So I say this with some degree of certainty that this really is the beginning of the end, this time. And as always, dear readers, enjoy.

Both Ares and Artemis looked quizzically at their brother.

"What do you mean?"

"Her soul is trapped. I can't reach it."

"So now the popular belief is that she's innocent? Weren't we just trying to prove that she was guilty? What exactly did I miss where we decided she wasn't?"

"Technically, she's not proven innocent yet," Artemis said carefully, watching Hermes. "We're just attempting to determine precisely what role she is playing, and precisely what she has a role in."

Ares frowned. "So basically, we don't know what's going on, and we don't know why the mortal is here-slash-unconscious."

Artemis exhaled sharply. "Basically."

"Hm." Ares conjured a chair and plopped down in it, resting his chin on his hand. "So why exactly am I here to babysit you guys?"

"You don't really know much of anything, do you?" Hermes asked, not looking away from the girl on the bed. Ares looked peeved.

"Well then. I'm just trying to understand everything, considering I'm kind of being thrown into it all. Sheesh."

"I realize that, but you could at least have some tact and shut up instead of going on and on about how you don't actually know anything about what's going on. Go fight a war or something, you'd feel more at home doing that."

Ares growled. "Little brother, I know that you think you have an excuse to talk like this because your precious little mortal—who, by the way, for all your 'loyalty,' you've switched sides on twice in the past four hours—is unconscious and you don't know why, but you're also the god of cleverness. You should know when you'd be better off shutting your mouth."

"You sure don't," Hermes retorted.

Artemis looked between the two boys in irritation. "Hermes, aren't you supposed to be the mediator? Calm down." To Ares, she said, "You calm as well. For your information, Zeus does not trust us to properly detain her if she happens to wake up and it turns out that she does in fact work for Hades in the capacity that Zeus believes her to."

"Ahhh." Ares' face lit up in understanding, already forgetting about the squabble. "So I'm the one who's supposed to detain her."

Artemis nodded.

He glanced at the unconscious girl. "Well, I'm not going to have much to do until she wakes up, huh?"

Artemis shot him an exasperated look and went to Hermes' side. He was kneeling at the side of the bed, watching the girl's soft breaths.

"What if she doesn't wake up?" Hermes' voice was soft, barely loud enough for Artemis to hear. She knelt next to him.

"We will figure this out, Hermes."

"Mm." He didn't take his eyes off the girl.

Ares sighed loudly. Artemis looked at him from across the room, where she was sorting the objects on Hermes' night table. She set down the framed picture of Lucy carefully and picked up a handful of pens.

"What?"

"How long is this going to take?" Ares groaned. "We've been in here for three hours and absolutely nothing has happened. You've rearranged pretty much everything in this room, Hermes is just sitting there making moony eyes at the maybe-traitor, and the mortal I'm supposed to be watching is just lying there!"

Hermes didn't even turn around. "If you're unsatisfied, you may leave."

"No, you may not," boomed a familiar voice. Zeus strode into Hermes' bedroom, followed by Hera, Hades, Athena, and Apollo.

Hermes looked up at his father's entrance, making no attempt to hide the annoyed expression on his face. "What do you want now?"

"We are here to discuss the mortal's fate."

Hermes rose. "You have no right to—"

Hades waved his hands. "Calm down, Lancelot, you have a say too. That's why we're here and not in a secret dark cavern illuminated solely by candlelight. Although you have to admit, that would have intensified the dramatic ambiance."

Artemis patted Hermes' shoulder and he perched on the edge of the bed, carefully avoiding the girl. The Huntress looked at the others.

"So what exactly are your views on her now? Take everything into account, if you would be so kind."

When called out, they could all feel the strange atmosphere, the disconcerting absence of the girl's spirit.

"What's happened to her?" Hera's voice was quietly horrified, just now realizing what Hermes had meant earlier. Apollo was frowning, seeming at war within himself. Athena's brain was whirling, and it showed clearly on her face. Zeus' suspicious scowl was directed at the unconscious girl. Even Hades looked unnerved.

"We don't know," Hermes said tightly.

"Well, we can't just sit here and expect it to get better." Athena's tone was a combination of reasonable and placating. "She's been unconscious for at least three hours, and no one knows exactly how long before that. Whatever's happening, we clearly cannot assume it will rectify itself on its own."

"But what else can we do? We don't know what has happened to her," Artemis reluctantly admitted, "and therefore cannot plan a course of action." She glanced at the girl on the bed.

"And what happens if she does wake up? What then?" Apollo finally spoke up. The other looked at him curiously. "I mean, do we automatically put her under custody—Sh!" He shushed Hermes' quick protest. "Or do we ask her what happened? She told us willingly about 'Hades' plan,' but what would keep her from lying now? If she was actually guilty."

"I think, should she wake, we should question her before deciding on a course of action. After all, Hades is right here, and so are all of us. She is still a mortal, and without her master, she cannot accomplish much against us." Hera's voice was smooth and calming, like a mother soothing her anxious child.

"And on whose opinion are we going to charge her?" Hermes looked at them all. "Who will be able to make the most impartial judgment?"

"Well, not you," Apollo scoffed.

"Nor you, brother," Artemis added quietly. Her twin frowned.

"Hera," Athena said simply. "She would be best."

"She is partial toward the girl," Zeus grumbled.

"I only seemed partial to the girl because you were so against her," the queen reminded her husband gently.

"Fine then," Zeus said crossly. "Hera will decide."

"Well, we still can't do anything until she actually wakes up," Ares sighed. "And she's been asleep forever."

The room goes silent.

"Go into her mind, Hermes," Athena offers quietly.

"I've tried already," he sighed. "It doesn't work."

"How so?"

"I can't find her spirit. There's something blocking it."

"So you know it's there? You just can't get to it?"

"I'm pretty sure it's there. I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure."

"So try again. You just need the right motivation."

He frowned at her suggestion, but shrugged in consent and stood. All eyes were on him as he knelt by the side of the bed. He took her hands again gently and closed his eyes to concentrate.

He searched with his mind, looking around the room. There were the lights that represented his family, which he ignored. Then there was that mysterious absence of light in the girl in front of him. He tentatively sent out a tendril and soon knocked against that familiar obstacle. Again, he could sense something on the other side of that wall, and he suspected that his theory, that the something was Lucy's spirit, was right. Remembering Athena's cryptic words, he pushed again, harder. He got the sense that he was nearly there. Nearly wasn't good enough. He pulled back, thinking. He ran through his memories, the ones from the past year. Meeting Lucy. Almost losing her. Telling her about himself. Discovering so much about her and having her discover so much about him. Whether that was really her or some sort of act, he didn't know, but right now, at this moment, it didn't matter. Then, one more memory flashed unbidden into his mind. Kissing her. He summoned all his strength and pushed against the wall, harder than anything. He had to get past it, had to get to Lucy, whether she was real or not, he had to.

The wall disintegrated like it was nothing and he tumbled through the air. He landed somewhere hard and everything around him changed. His bedroom was gone; a completely new scene greeted him. He seemed to be in a cave, dark and flickering with flame. The first thing he saw, the thing he focused on was Lucy. He started to smile, successful at last, but something caught his eye and the elated expression turned into alarm. To his horror, she was chained to a wall, a gag wrapped across her mouth. Her face was marked, her clothes torn and bloodied. His heart started to beat wildly. Her head had been hanging in beaten-down submission, but when he appeared she lifted it to stare at him in terror. Her eyes widened and she shook her head frantically. He took a step toward her—Lucy, it was Lucy. He had to protect her.

And then everything went black.

Oh my, whatever do we have here? Probably the worst cliff-hanger yet. What on earth has Hermes gotten himself into?