Chapter 1

After three weeks, I was ready to quit. I was sick of being trapped underground, sick of being kept on the verge of death, sick of the torture, and I was sure that if I stayed down here any longer that I would go mad. The rough stone slabs that made up my prison felt as cold as death and the place stank of fear. My fear. I shivered. I was sure that the place was air tight, but I hadn't suffocated yet, though I was certain that it was only a matter of time. My breath came in harsh gasps as I fought to breathe. The last time I had been taken out of this cell, I think I must have broken a rib when Andrew hit me. He's this son of Ares gone rogue who's working for Gaia. I hate that kid almost as much as I hate Gaia herself. Talk about a guy without a sense of humor. Jeez. It's not like I said anything personal. Anyway, it felt like there was a mountain or something on my chest, just plain weighing me down and I was thinking that maybe it wasn't just a rib or two that was broken. My leg was torn almost in half and it felt alien compared to the rest of me. Bone stood out in sharp relief, jutting out of the torn skin and muscle. I knew that if I didn't get medical help soon that I could die. I didn't want to go, not yet. Just thinking about death made my skin crawl. I had been assigned to escort a new camper to camp along with Ashe, a satyr. We had been captured by the gorgons and the Minotaur less than five miles away from camp. I don't know what happened to the others and don't ask me. We were taken to separate cells in the beginning and I haven't seen them since. However, after the fifth day, they got more intense on me, so I think that at least one of them has passed. I may be a son of Hades, but I can't be sure – the whole place reeks of death down here. I do hope that's just me being paranoid though. Maybe they're only pressing me harder because they're running out of time. Maybe.

The door creaked and groaned. Age old hinges squeaked in protest as it was pushed forcibly open. I scrambled back, making myself as small as I could. My leg stuck out awkwardly in front of me, but I couldn't move it without terrible pain. Gritting my teeth, I eyed the door as a small shaft of light spilled onto the floor. It was snuffed out as a person forced their way through. Darkness returned as they slammed it shut again.

"Andrew?" I asked hoarsely, bracing myself for the worst.

No answer. My heart beat faster. My eyes darted around the tiny cell, looking for a way out, but I knew there wasn't one. What would they do to me this time? I still couldn't see the person, but I knew they were there watching me. I could almost feel their presence in the cramped cell. My ragged breathing sounded unnaturally loud in the quiet.

"Who's there?" I asked, louder this time. As soon as I had done so I regretted it. Those two words left me bereft of air in my lungs. I gasped for more, and rolled onto my side as a fit of violent coughing shook me. I spat out blood onto the cold stones and shuddered pugnaciously, and braced myself for another attack.

"Oh gods," a voice whispered close at hand. I caught a glimpse of dark blue and silver eyes as the person knelt down beside me. From the sound of the voice, I was pretty sure it was a girl. My black hair had always been rather long for a guy and I could barely see her through the matted curtain of it that hung in front of my eyes. I didn't know if she was friend or foe, but I didn't recognize her.

"Who are you?" I asked through gritted teeth, trying to deny the pain that was racing through my body.

"A friend," she replied evasively. "Listen, I've been sent to rescue you." Her dark eyes bored into mine, intense and dead serious.

I groaned slightly and rolled back onto my back, relieving some of the pain. "Who sent you?" I asked through tightly clenched teeth.

She glanced around nervously, even though we were alone. "I can't say. Not here. Listen, drink this." She pushed a canteen into my hand and helped me to sit up.

Rather unsteadily, I took a cautious sip and almost gagged. Nectar, the immortal drink of the gods always tastes different depending on the person. In my case, it tasted like chocolate cake, just liquefied. Don't laugh, Percy says it tastes like chocolate chip cookies to him. My half-brother Aaron says he thinks it tastes like fruit punch. Anyway, I managed to force some of the stuff down. After ages of being fed stale bread and water, I just couldn't stomach it. I handed it back to the girl and slumped weakly against the wall; just that small motion had exhausted me. She seemed concerned, but went to work on my leg. Meanwhile, the nectar that I had swallowed began to take effect. Whatever I had suffered began righting itself and the pressure on my chest eased up to the point where I wasn't gasping for air like a beached fish. I managed to sit up again and found that my leg was back to normal. Before I could thank the strange girl, she rose suddenly and pulled me to my feet.

"Woa there," I said as I almost collapsed back on the floor.

She caught me before I could fall and helped me steady myself. "You okay?"

"You kidding?" I snorted. "Give me a week and I'll be right as rain." I massaged my chest, relieved to find that the bone and muscle underneath seemed to have righted itself completely.

"We don't have that much time," she told me tensely. "Can you at least walk?" She really did sound concerned, but more likely worried about things that didn't include my ability to stand upright.

I shook my head. I hated to admit it, but lying would cost more than my ego. "I don't think more than a few feet."

She cursed in ancient Greek and I couldn't blame her. "Come on," she growled, "I'll help you."

"Why thank you fair maiden." I made a pitiful excuse for a mocking bow.

It was hard to tell in the darkness, but I could have sworn that she had just rolled her eyes. She wrapped an arm around my waist and helped me walk. When we reached the thick oak door, she didn't hesitate. She kicked the thing open and if gave way with a very final shriek of rusty hinges.

"That was very careful," I observed. "Quiet too. In fact, I'd be surprised if someone heard that."

She cast me a withering look from under my arm. "Cut it di Angelo, we've got to get out of here."

"Really?" I asked with feigned surprise. "I thought we were on a date."

She looked ready to punch me but restrained the urge. "Come on. I've got to get you out of here alive."

"Alive would be good."

That one was left unanswered. Choosing a hallway that appeared deserted, she hauled me forward. "Come on son of Hades. You're needed elsewhere."

"Wait," I said, stopping as I remembered something. "We have to go back."

She didn't stop, and my feet were forced to keep moving. "We can't stop," she replied crisply.

"Why not?" I demanded. "Ashe and Timothy are still trapped there."

"No, they're not." Even though the corridor was almost as dark as my cell, I could swear that her face had suddenly gotten harder.

"Sure they are," I said doggedly, as my blood ran cold. They couldn't be…

"They're dead," she said shortly. "Your friend Ashe is now a fire flower and Timothy hasn't been in his cell for a week at the least."

"Oh my gods," I whispered.

She didn't answer, but continued to push onward at a pace that seemed brutal to me in my weak state. At last we stopped. She looked up and whispered a single worded command in a language that definitely wasn't Greek. A second later, white light erupted from the ceiling. "Holy Zeus!" I shouted, covering my face with my hands to block out the light. The girl seized my wrist and the next thing I knew we were hurtling upwards. When I looked down, I no longer saw Gaia's own personal prison, just rolling hills of wheat stretching in every direction. I shouldn't have looked, for that was the very same instant that my savior released me. Wind rushed past me as I shot towards the ground at a speed that just about gave me motion sickness. I didn't accelerate any faster than that though. A full five seconds before I hit, my body slowed down and I was lowered gently to the earth. The girl stood beside me when I rose unsteadily to my feet.

"That was exciting," I said sarcastically, climbing carefully to my feet. "What's next on the agenda of near death experiences?"

She didn't answer, but turned away and looked up at the stars. Now that there was some light, I was able to take a good look at her. She had black hair with streaks of silver, dyed or natural, I wasn't sure. Being a demigod, you could never tell. It shimmered when she moved, catching and reflecting the light of the myriad stars in the night sky. Her skin was dusky, and her nails were painted dark blue with a minute pattern of white stars. She looked athletic, but not overly buff or anything. There was a subtle strength about her that I liked. When she turned towards me at the sound of my footsteps, I saw that her irises were framed in silver, almost eclipsing the midnight blue. For a second, I saw echoes of terrible sadness, but then it was wiped away as her mental defenses went up. She couldn't be any older than I was, fifteen, but she was world weary. She looked away and pulled out a wicked looking knife and handed it to me. There was a star pattern etched into the white hilt and the blade appeared to be made of some black metal of a kind that I had never seen before.

"Thanks," I said, slightly surprised. I had almost expected her to gut me.

She nodded. "If you need me again, you can summon me with that. And now, we have to get away from this place. They'll search here first."

"What?" I wasn't really thinking in that direction right now.

She pushed a lock of her hair out of her face and sighed. "You were captured by Gaia, yes?"

I nodded. "Yeah, they wanted information on Camp."

"You didn't give it to them?" she said sharply.

"Of course not," I cried, a touch more than mildly offended.

"Sorry," she muttered, "but that place is the Olympians best hope against Gaia."

"Uh huh, you got that right."

Her eyes bored into mine. "Then you know that you're going to be targeted by them."