Alaster POV

Annabeth loaded us into the back of a Vegas taxi, pretending like we had money, and told the driver, "Los Angeles, please"

The cabbie chewed his cigar and sized us up. "That's three hundred miles. For that, you gotta pay up front?"

"You accept casino debit cards?"Annabeth asked

He shrugged. "Some of 'em. Same as credit cards. I gotta swipe 'em through first"

Annabeth handed him her green Lotus Cash card, he looked at it unsure of weather it would be valid.

The taxi driver swiped the card and his eyes went as big and bowling balls as an infinity symbol came up next to the dollar side.

He turned back to us. "Where to in Los Angeles...uh, Your Highness?"

"The Santa Monica Pier"Annabeth sat up straight a little bit, she definitely liked the "Your Highness thing". "Get us there fast, and you can keep the change"

"All right,"I said. "Now put the pedal to the metal daddio!"

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover's heads turned towards me.

"What?"I said

"Put the pedal to the metal daddio?"Percy said

"I might've ran into some people and I guess it rubbed off on me. But let's just go!"I said

Not even a millisecond after the taxi sped forward, the driver's speedometer did not go below ninety-five the entire way. That can't possibly be legal.

While being driven, we all had plenty of time to talk. Percy told Annabeth, Grover, and I about his latest dream. It was one where he must've been talking to Hades and someone else was there as well.

Percy telling us about his dream got me thinking about my dream again. The only time the thought left my head was when I was in the Lotus Casino.

Percy told us that the servant called the monster in the pit something different than "my lord". He called it some kind of title.

"The Silent One?"I suggested, crossing my arms and narrowing my eyes. "The Rich One? Both of those are nicknames for Hades."

It might seem like I know a lot about Hades. But when he sends monsters to kill you and your sister you tend to want to know a lot about your enemy. It's one of the arts of War.

"Maybe..."Percy said

"That throne room sounds like Hades's"Grover said. "That's the way it's usually described"

"Something's wrong. The throne room wasn't the main part of the dream. And that voice from the pit...I don't know. It just didn't feel like a god's voice"Percy said

My eyes widened...no...it couldn't be. That's impossible. He was cut into pieces, there's no way that it could be him.

"What?" Percy asked, he must've seen my reaction to what he said, and it appears that Annabeth had the same reaction.

"Oh...nothing. I was just—No, it has to be Hades. Maybe he sent his thief, this invisible person, to get the master bolt, and something went wrong—"

"Like what?"

"I—I don't know," she said. "But if he stole Zeus' symbol of power from Olympus, and the gods were hunting him, I mean, a lot of things could go wrong. So this thief had to hide the bolt, or he lost it somehow. Anyway, he failed to bring it to Hades. That's what the voice said in your dream, right? The guy failed. That would explain what the Furies were searching for when they came after us on the bus. Maybe they thought we had retrieved the bolt."

"But if I'd already retrieved the bolt why would I be traveling to the Underworld?"Percy asked

"To threaten Hades,"Grover suggested. "To bribe or blackmail him into getting your mom backL

Percy whistled. "You have evil thoughts for a goat"

"Why, thank you."

"But the thing in the pit said it was waiting for two items,"Percy said. "If the master bolt is one, what's the other?"

I began to think on it...if the master bolt was one item, which is already one of the most powerful weapons in the universe, something that can rival that power would be the most desired option. The only thing I can think of is either Poseidon's Trident or Hades' Helm of Darkness.

But that wouldn't make much sense unless...he is really trying to come back. It can't be though. It has to be something else. Hades has to have something planned, he's the Lord of the Dead, if he's not pure evil I don't know who is.

Annabeth tried her best to boost morale by coming up with strategies to get into the Underworld.

At sunset, the taxi dropped us at the beach in Santa Monica. We walked down the to the she of the surf.

"What now?"Annabeth asked

Percy stepped into the surf.

"Percy?"Annabeth said. "What are you doing? You know how polluted that water is? There's all kinds of toxic—"

Percy kept walking, up to his waist, then to his chest, and then he disappeared under the water.

"He'll be fine...probably."I said. "He is a son of Poseidon"

About a couple minutes later Percy popped out of the water and walked towards us, despite being in water his clothes were completely dry. Percy told us what had happened, on how he had met a Nereid and was given four pearls.

Annabeth grimaced. "No gift comes without a price"

"They were free"

Annabeth shook her head. "No. 'There is no such thing as a free lunch.' That's an Ancient Greek saying that translates pretty well into American. There will be a price. You wait"

With the spare change from Ares' backpack we took the bus into West Hollywood. We had to get off at the next stop because of the bus driver recognizing Percy.

We had to duck into an alley twice to avoid the cop cars. I kept running but turned back when I realized no one was following me. I looked back to see Percy, Annabeth, and Grover standing in front of a window of an appliance store.

I ran back to see a very ugly, bald guy who looked like a pig that was threatening to burst out of a shirt that was way too tight for him.

The interviewer asked as a picture of me, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover standing outside the Colorado diner, talking to Ares. "Who are the other children in this photo? Who is the man with them? Is Percy Jackson a delinquent, a terrorist, or perhaps the brainwashed victim of a frightening new cult? When we come back we chat with a leading child psychologist. Stay tuned, America."

"That's not good"I said, I looked at Percy, and he was fuming angry. He looked like he was about to punch a hole in the window.

"C'mon,"Grover told Percy, hauling him away.

It began getting dark and the silhouettes of very hungry-looking characters started coming out into the streets. I drew my earring out of my ear and it transformed into Hero.

I knew that Hero wouldn't work because Celestial Bronze can't hurt mortals, but it was better to use it for show rather than not.

We walked past gangsters, bums, and street hawkers, who looked at us as if they were thinking of if they would mug us.

But then we were surrounded. A gang of six kids, all of them were white, and had expensive clothes and mean faces.

I held up Hero in an attempt to scare them off, offering the meaning glare I could muster. About three of them stumbled backwards. Percy uncapped his swords, two more of the kids backed off as well, but their leader was either very idiotic or very brave, because he kept walking towards us with a switchblade.

And then...Percy swung his sword. I mentally rolled my eyes. The blade, of course, passed right through the kid as if he was a hologram.

"What the..."The kid said

"Run!"Percy screamed and all four of us ran off. We had absolutely no idea where we were going. We turned a sharp corner.

"There!"Annabeth shouted

Only one store on the block looked to be open, its windows were glaring with neon. The sign above the door looked like CRSTUY'S WATRE BDE ALPACE

"Crusty's Water Bed Palace?"Grover translated

We burst through the doors and ran behind a water bed, and ducked. A split second later, the gang kids ran past outside.

"I think we lost them,"Grover panted.

"Lost who?"A voice boomed behind us.

All of us jumped and I jabbed Hero at the voice. The man that the voice originated from jumped back. "Woah, almost took my stomach out there"

The man was about seven feet tall and had no hair whatsoever. His skin was grey and leathery, his eyes were thick-lidded and he had a cold reptilian smile. He moved towards us slowly, I kept my guard up.

"I'm Crusty"He said, with a yellow smile

He was very crusty.

"Sorry to barge in,"Percy told him. "We were just, um, browsing"

"You mean hiding from those no-good kids,"he grumbled. "They hang around every night. I get a lot of people in here, thanks to them. Say, you want to look at a water bed?"

Crusty put his huge hand on Percy's shoulder and steered him deep into the showroom. Annabeth, Grover, and I had no choice but to follow.

There were a lot of water beds, different kinds of wood, different patterns of sheets; Queen-size, king-size, emperor-of-the-universe-size.

"This is my most popular model."Crusty spread his hands over a bed covered with black satin sheets, with built-in Lava Lamps on the headboard. The mattress vibrated, so it looked like oil-flavored Jell-O.

"Million-hand massage,"Crusty told us. "Go on, try it out. Shoot, take a nap. I don't care. No business today, anyway"

"Um,"Percy said, "I don't think..."

"Million-hand massage!"Grover cried, and five in. "Oh, you guys! This is cool."

I tended up as Crusty put his hand on my shoulder.

"Okay...you seem uneasy. I've got the perfect one for you"Crusty said, he hauled me over towards a bed with a yellow headboard and the mattress was grey colored like a storm cloud. "As soft and relaxing as laying down on a very comfortable cloud. Why don't you have a go?"

I slowly walked over to the water bed and lied down. I sighed in satisfactory, it was the most comfortable bed I've ever been in.

I was too caught up in how good the bed felt to know how much time passed.

Fingers snapped. "Ergo!"

Ropes wrapped around me, binding me to the bed.

"What in the Hades!"I yelled as I struggled to break free. I didn't know what else was going on, I looked for Hero but I realized that it was on the floor.

Fingers snapped again. "Ergo!"

A new set of ropes leaped out from the top and bottom of the beds, wrapping around my ankles, then around my armpits. Then the ropes began tightening and pulling me from both ends.

I grower know pain as I felt my spine stretching, my teeth grind against one another. I let out breathless wail as I could've swore I heard a snap.

But then a few moments later, Percy came up and cut me free. I placed my hands on my knees and panted.

"Thanks"I said

"No problem"He replied

Percy looked in between Annabeth and I and said, "On the bright side, you both look taller"

"Very funny,"Annabeth said. "Be faster next time"

"Come on,"Percy told us.

"Give is a minute,"Grover complained. "We were almost stretched to death!"

"Then you're ready for the Underworld,"Percy said. "It's only a block from here."

My eyes widened. Just thinking...I would probably get to see Hades himself...I wonder what he'd do if I attacked him?

Hero transformed back into the black earring and I placed it back into my ear.

We left Crusty's Water Bed Palace and we stood in the shadows of Valencia Boulevard, looking up at gold letters etched in black marble: DOA RECORDING STUDIOS.

Underneath, stenciled on the glass doors: NO SOLICITORS. NO LOITERING. NO LIVING.

It was about midnight, but the lobby was full of people and was lit brightly. Behind the security desk sat a tough-looking guard with sunglasses and an earpiece.

Percy turned to us. "Okay. You remember the plan."

"The plan,"Grover gulped. "Yeah. I love the plan."

"What would happen if I, per se, threw my spear into one of Hades' eyes?"I said

"What happens if the plan doesn't work?"Annabeth said

"Don't think negative"

"Right, we're entering the Land of the Dead, and I shouldn't think negative."

Percy took the pearls out of his pocket, four milky spheres that the Nereid has given him in Santa Monica.

Annabeth put her hand on Percy's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Percy. You're right, we'll make it. It'll be fine"

She gave Grover and I a few nudges.

"Oh, right! We got this car. We'll find the master bolt and save your mom. No problem"Grover said

"Yup, we're behind you all the way"I said

Percy looked at the three of us. He slipped the pearls back into his pocket. "Let's whup some Underworld butt."

We walked inside the DOA lobby. Muzak played on the hidden speakers. The carpet and walls were steel gray. Pencil cactuses grew in the corners like skeleton hands. The furniture was black leather, and every seat had been taken. There were people sitting on couches, people standing up, people staring out the window or waiting for the elevator. Nobody was moving, or talking, or did so much as blink.

But the more I looked at these people, the more I noticed that they were...transparent.

The security guard's desk was a raised podium, so we were forced to look up at him.

He was tall and elegant-looking, with chocolate colored skin and bleached-blond hair shaved military style in a crew cut. He wore tortoiseshell shades and a silk Italian suit that matches the color of his hair. A black rose was pinned to his lapel under a silver name tag.

"Your name is Chiron?"Percy said, looking at the guard's name tag.

He leaned across the desk, getting right into Percy's face. His smile was sweet and cold.

"What a precious young lad."He had an English accent. "Tell me, mate, do I look like a centaur?"

"N-no."

"Sir,"he added smoothly.

"Sir,"Percy said

He pinched the name tag and ran his finger under the letters. "Can you read this, mate? It says C-H-A-R-O-N. Say it with me: CARE-ON."

"Charon"

"Amazing! Now: Mr. Charon."

"Mr. Charon,"Percy said

"Well done."He sat back. "I hate being confused with that old horse-man. And now, how May I help you little dead ones?"

Percy looked at Annabeth.

"We want to go to the Underworld,"she said.

Charon's mouth twitched. "Well, that's refreshing."

"It is?"she asked

"Straightforward and honest. No screaming. No 'There must be a mistake, Mr. Charon.'" He looked us over. "How did you die, thenVl

Percy nudged Grover.

"Oh,"he said. "Um...drowned...in the bathtub"

"No,"I said. "It was a pool...we went in too deep and drowned in the pool"

Grover nodded. "Right. I can't believe I forgot"

"All four of you?"Charon asked

We nodded.

"Very big pool."Charon looked a tiny bit impressed. "I don't suppose you have coins for passage. Normally, with adults, you see, I could charge your American Express, or add the ferry price to your last cable bill. But with children...alas, you never did prepared. Suppose you'll have to take a seat for a few centuries."

"Oh, but we have coins."Percy set four golden drachmas on the counter.

"Well now...real drachmas. Real golden drachmas. I haven't seen these in..."

His fingers hovered greedily over the coins.

Then Charon looked at Percy. That cold stare behind his glasses seemed to bore a hole through my chest. "Here now,"he said. "You couldn't read my name correctly. Are you dyslexic, lad?"

"No,"Percy said. "I'm dead"

Charon leaned forward and took a sniff. "You're not dead. I should've known. You're a godling."

"We have to get to the Underworld,"Percy insisted.

Charon made a growling sound deep in his throat. Immediately, all the people in the waiting room got up and started pacing, agitated, lighting cigarettes, running hands through their hair, or checking their wristwatches.

"Leave while you can,"Charon told us. "I'll just take these and forget I saw you."

He went for the coins, but Percy snatched them back.

"No service, no tip"Percy said

Charon growled again, a deep blood-chilling sound.

"It's a shame too,"Percy sighed. "We had more to offer."

Percy held up an entire bag filled with drachmas that he had gotten from Crusty's stash. He took out a fistful of drachmas and let them spill through his fingers.

Charon's growl turned into a lion's purr. "Do you think I can be bought, godling? Eh...just out of curiosity, how much have you got there?"

"A lot,"Percy said. "I bet Hades doesn't pay you well enough for such hard work."

"Oh, you don't know the half of it. How would you like to babysit these spirits all day? Always 'Please don't let me be dead' or 'Please let me across for free.' I haven't had a pay raise in three thousand years. Do you imagine suits like this come cheap?"

"You deserve better,"Percy agreed. "A little appreciation. Respect. Good pay."

With each word, Percy stacked another gold coin on the counter. This Charon guy was oddly easy to manipulate when you had the right stuff.

Charon glanced down at his silk Italian jacket, as if he was imagining himself in something possibly even better. "I must say, lad, you're making some sense now. Just a little"

Percy stacked another few coins. "I could mention a pay raise while I'm talking to Hades."

He sighed. "The boat's almost full, anyway. I might as well add you four and be off."

He scooped up our money, and said, "Come along."

We pushed through the crowd of waiting spirits, who started grabbing at our clothes like the wind, their voices were whispering things I couldn't understand. Charon shoved them out of the way, grumbling, "Freeloaders."

He escorted us into the elevator, which was already crowded with souls of the dead, each one holding a green boarding pass. Charon grabbed and pushed back two spirits who tried to get on with us.

"Right. Now, no one get any ideas while I'm gone,"he announced to the waiting room. "And if anyone moves the dial off my easy-listening station again, I'll make sure you're here for another thousand years. Understand?"

He shut the doors. He put a key card into a slot in the elevator panel and we started to descend.

"What happens to the spirits waiting in the lobby?"Annabeth asked.

"Nothing,"Charon said.

"For how long?"

"Forever, or until I'm feeling generous."

"Oh,"she said. "That's...fair."

Charon raised an eyebrow. "Whoever said death was fair, young miss? Wait until it's your turn. You'll die soon enough, where you're going.@

"We'll get out alive,"Percy said.

"Ha"

I wasn't listening much though, I was too busy thinking about what I would do when I came in contact with Hades. It would be unwise to attack, but the thought of even being in his domain, the thought of him being so near...the god who ordered me and Thalia's death.

By the time I snapped back to reality, I heard the howl of a large animal, and we were at the shoreline of the Underworld.

"Old Three-Face is hungry,"Charon said. His smile turned skeletal in the greenish light. "Bad luck for you, godlings"

The bottom of the boat we had boarded slid onto the black sandS the dead began to disembark.

Charon said, "I'd wish you luck, mate, but there isn't any down here. Mind you, don't forget to mention my pay raise."

He counted our golden coins into his pouch, then took up his pole. He warbles something that sounded like some sort of song as he ferried the empty barge back across the river.

I brought out my two sided highlighter and uncapped the orange side. My celestial bronze spear emerged and I proceeded cautiously.

I think out of the four of us I was the most on edge. Hades had already tried to kill me once, whose to say he won't try it again. I was panting heavily, sweating bullets, and my eyes shifted from left to right as fast as flies.

When we came to a stop I noticed something. The entrance to the Underworld wasn't just an entrance, it was entrances. There were three separate entrances under one huge black archway that said YOU ARE NOW ENTERING EREBUS.

Each entrance had a pass-through metal detector with security cameras mounted on top. Beyond this were tollbooths manned by black-robes ghouls like Charon.

The howling of the hungry animal was really loud now, but I couldn't see where it was coming from. The three-headed dog, Cerberus, who was supposed to be guarding Hades' door, thankfully, was nowhere to be seen.

The dead queued up in three lines, two marked ATTENDANT ON DUTY, and one marked EZ DEATH. The EZ DEATH line was moving quickly while the other two were crawling.

"What do you figure?"Percy asked Annabeth.

"The fast line must go straight to the Asphodel Fields,"she said. "No contest. They don't want to risk judgement from the court, because it might go against them."

"There's a court for dead people?"

"Yeah. Three judges. They switch around who sits on the bench. King Minos, Thomas Jefferson, Shakespeare—people like that. Sometimes they look at a life and decide that person needs a special reward—the Fields of Elysium. Sometimes they decide on punishment. But most people, well, they just loved. Nothing special, good or bad. So they go to the Asphodel Fields."

"And do what?"

Grover said, "Imagine standing in a wheat field in Kansas. Forever"

"It's terrible"I said

"Yeah, sounds harsh"Percy said

"Not as harsh as that,"Grover muttered. "Look."

A couple of black-robbed ghouls had pulled aside one spirit and were frisking him at the security desk.

"He's that preacher who made the news, remember?"Grover asked

"Oh, yeah."Percy said. "What're they doing to him?"

"Special punishment from Hades,"Grover guessed. "The really bad people get his personal attention as soon as they arrive. The Fur—the Kindly Ones will set up an eternal torture for him."

Just then I could imagine my mother being tortured for eternity by the Kindly Ones...a broad smile formed on my face.

"But if he's a preacher, and he believes in a different hell..."

Grover shrugged. "Who says he's seeing this place they way we're seeing it? Humans see what they want to see. You're very stubborn—er, persistent, that way."

We got closer to the gates. The howling grew louder and louder and my heart started beating faster. I felt as though it would burst out of my chest. I didn't know where it was coming from..that just made me all the more terrified.

My I felt breathless, my mouth went dry, my sweating became more prominent. I felt dizzy, like I was about to throw up.

Then, about fifty feet in front of us, the green most shimmered. Standing just where the path split into three lanes was an enormous shadowy monster.

I didn't see him before...but then I saw him. His eyes...they were blood-red. I began shaking, I couldn't focus, my sight went blurry for a bit and my heart started beating so fast that I'm pretty sure it could go faster than Hermes.

I dropped my spear and fell to my knees, clenching my chest. All noise ceased and I could only hear my rapid breaths as black spots appeared in my sight, growing bigger and bigger until it I saw nothing but black.

HA! Cliff hanger! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. The next one should be very interesting with Alaster going to the Fields of Asphodel. And maybe we might see a small cameo from a character from HoO...maybe.