof of the underworld into the fields of Asphodel.
That was just proof of concept, the confirmation that they were both capable of doing this with their powers combined, thought (Y/N) doubted captain planet would have approved. Especially when they got to the castle.
Hades palace was utterly bombarded with stalactites, stones, earth and jewels, rubies the size of baseballs shattered windows and buckled doors, boulders blocked pathways and destroyed most of the garden.
By the time they moved on, the castle was little more than a ruin of it's former selves, (Y/N) could see ghosts and skeletons, souls and soldiers alike all scrambling to respond, oddly enough, none did.
No counter offensive, no raising of alarm, as if Hades and his forces had simply forgotten to defend themselves, of course, in the days to come, he would explain to Olympus it was due to his exhaustion after the maiming her received from a certain demigod that he could not repel the attack that was no doubt from Gaea's forces.
So when the EZ death Line was torn in half, the fields of punishment were buried in stone, and thousands and thousands, nearly millions of souls were displaced, nobody blamed him for accidentally missing a few names off his list.
As one by one, every entrance to the underworld was sealed by rock and earth, or caved in by massive jewels and metals, only one remained, and the chokepoint that (Y/N) had once complained about to Hades, soon became a logistics nightmare.
Of course, at that point, HR had to step in. They appeared into the DOA, Charon guffawed. "What you think third time's the charm do you?" Charon said over the chattering of the crowd. Hazel and (Y/N) walked towards the Protogenoi with no concern.
Charon was the weakest of his peers by a wide margin, and the lackey of an Olympian, the two giants were weak compared to their kin too, but they were more than enough for what (Y/N) needed them for.
Their connection to Gaea helped him bend the earth as he saw fit, showering rocks and dirt onto the underworld, keeping Hades eyes busy looking at the dents in his fences and the destroyed shingling on his summer home.
"He's already crossed the river you fools. No saving him now." "No he hasn't, he's right there. (Y/N) said, pointing in a random direction, when Charon turned to look, he seemed puzzled.
"You need new sunglasses." Hazel said, "Quiet twerp, you've already been down here once, don't make me send you across again." Charon warned. Hazel stood her ground.
"You're not very good at your job, are you?" "Excuse me?" "Wow, blind and deaf." (Y/N) said, "Look, he's right there." (Y/N) pointed in another direction. "Honestly, you don't even know who you're ferrying across anymore do you Charon?"
"What? Of course I do!" He demanded. He pulled a clipboard from his desk, "Right here, Nico Di Angelo, see? You're too late!" (Y/N) pulled Charon's tie tight and pushed him over.
He held the clipboard, "Y'know, I don't see it on the list. Hazel?" He passed it to her. "I'm a daughter of Pluto, I don't see it." She said as she tore the list from the clipboard, (Y/N) burned it, "Nope, no Nico here."
"Odd that. Well, seems you made a mistake Charon. I'll do my duty as a member of HR and clean up your mess, don't worry." He said, Hazel spoke up, "All we'll have to do is give my father a call," She explained.
"I'm sure he'll be able to fix this mess...Oh no, I forgot, he's too busy with everything else. He won't have time to comb through everything." Charon tried to call their bluff. "Do it then, call him. You think you can come in here acting all impressive."
"Oh no, that's not the impressive part. This is." (Y/N) said as he lunged his hands forward and grabbed the doors of the elevator, prying them open, only to find Nico Di Angelo standing there. As if Hades had spat him back out.
Charon looked as though he may have passed out. "What's going on?" Nico whispered as (Y/N) scooped an arm over his shoulder and led him away from the elevator. "I'll explain later, go with Hazel."
The two siblings held hands as Hazel led Nico to the door. Passed the now converging crowds, forced into every location DOA records had to offer as opposed to anywhere else, as the other entrances were undergoing renovation.
"About twenty million and counting, you better get working Charon, it's okay to make a mistake every once and a while, these things happen." Charon finally caught on. "You can't do this!" He roared.
"Don't you know what you've done, the chaos you've caused, all for one soul, one boy, who'll probably be dead by the end of your quest anyway. There have been escapes, there have been collapses. You have no idea what on earth you've done!"
Charon rushed forward, seizing Nico once again. "You'll destroy everything." He said. "All for one boy, for this!" "Yeah." (Y/N) said, Charon's eyes flared, he raised his hands. "Don't." (Y/N) warned, but the ferryman didn't listen.
(Y/N) used the strength of the twin giants to block the mans punch, but was still sent reeling back Hazel made the stash of drachma behind Charon's desk attack him, but his grip did not loosen.
(Y/N) could see Nico's form start to shimmer, as though he were bypassing DOA completely, (Y/N) realized Charon was trying to recall him to the judges. He wasn't about to let that slide though. This time, he did try for his last resort.
"I'd let go if I were you shades." He warned, placing his hand on the supporting beam of the structure, Charon's grip on the boy loosened as he was forced comply, then, with immense speed, he lunged forward. Striking (Y/N) in the chest. Nearly knocking him out cold.
"Boy, I've wanted to whoop you for years. Now you just gave me the excuse." He said as (Y/N) flew into the elevator shaft. As he got up. He looked at Hazel and Nico, and said "Go, I got him." They seemed reluctant, but soon exited the studio.
"Oh you really shouldn't have done that. Now as long as I keep you here, he can't return to his body, and soon, they'll all be after him." Charon grinned horribly. (Y/N) didn't like being threatened very much. "Nah, Nico can do it himself. He's not an idiot like you."
He placed a hand on there side of the elevator. "I'm not an idiot kid, you're bluffing. You wouldn't dare. If DOA goes down, so does the underworld. Nobody wants that, not even the earth mother."
(Y/N) heard Clovis and Morpheus both yell at him, in his half dream state, "Don't!" But the warning fell on deaf ears as (Y/N) glared at Charon. (Y/N) suddenly understood why he kept seeing it, the entrance to the underworld, why he saw it so clearly, just once or twice.
It was to plant this idea in his head. To make sure he would follow this path, just like with Thomas, just like with Nemesis, they were all leading to this. Charon was right. Though it pained him to admit it.
Nobody would want this, this chaos for the underworld, not even Gaea. Well, all except one. (Y/N)'s hand suddenly stuck to the wall as if it were magnetized. "DONT!" Charon, Clovis and Morpheus all shouted.
It was too late, just like before, it started with a tiny crack on the side of the wall, followed by a rumble of earth. A small part of him admired his enemies forethought as the earth trembled around them, and DOA Records began to collapse.
He shadow travelled away as the ceiling caved in. Realizing that he had done exactly what his enemies had wanted him too, but for once, he didn't care. All he cared about was the boy now being propped up by his sister, frowning at him intensely.
"When are you going to let that Matilda thing go?" He asked quietly, as (Y/N) pulled Nico into a hug, healing the boy as he did. As the scar on his wrist, the wound he was told may never heal, closed, and the blackened, dead part of his flesh became whole once more, (Y/N) felt some spark of hope.
Shortly after (Y/N) collapsed, exhausted from the day and it's events. But again felt nothing but hopeful. He dreamed of the smiling face of Bianca Di Angelo, he had almost forgotten what colour her eyes were. With that image, and for the first time in what felt like years, he had a true restful sleep.