Chloe / January 14th

Somehow, things were worse than they were when Kronos was attempting to destroy Olympus. Back then, monsters had been arising like crazy, but now, it really felt like the end of the world. Half of New York had been destroyed, and there were cities in other parts of the worlds being completely leveled.

After Percy and Annabeth set off to go find the magical artifact that Reyna had told them about, I decided to take Asperox out to meet up with Ryan and Victor, who had both barely avoided the explosion in New York. Afterwards, we decided to head to Whisk's Valley - a hidden island not too far from Camp Half-Blood, but the only way to get there is by flying.

It didn't take us long to get there. Whisk's Valley was an island dotted with dark trees that had a purple tint to them; the grass was the darkest green you could find. Once you entered the borders of the island, it was permanently night time. The biggest attraction was the massive mansion in the center of the island, where a plentitude of magical artifacts were hidden. Once we touched down, the trees were blown in our direction by a strong wind.

"The place feels haunted" Ryan mumbled

"You mean more so than usual?" I replied

Another strong breeze blew the trees towards us, but this time, the wind was warm instead of chilly. Deeper into the forest, columns of fire and ice were being shot out wildly. We trudged through the forest and eventually made our way to an open pasture where two boys - twins in fancy suits - stood and talked with the figure in front of them - no mistakingly Layton. However, his usual attire was different. He wore his black armor, but there was a dark hood over his helmet, a polyester was wrapped around his waist, and he had discarded his cape.

We got closer, ducking behind a bush that was tucked in between three trees and listened in on their conversation. It was cliché, but stealth was my thing. From here, I could get a better look on the boys. They appeared to be demigods, guessing by their build. The one on Layton's left had icy blue hair, and eyes of the same color, with a scar over his left eye. On the right, the boy had fiery red hair and matching red eyes. Both wore funeral suits, but the red-haired one seemed to care more about his appearance, based off his combed hair compared to his twin's messy one.

"Perhaps we can come to an arrangement" said the red-haired one as Layton took a step forward. His voice was deep and soothing, and he sounded like he was the boss of the conversation.

"Calor, you know that Syn won't like that, and you wouldn't want to be on his bad side" the blue-haired one argued. His voice was slightly higher pitched and he came off as a brat.

"Syn couldn't care less for the other Shadow-Dragons" Layton said, twirling Gipsy, which had taken the shape of an axe

"I'd rather not have him care about me than him kill me" blue hair replied

"Glacies, he's talking about death" 'Calor' said

"When Toxicus died, Syn absorbed his essence and gained more power. He's hoping that the rest of you will die, so he can steal more of that essence" Layton added

"Then it's simple" 'Glacies' said. "I simply don't die, and then I would like to see Syn try and kill me"

"There's no doubt about him having the power to kill us if he absorbs the powers of the other dragons" Calor pointed out

"What in Hades are they talking about?" Victor whispered

"You guys are behind" I responded as an idea came into my head. "Hold on"

I pulled out the last of my antigravity arrows and aimed using my hand cautiously, aiming for Layton's feet. Once I found a good enough angle, I flicked the arrow and pierced the ground right where I had wanted to. The arrow went off, but it didn't pin him down onto one knee like it usually did. Instead, it forced him to stay still.

Motioning for my friends to stay put, I stood up and walked around the trees, making my presence clear and removing my helmet.

"What's this? An eavesdropper?" Glacies said

"I just couldn't help but notice I had no idea what the heck you guys are talking about" I replied as I made my spot next to Layton

"Perhaps it was because it isn't your business" Glacies scowled

"At ease, Glacies" Calor dismissed, turning towards me. "Who are you?"

"Didn't know that's how we greet people now" Layton muttered as the effects of the arrow wore off

"Chloe Cooper" I answered

"Like D.B. Cooper?" Calor said

I shrugged. "Sure"

"So about the world-ending topic" Layton interrupted. "There isn't much time, as you can tell"

"How about we discuss this over a walk through the mansion? Meanwhile, Glacies can keep Chloe's friends in the bush company" Calor suggested

.

I had never been explored most of the mansion. Hera had strictly set some rooms - like the library - off limits. This is where she had us trained after all, so it basically like home. Calor seemed to know where he was going though, as if it was his home as well.

"Tell me Chloe, who is your godly parent?" Calor inquired

"Selene" I said simply

"I met her once" Calor informed, and dropped the subject after

"What was she like?" I asked after a few moments of silence

"She was quite the personality. After all, she was also goddess of insanity" Calor answered.

"Was?" I swallowed

"Selene and Helios don't exist anymore. They faded away around ten years ago, leaving Artemis and Apollo to take their place" Layton revealed

Great. Mom doesn't exist anymore. In fact, she hasn't been for a whole decade.

"Listen, demigods" Calor said, though he was mostly facing me. "As much as I don't agree with Syn's methods and motives, I can't simply betray him and hope to not be killed"

"Not unless you get the other Shadow-Dragons on your side" I pointed out

"Mera hopes to slay Poseidon and gain control over the sea, so she's out of the question. Ira will join the side of whoever will cause more destruction and death. Syn has Toxicus's power, so even if we convince Terram to join our side, we're still outmatched" Calor explained as we took a right and continued down another hallway

"So there isn't much we can do. We don't even know how to kill a Shadow-Dragon" I said

"We can only be killed in the Netherworld, so there isn't any hope" Calor agreed. "Plus, there won't be a world left to save soon. Countries are blaming each other for recent events"

"North Korea and China plan to attack Russia and then move West to take down the other nuclear-empowered countries" Layton added

"Nuclear war will cause the destruction of Earth, and eventually Olympus, before the other dragons can even move a muscle" Calor said

We entered into the ballroom of the mansion. There were tables with white clothe, chairs, and even food that looked surprisingly recent. The multicolored dance floor illuminated the room with the moonlight casting a shine over it.

"No matter what we do, Syn is in total control over everything. He has the world wrapped around his finger" Calor stepped up to the dance floor. The moonlight reflected off his red hair nicely, and he had a genuine look on his face. "His negative energy is already strong enough to destroy an entire country, and soon, the entire galaxy could be wiped out if he chose to do so"

"There is a way you could stop negative energy - positive energy" Layton said

"You're suggesting you could find a way to create ki?" Calor asked

"Not create it, but reuse old ki" Layton shook his head. "When Majin Kai was freed from his lamp the second time, he released a genocidal attack that caused the deaths of thousands. The ki blasts he sent off targeted low populated cities and villages. Though he's evil, he still produces positive energy through his ki. If we go to one of the sites he destroyed with his attack, its possible to harness that energy and use it against Syn"

"I see. With enough positive energy, it might be enough to kill Syn" Calor replied

"But that's currently impossible with World War III on ours hands" I said

"With enough time in the library I might have a solution to that" Layton down at the ground

I put both my hands on my hips and gave him a stern look. "Hera said we weren't allowed in there under any circumstances, 'or else'"

"Hera can punish me or kill me if she chooses too. Her loss" Layton dismissed, walking past me and heading for the forbidden library

"Oh man" I complained under my breath, pouting and hunching over just a bit

"How careless" Calor said

"I know" I sighed, fixing my posture

"I assume you'll be joining him" Calor guessed and I nodded. "In that case, I should check that Glacies isn't causing any problems"

.

"This is where the library is?"

In front of us was a large dome-shaped room. However, at the archway that led into the room, purple columns of energy formed jail bars that blocked off the entrance, and there was at least one metal door behind that. In order to have gotten here in the first place, there was a hidden button in the elevator that led to the bottom floor.

Thankfully I had found the button hidden within the air vent, because things were getting semi-awkward in the elevator. Or at least for me it was.

"There's no getting past the bars. Vibranium can't cut through it" Layton said

"Can't you use your time powers to phase through it?" I suggested

"One second isn't long enough to get through everything"

A random breeze coming from out of nowhere blew past me, and I could feel the addition of another presence - a familiar one.

"I think it's great you both have met and are working so well together"

"Hera" we both responded

"This library contains the details of everything known to the gods. More specifically, all of the pantheons - their gods, legends, and monsters - artifacts, and even The Hidden Archives" Hera explained

The purple bars jolted glistened into nothingness and heavy locks and gears turned, with multiple metal doors and locks opening up to reveal the inside of the room. Multiple tall bookshelves lined the walls, and there was a table in the center with a rusty typewriter.

"The Olympians are currently attempting to delay the Shadow-Dragons, but they can't do much more than that. Somewhere in this library, the key to their defeat lays" Hera said as we entered the room

"So we have to search this entire room" I said

"Of course you could use the glossary to help you narrow down your search" Hera pointed towards the old typewriter

"We're looking for a needle in a haystack, even with the glossary. There's fifteen bookshelves that are each ten-by-thirty's. That's four thousand and five hundred books, not to mention how many pages must be in each of them" Layton calculated as he flipped through the pages of a book on Egyptian gods

"It's better than nothing. Besides, time doesn't pass in this room, so you have all the time in the world to do whatever" Hera replied, giving me a strange look

"I could feel that there wasn't a flow of time here, but for us, it'll still be a long time until we find what we're looking for - which we don't even know. Regardless, we'll have to do it" Layton said

"Very well. I've entrusted you both with access to the library, so I expect you find what we're all looking for" Hera nodded, disappearing afterwards with a gust of wind

I walked over to a random book on a bookshelf in the corner of the room. Opening it and flipping through the pages, it was a book on the different kinds of Hell from each pantheon.

"This is going to take forever" I groaned. "Got any leads?"

"First, I'd rather not have to deal with a World War" Layton pulled out a book on modern geography, and another on each country's war tactics

"What are you planning?" I raised an eyebrow

"Like Calor said - there might not be a world to save if nuclear war happens" Layton said

I recognized the look on his face - it was one I've only seen a few times now. It was the countenance he had whenever he was about to do something crazy that could backfire, but also work in our favor greatly if he succeeded.

He flipped through the pages of the tactics book until he came across North Korea, and then he began comparing it with the world map. Putting two and two together, I realized the plan and my heart rate picked up. This was definitely a large bet.