They were coming.

Percy knew it in his bones, far before the scouts reporting Greek ships approaching the island. And Davos, Naomi and Annabeth had all been sighted on the ship in the front of the formation.

No doubt they come seeking battle, trying to prevent him from exacting his revenge. But his people counted on him. He couldn't fail them now.

He mentally commanded his troops to stand ready and be prepared, he suspected that the Hunters of Artemis would fight alongside them. Perhaps he would get an excellent opportunity to strike at the woman whose lies had caused him to be banished...

He gazed down at his vast army from the window of his throne-room and smiled to himself.

If the Hunters thought that they were going to obtain an easy victory, they had another thing coming...

-line-

The scene in front of her was nothing short of disgusting.

Annabeth grimaced as she watched Davos passionately kiss his current girlfriend Naomi in a unprofessional manner completely unbefitting of their situation.

It hadn't been all that surprising to her to learn that Davos and Naomi had become a couple, the two had rather vocally proclaimed their 'undying love' for one another (it probably wouldn't last) . In spite of the young huntress's teasing regarding the fact that she snagged the hottest guy in camp right from under her nose, Anna didn't particularely care about their romantic connection.

Davos wasn't her type for a start, far too brash and loud even without throwing his ego into the equation.

Secondly, she was not interested in getting together with another man. Not after what had happened last time...

The cold mists surrounded the ship and they could barely see in front of them, nonetheless they could tell that they were approaching the island. The two lovebirds thankfully broke apart at this point, she couldn't stand watching them make out any longer.

Suddenly a hollow screech echoed through the air and the group of warriors looked towards the heavens to see an undead dragon flying towards them. The dreadful beast shot a beam of frozen light into the ocean, causing it to be covered in a meter-thick layer of ice. The enchanted arrows did nothing to stop it and they were caught in the beam's path, resulting in all of the ships being captured within the frozen sea.

Davos looked out towards Northend and felt his blood freeze in his veins at the sight of what was awaiting them, he greatly fought the instinct to turn around and flee for his life.

Gathered at the shores were a great horde of undead warriors, so large that it couldn't be measured. Some walked on foot while others rode on skeletal mounts and there were also grotesque abominations that towered over the the rest of the horde, stitched together from the remains of multiple other beings into hideous monsters.

Davos kept a vigilant eye on his foes as he and his fellow warriors got down from their stranded vessels, praying that the ice would not break under their feet. No doubt unspeakable horrors awaited them under the sea, equal to those that awaited them on land.

Naomi grit her teeth, they were greatly outnumbered. Hopefully their skill would be enough to survive the onslaught. But there was something that bothered her greatly.

"Why are they just standing there? Why are they not attacking?"

Davos frowned, Naomi was right. They were just standing there, hissing and snarling at them yet not moving to confront them.

As if an invisible hand held them back...

"Yeah, what are they waiting for?"

A whisper flew from Anna's lips before she could stop it.

"Orders."

Both her teammates turned to her, eyes wide. Naomi looked at her suspiciously.

"How to you know that?"

Anna reeled back, not sure how to respond.

"I...I don't know. It just...makes sense, doesn't it? Why else would they just..."

Anna was interrupted by one of the hunters who were trying to get a better look from the top of one of the central poles.

"Up there! On the balcony! It is him!"

Everyone looked towards the great fortress of ice and on the balcony there indeed stood a figure that emitted pure power, his glowing eyes being visible from a great distance away.

Suddenly the freezing winds begun to pick up speed and everyone huddled together as it blew right through robes and armor alike. The visibility became worse and the group almost thought that they had lost their minds when they heard a voice clearly speaking from within the blizzard.

Intruders...

Even the normally composed and fearless hunters were shivering in fear as the words echoed all around them. There was no question of who the speaker was.

Turn back and leave, or no one will leave this shore with their lives...

The voice was as cold as the ice around them and for the first time, Davos' courage faltered. No mere mortal could possibly hold this much power, this was almost the same level as Apollo or his father. Would it even be possible to defeat him at all...

No!

He couldn't allow himself to think like that! The battle hadn't even started yet and he was already letting his enemy get to him!

Seeing his team's spirits and moral sink, he drew his blade and took a step forward as he shouted into the winds.

"We will never submit to you! We have come to deliver punishment for your sins against nature and we will not leave until justice has been dealt! So come down and face me!"

He stood bravely in front of his team, giving them his encouragement to pick themselves up and get their heads back in the game.

However, his speech did not have the desired effect on the Lich King. A chilling laughter echoed through the frozen air and Davos felt an eerie sense of dejavu.

So little godling...you claim that you can bring judgement upon me? Here in my kingdom, where my power is at its peak? Don't make me laugh, you would fall like rotting timber. I assure you that you will have a hard enough time fighting my warriors as it is.

Furious at the dismissal of his power, Davos roared back in anger.

"I will destroy them all! I will tear them limb from limb and color the ice red with their blood! Throw everything you have at me, it won't make a difference!"

Is that so?

The unmistakable figure on the balcony lifted his blade skyward, letting it shine with unholy light. And to Davos' unspeakable horror, the dark forces in front of him let out bellowing warcries as they were filled with the King's power.

Prove it.

As soon as the words were spoken, the horde charged. Gripping his sword more tightly, Davos was very well aware of the glares that were sent his way.

Never before had he cursed his big mouth as much as he did in that moment.

In the chaos of clashing swords and spells being cast left and right, nobody seemed to notice a figure heading up the stairs into the fortress.

-line-

Percy had to say, he was partially impressed by how stubbornly the group of hunters and halfbloods tried to stand against the onslaught.

But it didn't truly matter.

The forsaken had centuries of bottled up anger and lust for battle to get out of their systems, not to mention superior numbers.

He saw Naomi and Davos fighting side by side and slowly his face twisted into a grim smile. He had an idea of how to deliver his judgement onto them both in one fell swoop.

Something slow and painful, something that many others would find distasteful.

But he was through playing nice.

Her and Davos' lies had taken his life away from him. He may have found a new purpose but it did not lessen the sting of their actions.

With a command delivered to its proper recipient, he turned away from the balcony and retreated into his inner sanctum.

He needed all of his inner strength for the confrontation that was to come.

An intruder had been detected inside of Icecrown and he already knew who it was...

-line-

Naomi cursed up a storm as the dead kept coming at her no matter how many corpses that laid strewn at her feet. Her bow lied beside her, it's string broken and the wood being cracked down the middle. Thankfully she still had her hunting-knife to defend herself with.

When she had heard that she was going to be fighting living dead, she had pictured something similar to what she had seen from zombies in movies. Shambling corpses who just mindlessly wandered around.

If only things could have been that simple. These were a far more deadly breed of undead, graceful and precise in their movements and with a functioning mind capable of proper strategy. If it wasn't for their grey skin that was only barely staying on their bodies or the necrotic energy pulsing through their veins, you almost couldn't tell that they were dead.

What should have been mere pest control had quickly become an intense fight for survival as their perceived advantage quickly proved to worth very little against countless opponents who were easily as skilled as they were. And unlike them, the dead did not get tired...

Without warning, an insane pain suddenly tore through her body as a footsoldier she thought she had already dealt with suddenly jumped on her and ferociously bit down on her shoulder. She screamed as she desperately tried to get the ghoul to let go, only for its grip to harden even more.

In the meantime, Davos seemed to have gone into a rhythm as the line of opponents never seemed to end.

Parry.

Slash.

Block.

Strike.

It was a pattern that was intertwining with his heartbeat as he kept swirling in his lethal dance. But his stamina was starting to run out and he could see that the rest of his team was not in better condition.

A scream reached his ears and he looked to his side to see his girlfriend frantically throwing herself against everything in her vicinity to get the ghoul away from her.

Not being one to enjoy suffering, unless it was related to the phantom that he was certain lurked somewhere on the island, he quickly ran over to Naomi and managed to wrestle her attacker off of her.

He turned to her with some sort of witty remark on his tongue, only for it to die in his throat as he saw the gruesome bite-wound that marred her once beautiful neckline.

Looking around, he gritted his teeth as he realized they had no chance to win this battle. He had to make a decision that he absolutely hated.

It was then that he made a startling discovery.

"Where is Annabeth?"

A shaky finger pointed towards the enemy stronghold.