Hey everyone! I'm finally, finally, finally back! I apologize for the extremely long (and unannounced) hiatus. Life went completely crazy, and I kept thinking I would have time to write this chapter. I finally had the time and brain power to sit down and write it, so here you are! I think my writing has improved a lot just over these few ten chapters, so I'm very happy about that. I am still planning on editing the first chapters, mainly to put them in third person POV. I don't have time for a ton of heavy editing, but I will clean them up and add a teeny bit more information. I finished revising the first chapter but haven't finished the others yet, and I think I'll wait to post the new versions till I'm all done with the editing. Alright, I will stop taking your time and release you to enjoy chapter ten! (Spoiler: they finally start the quest! Well almost...some other fun things happen first, hehe!)
Chapter Ten: A House Divided Against Itself Will Fall
Nico jumped down the last few rungs to the floor of the engine room with a loud clunk. Sucking in a deep breath, he tried to steady his racing thoughts. He wasn't good with people, and most of the time it didn't bother him. Still, he wished he could have found the right words to comfort his practically life-long friend, but his mind had drawn up blank. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he glanced around the crowded space for Leo, blocking any thought of Catalia's insane new found powers. Leo glanced up when Nico approached, raising his eyebrow at the unexpected guest.
"Hey, Nico. Something you need?" Leo's question was notably absent of his usual jokes and smile, though he tried to fake one. Nico was used to fake smiles, and this time he wasn't sympathetic. In fact, if he was being completely honest, he was angry. Perhaps it was just leftover from Percy's words and the fight the night before, but he couldn't believe what Leo had just done.
"What is wrong with you?" He growled, a dangerous tone underlying his words despite his best efforts to stay calm.
Leo crossed his arms, all traces of joking slipping away into an expression of surprised anger. "Um, excuse you?"
Nico stepped closer, glaring at the shorter boy. "I warned you, if you hurt her, I would-"
Leo interrupted him angrily. unidentifiable emotion filling his eyes, but he kept his expression stone cold. "Actually, you didn't. Percy did. And I didn't-"
"You didn't what? Hurt her? Really? Then why did I come back to check on you and find her crying on the deck?" Nico half-shouted at him, knowing he was overreacting, but not really caring all the same.
Leo's face crumpled and he turned away, fidgeting with the machinery. "She was crying? Nevermind, don't answer that." He muttered. "It wasn't my fault, alright? Just go away, it's none of your business anyways."
Nico glare turned murderous, anger pulsing through his body. "It wasn't your fault?" He repeated quietly, the dangerous tone returning.
Leo turned to meet his eyes. "Yeah. That's what I said. Glad your ears are working, at least partly. Cuz I also said to leave, di Angelo." His face was now stiff with anger too, more than Nico had ever seen on his usually jovial face.
"Yeah, how about no." He snapped, stepping even closer. "Not until you admit it and apologize. I knew you were bad for her."
"Oh really!" Leo shouted, stepping towards Nico till they were practically nose to nose. "You don't know anything, death boy! Now get out of my ship!" Nico just glared at him, and Leo's body tensed in rage. The punch was so unexpected that Nico didn't see it coming, nor was he prepared for it. For the second time in 24 hours, a friend's fist slammed into his nose with a crack, and he stumbled back with a shout of pain. Before he could recover, Leo grabbed his shirt and glared down at him. "You didn't see what she did. She's stronger than anything I've heard of, much less seen. Even Percy didn't disagree when I said we couldn't trust her. Her father is freaking Chaos, and we've known her for a tiny fraction of her life. Do the math, Angelo. We barely know her, and she's got the power to kill us all with a flick of her hand. So yeah, I backed off. I'm only kissing someone I know and trust." He growled, then released Nico and stormed back to his work. Nico could only stare after him, shock overruling his anger. The truth was, Leo was partly right. Logically, they couldn't trust her. But Nico knew more than the others, and he knew they could trust her. He knew Leo was doing what he thought was best, but he still blamed him for suddenly dropping all trust and hurting Tia. Finally, he turned and left, deciding to wait until they were both calmer, and he could figure out how to get them to trust her. She turned around with a gasp as she exited the ladder, her hand covering her mouth then dropping to her side. Nico was confused for a moment, then raised his hand to his face and felt the blood dripping down from his nose. He cursed under his breath, hurriedly wiping the blood off. He'd been so lost in thought he hadn't paused to consider her reaction. She was watching him, tear tracks still shining on her cheeks and her mouth half open.
He hesitated, then stepped towards her. "I'm sorry, Tia...I didn't mean to-" Her eyes flickered down to his hands, then she gave a half sob and turned away. Confused, he looked down at his hands, covered in blood from his nose. Realization hit him, and he nearly groaned. She must have been so upset that it didn't register that the blood was his, and not Leo's. Girls were too complicated. He didn't have the words or the energy to talk to her, so he quietly slipped down the side ladder and to the floor of the bunker. Footsteps sounded by the entrance, and Percy jogged back in, a duffel slung over his shoulder. He stopped short when he caught sight of Nico, worry filling his bright eyes.
"What happened?" Percy asked, his free hand drifting towards his pocket where he kept riptide.
Nico shook his head at him and shrugged. "Nothing. There's no danger or anything, relax."
Percy nodded slowly, eyeing him, as if trying to read Nico's emotions. "Is Cat okay?" He asked, still studying him.
Nico sighed, then nodded. "Well, physically, yeah." He responded, unsure of how to explain the mess Leo made.
Percy's face scrunched up with worry and confusion again. "What happened?"
Nico groaned, tempted to hide in the shadows and ignore everyone and everything. "Leo. He was being a jerk. Thus the bloody nose. Again." He said, slightly bitterly. He still hadn't gotten over their fight last night.
Percy's eyes widened and he groaned, dragging his hand through his hair. "Look, Nico, I'm sorry. I was stressed and worried, and while I know you know something you're not letting on...I trust you enough to not ask. I shouldn't have said those things or hit you."
Nico just nodded, surprised Percy was actually apologizing, but not sure what to say in response. "It's fine. I shouldn't have either." He muttered eventually, looking away.
"Okay, now that's settled, care to explain more?" Percy prodded, setting his bag down and crossing his arms.
"The two of them almost kissed. Leo pulled back, said he couldn't, or some crap like that. She told me, I went down and talked to him, and you can see how that ended." Nico summarized, waving at his face.
Percy's face turned murderous for a brief second, then back to his normal expression. "Wow. Poor Cat. And geez, who knew that scrawny kid could punch so hard?" He laughed a little, and Nico stared at him in shock.
"That's it? You're not angry?"
Percy sighed. "A little, and I feel terrible for Cat...but in all honesty, I don't blame Leo. We...had a talk, earlier, and I get where he's coming from. So sure, I'm not happy about it, but like I said, I don't really blame him."
"Oh. Now I get it." Nico muttered, remembering what Leo had said about Percy not disagreeing. "I agree, but I'm a little more angry at him than you. Probably just because he punched me though." He answered, feeling a half smile plaster itself on his face as he lied through his teeth. No, he really didn't get it, but how could they understand? He wasn't really sure why he lied instead of shouting at Percy. Maybe he was just tired of fighting, or he was pretending to be on their side so if it got messy, he was prepared. Or maybe, just maybe...he kind of agreed with them.
Percy smiled grimly. "Let's get this ship in the air, yeah?"
Annabeth walked around the group of demigods, checking to make sure everyone was packed and ready. Jane, Alex, Chiron, and a few others were standing on Half-Blood hill, waiting for the boys and Catalia to return with the ship. Annabeth sighed, wishing she was packing to go to college, not another save the world quest. On the other hand, she was still going with Percy, and it would give her a chance to study his sister's powers more. She was still astounded from the display of power Catalia had shown earlier...creating a living being. That was a completely new ability, an insanely powerful one, and it both excited and scared her. Something in the younger girl's face when Annabeth had asked her about creating a human had seemed off. Logically, well, ignoring the fact that she already went against logic, if she could create a mouse, she could create a human. And that...well that was amazing...and amazingly scary. Jane interrupted her racing thoughts with a gasp, and Annabeth turned around to see a massive shadow covering the hill. She looked up to see the Argo II, or at least it's twin sibling. The ship now descending from the sky was almost identical to their ship used during the giant war. The only visible differences were the decoration on the side, which was much more extravagant than the original, and a few new dangerous looking things sticking out from the sides of the hull. Annabeth squinted until she could read the word etched on the side of the ship in gold swirling letters: Episis. She didn't recognize the name from anything, but it was as good a name as any for a ship, and it actually fit quite well. Alex and Jane were staring at the ship in complete awe, never having seen the original. Jane wasn't hiding her amazement nearly as well as Alex, and Annabeth smiled a little at them. The two of them reminded her of the first quest she'd ever gone on, which was actually quite a long time ago. The ship stopped descending a few feet from the ground, and Percy poked his head over the railing with a grin. Annabeth smiled back at him as he tossed a rope ladder down. Nico climbed down first, followed by Percy, Cat, and finally Leo. Catalia scooted away from the boys the minute she climbed down and hurried towards the cabin. "Cat!" Annabeth called after her, stopping her before she could go too far. "I brought your bags, and some extra stuff from your cabin I thought you could use. Your cabin mates were quite helpful in adding things." She said sarcastically, checking to make sure the Hermes cabin hadn't stolen her bags again. Catalia gave her half smile and a muttered thanks, then went over to the pile of bags and grabbed hers. Annabeth watched her, confused at the strange behavior. She jumped as strong arms slid around her waist and turned her around, then smiled as Percy's dancing eyes met hers. He kissed her gently, sending butterflies knocking around in her stomach, then stepped back and grinned at her. She smiled and rolled her eyes at his goofy grin, then turned to more serious things.
"The ship looks great, did everything go smoothly?" Annabeth questioned, watching her friends finish preparing.
"Well...mostly?" Percy responded, his words more of a question than a statement. Annabeth followed his glance to Nico, noticing his swollen and slightly bloody nose, then to Catalia, who seemed to be pretending that everyone didn't exist, and finally to Leo, whose expression was unnaturally cold and stiff. She turned back to Percy with a concerned gaze, but he shook his head. "I'll explain later." He said quietly, squeezing her arm. She nodded, wondering what had happened, but followed him over to the others. The other five demigods stood in a group by the side of the ship, apart from Chiron and the other campers who had come to wish them farewell.
"That's absolutely amazing!" Jane exclaimed as Annabeth and Percy joined the rest of the crew.
Catalia smiled half-heartedly, but Jane didn't seem to notice. "How much work was left to be done?" She asked, still examining the ship.
"Oh, not much at all." Catalia answered lightly, but Annabeth knew her well enough to know she was lying. Percy stiffened at her side, and she glanced around the group, seeing Leo's eyes narrow in suspicion and almost...anger? Annabeth couldn't imagine why Catalia would lie about how much work it had been, but she really couldn't fathom why Leo would be angry about it.
"So, we leaving or what?" Alex asked, grumpy as ever.
"I think we're all set, if the ship is ready?" Annbeth directed the last part to Leo, who nodded.
"Yeah, it's in tip top condition. We're ready to beat up some evil monsters as soon as everyone gets on the ship."
Annabeth nodded, then turned and called to Chiron. "We're ready to leave, any last words?" After the words left her mouth she realized they probably weren't the best word choice for the citation, but too late now.
Chiron trotted over, followed by some of the other campers. "Excellent. Why don't you load the last few bags and we'll have a quick talk?"
Leo told them all to leave their bags on the deck until he'd showed them their cabins, then grabbed his bags and climbed up to the deck. The others followed him, and in a few minutes the seven questers stood in front of Chiron, and the only thing left to do was say goodbye.
Chiron looked around the solemn group, then began to speak. "I know that this is a difficult journey, fraught with danger and confusion. I wish that I could come with you, or even that I could guide you more before you leave. But alas, I have sworn oaths of secrecy, and moreover I do not even know of many of the things you will face. But I do know that you will face many challenges along this difficult journey, and there will be divisions amongst you. You must stick together through it all, do not let petty arguments divide your team - for a house divided against itself will fall. You will not be able to beat the final obstacle without each one of your team - and even then, I fear that it will be near impossible to beat a being such as the one you will face. Trust in each other, stay strong, and do not fail." Annabeth was surprised at the solemnity and seriousness in his words. She had never heard him speak so gravely or so strongly before, and she hoped that this wasn't an impossible mission. She squeezed Percy's hand, and he held hers just as tightly.
"Well that was a depressing yet helpful pep talk," Leo said, his voice breaking the silence.
Chiron laughed. "That is a fairly accurate description, Mr. Valdez. Now say goodbye, we don't want to keep the world waiting for saving too long." Annabeth turned and went over to her cabinmates, who hugged her fiercely. Malcolm, her second in command, stepped forward, holding a gray backpack. "So, uh, Annabeth, we figured since this is your third time going off on a huge quest to save the world, and like your 80th time going on a quest, you deserved something special. This is just a good luck present and thank you for all the times you saved our butts from the whole cabin." He said, his eyes just the tiniest bit moist.
Annabeth smiled in surprise, then hugged Malcolm with a little half sob. Her other cabinmates that she knew well gathered around and made it a group hug. She rarely cried, but this felt so big and impossible, and she realized just how much she appreciated her godly half siblings. "Thank you, guys. But I still expect the cabin to be in top shape when I come back."
Malcolm grinned at her. "Darn, I'd hoped for a free pass."
Annabeth smiled at the group, then stepped back towards the ship. "Bye, I'll see you after I save Percy and the world!" Percy, who didn't have cabinmates to say goodbye to, heard her joke as she returned to the rope ladder and raised an eyebrow. She just grinned at him and hugged him, whispering. "I'm so glad you're with me from the start this time, Seaweed Brain."
He laughed and wrapped his arms around her, murmuring into her hair. "Me too, Wise Girl.
Alrighty, there it is! Chapter ten in all it's angsty glory. I'm still in story mode, so I completely forgot what else I was going to say. I hope to be updating more often (I know I say that a lot but I really mean it this time!) and maybe starting a second story. As always, please drop a review with any comments or questions, I love hearing from y'all!
Have a wonderful day,
Elnarya
