~~~~~Y/N's PΩV~~~~~
We emerged in Central Park just north of the Pond. Mrs. O'Leary and Chimera looked pretty tired as they limped over to a cluster of boulders. Mrs. O'Leary started sniffing around, and I was afraid she might mark her territory, but Nico said, " It's okay. She just smells the way home."
I frowned. "Through the rocks?" "The Underworld has two major entrances," Nico said. "You know the one in L.A." "Charon's ferry" Nico nodded. "Most souls go that way, but there's a smaller path, harder to find. The Door of Orpheus."
"The dude with the harp."
"Dude with the lyre," Nico corrected. "But yeah, him. He used his music to charm the earth and open a new path into the Underworld. He sang his way right into Hades's palace and almost got away with his wife's soul." I remembered the story. Orpheus wasn't supposed to look behind him when he was leading his wife back to the world, but of course he did. It was one of those typical "and-so-they-died/the-end" stories that always made us feel warm and fuzzy.
"So this is the Door of Orpheus." Percy tried to be impressed, but it still looked like a pile of rocks to me. "How does it open?" "We need music," Nico said. "How's your singing?" "HA" I laughed "Um, no. Can't you just, like, tell it to open? You're the son of Hades and all." Percy asked
"It's not so easy. We need music." I was pretty sure if Percy tried to sing, all he would cause was an avalanche. I couldn't sing either "can I just punch it? I've broken rocks before" "no, like I said, it needs music to open, Its a whole bunch of magic shit" Nico said back.
"I have a better idea." Percy turned and called, "GROVER!" We waited for a long time. Mrs. O'Leary curled up and took a nap. I could hear the crickets in the woods and an owl hooting. Traffic hummed along Central Park West. Horse hooves clopped down a nearby path, maybe a mounted police patrol. I was sure they'd love to find two kids hanging out in the park at one in the morning.
"It's no good," Nico said at last.
we sat in silence for about a minute more till Percy stumbled and almost fell over. "You ok?" I asked "What happened?" Nico asked.
"I got through. He's... yeah. He's on his way." A minute later, the tree next to us shivered. Grover fell out of the branches, right on his head. "Grover!" I yelled. "Woof!" Mrs. O'Leary looked up, probably wondering if we were going to play fetch with the satyr.
"Blah-haa-haa!" Grover bleated.
"You okay, man?" I asked "Oh, I'm fine." He rubbed his head. His horns had grown so much they poked an inch above his curly hair. "I was at the other end of the park. The dryads had this great idea of passing me through the trees to get me here. They don't understand height very well."
He grinned and got to his feet—well, his hooves, actually. Since last summer, Grover had stopped trying to disguise himself as human. He never wore a cap or fake feet anymore. He didn't even wear jeans, since he had furry goat legs from the waist down. His T-shirt had a picture from that book Where the Wild Things Are. It was covered with dirt and tree sap. His goatee looked fuller, almost manly (or goatly?), and he was as tall as me now.
"Good to see you, G-man," Percy said. "You remember Nico." Grover nodded at Nico, then he gave me and Percy a big hug. He smelled like fresh-mown lawns. "Perrrrcy! Y/NNNN" he bleated. "I missed you! I miss camp. They don't serve very good enchiladas in the wilderness."
"I was worried," I said. "Where've you been the last two months?" "The last two—" Grover's smile faded. "The last two months? What are you talking about?"
"We haven't heard from you," Percy said. "Juniper's worried. We sent Iris-messages, but—"
"Hold on." He looked up at the stars like he was trying to calculate his position. "What month is this?"
"August." The color drained from his face. "That's impossible. It's June. I just lay down to take a nap and..." He grabbed my arms. "I remember now! He knocked me out. Guys, we have to stop him!"
"Whoa," I said. "Slow down goaty. Tell us what happened." He took a deep breath. "I was... I was walking in the woods up by Harlem Meer. And I felt this tremble in the ground, like something powerful was near."
"You can sense stuff like that?" Nico asked. Grover nodded. "Since Pan's death, I can feel when something is wrong in nature. It's like my ears and eyes are sharper when I'm in the Wild. Anyway, I started following the scent. This man in a long black coat was walking through the park, and I noticed he didn't cast a shadow. Middle of a sunny day, and he cast no shadow. He kind of shimmered as he moved."
"Like a mirage?" Nico asked.
"Yes," Grover said. "And whenever he passed humans—"
"The humans would pass out," Nico said. "Curl up and go to sleep."
"That's right! Then after he was gone, they'd get up and go about their business like nothing happened." We stared at Nico. "You know this guy in black?" "Afraid so," Nico said. "Grover, what happened?"
"I followed the guy. He kept looking up at the buildings around the park like he was making estimates or something. This lady jogger ran by, and she curled up on the sidewalk and started snoring. The guy in black put his hand on her forehead like he was checking her temperature. Then he kept walking. By this time, I knew he was a monster or something even worse. I followed him into this grove, to the base of a big elm tree. I was about to summon some dryads to help me capture him when he turned and..."
Grover swallowed. "Percy, his face. I couldn't make out his face because it kept shifting. Just looking at him made me sleepy. I said, 'What are you doing?' He said, 'Just having a look around. You should always scout a battlefield before the battle.' I said something really smart like, 'This forest is under my protection. You won't start any battles here!' And he laughed. He said, ' You're lucky I'm saving my energy for the main event, little satyr. I'll just grant you a short nap. Pleasant dreams.' And that's the last thing I remember."
Nico exhaled. "Grover, you met Morpheus, the God of Dreams. You're lucky you ever woke up."
"Two months," Grover moaned. "He put me to sleep for two months!"
I tried to wrap my mind around what this meant. Now it made sense why we hadn't been able to contact Grover all this time. "Why didn't the nymphs try to wake you?" I asked. Grover shrugged. "Most nymphs aren't good with time. Two months for a tree—that's nothing. They probably didn't think anything was wrong."
"We've got to figure out what Morpheus was doing in the park," I said. "I don't like this 'main event' thing he mentioned." "He's working for Kronos," Nico said. "We know that already. A lot of the minor gods are. This just proves there's going to be an invasion. Percy, Y/N, we have to get on with our plan."
"Wait," Grover said. "What plan?" We told him, and Grover started tugging at his leg fur. "You're not serious," he said. "Not the Underworld again. Y/N, last time we went down there we almost lost you"
"Yeah and I came out with super human strength" I said back "I'm not asking you to come, man," Percy promised. "I know you just woke up. But we need some music to open the door. Can you do it?" Grover took out his reed pipes. "I guess I could try. I know a few Nirvana tunes that can split rocks. But, guys, are you sure you want to do this?"
"Please, man," Percy said. "It would mean a lot. For old times' sake?" He whimpered. "As I recall, in the old times we almost died a lot. But okay, here goes nothing." He put his pipes to his lips and played a shrill, lively tune. The boulders trembled. A few more stanzas, and they cracked open, revealing a triangular crevice.
I peered inside. Steps led down into the darkness. The air smelled of mildew and death. It brought back bad memories of my trip through the Labyrinth last year, but this tunnel felt even more dangerous. It led straight to the land of Hades, and that was almost always a one-way trip.
I turned to Grover. "Thanks... I think."
"Guuuuys, is Kronos really going to invade?" "I wish I could tell you better, but yeah. He will." He looked to me "And your Titan?" "Well, I Dont know really, He hasn't come to me in any dreams yet so..." I shrug.
I thought Grover might chew up his reed pipes in anxiety, but he straightened up and brushed off his T-shirt. I couldn't help thinking how different he looked from fat old Leneus. "I've got to rally the nature spirits, then. Maybe we can help. I'll see if we can find this Morpheus.'" "Better tell Juniper you're okay, too."
His eyes widened. "Juniper! Oh, she's going to kill me!" I suddenly remembered that I hadn't warned Annabeth that I was leaving... He started to run off, then scrambled back and gave me and Percy another hug. "Be careful down there! Come back alive!" Once he was gone, Nico, Percy and I roused Mrs. O'Leary from her nap and went to go find Chimera, who was chewing on a deer carcass.
When she smelled the tunnel, she got excited and led the way down the steps. It was a pretty tight fit. I hoped she wouldn't get stuck. I couldn't imagine how much Drano we'd need to unstick a hellhound wedged halfway down a tunnel to the Underworld. "Ready?" Nico asked me. "It'll be fine. Don't worry." He sounded like he was trying to convince himself.
"Suuuure" I glanced up at the stars, wondering if I would ever see them again. I waved one last time at Zoe and Then we plunged into darkness. The stairs went on forever—narrow, steep, and slippery. It was completely dark except for the light of my sword. I tried to go slow, but Mrs. O'Leary had other ideas. She bounded ahead, barking happily. Chimera walked behind us, His Goat head was shaking, His Croc head was barking (Can Crocodiles bark?), and the snake head was asleep.
The sound of Mrs. O'Leary and Sobek (The Croc head's name) echoed through the tunnel like cannon shots, and I figured we would not be catching anybody by surprise once we reached the bottom. Nico lagged behind, which I thought was strange. "You okay?" Percy asked him.
"Fine." What was that expression on his face.... doubt? "Just keep moving," he said. I didn't have much choice. we followed Mrs. O'Leary into the depths. After another hour, I started to hear the roar of a river. We emerged at the base of a cliff, on a plain of black volcanic sand. To our right, the River Styx gushed from the rocks and roared off in a cascade of rapids. To our left, far away in the gloom, fires burned on the ramparts of Erebos, the great black walls of Hades's kingdom.
I shuddered. I'd first been here when I was thirteen, and only Annabeth, Percy and Grover's company had given me the courage to keep going. Nico wasn't going to be quite as helpful with the "courage" thing. He looked pale and worried himself. even Sobek had stopped yapping.
Only Mrs. O'Leary acted happy. She ran along the beach, picked up a random human leg bone, and romped back toward me. She dropped the bone at my feet and waited for me to throw it. "Um, maybe later, girl. "I stared at the dark waters, trying to get up my nerve. "So, Nico... how do we do this?"
"We have to go inside the gates first," he said.
"But the river's right here."
"I have to get something," he said. "It's the only way."
He marched off without waiting. I frowned and shared a look with Percy. Nico hadn't mentioned anything about going inside the gates. But now that we were here, I didn't know what else to do. Reluctantly, I followed him down the beach toward the big black gates.
Lines of the dead stood outside waiting to get in. It must've been a heavy day for funerals, because even the EZ-DEATH line was backed up. "Woof!" Mrs. O'Leary said. Before I could stop her she bounded toward the security checkpoint with Chimera hot on her tail. Cerberus, the guard dog of Hades, appeared out of the gloom—a three-headed rottweiler so big he made Mrs. O'Leary and Chimera look like a toy poodles. Cerberus was half transparent, so he's really hard to see until he's close enough to kill you, but he acted like he didn't care about us. He was too busy saying hello to Mrs. O'Leary.
"Mrs. O'Leary, no!" Percy shouted at her. "Don't sniff... Oh, man." Me and Nico smiled. Then he looked at Percy and his expression turned all serious again, like he'd remembered something unpleasant. "Come on. They won't give us any trouble in the line. You're with me."
I didn't like it, but we slipped through the security ghouls and into the Fields of Asphodel. I had to whistle for Mrs. O'Leary three times before she left Cerberus alone and ran after us. We hiked over black fields of grass dotted with black poplar trees. If me and Percy really died in a few days like our individual prophecy's said, we might end up here forever, but I tried not to think about that. Nico trudged ahead, bringing us closer and closer to the palace of Hades.
"Hey," I said, "we're inside the gates already. Where are we— " Mrs. O'Leary growled and Chimera grew in size. two shadows appeared overhead—something dark, cold, and stinking of death. they swooped down and landed in the top of a poplar tree. Unfortunately, I recognized them. they had a shriveled face, one had a horrible blue knit hat, and a crumpled velvet dress. the other had a torn green dress and one of those long old timey hats. they both had Leathery bat wings sprang from their back. Her feet had sharp talons, and in her brass-clawed hands she held a flaming whip and a paisley handbag.
"Mrs. Dodds," I said. "Miss Hendra" I said. Mrs. Dodds bared her fangs. "Welcome back, honey." their other sister—the last of the Furies—swooped down and settled next to her in the branches of the poplar. "You know Alecto and Megaera?" Nico asked us, I realized I never learned Miss Hendra's real name. I guess its Megaera.
"If you mean the hag in the middle, yeah," Percy said. "She was my math teacher." "The bitch on the left was my history teacher" Nico nodded, like this didn't surprise him. He looked up at the Furies and took a deep breath. "I've done what my father asked. Take us to the palace." I tensed. "Ex-Fucking-Squeeze me?" I said "Wait a second, Nico. What do you— "
"I'm afraid this is my new lead, Percy. My father promised me information about my family, but he wants to see you both before we try the river. I'm sorry." "You tricked us?" Percy asked, he must have been so mad he couldn't think because the Seaweed Brain lunged at Nico, but the Furies were fast. Two of them swooped down and plucked him up by the arms. his sword fell out of his hand, and before I knew it, Percy was dangling sixty feet in the air.
"Oh, don't struggle, honey," his old math teacher cackled in my ear. "I'd hate to drop you." "OI! let my annoying best friend go! only I can dangle him from the air when I'm mad at him!" Miss Hendra swooped down and tried to pin me, I swung my fist and punched her lights out for a moment, but she quickly recovers, this fully set off Mrs. O'Leary and Chimera, who barked angrily and jumped, trying to reach Percy, but he was too high.
"Tell Mrs. O'Leary to behave," Nico warned. He was hovering near Percy in the clutches of the third Fury, who was swaying and almost dropped him a few times. "I don't want her to get hurt, Percy. My father is waiting. He just wants to talk. You too Y/N, tell Chimera to stand down"
I wanted to give Nico the Castor treatment, have Chimera pull the flesh off this death boy. but it wouldn't have done any good, and Nico was right about one thing: Percy dog and my Chimera could get hurt if they tried to pick a fight with the Furies. Percy gritted his teeth. "Mrs. O'Leary, down! It's okay, girl." She whimpered and turned in circles, looking up at me. Chimera was still growling "Down boys" I said, they hesitated and but stood down "All right, traitor," I growled at Nico. "You've got your prize. Take me to the stupid palace."
***
Alecto dropped him like a sack of turnips in the middle of the palace garden. It was beautiful in a creepy way. Skeletal white trees grew from marble basins. Flower beds overflowed with golden plants and gemstones. A pair of thrones, one bone and one silver, sat on the balcony with a view of the Fields of Asphodel. It would've been a nice place to spend a Saturday morning except for the sulfurous smell and the cries of tortured souls in the distance.
Skeletal warriors guarded the only exit. They wore tattered U.S. Army desert combat fatigues and carried M16s. The third Fury deposited Nico next to me. Then all three of them settled on the top of the skeletal throne. I resisted the urge to strangle Nico. They'd only stop me. I'd have to wait for my revenge.
I stared at the empty thrones, waiting for something to happen. Then the air shimmered. Three figures appeared—Hades and Persephone on their thrones, and an older woman standing between them. They seemed to be in the middle of an argument. "—told you he was a bum!" the older woman said.
"Mother!" Persephone replied.
"We have visitors!" Hades barked. "Please!"
Hades, one of my least favorite gods, smoothed his black robes, which were covered with the terrified faces of the damned. He had pale skin and the intense eyes of a madman. "Percy Jackson, Y/N L/N," he said with satisfaction. "At last."
Queen Persephone studied me curiously. I'd seen her once before in the winter, but now in the summer she looked like a totally different goddess. She had lustrous black hair and warm brown eyes. Her dress shimmered with colors. Flower patterns in the fabric changed and bloomed—roses, tulips, honeysuckle.
The woman standing between them was obviously Persephone's mother. She had the same hair and eyes, but looked older and sterner. Her dress was golden, the color of a wheat field. Her hair was woven with dried grasses so it reminded me of a wicker basket. I figured if somebody lit a match next to her, she'd be in serious trouble.
"Hmmph," the older woman said. "Demigods. Just what we need." Next to me, Nico knelt. I wished I had my sword so I could cut his stupid head off. Unfortunately, Νικητής was taken by Megaera, but it was shaking in her hand, trying to get to me. "Father," Nico said. "I have done as you asked."
"Took you long enough," Hades grumbled. "Your sister would've done a better job." Nico lowered his head. If I hadn't been so mad at the little creep, I might've felt sorry for him. Percy glared up at the god of the dead. "What do you want, Hades?"
"To talk, of course." The god twisted his mouth in a cruel smile. "Didn't Nico tell you?"
"So this whole quest was a lie. Nico brought me down here to get me killed."
"Oh, no," Hades said. "I'm afraid Nico was quite sin-cere about wanting to help you. The boy is as honest as he is dense. I simply convinced him to take a small detour and bring you here first." Sometimes I wish Hades was like how people said he was online, a nice god who only did a few things wrong compared to the other gods, but no, he just as monstrous as gods like Zeus and Ares. My anger for Nico quickly shifted to anger at Hades.
"Father," Nico said, "you promised that Percy would not be harmed. You said if I brought him, you would tell me about my past—about my mother." Queen Persephone sighed dramatically. "Can we please not talk about that woman in my presence?"
"I'm sorry, my dove," Hades said. "I had to promise the boy something." The older lady harrumphed. "I warned you, daughter. This scoundrel Hades is no good. You could've married the god of doctors or the god of lawyers, but noooo. You had to eat the pomegranate."
"Mother—"
"And get stuck in the Underworld!"
"Mother, please—"
"And here it is August, and do you come home like you're supposed to? Do you ever think about your poor lonely mother?"
"DEMETER!" Hades shouted. "That is enough. You are a guest in my house."
"Oh, a house is it?" she said. "You call this dump a house? Make my daughter live in this dark, damp—"
"I told you," Hades said, grinding his teeth, "there's a war in the world above. You and Persephone are better off here with me." "Excuse me," I broke in. "But if you're going to kill us, could you just get on with it?" All three gods looked at me.
"Well, this one has an attitude," Demeter observed. "Indeed," Hades agreed. "I'd love to kill him." "Father!" Nico said. "You promised!" "Husband, we talked about this," Persephone chided. "You can't go around incinerating every hero. Besides, he's brave. I like that."
Hades rolled his eyes. "You liked that Orpheus fellow too. Look how well that turned out. Let me kill him, just a little bit."
"Father, you promised!" Nico said. "You said you only wanted to talk to him. You said if I brought him, you'd explain." Hades glowered, smoothing the folds of his robes. "And so I shall. Your mother—what can I tell you? She was a wonderful woman." He glanced uncomfortably at Persephone. "Forgive me, my dear. I mean for a mortal, of course. Her name was Maria di Angelo. She was from Venice, but her father was a diplomat in Washington, D.C. That's where I met her. When you and your sister were young, it was a bad time to be children of Hades. World War II was brewing. A few of my, ah, other children were leading the losing side."
"Hitler?" I asked. Hades didn't respond "I thought it best to put you two out of harm's way."
"That's why you hid us in the Lotus Casino?" Hades shrugged. "You didn't age. You didn't realize time was passing. I waited for the right time to bring you out."
"But what happened to our mother? Why don't I remember her?"
"Not important," Hades snapped. "What? Of course it's important. And you had other children—why were we the only ones who were sent away? And who was the lawyer who got us out?" Hades grit his teeth. "You would do well to listen more and talk less, boy. As for the lawyer..."
Hades snapped his fingers. On top of his throne, the Fury Alecto began to change until she was a middle-aged man in a pinstriped suit with a briefcase. She—he—looked strange crouching at Hades's shoulder. "You!" Nico said. The Fury cackled. "I do lawyers and teachers very well!"
Nico was trembling. "But why did you free us from the casino?" "You know why," Hades said. "This idiot son of Poseidon cannot be allowed to be the child of the prophecy." Percy plucked a ruby off the nearest plant and threw it at Hades. It sank harmlessly into his robe. "You should be helping Olympus!" I said. "All the other gods are fighting Typhon, and you're just sitting here—"
"Waiting things out," Hades finished. "Yes, that's correct. When's the last time Olympus ever helped me, half-blood? When's the last time a child of mine was ever welcomed as a hero? Bah! Why should I rush out and help them? I'll stay here with my forces intact."
"And when Kronos comes after you?"
"Let him try. He'll be weakened. And my son here, Nico—" Hades looked at him with distaste. "Well, he's not much now, I'll grant you. It would've been better if Bianca had lived. But give him four more years of training. We can hold out that long, surely. Nico will turn sixteen, as the prophecy says, and then he will make the decision that will save the world. And I will be king of the gods."
"You're crazy," Percy said. "Kronos will crush you, right after he finishes pulverizing Olympus." Hades spread his hands. "Well, you'll get a chance to find out, half-blood. Because you'll be waiting out this war in my dungeons." "No!" Nico said. "Father, that wasn't our agreement. And you haven't told me everything!"
"I've told you all you need to know," Hades said. "As for our agreement, I spoke with Jackson. I did not harm him. You got your information. If you had wanted a better deal, you should've made me swear on the Styx. Now, go to your room!" He waved his hand, and Nico vanished.
"That boy needs to eat more," Demeter grumbled. "He's too skinny. He needs more cereal." Persephone rolled her eyes. "Mother, enough with the cereal. My lord Hades, are you sure we can't let these little heroes go? their awfully brave."
"No, my dear. I've spared their life. That's enough." I was sure she was going to stand up for me. The brave, beautiful Persephone was going to get me out of this. She shrugged indifferently. "Fine. What's for breakfast? I'm starving." "Cereal," Demeter said. "Mother!" The two women disappeared in a swirl of flowers and wheat.
"Don't feel too bad, Boys," Hades said. "My ghosts keep me well informed of Kronos's plans. I can assure you that you had no chance to stop him in time. By tonight, it will be too late for your precious Mount Olympus. The trap will be sprung."
"What trap?" Percy demanded. "If you know about it, do something! At least let me tell the other gods!" Hades smiled. "You are spirited. I'll give you credit for that. Have fun in my dungeon." Y/N, I'll see you in four years to help Nico and complete your prophecy. Percy, We'll check on you again in—oh, fifty or sixty years."
***
Percy's sword reappeared in his pocket. Yeah, great timing. Now he could attack the walls all he wanted. My cell had no bars, no windows, not even a door. The skeletal guards shoved me and Percy straight through a wall, and it became solid behind us. I wasn't sure if the room was airtight. Probably. Hades's dungeon was meant for dead people, and they don't breathe. So forget four years. I'd be dead in fifty or sixty minutes. Meanwhile, if Hades wasn't lying, some big trap was going to be sprung in New York by the end of the day, and there was absolutely nothing we could do about it.
Percy eventually sat next to me and he started dozing off. it must've been about seven in the morning, mortal time, and we'd been through a lot. so I went to bed to. You would've thought I would finally had a dream/vision from Akeldama. but no instead I appeared on the street of a city, above the city was a large dark cloud and a blast of lightning hit the center of the darkness. The entire city shook. The air glowed, and every hair on my body stood up. The blast was so powerful I knew it could only be one thing: Zeus's master bolt. It should have vaporized its target, but the dark cloud only staggered backward. A smoky fist appeared out of the clouds. It smashed another tower, and the whole thing collapsed like children's blocks.
someone screamed, People ran through the streets. Emergency lights flashed. I saw a streak of silver in the sky—a chariot pulled by reindeer, but it wasn't Santa Claus driving. It was Artemis, riding the storm, shooting shafts of moonlight into the darkness. A fiery golden comet crossed her path... maybe her brother Apollo. A large flash of gold wisped past Zeus, Kratos, my uncle.
One thing was clear: Typhon had made it to the Mississippi River. He was halfway across the U.S., leaving destruction in his wake, and the gods were barely slowing him down. The mountain of darkness loomed above me. A foot the size of Yankee Stadium was about to smash me when a voice hissed, "Y/N! Percy!"
I woke up. Before I was fully awake, I saw Percy had Nico pinned to the floor of the cell with the edge of his sword at his throat. "Want . . . to . . . rescue," he choked. "Percy! Stop!" I said. Anger woke Percy up fast. "Oh, yeah? And why should I trust you?" "No . . . choice?" he gagged.
he let him go. Nico curled into a ball and made retching sounds while his throat recovered. I helped him as he finally he got to his feet, eyeing Percy's sword warily. His own blade was sheathed. I suppose if he'd wanted to kill us, he could've done it while we slept. "We have to get out of here," he said.
"Why?" Percy said. "Does your dad want to talk to me again?" He winced. "Guys, I swear on the River Styx, I didn't know what he was planning." "You know what your dad is like!" I really didnt want to be caught between another fight "He tricked me. He promised—" Nico held up his hands. "Look... right now, we need to leave. I put the guards to sleep, but it won't last." He pointed at the wall. A whole section vanished, revealing a corridor. "Come on." Nico led the way.
I wished I had Annabeth's invisibility hat, but as it turned out, I didn't need it. Every time we came to a skeleton guard, Nico just pointed at it, and its glowing eyes dimmed. Unfortunately, the more Nico did it, the more tired he seemed. We walked through a maze of corridors filled with guards. By the time we reached a kitchen staffed by skeletal cooks and servants, we were practically carrying Nico. He managed to put all the dead to sleep but nearly passed out himself. I dragged him out of the servants' entrance and into the Fields of Asphodel.
I almost felt relieved until I heard the sound of bronze gongs high in the castle. "Alarms," Nico murmured sleepily. "What do we do?" He yawned then frowned like he was trying to remember. "How about... run?" "Run sounds good" I picked up Nico. Running with a drowsy child of Hades was more like doing a three-legged race with a life-size rag doll. I lugged him along, holding my sword in front of me, Percy was just ahead, sword also in hand. The spirits of the dead made way like the Celestial bronze was a blazing fire.
The sound of gongs rolled across the fields. Ahead loomed the walls of Erebos, but the longer we walked, the farther away they seemed. I was about to collapse from exhaustion when I heard a familiar "WOOOOOF!" Mrs. O'Leary and Chimera bounded out of nowhere and ran circles around us, ready to play. "Good girl." Percy said. "Can you give us a ride to the Styx?"
The word Styx got her excited. She probably thought I meant sticks. She jumped a few times, chased her tail just to teach it who was boss, and then calmed down enough for me to push Nico onto her back. I climb aboard Chimera as Percy climbed onto Mrs. O'Leary, and she raced toward the gates. She leaped straight over the EZ-DEATH line, sending guards sprawling and causing more alarms to blare. Cerberus barked, but he sounded more excited than angry, like: Can I play too? Fortunately, he didn't follow us, and Mrs. O'Leary and Chimera kept running. they didn't stop until we were far upriver and the fires of Erebos had disappeared in the murk.
Nico slid off Mrs. O'Leary's back and crumpled in a heap on the black sand. Percy took out a square of ambrosia—part of the emergency god-food I always kept with me. It was a little bashed up, but Nico chewed it. "Uh," he mumbled. "Better."
"Your powers drain you too much," I noted. He nodded sleepily. "With great power... comes great need to take a nap. Wake me up later."
"Whoa, zombie dude ." Percy caught him before he could pass out again. "We're at the river. You need to tell me what to do." we fed him the last of our ambrosia, which was a little dangerous. The stuff can heal demigods, but it can also burn us to ashes if we eat too much. Fortunately, it seemed to do the trick. Nico shook his head a few times and struggled to his feet.
"My father will be coming soon," he said. "We should hurry." The River Styx's current swirled with strange objects—broken toys, ripped-up college diplomas, wilted homecoming corsages—all the dreams people had thrown away as they'd passed from life into death. Looking at the black water, I could think of about three million places I'd rather swim.
"So... we just jump in?"
"You have to prepare yourself first," Nico said, "or the river will destroy you. It will burn away your body and soul."
"Sounds fun," Percy muttered.
"This is no joke," Nico warned. "There is only one way to stay anchored to your mortal life. You have to..." He glanced behind me and his eyes widened. I turned and found myself face-to-face with a Greek warrior.
For a second I thought he was Ares, because this guy looked exactly like the god of war—tall and buff, with a cruel scarred face and closely shaved black hair. He wore a white tunic and bronze armor. He held a plumed war helm under his arm. But his eyes were human—pale green like a shallow sea—and a bloody arrow stuck out of his left calf, just above the ankle.
I stunk at Greek names, but even I knew the greatest warrior of all time, who had died from a wounded heel. "Achilles," I said. The ghost nodded. "I warned the other one not to follow my path. Now I will warn you."
"Luke? You spoke with Luke?"
"Do not do this," he said. "It will make you powerful. But it will also make you weak. Your prowess in combat will be beyond any mortal's, but your weaknesses, your failings will increase as well."
"You mean I'll have a bad heel?" Percy said. "Couldn't I just, like, wear something besides sandals? No offense." He stared down at his bloody foot. "The heel is only my physical weakness, demigod. My mother, Thetis, held me there when she dipped me in the Styx. What really killed me was my own arrogance. Beware! Turn back!"
He meant it. I could hear the regret and bitterness in his voice. He was honestly trying to save us from a terrible fate. Then again, Luke had been here, and he hadn't turned back. That's why Luke had been able to host the spirit of Kronos without his body disintegrating. This is how he'd prepared himself, and why he seemed impossible to kill. He had bathed in the River Styx and taken on the powers of the greatest mortal hero, Achilles. He was invincible.
"we have to," I said. "Otherwise I don't stand a chance against our enemies." Achilles lowered his head. "Let the gods witness I tried. Hero, if you must do this, concentrate on your mortal point. Imagine one spot of your body that will remain vulnerable. This is the point where your soul will anchor your body to the world. It will be your greatest weakness, but also your only hope. No man may be completely invulnerable. Lose sight of what keeps you mortal, and the River Styx will burn you to ashes. You will cease to exist."
"I don't suppose you could tell me Luke's mortal point?"
He scowled. "Prepare yourself, foolish boy. Whether you survive this or not, you have sealed your doom!" With that happy thought, he vanished. "Guys," Nico said, "maybe he's right."
"This was your idea."
"I know, but now that we're here—"
"Just wait on the shore. If anything happens to us... Well, maybe Hades will get his wish, and you'll be the child of the prophecy after all. hopefully theres another Nike kid out there somewhere who can beat Akeldama too" He didn't look pleased about that, but I didn't care.
Me and Percy joined hands as I focused on the small of my back—a tiny point just opposite my navel. It was well defended when I wore my armor. It would be hard to hit by accident, and few enemies would aim for it on purpose. No place was perfect, but this seemed right to me, and a lot more dignified than, like, my armpit or something.
I pictured a string, a bungee cord connecting me to the world from the small of my back. And with Percy, I stepped into the river. Imagine jumping into a pit of boiling acid. Now multiply that pain times fifty. You still won't be close to understanding what it felt like to swim in the Styx. I planned to walk in slow and courageous like a real hero. As soon as the water touched my legs, my muscles turned to jelly and I fell face-first into the current. My hand left Percy's and we separated.
I submerged completely. Every nerve in my body burned. I was dissolving in the water. I saw faces—Rachel, Percy, Charles, Pollux, Grover, Tyson, my father—but they faded as soon as they appeared. "Y/N," Percy's Mom, Sally said. "I give you my blessing."
"Be safe, friends!" Tyson pleaded. "Enchiladas!" Grover said. I wasn't sure where that came from, but it didn't seem to help much. "Thank you for avenging my Brother" Pollux said. I was losing the fight. The pain was too much. My hands and feet were melting into the water, my soul was being ripped from my body. I couldn't remember who I was. The pain of Kronos's scythe had been nothing compared to this.
When I thought I was about to just turn to dust, another voice came, a deep voice that I can only compare to being Keith David's voice it his voice was turned to chalk and scratched on a chalk board.
"Hello, Little Godling" I turned in the water and I was meet with one of the most horrific faces in the world, It was melted and dripping, like its face was made of wax. it two large horns shotting out of the top his head. its skin was red, blood red. it wore a long brown cloak over everything and it had a longs tail and wings. if you had told me this was the devil—like, the actually devil— I would've said 'What gave it away!? the horns, the tail or its red ass skin!?'
"So you are Victory's spawn...the one who will 'defeat me'" He laughed "Foolish Fates, You cant defeat me Godling, I am Akeldama, The Forgotten Titan, Titan of Death, Titan of Storms. I will send you corpse to the heavens and then lock you into an eternity torture with the gods" I covered my ears. I didn't want to listen to him, his voice was making the burning even worse. It felt like my pain was kicked up from a 1000 to a Million just from his voice
but he was stopped, a familiar voice spoke. Remember your lifeline, dummy! Suddenly there was a tug in my lower back. The current pulled at me, but it wasn't carrying me away anymore. I imagined the string in my back keeping me tied to the shore. "Yes, Run little Godling, you wont get far"
"Hold on, Brid Brain." It was Annabeth's voice, much clearer now. "You're not getting away from me that easily." The cord strengthened. I could see Annabeth now—standing barefoot above me on the canoe lake pier. I'd fallen out of my canoe. That was it. She was reaching out her hand to haul me up, and she was trying not to laugh. She wore her orange camp T-shirt and jeans. Her hair was tucked up in her Yankees cap, which was strange because that should have made her invisible.
"You are such an idiot sometimes." She smiled. "Come on. Take my hand, handsome." Memories came flooding back to me—sharper and more colorful. I stopped dissolving. My name was Y/N L/N. I reached up and took Annabeth's hand, she pulled me into her arms and kissed me.
Suddenly I burst out of the river. I collapsed on the sand, and Nico and Percy scrambled back in surprise. "Are you okay?" Percy stammered. "You were down there so much longer...w-we thought you..." he wiped a few tears away. My arms were bright red. I felt like every inch of my body had been broiled over a slow flame.
I looked around for Annabeth, though I knew she wasn't here. It had seemed so real. "I'm fine... I think." The color of my skin turned back to normal. The pain subsided, other than the splitting headache I had now for...it... Mrs. O'Leary and Chimera came up and sniffed me and Percy with concern. Apparently we smelled really interesting. "Do you feel stronger?" Nico asked. Before I could decide what I felt, a voice boomed, "THERE!"
An army of the dead marched toward us. A hundred skeletal Roman legionnaires led the way with shields and spears. Behind them came an equal number of British redcoats with bayonets fixed. In the middle of the host, Hades himself rode a black-and-gold chariot pulled by nightmare horses, their eyes and manes smoldering with fire.
"You will not escape me this time, Percy Jackson! neither will you, Y/N L/N" Hades bellowed. "Destroy them!" "Father, no!" Nico shouted, but it was too late. The front line of Roman zombies lowered their spears and advanced.
Mrs. O'Leary and Chimera growled and got ready to pounce. Maybe that's what set me off. I didn't want them hurting our pets. Plus, I was tired of Hades being a big bully. If I was going to die, I might as well go down fighting.
me and Percy yelled at the same time, and the River Styx exploded. A black tidal wave smashed into the legionnaires. Spears and shields flew everywhere. Roman zombies began to dissolve, smoke coming off their bronze helmets.
The redcoats lowered their bayonets, but I didn't wait for them. we charged. It was the stupidest thing I've ever done. A hundred muskets fired at me, point blank. All of them missed. I crashed into their line and started hacking with Νικητής. Bayonets jabbed. Swords slashed. Guns reloaded and fired. Nothing touched me. I leaped up into the air and kept attacking.
I whirled through the ranks, slashing redcoats to dust, one after the other. My mind went on autopilot: stab, dodge, cut, deflect, roll . Νικητής was no longer a sword. It was an arc of pure destruction. I broke through the enemy line and leaped into the black chariot. Hades raised his staff. A bolt of dark energy shot toward me and Percy, but we deflected it off our blade and slammed into him. The god, Percy and I both tumbled out of the chariot.
The next thing I knew, my hands were around Hades neck. I was behind him as Percy held his sword to Hades chest. I used one hand to pull on his hair so Percy could put his sword to a spot on Hade's neck where my arms weren't there.
Silence. The army did nothing to defend their master. I glanced back and realized why. There was nothing left of them but weapons in the sand and piles of smoking, empty uniforms. we had destroyed them all. Hades swallowed. "Now, Demi-Gods, listen here. . . ."
He was immortal. There was no way I could kill him, but gods can be wounded. I knew that firsthand, and I figured a sword in the face wouldn't feel too good. "Just because I'm a nice person," Percy snarled, "I'll let you go. But first, tell me about that trap!" Hades melted into nothing, leaving me holding empty black robes.
"Mother Fucker!" I cursed and got to my feet, breathing heavily and wings flapping franticly. Now that the danger was over, I realized how tired I was. Every muscle in my body ached. I looked down at my clothes. They were slashed to pieces and full of bullet holes, but I was fine. Not a mark on me.
Nico's mouth hung open. "You just... with a sword... you just—"
"I think the river thing worked," I said.
"Oh gee," he said sarcastically. "You think?"
Mrs. O'Leary barked happily and wagged her tail. She bounded around, sniffing empty uniforms and hunting for bones. Chimera came up behind me and the snake head like my non existent wounds. Percy lifted Hades's robe. I could still see the tormented faces shimmering in the fabric. he walked to the edge of the river. "Be free."
I dropped the robe in the water and watched as it swirled away, dissolving in the current. "Go back to your father," Percy told Nico. "Tell him he owes us for letting him go. Find out what's going to happen to Mount Olympus and convince him to help."
Nico stared at us. "I... I can't. He'll hate me now. I mean... even more."
"You have to," I said. "You owe us too." His ears turned red. "Guys, I told you I was sorry. Please... let me come with you. I want to fight." "You'll be more help down here." "You mean you don't trust me anymore," he said miserably. I didn't answer. I didn't know what I meant. I was too stunned by what I'd just done in battle and what happened in the river to think clearly.
"Just go back to your father," Percy said, trying not to sound too harsh. "Work on him. You're the only person who might be able to get him to listen."
"That's a depressing thought." Nico sighed. "All right. I'll do my best. Besides, he's still hiding something from me about my mom. Maybe I can find out what."
"Good luck. Now we have to go." "Where?" Nico said. Me and Percy looked at each other, then we looked at the cave entrance and thought about the long climb back to the world of the living. "To get this war started. It's time we found Luke."
(7800 Words)