Easy as a Million Monsters

"Is everyone ready to go?" I asked my troops as we stood in the living room of our cabin.

It was the morning after our arrival and I'd had a decent sleep, though it was nothing like being back home on Cofando and in my own bed. The mattress was one that I usually had on standby to be summoned from the void, so it wasn't the waterbed that I usually relaxed on, therefore causing me to wake up with a stiff back. Also, when I'd first opened my eyes to the dawn, I panicked for a split second before realizing where I was, in which case, I groaned and rolled over, though knowing that I would have to get out of bed anyway.

All eight of the captains stared at me for a few seconds, hints of guilt still on their faces. I could see it in the way their eyes wouldn't meet mine directly, and the slight downward curves to their lips – which they thought I wouldn't notice, but I did. They then nodded and slipped on their masks. After pulling our hoods up as well, we left the cabin in single file.

"After breakfast, go to your stations. Remember when I told you earlier?" I said as we walked to the dining pavilion. I couldn't see them behind me, but I knew they heard because I heard a sequence of confirmative humming. Next to me, Haetros trotted aloofly, his wings folded back – like mine – and his head held high. His ears were perked to the sounds all around, but he kept one on me, showing that he was alert to any movement I made.

I couldn't help but smile in his direction. He seemed much more relaxed now that he knew he wouldn't have to hide all the time.

As I walked, I focused on the sound of my even footfalls, using them to block out the loud noises of earth. However, in doing so, I failed to notice the six-year-old demigod child that was running in my direction. She didn't seem to be paying attention either, because she ran directly into my legs, falling backward onto the grass as soon as she collided with my shins.

Immediately, I ran to her side, signalling to the others to continue to the pavilion and start with their breakfast. In the depths of my consciousness, I acknowledged that it must've rained during the night, or maybe it was just morning dew because the grass was glistening with tiny droplets of water. Either way, I knew that my pants were going to have wet spots, but I didn't care as I reached down to help the girl up. Though, as I kneeled beside her, she flinched, scooting away from me frantically.

"Hush, now," I soothed, "It's okay. Are you hurt at all?" I tried to keep my voice low and calm to relax her nerves because I must've looked scary with my uniform. It was good to ward off enemies, but in situations like this, my appearance was always a problem.

She nodded jerkily, though her chest heaved in desperately quick breaths. "Here, let me see," I said, reaching out again, though I made sure my movements were slow – even slower than before.

This time, she let me pick her up and rest her on my knee. In the back of my mind, my ADHD said, "I feel like Santa!" but I forced myself to ignore both it and the laughter of the Cryptile echoing in my skull.

Instead, I concentrated on the little girl's left leg – which she had stretched out, allowing me to see the long yet shallow cut along her shin. It didn't seem to bad and there wasn't much blood, but there was dirt and small bits of gravel caught in it from her fall. It would need to be cleaned straight away, lest it becomes infected.

Pulling a clean cloth from my uniform's breast pocket, I whispered a few words to make it damp with disinfectant.

"This may sting a little," I warned her. "Do you mind?"

She shook her head, looking up at me with the largest, most trusting eyes I'd ever seen. Taking in a sharp breath, I gently caressed the wound with the soft fabric, cleaning out most of the dirt.

She whimpered a little and dug her tiny fingers in my shirt to keep herself from moving.

Once I'd finished cleaning it, I put away the cloth, folding the blood to the inside. Then, I waved my hand over the wound, causing a warm, golden glow to envelope her leg.

Pulling my hand away, I revealed her leg once more. The cut had cleaned itself and then vanished, leaving nothing but smooth skin once more. The girl, entranced, tested her leg out, bending it. She stood, hopped twice, and then turned to me with the largest grin I'd ever seen. She jumped at me, wrapping her frail arms around my neck.

"Thank you, mister!"

As she pulled away, I smiled back at her. "What is your name, little one?" I asked gently.

Twirling her toe in the sand, she looked up at me with a soft bluish spreading across her cheeks. "My name is Rosie," she said shyly, ducking her head slightly to avoid my eyes.

I put my finger under to chin, lifting her face so that our eyes met. "It is very nice to meet you, Rosie," I said with sincerity. "I'm Abaddon, and…hmm…let me guess; you're a daughter of Demeter, aren't you?" A playful tone entered my voice as I guessed, letting my teeth show in a smile.

She did indeed look like a daughter of Demeter, what, with her long, wheat-brown hair, earthy brown eyes and the splash of freckles across her cheeks. She smiled again, showing off where one of her two incisors had come out, yet to be replaced. Nodding, she said, "Yup! My mom is great!" Then, she became shy again. "Can I feel your wing?" she asked.

I chuckled. "Sure thing, kiddo," I replied. Stretching my wing, I held it out for her to touch. A few seconds later, a strange sensation came over me as her small fingers curled themselves around my feathers. It tickled, sending shivers down my spine.

Rosie giggled as she weaved her fingers through the soft down and overlapping flight feathers. "It's so soft!" she exclaimed.

I smiled down at her excited little face. Plucking a semi plume from my wing, I tickled her nose with it playfully. She giggled, causing her whole body to spasm with laughter as she swatted at the feather. The feather weaved easily into her hair as I placed it there, tucked right behind her left ear. Rosie smiled, touching the feather lightly before giving me a big hug and skipping off to find her siblings.

When I looked up, I saw that everyone who'd passed had stopped to stare at us. As I looked, they all turned away awkwardly; they must've been embarrassed to have been caught in the act.

*First Person Point of View ~ Artemis*

Once again, the night had come and gone, and I let my brother take over once more to ride his chariot across the sky. Of course, he lit up his Maserati Spyder Cambio Corsa in the most unnecessary of ways as he always did, and took off, bringing the light of the sun with him.

I had to admit that when we first got our duties as god and goddess of the sun and moon, I was glad to have the moon, because that meant, that on mornings like this, I could have breakfast with my hunters just like every other god or goddess with their children. Whenever we came to camp, I saw them with the demigods and felt regret that I didn't have children of my own, but relief as well. After what my mother went through, I was glad to never have that in my life, but it didn't mean that I didn't want them after they left the stage of mess. With my hunters, I could have that.

We were walking towards the dining pavilion when I saw him. Abaddon. Yesterday, I'd studied him thoroughly, and he didn't seem like much on the surface, but I knew that, underneath, he was dangerous. He must be, to be crowned prince of the first planet and heir to the entire universe.

Today, however, he did not show those qualities. When I caught sight of him, he was kneeling in the wet grass, uncaring about the stains he would have on his pants as he held a small child on his knee, smiling down at her with gleaming teeth.

I immediately froze. The way he was interacting with the daughter of Demeter – Rosie, I believe her name was – it was almost like how I remembered Percy with the younger campers – back when he was alive, at least.

Percy had always been so caring; even when he didn't know the child, he'd help where he could, and where he couldn't…he'd make sure that something got done. As the general of the eternal army tickled the six-year-old's nose with one of his feathers – plucked from his own wing! – I couldn't help but think of the son of Poseidon, and my heart clenched.

"Oh, Percy… Why did you have to leave us? How could we have let you go?" I thought longingly. He was the only male that I ever approved of. Percy had gained the friendship and respect of my hunters, and after them, myself. I'd even begun to feel my heart beat a little faster at the very mention of his name, which is why, before he died, I had distanced myself from him.

That was a big mistake.

I left, and then he'd gone and gotten himself killed, and for what? To protect us? We didn't deserve him after what we did, and even though I hadn't been directly responsible, I felt the weight of guilt on my shoulders as well. And to top it all off, I hadn't even been able to say goodbye to him after he left, because his body was gone. It had vanished from existence, and no one knew where it went.

I sighed. I just wish that I could've said goodbye to him. Maybe…I could've told him how I felt, but I couldn't. he was dead, and on top of that, I was, and still am, a maiden goddess. I swore an oath against men. I'd even convinced my father to swear on the River Styx that he would not force me to marry, and I'd kept him to that ever since that day. It was one of the oaths on the Styx that he'd never broken – probably the only one, if I really thought about it.

Thinking back to that first night on the cliff, I realized that I'd known he was different all along. He was so worried about that other demigod – the girl, Annabeth – that he wasn't focused on anything else. He'd even been willing to jump off the cliff after her. And it wasn't just that. There was just…something about him that was different from any other man I'd ever met. After that night, Perseus snuck out of camp, breaking almost every rule imaginable just to join an impossible quest to save his friends, and later, he'd taken the sky from me. He'd taken my burden because he knew that his strength wouldn't be enough, and he admitted to that. That was when I realized that his humility and bravery had no bounds.

As I reflected upon my long life, I knew that I had never loved anyone as much as I loved Percy. He was loyal, respectful, and kind, unlike any man that I'd ever come across. The days after I'd met him were the happiest that I'd ever had, just being able to think about him as I spent time with my hunters, knowing that he was out there and willing to put his life on the line to save us. Just…I'd never thought it would come to that.

Mentally shaking myself out of my reverie, I suddenly felt the hand on my shoulder, shaking me back to reality. Through the foggy haze of my thoughts, I turned to see Thalia standing next to me, a look of concern on her face. I knew that I had to suppress my feelings for the son of Poseidon once more, as they had just bubbled to the surface of my mind.

Turning away from Abaddon, I shut the door to that section of my life and blocked the messages my heart was sending to my brain. I could not allow this…stranger… to reignite my old feelings for a long-dead boy. Unfortunately for me, it was too late.

*First Person Point of View ~ Percy*

As I watched Rosie run off to show her brothers and sisters the feather that I'd tucked in her hair, I felt the eyes of everyone around me. It made my skin crawl, like millions of little bugs had swarmed over me – and believe me, that wasn't a good feeling; it has happened before on a mission.

The eyes followed me as I entered the dining pavilion, taking the first steps onto the polished marble since before I'd died. It wasn't even old-looking, like everything else here. Had it truly only been five years for them since I'd left?

I sat down at the table that the captains had claimed for themselves, but the eyes didn't leave. "What are they all staring at?" I asked, feeling confusion run through me in waves.

"You," Tile replied in a whisper, though he was in my head. Why was he even whispering? Only Crypt, Haetros, and I could hear him anyway.

"Well, duh," I replied, "What I mean is: why?"

"Maybe you remind them of yourself from before you died," Crypt suggested. "We've heard the stories; you've told us all about the little campers that you used to love taking care of and training."

Shrugging, I figured he was right. I had been known for training the younger campers when they first arrived at camp. I didn't know why, but they always said that they felt safe around me, so I'd attracted them like a magnet.

"Anyway, it's time for breakfast," I told them as I focused on the plate in front of me. It was empty, but not for long. With a wave of my hand, it was suddenly overflowing with pancakes. On the side, a bottle of maple syrup appeared. Then, the bottle was doused over my pancakes until they were drowning, almost bowing under the weight of the sweet, liquid sugar.

Of course, since we weren't back on Cofando, I had to be very careful about not making my food blue as it always was. Unfortunately, I hadn't done the same for my drink, and just my luck, Nico walked by right as my goblet filled itself with cobalt blue coca-cola.

"W-what is that?" he stuttered, staring at my goblet with wide, frightened eyes.

I turned to face my friend. The last five years had really done wonders for him. He was less thin now, and his complexion had almost returned to its original olive tone. He was also hanging off Will's arm, which caused a smile to alight on my lips.

Then, realizing that I had to come up with an excuse as to why my drink was blue, I managed to say, "It's a traditional drink from my home planet, Cofando. It's a biettus smoothie, and if you're wondering why it's blue, its because that's what colour biettus berries are." At least it was the truth. Biettus berries were used to make smoothies – very delicious smoothies, in fact – they just weren't as blue as my Coke.

Nico seemed to deflate against Will's arm as the hope left his eyes. "Oh," he said, "Okay. Sorry. It's just…blue was Percy's favourite colour. I bet he would've liked that…by-eh-toos…drink of yours."

I nearly smiled as he tried to pronounce biettus by sounding it out. He was such a foreigner.

Nico sighed once more and walked away with Will, sitting at the Hades table where Hades hugged him from one side and Will hugged him from the other. Catching a peek at Seraphina, I saw her eyes watch her brother longingly, and knew that she wanted to go to him, but knew she couldn't.

At first, I found it a little strange to see Hades at his own table, but as I looked around, I saw that every god or goddess was sitting at his or her own table with the demigods. They each had at least a camper or two with them, or, like Hermes, Aphrodite, Athena, and Apollo had about a dozen. Even Hera was there, though she was sitting with Zeus at his table, making small talk with Jason, but glaring at the one other child at the table, who looked to be around four or five years old.

Then, my eyes came to rest on the Poseidon table. It was empty, both campers and the gods himself, reminding me once again about his current state. "Maybe I should visit him," I thought.

"I think it would be prudent to our mission, as we are meant to protect every one of the gods, including your father," Crypt said in my ear.

"Former father," I corrected. "He disowned me, remember? No amount of guilt will take that back. I don't have powers from him anymore, therefore, I don't share his blood."

"That doesn't matter, Perseus. He's still your father, and now, he needs you more than ever. Just go through with it and go to him. Reveal yourself to all of them and let them heal. Maybe then, you will be able to finally get over what happened."

I shrugged subtly, enough for Crypt to know but not enough so that it was visible to anyone in the physical world. I knew that I'd have to do something, and fast, lest he'd fade forever, but I still remembered the pinch in my heart when he'd disowned me. I'd never heard of gods disowning their children before; I must've been the first. Though, even if I hadn't been, it wouldn't have prepared me for the sensation of it. It was almost like my heart had been forcefully ripped from my chest, both emotionally and physically, blood and everything, though there was none. And afterward, it was almost like it had been, because all I felt was an empty hole in my chest where it used to beat.

Just then, I heard a scream which shook me out of my depressing thoughts. The conch horn blew three times repeatedly, signalling an attack at the border.

"Monster attack!" someone yelled.

I nearly sighed. As if it wasn't obvious. Did they still have to yell? I mean, at least the monsters no longer had the element of surprise, seeing as we'd just gotten three different warnings in the same, one-minute span.

*First Person Point of View ~ Artemis*

As soon as the scream ripped through the air, I was on my feet. Then, the conch horn sounded, and I was sure of what it meant, even before Grace, a daughter of Aphrodite, yelled, "Monster attack!"

Running to the top of the hill, I stopped, closely followed by my hunters. Luckily, when we'd rebuilt the demigod camp, the architects put the dining pavilion right next to Half-blood Hill so that if an attack ever happened during mealtimes, we'd be close enough to fight within seconds.

As I reached the peak of the hill, my heart nearly stopped in my chest. Then, it fluttered like a hummingbird's wings, panicked in the cage of my ribs, because there, over the horizon, was an army of monsters. Hundreds, maybe even thousands of adversaries marched down the lonely farm street towards our home, which was protected only by the Golden Fleece and its guardian, Peleus.

No one moved.

I turned, seeing the wide, fearful looks in everyone's eyes before I noticed that there were some people missing. The warriors of the eternal army were nowhere to be seen. What?

Spinning around, I saw them walking lazily away from the dining pavilion and moseying their way up the hill, chatting. What were they doing? Were they trying to get us killed?

Just then, I was able to make out part of what they were saying as they came within hearing distance.

"-want to deal with this?" Abaddon was saying.

"Um…" another soldier – Proteus, I think – said, "Nah. Can't you just snap your fingers and make them all go, poof?"

"Indeed," Hester – the archer – agreed. "I just ate a big breakfast. Go ahead. Blow them up."

As soon as I heard that, my eyes widened. Abaddon could do that. Just how powerful was he? What else could he do? And…what would happen to us if he turned out to be the enemy? My thoughts were racing through my brain, just slow enough for my stream of consciousness to keep up. Looking around, I saw that the others at my side seemed to be in similar positions.

I didn't have a chance to even open my mouth to ask what they were talking about before Abaddon spoke again.

"No," he said, "I think I'd like to actually defeat them myself. Give me a moment."

Seconds later, he drew his sword with a soft schink, and he became a blur of movement.

He fought like a hurricane, so fast that my eyes couldn't even keep up with his steps as he demolished the enemy troops with ease. It almost seemed as if there were dozens of him, all in different places, fighting the army on the other side of the hill, but I knew that there was only one of him – just moving really fast.

Later, I'd only discover that it took him a little less than three whole minutes to defeat all those monsters. I was too stunned when he stopped moving and the army was just…gone. Abaddon stood there, in a literal sea of monster dust, not even breathing heavily.

"Was that Destruction's attempt at a first attack? I'm disappointed," he said; his mouth was curved into a deep frown, lips thin with frustration – almost like he'd just warmed up and was now looking for an encore.

I couldn't believe him, though. He was ankle-deep in golden powder, and he expected more to just show up! Most likely, his idea of fun would be to jump into Tartarus and turned all the monsters into cocoons for the next century or two!

Looking up at us, Abaddon's frown turned to an oval as his jaw dropped. Why was he shocked? He was the one who had just taken out that whole army! My question was soon answered, however, as he said, very seriously, "What? Did I get monster guts on my face?" like we were the weird ones.