Here's the deal guys: before you read this, please read the author's note before this chapter. It will explain why I removed the last chapter I posted. Again, I'm so, so sorry for all those who have already read Chapter 18, but to tell you the truth, this one was the original one I made. The one I posted last night was a last-minute decision, where I decided to put the Romans in, but now, I thought better of it, so this story will be a Greek/Egyptian one.

Anyway, enough ranting. Enjoy reading! (If you still want to, I mean…)

S
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It hurts. Every bit of skin, every inch of flesh. Truthfully, I felt more like a knife sharpener than a human being. Cade was ruthless. I had been enduring his torture for gods knows how long, and I don't have the strength to continue this any longer. If only Nico were here, he would've stabbed Cade in the heart already, dragged him back from the underworld, and stabbed him again more painfully just for the heck of it.

But during Cade's last…visit, I felt another presence in the air, as though someone else was in the room with us, but only invisible. I did feel a weird tingle in my arms, like people said you would feel when a ghost passed through you. In that moment, I somehow felt safe, like nothing Cade would do to me would hurt, even for a bit. Nobody made feel safe like that, not even Carter, Amos, or Anubis, no one except…

Nico.

"Oh Nico, where are you?" I whispered softly into the wind. I dared not move my body any more than necessary. Every bit of burned flesh was leaking out pus, I think. My fingers were instinctively flinching from the pain.

A strong gust of wind blew, which was weird considering that this place didn't even have a window. A voice spoke in my mind, someone who I was very familiar with.

Hello, Sadie. What have you been – oh, bloody Horus! What happened to you? Isis asked me hysterically.

"Bloody Horus, that's new." I said, chuckling weakly, and my chest hurt from the sudden movement.

Do not joke about this, child! Isis scolded. I can feel the pain you are feeling. What happened to you? Who did this?

"Cade Parker. I think he's being controlled by Apophis." I muttered weakly. It took all of my remaining strength just to remain awake. I then told her of Apophis' form.

That is good. That means that he is still caged. That form is only a sliver of his soul, nothing more.

"But that form did this to me, and that isn't exactly "nothing more."" I groaned.

Isis gasped, mentally speaking, of course. Apophis was able to do this to you?

I nodded my head, and a searing pain came from the burns on my neck. I groaned in pain. "Yes." I said, gritting my teeth to keep from screaming in pain. "Please Isis, don't make me talk. It hurts." I complained.

You can think of what you're going to say to me. She said.

Okay. I said. Can you hear me?

Isis did the mental equivalent of a nod. Loud and clear, Sadie. Now, let us be serious. I came to tell you that your brother and that son of Hades is closer than you think, and so is the son of Poseidon. Horus has been rallying gods that are on his side since yesterday, preparing for a war on the mortal world. There were rumors that the Olympians themselves are also pleading for Lord Chaos to let them interfere, just this once. The demigods are on standby, but they are ready for a war…whenever. Chiron too, has informed me that he has sent out search parties for you and the others. She informed me.

Wait, search parties? As in, more than once? Why? What happened to Nico? I asked.

The son of Hades has been, for a lack of a better word, captured by Apophis himself. Isis told me.

"What!" I yelped in surprise, which made the burns sting more. "Ouch!"

Easy, Sadie Isis chided. You're hurt.

But I didn't care anymore. My mind was on Nico. If Apophis had him…I shuddered just thinking what that wretched snake has in store for him.

Don't worry. Isis said. Chiron has already contacted Amos, so help will come. Just be strong, Sadie. There was a reason I chose you as my host.

Great. I rolled my eyes, which strangely didn't hurt a bit. So what you're saying is, if all this fails, we're basically dead.

Isis nodded. Yes. Be strong, Sadie. Help always comes, even from the most unexpected of places.

I scoffed. Yeah, right. Well let me tell you this, Isis. I have been waiting for help for god knows how long, expecting someone to bust open that door and let me down! Do you have any idea how much I suffered, how much pain I felt in this room? Tears were flowing down my cheeks now. I hate to say this, and if my brother ever hears about this, he will never let me live it down, but I miss my brother.

But I do, child, I do. Isis said.

How? I asked. And don't tell me that this has happened to you before. As far as I know, you lived in in luxury for almost your entire immortal life!

Isis sighed mentally. True.

Then how in Ra's name do you feel the pain I'm feeling right now? I demanded.

I have been with you the entire time, Sadie. Didn't you feel my presence? I care about you, Sadie, in more ways than you know.

Then why didn't you help me?

I- I felt Isis shift uncomfortably at the question.

I knew it. You don't care about anyone, much less a mere mortal like me. So now, leave my head, and leave me alone!

She left in another gust of wind. And I was alone with my thoughts.

Oh Nico, when are you gonna come?

P
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C
Y

The first thing I saw when I woke up was a baboon.

"Ah!" I screamed, and jumped up from the bed. "Holy hell!" The baboon jumped up, bared its fangs at me, then swung ran away. Okay, that was weird.

A chuckling sound came from the door. I snapped my head in that direction, only to find a smiling Zia.

I fell back down on the bed. Then, I realized, I was still alive. How? My Achilles' spot was stabbed. How could I still be here, breathing?

Zia saw the look of confusion on my face. She approached me, her footsteps echoing around the walls.

"Are you okay, Percy?" she asked me worriedly.

"Fine." I moaned. "How in Zeus' name am I alive?"

"You can thank Amos for that." She explained how Amos was able to channel the power of Serket, and with the help of a few other healers, was able to remove my curse, but a cost.

"What?" I asked. "What cost?"

She handed me a knife. "See for yourself."

I rolled my eyes, took the knife, and cut a slashed it across my forearm. Immediately, a red outline began appearing, and a few moments later, blood began to flow.

"Ow!" I screamed in pain. I pressed hard on the wound, staunching the flow of blood.

"How in-" I groaned.

"They removed you r curse, and with that, your invulnerability." She said simply.

"How were they able to do that? No one should be able to do that!" I said.

She shrugged. "Egyptian magic is open-ended. With the right spells, anything is possible."

Before I could ask any more questions, she walked back to the door, and beckoned for me to follow.

What I saw outside completely overwhelmed me. We were underground, in a huge cavern. People were strolling the busy streets, holding wands and staffs. Lions, crocodiles, and even hippos were on leashes, being pulled around like some sort of pet. Zia grabbed my hand, and dragged me through the streets. People were looking at us, or more precisely, at me. Their eyebrows furrowed when they saw the words "Camp Half-Blood" on my shirt. I swear that I even heard someone mutter, "arrow up my butt."

We stopped in front of a huge set of doors. Zia pushed them open like they weighed less than a sheet of paper. She walked inside, but I just stared at the building, my mouth agape.

She rolled her eyes. "Come on." She literally pulled me inside, and I went completely wide-eyed. Massive curtains dominated the sides of the corridor, where the pictures inside were moving, like the frames in those Harry Potter movies. As we walked the endless corridor, the scenes kept changing, and I could see pyramids, animal-headed gods, and…

"Is that Moses?" I stopped and stared at the curtain, where an old man with white hair was raising his staff, and the sea parted before him.

Zia sighed. "Yes. Now come along!" I realized that this was probably a sore subject for the Egyptians. I read the Bible. It was said that the magicians of Egypt were defeated by a shepherd, who was blessed with the power of God. They probably felt the shame, until now.

At the end of the corridor were two figures. I recognized Amos, with his leopard-skin cape. Hieroglyphs were swirling around him, like they were happy just to be in his presence. him was a horse with a rider…no. As we got closer, I saw the familiar stallion body, and that familiar smile. The two figures seemed to be arguing. Amos was scowling and holding a staff in one hand, which looked a lot like Sadie's, Chiron was holding a loaded bow, and quiver full of arrows was placed on his back, and another figure, a woman wearing a leotard, was alternating her look at the two, wickedly sharp knives held in her hands, like a three-way fight was about to happen any second. Amos noticed ne, and he scowled. I felt the tension in the air rise.

"Chiron!" I ran over to him, and hugged him like the world was ending today or tomorrow, much to the surprise of Amos and the woman.

Chiron chuckled. "Good to see you too, my boy." I released him, and saw the other two figures staring at me. Chiron was eyeing Amos and the woman carefully, as if he was expecting them to attack me any second.

Amos frowned. "This is the child that's supposed to save us? Too scrawny." he pointed to me.

"Hey!" I protested, and turned to him. "Can you see these muscles? I didn't get them from baking, you know!" I flexed my biceps, and behind me, I saw Chiron facepalm in embarrassment, and Zia blushed beside me.

The woman shook her head. "Sons of Poseidon did always know how to set the mood." She was chuckling a bit. Chiron nodded his head in agreement.

The woman held out her hand. "Good to finally meet you."

"Likewise." I shook her hand, but kept my eye on her. I've met enough people to know you shouldn't trust their looks, especially if Greeks and Egyptians are in the room with you.

Amos gestured to the woman. "This is Bast, goddess of cats." He told me in a flat tone. " She is Carter and Sadie's guardian, and the champion of Ra."

"Stop it, Amos." Bast purred. "Flattery will get you nowhere." I could swear that she was blushing, but thought better than to announce it, lest she cut me up with those knives.

Knives…Suddenly my dream came back to me. Cade…Annabeth's dagger…her screams…Sadie…burning.

A lone tear made its way down my cheek. I wiped it away quickly before anyone saw. I couldn't have them thinking that I had become emotionally unstable, especially right now, when two people are slowly dying in the hands of Cade and Apophis. However, my plan failed. Curse you Athena.

Zia stared at me in shock. "Percy, are you…alright?"

I put on my brave face, which was hard considering that their screams were echoing continuously inside my head. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine."

Amos frowned in my direction. "I can sense a tip in the balance of your power child. Clearly, there is something bothering you." I felt a hand on my shoulder. "What is it, Percy? You look like you've seen a ghost." Chiron asked.

I sighed. There was just no way that I can hide anything from these two. Curse you again, Athena. "You guys may want to sit down for this."

Amos led us out into a hidden chamber within the hall, and gestured to the sofas. We sat in a u-shape, Amos facing me, and Bast and Zia sitting on the couch. Chiron stood behind me in that protective manner that I've come to love. There, I told them my dream. Chiron's eyebrows furrowed when he heard about Annabeth, and he nearly stumbled, but Amos took the news about Sadie much worse. He hung his head in despair, and gripped the armrest so hard, the stuffing almost came out. His staff clattered to the ground. The light disappeared from his eyes, like he had no more purpose for living. "Oh no, Sadie. What has he done to you?" he mumbled.

"Don't worry, we will find her. I promise." I reassured him.

He jerked his head up to look at me, and I noticed the look of pure hatred in his eyes. "You dare promise that? It's your fault in the first place that she's dead! My poor Sadie…my poor niece…" If he hadn't shouted at me, I would've felt sorry for him. The first time I learned I was a half-blood, my mother had been taken by the lord of the dead, and I almost went hysterical finding her. Gods only know how Amos is feeling right now.

Chiron put a hand on my shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. "Amos, she is not dead. Percy here just said that a few minutes ago."

"But she could be, for all we know! How would Carter take this, oh gods how would my brother react when he finds out…" he glared at us with pure hatred, but I could see agony in those tired eyes of his. "This should have never happened. We honored the pact. It's because of you Greeks that Apophis escaped! I should have incinerated you when I had the chance. I should have obeyed the laws." Bast opened her mouth to say something, but thought against it, and slumped back down on the couch. Zia was looking at Amos with remorseful eyes, but unlike him, she wasn't angry with me, I think.

The moment he said laws, something came to me. "Trust must be forged, and overcome the laws." I muttered.

"What?" Chiron asked me.

"The Prophecy." I told him. "Trust must be forged, and overcome the laws. It talks about the union of the Egyptian and Greek pantheons." I stood up, much to the shock of the others. "Can't you see? This is why the prophecy was made. Apophis has would have escaped, even if our meeting never happened. The fates knew that the Egyptians alone couldn't have defeated him, so they sent Carter and Sadie to us. They knew that only the combined power of our gods can seal Apophis away, completely."

"The Egyptians don't have the Fates. They do not control our lives!" Amos argued.

He got me there. I had always thought that the Fates ordained everything on this planet, but now, I'm starting to have second thoughts.

"And what about the line, A traitor within the group holds the key, huh? For all we know, that could be you." Amos added. He spoke with such conviction that I would've believed him, if only I wasn't the one he was accusing.

Chiron stomped his foot on the ground. "Amos, enough! I will not have you accusing the Hero of Olympus with such nonsense!"

Amos scoffed. "Do not put your trust in one mortal, Greek. They will betray you, sooner or later."

"Look. Right now, this isn't about me. This about rescuing Sadie and Annabeth. Heck, I don't even know where they are, and the stupid prophecy said that we were supposed to fine them."

Amos gestured for Zia to come. He whispered something in her ear, and she nodded. She took my hand , and, in spite of the situation, I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. Behind us, I saw Bast chuckle from the corner of my eye.

"Where are we going?" I asked her.

She kept pulling me along. "To the scrying room. We might have a way to find Sadie, but we need your help."

B
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S
T

The moment Percy and Sadie left, Chiron and Amos took their offensive stances. Chiron with his loaded bow, and Amos with his staff.

I shifted into a more relaxing position on the sofa. It's been ages since I saw a good fight.

"You had no right to treat him that way! Percy has done nothing but help ever since this entire fiasco began!" Chiron bellowed.

"He let Sadie get captured!" Amos retorted.

"He would not have! Not on purpose, anyway. Besides. All of us were sleeping when that happened!" Chiron said.

"I don't care! Shouldn't those brats of yours be trained to look out for intruders at night?" He was glowering at Chiron, the head of his staff producing flames.

"Heroes need their sleep, too! Besides, it's her fault for going outside that time of night!" Chiron started pulling back his bowstring, two arrows notched.

"Don't you dare blame this on her! She had absolutely nothing to do with it!"

"As did Percy!"

Amos scoffed. "Please, that son of Poseidon is a useless as bat dung."

"That's it!" Chiron bellowed. "Nobody disrespects my heroes! Especially you!" He pulled back the bowstring, aiming at Amos, and in the blink of an eye, let the arrows fly.

"Drowah!" Amos yelled. He pointed his staff to the ground, and a blue wall of light erupted in front of him, blocking the arrows in their path.

Before he could recover from such a massive spell, Chiron was already beside him. I smiled in surprise. I forgot that Centaurs can bend distance. He reared his back legs, and kicked Amos in the chest, knocking the wind out of him. Chiron notched another arrow, and I had the feeling that this one was aimed for Amos's head.

Amos, however, recovered quickly, and jumped out of the way. A second later, and arrow smashed a pot where he jumped from. He threw his staff, and it became a cobra in mid-air. It attacked Chiron, entangling his arms, legs, and head with its entire body.

"An old trick, Amos, an old trick." I commented.

He glared at me. "Aren't you going to help?"

I stretched my arms. "I suppose." I flicked my wrist, and my knife appeared in my hands. With one swift movement, I threw it, and it impaled…

It impaled the cobra, dissolving it to sand.

Amos looked at me in disbelief. "What the hell did you do that for?"

"It's been ages since I've seen a good fight." I told him. "And I don't want this to end so soon."

Before he could probably curse me, Chiron was suddenly on him, pummeling his face with a flurry of fists. One final kick to the skull with his horse legs sent Amos sprawling, defeated.

Amos was knocked down. Chiron put a hoof on top of his battered body. Amos groaned in disappointment, disbelief, and pain.

"I win, Amos." He said.

"Yeah, yeah. Now help me up." Chiron offered his hand, and Amos took it gratefully. Naturally, I did the only sensible thing I could do this time: I laughed in Amos' face.

I sighed. "That was rather quick. Are you two done?" I asked, still a little hopeful that Amos would want round two.

"No, I think we got it out of our system." Chiron said.

"And Amos wouldn't want to explain how he was beaten up by a thousand-year old centaur." I added, still laughing.

Amos glared at me, while Chiron mouthed, Shut up.

"Come on, let's get you to the infirmary." I took Amos' hand.

"But- the prophecy-" Amos argued.

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, you can discuss peace negotiations when your black eye is healed, and you broken arm, and the bruises on your-"

Amos' face flustered. "Okay, I get it. No need to rub it in my face."

I laughed again, which really put me in a good mood today.

That's it. Next chapter tomorrow. Again, sorry! And this story will be mainly about the Greek/Egyptians Pantheons.