For a long, long while, the forum was filled with absolute silence. Percy's last words seemed to still ring in the air and everyone were scared to even breath. They just stared. Unblinkingly (and freakishly so), many with their jaws hanging. It was hard to tell what they thought about Percy and Annabeth's half an hour long story, as shock was the only emotion written on their faces.
Not that he blamed them – the Romans were sure they won a war and saved the world. That they are absolute heroes and Greeks could only kiss their feet, or so they thought. Now, Percy kind of burst their bubble.
"That can't be true" hissed Octavian, breaking heavy silence.
"And here we go again" muttered Percy.
"That's – that's – "
"Hard to believe" Reyna agreed with him for once. "But in this case also probable."
Not every Roman seemed to share her opinion, though. Everyone seemed to break out of the trance and some had frowned, other looked in awe.
(Percy noticed, after watching them for some time, their views were split in nearly everything, and yet they managed to always cooperate easily.)
"That's unbelievable!" cried Octavian and received many nods. "Impossible!"
"But it would match what we've read already" noted Reyna, also getting murmurs of agreement.
"They could think it up on the spot."
"Keep reading, then, to see if the rest matches our version" said furiously Annabeth, a strand of hair falling in her stormy eyes.
A hand slipped around her waist and she raised her eyes to Percy's.
"Chill" he leaned down, brushing blond hair behind her ear. "He's always like that. Don't bother."
"I've known him for a few hours and I'm on the edge of killing him" she clenched her teeth.
"Tell me about it," he laughed silently.
The truth was, if not for Octavian, everything would go so much smoother, with fewer problems.
"Exactly" Reyna raised her chin, daring Octavian to fight her. "They explained where they are, when it's happening and what happened before."
"Kind of," muttered Percy.
"I don't believe there won't be any mentions of their preparations for… war with Saturn" it still came to her with difficulty to admit they could've done just as much to end the war as they did, if not more.
"So, we reading again?" said Dakota.
"Who's reading now?" Annabeth held up the book.
Everyone looked around, silently asking each other "You?".
"I will," said finally Reyna, when no one else volunteered.
She opened where Annabeth stuck a paper. She took it out, reading briefly, before raising an eyebrow at the daughter of Athena.
The blonde-haired girl motioned with her head at Percy.
"MY MATH TEACHER GIVES ME A LIFT"
"You have weird chapter titles, Percy," snorted Piper.
"We emerged in Central Park just north of the Pond. Mrs. O'Leary looked pretty tired as she limped over to a cluster of boulders. She started sniffing around, and I was afraid she might mark her territory,
A couple of snickers.
but Nico said, "It's okay. She just smells the way home."
I frowned. "Through the rocks?"
"The Underworld has two major entrances,"
"Really?" said Jason surprised.
The revelation caused some stir in the crowd.
Nico said. "You know the one in L.A."
"Charon's ferry."
Nico nodded. "Most souls go that way, but there's a smaller path, harder to find. The Door of Orpheus."
"Huh?"
"The dude with the harp."
"The lyre" corrected a few demigods, while the others rolled their eyes or snorted amusedly.
"Dude with the lyre," Nico corrected. "But yeah, him. He used his music to charm the earth and open a new path into the Underworld.
Leo whistled in approval.
He sang his way right into Hades's palace and almost got away with his wife's soul."
I remembered the story. Orpheus wasn't supposed to look behind him when he was leading his wife back to the world, but of course he did. It was one of those typical "and-so-they-died/the-end" stories that always made us feel warm and fuzzy.
Chuckles and laughter rolled through the forum.
"So this is the Door of Orpheus." I tried to be impressed, but it still looked like a pile of rocks to me.
Reyna's voice shook a little with amusement as she read that, but the others couldn't resist and laughed.
"How does it open?"
"We need music," Nico said. "How's your singing?"
"Oh, I already like this chapter" laughed Leo.
"Um, no. Can't you just, like, tell it to open? You're the son of Hades and all."
"It's not so easy. We need music."
I was pretty sure if I tried to sing, all I would cause was an avalanche.
The Praetor had to pause for a second, as the crowd got a bit too loud.
"Percy, you're hilarious," laughed Frank.
"Nice to look in your head," smirked Annabeth, nudging him.
"I have a better idea." I turned and called, "GROVER!"
"Weren't you there alone?" Hazel looked at him confused.
"I don't think we skipped anything," agreed Piper.
"And who's Grover?" said Jason.
"The satyr from the story."
Understanding entered on many confused faces.
We waited for a long time. Mrs. O'Leary curled up and took a nap. I could hear the crickets in the woods and an owl hooting. Traffic hummed along Central Park West. Horse hooves clopped down a nearby path, maybe a mounted police patrol. I was sure they'd love to find two kids hanging out in the park at one in the morning.
"I'm sure," snorted Leo.
"It's no good," Nico said at last.
But I had a feeling. My empathy link
"Your what?" Leo held his hand out to his ear, as though motioning Reyna to repeat herself.
"My empathy link with a satyr," said Percy.
"A faun said something about it once!" remembered Frank.
"Yeah, but it's muffled now," he sighed.
He stared for a second nostalgically in the space. Oh, how he missed his other best friend.
was really tingling for the first time in months, which either meant a whole lot of people had suddenly switched on the Nature Channel, or Grover was close.
"Nature Channel?"
I shut my eyes and concentrated. Grover.
I knew he was somewhere in the park. Why couldn't I sense his emotions? All I got was a faint hum in the base of my skull.
"It's kind of like that now, too" Percy scrunched his nose. "Only even fainter."
Grover, I thought more insistently.
Hmm-hmmmm, something said.
An image came into my head. I saw a giant elm tree deep in the woods, well off the main paths.
Gnarled roots laced the ground, making a kind of bed. Lying in it with his arms crossed and his eyes closed was a satyr. At first I couldn't be sure it was Grover. He was covered in twigs and leaves, like he'd been sleeping there a long time. The roots seemed to be shaping themselves around him, slowly pulling him into the earth.
"That's not normal," said Annabeth upon hearing a few questions about it from the Romans.
Grover, I said. Wake up.
Unnnh—zzzzz.
Dude, you're covered in dirt. Wake up!
A few snorts.
Sleepy, his mind murmured.
FOOD, I suggested. PANCAKES!
Another couple of chuckles.
His eyes shot open.
And even more.
A blur of thoughts filled my head like he was suddenly on fast-forward. The image shattered, and I almost fell over.
"What happened?" Nico asked.
"I got through. He's . . . yeah. He's on his way."
A minute later, the tree next to us shivered. Grover fell out of the branches, right on his head.
"Oh, man, fauns – satyrs, whatever – are funny" laughed a Roman guy.
"Grover!" I yelled.
"Woof!" Mrs. O'Leary looked up, probably wondering if we were going to play fetch with the satyr.
"Blah-haa-haa!" Grover bleated.
"That's informative."
"You okay, man?"
"Oh, I'm fine." He rubbed his head. His horns had grown so much they poked an inch above his curly hair. "I was at the other end of the park. The dryads had this great idea of passing me through the trees to get me here. They don't understand height very well."
Someone snorted so loudly out of a sudden; everyone paused and busted out laughing.
He grinned and got to his feet—well, his hooves, actually. Since last summer, Grover had stopped trying to disguise himself as human.
"Why would he do that?" said some young Roman girl.
"Satyrs are really helpful and cooperate with demigods and they often work amidst mortals, so they wear disguise around them, just in case," explained Annabeth with a pointed look at some Romans, who she saw pull a face at the mention of satyrs.
He never wore a cap or fake feet anymore. He didn't even wear jeans, since he had furry goat legs from the waist down. His T-shirt had a picture from that book Where the Wild Things Are. It was covered with dirt and tree sap. His goatee looked fuller, almost manly (or goatly?),
"That's not a word," Annabeth rolled her eyes fondly.
Percy just smiled sheepishly at the snickers around.
and he was as tall as me now.
"Good to see you, G-man," I said. "You remember Nico."
Grover nodded at Nico, then he gave me a big hug.
"So, you're like, close?" said Jason awkwardly.
"He's my best friend," grinned Percy. "Other than Annabeth, that is."
"Oh, friends?" she raised an eyebrow. "I thought we were past that stage?"
"Boyfriend or not, I'm still your best friend and it comes first," he shrugged.
That earned him squeals from Venus girls.
Piper felt somewhat stunned at this, staring at the couple. She has heard many stories about the Percy Jackson at camp, but somehow she thought these words said more about him than they all did. She smiled at Annabeth, seeing her chilled out for the first time ever.
"You're right, for once, Seaweed Brain," she muttered to him.
He smelled like fresh-mown lawns.
"Perrrrcy!" he bleated. "I missed you! I miss camp. They don't serve very good enchiladas in the wilderness."
Everyone laughed, but Percy felt a pang of pain in heart.
"I miss him," he whispered to Annabeth.
"He does, too."
"I was worried," I said. "Where've you been the last two months?"
"The last two—" Grover's smile faded. "The last two months? What are you talking about?"
"Poor Grover," sighed Hazel.
"We haven't heard from you," I said. "Juniper's worried.
"Juniper?"
"His girlfriend. A tree nymph."
"The differences between Greeks and Roman never cease to amaze me," said Reyna in wonder.
We sent Iris-messages, but—"
"Iris-messages?" interrupted… well, a lot of people actually. Romans looked clueless.
"It's our way of communicating. I mean – it's gods' way of communicating, really, but if goddess Iris isn't too busy, she may help us, demigods, too. You have to create a rainbow and throw a golden drachma in it. You ask her for accepting your offering and say name and location of the person you want to contact, so they appear in the rainbow," explained Annabeth.
"Whoa" muttered Roman guy.
"Cool, isn't it?" grinned Percy.
Many nodded in agreement and slight jealousy.
"Hold on." He looked up at the stars like he was trying to calculate his position. "What month is this?"
"August."
The color drained from his face. "That's impossible. It's June. I just lay down to take a nap and . . ." He grabbed my arms. "I remember now! He knocked me out. Percy, we have to stop him!"
"Stop who?"
"Whoa," I said. "Slow down. Tell me what happened."
He took a deep breath. "I was . . . I was walking in the woods up by Harlem Meer. And I felt this tremble in the ground, like something powerful was near."
"You can sense stuff like that?" Nico asked.
Grover nodded. "Since Pan's death, I can feel when something is wrong in nature. It's like my ears and eyes are sharper when I'm in the Wild. Anyway, I started following the scent. This man in a long black coat was walking through the park, and I noticed he didn't cast a shadow. Middle of a sunny day, and he cast no shadow. He kind of shimmered as he moved."
"Bad, bad omens" moaned Piper just as Leo said "Run!".
"Like a mirage?" Nico asked.
"Yes," Grover said. "And whenever he passed humans—"
"The humans would pass out," Nico said. "Curl up and go to sleep."
Romans raised their eyebrows.
"That's right! Then after he was gone, they'd get up and go about their business like nothing happened."
I stared at Nico. "You know this guy in black?"
"Afraid so,"
"He has weird friends."
"His friends are alright, thank you very much" Percy glared at the Roman for the second time and he shrunk in his seat.
Nico said. "Grover, what happened?"
"I followed the guy. He kept looking up at the buildings around the park like he was making estimates or something. This lady jogger ran by, and she curled up on the sidewalk and started snoring.
"Oh dear" sighed Reyna. "I think I know what it is."
The guy in black put his hand on her forehead like he was checking her temperature. Then he kept walking. By this time, I knew he was a monster or something even worse. I followed him into this grove, to the base of a big elm tree.
"That's one brave satyr," noticed Jason.
"Course he is," grinned Percy.
I was about to summon some dryads to help me capture him when he turned and . . ." Grover swallowed. "Percy, his face. I couldn't make out his face because it kept shifting. Just looking at him made me sleepy. I said, 'What are you doing?' He said, 'Just having a look around. You should always scout a battlefield before the battle.'
"The battle…" frowned Piper.
"Of Manhattan. Somnia will be there," said Reyna.
"Or rather Morpheus" corrected Annabeth.
"You're so screwed," said Dakota.
These, who had not figured out Morpheus already, gasped or winced in sympathy.
I said something really smart like, 'This forest is under my protection. You won't start any battles here!' And he laughed. He said, 'You're lucky I'm saving my energy for the main event, little satyr. I'll just grant you a short nap. Pleasant dreams.' And that's the last thing I remember."
"No wonder he slept so long" breathed Hazel.
Nico exhaled. "Grover, you met Morpheus, the God of Dreams. You're lucky you ever woke up."
"Two months," Grover moaned. "He put me to sleep for two months!"
I tried to wrap my mind around what this meant. Now it made sense why we hadn't been able to contact Grover all this time.
"Why didn't the nymphs try to wake you?" I asked.
Grover shrugged. "Most nymphs aren't good with time. Two months for a tree—that's nothing. They probably didn't think anything was wrong."
"That's so weird," a Roman girl raised her eyebrows.
"We've got to figure out what Morpheus was doing in the park," I said. "I don't like this 'main event' thing he mentioned."
"Me neither."
"He's working for Kronos," Nico said. "We know that already. A lot of the minor gods are. This just proves there's going to be an invasion. Percy, we have to get on with our plan."
"Wait," Grover said. "What plan?"
"Good question."
We told him, and Grover started tugging at his leg fur.
"You're not serious," he said. "Not the Underworld again."
"Again?"
"I thought you told us everything" Reyna narrowed her eyes at him.
"Everything?" he laughed disbelievingly. "Nah, just the most important happenings of the last month before the book or so. Everything would take much, much longer."
"Really" said Octavian dryly.
"We'll have time after the meal," said Reyna, giving him a look meaning he will not get out of it.
"If you have time…"
"We have a lot of time," reminded him Jason.
"I'm not asking you to come, man," I promised. "I know you just woke up. But we need some music to open the door. Can you do it?"
Grover took out his reed pipes. "I guess I could try. I know a few Nirvana tunes that can split rocks.
Some chuckled, but mostly everyone was surprised to hear it from a satyr.
But, Percy, are you sure you want to do this?"
"Do what?"
"Patience is a virtue, Leo."
"Please, man," I said. "It would mean a lot. For old times' sake?"
He whimpered. "As I recall, in the old times we almost died a lot.
"I really need to hear about it."
But okay, here goes nothing."
He put his pipes to his lips and played a shrill, lively tune. The boulders trembled. A few more stanzas, and they cracked open, revealing a triangular crevice.
I peered inside. Steps led down into the darkness. The air smelled of mildew and death. It brought back bad memories of my trip through the Labyrinth last year,
"What labyrinth?"
"The Labyrinth?"
"Later, guys."
but this tunnel felt even more dangerous. It led straight to the land of Hades, and that was almost always a one-way trip.
"Almost" he winked at Annabeth.
I turned to Grover. "Thanks . . . I think."
"Perrrrcy, is Kronos really going to invade?"
"I wish I could tell you better, but yeah. He will."
I thought Grover might chew up his reed pipes in anxiety, but he straightened up and brushed off his T-shirt. I couldn't help thinking how different he looked from fat old Leneus. "I've got to rally the nature spirits, then. Maybe we can help. I'll see if we can find this Morpheus.'"
"Really brave satyr," said Reyna, somewhat impressed.
"Better tell Juniper you're okay, too."
His eyes widened. "Juniper! Oh, she's going to kill me!"
Guys laughed understandingly.
He started to run off, then scrambled back and gave me another hug. "Be careful down there! Come back alive!"
"Aww."
Who knew, maybe they should have taken the Aphrodite cabin; they'd get along with Venus' children greatly.
Once he was gone, Nico and I roused Mrs. O'Leary from her nap.
When she smelled the tunnel, she got excited and led the way down the steps. It was a pretty tight fit.
I hoped she wouldn't get stuck. I couldn't imagine how much Drano we'd need to un-stick a hellhound wedged halfway down a tunnel to the Underworld.
Demigods laughed at the mental image.
"Ready?" Nico asked me. "It'll be fine. Don't worry."
He sounded like he was trying to convince himself.
"He sounds like such a normal person here," whispered a Roman girl to her friends.
They nodded in wonder.
I glanced up at the stars, wondering if I would ever see them again.
"Ouch" muttered Leo.
Then we plunged into darkness.
The stairs went on forever—narrow, steep, and slippery. It was completely dark except for the light of my sword.
"You have a cool sword."
"I know… I mean – thanks."
I tried to go slow, but Mrs. O'Leary had other ideas. She bounded ahead, barking happily. The sound echoed through the tunnel like cannon shots, and I figured we would not be catching anybody by surprise once we reached the bottom.
Some looked back at the hellhound fondly, already used to her presence.
Nico lagged behind, which I thought was strange.
"You okay?" I asked him.
"Fine." What was that expression on his face . . . doubt? "Just keep moving," he said.
"Have you ever seen him as anything else than dark and quiet?" asked a Roman girl in general.
Percy raised an eyebrow coolly, but she didn't seem mean about it. Looking at her, he noted she commented quite a lot, thought he didn't register any nasty remarks from her.
These who heard her answered in unison negatively.
"Okay, just checking."
I didn't have much choice. I followed Mrs. O'Leary into the depths. After another hour, I started to hear the roar of a river.
We emerged at the base of a cliff, on a plain of black volcanic sand. To our right, the River Styx
"Oh!"
Obviously, some demigods caught on.
gushed from the rocks and roared off in a cascade of rapids. To our left, far away in the gloom, fires burned on the ramparts of Erebos, the great black walls of Hades's kingdom.
I shuddered. I'd first been here when I was twelve,
"Twelve?" repeated herself Reyna. "Who let you go there at twelve?"
"That was on my first quest," he stared at his shoes. "I didn't have much choice. And they didn't either. I'll explain later," he added at the confused looks.
and only Annabeth and Grover's company had given me the courage to keep going. Nico wasn't going to be quite as helpful with the "courage" thing.
Percy winced, going with his gaze toward the shadows. He couldn't see Nico, who blended in disturbingly well, but he mouthed 'sorry' anyways.
He looked pale and worried himself.
"Nico pale and worried?" said shocked Roman guy, and he also recognized that one. He didn't remember the guy's comments as positively as the girl's and Percy clenched his hands in fists.
"I mean, he's always pale, but…"
Only Mrs. O'Leary acted happy. She ran along the beach, picked up a random human leg bone,
Demigods' expressions were speaking for itself.
and romped back toward me.
And now their faces got a little green.
She dropped the bone at my feet and waited for me to throw it.
"Oh my gods," moaned Dakota.
"Um, maybe later, girl." I stared at the dark waters, trying to get up my nerve. "So, Nico . . . how do we do this?"
"You are mad," stated Reyna.
"What, you see this now?" said Annabeth in surprise.
By now everyone guessed "the plan" (well, not exactly everyone, per see, but these who didn't were informed by others) and had astonish and disbelieve written all over their faces. More than one jaw was hanging.
"We have to go inside the gates first," he said.
"But the river's right here."
"I have to get something," he said. "It's the only way."
"That's suspicious…"
He marched off without waiting.
"And that's even more."
I frowned. Nico hadn't mentioned anything about going inside the gates. But now that we were here, I didn't know what else to do. Reluctantly, I followed him down the beach toward the big black gates.
Lines of the dead stood outside waiting to get in.
Teenagers shivered and flinched.
It must've been a heavy day for funerals, because
even the EZ-DEATH line was backed up.
"EZ-DEATCH?" repeated Piper.
"Woof!" Mrs. O'Leary said. Before I could stop her she bounded toward the security checkpoint.
Cerberus, the guard dog of Hades, appeared out of the gloom—a three-headed rottweiler so big he made Mrs. O'Leary look like a toy poodle.
"Not good" moaned the talkative Roman girl.
"Not good at all" someone agreed with her.
"You sure?" Percy smirked. Demigods turned to him questioningly, but he didn't say more.
Cerberus was half transparent, so he's really hard to see until he's close enough to kill you,
"Eeek!"
A few snickered at somebody's emotional reaction.
but he acted like he didn't care about us. He was too busy saying hello to Mrs. O'Leary.
"Mrs. O'Leary, no!" I shouted at her. "Don't sniff . . . Oh, man."
"Oooh!" laughed Leo. "Sparks fly in the air, eh?"
Everyone laughed with him, figuring why Percy was chill about Cerberus.
Nico smiled.
Instantly Romans got this weird faces, as usually when Nico did something 'normal' in the book.
Then he looked at me and his expression turned all serious again, like he'd remembered something unpleasant.
A frown appeared on Percy's face. He really hoped Nico wasn't looking at him right now, because he was pretty sure he could've read through his expression.
"Come on. They won't give us any trouble in the line. You're with me."
"Like a boss" said Percy quietly, swinging mockingly in his seat and demigods around him chuckled.
I didn't like it, but we slipped through the security ghouls and into the Fields of Asphodel. I had to whistle for Mrs. O'Leary three times before she left Cerberus
A few guys whistled jokingly and everyone laughed.
alone and ran after us.
We hiked over black fields of grass dotted with black poplar trees. If I really died in a few days like the prophecy said, I might end up here forever, but I tried not to think about that.
And the good mood fell flat.
Percy noticed people got more and more involved in the story, like in a good movie, and with barely suppressed snicker, he saw a few demigods give him a look, as if making sure he was still there, still alive.
Nico trudged ahead, bringing us closer and closer to the palace of Hades.
"Wait, why there?" worried Hazel, wondering what possibly her brother could think up.
She looked up at Percy for an answer, but she got just a reassuring smile in response.
"Hey," I said, "we're inside the gates already. Where are we—"
Mrs. O'Leary growled. A shadow appeared overhead—something dark, cold, and stinking of death.
"Charming" commented Leo. "I have a feeling that will be the love of my life."
Jason, Frank and a few others slowly looked at him, whilst Piper and Percy snorted loudly.
"What if it's a man?" said Annabeth logically.
"True love doesn't know age or gender!" he threw a hand over his heart dramatically.
"You have something to gays?" called Roman girl from the back.
Annabeth blinked at her in surprise.
"No. I just know that Leo likes girls."
She didn't receive any response and she turned to share a look with her boyfriend. Slightly awkward pause ensued, so Reyna picked up the book.
It swooped down and landed in the top of a poplar tree.
Unfortunately, I recognized her.
"It's a her!" Leo pointed out triumphantly.
She had a shriveled face, a horrible blue knit hat, and a crumpled velvet dress. Leathery bat wings sprang from her back. Her feet had sharp talons, and in her brass-clawed hands she held a flaming whip and a paisley handbag.
At the end of description, everyone barely hold back their laughter.
"She sounds charming, Leo, my best wishes" said Piper, her voice shaking slightly, though she kept poker face.
"Can't wait for the children," added seriously Percy. Not even an eye twitch gave him away.
"Can't wait to meet her," Leo said weakly.
"Mrs. Dodds," I said.
"Should I ask or…"
She bared her fangs. "Welcome back, honey."
Her two sisters—the other Furies—
"A Fury named Mrs. Dodds?"
"Hey, that was her idea!"
swooped down and settled next to her in the branches of the poplar.
"You know Alecto?" Nico asked me.
"So, Mrs. Dodds or Alecto?"
Leo's friends rolled their eyes at him.
"If you mean the hag in the middle, yeah," I said. "She was my math teacher."
Reyna turned to Percy resigned.
"…math teacher?"
"Long story" he grinned cheekily.
Nico nodded, like this didn't surprise him. He looked up at the Furies and took a deep breath. "I've done what my father asked. Take us to the palace."
Suddenly everyone tensed.
I tensed. "Wait a second, Nico. What do you—"
"I'm afraid this is my new lead, Percy. My father promised me information about my family, but he wants to see you before we try the river. I'm sorry."
"Nico" whispered horrified Hazel.
"That little…" muttered Reyna. "I should've known…"
"I knew it!" and "Traitor" went all around the place. Percy stared at the shadow in worry, this time not trying to hide it and hoping Nico wouldn't run away now.
"Hey!" he said, going back with his eyes to the crowd. "Leave him be, he was just twelve then. It doesn't matter now."
"Doesn't matter?" Jason looked at him like he was mad.
"Guys, leave it. Really. It'll be okay."
He felt bad about it all. Well, he didn't ask to read it, but still. These were his memories. Moreover, upon noticing distrusting looks thrown Hazel's way, he felt even worse.
"You tricked me?" I was so mad I couldn't think.
Reyna raised an eyebrow at him, as though asking "doesn't matter, now?".
I lunged at him, but the Furies were fast. Two of them swooped down and plucked me up by the arms. My sword fell out of my hand, and before I knew it, I was dangling sixty feet in the air.
"Oh, don't struggle, honey," my old math teacher cackled in my ear.
"The 'math teacher' comment makes it even more horrible" shuddered Leo.
"I'd hate to drop you."
Mrs. O'Leary barked angrily and jumped, trying to reach me, but we were too high.
"Tell Mrs. O'Leary to behave," Nico warned. He was hovering near me in the clutches of the third Fury. "I don't want her to get hurt, Percy.
"Why does he care?" sneered someone in the back.
My father is waiting. He just wants to talk."
I wanted to tell Mrs. O'Leary to attack Nico, but it wouldn't have done any good, and Nico was right about one thing: my dog could get hurt if she tried to pick a fight with the Furies.
I gritted my teeth. "Mrs. O'Leary, down! It's okay, girl."
She whimpered and turned in circles, looking up at me.
"Awww" cooed Venus children, this time in a sad tune.
"All right, traitor," I growled at Nico. "You've got your prize. Take me to the stupid palace."
Alecto dropped me like a sack of turnips in the middle of the palace garden.
It was beautiful in a creepy way. Skeletal white trees grew from marble basins. Flower beds overflowed with golden plants and gemstones. A pair of thrones, one bone and one silver, sat on the balcony with a view of the Fields of Asphodel. It would've been a nice place to spend a Saturday morning except for the sulfurous smell and the cries of tortured souls in the distance.
"That kind of spoils the mood," agreed Frank.
Skeletal warriors guarded the only exit. They wore tattered U.S. Army desert combat fatigues and
carried M16s.
The third Fury deposited Nico next to me. Then all three of them settled on the top of the skeletal throne. I resisted the urge to strangle Nico. They'd only stop me. I'd have to wait for my revenge.
"Ouch" Annabeth eyed her boyfriend curiously.
I stared at the empty thrones, waiting for something to happen. Then the air shimmered. Three figures appeared—
"Three?"
Hades and Persephone on their thrones, and an older woman standing between them. They seemed to be in the middle of an argument.
"—told you he was a bum!" the older woman said.
"Mother!" Persephone replied.
"We have visitors!" Hades barked. "Please!"
"These are the gods…?"
Romans looked up to Percy, as if waiting for him to call a bluff.
"Yep."
Hades, one of my least favorite gods,
"No offence" he said quickly to Hazel.
smoothed his black robes, which were covered with the terrified faces of the damned. He had pale skin and the intense eyes of a madman.
"Nice" mumbled faintly Dakota.
"Percy Jackson," he said with satisfaction. "At last."
Queen Persephone studied me curiously. I'd seen her once before in the winter,
"Explain?"
"Yeah" Annabeth eyed him curiously, as she couldn't recall meeting Persephone in the winter.* "Explain?"
"Later."
but now in the summer she looked like a totally different goddess. She had lustrous black hair and warm brown eyes. Her dress shimmered with colors. Flower patterns in the fabric changed and bloomed—roses, tulips, honeysuckle.
The woman standing between them was obviously Persephone's mother. She had the same hair and eyes, but looked older and sterner. Her dress was golden, the color of a wheat field. Her hair was woven with dried grasses so it reminded me of a wicker basket. I figured if somebody lit a match next to her, she'd be in serious trouble.
Children of Ceres glared at him, but others laughed.
"Hmmph," the older woman said. "Demigods. Just what we need."
"Thanks, mother…"
Next to me, Nico knelt. I wished I had my sword so I could cut his stupid head off.
Someone snorted, but when others turned to him, he flushed red and shrunk in his seat.
Unfortunately, Riptide was still out in the fields somewhere.
"Father," Nico said. "I have done as you asked."
"Took you long enough," Hades grumbled. "Your sister would've done a better job."
"Oh, that's nice" Piper muttered sarcastically.
"But why would Hazel do this better? Have you even known Percy then?" questioned a Roman girl.
"He – he didn't mean me."
Silence fell after that.
Nico lowered his head. If I hadn't been so mad at the little creep, I might've felt sorry for him.
I glared up at the god of the dead. "What do you want, Hades?"
"Do you have a death wish?!" exclaimed Jason.
"Oh, you just wait," snorted Annabeth.
"To talk, of course." The god twisted his mouth in a cruel smile. "Didn't Nico tell you?"
"So this whole quest was a lie. Nico brought me down here to get me killed."
"Oh, no," Hades said. "I'm afraid Nico was quite sincere about wanting to help you. The boy is as honest as he is dense. I simply convinced him to take a small detour and bring you here first."
Hazel looked deeply insulted by how her father acted. Frank grasped her hand and Percy nudged her, both looking with sympathy.
"Father," Nico said, "you promised that Percy would not be harmed. You said if I brought him, you would tell me about my past—about my mother."
Queen Persephone sighed dramatically. "Can we please not talk about that woman in my presence?"
"I'm sorry, my dove," Hades said. "I had to promise the boy something."
The older lady harrumphed. "I warned you, daughter. This scoundrel Hades is no good. You could've married the god of doctors or the god of lawyers, but noooo. You had to eat the pomegranate."
"Mother—"
"And get stuck in the Underworld!"
"Mother, please—"
"And here it is August, and do you come home like you're supposed to? Do you ever think about your poor lonely mother?"
"DEMETER!" Hades shouted. "That is enough. You are a guest in my house."
"Oh, a house is it?" she said. "You call this dump a house? Make my daughter live in this dark,
damp—"
"I told you," Hades said, grinding his teeth, "there's a war in the world above. You and Persephone are better off here with me."
"Excuse me," I broke in. "But if you're going to kill me, could you just get on with it?"
Groan rolled around the forum.
"Dude, how are you still alive?" said Leo. Leo. He still had little idea about the whole mythological world, and yet even he knew that was bad.
All three gods looked at me.
"Well, this one has an attitude," Demeter observed.
"She doesn't seem angry," noticed Reyna.
"Yeah, she's pretty chill to everyone but Hades" shrugged Percy.
"Indeed," Hades agreed. "I'd love to kill him."
Worry and gloom slid from Hazel's face, frown taking its place. She squeezed Frank's hand hard (he winced, but didn't dare to say anything) and she seemed to be seething.
Percy took one glimpse at her livid expression. Oh, he almost pitied Hades.
"Father!" Nico said. "You promised!"
"Husband, we talked about this," Persephone chided. "You can't go around incinerating every hero. Besides, he's brave. I like that."
"It seems Persephone likes you" smiled Piper.
Hades rolled his eyes. "You liked that Orpheus fellow too. Look how well that turned out. Let me kill him, just a little bit."
"Father, you promised!" Nico said. "You said you only wanted to talk to him. You said if I brought him, you'd explain."
Hades glowered, smoothing the folds of his robes. "And so I shall. Your mother—what can I tell you? She was a wonderful woman." He glanced uncomfortably at Persephone. "Forgive me, my dear. I mean for a mortal, of course. Her name was Maria di Angelo. She was from Venice, but her father was a diplomat in Washington, D.C. That's where I met her. When you and your sister were young, it was a bad time to be children of Hades. World War II was brewing. A few of my, ah, other children were leading the losing side. I thought it best to put you two out of harm's way."
Reyna took a deep breath, as though preparing to continue, but she put her palms on the book and stared up instead.
"He's not talking about you," she said to Hazel. It wasn't a question.
The younger girl shook her head.
"He has other sister, then? And… you, too, then, I suppose" a Roman added to Hazel, but she just bit her lip and shook her head again. "No…? But – "
"She's dead," Percy said quietly. "Keep reading, Reyna."
The Praetor had impassive face, but he knew the news made an impact on her.
"That's why you hid us in the Lotus Casino?"
Hades shrugged. "You didn't age. You didn't realize time was passing. I waited for the right time to bring you out."
"But what happened to our mother? Why don't I remember her?"
"Not important," Hades snapped.
"What? Of course it's important. And you had other children—why were we the only ones who were sent away? And who was the lawyer who got us out?"
Hades grit his teeth. "You would do well to listen more and talk less, boy. As for the lawyer . . ."
Hades snapped his fingers. On top of his throne, the Fury Alecto began to change until she was a middle-aged man in a pinstriped suit with a briefcase. She—he—looked strange crouching at Hades's shoulder.
Some snorted at the mental image.
"You!" Nico said.
The Fury cackled. "I do lawyers and teachers very well!"
Nico was trembling. "But why did you free us from the casino?"
"You know why," Hades said. "This idiot son of Poseidon cannot be allowed to be the child of the prophecy."
"So, he doesn't like you much, huh?"
"He got over it, I think. Or hope."
One would think so, after getting him and his children respect and a cabin at camp, after all.
I plucked a ruby off the nearest plant and threw it at Hades.
"You don't throw stones at gods!" said Reyna desperately.
"But what a stone it was! No stoney-stone, but a ruby" said Percy, nodding to himself.
Jason face-palmed.
It sank harmlessly into his robe. "You should be helping Olympus!" I said. "All the other gods are fighting Typhon, and you're just sitting here—"
"And now you're yelling at him" said Jason dully. "You're suicidal."
"You just wait" Annabeth repeated.
"Waiting things out," Hades finished. "Yes, that's correct. When's the last time Olympus ever helped me, half-blood? When's the last time a child of mine was ever welcomed as a hero? Bah! Why should I rush out and help them? I'll stay here with my forces intact."
"And when Kronos comes after you?"
"Let him try. He'll be weakened. And my son here, Nico—" Hades looked at him with distaste. "Well, he's not much now, I'll grant you. It would've been better if Bianca had lived. But give him four more years of training. We can hold out that long, surely. Nico will turn sixteen, as the prophecy says, and then he will make the decision that will save the world. And I will be king of the gods."
A couple of gasps were heard.
"Poor Nico" whispered Hazel.
"You're crazy," I said. "Kronos will crush you, right after he finishes pulverizing Olympus."
Hades spread his hands. "Well, you'll get a chance to find out, half-blood. Because you'll be waiting out this war in my dungeons."
"No!" Nico said. "Father, that wasn't our agreement. And you haven't told me everything!"
"I've told you all you need to know," Hades said. "As for our agreement, I spoke with Jackson. I did not harm him. You got your information. If you had wanted a better deal, you should've made me swear on the Styx. Now, go to your room!" He waved his hand, and Nico vanished.
"That – that – "
"I know!"
"That boy needs to eat more," Demeter grumbled. "He's too skinny. He needs more cereal."
"I like Demeter the best out of them" grumbled a Roman boy.
Many were shaking their heads and quietly, as to not disturb reading, expressing their not-so-nice feeling towards the god of the underworld.
Persephone rolled her eyes. "Mother, enough with the cereal. My lord Hades, are you sure we can't let this little hero go? He's awfully brave."
"I like Persephone, too" decided Piper.
"No, my dear. I've spared his life. That's enough."
"How generous of you" said Leo sarcastically.
I was sure she was going to stand up for me. The brave, beautiful Persephone was going to get me out of this.
She shrugged indifferently. "Fine. What's for breakfast? I'm starving."
"You know what, I don't like any of them much," said the talkative Roman girl.
Hum of agreement.
"Cereal," Demeter said.
"Mother!" The two women disappeared in a swirl of flowers and wheat.
Percy rolled his eyes, used to things like that by now.
"Don't feel too bad, Percy Jackson," Hades said. "My ghosts keep me well informed of Kronos's plans. I can assure you that you had no chance to stop him in time. By tonight, it will be too late for your precious Mount Olympus. The trap will be sprung."
"He knows this and does… nothing?"
"That's funny, you know," Percy said in Annabeth's ear. "How Romans are completely unaware of what the gods are like."
"They had very high expectations and… well, what we're reading doesn't really match up" she smiled softly.
"What trap?" I demanded. "If you know about it, do something!
"Yeah, do!" chanted someone.
At least let me tell the other gods!"
Hades smiled. "You are spirited. I'll give you credit for that. Have fun in my dungeon. We'll check on you again in—oh, fifty or sixty years."
"That's the end," said Reyna, marking the page with Annabeth's paper – or rather Percy's.
"You know… it's quite late," piped up the talkative Roman girl. Percy finally had to get to know her name. "Maybe… a meal? And then – the story" she eyed Percy. Upon noticing him looking at her, she rapidly turned back to Reyna.
After checking the time, Reyna nodded.
"Yes, that would be fine."
"But it's too early – "
"So, meal and after that Percy will tell us some more" she cut Percy off.
He raised his eyebrows amusedly.
"Eager, aren't they?" whispered to him Annabeth.
"So, let's eat!"
*Those who read the Demigod Files know what it's about. But in case someone didn't, there was this story about Thalia, Nico and Percy having kind of a quest from Persephone in the Underworld and it refers to it.
Welcome again!
Thank you so, so much for every review. And if we're on about it... HEY, YOU! YES, YOU WHO'S NOT GOING TO LEAVE A WORD OF A COMMENT. PLEASE, DO! JUST A WORD WOULD BE ENOUGH, IT MAKES MY DAY. Okay, I feel desperate begging for reviews like that, but I guess sometimes it works (on me anyway). I'd really appreciate simple "good", "nice" or even "awful", just for taking your time to inform me about your opinion.
Hope I didn't disappoint with that chapter (huh, what a great excuse to leave a review... just saying). Again, any suggestions, criticism and questions are very much welcomed.
That's it, I think. Have a good day... and the two weeks until you hear from me, too! :)
Ronn - *flashes out too early* *my bad*