Hazel wasn't quite sure how or when it happened, but she found herself fighting a two front war. Hylla seemed like she was trying to fight off the bloodlust, but it was also clear when she lost control, considering she stood and attacked both Hazel and Carmina. But, Carmina didn't attack Hylla. All of her focus was reserved for Hazel.
That forced Hazel to have to dodge different spells from Carmina and a knife from Hylla that seemed to appear wherever she had a vital organ. It didn't help that Pallas dragged Reyna away, and there was nothing Hazel could do to help. She was forced to shove it out of her mind.
The only bright side was that Hylla attacked whoever was closest to her. The bad news was that Carmina only got close once. When she realized that Hylla would attack her, she made sure to scoot away and keep Hazel in between the two.
While the thought of shadow travel did cross Hazel's mind, she didn't do it for two reasons. The first was that she knew Carmina would do something to alter the destination or stop it completely. The second was that she could not leave her friends behind. She did need a new plan though. This one was not working too well.
Hazel's dodging and parrying was starting to tire her out, and she wasn't sure how long had passed. She did see a third person appear. Hazel bit her lip as Pallas studied her. He hadn't joined the fight yet, but it couldn't be good news that he was there.
"We have all day for these games," Pallas commented. Hazel chanced looking back at him. His gaze was solely on her. "The eldest daughter of Bellona will be consumed by her bloodlust until her mother is done. My mortal friend is very skilled in magic. Just surrender. We have no quarrel with you."
"I will not surrender and abandon my friends," Hazel said. She lifted her chin. Pallas sighed and held out his hand. A blood red sword appeared in it. He started to make his way towards her, but the ground in front of him split open. Pallas stopped walking and looked down.
Pallas stared at the ground in front of him. He finally looked up and turned his head. Hazel risked looking over as well. She stared at Nico. He held his sword out in front of him. His face was pale, and he looked tired. Percy stood next to him and had a hand on his shoulder.
"We're not late, are we?" Percy asked. Carmina stared at Percy. Then, a murderous look entered his eyes, and she rushed towards him. Hazel intercepted the mortal.
"Percy, take the god," Hazel called. She shoved Carmina backwards and made sure to keep in between her and Percy. Carmina glared dangerously.
"No problem," Percy called back, and he rushed towards Pallas. A deep sigh left the god, and he turned his attention on Percy. "Oh! Where's Annabeth?"
"Fighting Bellona. Long story!" Hazel said. "Nico, get Hylla."
"Hylla. Got it," Nico said. He rushed forward to intercept one of Hylla's knives
"Don't hurt her," Hazel called. She looked back at Carmina. The mortal had taken a few steps backwards and was studying her intently. Hazel's weapon couldn't harm Carmina, but she had other ways she could disable the mortal.
"Carmina, please stop this. I do not want to harm you," Hazel said. Carmina sneered at her, but most of her attention was on Percy. The son of Neptune had enough on his hands as he fought Pallas. From what Hazel had seen, most gods usually held back when they fought mortals. Pallas was different. He didn't seem to underestimate Percy at all. It was taking all of Percys' skill and experience to stay alive.
"Where's Reyna? Is she okay?" Nico asked. He dodged Hylla's attack and slipped around her.
"She's in the temple with Annabeth. And Bellona and Athena. It's a complicated story," Hazel answered. She focused her attention on Carmina. The mortal was studying her, and her eyes moved towards Percy.
"Stop this, Carmina. You can't win against us. I don't want to hurt you, but I will disable you," Hazel promised.
"I will kill Percy Jackson before you can," Carmina swore, and she rushed forward raising her hand. Hazel threw herself into Carmina, and they both hit the ground hard. Hazel pinned Carmina's wrists and thought about the chains of Pluto. When she had first been shown that page in the secret library, she memorized everything that was on it.
Hazel spoke this words under her breath, and Carmina laughed. The mortal spoke, "Only your father can place those."
"I don't think that is true," Hazel whispered, and she thought of two metals in the earth: silver and gold. The ground split open as the two cascaded out of it. Hazel ignored the tug in her gut and grabbed her hands over the metals. She quickly traced the gold around Carmina's right wrist and the silver around her left one. A wave of exhaustion hit her as the metals became chains.
Hazel focused on the shadows, and she drew them closer to herself. She gripped Carmina's wrist and watched a chain of darkness appear between the two chains. Hazel almost fell over in exhaustion, but she took a shaky breath and made it to her feet. Carmina hissed and tried to pull her wrists apart, but she yelled in pain.
"I will kill you," Carmina snapped. Hazel ignored her and made her way towards Hylla. Nico was doing a good job and dodging her, but he was clearly slowing down and getting tired. Hazel was sure there was a better way to go about it, but instead, she launched herself into Hylla. Instead of both of them hitting the ground, Hazel was thrown over Hylla's shoulder, and she hit the ground hard a moment later.
Nico grabbed the belt from around Hylla's waist and pulled it away. Hylla turned towards him, but Hazel kick her in the back of the knee. Hylla stumbled forward, and Nico tackled her into the ground. Hylla's head smacked off the concrete with a thud, and she didn't move after that.
"Oh Hades," Nico cursed. He quickly got to his knees and gave Hylla some nectar. A soft groan escaped the queen of the Amazons. Hazel looked up at Percy, and she saw that Pallas had retreated. Pallas studied all of them and looked back at the building behind them.
"So it shall be," Pallas said to himself more than them. He held out his right hand, and a blood red shield appeared in it. Pallas studied the three of them. Hazel stood in front of Hylla, and Nico did the same. Percy made it back to their side. Pallas nodded. Then, he attacked.
Annabeth took a moment to examine the battlefield. Bellona and Athena were still locked in a war, and they both had wounds to show for it. Athena hobbled on a lame and bloody leg. One of Bellona's arms was hanging uselessly, but she used the labrys to block any attacks that came her way. Athena was the one who had tackled Bellona away from Reyna, probably saving her life.
Reyna was laying on her side and was curled up into a small ball. She didn't look like she would be getting up anytime soon, so Annabeth didn't think she needed to worry about Reyna's bloodlust kicking in. Annabeth knelt by Reyna and spoke, "Just hang in there. I'm going to take care of your mother and help you."
Annabeth turned back towards Bellona. She winced as Athena was slashed across the chest. Athena returned with her own attack that hit Bellona in the face, creating a large gash. Bellona hissed and backed away. She suddenly flung the labrys right at Athena, and it tore into the goddess' chest. Bellona held her hand out, and a golden sword appeared in it.
"Leave her alone!" Annabeth yelled. She rushed towards Bellona. The goddess turned towards her with hateful eyes. Annabeth held her sword out in front of her. "Your daughters are not going to help you. I am going to destroy you and send you back to Tartarus."
"Or, I will just send you back to Tartarus. You spent some time down there, didn't you?" Bellona questioned. Annabeth felt a pit form in her gut, and she tensed. Bellona smiled coldly and approached her. "Do you really think that you can stand against me, demigod?"
"Yes," Annabeth answered. She forced herself to meet Bellona's eyes. The ichor running down Bellona's face made her look even more evil, which seemed nearly impossible. Annabeth knew that Bellona ran on anger. That was what she wanted her daughters to do, but they refused. Bellona was alone with no one to help her, and Annabeth would destroy her.
Bellona wiped her face, and Annabeth stabbed forward. Her sword was knocked aside, and Bellona swung her sword in a wide arc. Annabeth ducked underneath the blow and rushed forward, leaving no distance between the two. She tried to stab Bellona in the side.
Bellona caught the sword by grabbing Annabeth's wrist and forcing it aside, but since it was her limp shoulder, the grip was weak. Out of the corner of her eye, Annabeth saw Bellona flip her sword and bring it backwards, to stab Annabeth in the back. The daughter of Athena barely dodged to the side, and a grunt left the goddess as she stabbed herself.
"Smart," Bellona hissed, and she pulled her sword out of her stomach. Annabeth pulled away and backed up. The goddess rushed towards her and swung wildly. Annabeth was forced to dodge and backpedal. The injuries that Bellona had made her much slower, but she still fought with unmatched ferocity.
Annabeth knew she needed to act while she had the advantage. Her left hand moved to her hip where her dagger was. Bellona swung her sword, and Annabeth caught the blow. She gripped her sword tightly with her right hand, and her left hand shot forward. A dagger stopped a centimeter from Bellona's throat.
"Stand down," Annabeth ordered. She met Bellona's eyes. The goddess of war didn't deserve mercy, but if Annabeth didn't offer it, she would be no different than Bellona.
"Never," Bellona snapped. She twisted Annabeth's sword out of her hand, but Annabeth stabbed the dagger into her throat. The goddess stumbled backwards. Annabeth's eyes darted towards the labrys, and she ran towards it.
Annabeth grabbed onto the labrys with both hands. She pulled it out of her mother's chest and turned swinging it. A strangled gasp left Bellona as the labrys tore into her stomach. Annabeth backed away and hefted the weapon. She wanted to end this without fighting, but she knew better. Bellona wouldn't stop until she was destroyed or had her way. Annabeth knew what she had to do.
Annabeth gripped the labrys and swung at Bellona's neck. Bellona's body hit the ground one moment and her head the next. Annabeth dropped the labrys and took shaky breaths. She ran to her mother's side and knelt by her. There was a deep gash in Athena's chest, but the goddess was already trying to sit up.
"I am fine," Athena stated, but she didn't look fine. "Tend to your friend. I sense another presence."
"Another?" Annabeth questioned. Athena nodded and slowly made it to her feet. She gripped the labrys and stared down at Bellona. "It a good thing that you put her down. She is nothing more than a monster."
"I know," Annabeth said. She turned and moved to Reyna's side. The praetor was still curled up on the ground, and she was unconscious. Annabeth sat by her and cradled her head in her lap. "You're going to be okay. We're going to get you to a doctor."
Annabeth looked back at Bellona. While the goddess was a monster, it was almost admirable how much she wanted her daughters to help her, but Annabeth realized that Bellona did need her daughters. She was barely able to hold off Athena on her own, and with Annabeth helping, Bellona didn't stand a chance. That was why she tried to force bloodlust upon her children.
Athena knelt by them and opened one of Reyna's eyes. The red in Reyna's pupils was slowly turning back to black. Athena spoke, "Their bloodlust should disappear now. But, we must handle the other presence that I feel. Bring her."
"Just relax," Annabeth said. She stood and grabbed the labrys from her mother. Annabeth looked Athena in the eyes. "I'll handle this other presence."