My skin burned like I was on fire. In the summer heat the inside of the jar became a furnace. I sat up and fished a pomegranate seed out.

I felt isolated; completely cut off from the rest of the world. If you ask me, that was worse than the heat.

No one was coming for me.

I swallowed the seed and felt unconsciousness taking me immediately. I prayed to fall asleep and to wake up to see my dad and a happier existence.

A happier existence...maybe I had gotten my wish after all.

As the nightmare faded to reality, I was clinging to Will. My right arm was between the two of us; my left was around him.

"Safe," I whispered, slowly waking up.

"Yes. You've finally found a safe place." I got lost in his blue eyes.

"I was wrong. The Greeks and Romans both came for me," I told him.

"That's right. Without even being there, you got them working together. But Nico, I'm sorry you went through that. If I had been there, maybe I could have helped you."

"If you had been there, you would be dead." Suddenly, I was very angry with Solace. "Haven't you learned anything from all of this?"

He laughed but his tone was slightly offended. "Me? What are you talking about?"

"Do you still want to shoot Octavian off his high horse?" Still want to fight?"

"How could you possibly know about that!?!"

"I dream walk. It's one of my gifts. But don't change the subject. Answer the question."

"Do you even know it was like? The legion was coming for us on his command. They surrounded us and brought those monsters. There are little kids who live here and have no where else to go. You're not the only orphan around here, you know. Of course, I wanted to fight."

"Look at Percy and Annabeth. They are running to New Rome to escape this place. Jason and Piper left too. Do you really think they're coming back? Look at me. This is the cost of war.

People die. People get hurt and so me don't recover. And the ones who survive run away."

Solace was quiet for some time. Then he surprised me completely. Instead of leaving in anger, he pulled me closer.

But it was too close and I wasn't feeling it right now. I tried pulling free but he just held me tighter. I tried pushing him away and kicking my legs but none of it worked. He just clung to me that much more.

The struggle lasted for several minutes with my shouting and scratching and fighting him. "I'll leave! I don't have to stay with you!"

"Then leave."

I hated him so much right then. "Let me go," I screamed at him. I bit my own arms trying to shake the anguish.

Exhausted I began to sob. "You can't do this to me. You can't make me stay. I'm broken; how could you want me around?"

"Because you're the strongest, most resilient person I've met. And gods help me I love you so much for it. But it's not working for you anymore. Everyone has a limit."

"You think you know me! How I feel!"

"I know what it feels like when people try to make you something you're not. I know what that feels like. It might not have been so bad for me but I definitely understand.

Now look what you've done to yourself." He examined the bites on my hands and arms. I felt ashamed for doing that now. It wasn't any kind of answer but sometimes I feel like I'm losing it.

"You're not afraid of me."

He met my gaze. "I'm not. You missed the vein. That's good," he said, starting to clean the blood away. He poured the antiseptic and it burned like fire.

"I used to cut myself when I first got here. I wasn't very good at it. I don't have any scars fortunately. What happened there," he asked pointing at the marks left by Lycaon.

"King of the Werewolves."

He looked confused at first but shrugged it off. "It's shoddy work. I could have stitched them properly."

I had to agree. Reyna wasn't exactly a field medic.

"But it's cool. Scars make you look edgy."

"You said you loved me," I told him.

He almost choked. "I did. But you said it first."

"I did not!"

He raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that?"

"Yes." But I wasn't. I wouldn't tell him that though. I wiped my face, ashamed that I had been crying this whole time.
"You're not defeated, Nico. I refuse to believe that." We kissed again and my heart soared.