Hey everyone! Again, sorry for the wait. I was hoping Spring Break this week would give me some time to write. Instead it turned into one of the busiest weeks I've had in a while. But this update is really long and I enjoyed writing it with the little time I did have, so I hope you enjoy. :)


It's nice to know other people's kids do crazy things too.

Frank and Hazel were regaling us with the story of six-year old Sammy's attempt, a few weeks prior, at juggling the oranges Hazel brought home from the grocery store. Apparently he'd been caught before the produce could be severely damaged, but it still made for a funny story.

We sat in an outdoor café, chatting over lunch with them and Nico. Logan and Nicky were at camp for the weekend, and Carly was with Emily and Sammy at the son of Hades' house, under the capable care of Will Solace.

The place was crowded, but not overwhelmingly so. We'd gotten a table with a nice view of the street, a few blocks away from the ocean. It was early June, just a few weeks before school would be letting out for the year, and the weather was comfortably warm. The sea breeze blew through regularly, ruffling the napkins on the table and occasionally blowing Annabeth's hair just enough for it to brush against my arm, which was distracting in the best way.

The Zhangs were in New York for a few days and were staying with Nico and Will in Long Island, about half an hour from where we lived. We'd made the trip for the day to see them, but had jumped at the opportunity for a few hours of kid-free conversation. Nico had volunteered Will to babysit. The latter had been less than thrilled, but hadn't been able to refuse. And anyway, I was pretty sure he didn't really mind very much.

"He sounds like he lives up to his namesake," Annabeth said from beside me as our laughter died down a bit.

"Gods," said Hazel, smiling, "You have no idea. Emily was so easy compared to him."

"That's little boys for you," I said, "When Logan and Nick were little, we couldn't leave them alone for a minute. They got their hands on baby powder once and decided to have a war with it."

Annabeth shook her head at the memory and laughed. "Gods, it got everywhere. I was cleaning powder up for weeks."

"Oh, no!" Hazel laughed. And it was funny now. At the time, it had been a really huge mess.

"They were white head to toe," I said.

Nico sat back in his chair, shaking his head. "You know, sometimes I wonder if we made the right choice, not ever adopting. And then I talk to you guys and I'm really happy with our choices." It was something the two had considered at one time, but that ultimately got pushed aside as they both worked demanding jobs and had other immediate priorities.

"What?" I said, "You don't want to dedicate eighteen years of your life to creatures that take up all your time, eat all your food, wreck your house, and spend all your money?"

"And cover you in bodily excrement pretty often," added Frank, smirking.

"Not really, no," Nico laughed.

"That's too bad," he replied, "That happens a lot."

"Come on, guys. They're not that bad," Annabeth put in, "They do love you. Sometimes. When they're really young."

"Until you tell them you won't buy them something in the store," Hazel said, "Then they forget they ever did."

The son of Hades laughed. "You guys aren't really succeeding in changing my mind here."

"And then there's the sibling rivalry," I put in, "Gods, they're seriously experts at that. They love each other one minute and hate each other the next. And I swear they do it just to annoy…" From my spot facing the street, I caught sight of an unfortunately familiar figure and lost my train of thought completely.

It was a figure I hadn't seen in more than twenty-five years, but then it wasn't one I would easily forget, though why it would show up now, after all this time, I had no idea.

She looked exactly the same, right down to her stringy black hair and huge denim dress with it's matching hat. It didn't look any better on her now than it had when I was twelve. The small not-Chihuahua was leashed at her side.

For maybe half a second, I actually hoped it was just a coincidence, that maybe she wasn't here for us. Maybe we just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and maybe she didn't care. Maybe she didn't even know we were here. Camp wasn't too far away, after all.

The instant I met her eyes though I knew that was wishful thinking, and quite an emphasis on wishful at that. She was looking right at us. More specifically, she was looking right at me.

Big surprise.

Her lips curled into a cruel smile when I caught her gaze, and then she started making her way toward us. Not in any real rush, and she was fairly far away, but it wouldn't take her that long to reach our table.

Maybe a second had passed, which wouldn't have been long, except that we were a table full of half-bloods who had more than our fair share of experience with this sort of thing. "Percy?" Hazel started to ask while Nico, next to her, started to turn to follow my eyes.

"Don't look," I said, "Monster. A bad one. We need to go." I was careful not to say the name out of habit, though it was probably too little too late at this point. Still. "Ten o'clock," I said to Annabeth, who was seated next to me and the only one of us already facing the same direction I was.

She nodded, understanding if not remembering like I was.

"We need to p—" We were all on our feet already when Frank began and broke off as I tossed a handful of bills on the table, more than enough to cover our meals. We might have been going to save the surrounding area from immediate danger, but we were still law-abiding citizens. And I was sadly far too used to this sort of thing.

"You can pay me back later," I said, "Nico, you know the area better. We should get somewhere less public." There were a lot of people around and the last thing I wanted was for innocent mortals to get hurt.

He already seemed to be thinking as much and led the way. "What are we looking at?" he asked, casting glances behind us even as he led our group in the opposite direction. The monster was gaining now, moving very swiftly considering her girth.

"The fat woman in the denim," I answered. He nodded recognition. "That's Echidna."

Hazel gasped quietly. "You mean—?"

"Yeah," Annabeth answered her, having produced a dagger from somewhere on her person.

Frank was wide-eyed, looking between us. "You've fought her?"

"Percy has," she said simply. I glanced behind us to find Echidna and the Chimera were no longer in sight behind us, which did not do much to ease my mind.

"Why does that not surprise me?" Nico muttered, turning right at an intersection and leading us into an unused lot littered with old beer cans and fliers. "How's this?"

"It will do nicely, Nico DiAngelo," answered a voice that was not mine from the other side of the small clearing. Echidna was suddenly there and definitely had not been a second ago. My experience with her had previously been limited to a small space, but apparently she could move quickly when she wanted to. That was worth noting. She continued, "Though I would have loved crushing a few mortals along with you, they don't concern me. In fact, most of you don't either. It's Percy Jackson I want." Surprise. "And since I'm feeling rather generous, I might just let the rest of you go now."

"Fat chance," Annabeth said from beside me, prepared, I knew, to go in with me, disguise herself if and when necessary, and go in for the kill while I distracted from the front. It was our default fighting arrangement, and it stood the test of time. The others fell in line beside us; Nico to my right and Hazel and Frank to Annabeth's left. None of them looked inclined to go anywhere either.

"Fair enough," the mother of all monsters said reasonably, "My son and I will kill you all then."

"Your son?" Nico asked from beside me.

"Yes, Chimera. My son," Echidna replied causally, gesturing to the Chihuahua still at her side. She held the end of its red leash in her hand. It growled at us.

"Oh," Nico replied lamely, "Chimera. Of course. My bad."

"What do you want?" I demanded.

"Why, you, Percy Jackson. I want you."

"Yeah, I kind of gathered that. Why?"

"Because you have been quite the menace for me since I left you in St. Louis. I should never have let you get away then and all the children of mine that you've killed since have not been shy about letting me know as much. And yet, as they have all disappointed me in their attempts at killing you, I have come to do it myself. I cannot listen to them whine from that wretched abyss anymore."

"Right," I said slowly, "Well, here's the thing. This is the first chance I've had to see these guys," I gestured in Frank and Hazel's direction, "in months. And I really don't appreciate you coming and interrupting our lunch like this, so could you just do whatever it is you think you came to do and let us move on with our day?"

Echidna gave an awful smile. "You are more confident since we last met. It's almost endearing of you."

"Yeah, I know. I'm adorable," I said, "I've also faced things a lot worse than you."

"Indeed, you have. But I think your confidence might exceed your ability. You are past your prime, after all. You're nothing but a mortal hero and you faced my father-in-law long ago and barely escaped with your life then."

I might have stopped her and asked just who her father-in-law was that I faced so long ago, but I didn't have to. Annabeth anticipated this and discretely whispered "Him," in my ear. And I knew from the emphasis she put on the pronoun just which 'him' she was referring to.

Echidna was the daughter-in-law of Tartarus. Sure, why not?

"Okay, first of all," I said, "It's one thing when my wife tells me I'm getting old, but it's definitely not okay for you to do it. And second, if you're so sure you can beat me, what are you waiting for? I had plans for today and none of them included being repeatedly insulted by a blue-jean blimp." I uncapped Riptide and held the sword's familiar grip in my hand. "Are you gonna attack sometime or what?"

"Okay, Percy Jackson," Echidna said, dropping the end of the Chimera's red leash and letting it fall to the dirt at her feet, "Have it your way. Sonny, take care of the others. I want them out of my way."

Just like that, the Chimera went from a twelve-inch lapdog to a twelve-foot monster with the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and a diamondback rattlesnake for a tail, complete with blood-caked mane and corrosive venom dripping from the snake's mouth. It lunged at Frank and Hazel, both of whom sprung into action. I would have helped, except I had Echidna to worry about.

Back in the Gateway Arch all those years ago, I never actually got around to fighting Echidna herself. I never got past the Chimera. It was the first monster I encountered since fighting the Minotaur on my way into camp the first time and it had not ended well for me.

At the time, I was completely untrained and, looking back on it, too inexperienced even to head into the city to get Mr. D a double cheeseburger, never mind to travel across the country in search of a weapon of mass destruction that belonged to the king of a bunch of gods I knew next to nothing about. But then, it wasn't exactly the last time I'd be going unprepared into something huge.

Anyway, the point is I'd never actually seen Echidna in her true form, and now I wished I never would. She was awful.

From the neck up, she was almost the same fat, ugly lady, cellulite veins and all, though her eyes were slits now, like a reptile's, and were almost florescent in their greenness. The rest of her body was huge and snake-like, easily over six feet tall, with scales for skin that matched the ones along her arms that she normally kept hidden beneath the sleeves of her dress. Her clawed hands looked sharp as razors and I was willing to bet good money that the yellow liquid dripping from her newly acquired fangs was horribly poisonous.

She started toward me, slithering on her snake-tail, which was actually really weird to watch. Annabeth and I locked eyes briefly and she nodded and, stepping away, pulled her Yankees Cap from her back pocket. That thing was seriously a lifesaver. Literally. Echidna all but ignored her, which I figured she would probably live to regret pretty quickly.

The Chimera was giving Frank and Hazel a run for their money, spewing fire from one end and poison from the other. Nico had moved in to help them when it got a lucky shot in and missed Hazel so narrowly it left the ends of her hair singed. He glanced over at me now and I nodded. He should stay where he was. I had Annabeth.

It had been maybe two seconds. The mother of all monsters was almost on top of me. She sent a torrent of venom my way, but I was ready. I sidestepped in time. She countered quickly, swiping out with her claws, but I evaded easily enough. I swung Riptide toward her outstretched limb and she was forced to retract it or lose it.

She hissed impressively and I got the feeling she was still only playing. With that in mind, I went on the offensive, charging at her with my blade before me. She seemed surprised at the sudden attack, but evaded effortlessly. "Stupid hero," she said, "You stand no chance. No mortal has killed me in millennia." She jerked, whipping her massive snake tail at me. With its scales like titanium armor, it was probably five hundred pounds of monster body part flying toward me. I dodged and rolled underneath. I wondered idly where Annabeth was. There'd been no sign of her yet.

"Yeah?" I said, rolling to my feet on the other side of her. She swiveled quickly and gracelessly to face me again. "It sounds like you're overdue then."

She must have found that comment offensive, because she gave a hissing growl and made another grab at me. I spun back and she missed me, while also leaving herself momentarily open. Ducking under her exposed arm, I drove Riptide up into the flesh of her armpit. She was smart though and dodged enough that she received only a minor flesh wound. It sure made her angry though. She screamed in rage and pain and sent poison flying everywhere. I ducked out of the way but felt pinpricks of pain against the back of my neck as it made contact with my skin.

I faced her again to find the monster advancing fast. Behind her, Hazel and Nico seemed to be making progress with the Chimera. Frank was nowhere in sight, but I didn't have time to dwell on it long. He'd probably transformed himself into something small and deadly. I hurried to raise Riptide again, but with just feet to spare before she was on top of me, Echidna stopped abruptly and jerked away. There was a deep gash in the lower portion of her snake tail that had not been there before. Courtesy of Annabeth, surely.

Echidna knew as much too. "Daughter of Athena!" She hissed unpleasantly, "I will deal with you next."

I had no idea where Annabeth was or what she was doing, but her distraction had bought me some time. Echidna started toward me again, fast, but I was ready. She shot another volley of poison spit my way, which I maneuvered away from, and, feigning right but moving left, I managed a solid blow with the sword just below what I assumed was her rib cage. She wasn't very happy, but I was ready for the poison shower she sent my way in response. She was smarter this time though and swung out with her razor blade-tipped claws at the same time, and in my attempt to avoid the corrosive saliva, I just about danced into her reach. It was from nothing but honed reflex that I didn't wind up shish-kebobed. As it was, I came away with a rather nasty gash in my side. The cry of pain escaped my lips against my will, but I lashed out with Riptide all the same and she was forced back a few steps.

"Stop this, Percy Jackson," Echidna said angrily, "Surrender now and I will kill you quickly."

"I'll pass," I said. From behind me, a cry sounded. I didn't dare look away from my current opponent, but I saw a dark-clad figure fall out of the corner of my eye. Hazel's answering cry confirmed it to be Nico.

My heart was in my throat. These monsters were here for me, and if Nico was hurt at their hand, it was my fault. Last I'd seen, they'd cornered the Chimera and while they hadn't appeared to be making much progress in the way of offense, they'd seemed to be holding their own. Apparently that had changed. But then, the Chimera was no small inconvenience.

Echidna's gruesome smile sent shivers of rage down my spine. I'd had enough. But before I got the chance to act on the thought, the snake woman gave a wild jerk, her expression contorted into one of hatred. Annabeth appeared in midair, her Yankees cap several feet away from her. Apparently she'd been flung from whatever foothold she'd managed to get on the monster, but her fall seemed controlled. "Stupid mortal!" the snake woman roared, "You will pay for your interference, you insufferable hero!"

I was still prepared to move in with Riptide, even while I watched Annabeth in my peripheral vision. I just needed an opening, and even while Echidna was currently focused on my wife, she still kept her flank well-guarded.

Annabeth hit the ground and rolled gracefully to her feet, sticking the landing with her dagger still in her hand. She looked angry. The sounds of our friends' battle still raged behind us, though I thought the ratios of growls to yelps of pain might have been changing in their favor. I didn't dare look.

With Echidna's full gaze on her, Annabeth pulled back and threw her blade for all it was worth. The monster, of course, saw it coming and evaded it easily. "You missed!" she laughed mockingly, "Pathetic!"

"Did I?" Annabeth asked, her voice sweet and deathly calm even while storm clouds swirled in her gray eyes. The mother of all monsters actually stopped mid-chortle and glanced behind her, at her son, the Chimera, which was slowly turning to dust with my wife's dagger sunk hilt-deep into the base of its neck.

Echidna howled in fury and turned on Annabeth again. "How dare you!" she screamed, " Annabeth Chase, you will pay dearly!" Even with everything happening, it was odd to hear her addressed that way, by her maiden name. It had been so long since I'd last heard it. But then, I guess married names mattered little to evil Greek monsters.

Echidna charged at her, claws outstretched and venom flying. "No!" Annabeth yelled to someone behind me, "Get Nico!" The monster was on her before she could get another word out, but Annabeth was too quick. She evaded the claws and poison and, mid stride, met my eyes.

Her meaning was plain. Our roles were reversed now. I wasn't the distraction anymore.

And sure enough, a second later, she darted in and danced out from another torrent of seriously acidic rain and Echidna, in her effort to catch her from behind with her massive tail, left her entire right flank vulnerable. My body brimming with energy, I took the opportunity immediately and ran in with Riptide.

Echidna realized what was happening a split second too late. She whirled around to face me again, but succeeded only in nearly slicing herself in half, as I'd already stabbed the blade deep into her abdomen.

She gave a final cry of agony and vanished quickly, a cloud of golden dust the only evidence she'd ever existed. It caught the ocean breeze and blew quickly away.

I gave Annabeth a once-over to ensure she wasn't hurt and then turned toward our friends, who were all alive and upright, though Nico had a nasty gash on his forehead that was slowly closing as he sipped Nectar from the canteen Frank often carried. The other two looked fine.

"What happened?" I asked, walking over.

The son of Hades shrugged. He looked dazed, but his eyes became more focused as the Nectar did its work. "I'm fine," he said, "Hit my head. It looks worse than it is."

"You were knocked unconscious!" Hazel protested from beside him.

"I'm fine," he repeated and then, at his sister's expression, amended, "Now." He glanced at me. "You're bleeding, by the way."

Only after he mentioned it did I remember the gash Echidna gave me in my side. Suddenly it really hurt. I raised my hand to the wound to find my shirt soaked with blood. "Oh, yeah," I said, glancing down.

I didn't need to see her face to know Annabeth was rolling her eyes at me. She held out a square of Ambrosia that she must have already been holding. I took it obediently and ate it. Almost immediately the pain subsided to a dull ache and the bleeding slowed. Water would have worked faster, but the godly food was still more than effective.

Annabeth stared resignedly at my ripped and bloody clothes. "We're going to have to stop and at least get you a new shirt before we get Carly."

"Wouldn't be the first time," I answered, mimicking her tone. I stared at her, waiting for her to meet my eyes. She did after a minute, and then looked quickly away, smiling even as she rolled her eyes. I grinned and then turned back to our friends, who finished returning weapons to their various sheaths. Hazel picked up the purse she'd abandoned on the ground. She fell into step next to Annabeth as we made our way from the dusty and unused lot.

"So," Frank said, "Do we want to know how you and the mother of monsters know each other?"


So, in case you didn't figure it out, Emily and Sammy are Frank and Hazel's kids. :)

Thank you so much for reading! Next update (hopefully) soon.