Okay, so now I finally have internet access! YEESSS!

And I just realized I didn't put this story in the Nico/Will category xDD

ENJOOY!

Chapter 4

"He's alive." Hazel said as she turned to Nico. This relieved the son of Hades greatly.

Frank handed Hazel a canteen of nectar and ambrosia while Nico stood up to look around the forest.

"Hazel." He started, making his sister look up at him questioningly, "I have to find Will."

Gold eyes widened in surprise, "What? No! Nico, it's too dangerous!"

"You know I have to." He frowned. He was trying to hide his worry as much as possible, and it was actually taking him all his will to not bolt away to find the blonde, "You and Frank stay here and take care of Argus. I'll be right back."

"No! Wait!" Hazel turned to Frank who had been silent, "Frank, you go with him."

Now it was Frank's turn to look surprise, "H-huh? But—"

"No. It's too dangerous for you to be alone." The son of Hades scowled, "He stays here."

"Nico, you're going in that forest to find the one who did this to Argus, alone and weaponless." Hazel stubbornly said, her gaze never leaving his, "I'll be fine on my own. I can use the mist to protect Argus and me if that monster ever comes back."

They continued their staring contest for half a minute before Nico finally decided to look away.

"I already know what it is." He spoke, making them look at him in surprise. He then told them about the dream he had during their ride towards Camp Jupiter, of course leaving out the part where he was looking for Will.

"A Cyclops? A-are you sure?" Hazel looked worried but at the same time relieved that it wasn't anything bigger and more dangerous as the ones they faced during the war.

"Yeah. And I have to go now before he eats that idiot." And just as he was about to run off, Frank stops him.

"I'm coming with you." He quickly glared at the praetor, but the other did not waver nor did he back down.

"I'm confident Hazel can handle herself." This earned him a smile from the girl and Nico had to hold himself back from rolling his eyes. Of all times they had to act all lovey-dovey.

"And you think I can't?" He challenged as he raised an eyebrow.

Frank shrugged, "You are weaponless. And I can tell you're still winded from our shadow-travel."

He couldn't help but growl, "Fine." He then pointed at him threateningly, "Don't hold me back, Zhang."

Frank nodded his head before turning to look at Hazel with a gulp.

Nico looked at Argus' unconscious form when an idea suddenly formed in his mind, "Before that. I think I'm going to sleep first."

The couple looked at him in surprise. Not expecting the sudden thought, they exchanged looksS.

"Weren't you in a hurry a while ago?"

Nico sighed as he assured, "It won't take long." He settled himself on the ground, "Just a little notice I need to send."

And with that he curled up and fell asleep.

He dreamed he was back in camp half-blood, sitting by the arena watching his siblings practice their archery skills. Will never bothered practicing, seeing that he really wasn't going to improve any time soon.

He stretched his limbs, feeling a little bored before standing up.

He called out to his siblings telling them he had to go somewhere. He did not wait for any reply and walked off.

He suddenly found himself by the beach, looking at the beautiful horizon. He felt the breeze caress his face and he was suddenly surprised to find a hand insert itself in his own. He looked to the side and was even more surprised to see a certain child of Hades.

He was blushing really bad, making Will blush himself. And for some reason he couldn't stop his fingers from curling around the cold hand of Nico di Angelo.

"Stay where you are." Dark eyes suddenly met his, and the blush had now disappeared, instead—fear and worry now decorated his features, "I'm coming for you."

And before Will could even ask, Nico dissolves away along with the camp.

Suddenly he was in a different place. He was in a room with polished marble floors and walls draped in velvets. He tried to look around since he couldn't help but be amazed at the banners and wooden poles—

"Have you found him yet?" He turned around and was surprised to find Jason leaning against the long wooden table found in the center of the room. Piper and Annabeth had entered, and both shook their head miserably.

"Where's Hazel and Frank anyway?" Percy walked up behind the blonde, "I haven't heard nor seen them for a while now."

"Maybe they already found Nico." Piper spoke up, trying to sound optimistic, but doubt seemed to linger in her multi-colored eyes.

Suddenly he felt an electric shot ran through him as her words sunk in his mind. Nico was missing?

The room then dissolved along with Jason and the others and he was suddenly in the middle of a forest. It was dark and only the stars from above gave him the light to see. And somehow, something about the place was familiar.

He heard rushed footsteps from behind him and quickly turned around.

Two figures rushed past him and Will didn't even get the chance to see who they were. Then suddenly one of them stopped and turned to him. He stiffened before immediately relaxing when he saw the familiar face of Nico. Then he frowned as he noticed his exhaustion.

"I'm almost there." He said, trying to sound re-assuring for some reason, "Just stay alive."

"Nico!" And as Nico turned around, everything dissolved into black.

His head throbbed in pain and he could feel the blood trickle down the side of his face as he slowly rose to consciousness. He wondered if he was suffering a concussion as he seemed to be dangling on a pot of boiling water.

He could hear a small humming and his eyes snapped open as he remembered everything that happened.

The Cyclops emerging from the forest.

The panic and fear he felt for Argus.

His attempt to grab the black sword only to be pulled off from the tree…

…and getting knocked out as he accidentally hit a high branch.

He suddenly felt pathetic realizing he didn't even put up a fight. Really… really pathetic. His sight then met the obnoxious grin of the Cyclops. He seemed to be in the middle of putting weird ingredients in the pot.

Said ingredients mostly involved dead animals.

Will's stomach churned and his head throbbed even more. He was starting to consider becoming a vegetarian.

"Good! Dinner is awake! Always taste better when awake and screaming!" The Cyclops exclaimed cheerfully.

"Look… uh… you really don't want me for dinner." Will said as he struggled against his binds, "I taste awful I might even give you stomach cramps!"

"Stomach cramps I can handle." He said eagerly.

"And you'll have hyper-acidity! I'm too acidic— your system won't be able to take it—WHOA!" The Cyclops suddenly grabbed him and pulled him from the branch he had been tied to. He caught a glimpse of Nico's sword next to a tree and felt this hope that he might actually be able to defeat this monster. If he finds a way to escape that is…

The monster was now frowning and glaring at the sun of Apollo disapprovingly, "Dinner talks too much."

Nico's voice suddenly echoed in his mind.

Just stay alive.

"Uhh yeah! That's high-quality meat for you." He said as cheerful as possible, trying to sound like those sales people, "If they keep talking they're the juicy-yummy kind of meat you would definitely like!"

The Cyclops raised an eyebrow at this, "I thought dinner gives stomach cramps."

"Uhh… yeah! I will give you stomach cramps—if you don't cook me in a proper way with the proper ingredients." He tried to wiggle his eyebrows, "You see, fresh meat like me cannot just be eaten in such a poor quality mixture as that." He tilted his head to the boiling pot nearby to emphasize his point.

"Mixture no good?" The Cyclops seemed to frown at this.

"Nope. Sorry big guy." He tried to sound really sorry so that he wouldn't be too obvious, "But I can tell you what ingredients you can use. Just a bit of vegetables here and there, not too far or too hard to find."

The monster seemed to contemplate this when he tilted his head and spoke, "I'm used to stomach cramps. Procedure will take too long." The healer yelped as he was suddenly positioned over the pot as if ready to dump him in it. Will shut his eyes as he waited for the inevitable –when the Cyclops halted.

He suddenly started sniffing the air and Will could feel himself sweat as the hot smoke surrounded him. Then he was face-to-face with the Cyclops who grinned at him widely.

"More dinner!"

"Who were you talking to?" Nico was surprised at the sudden question. He spared a quick glance to Frank before looking back ahead as they ran through the forest. They had been following the trail of broken trees, hoping to find the Cyclops.

"It's nothing you should be concerned about."

"Just curious…" Frank muttered.

Nico rolled his eyes. And just as he thought that the other was finished, he suddenly asked, "Where'd your sword go?"

He sighed deeply, "I gave it to the guy we're trying to save." He grumbled, "And I just hope he didn't manage to damage it."

Frank looked at him in surprise and he was about to open his mouth to say something else when he noticed something else.

"Look!" He pointed at the smoke that rose from the trees afar, the familiar glow of the fire lit the area and Nico immediately headed towards it with the son of Mars yelling for him to wait.

He halted at a nearby tree and leaned against it. He tilted his head, trying to catch a peek but he only managed to see a portion of what looked like a huge black pot. He felt Frank stop beside him, panting really hard.

"I don't know if the Cyclops is around—"

AAAAAAAHHH!

A sudden current ran through his spine as he heard a familiar scream. His eyes widened significantly and he took in a sharp breath. He felt his companion stiffen beside him.

NOOOO! STOP! STOP!

His nightmare resurfaced as he heard the pained voice of Will Solace, and that got him running towards the encampment, hoping he wasn't too late.

"NO-!" Frank tried to hold him back but he pulled free. He had to save the son of Apollo.

But… what he saw made him freeze. Will Solace (totally fine) was tied to a tree—his pale blue eyes wide and frantic, and his mouth was gagged by a cloth.

It was a trap.

"LOOK OUT!" Then he was suddenly tackled to the ground and he turned just in time to see Frank fly away and slam hard against a tree. He didn't even have the time to call out to the demigod when a huge club was inches away from hitting him.

He rolled away just in time to avoid the second swing and quickly sunk into the shadows before the Cyclops even got the chance to raise his weapon. He appeared behind the confused monster and with a loud scream he summoned all the undead warriors he could.

Immediately, the zombies slashed at the Cyclopes, but this was immediately parried with his club. He swung at them and effortlessly had them slammed to the ground. But more of the undead came rushing towards the huge monster.

The son of Hades panted in exhaustion and just as he was going to check around for Will and Frank, he spots his sword. He quickly ran for it and wasted no time to grab it. He then turned to the blonde who was still struggling against his binds and ran towards him.

He almost reached the other but then his feet suddenly left the ground as a hand wrapped itself around his torso. He yelped as his sword fell from his grasp and almost impaled Will's foot from below.

He soon came face-to-face with the Cyclops who was looking at him as if he were an all-you-can-eat buffet, "You smell different!" He grinned too widely and Nico couldn't help but curse as he saw his defeated zombies, "I shall eat you now!"

He vaguely heard the muffled scream of Will behind him when suddenly the Cyclops let go of him. He tried to land on his feet, but pain flared up on his right ankle and he fell on the ground with a grunt. He looked up in time to see a huge elephant tackling the Cyclops as hard as he can to the ground.

Pain shot through his right ankle when he tried to stand up to help Frank.

Of all times! He growled and quickly tried to check on his injury. Fortunately, it was only a sprain.

Frank was now trying to push the Cyclops down, but the Cyclops kept his balance, trying to flip the demigod to his back. And Nico could tell he was in the verge of doing just that. So he quickly thrust both hands out and concentrated as the ground beneath the monster cracked.

His hands trembled at the exertion and sweat trickled down at the side of his face. He wondered if he could make the Cyclops fall through Tartarus and he was pretty much sure he couldn't. But he had to try.

Another loud crack and the Cyclops stumbled. Nico's vision was now blurring.

Frank heaved a massive push one more time and the Cyclops finally fell on his back and had hit his head hard against his fallen club, fortunately knocking him out.

Nico suddenly felt weak and he watched as Frank shrunk back to his original size. He immediately saw how he held his arm as if it were broken and the blood that trickled down the side of his head. He tried to call to him, but he didn't even have the energy to use his voice and suddenly he fell face first to the ground.

So did Frank.

He then heard some shuffling behind him and just as he was about to try to tilt his head to see what Will was doing, the Cyclops shifted. He was immediately on full-alert—and he tried to stand up but his body was heavy as lead. He soon realized he couldn't even lift a finger.

His panic shot up as the Cyclops started to push himself off the ground.

Nononononono…!

He thought about Frank and—

He stiffened as a figure suddenly appeared in front of him and his dark eyes widened as he saw the familiar broad back and mop of blonde hair of Will Solace. The son of Apollo was in a fighting position—his legs parted in preparation to launch or run, and in his outstretched hands he held his sword.

And he was trembling.

"It's bad enough that you don't know how to fight!"

Nico never felt so bad before as the words he had said from Will echoed in his mind. He had never been so wrong. Of course Will didn't know how to fight. He shouldn't even know how to fight. It just… didn't suit him.

He was better off as a healer than a fighter.

Slowly, his hands clenched as he tried to reach out to the healer. He'd rather die than let the person in front of him fight.

"Will-"

Then a loud yell from above almost made the two jump. Nico caught a glimpse of a blur (was that a Pegasus?) rush past the Cyclopes and a figure dropped from the blur and landed on top of the Cyclops' chest who was just at the process of getting up. The monster didn't even have the time to react when the figure took out a sword and stabbed him swiftly.

He immediately recognized the mysterious person who turned to them. The familiar dark long hair and eyes— the purple cloak that fluttered behind her as she jumped off the body… and the familiar angry scowl on her face as she glared directly at him.

Yap, Reyna was going to kill him.

The Cyclops exploded into dust and Nico blacked out.

Nico slowly rose to consciousness and soon found himself in the familiar infirmary of Camp Jupiter. Just how long had he been out? Wasn't he in Cleveland a while ago? A blurry figure suddenly loomed over him, making him squint as he tried to get a better look of who the person was.

He soon recognized the person as Will Solace.

It took him some time to recognize him since his face was covered in scratches and his head was wrapped in a bandage, and he was scowling at him. Usually he would smile softly when he would wake up. What changed? He wondered in amusement.

"You're awake."

"I'm aware."

His scowl deepened as if he just insulted him, making the son of Hades frown. Did he say something wrong?

"What were you thinking?!" Will demanded. His anger was now apparent and he looked like he was ready to explode any minute, "You could've gotten yourself killed! Were you even thinking at all?!"

Nico couldn't help but feel upset at this, as well as the anger that immediately responded to Will's, "That's some thanks for someone who almost got eaten."

"You expect me to thank you after you almost got yourself and Frank killed?!" The healer exclaimed, "You knew it was a Cyclops and you let yourself fall into his stupid voice-imitating trap!"

"Who—"

"Your sister did. I'd be lying if I said I'm not disappointed, Di Angelo."

The son of Hades' could feel his face heat up from both anger and embarrassment. Through gritted teeth he spoke, "Don't make me regret wasting my energy just trying to save you, Solace."

Then the anger in his pale blue eyes spiked up, "You did not just "waste" your energy, death boy, but you practically drained them! I'm starting to think that you purposely did rush into battle without thinking!"

The air around them suddenly grew cold and Nico tried to hold back the prickle at the back of his eyes, "Well I'm sorry for not thinking! It looks like I wasn't thinking properly too when I was deciding whether to save you or not!"

Will's fists were now clenched and he didn't seem to notice the sudden drop of temperature, "Do you have any idea how much you made everyone worried?!"

"Did you?"

"I did. But there wasn't much I could do with my situation, if you haven't noticed!"

Nico had pushed himself off the bed to seat up, "Well this wouldn't have happened if you didn't let go!"

"And what? Let Argus get attacked by those hellhounds?!"

"That's not—"

"Then what? I appreciate you coming for us, but couldn't you just let Reyna come and pick us up?"

"You would've been dead by the time they arrived." Nico darkly muttered.

"I think that's better than watching you practically rush into battle without even thinking ahead and almost got your sister's boyfriend killed!"

It was like Zeus had hit him with his master bolt. He didn't know what expression he made, but Will must have noticed he had said something pretty harsh as all the anger in his face melted into shock and regret.

He tried to muster up a scowl as he forced himself to stand, ignoring the slight sting on his ankle. Will tried to stop him but he pushed him away.

"Nico—you're supposed to be resting—"

"I've had enough rest." He growled, "I need some air."

"No, you don't." The scowl was back on the son of Apollo's face, "You need to rest." He grabbed his shoulder trying to push him down, "Doctor's. Orders."

"Too bad. I don't care." Nico glared as if challenging him.

"What is going on here?!"

Both turned to the curtains that were pushed open, revealing a really pissed-off Praetor. She looked back and forth to them, "I've been receiving complaint about a disturbance."

"Don't worry, I was about to leave anyway." Nico grumbled, about to walk out, but Reyna grabbed his arm. Her grip was firm and tight, stoppinghim from escaping.

"Where do you think you're going?" She asked, "According to this guy you're supposed to be sleeping. You've drained too much energy shadow-travelling back and forth from here to Cleveland."

"Well, I feel fine now."

"Nico." Reyna looked like she was holding herself back from exploding, "You're not helping anyone by doing this." Her grip then tightened, "You've caused enough trouble."

He didn't know why he felt betrayed at that. He had known that Reyna would be angry, and most probably the others too and he knew he messed up really bad—but he couldn't help the hurt… and the sudden familiar feeling of being alone.

"So if I were you, I'd get my butt back to bed and just take that rest!"

He looked at Will who wasn't looking at him anymore.

Disappointment.

He looked back at Reyna who gave him a stern glare.

Always a disappointment.

His thoughts then wandered to his sister, and he couldn't seem to rid the scene of Hazel sitting by the bedside of Frank, who was trying to assure her that he was fine despite the bruises and injuries.

When would he stop making all these stupid disappointments?

Reyna's grip suddenly weakened and he quickly pulled his arm from her hand and limped backwards to his bed.

Will suddenly shot up— almost like he got electrocuted as he turned to Nico with wide eyes, "Oh no you don't!"

He tried to grab his hand when the shadows surrounded the son of Hades for the umpteenth time. And Nico felt the warm hand of the other before it abruptly disappeared and he heard the horrified gasp of Reyna. He couldn't help but look back and realized that Will did manage to grab his hand…

…only to have his fingers go through it as it faded for like a second.

Fortunately, it was enough time for him to disappear into the darkness.

End of Chapter

So... I'm going to post a solangelo Christmas fic on Christmas.

Anyway~ please REVIEW!