I do not own Harry Potter or Percy Jackson.

Chapter Twenty-Three: Mount Othrys

It only took them ten minutes to find Chrysa's Mercedes-Benz SUV in the parking lot of Embarcadero Station. Chrysa unlocked the vehicle with magic and opened the glovebox in order to start the car properly. Zoë took the passenger seat while Thalia and Percy were relegated to the back. It only took two minutes for Zoë to become frustrated enough with the GPS that she passed it back for Percy to set up.

"We must arrive at sunset," Zoë said anxiously. Percy was plugging things into the GPS while Chrysa navigated the San Francisco streets on the way to the Golden Gate Bridge.

"I don't get it," Percy said. "Why do we have to get there at sunset?"

"The Hesperides are the nymphs of the sunset," Zoë said. "We can only enter their garden as day changes to night."

"What happens if we miss it?"

"Tomorrow is the winter solstice. If we miss sunset tonight, we would have to wait until tomorrow evening. And by then, the Olympian Council will be over. We must free Lady Artemis tonight," Zoë said firmly.

By the time Percy managed to get the GPS set up, they were stuck in afternoon traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge.

"Can't this thing go any faster?" Thalia asked.

"I cannot control traffic," Chrysa said irritably.

"You both sound like my mother," Percy commented.

"Shut up!" Thalia shot back.

Chrysa wove in and out of traffic on the bridge with her usual flair of treating traffic laws as suggestions. Unfortunately, a four-car pileup greatly impacted their travel time. The sun was sinking on the horizon when they finally got into Marin County and exited the highway.

The roads were insanely narrow, winding through forests and up the sides of hills and around the edges of steep ravines. Chrysa didn't slow down at all. In fact, with the lack of people nearby, she activated the car's built-in Notice-Me-Not charm and sped up.

"Why does everything smell like cough drops?" Percy asked.

"Eucalyptus," Zoë said, pointing to the huge trees all around them.

"The stuff koala bears eat?" Percy asked.

"And monsters," she said. "They love chewing the leaves. Especially dragons."

"Dragons chew eucalyptus leaves?"

"Believe me," Zoë said, "if you had dragon breath, you would chew eucalyptus too."

Mount Tamalpais loomed before them. In terms of mountains, it was a relatively small one, less than a quarter of Mount Othrys' original height, before Zeus had destroyed the peak with his thunderbolts.

"So that's the Mountain of Despair?" Percy asked.

Yes," Zoë said tightly.

"Why do they call it that?"

She was silent for almost a mile before answering.

"After the war between the Titans and the gods, many of the Titans were punished and imprisoned. Kronos' right-hand man, the general of his armies, was imprisoned up there, on the summit, just beyond the Garden of the Hesperides."

"The General," Percy said. "What's going on up there? A storm?"

Zoë ignored the question. Clouds seemed to swirl around the peak, as though the mountain was drawing them in, spinning them like a top. Seeing the place where the sky kissed the earth…it was breathtaking, if you ignored the danger aspect of it.

"We have to concentrate," Thalia said. "The Mist is really strong here."

"The magical kind or the natural kind?" Percy asked.

"Both," Chrysa replied grimly.

The grey clouds swirled even thicker over the mountain, and they kept driving straight toward them. They were out of the forest now into wide open spaces of cliffs and grass and rocks and fog.

"Look!" Percy cried as they passed a scenic curve. They turned the corner, the ocean disappearing behind the hills.

"What?" Thalia asked.

"A big white ship," Percy said. "Docked near the beach. It looked like a cruise ship."

"Luke's ship?" Thalia asked. Chrysa glanced up at her rearview mirror and saw her eyes widen.

"Tyson told me that the Princess Andromeda was down at the Panama Canal," Percy said grimly. "That's the only way to sail it from the East Coast to California."

"We will have company then," Zoë said grimly. "Kronos' army."

Suddenly, the hairs on the back of Chrysa's neck stood up. Thalia shouted, "Stop the car! NOW!"

Chrysa slammed on the brakes without question. The red Mercedes spun twice before coming to a stop at the edge of the cliff.

"Out!" Thalia said, opening her door and pushing Percy out. Zoë and Chrysa evacuated through their own doors. Chrysa shadowed over to Zoë and deployed her Olympian silver shield just in time to hear a loud BOOOM!

Lightning flashed, and her SUV erupted like a Gryffindor-colored grenade. Her shield was the only thing that protected her, along with Zoë as she held it over their heads. On the other side of the car, Chrysa could see Thalia doing the same with Percy. The shrapnel pounded on their shields like metal rain. When it was over, they were surrounded by wreckage. Part of the VW's fender had impaled itself in the street. The smoking hood was spinning in circles. Pieces of scarlet metal were strewn across the road.

Distantly, she heard Percy tell Thalia, "You saved my life."

"One shall fall by a father's hand," Thalia said. "Curse him. He would destroy me. Me?"

"No, Thalia," Chrysa said as she closed her shield. She vaguely noticed Zoë darting off to the left, probably to check how close they were to the garden. "You may be better at sensing lightning than I am, but I am better at sensing signatures. This was not our father. And trust me, having been blown up by him previously, I know what his power feels like."

"Whose, then?" Thalia demanded.

"Zoë said Kronos' name," Percy offered. "Maybe he–"

Thalia shook her head, looking angry and stunned.

"No. That wasn't it," she said.

"Wait," Percy said. "Where's Zoë?"

They both got up and ran around the blasted SUV. Percy even looked down the cliff.

"Zoë!" he shouted.

Then she was standing right next to him, pulling at his arm.

"Silence, fool! Do you want to wake Ladon!"

"You mean we're close?" Percy asked.

"Very close," she replied. "Follow me."

Sheets of fog were drifting right across the road. Zoë stepped into one of them, and when the fog passed, she was no longer there. Thalia and Percy both looked to Chrysa.

"Concentrate on Zoë," Chrysa advised. "We are following her. Go straight into the fog and keep that in mind."

She stepped into the fog immediately, just as she heard Percy say, "Wait, Thalia."

When the fog cleared, she was still on the side of the mountain, but the road was dirt. The grass was thicker. The sunset made a blood-red slash across the sea. The summit of the mountain seemed closer now, swirling with storm clouds and raw power. There was only one path to the top, directly in front of them. It led through a lush meadow of shadows and flowers: the garden of twilight, just the same now as it had been thousands of years before.

The grass shimmered with silvery evening light, and the flowers were such beautiful colors that they almost glowed in the dark. Stepping stones of polished black marble led around either side of the five-story-tall apple tree, every bough glittering with golden apples. The only mar to the picture was the giant dragon encircling the tree. Its body was as thick as a booster rocket, glinting with coppery scales. He had more heads than could easily be counted, as if a hundred deadly pythons had been fused together. He appeared to be asleep, as the heads lay curled in a big spaghetti-like mounds on the grass, all of his eyes closed.

Thalia and Percy stepped out beside her.

"The apples of immortality," Thalia said. "Hera's wedding gift from Zeus."

Then the shadows in front began to move. Chrysa could sense the four approaching figures, and it was only the advent of their beautiful, eerie singing that allowed her to identify them and prevented her from drawing her knife. Percy reached for Riptide, but Zoë stopped his hand.

Four figures shimmered into existence, four young women who looked very much like Zoë. They all wore white Greek chitons. Their skin was like caramel. Silky black hair tumbled loose around their shoulders. They looked just like Zoë – beautiful and dangerous.

"Sisters," Zoë greeted coolly.

"We do not see any sister," one of the girls – Chrysa thought it was Aigle – said coldly. "We see three half-bloods and a Hunter. All of whom shall soon die."

"You've got it wrong," Percy said, stepping forward. "Nobody is going to die."

The girls studied him curiously with their eyes, as black as volcanic glass.

"Perseus Jackson," another girl – Arethusa? – stated.

"Yes," mused another – possibly Hesperie. "I do not see why he is a threat."

"Who said I was a threat?" Percy asked.

Aigle glanced behind her, toward the top of the mountain. "They fear thee. They are unhappy that this one has not yet killed thee."

She pointed to Thalia.

"Tempting sometimes," Thalia admitted. "But no thanks. He's my friend."

"There are no friends here, daughter of Zeus," Aigle said. "Only enemies. Go back."

"Not without Annabeth," Thalia said.

"And Artemis," Zoë said. "We must approach the mountain."

"You know he will kill thee," Aigle said. Chrysa could detect a slight hint of concern in her voice. Even three thousand years after disowning her youngest sister, she still did not want to see her dead. "You are no match for him."

"Artemis must be freed," Zoë said. "Let us pass."

Aigle shook her head.

"You have no rights here anymore. We have only to raise our voices and Ladon will wake."

"He will not hurt me," Zoë said.

"No?" Aigle asked. "And what about thy so-called friends?"

The Zoë did the last thing Chrysa expected. She shouted, "Ladon! Wake!"

The dragon stirred, glittering like a mountain of pennies. The Hesperides yelped and scattered. Aigle asked Zoë, "Are you mad?"

"You never had any courage, sister," Zoë said. "That is thy problem."

The dragon Ladon was writhing now, a hundred heads whipping around, tongues flickering and tasting the air. Zoë took a step forward, her arms raised.

"Zoë, don't," Thalia said. "You're not a Hesperid anymore. He'll kill you."

"Ladon is trained to protect the tree," Zoë said. "Skirt around the edges of the garden. Go up the mountain. As long as I am the bigger threat, he should ignore thee."

"Should," Percy said. "Not exactly reassuring."

"It is the only way," Zoë said. "Even the four of us together cannot fight him. Unless…" she looked over at Chrysa, who shook her head.

"Ladon is too sensitive to shadow magic. Anywhere else I could easily take us past him, but here…I can't leave from here. He would be on us in an instant."

Zoë nodded, though she seemed resigned. Chrysa knew why. The Hunter had resigned herself to death since she learned of Atlas' freedom.

"Go," she repeated.

"Do as she says," Chrysa said. "Thalia and Percy, go left. I will go to the right. Try to keep slightly more to my side, Zoë."

Just then, Ladon opened his mouths, and the sound of a hundred heads hissing at once echoed through the garden. It sounded almost like Parseltongue, but this was not the time to attempt to speak to dangerous magical creatures. If she was on her own, she might – she'd done so after encountering a Chinese Fireball while accompanying Luna on one of her magizoology expeditions to the Far East.

Thalia and Percy did as she said, going left while Chrysa went right. Zoë walked straight toward the monster, though she was slightly more on Chrysa's side than the younger demigods'.

"It's me, my little dragon," Zoë said. "Zoë has come back."

Ladon shifted forward, then back. Some of the mouths closed. Some kept hissing. Draconic confusion. Meanwhile, the Hesperides shimmered and turned into shadows. Aigle whispered, "Fool."

"I used to feed thee by hand," Zoë continued, speaking in a soothing voice as she stepped toward the golden tree. "Do you still like lamb's meat?"

Thalia and Percy were about halfway around the garden. Chrysa had already made it to the end, augmenting her steps with the shadows that swirled through the garden. She stood at the mouth of the rocky trail leading up to the black peak of the mountain. The storm swirled above it, spinning on the summit like it was the summit for the whole world – or rather, the whole sky.

Percy and Thalia had almost made it to her when something went wrong. Chrysa felt the dragon's mood shift. Maybe Zoë got too close. Maybe the dragon realized he was hungry. Whatever the reason, he lunged at Zoë.

Two thousand years of training kept her alive. She dodged one set of slashing fangs and tumbled under another, weaving through the dragon's heads as she ran in their direction, gagging from the monster's horrible breath.

Percy drew Riptide to help.

"No!" Zoë panted. "Run!"

The dragon snapped at her side, and Zoë cried out. Thalia uncovered Aegis while Chrysa ran forward and grabbed Zoë. The dragon hissed, and Chrysa used his moment of indecision to sprint past Percy and Thalia up the mountain, dragging Zoë along with her. Percy and Thalia followed.

The dragon didn't try to pursue them. He hissed and stomped the ground, but he was well trained to guard the tree. He wouldn't be lured off by the prospect of tasty heroes.

They ran up the mountain as the Hesperides resumed their song behind them. It was more dirge-like now – obviously, they had seen what Chrysa had seen. Zoë had been bitten by Ladon. Chrysa leaned over to whisper into Zoë's ear.

"I can't stop the poison," she said quietly, "but I can stop the bleeding. That will save your strength somewhat."

"Do it," Zoë said, voice equally quiet.

Chrysa silently cast Episkey on Zoë's side. Thalia and Percy never noticed she'd drawn her wand.

At the top of the mountain were the same black ruins that Chrysa had crept through only days before. Blocks of black granite and marble as large as houses. Broken columns. Statues of bronze that looked as though they'd been half-melted. Chrysa could still remember when they been new.

While the palace above ground was in ruins, the lower levels were perfectly intact. She could sense the demigods and monsters below them.

"The ruins of Mount Othrys," Thalia whispered in awe.

"Yes," Zoë said. "It was not here before. This is bad."

"What's Mount Othrys?" Percy asked.

"The mountain fortress of the Titans," Chrysa said grimly. "In the first war, Olympus and Othrys were the two rival capitals of the world. Othrys was blasted to pieces by Zeus."

"But…how is it here?" Percy asked.

Thalia looked around cautiously as they picked their way through the rubble, past blocks of marble and broken archways.

"It moves in the same way that Olympus moves. It always exists on the edges of civilization. But the fact that it is here, on this mountain, is not good," she said.

"Why?" Percy asked.

"This is Atlas' mountain," Zoë said. "Where he holds–" She froze. Her voice was ragged with despair. "Where he used to hold up the sky."

They had reached the summit. A few yards ahead of them, grey clouds swirled in a heavy vortex, making a funnel cloud that almost touched the mountaintop, but instead rested on the shoulders of a twelve-year-old girl with auburn hair and a tattered silvery dress: Artemis, her legs bound to the rock with celestial bronze chains.

"My lady!" Zoë said, rushing forward, but Artemis said, "Stop! It is a trap. You must leave now."

Her voice was strained. She was drenched in sweat. The weight of the sky was clearly too much for her.

Zoë was crying. She ran forward despite Artemis' protests and tugged at the chains.

"Ah, how touching," said a booming voice from behind them.

They turned. There, standing in a brown silk suit, was Atlas. He was flanked by Luke and half a dozen dracaenae bearing the golden sarcophagus of Kronos. Annabeth stood at Luke's side, her hands cuffed behind her back, a gag in her mouth, and Luke's sword point at her throat.

"Luke," Thalia snarled. "Let her go."

Luke's smile was pale and weak. He looked even worse than he had three days previous in D.C.

"That is the General's decision, Thalia. But it's good to see you again."

Thalia spat at him.

Atlas chuckled.

"So much for old friends. And you, Zoë. It's been a long time. How is my little traitor? I will enjoy killing you."

"Do not respond," Artemis groaned. "Do not challenge him."

"Wait a second," Percy said dubiously. "You're Atlas?"

The Titan glanced at him, though he had still not noticed Chrysa. Unsurprising, considering the shadows that coated the mountaintop. It was always hard to see her in the shadows, if you didn't know she was there.

"So, even the stupidest of heroes can finally figure something out. Yes, I am Atlas, the general of the Titans and terror of the gods. Congratulations. I will kill you presently, as soon as I deal with this girl."

"You're not going to hurt Zoë," Percy said, stepping forward to stand slightly in front of the Hunter. "I won't let you."

Atlas sneered.

"You have no right to interfere, little hero. This is a family matter."

"A family matter?" Percy frowned.

"Yes," Zoë said bleakly. "Atlas is my father."

Despite the dim lighting, the family resemblance was easy to see. Atlas and Zoë shared the same regal expression, the same cold, proud look in their eyes that Zoë had when she was angry.

"Let Artemis go," Zoë demanded.

Atlas walked closer to the chained goddess.

"Perhaps you'd like to take the sky for her, then? Be my guest."

Zoë opened her mouth to speak, but Artemis said, "No! Do not offer, Zoë! I forbid you!"

Atlas smirked. He knelt next to Artemis and tried to touch her face, but the goddess bit at him, almost taking off his fingers.

"Hoo-hoo," Atlas chuckled. "You see, daughter? Lady Artemis likes her new job. I think I will have all the Olympians take turns carrying my burden, once Lord Kronos rules again, and this is the center of our palace. It will teach those weaklings some humility."

Annabeth was desperately trying to tell them something. She motioned her head toward Luke, but Chrysa's eyes were drawn to the grey streak in her blonde hair.

"From holding the sky," Thalia muttered. "The weight should've killed her."

"I don't understand," Percy said. "Why can't Artemis just let go of the sky?"

Atlas laughed.

"How little you understand, young one. This is the point where the sky and the earth first met, where Ouranos and Gaia first brought forth their mighty children, the Titans. The sky still yearns to embrace the earth. Someone must hold it at bay, or else it would crush down upon this place, instantly flattening the mountain and everything within a hundred leagues. Once you have taken the burden, there is no escape." Atlas smiled. "Unless someone else takes it from you."

He approached them, eyes fixed on Thalia and Percy.

"So these are the best heroes of the age, eh? Not much of a challenge."

"Fight us," Percy challenged. "And let's see."

"Have the gods taught you nothing?" Atlas laughed. "An immortal does not fight a mere mortal directly. It is beneath our dignity. I will have Luke crush you instead."

"So you're another coward," Percy concluded.

Atlas' eyes glowed with hatred. With difficulty, he turned his attention to Thalia.

"As for you, daughter of Zeus, it seems Luke was wrong about you."

"I wasn't wrong," Luke managed. He looked terribly weak, and he spoke every wordas if it were painful.

"Thalia, you can still join us. Call the Ophiotaurus. It will come to you. Look!"

He waved his hand, and next to them, a pool of water appeared: a pond ringed in black marble, big enough for the Ophiotaurus.

"Thalia, call the Ophiotaurus," Luke persisted. "And you will be more powerful than the gods."

"Luke…" Thalia said, her voice full of pain. "What happened to you?"

"Don't you remember all those times we talked? All those times we cursed the gods? Our fathers have done nothing for us. They have no right to rule the world!"

Thalia shook her head.

"Free Annabeth. Let her go."

"If you join me," Luke promised, "it can be like old times. The three of us together. Fighting for a better world. Please, Thalia, if you don't agree…" His voice faltered. "It's my last chance. He will use the other way if you don't agree. Please."

Luke's life depended on Thalia joining Kronos. Chrysa could hear it in his voice. And from what she could see, Thalia heard it too.

"Do not, Thalia," Zoë warned. "We must fight them."

Luke waved his hand again, and a bronze brazier appeared. Chrysa recognized it well. It was a sacrificial flame.

"Thalia," Percy said. "No."

Behind Luke, the golden sarcophagus began to glow. Images appeared in the mists around them: black marble walls rising, the ruins becoming whole, a terrible and beautiful palace rising around them, made of fear and shadow. Part of Leuke ached to see it. Othrys had been her home for millennia. She had thrived there. Shadows and secrets came part and parcel with Othrys. Olympus had never carried the same feelings. But there were two things Othrys didn't have: Hades and her children. She would not stand for Kronos to rise again, if only to protect her children from that life.

"We will raise Mount Othrys right here," Luke promised, in a voice so strained it was hardly his. "Once more, it will be stronger and greater than Olympus. Look, Thalia. We are not weak."

He pointed toward the ocean. Marching up the side of the mountain, from the beach where the Princess Andromeda was docked, was a great army. Dracaenae and Laistrygonians, monsters and half-bloods, hell hounds, harpies, and many more. The whole ship must have emptied. There were hundreds, many more than Percy and Annabeth had described seeing the previous summer. They would be there in a few minutes.

"This is only a taste of what is to come," Luke said. "Soon we will be ready to storm Camp Half-Blood. And after that, Olympus itself. All we need is your help."

For a terrible moment, Thalia hesitated. She gazed at Luke, her eyes full of pain, as if the only thing she wanted in the world was to believe him. Then she leveled her spear.

"You aren't Luke. I don't know you anymore," Thalia said.

"Yes, you do, Thalia," Luke pleaded. "Please. Don't make me…don't make him destroy you."

"He won't get anywhere near her," Chrysa promised silkily as she stepped from the shadows so that she was half in front of her companions.

They didn't have much time. Not only was that army coming, but Zoë's life force was draining at a rapid rate. Ladon's poison was strong.

Luke's face twisted in anger.

"Chrysa," he snarled.

"Zeus' witch-daughter?" Atlas asked, looking intrigued. "The one he sacrificed to Hades after he turned Thalia into a tree?"

Thalia looked over at Chrysa in shock.

"Not quite," Chrysa replied. She gave an overexaggerated pout. "But I'm hurt, Atlas. Don't you recognize me?"

"I don't think we've met, little witch," the Titan replied amusedly. He didn't look worried in the least bit. Why should he be? Chrysa wore no armor, and the only visible weapon she had was a celestial bronze knife – Annabeth's knife, which she had stolen off the manticore – held point-down at her side.

Chrysa turned and handed the knife to Zoë. "Hold onto this for a minute, will you?" She tilted her head faintly in Annabeth's direction. Zoë nodded solemnly.

Chrysa turned back to Atlas and held her arms out.

"Perhaps you'll recognize me better like this?" she asked with a smile, calling the shadows to her and allowing her infamous armor to form around her, though she left the cowl off.

Atlas' cold smile disappeared into a look of utter rage. "Leuke," he snarled.

Luke started at the name. He'd apparently been filled in on the happenings of the previous war…probably in regards to why it was taking Kronos so long to reform, since he didn't have his heart.

"Honey, I'm ho~ome," she taunted. Her favorite knife was in her hand now, and the shadows whipped around her in tightly-controlled fury.

A massive javelin appeared in Atlas' hands, and his silk suit melted into full Greek battle armor.

"Now," Percy said quietly. Together, they charged.

Thalia went straight for Luke. The power of her shield was so great that his dragon-women bodyguards fled in a panic, dropping the golden coffin and leaving him alone. But despite his sickly appearance, Luke was still quick with his sword. He snarled like a wild animal and counterattacked. When his sword, Backbiter, met Thalia's shield, a ball of lightning erupted between them, frying the air with yellow tendrils of power.

Zoë took the opportunity to run to Annabeth, cutting her free of her bonds and gag before returning her knife, which the demigod accepted with a nod of thanks. They then charged the dracaenae.

Chrysa couldn't spare much energy for that however, because she had followed Percy when he attacked the Titan Atlas, who knocked him aside with the shaft of his javelin. Percy flew through the air and slammed into the black wall of Othrys as it rose. It was no illusion anymore.

"Fool!" Atlas yelled gleefully. "Did you think, simply because you could challenge that petty war god, that you could stand up to me?"

"But I can," Chrysa purred, stepping between Atlas and Percy. "There are many who would wish to see this battle, I suspect. We never truly did, before. The right hand versus the left. The general versus the assassin. The hammer versus the knife."

She twirled her Stygian iron knife dramatically.

"Are you ready to determine who the best really is?"

Atlas snarled and charged her.

Chrysa somersaulted through shadow and slashed at the back of his ankle. He managed to turn enough that it didn't sever his Achilles, though golden ichor still spilled from the wound.

Percy took that opportunity to charge again. Atlas' javelin caught him in the chest and sent him flying like a rag doll. He slammed into the ground at the feet of Artemis.

"No!" Zoë yelled. A volley of silver arrows sprouted from the armpit chink in Atlas' armor.

"ARGH!" Atlas bellowed, turning towards Zoë. But Chrysa was before him first.

Later, she wouldn't be able to tell you much about the fight. It was too much of an adrenaline rush. She dodged and leapt with inhuman grace, always half in shadow, sometimes there, sometimes not. She never called on the underhanded tricks she used in war – there was a time and place for such thing, and this duel was not one of them. It was to the death, but she wouldn't start the underhanded tricks until Atlas did.

She was a master of underhanded tricks, after all.

Besides, this was a fight he had desired too long to call for aid. Leuke was the reason Kronos fell, the reason Atlas ended up under the sky.

Zoë fired arrows at her father, aiming for the chinks in his armor. He roared in pain each time one found its mark, but they affected him like bee stings. He just got madder and kept fighting.

Though not all of Chrysa's blows struck their mark, those that did were meant to bleed him. It wouldn't do if Atlas died too soon. It would be preferable if he ended up back under the sky, after all.

Meanwhile, Luke and Thalia were fighting like demons. They went spear on sword, lightning still flashing around them in response to Thalia's anger. Thalia pressed Luke back with the aura of her shield. Even he was not immune to it. He retreated, wincing and growling in frustration.

"Yield!" Thalia yelled. "You could never beat me, Luke."

He bared his teeth. "We'll see, my old friend."

Atlas' strength was unstoppable, but Chrysa's tricks were a match for him. She was almost never where she was supposed to be, and she was faster than he knew. He'd been trapped under the sky for millennia after all, while she had been free. Granted, she had been dead for thirty-four hundred years of that, but that was still millennia of training that she had on Atlas. Besides, he was still using the same tactics they had used during the age of the Titans. Leuke's fighting style had greatly evolved since they last sparred.

The surprised look on his face when she first used her eastern martial arts training to kick him in the face was hilarious.

Atlas advanced, pressing Chrysa. His javelin slammed into the earth where she had been a split second before, and a fissure opened in the rocks. He leapt over it to pursue her, but she was behind him and nearly tripped him into it. He stumbled, and Chrysa managed another hit on back of Atlas' neck.

Slowly but surely, she was pushing him back toward where Artemis held the sky. Used to hold the sky, she corrected as she glanced that direction. The young goddess was slowly dragging herself away. From the trail of ichor she was leaving, it looked like the ligaments in the backs of her knees had been severed. Now, it was Percy holding the sky.

The Titan's Curse must one withstand echoed through her mind. Percy couldn't hold the sky for long. Chrysa shadowed so that her back was to Percy and Artemis. And then, she let herself falter slightly, just enough that Atlas thought he saw an advantage. He began to push her back. Slowly but surely, they traveled toward the place where the sky met the earth.

"You fight well for a girl," Atlas laughed as Chrysa faux-stumbled again. They were very close now. "But you are no match for me."

He feinted with the tip of his javelin. Chrysa saw it coming, but she dodged anyway. Atlas' javelin swept around and knocked her legs off the ground. She fell, and Atlas brought up his javelin tip for the kill.

"For everything you did, traitor, it is your time to die!"

"No!" Zoë screamed. She leapt between her father and Chrysa and shot an arrow straight into the Titan's forehead, where it lodged itself like a unicorn horn. Chrysa tried to keep from laughing. It would ruin the wounded-and-about-to-die image she was going for. Atlas bellowed in rage. He swept aside his daughter with the back of his hand, sending her flying into the black rocks.

"No!" Chrysa yelled. Atlas turned to her with a look of triumph on his face. Chrysa pretended to try and fail to get up.

"The first blood in a new war," Atlas gloated. "Fitting that it should be the traitress who ended the last." He stabbed downward.

With her speed magically enhanced so that she was as fast as she was when she was truly immortal, Chrysa grabbed his javelin shaft. It hit the earth right next to her and she pulled backward, using the javelin like a lever. She kicked the Titan and sent him flying over into Percy. Percy obviously realized her plan and allowed himself to be pushed out of the way, rolling out from under the sky.

The weight of the sky dropped onto Atlas' back, almost smashing him flat until he managed to get to his knees, struggling to get out from under the crushing weight of the sky. But it was too late.

"Noooooo!" He bellowed so hard it shook the mountain. "Not again!"

Atlas was trapped under his old burden once more.

Chrysa stood up and brushed the dirt off before glancing over to the other fight on the mountaintop. Thalia backed Luke to the edge of a cliff, but still they fought on, next to the golden coffin. Thalia had tears in her eyes. Luke had a bloody slash across his chest and his pale face glistened with sweat.

He lunged at Thalia and she slammed him with her shield. Luke's sword spun out of his hands and clattered to the rocks. Thalia put her spear point to his throat. For a moment, there was silence.

"Well?" Luke asked. He tried to hide it, but Chrysa could hear fear in his voice.

Thalia trembled with fury.

"Don't kill him!" Annabeth called from where she had helped Artemis away from the battle and over to the limp form of Zoë.

"He's a traitor," Thalia said. "A traitor!"

"We'll bring Luke back," Annabeth pleaded. "To Olympus. He…he'll be useful."

"Is that what you want, Thalia?" Luke sneered. "To go back to Olympus in triumph? To please your dad?"

Thalia hesitated, and Luke made a desperate grab for her spear.

"No!" Annabeth shouted. But it was too late. Without thinking, Thalia kicked Luke away. He lost his balance, terror on his face, and then he fell.

"Luke!" Annabeth screamed.

Chrysa, Thalia, Annabeth and Percy all rushed to the cliff's edge. Below them, the army from the Princess Andromeda had stopped in amazement. They were starting at Luke's broken form on the rocks.

One of the giants looked up and growled, "Kill them!"

Thalia and Annabeth were stiff with grief. Percy grabbed Thalia and Chrysa grabbed Annabeth, pulling them back as a wave of javelins sailed over their heads. They ran for the rocks, ignoring the curses and threats of Atlas as they passed.

"Artemis!" Percy yelled.

The goddess looked up, her face almost as grief-stricken as Thalia's. Zoë lay in the goddess' arms. She was breathing. Her eyes were open. But she was very, very still. The poison had taken its toll.

"The wound is poisoned," Artemis said tiredly.

"Atlas poisoned her?" Percy asked.

"No," Chrysa said quietly. "Ladon did. I closed the wound, but there was nothing I could do for his poison…not with so little time. She asked me to allow her to fight as long as she was able."

"The stars," Zoë murmured. "I cannot see them."

"Nectar and ambrosia," Percy said. "Come on! We have to get her some."

No one moved. Grief hung in the air. The army of Kronos was just below the rise. Even Artemis was too shocked to stir. Chrysa forced her grief behind Occlumency barriers and allowed the parts of her that were Leuke to rise to the surface. She gathered shadows into her cupped hands and spoke into them, clearly and firmly.

"Androktasia," she said. "Phonos. Your mistress summons thee."

The shadows dissipated. It took only seconds for two figures in full Greek armor to appear before her.

"You summoned us, my lady?" Phonos asked, swinging his spear idly. Both carried swords and knives. Phonos had a javelin. Androktasia had a bow. Both were dressed in full Greek armor. The metal was Stygian iron, and the cloth was black as well. Their attire was near-identical, except for the allowances made for their differing genders. Each had the symbol of their mother, Eris, carved into their armor. Each had their black cloaks clasped with a pin in the shape of Leuke's mark.

"There's an army of monsters trying to kill me, if you'd like to do your best at killing as many as you can," Chrysa offered. "Though not the hellhounds, if you please. I'd like to try to pit them against their allies first."

Her words were met with two bloodthirsty grins.

"With pleasure," Androktasia purred. Then they were gone, and the sounds of battle soon reached them.

Chrysa turned to Artemis.

"We must get Zoë away from here," she said. It seemed to snap Artemis out of her grief.

"Indeed," the goddess said. She raised her hunting horn to her lips, and its clear sound echoed down the valleys of Marin. Zoë's eyelids were fluttering.

"Hang in there," Percy told her. "It'll be alright!"

Chrysa moved back to the edge of the cliff so she could see her faithful attendants living up to their names and decimating the enemy. She reached out with her Underworld power toward the contingent of hellhounds and ordered, "Destroy the monsters."

The hounds struggled, but they were creatures of the Underworld and bound to their lord and lady. They obeyed her will, and the destruction increased.

Just then, the moonlight brightened, and a silver chariot appeared from the sky, drawn by Artemis' deer.

"Get in," Artemis said.

Annabeth and Percy got Thalia on board while Chrysa helped Artemis with Zoë. They wrapped Zoë in a blanket as Artemis pulled the reins and the chariot sped away from the mountain, straight into the air.

"Like Santa Claus' sleigh," Percy murmured, sounding dazed with pain.

Artemis took the time to look back at him.

"Indeed, young half-blood. And where do you think that legend came from?"

"Apollo must have given you hell over that one," Chrysa said, too quietly for anyone but the goddess to hear her. The brief wince she saw was answer enough.

Behind them, the army of Kronos roared in anger as they saw their flight, though that was quickly overtaken by the sound of screams as Androktasia and Phonos destroyed them. Still, the loudest sound was the voice of Atlas, bellowing curses against the gods and Chrysa – Leuke – specifically as he struggled under the weight of the sky.

They landed in Oakland after nightfall. If Chrysa wasn't mistaken, they were actually atop the hill the Caldecott Tunnel ran through, right next to the Roman Camp Jupiter. Well, she thought amusedly, at least it's safe from monsters.

Chrysa was still quick to cast a Notice-Me-Not ward as soon as they landed. She knelt alongside the others at Zoë's side. They bound the Hunter's wounds, which had reopened sometime during her fight with Atlas.

Chrysa dispelled her armor into the shadows. Her clothing appeared just as it had before, messenger bag in all. She dug into the expanded bag and pulled out a vial of nectar. She passed it to Artemis.

"It won't heal her," she said quietly. She could already see the Hunter's life fading. "But it may ease her passing."

Zoë didn't look good at all. She was shivering, and the faint glow that usually hung around her was fainting. Chrysa's connection to the Underworld could see her life force slipping away.

"Can't you heal her with magic?" Percy asked Artemis desperately. "I mean…you're a goddess."

Artemis looked troubled. Chrysa was suddenly struck by the reminder of how young Artemis truly was, at least compared to Leuke. Even with her time dead and her missing two-hundred-and-fifty-odd years of memories, she was still more than twice the goddess' age.

"Life is a fragile thing, Percy," Artemis state. "If the Fates will the string to be cut, there is little I can do. But I can try."

She tried to set her hand on Zoë's side, but Zoë gripped her wrist. She looked into the goddess' eyes, and some kind of understanding seemed to pass between them.

"Have I…served thee well?" Zoë whispered.

"With great honor," Artemis said softly. "The finest of my attendants."

Zoë's face relaxed. "Rest. At last."

"I can try to heal the poison, my brave one," Artemis offered.

It was useless. Atlas' final blow had ensured Zoë's death. She had known – they had all known – that the prophecy was about her, yet she had chosen anyway to save her goddess. Her loyalty was great.

Zoë saw Thalia, and shakily reached out to take her hand. Thalia was quick to aid her.

"I am sorry we argued," Zoë said. "We could have been sisters."

"It's my fault," Thalia said, blinking hard. "You were right about Luke, about heroes, men – everything."

"Perhaps not all men," Zoë murmured. She smiled weakly at Percy. "Do you still have the sword, Percy?"

Percy looked like he was about to cry, but he brought out Riptide and put the pen in her hand.

"You spoke the truth, Percy Jackson. You are nothing like…like Hercules. I am honored that you carry this sword."

Her eyes met Chrysa's then.

"Take care of Rhanis?" she asked, her tone hopeful.

Chrysa leaned down and pressed a kiss to the Hunter's brow. With that small gesture, she marked the Hunter's soul with her sigil. While the inverse was mark for Punishment, a soul marked by Hades or Leuke's sigil was meant for Elysium. Zoë Nightshade was a hero, and would be sent straight to Elysium by the Lady's command.

"Always, little niece."

"Tell my mother I love her?"

"She loves you as well," Chrysa promised softly. "She wanted me to make sure you knew."

Zoë smiled gently, until a shudder ran through her body.

"Zoë–" Percy tried to say.

"Stars," Zoë whispered. "I can see the stars again, my lady."

A tear trickled down Artemis' cheek.

"Yes, my brave one. They are beautiful tonight."

"Stars," Zoë repeated. Her eyes fixed on the night sky. And she did not move again.

Thalia lowered her head. Annabeth gulped down a sob. Artemis cupped her head above Zoë's mouth and spoke a few words in Ancient Greek. A silvery wisp of smoke exhaled from Zoë's lips and was caught in the hand of the goddess. Zoë's body shimmered and disappeared.

Artemis stood, said a blessing, breathed into her cupped hand, and released the silver dust to the sky. It flew up, sparkling, and vanished. The stars were brighter now, forming a pattern that had never been there before – a girl with a bow, running across the sky.

"Let the world honor you, my Huntress," Artemis said. "Live forever in the stars."

Saying goodbyes was difficult. Thunder and lightning were still boiling over Mount Tamalpais in the west. Artemis was so upset that she flickered with silver light.

"I must go to Olympus immediately," Artemis said. She looked directly at Chrysa. "Will you be able to take them?"

"Not tonight," Chrysa admitted. "Fighting Atlas…it tired me out more than I'd like to admit. As I am constantly reminded, I have the memories and powers of a goddess, but I am not a goddess myself. Have your legs healed up?"

"I can walk," Artemis said stubbornly, before sighing. "I am sure that Apollo will fix them for me once I get to Olympus. Would you like me to arrange transport?"

"I think we'll be okay," Chrysa said with a nod. "I can take us back in the morning."

Artemis nodded, then laid a hand on Annabeth's shoulder. "You are brave beyond measure, my girl," she said. "You will do what is right."

Then she looked quizzically at Thalia, as if she weren't sure what to make of this youngest daughter of Zeus. Thalia seemed reluctant to look up, but something made her, and she held the goddess' eyes. Chrysa wasn't entirely certain what passed between them, but Artemis' gaze softened with sympathy. Then she turned to Percy.

"You did well," she said. "For a man."

Percy looked like he wanted to protest, before he seemed to realize it was the first time the goddess hadn't called him a boy.

Artemis mounted her chariot, which began to glow. They averted their eyes. There was a flash of silver, and the goddess was gone.

Sorry it took so long to get this posted...I honestly didn't realize I hadn't posted it yet. I have the rest of Titan's Curse finished (there's one more chapter), but I'm still working on the bridge between Titan's Curse and Battle of the Labyrinth.