Hey guys! I am sorry for taking so bloody long to post this chapter. Between finishing my university applications and going cross country without my laptop, I just wasn't able to post. I originally wanted to make this a weekly updated story, but I realised that I may not be able to keep that up. So, I intend to keep it as a story that is updated every fortnight. Well, I hope that you like this chapter.

Troy's POV:

"Breathe, Troy. Close your eyes and focus on your breath. I want to extend your senses. Your eyes are only one way of perceiving the world. You have 4 more senses. Feel. Hear. Smell." "Taste?", asked a young Troy. His mentor laughed. "Nice try, kiddo. Now put your tongue back in your mouth and get back to work, or no mangoes for you."

I smiled at the memory, a pleasant reminder as to how far I have come. I reached out through the morning dew. 700 meters. Nothing. Concentrate. 800 and a boat? I turned to my companions and nodded. "Natalie, there's a boat some distance ahead of here. I think we now have a ride to Hubbard." "It still amazes me no matter how many times I see you do it. I mean, why can't I do that? You can sense things in your surroundings with water vapour. Mr. Doom-Gloom can shadow travel. Why can't I do any cool stuff?" Matt and I couldn't help but crack a smile. "You got a long life ahead. Don't worry, you'll come up with something, Thunder-thighs.", said Matthew before dodging an electrified punch.

"Cut it out, you two. Amusing as it is to see you lovebirds dance, I don't like the idea of staying out here too long." Crimson-faced, that got them to stop bickering and start moving. While I'm usually one for casual banter with my cousins, I was jumpy. Not the ADHD kind, but the kind that rests like a pressure on your head, making you suspicious and wary of everything. While Zeus may have given permission to travel in his domain, he sure as Hades didn't make it pleasant. Every patch of turbulence felt like I was at Thanatos' door. The cabin pressure made Matthew queasy and my ears hurt. Natalie, however, seemed to be traipsing through a valley of flowers. The path from the airport to our present location was a breeze. The monsters were barely a fight, and this worried me. Normally you would say, isn't less monsters a good thing. Yes, but three children of the Big Three, together, in the land beyond the gods, is the largest billboard of food monsters get. So, when nothing worth mentioning attacked us, it felt like we were walking through the preamble of what could be the hardest fight of our lives. Instinct screamed danger, but all I see are plants swaying with the slight breeze, water rippling and Apollo peacefully hiding behind a few cloud nymphs. Yeah, I'm jumpy.

The boat was in bad shape. A miracle it was still floating, but it was all we had. I coated the exterior with a layer of ice to prevent any water from seeping in. I discovered this new aspect of control over my father's domain in a fight 3 years ago. I'm still new to it and find it extremely draining. I looked to my companions, both knowing that they had to take over as I'd have my plate full with control the ice, and maneuvering the boat, if you could still call it that.

The initial part of our journey was quiet. All of us on high alert, but it all turned to waste in the last legs of the journey.

Matthew's POV:

I was nervous. In the middle of my uncle's domain, land beyond the gods, and the feeling of death looming over our heads. I subconsciously looked around, finding some peace that I couldn't see Thanatos. That's when it all spiraled out of control. I felt something large and abnormally fast move in the shadow of the boat. Looking at my cousin, he confirmed my suspicions. A sea monster. While I am nervous about being in large bodies of water, years of good friendships between the children of the Big Three have almost dissolved all those years of tension.

I motioned for Troy to stand in the centre of the boat while Natalie and I took the front and back. I searched the shadows again, ready for the attack, but to my confusion heard only silence. That's when it attacked, my novice error almost caused me to be tossed into the water. Balancing myself, I looked up to see the largest monster I've ever seen. It had hoisted itself 40ft of the surface, meaning there was more underneath the waves.

As the monster lunged forward, I jumped into the beast's shadow, slashing with all my momentum. My Stygian blade made little progress. The monster was almost all muscle. It was then that I realized that I had completely forgotten about it's tail. Hitting me. Knocking me unconscious over the water surface. All I saw before I slipped beneath the surface were storm clouds and the fact that I could still breathe.

Troy's POV:

Matthew's rush had caused the beast to move, displacing large amounts of water, forcing me to keep all attention on holding the boat together, calming the waters and avoiding the occasional whip of the tail. Watching him fall, I immediately encased him in a bubble, making sure he wouldn't drown. It took all my concentration to carefully control all these, forcing me out of the fight. However, seeing Matthew swatted like a fly caused Natalie's to boil in anger. You see, demigods are only as powerful as the love their parents share. While some may overcome their barriers through suffering and training, raw base power is transferred to the demigod by love. Natalie is the youngest of us, conceived to be part of this generation's trio. Born not only from Zeus' love for her mother, but Hera's agreement, Nat is, in few words, powerful. I watched as she summoned one of the biggest storms I've ever seen her capable of. Winds picked up, the water swaying in sync as gusts turned to gales. The supernatural disaster only grew, making me momentarily grateful that we were ways away from civilization.

With a large thunderclap, it rained. Lightning charged the air, the smell of ozone permeating through the air. I was grateful for the rain, the additional energy a boon, helping me lift Matthew back onto the boat. I looked back, hoping to make a plan of action, only to find her missing. I panicked, searching the waters for my other cousin.

I was shaken out of my attempts by the guttural bellow of the monster. Looking up, I was proud. The lightning strikes which were seemingly random and out of place converged multiple times over the sea monster's body, frying its nerves. The monster seemed to understand that the cause of its pain, the nuisance was on its head. I almost shouted, trying to alert my cousin of the imminent danger, but in a flash of light she disappeared. It was then that I understood how she managed to scale the monster. She had figured out how to travel with lightning.

"Do you think Electro is a child of Zeus or Jupiter?", asked an excited 6 year old Troy. "Well, while the possibility of doing this exists for children of the Sky God, I doubt any might accomplish it. And to answer your question, no. Electro is a fictional character," commented his tutor. " Well, I don't believe you. I will always believe that he is a child of Lord Zeus, even if he isn't that good looking," said Troy, causing his mentor to laugh." Sure, kiddo. Whatever floats your boat."

I watched in awe. While Electro turned out to not be a child of Zeus, there was no denying that I was seeing Natalie doing the exact same thing. She flitted through the sky. Jumping between lightning strikes, both blinding and confusing the monster, who seemed scared for the first time. The demi-goddess repeatedly struck both the monster and the sea. The Heavens wept and smote indiscriminately. The energy of the blasts pushed the boat away. The ice coating and wood barely insulating the barrage of charged particles. After 3 agonizingly long minutes, she stopped. The end of the light show brought some much needed respite to my eyes. I looked up to see Natalie breathing heavily, clearly exhausted from the display of power, hands on her knees as she looked to the smoking and sizzling pile of charred flesh that was a monster. She looked at me and nodded, before free falling back down. I immediately understood what was needed of me, making the water surface elastic to absorb her fall, before hardening it to allow her to run on it.

The air seemed to breathe some energy back into her as she fell. My cousin then charged at the monster, yelling defiantly, throwing her spear at the scorched pile of flesh that was once a monster. Just as the spear sunk into the beast, a bolt of lightning that would make Zeus proud, struck the metal, frying the monster's inside. The sea creature convulsed before disintegrating into golden dust. Natalie promptly face-planted, leaving me to collect her and her weapon.

Placing my unconscious cousins in the back, I maneuvered the somehow-still-intact boat to the location. A cave stood out, carved to have a large Omega symbol above it. Looks like we made it, finally.