"A little to the left," Arke called. "No. Not your left. My left."

"We're facing the same direction," Isabella snapped. The captain had an annoyed look on her face. Granted, she had that look anytime Arke was near her. Nico had noticed it over the last few days. A small sigh left him as he looked around the deck of the pirate ship.

They had been at the spot Arke marked for hours now. Arke kept telling Isabella that they needed to move a little more to the left each time, but she said it so much that they had already made a full circle. Isabella looked like she was debating on testing out if Arke could swim or not.

The last few days had not been kind. After Nico announced that Hylla and Reyna were dead, none of the pirates talked to him. By proxy, they avoided Jason and Piper as well. Nico wasn't sure what to tell them. He only spoke the truth, no matter how much it hurt.

Nico and Reyna had bonded throughout the quest. He also couldn't help but feel a little guilty that Reyna and Hylla had died. While it was their enemies that killed them, they probably wouldn't have been in that position with the demigods. Reyna would have been more focused on the pirates that they were fighting instead of sending Nico away.

The two sisters would have been more focused on outside threats than trying to find the island. As Nico thought of it more and more, the guilt only increased. A stressed sigh left him, and he looked down. All he could do was focus on their task ahead. It was another friend that he lost. Reyna was just another name added to the list.

"Can you just open this fucking doorway already?" Isabella snapped. She turned and walked away from Arke. Isabella let out a string of curses, but Arke only chuckled. She seemed to be enjoying what she was doing.

Nico was annoyed as well. According to Arke, all they needed to do was be pointed in the right direction and sail straight forward. Arke would use her powers to open the doorway, and they would be near the island. The only problem was that Arke would not stop toying with them.

"Is there anything we can do?" Jason asked softly. He was standing next to Piper. The two seemed pretty agitated that they were so close to Leo but not making any progress. "Any ideas?"

"None," Piper answered. "Arke seemed to listen to Reyna pretty well, but that's not possible now."

Nico looked down. They hadn't been able to send messages ever since setting off on the ship. Arke commented that Iris probably realized her wings were back and was stopping her. Nico didn't quite believe that, but he also knew they couldn't anger the goddess at this point.

"The door will be open when it decides to," Arke called. Isabella turned and looked like she was going to say something. Instead, they heard a yell. Isabella looked up.

"In the distance!" the pirate on the crow's nest yelled. Isabella moved her hand to her sword.

"What is it?" Isabella yelled back.

"A messenger bird!" the pirate answered. Isabella let go of her sword and moved towards the stern of the ship. She held her hand out. After a minute of just standing there, a bird descended from the sky and landed on her arm. Isabella took the letter from the bird and handed it a treat. The bird took off.

Isabella carefully unfolded the note. A frown came to her face as she studied it. Isabella spoke, "Arke, how long will this doorway be here and ready for us to open?"

"A few days," Arke answered. Isabella nodded and folded the letter up.

"Raise the sails. We have a new destination!" Isabella called. A small smile came to her face, and she leaned against the stern of the ship. Nico glanced at his friends and saw they were already halfway to her side.

"Why are we leaving?" Jason demanded.

"We're almost at the island. We can't just leave," Piper added. Nico made it to their side and stood side by side with them. Isabella glanced back at them but didn't say a word.

"We had a deal," Nico said. Isabella held up a hand.

"I know, and I will honor the deal. This letter is more important though, but it could be a trap. That is why I need the son of death as backup. You can teleport anywhere, right?" Isabella questioned. A frown came to Nico's face. He exchanged glances with the others, and they didn't look too happy.

"It's shadow travel but yeah. Why?" Nico questioned.

"I may need you to travel us away from danger," Isabella answered. Nico's frown deepened, but he nodded. He knew that they had no choice. As soon as they got this over, they could get back to this spot and open the doorway.


Nico silently followed behind Isabella. The pirate captain had not said a word. Instead, she just walked and kept her hand on her blade. Nico kept close to her. They had docked in some kind of small fishing town six hours away from the doorway.

"What are we doing?" Nico whispered. He kept close to Isabella's back as they picked their way through the crowd. The two of them stopped outside of a bar.

"I received a letter to come here. We're either going to get very good news, or we're about to walk into a trap. Be ready," Isabella ordered. Nico reluctantly nodded, and the two stepped into the bar.

Nico's eyes swept around. A bartender was tending to a few men sitting at a bar. They were all watching some football game on the television. A few people were sitting at tables. No one turned to look at them, so he didn't think they had walked into a trap.

"Gods above," Isabella whispered, and she stopped walking. Nico followed her gaze, and he stared at the person sitting in the corner. Reyna slowly looked up at them. She was sitting in a chair and had a beer bottle in front of her.

Isabella rushed towards Reyna's side. A small smile came to Reyna's face, and she slowly stood. Isabella hugged her tightly and then pulled away. She grabbed Reyna's face as if unsure if she was real. Nico just stared. This didn't make any sense.

Nico sensed that Reyna had died. He felt that she was dead, but now, he didn't feel her. This person in front of him couldn't be Reyna. Was this the Mistveil creating some kind of sick trap? Nico moved his hand to his sword.

"Hey Nico," Reyna said. The small smile on her face widened. Nico glared at her.

"What kind of game is this?" Nico demanded. He took a step backward. "I sensed that you died! You and Hylla!"

"Wait," Reyna said. Isabella took a step backward and reached for her weapon. "I can prove it's me. Okay. My dogs are in my pocket, and I can answer any questions you have."

"Flip the dogs out," Isabella ordered. Nico studied the woman in front of him. It looked like Reyna, just a much more tired version. Reyna's eyes were red like she had been crying. She slowly reached into her pocket and pulled out the silver and gold coins. Then, she tossed them.

Aurum and Argentum appeared. They both turned on her. Aurum whimpered and pressed himself against her legs. Argentum joined his brother. Reyna smiled and carefully reached down to pet the dogs. Nico relaxed slightly, but Isabella didn't.

"What is my birth name?" Isabella questioned. Reyna looked up at her, and a small smirk came to her face.

"I don't know," Reyna answered. Nico gripped his sword again. "When I asked you once before, you punched me in the face and told me that if I asked again you would break both of my legs."

Isabella let go of her sword and hugged Reyna tightly. Reyna closed her eyes and hugged Isabella back. She buried her face in the older girl's shoulder and seemed to shudder with a cry. Nico slowly moved closer to them.

"Reyna, how are you alive? I sensed that you died," Nico said softly. Reyna pulled away and blinked away tears. She wiped her eyes.

"I was on the verge of death," Reyna answered. She studied Nico for a few moments then looked away. "I almost died, but the Mistveil didn't finish the job. They left me to rot."

"What about everyone else? Your sister?" Isabella asked. Reyna slowly looked at them and swallowed painfully. Tears came to her eyes, and she looked away. Isabella grabbed the table like she needed to steady herself. "Dead?"

"Everyone but Kendall," Reyna answered after a few moments. She took shaky breaths and looked like she was about to have a panic attack. "That fucking bitch betrayed us. She has been working with the Mistveil since day one."

"That fucking whore," Isabella hissed. She looked down and took a deep breath. "Did you kill her?"

"No," Reyna answered. She slowly leaned against the wall and collapsed into a sitting position. Her two dogs rushed to her side, but she turned them back into coins. Reyna slid the coins into her pocket and stared ahead. "I will though. I'm going to kill all of them."

"We're going to kill all of them," Isabella promised. She knelt by Reyna and offered a hand. "Come on, captain. We're almost at the island."

"We're going to help the demigods," Reyna muttered. It was like she had forgotten that Nico was there. "Then, we are going to kill all of the bastards who call themselves a part of the Mistveil."

"We will," Isabella said. She helped Reyna stand. Nico moved to their side and grabbed Reyna's other arm. "Are you hurt?"

"No," Reyna muttered. "I stopped by the base first for supplies. My things are with Scipio."

"We'll go get them," Isabella promised. "Just try to relax, okay? We'll get your supplies and go to the ship. There is a six-hour ride back to the door. We'll get some food for you and maybe some sleep."

Reyna nodded and didn't say anything. Her eyes focused ahead, but it didn't look like she was focused on anything. Reyna slowly spoke, "They killed Hylla in front of me. Taunted me. Kicked me into her blood."

"Hey, kiddo. Calm down," Isabella said softly. She gently grabbed Reyna's jaw and made her look up. "Trust me, we are going to kill all of them. Just stay with me, okay."

"Okay," Reyna said after a moment. Nico studied Reyna, and his heart broke for her. She looked so defeated and upset about what had happened. Nico knelt by her.

"We're going to get through this together," Nico said, and he held out his hand.

"Together," Reyna repeated. She grabbed Nico's hand, and he helped her to a standing position. Isabella gently grabbed Reyna's arm, and the two began to lead her outside. Nico glanced over at his friend. He knew that there was a lot more to the story than Reyna was willing to say, but he wasn't going to pry. Not until they made it to the island.