**Recap: Percy comes to, unpossessed and the mania pretty much just taunts him until he sees Nico is dead. There were some pretty graphic injuries, so peeps who skipped, just know he's hurt. The mania revealed it wasn't Nico's mania, it was Percy's, born of his worry of hurting Nico, and left. Percy calls for Mrs. O'Leary, and cries T_T

So, I've changed the physics of what can be done in Tartarus for the sake of... Well, this being my story, so deal :3

Short, but Percy's perspective again, so woo!**

Percy lost track of time, but was quickly brought back to reality by a dog's whining that was as loud as the exhaust brakes of a sixteen-wheeler. A large, rough tongue swiped along Percy's face, a matching wet nose trying to push its way into his crossed arms. Percy just pushed Mrs. O'Leary's face away and grabbed onto the fur of her shoulder. He stopped breaking down long enough to pull himself to his feet, ignoring the concerned sounds coming from Mrs. O'Leary. He was about to command her to get him out of there before remembering… Nico's… Body. Oh, fuck.

Percy fell to the ground again, crying uncontrollably as a flash of light erupted from the other side of the hellhound whose fur he was crying into. The thought crossed his mind that it was probably a fireball spat by some infernal monster that had finally tracked down his no longer tainted demigod scent.

But then why was Mrs. O'Leary still so ca—

'Nico?!' A concerned voice called, instantly recognisable. Jason?! What the… Mrs. O'Leary bounded away from Percy, making him drop to his hands and knees, tears still streaming from his eyes despite his best efforts to stop.

'Are you dead? Is he there?' Another, higher voice called from what felt like down a tunnel. Ah, that made sense. Cyclopses, imitating people he knew.

'No, he's— Percy?! Wh— Oh shit, Oct—!' Percy looked up into the monster that was about to crunch on his bones, but was overcome by the feeling of confusion as Jason really was in front of him. Percy didn't get it, was this some sort of mirage? Jason was trying to keep Mrs. O'Leary from bowling him over, and Percy knew the son of Zeus usually found their community dog's antic funny, but by the look on Jason's face, he'd seen Nico. Oh.

Percy looked to where Percy had obviously come from; what had to be a portal, made of almost white fire. A wall of fire, right there on the wall. Weird.

Percy let numbness wash over him as he dropped onto his backside on the stone ground. He barely registered Octavian appearing through the portal, nor what the two discussed next.

'He's…' Jason's voice broke, which was new, and Percy could hear he was standing over Nico's body. 'He—…'

'He's dead.' Percy said, staring blankly at the ground, his voice as dead as his beloved. 'I killed him. He's… Dead.'

'What are you talking about?' The voice of Octavian sounding so indignant was definitely not something Percy needed right now, but he supposed they'd have questions and he should probably answer them before he passed out, which he could tell was going to be soon.

'I…' He choked, but forced himself to continue, feeling the stares of the Romans fixed on him. 'I was—' He tried to gather his words, but was cut off by Octavian scoffing. Percy lifted his head to look at them and was just about to tear the Augur a new one when Octavian stepped closer to Nico's… To the corpse.

'Imbeciles.' He muttered, holding a bracelet-wrapped hand over Nico. Percy was dumbfounded, yet even more so as after a second, what seemed like mist lifted off of Nico's cold dead body to reveal an almost exact copy, except this copy was breathing, moving and alive.

'… Nico?' Percy whispered, realising the mist wasn't mist at all, it was Mist. 'Nico?!' Percy screamed this time, jumping up to go to his boyfriend only to be stopped by Jason, who wrapped his stupid muscled oversized arms around Percy in a bearhug to stop him from going closer.

'Whoa, man, if you did hurt him then I think—'

'I don't give a fuck what you think!' Percy shouted, accentuating the curse with a hard knee to Jason's stomach. Percy had just enough time to see Octavian kneeling by Nico —who'd rolled onto his other side, and was breathing, and oh gods thank you— and possibly say something to him before Jason recovered and, using the momentum of Percy rushing to Nico, flipped the son of Poseidon over his shoulder and promptly threw both of them back through the portal.

Landing hard on the dusty earth of New Rome, despite his bet efforts, Percy passed out before he could even gather his thoughts.

**Yay! Nico's aliiiivvveee! Sorry y'all, I just knew I had to do that… Douchebag Octavian…Next is chapter fifteen, and that'll be the second last chapter before this series ends and I announce the next, so enjoy while you can! (╥﹏╥) **