I have no legit excuse for being late with this chapter. I can only offer my apology (-.-) I'm sorry. This one is rather short-ish, forgive me.. -Monay

Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson & The Olympians

Chapter 11

Nico's POV

"Science question, Nico," Landon said, swinging his sword around in his hand. "How many chromosomes does the offspring inherit from each parent?"

I was frozen, rooted to the spot as the world caved in on me with that one sudden realization. I knew the answer to that question. But I didn't answer it.

"Not a science geek, I see." Landon said with a snicker. He advanced toward me, slowly, with perfect nonchalance and with each step forward, I fought the urge to step back.

"Half," I finally answered. "23 from each for a total of 46." My biology teacher would be proud of me.

"Exactly," Landon was now a sword swing away from me and every inch of my mortal body was just screaming to put more distance between me and the taller boy. But I couldn't; running away would just let him know I was scared and I couldn't afford to be scared. Not when a whole army of half-titans who want to destroy me and my friends were in one room and had me surrounded and their leader staring me down.

"Haven't you ever wondered: if the gods can fall in love with mortals and have cute little half-blood babies then why can't the Titans? Well, obviously since I'm standing right here in front of you, it's possible. You've got 23 god-like chromosomes, I've got 23 Titan ones. Every one of us in this room has 23 pieces of Titan DNA."

Landon raised his sword and rested the blade on my shoulder and spoke.

"You may have won the battle, Nico; but this war isn't over. Oh no, if anything, it's only intensified. You go to your gods and remind them just how they came into being in the first place and you tell them that it's about time they stepped down. You're Olympians are dying; the age of the gods is coming to an end, and the era of the Titans will soon begin. And don't go trying to defend daddy and his friends; just think about it, Nico. It's in all the myths, all the stories."

Landon's sword got closer to my neck as he spoke and I cringed on the inside. He continued:

"Life for those ancient Greeks can be summed up like this: life is people dying and the gods feasting. They may have the power to control the weather, the sea, they may be able to fly and hurl thunderbolts at people but they are every bit as human as we are; imperfect, vain, selfish, and have a tendency to intentionally screw up. Now if you're kind enough to offer us a bit of help, I'm sure Kronos will be…merciful and let you live, even for a little while. I have no ill-intentions against you personally, Nico, this is all strictly business and my business is to gain your cooperation or kill you. I don't like getting my hands dirty, so make this easy for the both of us and come over to our side."

Landon's eyes stared straight at me, the white hot flames of his glare threatening to burn. The cold steel of his sword stung the side of my neck where it was held. Any harder, the sword would have claimed my head. But it wasn't the sword poised and ready to slice my head off or the cold blade pressed against my skin or the stabbing sensation Landon's stare seemed to hold or even the hot and cold pain the came from the fresh would on the side of my body that hazed my thinking.

It was the very words that poured forth from his mouth that got my mind reeling. And for a split-second, I even considered joining him.

There was some truth to Landon's speech.

Even I couldn't deny that; every god and goddess up in Olympus, no matter how powerful or stunning or glorious, was flawed. Every one of them, selfish and power-hungry. It's a sad turth. But even the truth could sound like a lie when it rolled off the tongue of a half-titan. And it was wrong to assume anything about anyone, even the gods. It was true that all the gods had chips on their shoulders, but they were good, too. And if it weren't for them, I wouldn't be here. I wouldn't have met some of the best friends I've ever had. I wouldn't have been who I am today and neither would anyone else. And unlike the gods that Landon described, I was grateful. And I planned on staying the same and protecting that which Kronos threatened to destroy.

And as I continued thinking, I got angrier.

And it was then that I decided that even if this sword on my neck took my head, I would not let the Titans have me.

I held Landon's gaze as I tightened my grip around my sword with as much stealth as I could muster. "You can plan as many wars as you like," I said. Landon's eyes widened. "Just don't plan winning any, and don't plan on involving me. Because the Titans will never win and I will never, ever join you."

And at last, I used whatever strength I had left to swing my sword toward him and it met his blade with a violent crash that resonated through the caverns. The force of the clang was enough to force Landon to take a few steps back. I looked down at where my sword was pointed on the ground; I had left a crevice in the stone tiles. Landon was taken aback, his breath heaving and eyes wide.

"You're kidding me," Landon yelled to me. "After everything I told you, after everything I said to convince you that you can't win...you're still choosing the side of the gods?"

I straightened up to my full height and looked at half-titans surrounding us. Landon's question was plastered onto every one of their faces as well.

"I'm choosing the side of my family," I said. And I don't know why, but the image of Bianca and another woman standing beside me became clear in my mind. I knew that the other woman was my mother. "I'm choosing to fight against evil, not for it. You won't convince me of anything, Landon. You may say that the Titans are the rightful deities of Olympus, but I'll tell you now that the only thing Kronos looks out for is himself. Whatever he's promised you is a lie. You can talk pretty to me all you want, but no demigod will ever join you."

Landon's widened eyes became dangerous again and bloodlust was clear on his face. "Then every demigod can die...starting with one son of Hades."With that last comment, Landon grabbed a spear that one of the other people was holding. He lunged forward and launched the weapon at me with a war cry. The spear was soaring through the air and across the room so fast, I could hear the whirring long before it got even near me.

Thinking quick, I grabbed the shield near me and hid behind it. The spear was thrown with enough force that the tip punctured the bronze and went through the shield, stopping just before it could stab me in the heart. I was pushed back by the force of the throw and had to steady myself. I discarded the shield after the spear stabbed it, and suddenly Landon was on me again.

He slashed downward with as much potency as he could muster and my arms strained to keep the blade from coming down on me. "Agh!" with a burst of energy I escaped from under his sword and a made a run toward the exit. I don't know if Posy got out or not, but I was hoping she did. Landon caught up with me. He grabbed the back of my shirt and violently pulled me back into the middle of the temple floor. The wound on my side was bleeding more than ever, but I couldn't help but notice a small tremor as I hit the golden tiles.

Landon seemed not to notice. He only continued to advance toward me. "You're not getting away that easily, Nico." he said. "You're not running out of this place like a coward. You said you would fight. Well, here's your chance." Landon lunged forward again and swung the sword at me and it seemed to have come from every direction all at once.

I swung my sword frantically avoiding his blade as much as I possibly could. It begame painfully apprent that I couldn't keep at this forever. I began to wonder what would happen to me; Nico di Angelo, son of Hades locked in an epic battle with a half-Titan. Would he die today? Perhaps in the next minute or so? Death to the son of Death. It was rather ironic, but the grim thoughts continued to pour out of me. I swung my sword again toward Landon's head, but for the third time, Landon kicked me square on my torso.

I felt the wind rushing out of me and it was as though one of my lungs had collapsed. Every bit of me ached, surrouned the spot where I had been cut. It was freezing and burning at the same time and I thought about whether I would die from cold or hot. They're both exactly the same if you kick them up enough. I fought the urge to stay down, but already landon was standing above me, ready to run his sword right through me and end it all.

"What a shame; you could have been of so much use to us. But you chose this." I stared at Landon. If I couldn't go down fighting, then I would go down glaring and the small tremors continued to go unnoticed. Landon swung-

Clang!

And the last possible moment, I saw the someone had stopped Landon's blade. Behind him stood Percy.

"Percy!" I almost gasped. The sight of Percy blocking Landon's sword was such a good sight to behold at that one moment. Landon looked at Percy with disbelief just before Percy pushed him back. Percy swung his sword from side to side with deadly accuracy, aiming for places where he knew Landon would have difficulty defending. The tremors soon turned into violent shaking; an earthquake that I must have triggered. The lights on the side of the temple began to flicker out one by one, and the wall began to crumble. All around, people were scattering like roaches when the light goes on and screaming.

"Nico!" I turned around and saw Posy and Robbie running toward me. I willed my legs to stand up, and as I did, the burning sensation on my side came back to me. "Agh!" Posy and Robbie came to my side and each of them grabbed one of my arms.

"Let's go!" guiding my steps and resting my weight on them, we ran toward the exit just before the wall near us could fall and collapse on us. Percy, still locked in battle with Landon took notice of the crumbling walls. Just as Landon swung at him, Percy stopped his sword and with his shield pushed him back onto the floor. "Run!" Percy turned away from Landon and came running out behind us.

The cave was crmbling away as well. Stalactites were falling from the cave ceiling and splashing in the puddles on the floor. The light at the end of the long dark tunnel became a beacon of hope as we forced our legs to run faster. The earthquake only got stronger and stronger and at last, we made it out just before the passage could collapse and trap us forever in darkness.

I laid down in the cold grass, letting cool air fill my lungs again. We had barely made it out alive. I looked around; it was starting to get dark, and Percy dropped his sword on the grass, breathing heavily, and he crawled over to me.

"You alright?" he asked. I looked at him and couldn't talk. I just nodded, although "alright" was far from where I was.

"What happened back there?" Percy asked me again. "Posy just told me that...-that you met up with some enemies. Who was that you were fighting?" Percy shook my shoulder as if demanding the answer. Not a very good way to treat an injured person.

"The Titans are back," I said. Percy's face fell with those words.

"Is it true?" he asked, not quite believing me. I nodded, and I looked at him and he looked at me and we both knew that we somehow had to tell Chiron and warn everyone. I suddenly became aware of Posy kneeling next to me and looking down at the bloody stain on my shirt where Landon cut me. She was scared; I saw it on her face. When she looked up, I met her eyes.

"I'm so sorry," she started to say. "This is all my fault, I never should went in there!" I moved my hand to cover the wound and put on a little pressure to stop the blood from gushing out. That would just scare her more and after all we'd been through today, I didn't want her scared anymore.

"Don't worry about it," I said, although I was beginning to feel the small effects of severe blood loss. Posy looked at me and I knew that she didn't believe that I was alright. She was worried about me and I wondered why. "Thanks for bringing them," I finally said to her, and she tried to smile.

"Percy," Robbie said, finally revealing his satyr legs and horns. "We need to get him back to your place. He needs to heal and we need to contact someone from Camp." Percy nodded in agreement and he stared at me and Posy with a gaze that meant both trouble and understanding at the same time. Getting home without all the mortals seeing me beat up and bloody and raw would the tricky part.

TBC

That's all for this chapter.