Drumroll, please...

Thalia

Thalia Grace and Nico di Angelo were both two-time heroes, both in the Titan War of Manhattan, and the Giant War. Thalia was relieved that all threats to Olympus, whether a handful of power-hungry titans, or a primordial goddess intent on human annihilation, were now past. But a month after the battle, Athena herself visited Camp Half-Blood, informing the relieved demigods that it is extremely unlikely for another dangerous war to arise, since only the Titan and Giant war occurred in succession.

But before the goddess left, she had approached the son of Hades and the daughter of Zeus, just to give them a single scroll. "Both of you must visit Olympus on the next Thursday. Leave your weapons. The scroll repeats my message, but my father," she said with a small, amused laugh, "thought you might forget to come. Therefore, he instructed me to give you this scroll in person." With that, the mysterious goddess glowed softly and disappeared.

Now Thalia and Nico were kneeling before the gods, in the throne room of Olympus. Most of the Olympians weren't present, presumably off to repair the damage and havoc Gaea had wreaked over the world. But Thalia's own father, Zeus, was present, along with Apollo, Artemis, Athena, Hades, and Hestia.

"Father," Thalia spoke hesitantly, "why have we been called?"

Zeus turned to look at his daughter with unusually soft, electric-blue eyes. But it was Apollo, softly strumming a guitar, who answered the young heroin. "A new prophecy has been issued from Delphi, shortly after Python was slain and my godhood restored," Apollo began. "It goes thus;

"Child of Sky and Child of Bones,

The Vulcan stands on his own.

Watch a world meet destruction,

Prevent another's demolition,

Future come to present, past lost and unknown."

Silence spread across the room. Nico spoke up, for the first time since they entered Olympus. "A limerick, the worst type of prophecy. And this is our quest?"

Artemis shook her head slightly, her caramel braid glistening like molten gold and chocolate. "Son of Hades, this prophecy is more than a quest. It will shape your entire life from now on, and once you embark on this quest, you shall never see Camp Half-Blood, Camp Jupiter, or the Olympians again. And taking this quest will mean both of you leaving the world, as you know it, forever. Do you take your place in the prophecy?"

"Of course not!" Nico suddenly exploded. "Thalia, we can't take this quest. We will be leaving our friends, and the life we have become accustomed to will be gone! Gone, did you hear me?" Nico's dark eyes flashed dangerously, like coal spattered with gasoline before ignited.

Thalia regarded her cousin closely. The prophecy had shaken her, and she certainly didn't want to leave the rest of the demigods, but Artemis seemed to have left something out. "My lady, Artemis, what do you have to add?" Thalia asked quietly.

Artemis glanced at her approvingly, and walked over to the three Fates. She returned shortly, holding two strands of silver string. Thalia looked at them, and recognized them as their lifelines. She shivered. Their entire lives were represented with strands of thread, and the strands have been cut. The Fates have already marked them for death.

"It is the destiny of both of you to perish from battling a band of werewolves, who will ambush you while you camp together in a forest three months from now. They want revenge for the death of their king, who Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano and Nico di Angelo had slain during the war against Gaea. They will track you down, Nico, and devour you to the bones. They feel it is too kind just to allow you to become a werewolf. And Thalia, who will be your companion, will perish alongside you." Artemis paused, and turned to Zeus. "Father, please tell them."

"This prophecy is your only escape from your fate." Zeus began. "Had your brother Jason been alive when this prophecy was issued, Thalia, we would have included him as a hero of this quest. His death would have been prevented. But the two of you can escape your death, and live on, so long as you take on this quest." Zeus nudged Hades and motioned him to continue.

The lord of the Underworld walked up to Nico, and took his hand. "Nico, my son. See these scars of battle on your hand. Your skin and mind have been torn by claws, blades, and teeth. But you are resilient," mourned Hades, gesturing to Nico's face. "You are alive, and can stay alive, along with Thalia here. No need to simply perish. You cannot survive in this world, as your string has already been cut. Take the quest, please, and live up to your name." Hades paused. "It is what Bianca wanted," he spoke softly. "I spoke with her yesterday. She wanted you to know."

Hades pulled away, and Thalia noticed tears slowly dragging down Nico's pale, gaunt cheeks. She knew what he had decided. "Lady Artemis, what will become of the Hunt?" Thalia asked. Artemis nodded knowingly.

"You are dedicated, Thalia. But I have assigned a new lieutenant to the Huntresses." Artemis stood up. "Thalia Grace, you have served me with your life, mind, and heart. But your courage is needed elsewhere. I grant you honorable discharge from the Hunt. You are not bound by my rules anymore, but be cautious of whomever male you may choose to bond with." Artemis touched Thalia's forehead, and the daughter of Zeus felt something flow out from her. Her immortality was gone, but she now had a quest to complete and a sense of purpose had refilled her.

Grabbing hold of Nico's hand, Thalia stood up. "Lord Zeus, we are ready for the quest. We gratefully accept, and prepare our hearts for this voyage." Beside her, Nico wiped his eyes, and gave the Fates a defiant glare. Thalia continued. "However, we are confused as to where we shall begin our quest. The prophecy speaks of an anguished Vulcan. Is Lord Hephaestus' Roman persona ill?"

Athena spoke up. "The Vulcan is not Hephaestus, but you will understand when you reach your destination. Before you leave, we must show our gratitude." Athena brought two necklaces from the confines of her robe. "The cords are woven from drakon hide, and shall never break. The pendants are jewels Hades generously brought from his domain. They were mined near the Stygian river, the river of promises and vows. As long as you refrain from removing them yourself, the drakon hide will not yield the necklaces to thieves. With these, we hope you remember us, and your friends." Athena hung a necklace with a deep violet crystal around Thalia's neck, and slipped a cord on which a small, disk-shaped gem over Nico's head. Nico's pendant glowed and flickered with a strange light, as if fire or molten magma were trapped inside, while Thalia's shimmered faintly.

"My lady," murmured Thalia curiously, choosing her words wisely, "we are honored. But every gift has a particular purpose. What is yours?"

"Clever girl," Athena chuckled. "I am sorry to inform you that in the place you will go to, there will be no gods, Greek, Roman, Norse, or otherwise. There, humans have progressed far beyond the reaches of earth, and I'm not talking about demigods. These mortals have learned to fly through space, reach other planets, and travel at immense speeds. Zeus couldn't keep up with them, and many mortals have been able to leave Mother Earth's grasp, to take their place around the stars. Thus, the gods faded, becoming mere memories. The present date would be thousands of years ahead of today, and all remaining traces of demigods and legacies eventually diluted entirely with mortal blood. Thalia, Nico, both of you will lose your demigod half upon entering this world, and you will also lose your powers, but not your ADHD. In short, you will be yourselves, as complete mortals."

The tips of the goddess' lips rose. "You may be pleased to learn that dracaena, manticores, and other monsters have long been extinct in that world, and the only danger you will face will be other mortals. As for the crystals, they allow you to keep a small portion of your powers. For instance, Thalia will be able to summon short blasts of wind, but not frequently. She may also be able to send out brief electrical charges, no more than a small zap. It may be enough to set a dry wooden house on fire, or to stun one enemy, but Thalia will only be able to use this power once every two days. And if she tried hard, and overcame her fear of heights, she may be able to fly, if only for a minute, and once a week. As for Nico, he will not be able to summon more than one skeleton per month. However, since there are few skeletons up in space, this should not be much of an interference. He could shadow travel, but only to a place less than five kilometers away, and only once a week. And he will be unable to release someone's spirit, as he once did to the child of Orcus, Bryce Lawrence while transporting my statue to Camp Half Blood."

Seeing Thalia and Nico's disappointed stare, she went on. "However, you will be able to keep up with the mortals. You will fit in easily. And remember, the prophecy does not require you to accomplish something specific, such as returning the Golden Fleece or navigating the Labyrinth. Just live a normal life, and grasp your way toward the stars."

Nico nodded. "We're ready to leave," he said, although Thalia knew they weren't. They had to see their friends first, and their camps, and the pegasi, and everything else in this world. But if they started saying goodbye now, they would never finish.

A roaring crash filled the room, causing Thalia and Nico to flinch. In drove Lord Hephaestus, maneuvering a pickup truck into the throne room. Zeus growled, irritated. "Hephaestus, what is the meaning of this?!"

Hephaestus clambered out of the shiny, scratched-up mauve vehicle, and grabbed a large object from the back. He placed it next to Hestia's hearth. The tinkerer god returned to the vehicle and retrieved two mats, woven from fine celestial bronze. He turned to the young demigods, performed a deep bow, and spoke. "Behold, the world's first energy transporter beam!" Turning to his father Zeus, he added, "I need Hecate to activate it, though. Transporter beams don't function moving through time, but she can manage it." A loud crack filled the room, and the goddess of magic came before them, carrying her two, violet flamed torches. "Speak of the devi- uh, goddess," Hephaestus whispered to the demigods.

Hecate turned to Thalia and Nico, frowning upon seeing the boy. "Haven't you prepared him yet?" she asked Artemis.

"What do you mean, preparing me?" Nico asked nervously. Thalia noticed he began twitching his skull ring again.

Zeus cleared his throat, and turned to Hecate. "Not yet. We have been discussing their future, and explaining the circumstances that name them heroes of the prophecy."

Hecate gave her signature cold smile. "Very well." She floated over to Nico, and a powerful pulse shook the room. Nico shuddered painfully and collapsed. Thalia gave a small, hurt cry and looked over at him, noticing several changes to his anatomy. His ears have become tapered into points, and his eyebrows, instead of curving normally around his eyes, slanted upwards. His appearance looked similar to an elf's, but still retained several humanoid factors. For instance, he was not extremely tall, like an elf, but retained his height.

"What happened to Nico?" Thalia questioned the goddess cautiously.

Hecate didn't respond, but Apollo did. "He is now half Human, and half Vulcan. You would learn what that means where you are going, but I feel it's best to tell you now. Vulcans are humanoids, similar to humans, with two arms and two legs, and two eyes and two ears. But they have copper-based blood, resulting in paler skin. Their ears are pointy, allowing for better hearing, and they have pointy eyebrows, but I don't know why." The last comment earned Apollo a jab in the ribs from Artemis, who continued the explanation.

"Vulcans are an extremely sophisticated, logical, intelligent species," Artemis began. "Nico is now biologically half human, and half Vulcan. His maternal half still comes from Maria di Angelo, but Hecate changed the genetics from Hades to result in Vulcan DNA."

"Will he be fine?" Thalia asked, worried for the health of her companion.

"Yes, but you must be careful and watch over him. Vulcans are touch telepaths. They can sense other being's minds, and for poor Nico here, the sensation may be overwhelming at first. But he will adapt. In some ways, he was always like a Vulcan, always suppressing his emotions to keep from destroying his friends. Always keeping away, scared of revealing emotions. Watch over Di Angelo, Thalia Grace."

Hecate backed away, and Thalia rushed to Nico's side. She grabbed his limp shoulders and felt his forehead, which was feverishly warm. They had to get going, wherever they will go, before anything else delays them. Looking up at Hephaestus, she showed pleading, startling blue eyes. Hephaestus made a growling sound at the back of his throat, and placed the celestial bronze mats on the floor. "Step on the mats," he said. "This is a transporter beam. It will teleport in the world you need to be in, and I am nearly certain this process is quite safe." He gave a gruff laugh, and Thalia rolled her eyes. She took Nico, who was still unconscious, and stepped on her mat. She placed Nico on his, and held him tight, lest he fall down. "Energize," said Hephaestus, and Hecate clapped her hands together. Beams of light wrapped themselves around the two heroes, faster and faster, before the bright light faded. They were gone.

The End.

Because Hephaestus's transporter malfunctioned.

Not, actually.