I felt half-dead. And trust me, I'm the Ghost King. I know what I'm talking about.
My eyes fluttered open. I was lying in a bed, in a room I didn't recognise. I forced myself to sit up. Behind my eyes, tears were threatening to spill.
Dammit, I told myself. Don't cry.
But I couldn't help it. Isabella was gone. Forever.
A few stray tears slipped down my face. I wiped them away. I could feel the ground trembling beneath my feet.
I forced myself to stop it. No, I have to stay strong. I can control myself.
Then Will came to my mind. I shivered. Oh, gods, how long have I been out? He's going to be so mad at me… I'd better Iris-message him.
"Nico?!
I recognised that voice. It was Sage! They came over to my bed, carrying a basket full of vegetables. They were wearing a dirty apron over their shirt.
"Glad you're okay," they said, relieved. They offered me a carrot. "Want some food?"
"I'll pass," I grunted, my appetite pretty much non-existent. I looked around. "Where are we?"
"Just a little hut I built a while ago," Sage answered.
The wooden walls had shelves with lots of trinkets and framed pictures of flowers. There was a cupboard stuffed full of dry food and boxes. Not to mention all of the plants they had growing underneath the huge window. It was like a mini garden. Yeah, I wasn't too happy to see a bunch of plants, honestly.
"Nice… place," I forced out. My head was stinging. It was harder than ever to be positive.
"Well, I'm leaving it soon," Sage admitted. "I'm going to Camp Half Blood, remember?"
I nodded. "I remember." I frowned, staring at my fists. "Hey, uh... what happened? Where'd you find me? Also, how long have I been out?"
Sage looked away. "Well, after the monster was defeated… I was worried about you and Isabella so I went looking for you two. I found you, lying unconscious at the bottom of the mountain. A pretty lady was there and she told me not to worry about Isabella. So I brought you back here, and let you rest. You've been out for… two weeks, I think? I'm bad at keeping track of time…"
"Two weeks?!" I almost yelled.
Sage shrugged. "Well, I like to sleep in too, sometimes…"
I got up, my legs stinging. "Um, sorry, I really have to call someone."
Sage waved their hands. "Oh, sure! Go ahead!"
"You know what Iris-messages are, right?" I asked.
Sage gasped. "Oh, you want to Iris-message someone? Yeah, I've got a pond out back…"
A few minutes later, I was sitting in Sage's 'backyard', facing a small pond. Sage was nice enough to get a hose to make a rainbow. I pulled a drachma out of my pocket, taking a deep breath. Thank the Gods the sun was out.
"O Goddess," I prayed. "Accept my offering."
I threw the drachma into the rainbow.
"Will Solace, Camp Half Blood," I said.
A few minutes later, I saw Will in our medical tent, wrapping a bandage around one of the Ares kid's arms.
"Um…" said the kid, pointing at me.
Will jumped, then stared at me. He flushed red.
"Nico!" he shouted. "Where have you been?! It's been nearly a month!"
"I got knocked out," I answered.
"Were you using your Underworld powers again?" Will asked, scowling.
"Maybe," I admitted. "But, um… a lot of other things happened as well."
I explained the whole Isabella situation, trying not to get too emotional. My throat felt burned up. Wil's face softened, and I saw a tear in his eye.
"Oh, Nico…" he sighed, putting a hand on his heart. "That poor kid… Nico, I…"
"It's okay," I told him, lying to myself. "Look, I'm going to come back to camp soon. Be ready for me."
"I'm always ready for you," he joked, winking.
I rolled my eyes, my face heating up. "Whatever you say, Dr. Sunshine."
"Death Breath," he replied.
"Mr. Shiny."
"Corpse Face."
"Sun Head."
"Zombie-"
"Alright, we get it, move on!" the Ares kid shouted.
"Hey, um, by the way…" I coughed. "Is there a girl named Penelope Sokolov at Camp?"
Will frowned. "Hmm… do you know her Godly parent?"
"Nike," I answered.
Will gasped. "Yeah, I did! I saw her fighting with her twin sisters. And causing some other trouble."
"Thanks," I said. "Say hi to her for me."
Will nodded. "Is she a friend of yours?"
"Yeah," I said, rubbing the back of my head. "I guess so."
Will went back to scowling. "But seriously, when you get back, we're going to have a long talk about doing reckless things!"
"Of course you will," I grumbled. "But you should know-"
"I know, I know," Will said, comfortingly. "When you come back I'll-"
"Oh for Ares' sake, can you two lovebirds hurry it up?" the Ares kid snapped. "My arm is killing me!"
I glared at her. She glared back.
"She has a point, Nico," Will said, with a charming smile. "See you soon, okay? Love you."
He waved his hand through the message, dissipating it. My cheeks were burning.
Love you, Will…
To my left, I heard sobbing.
"Sage?" I asked, staring at their weeping form.
"Sorry, you two are just adorable together," they sobbed. "And also, that Isabella story… my heartstrings, man."
"Well, you'll get to meet Will in person soon," I told them. "We're going to…"
I trailed off, seeing something flying towards us. A monster with leathery skin, bat-like wings, and an ugly yet familiar face.
"Wh-what's that?" Sage asked, hiding behind me.
"Alecto," I greeted, raising my brow.
The fury landed in front of me, before bowing down.
"M'lord," she said. "I have a message from Lord Hades."
Here we go, I thought, groaning. My dad was the last person I wanted to hear from.
"What is it?" I asked. I suspected that it probably wasn't going to be 'oh my son, I'm so happy to hear you're safe!' or even 'congrats on finishing your quest!' or just 'thank you', for that matter. Great guy, my dad.
"He wants you to attend to the Olympian Council," Alecto replied.
"Oh," I said, making a face. "When is the Olympian Council?"
"In approximately three hours," Alecto said.
I sighed. And to think I was going to go back to Camp.
