They stood in the library-all except for Alexan who had gone up to her room and shut the door once they had gotten back.

"Well?"

All eyes turned to Nico and Walt.

"The war prisoner my dad had kept in Tartarus," he whispered. "That's who she is. I just never realized what had happened to her until now. I had always assumed that he had just stuck her in Tartarus and left her there."

"No." Walt shook his head. "From what I could gather, it was much worse."

"She kept mumbling something about a name."

He nodded. "Names are power. He-your father-took away her name and gave her his own. Whoever she used to be, he killed her and instead put Alexan in her place."

"And the reason why she gets moody every time you use that name?"

"It's more of a label. The more associated she becomes with the name, the further she is pulled away from who she once was." Walt sighed and shook his head.

"And then how does she fit into all of this?" Carter pressed. "You said something about a 'Lost Goddess'. How is she supposed to fit?"

"Maybe she's supposed to find some sort of statue?" Sadie guessed. "Anubis said that there were a bunch of things there before they started yelling at each other. What was that?"

Walt held up his hands. "I'd rather not get into it. Could barely understand it-and I'm host to the guy!"

"Nico?"

He shrugged. "Death may be universal-doesn't mean I'm fluent."

"From the sound of it, it sounded like Egyptian, but that was way too mixed up."

"She slips," Nico muttered. "In the worst ways possible." He looked at them. "When she's going insane that is. Happened when she was sick-kept saying things in Egyptian I think-no idea why though. Or why she has a feud with him-or at least something that sounded like a feud."

"I'd go with rivalry," Walt corrected. "He still cares for her."

"So I suppose we're traveling to wherever this Siege of Gaza took place?"

Nico shook his head. "I just hope we can keep her in check long enough."

They emerged from the portal and brushed off the sand.

"Ugh. How do you people manage?" Alexan muttered, brushing off the sand.

"Lots of laundry days," Carter joked. "Now come on: we have to find that temple."

"We're in a sea of tourists," Annabeth pointed out.

"Why?" Sadie looked at her. "There's nothing here!"

"According to history, this was one of Egypt's main points. Alexander the Great had to capture this city and the rest of Egypt was soon claimed."

"Great. Another reason to hate the guy." Alexan shook her head and glared at them. "Just because I share the name does not mean that I love him. Means that I hate him all the more for it."

"I see why he yelled now," Carter muttered. "So how do you suggest we get there?"

"Oh, I suggest less."

They turned to see a slender woman approach.

"Neith," Alexan muttered.

"Who?"

"That's me!"

She approached and they saw the many weavings she wore as accessories.

"Ah. Her." Sadie blinked. "You're not going to kill us, are you?"

"Of course not! World in peril and my bunker is fully stocked!"

Alexan crossed her arms and tried to remain confident, while avoiding eye contact with the woman.

"So I see Carter and Sadie Kane-though Horus and Isis are more preferable." She winked. "Let's see...Anubis...you've finally caught up with the rest of us! And who might you three be?"

"Nico and Annabeth." Carter indicated them. "And she's…."

"Mad," Alexan muttered.

"Well that's not very nice."

"Shouldn't you be out hunting some shriveled up thing?" she snapped.

"Ah, I should've known it was you." Neith narrowed her eyes.

"Look, Neith," Carter interrupted. "We're trying to find a temple. The temple of the Lost Goddess."

"Been buried for ages." Neith waved her hand.

"Can you at least show us to where it's buried?" Sadie pleaded.

"Perhaps." Neith pursed her lips. "If you win."

"Win?"

"I want a contest."

"What kind of contest?" Carter slowly asked.

"A shooting kind. Old fashioned. Bow and arrow."

"She's got this, right?" Nico nudged her and then backed off. "You guys should see her shoot!"

"Well, what do you say?" Neith held out a hand. "A wager? You win, I'll show you the temple. I win, your friends get to be my new hunting toys."

"Is she always like this?" Annabeth hissed.

"Goddess of hunting."

Alexan eyed the hand and grasped it. "Deal."

The scenery around them changed and they were standing in the middle of a large flat desert, a town in the distance. Alexan blinked, recognizing it as the valley where the war had been fought. She drew her sword and it shifted into a bow.

"You've got this!" Annabeth cheered.

She glanced at Walt who was giving her a look, wondering if she actually could do this. She sighed and gripped the bow, remembering how most of her fighting days had been with a sword instead of a bow.

"First target!" Neith called.

A target was suspended twenty feet away. Neith took up her stance and fired. She hit the target just to the left of the bullseye. Alexan took her stance and hit the target right in the center.

They repeated, going on, with the targets increasing in difficulty. Alexan managed to hold her own, keeping in par with Neith-much to the relief of the others.

They came to the final target. Neith smiled and pointed in the distance.

"A bull. Three arrows. Kill it, and you win."

She nodded and took her stance. There was a cloud of dust. Neith fired three arrows, each one only penetrating the skin, but never slowing it down. Alexan kept her arrow, waiting. There was something off about this bull. She fired and tip barely scratched the surface.

Neith smiled. "You're going to lose."

"Come on," Carter urged. "Come on, you can do it."

She picked out the fleshy part, still finding nothing. She held the last arrow, waiting.

"Come on," they urged. "Come on, this is your last one."

Neith launched into the air and killed the last creature with her swords. She was the champion. She had lost.

"A true huntress never relies on one weapon, child."

Alexan lowered her bow, the beast still charging.

"What are you doing?" Walt yelled. "Kill it already!"

The beast was almost there. She grabbed the arrow and bow, each in one hand. Her friends screamed as they ran for cover with Neith vanishing.

She faced the bull, arrow in hand. She could feel the arrow shift somehow, knowing that this would be the killing shot.

The bull dug its tusks toward the dirt and charged. She rolled underneath and shoved the arrow up into its underbelly,

"No!" Walt ran toward the beast and skidded to a halt, finding the creature laying on its side.

Nico ran up toward him with the others in tow.

Neith laughed. "I win! Time for you to become my new hunting toys!"

"I think not."

They turned to see her standing there, dusty and caked with dried blood-completely alive.

"You? How?" Neith gaped. "How?" Neith's eyes darted toward her tattoo. "I see." She sighed. "Very well. A deal's a deal."

They returned to the present-with her clothes being cleaned off thankfully-and Neith held out a charm shaped like a small jackal holding an arrow in its mouth.

"A servant of the Lost Goddess," she explained. "It will activate once you are away from this crowd and lead you to the correct destination."

Neith handed her the charm and vanished.