Leo Valdez

So, annoying the dangerous looking guy with the sword would be a bad idea, wouldn't it?

I do the natural thing and hold up my hands in defence, "I'm Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus." I figure he won't appreciate my other titles, not many people seem to, for some reason.

Calypso keeps her mouth shut and the boy zeros in on her, "And who are you?"

Calypso's bow appears in her hand just as I sneak out my dagger. Calypso notches an arrow and takes aim at the strange boy, "You first."

The boy scowls and holds up his sword, ready to swing in case an arrow comes towards him, "Son of Hades. You?"

"Demi-titan," Calypso replies smoothly. "I meant your name, boy."

The boy's scowl immediately deepens and his eyes turn distant, as if remembering something unpleasant from the past, "Don't call me that!"

Calypso raises an eyebrow before narrowing her eyes at him, "Your name and titles, now."

"Nico Di Angelo, Ghost King, son of Hades and ambassador of Pluto," the boy says, evidently seeing the odds of him winning in a fight against us.

Calypso doesn't relax her grip on her bow, "Are you loyal to Olympus?"

Nico tenses and I can tell he is readying himself for a fight, "Yes."

Nico immediately changes into a defensive stance, sword raised and at the ready. Nico looks at us in confusion when we don't attack.

I push Calypso's bow down, "It's cool, Cal. He's on our side, unless he was lying, which is a pretty high chance."

Calypso glares slightly at me but lowers her bow, "What are you doing in Tartarus?"

Nico narrows his eyes, "I believe it is time I get a few answers of my own."

I elbow Calypso and she sighs, "I'm Calypso, daughter of Atlas, sister of Zoé Nightshade."

Sister of Zoé Nightshade? Last I checked, you don't add your siblings to your titles. Maybe Calypso's just really proud of being related to her. Zoé seems like a nice person. She tried to crush my hand and actually did succeed in breaking a few bones, but all in all, very likeable.

If you didn't already know, Zoé Nightshade is Calypso's sixteen year old sister. Well, she was immortal, but I'm not sure if she still is. She looks sixteen at any rate.

Nico grips his sword tightly, "Zoé Nightshade? Hunter of Artemis?"

Calypso nods, "Yes."

"She's alive," Nico states. He's not asking it, nor trying to get confirmation. It's a fact that he somehow already knows.

"How did you know?" I ask.

Nico's scowl changes into a softer frown, "Because she saved my life."

Calypso's bow immediately disappears and she takes a step forward, "When?"

"We found each other in here, Tartarus. We teamed up to avoid monsters and scavenge from the statue for food. But I knew her before that, she was part of the group that took my sister away," Nico's expression changes into one of pain as he mentions his sister.

I should really start listening to Percy's stories when they are told at the campfire. Nico Di Angelo sounds familiar and Percy definitely mentioned a quest with the Hunters of Artemis.

"You were friends with Percy Jackson," I say, trying to remember the story. "He went on a quest with Zoé Nightshade and another girl. Bianca or something?"

Nico's sword tip is at my throat in an instant and I freeze up.

"Say her name again. I dare you," Nico says coldly.

Even I'm not that stupid.

I try to think of how long it will take for me to swipe at him with my dagger (which is quite short in comparison to his sword) and if by that time, I will already be dead.

Calypso has her bow out again and she takes aim at Nico's head, "Back away from him now."

I let out a breath as Nico removes his sword and backs out of range. I thank Calypso mentally for not letting me die.

"Are you against or with Olympus?" Nico asks with a tone of finality.

"With," Calypso answers. "With Olympus."

Nico glances around, "Then you're on my side. Come with me."

Without hesitation, Calypso moves to follow him.

"Calypso!" I whisper frantically. "If a stranger asks you to follow them into the woods, you don't do it!"

"Leo," Calypso sighs with a strange smile. "When do normal rules ever apply to people like us?"

We follow the stranger into the woods.

Nico Di Angelo leads us to the mountains I previously saw and takes us up several narrow and dangerous paths to the top. When we reach the top, my feet are aching and legs sore despite both Nico and Calypso showing no sign of fatigue.

"What is this place?" Calypso asks, looking around in amazement.

Nico has lead us into some sort of cave, concealed cleverly so that if you don't know there is a cave there, your eyes will just pass over nothing.

Nico slips through the narrow crack in the wall and Calypso glances at me before following him. I step into the cave and have to blink several times to adjust to the dark room. Then the first thing I see is the giant man sitting at the table.

My dagger is in my hand in seconds and I see Calypso do the same with her knives.

"Iapetus," Calypso snarls.

Nico steps between us and the Titan, "Yes, but he also is not. Percy wiped his memories in the river Lethe, and even when he regained his memories, he has been on our side. Call him Bob."

"If he is a good Titan, then why is he down here?" Calypso asks with less venom.

Nico winces, "I called him. By accident, of course. But he saved my life."

Calypso examines Iapetus for a second longer before striding up to him. Her knives disappear from her hands and she holds out her right hand. Iapetus envelopes her hand in his rather large one and shakes it firmly.

"Leo," Calypso calls over her shoulder.

I make my way over and shake Iapetus' hand nervously.

Calypso turns back to Nico, "You still need to tell us how you ended up down here."

Nico gestures for us to take a seat and we do. Nico sits down at the head of the table and sheathes his sword.

"I went looking for the Doors of Death. I was stupid, I was at the edge of Tartarus and got sucked in. I was alone for about a week until I found Zoé Nightshade. She had escaped the Giants and was doing her best to hide. We teamed up, took turns sneaking food from a statue to Hermes we found. Then we met Bob and he showed us this place. We survived for a month. Then one day, when Zoé was getting food, she didn't come back. I went looking for her and I heard a scream. I tried to find her, but it was like she'd disappeared. It's been two weeks since then."

Calypso has been nodding along to Nico's story and finally speaks, "Do you care about her?"

Nico scowls, "Of course. Bob and I both do."

Calypso gives a small smile, "She's alright. We rescued her right before we fell into Tartarus."

Iapetus lets out a sigh of relief and Nico echoes him, "Thank the gods."

Calypso has a strange look on her face, "Exactly, how old are you?"

Nico looks at her oddly, "Sixteen, why?"

Calypso scowls, "No reason."

Obviously. That's why she's glaring at him.

"Who are you?" Bob/Iapetus asks in a deep voice.

"I'm Calypso and this is Leo Valdez," Calypso nods towards me.

Iapetus' eyes widen slightly as he looks at Calypso more closely, "Zoé's sister?"

Calypso nods, smiling proudly at the mention of her sister.

"How did you end up in Tartarus?" Nico asks.

Calypso glances at me before starting to tell them about our quest. From the beginning.

Calypso finishes and leans back in her chair to gauge Iapetus and Nico's reactions. A smirk is on her face from the completely dumbstruck looks on their faces.

"Impressive," Iapetus says, nodding his head slowly. "Very impressive."

"You fell into Tartarus for him?" Nico says incredulously.

"I have a name," I mutter.

Calypso fixes Nico with a look, "Yes. I fell into Tartarus for him. Do you really think he would have made it this far without me?"

She's got a point.

"Thanks, by the way," I tell Calypso.

Calypso rolls her eyes at me, like, It didn't occur to you to say this before?!

"So what's the plan now?" I ask swiftly, trying to hide my embarrassment.

Nico exchanges a look with Iapetus, "I think it's time for another go at the statue."

Nico looks at us, "Do you want to come with me?"

Calypso gives me a look and I inwardly groan. We just climbed up a mountain, and now she wants to go back down it?!

"Sure," Calypso answers for the both of us.

Nico shoulders a backpack and I look around awkwardly, "Have you got another backpack?"

"No," Nico says. "Me and Zoé just shared the one."

I look away quickly, "Let's go."

Nico leads the way and I wave goodbye to an unresponsive Iapetus. Calypso follows me closely, the narrow paths down the mountain too tight to walk side by side.

Several trips and near-falls down the mountainside, I reach the bottom of the mountain. Nico starts leading us in the opposite direction we first came from and Calypso falls into line with me.

Calypso slips her hand into mine and I blush heavily. I chance a look at her but she stares steadfastly forward.

We march along like this for about ten minutes, going across the half mountain half plains area.

Nico pulls us behind a boulder and we peek over the top. Nico points across the plains to a small pit in the middle.

"That's where the statue is," he says in a hushed voice. "The only problem is, it's in the middle of a completely open area and there's a Titan base a couple hundred metres away. So you have to make sure you stick to the shadows."

I sort of raise my hand, "Um, what exactly is the statue?"

Nico sighs in annoyance, "It's a statue of Hermes that ended up in Tartarus somehow. Every night, food appears at it. We think it's from Camp Half-Blood. Some of Hermes cabin's sacrifices to Hermes."

I lower my hand, "Okay."

Nico glances over the boulder again, "Okay. Watch how I do it."

Nico slips away and runs lowly to another boulder. Nico heads for another cluster of large rocks but flings himself to the ground when something swoops down from the sky. The creature's shadow passes over him and he glances up before leaping to his feet and completing the final run to the statue.

When Nico comes back, his eyes are sparkling despite his emotionless face.

"It might be a bit hard. Just make sure you-" Nico starts.

Calypso is already ducking across the plain, sprinting lowly between rocks. She reaches the pit with no trouble and slides into it.

Nico looks very impressed, "She's as good as Zoé."

I glare a hole through the back of his head.

Calypso pops out of the hole and makes her way over to us, grinning breathlessly. I can tell she enjoyed the thrill of the raid.

"Do I go now?" I ask nervously.

"It's alright, Leo. I got the re-" Calypso is cut off by Nico.

"No, let him go," Nico says, sizing me up silently.

Calypso looks at him in confusion, "But I got al-"

"Let him go," Nico says forcefully.

Calypso looks at him strangely but backs down.

"Uh, do I need a backpack or something?" I ask, shifting uneasily beneath Nico's gaze.

"No, you'll manage," Nico says.

"Whatever you say," I mutter under my breath.

I take off towards a nearby cluster of rocks, crouching as I run. I hear a flapping noise above me and dive towards the rocks. I look up but nothing seems to be above me. I glance around before making a beeline for the statue.

I reach the statue and slide down into the small pit, towards the Hermes statue.

Oh my gods, Nico. Really?!

I quickly gather the food and climb carefully out of the pit and run directly to Nico and Calypso.

Of course that's when it all goes wrong.

I hear the same flapping noise again but this time when I look up something is swooping down at me. Three somethings.

I duck below the claws of one of the demons and fumble for my dagger. I send a burst of fire into the face of one demon and it immediately disintegrates with a loud wail.

I spin to the left to avoid a strike and drive my dagger into the chest of another demon. The third demon swoops at me and I step to the side and slice off one of it's wings. It comes crashing to the ground and I stomp viciously on it's throat.

I set off a at dead sprint to Calypso and Nico's boulder and collapse beside it. I slump against it as Calypso and Nico stand above me. My breath comes out in heavy pants.

Slowly, my breathing slows and I can talk.

I throw a chocolate bar at Nico, "There's your fricking food. Thanks for making me go all the way there just for a stupid chocolate bar!"

Nico smirks and helps me up, "I'm impressed, Valdez. I didn't think you'd make it."

"Jeez, thanks," I say, pushing him away.

Nico picks up the chocolate bar from the ground, "I never liked chocolate."

Nico throws it to Calypso, "You want it?"

Calypso drops it on the ground as I gape at her, "No. Never had chocolate before."

I stare uncomprehendingly at them both, "You nearly got me killed off for a single chocolate bar, and now you're not even going to eat it!"

"Good point," Nico says. "You want to put it back for us?"

I glare at him, muttering profanities under my breath.

I step deliberately on the chocolate bar before turning to Nico, "Let's go back."

-SAW