Pardon my French, but holy freaking shit. I never expected Love and War to get this popular. Granted that compared to other fanfictions, it's nothing, but considering this if my very first fanfiction and I expected to get about a single follower, I'm pretty fucking pumped. As of now, Love and War has 57 followers, 38 favorites, and 33 reviews. That means the world to me guys. Thank you so much.

Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate you all putting my story to the level where it is. Here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do. It's my favorite so far.

Percy POV

When I woke up the next morning, I wasn't sure where I was. I was lying in a large white bed, satiny sheets hanging over my hips. The rising sun streamed in through the full length windows that spanned the outer wall of the room. The ceiling was speckled with diamonds and the white walls were painted with images of thunderous mountains.

I was already on the verge of a panic attack, but when I realized that there was a strong arm draped around my waist, pulling my flat against the body behind me, I nearly screamed. I started struggling against the unknown assailant, twisting my arms and legs to try and squirm away.

"Nnnnnnn… Sit still" grumbled the man behind me, and with a start I realized that it was none other than Jason holding me so tight. Then I remembered everything. The attack on the Underworld. Nico's severe injury and near death. Me willingly leaving with Jason so that Nico could live. And worst of all, I remember Olympus. The breathtakingly beautiful city which made Atlantis look like a pile of shit.

Impenetrable iron walls. Towering buildings made entirely of gems. Roads made of solid gold. And oh the palace. Made of silver and moonstone, standing taller than any structure I'd ever seen. It made me sick at my stomach to think that I actually found this city beautiful. Yet that's what it was. Beautiful.

Suddenly Jason rolled his spare arm underneath of me, bringing me back to the present as he pulled my body flush against his bare chest. When I felt a… disturbance in his southern regions, my blood turned cold. Jason and I had made an agreement last night.

Olympus didn't have the same traditions as the Underworld, so sex before marriage was no problem. But we were going to get married. That much was inevitable. But he agreed not to force me into sex until either the wedding night, or until I was ready. Given that the wedding would most likely take place in a month or two, it wasn't much of a comfort, but it was better than him raping me on the first night.

How sick is it that I get to be thankful that my soon to be husband isn't raping me right now? I let out a disturbed laugh as the thought crossed my mind. The laugh quickly turned into quiet sobbing, but Jason didn't notice. He was still asleep.

The sun continued to creep higher in the sky and eventually Jason began to stir behind me. As he yawned loudly, his grip on me tightened and he ground his morning erection against the crease of my ass. I let out a loud squeak.

"You—you said you'd give me time Jason" I mumbled nervously. Jason grumbled unhappily, but he stopped his grinding.

"I know. You're just so sinfully tempting" he moaned with a kiss on the back of my head. Bile rose up in the back of my throat, but I swallowed it down. Thankfully he pulled the lower half of his body away from me and I no longer felt the sickening touch of his morning wood. Sadly though, he still held his arms tightly around me, his head buried in my neck as he purred contently.

"How do you smell so good all the time? You smelt amazing during our fight. You smelt amazing on the ride here. You even smell fucking amazing after we just woke up. Like the ocean on a bright summer day." I shivered as he inhaled deeply, but not out of pleasure.

"Please get off me" I stated as nicely as I could, which considering I was an inferno of fury inside my head, wasn't very pleasant. Jason lifted his head and I could tell he was looking at me in anger. I ignored him and continued staring out the glass wall into the open sky. The sun was about even with the height of our room now and I couldn't look there for very long because of its blinding light.

Lucky for me, Jason decided to pick his battles and he released me from his grasp, rolling out of the bed behind me and mumbling about me being an ungrateful wife. I laughed inwardly at that; as if I had anything from Jason to be grateful for.

After a few moments of shuffling around behind me, Jason sat back down on the bed and gripped my shoulders, pulling my roughly around to face him. He had already dressed for the day, wearing a light blue toga with his ivory crown placed delicately atop his head.

"I've got to go and give my father a report on the attack. He'll be wanting an explanation as to why the Underworld isn't a pile of rubble. I guess he has you to thank for that. Anyway, I'll be busy for most of the day so you can do whatever you want. You have free range to roam any wing of the palace that you desire, but you cannot leave the grounds. The guards will restrain you if they see you trying to escape. Goodbye love" he whispered, leaning down to place a kiss on my lips. I flinched just in time for him to miss my mouth and plant his lips on my cheek.

He grumbled in annoyance but left without another word. After he left, I decided I'd just lay in bed for a while, watching the light from the sun bounce rays of color off the sparkling diamonds on the ceiling. To anyone else it would look like I had gone catatonic, but I was just thinking. About what my life would be like. About what my life would no longer be like. But most importantly, I thought about Nico.

Nico POV

After regaining consciousness (again), the first thing my recovering mind could register was the pain. I wasn't sure where I was or how I'd gotten there, but I was unnaturally aware of how much my body was screaming in agony. Every inch of skin felt like it was on fire, a sensation of burning so strong that I was near certain I'd died and gone to hell.

I tried to think, to work through the pain and rationalize that I was okay, but I couldn't. My mind only focused on one aspect; hurt. Eventually I managed to make my eyes open and I could finally tell where I was. Through blurry eyes, I recognized that I was laying down in my bedroom, black sheets covering my naked form.

A surge of pain rocked through my shoulder and I forced myself to focus on the details of my room. Obsidian walls, the same color of my sword. I felt like my body was ripping into a million pieces. No windows, to keep out the sun I hated. My shoulder exploded in agony. A single candle illuminating everything. Why does a shoulder wound hurt so much? Hazel sitting asleep in the chair beside me. A moan of anguish fell past my lips as a wave of discomfort flowed over my entire body.

Apparently Hazel heard my outburst as her eyes flew open. She stared down at me in shock and let out a tiny squeal of surprise.

"Oh Nico! Thank the gods you're alive! Let me go get Persephone. She'll help with the pain" she screeched, jumping up from her chair and racing out of the room. I sighed with relief at the idea of, well, relief. After a few moments, Hazel reentered the room, followed by the queen herself dressed in her bright pink nightgown.

"Please help him" whispered Hazel. Persephone simply shushed her before taking my sister's previous chair and scooting as close to me as she could. The queen placed her left palm on my forehead and her right on my wounded shoulder. I let out a scream as she began putting pressure on my wound, but when she began chanting in that magical tongue of hers, the pain seemed to stop.

I no longer felt the sensation of agony, merely a dull, almost numb feeling. She continued working her Royal Powers for a good ten minutes before she pulled away, looking sadly into my eyes.

"Rest now child. The poison from the blade is gone now. They have many questions about Jason and Percy. Rest" she ordered. My heart imploded with thrice the amount of pain I felt before as I realized I had forgotten about my Percy. So caught up in my own torment that I completely ignored his. My last thought before the darkness took me was of how much he must hate me right now.

The next time I woke up, I wasn't sure how much time had passed. I was still in my room, and nothing had changed except instead of a single chair by my bed, there now were three, each filled with a body. Hades, Frank, and Thantos sat casually around me, staring down at me questioningly.

"You're awake" stated my father. His cold gaze scanned my body, a silent 'are you okay' being asked with his eyes. I stifled a groan as I sat up in the bed.

"I'm fine. What day is it?" I asked. Frank glanced nervously between the others before informing me that I had been asleep for two days. I closed my eyes as I felt my body go numb. Percy was undoubtedly already on Olympus. May the gods forgive me…

"—iccolò? Niccolò! Are you with me son?" asked Hades. I opened my eyes and stared at him blankly.

"What?" I asked. Thantos cleared his throat, not so subtly demanding my attention.

"We need you to tell us what happened. It seems that you may be the only person who has the answers we need. Your unconscious body was dropped off in the middle of the courtyard moments before Jason ordered a retreat. Also, Percy's been missing for the past two days. We've scouted every inch of the city and we can't find him. I sincerely doubt these events are unrelated."

My father's gaze left mine and he looked down at his feet sadly. I knew he was thinking about my mother. If anyone could understand the pain I felt right now, the pain of losing the person you love most near and dear, it was Hades. Frank gave my arm a gentle squeeze, silently encouraging me to tell them what happened. I sighed loudly.

"After I made it to the town square, I ran into Jason…" and so I told them the whole story. The duel between me and the Olympian. The sword to the shoulder. Percy saving me. My Sea Prince fighting heroically in defense of me. By the time I got to the part where Percy left with Jason, I was exhausted and in near tears. Not from sadness, but blind rage. Jason had taken Percy from me. MY Percy. That wasn't going to end well for him. I had a plan.

Percy POV

The sparkling of the diamonds was truly mesmerizing. The light would hit them in just the right way, causing dozens of little flecks of color to shoot out across the room. I don't know how long I stared at them, but by the time I heard a knock on the door, the sun was already high up in the sky.

I mumbled for whoever it was to come in, turning my attention to the door. After a short moment, a pretty, dark skinned girl with brown hair entered. In the shadow of the door, she appeared darker than she truly was, and for just a split second, I mistook her for Hazel. Then the girl stepped into the light and I realized it was someone else.

She was about my height and age, with gorgeous curled locks that would make any woman jealous. She wore no makeup, but her face held a sort of natural beauty that cosmetics would have ruined. The only offsetting thing about the girl was that she wore rags. Scraps of clothing that looked like they had been beaten and tossed through the belly of a drakon a dozen times.

"Good morning Master Jackson. My name is Piper McLean, Jason's personal slave—er, I mean servant. It's a pleasure to meet you" she mumbled. She looked absolutely horrified and she trembled as if she feared she would be beaten. Then it occurred to me that she probably had been beaten. Olympians were not known for their kindness toward the help.

"Please, just call me Percy. None of that 'master' business with me. And you don't need to be afraid around me. I'm not exactly happy to be here either" I laughed. She smiled at me and stopped shaking.

"So it's true then? Jason kidnapped you? There were rumors amongst all the servants, but nobody was sure" she whispered, looking towards the door as if she was afraid someone would barge in at any moment.

"He didn't really kidnap me. I voluntarily came with him to protect Ni—" I couldn't even get his name out. Her smile faded and turned into a frown. She opened her mouth to say something but quickly shut it, instead turning around and tiding up the room.

"You probably noticed my skin color is different than most Olympians" she stated, picking up shirts and pants from the floor and folding them neatly.

"It hadn't really crossed my mind. Differences in skin are very common in Atlantis. Some merpeople are red or green or blue" I answered. She quirked an eyebrow at me but continued on nonetheless.

"Anyway, most Olympians are a tan/white color. My skin goes darker than that. It's because like you, I'm not from here." Then it was my turn to raise my eyebrow. They always taught us in school that change in residency between kingdoms was impossible during the war, except in my case apparently. I'm the only person to ever have lived in all three kingdoms.

"Where are you from then?" I asked. She finished folding the clothes and turned her attention to the large wall of glass, pulling a rag from her belt and cleaning it diligently.

"I'm an Indian. My people were nomads. They roamed the land between the nations. Lived peaceful lives. When I was about seven, my tribe was camped at a small boulder a few miles south of Olympus. Zeus' armies spotted the smoke from our fire and attacked us, fearing we were spies for the enemy. His men slaughtered every man, woman, and child. Except me." Tears were glistening in the corner of her eyes by the time she finished, but she continued working, ignoring her own emotions to do her job.

"Why did they let you live?"

"Because I told them to. Your kingdoms have, what are they called, Royal Powers? The tribes of my ancestors had something similar. The chieftains and their sons and daughters held magical abilities. Gifts from the spirits. My father was the chief of our tribe, and thus I inherited a gift. Charmspeaking, they called it. I put meaning behind my words and I can make others do my bidding. I begged the men to spare me that night, and they did. They took me back to Zeus and told him what happened. He found my gift interesting, so he kept me around as a servant for his son, but I was forbidden to ever use charmspeak again."

Piper let out a long sigh and let her hand fall from the glass. Hey eyes twinkled as she stared out the window and down into the clouds, as if she was remembering better times. After a moment she shook her head to clear her thoughts and turned towards me with a sad smile.

"I was so young then though. I barely remember life outside of Olympus. It isn't too bad here, you know. Just do as you're told and everything will be okay. Sure I'm still bitter about Zeus kidnapping me, but life could always be worse" she exhaled.

I let my gaze fall to the foot of the bed as I thought about what she had said. What if that had been me? What if I had spent my entire life as a slave to an ungrateful master, having watched my entire family die before my eyes? I made a solemn vow in that moment that if I were ever to escape from this place, I would take Piper with me.

A pair of clothes were gingerly placed beside my feet and I raised my gaze to find Piper still smiling at me. She bowed formally before turning and departing towards the door. As she opened it and stepped out, she paused and turned towards me.

"Don't let them break your spirt Percy. It's all you have."

Jason POV

Life had a way of working out for me. It always had, and if I was a betting man, I would say that it always would. When I was a toddler, I wanted a pony. My father bought me Tempest, an immortal venti who remains loyal to me to this day. When I was about ten, I decided I was ready for my own servant. My father gave me Piper. When I was a teenager, I wanted my own wing of the palace. Father rearranged half of the staff and storage rooms to give me just that. Then I met Percy, and decided he would be my next conquest. Sure enough, he became mine.

Waking up to the sight of that green eyed vixen was the most magnificent thing I could imagine. Something as beautiful as him had to be created with a specific purpose, and that purpose was to be mine. Sadly I didn't get a quick fuck this morning, but I'm sure Percy will lighten up in a few days. There's no way he can resist me for long.

And I did promise him I wouldn't force myself on him. As tempting as he could be, a deal was a deal. I would wait until the wedding night if I had to, but he would be mine. Thinking about how erotic my first time with the Sea Prince would be made me so excited that by the time I reached the throne room, I was practically skipping.

My father was sitting in his marble throne, a smoothly carved block of stone engraved with the most intricate designs of the Olympian mountain. Atop his head rested the item I wanted most in this world (next to Percy of course). The royal crown. Made of solid sapphire, it is the oldest relic our people hold in their possession. Legend says it was made by the Creator, forged in the fires of hell and cooled in the ice of the sky. It has been passed down from king to king since the dawn of our great city, and I wanted it desperately.

I was so distracted by the crown that I hadn't even noticed my father was in council. Standing a few feet in front of him was the head of our Royal Guard, Reyna. By the way her hands were flying in every direction, she was obviously upset about something.

"—and you've sentenced Olympus to death!" she screamed. I continued to approach the throne, apparently unnoticed.

"You forget who you speak to, Reyna. Watch your tone" warned Zeus. His attention finally turned towards me and he tensed slightly. That wasn't a good sign. He looked back toward Reyna shortly.

"We'll discuss this later. Leave us" he ordered. Her face burned bright red in frustration but she stomped off regardless. My father tilted his head towards me, signaling for me to approach the front of the throne. Shit. That's what I always called "the hot seat". Whenever I was in trouble, he'd make me stand in front of him. When I was in his good graces, I got to sit in the smaller throne at his right hand side.

"Would you care to explain why my spies have informed me that the Underworld still stands? Albeit in ruins, but still standing nonetheless?" he barked, the entire room shaking with the authority in his voice. I cowered down on one knee, a show of submission that would appeal to his need for superiority.

"It is for good reason, father. Percy agreed to return home with me on the conditions that I spared both his former lover and the Underworld." Zeus sighed heavily and rubbed the space between his eyebrows in frustration.

"I allowed you to lead this attack and claim your Atlantian prize because in return, I would gain two things. The destruction of my second largest foe, and the elimination of a potentially deadly alliance between Hades and Poseidon. You failed me in both aspects. And for what? A boy."

"Father please. You know well and good that I've never given a damn about this pointless war. I invaded for one reason; to claim Percy, and I accomplished my goal" I countered. Zeus slammed his fist down on the armrest of the throne, thunder roaring overhead and lightening flashing.

"Watch your tone! You may be nearing the age of kinghood but I am still the leader of this nation and you will treat me as such! Nevertheless, what has passed has passed. The Underworld still stands and the Atlantian is in my domain. Nothing can be done about it now. Tell me son, what are your plans for him? Torture, murder, public humiliation?"

I rose up from my knee before brushing the dirt off my pants. I approached the throne for a few steps before answering.

"Marriage of course. He will be my queen" I smiled. My father groaned loudly, rolling his eyes in irritation.

"I'd hoped you'd have better taste. Alas, who you marry is your decision. I'll have your sister Thalia head into town and find Selina Beauregard. She's the best wedding planner in the city. We'll spare no expense. Now leave me, and fetch Reyna on your way out. She and I have business to discuss."

I smiled wide and thanked him heavily before turning and racing out the door. That's right. Jason Grace always gets what he wants.

I really like this chapter. Things are finally starting to get good in my opinion. I hope you all agree. Anyway, please review, favorite, and follow the story. Love from you guys is what keeps me going! See you soon!