Oh My Gods guys! I'm so sorry I haven't posted in a while. I've just been so worked up over school and all and I've been having a really bad week. I've gotten my 2 lowest grades in math (both in the 80s (that's a low point for me)) and have been auditioning for a show which happens to be really awesome, but the director has no idea how to work with kids. I mean seriously, who tells a 13 year old kid to do an improv professing their undying love for a guy, when the person has never actually liked someone, and doesn't have any time to mull it over! Sorry, rant over now. I don't own PJO and I really think it'd be a sucky story if I owned it. So here's the Chapter that I've been working on forever and I really hope you like it even though it's weird and odd. I nicknamed this chapter, 'the background chapter' because it tells you a lot of background. There's also a lot of plot movement so here you go!

Chapter 15

We should have taken the monorail. Nico was right. Well, I suppose it could have been worse. The ship could have sank. Then, *shudder*, I would've had a bigger problem. A small army of sea creatures came up onto the deck. Strangely enough, there were hardly any mortals on board. Most looked like tiny animated pieces of cooked shrimp, which was extremely odd. Most of them seemed to be aiming to attack Nico, so I got in front of him, and every one stopped in its tracks. Seemed they were loyal servants of Poseidon or something. I heard a bunch of small voices yelling in my mind that were giving me a headache. A stronger voice told them all, 'SHUT UP!'

I said, 'thank you. Now, who are you and why are you attacking us?'

The leader stepped forwards and said, 'We are the union of the Krill. Lord Poseidon has set us to stop children of Zeus and Hades from entering the land of the blessed creator by boat.' Hmm, they must mean Disney land.

'But, I'm a daughter of Poseidon and I'm escorting him. Is that all-right with you?'

*Gasp from the sea creatures* 'You are of higher ranking. You not need asking permission of us. That is not of any importance though. Continue on your way, but I warn you: you will meet more whom are not as forgiving and... respectful... as us.' Creepy! They all headed into the ocean, well. lake.

Shannon asked, "What the Hades?"

"They were the 'Union of the Krill.' They didn't exactly like Nico, but, being a daughter of Poseidon has its perks." I responded and they Shannon laughed. Nico seemed a little miffed, and like he was trying to not vomit. Lisa was totally serious.

She asked, "What did they say to you, exactly?"

"Uh, 'Continue on your way, but I warn you: you will meet more-'"

Lisa cut me off, "We have to get out of here now! Shannon, hop on my back and Nico, get Andy out of here. Andy, you should be safe, but I don't wanna take any chances!" Her voice was full of alarm. Shannon hopped on her back, and they were gone. I felt the boat lurch and Nico looked a little worse than before. He put his arms around me, and I was pulled through the darkness again. We were on the dock in a matter of seconds. Lisa and Shannon were there too. I saw the boat rock again, and a sea serpent's head. At least, I think it was a sea serpent.

A raspy voice whispered in my mind, 'Daughter of Neptune, tell me where the child of Hades is so I may send his soul back to his father.' My mouth gaped.

I shouted to the lake, "How rude! I'll never give him up unless you are much more polite!" I had a feeling we were going to be stopping many times because of 'protectors' wanting Nico.

"What are you doing?" Nico whispered in my ear.

I told him under my breath, "Shut up and get as close to me as you can!" I remembered something about monsters tracking you by smell, so I hope I can use my aura to mask Nico's. I concentrated on water, and imagined my demigod aura forming a bubble around Nico and I. I felt a little woozy, and when I opened my eyes, there was a small bubble shield of sea green and blue energy around us. My vision was so much more vibrant than normal. I could smell everything as if I were a satyr or something. Shannon was outlined in a mixture of red, pink, and purple, but mainly pink. Lisa was outlined in purple, orange, brown, and electric blue, but mostly brown and orange. Nico had an aura of pure, white? I remember that in Egypt, white is death and black is life. I told him, "Dude, you're glowing white." He seemed confused. I heard the serpent hiss in my mind. Serpent, focus.

'Pardon me, I only wish to obey your and your father's wishes to be rid of greek children of Hades and Zeus. I am a roman serpent, much younger and stronger than those greek. I will make his death very painful for your pleasure.' Eew!

"What's your name?" I called out.

The serpent hissed, 'Excetra! Now, please, grant me the son of Hades.'

"Sorry, but I think that I'll take the pleasure of killing the Greek son of Hades for myself," I shouted. Nico looked a little alarmed, but relaxed. Shannon and Lisa just stood there trying to keep mortals away from the pier. and they were doing a really good job. The serpent was debating this, but he finally agreed. I got Nico far away enough from the pier and covered his scent with my aura. The thing got mad and came up through the pier. There was a huge hole where Nico and I were just standing. I yelled at the serpent, "Go home!" and I felt it's presence disappear.

"What the-" Nico started.

Lisa cut him off, "The Order of the Krill. They only listen to greek demigods whom aren't kids of the big three, when they gave you the warning, it wasn't a warning. They have an attack mode call thingy. Calling the roman serpent... Excetra, I think, was a very bad idea. He'll listen to a roman demigod, but only if their above centurion level, and he'll listen to any kid of Neptune no matter their rank. He absolutely despises children of Poseidon though. Really weird thing, hardly heard about in myths. I went on a quest about... Oh, about 200 years ago with a kid of Poseidon. We ended up killing the thing, but I still have a pretty bad scar from it." I could see her aura flickering and turning darker shades of orange.

"Lisa, what are you thinking about?" I asked. Maybe that had something to do with her aura flickering.

She stammered, "Uh... my best friend from two hundred years ago, the last guy to know that I was immortal." Her voice dropped off and her aura went even darker.

"Lisa are you ok?" I asked, unsure if my friend was alright or not.

She shook her head yes, "The human brain wasn't exactly designed to hold all this information. It's better when Apollo's around, because he can cure my headache. Its subsiding now..." Her aura was turning brighter.

"Nico, why exactly are you glowing white?" I asked. Lisa snapped her head up quick.

"You see it too?" She asked, her voice riddled with amazement. I nodded and she looked relived. She explained, "he radiates death. That's why he's glowing white. You actually have a black and green aura, and Shannon is,"

"Pink!" We finished together.

She asked, "Can you smell them too?" I took in a deep breath in through my nose. It smelled like roses and sulfur or something, with a hint of something warm like sage all around us. I coughed, that was not a good smell.

"What the Hades is that, sulfur, roses, and spices?" I exclaimed.

"Us," she corrected.

"Ha! That explains a lot and why I feel like I'm gonna puke right now." I glared at Shannon, who's aura was washing over me. It almost immediately shrank when I glared at her.

She stuttered, "Uh, what did I do?"

Lisa addressed her, "Andy's just getting used to her senses. Its took me over a hundred years to be able to see and smell auras. Andy, is your vision tinted with any particular color?" Weird.

"No, everything is normal, except the smells and colors are more..." I searched my brain for the right word, "pungent." She laughed.

"Vibrant is a better example, but I'll agree to that. The no tint thing is really not good though. That explains your fever. Its a sign of strain. Probably mental strain because you haven't been dealing with this for as long, but you're really powerful. It took me centuries to be able to mask someone else's aura."

"Is it going to stay like this forever?"

She shrugged, "Probably. Its a gift from the gods. When either you've done something for them or they just really like you. Duck!" She yelled at us. I was confused, and I felt something speeding through the air towards me. I concentrated on the water vapor to hold the object back. I held out my hand to stop the thing from hitting me instinctively. I saw the object suspended in air. I let the thing drop. There was a sea green and light blue energy like mist surrounding the air I'd been controlling. I looked on the ground to see the object I'd stopped. It was a red and gold arrow. I picked it up. Lisa saw what I was holding and gasped.

"There is no way you could catch that. The thing was coming in at like 50 or 60 miles an hour." I was still in awe, the arrow was possibly one of the most gorgeous things and one of the goriest things I'd ever seen.

I responded, "The green mist. I think its water vapor, or at least a portion of the water vapor in the air near here. It responded to me. I felt threatened, and it up up defenses. Is there any way that's possible?" Her face paled. Nico and Shannon were remarkably quiet. I turned to face them, but they were gone. "Where did they go?" I asked. Lisa looked panicked for a minute, then calmed down, but was still very worried.

"Krios." She stated.

I thought about something, "Wasn't the Greek god of strength Kratos?" Thunder boomed. Lisa looked even more panicked. She pulled me behind a bush.

"Don't say his name. Can't you feel it?"

"Feel what?"

"You're immune! Well, that actually makes sense. Why Eros chose you to go on this quest. In the end, you have to face him off. The weak normally feel a small pull, the strong feel an even stronger pull, but when you're really powerful, not strong, its like you're just off his radar. He can't detect you. It also helps to have a extremely weak state of mind. I've been inducing the headaches ever sense we got to disney. Its harder for him to detect me. I doubt he can detect you. No offense, but you're not physically strong, its power. We're going to have a power play on our hands. Nico great physical strength, and Shannon has excellent mental strength. I'm different. Its taken me a lot of years, but I can mask myself. The guy is a total cheat. I'm telling you something that you can't tell anyone else, ok?"

"What?"

"Cupid's curse, the last guy I ever dated was Krios. I call him that because its a name he can't detect. When you say his real name, he sees you. We're gonna be found soon. I'll side with him when he finds us." A deafening noise came from in front of the bush a few seconds later. We were yanked out and pulled towards the tunnel that connected the park with the entrance. I was being held by 2 monsters, while Lisa was only being held by one. They looked like dracaenae, from what I've seen in monster fighting class. I forced the amount of water vapor between the women and me rise. I decided to wait, just in case Nico and Shannon were where they were taking us, for me to push them away. I thought I could do it again. I could feel my skin heating up like crazy and I felt weak. If I waited, I may not have been able to control my powers. We were brought through a door in the tunnel and into a chamber. It was bathed in a red light. Shannon was tied up on the wall to the right of me and I couldn't see Nico. Shannon appeared to have been disarmed, but she was unharmed. There was a man sitting in a throne, on a risen platform.

He said, "Hello my dears, have nice dreams, I presume?" He laughed at my surprised expression. "Ah, Cornelia, darling, come here." Lisa shrugged off the woman and walked slowly up to the throne. She had a seductive smile growing on her face the closer she got to Kratus. She put her hands on the armrests of the chairs and her appearance changed. Her red hair changed to dark brown, and her mischievous eyes turned bright blue. She looked thinner and stronger than before.

She whispered in his ear, "Yes, my lord?" He laughed.

"Oh, you flatter me woman! Frankly, I'm surprised you didn't show this girl your true form sooner! You are as exquisite as ever." Creepo! She put a hand on his face and kissed him. I had a disgusted look on my face, and I tried to mix in betrayal and disbelief, but I was so disgusted. Here was my best friend, having a make-out session, with the man we're trying to stop! I noticed that her veins were a little more visible, and they were gold, with a red-ish tinge, as if she was a god. I wondered if because she was mainly god, some of her blood was actually ichor.

When they broke apart, she asked, "May I interrogate the spawn of Hades and Neptune?" He seemed distracted and nodded his head. She responded, "Good. Where is he?" That snapped the god out of his daze.

He answered, "Over in that room. Torture the boy to get information from the girl and torture the girl-"

She finished, "to get information from the boy," she added, "and for my pleasure!" He smiled.

"I love you when you start talking evilly. Martha! Get the boy." An empousa walked through a door to my left and brought out a restrained Nico. We were in eye contact for a split second. He looked at me as if he were defeated. I could feel myself getting weaker with every second that passed, but when I saw Nico and Shannon, as if they were half dead with misery and weakness, I felt new power.

I screamed at Lisa, "I trusted you! Why the Hades would you work with him? Haven't you noticed that he's going to betray you, just like Caesar and every man you've ever fallen for? And then you'll beat yourself up for betraying your friends! I know you better than that Lisa!" She smiled cruelly and walked up to me. She called me something that I will not repeat, even in my thoughts.

"I know that if I slap you, you'll laugh in my face. Yes, I know you better than that." She walked up to Kratus, whispered something in his ear and he nodded. An arrow appeared in her hand, the same I'd stopped earlier. She walked over to Nico. He was full of fear.

"What do you want from us?" I asked. "You already know what we know. What do you need?" She laughed.

"Oh, with the dreams you've been having? No wonder everyone thinks children of Poseidon are all idiots!" The comment sent me over the edge. I blasted the women that were holding Nico and I back. Lisa was knocked off her feet, and Shannon was untied and brought near me. I could feel the arrows being aimed, and solidified the water vapor to make a sort of shield around the three of us. I also felt my energy depleting I tried to rely on the energy of the water vapor, but that was already being stretched thin.

Kratus laughed, "You think your strength can out last the god of strength's? How foolish! Strength isn't just brawn you know, it has a tactic, a plan. Everything that can be described as strong, embodies me, fuels me. You are no match!"

I shrugged, stepping out of the shield, "I don't think I can beat the god of strength in a test of anything but power. Strength isn't power you see, power controls strength. An old tactic, strength in numbers, will not work unless there is a power behind it, You need power for strength, and that's something you don't have. You don't have will-power, you don't have any power. I challenge your power!"

The god rose, "You DARE say I, a god, have no power! I shall smite thee!" I had to laugh. That was the most bizarre thing I'd ever heard nonchalantly. He got even madder. "I will accept 'challenge' and what shall I get in return?" I thought for a moment.

"If I win, my friends and I get to leave along with Cupid's bow, Apollo's arrows, and anything else you've stolen from the gods. If you win, they work for you and I die." He smiled at my response.

"No! Andy, what are you thinking?" Nico protested.

I said, "Swear it on the river styx."

"I swear on the river styx that if I fight you and you win, you and your friends will get to go free with all the artifacts I have stolen from other gods."

"I swear on the river styx that if I fight you and you win, you can do as you wish with me and enslave my friends." I countered. I really hope that sounded a little bit sarcastic.

He smiled, "We will meet in one hour's time by Ariel's Grotto. Prepare to meet you doom. You may take your friends and spend your last few minutes together." I grabbed Nico and Shannon and pulled them out.

When we got out I asked, "Isn't it ironic how my nickname is Ariel, I'm the most powerful by the sea, and I'm 'preparing to meet my doom' at Ariel's Grotto?"

"That's the first thing you say after you just basically sold me into slavery and gave Nico a death sentence? Didn't you notice there weren't any guys there?" Shannon asked.

I knew that I could beat the guy so I responded, "Trust me. We need to find somewhere secluded. Lisa told me we were going to have a power play. She's still on our side. I'm not sure what she's planning because I made the stupid mistake of saying Krios's real name."

"I thought that was his real name," Shannon said. I looked at Nico. His expression was like it had been while we were in the room with Kratus. "How are you not affected?"

I sighed, "According to Lisa, its because I'm not strong. Power and strength, there's a difference. I think that Krios inhabits more physical strength than anything. Power controls strength, but there is no strength in power. Its really weird. Will you please just trust me?"

"Yeah," Nico responded. Shannon still looked skeptical, but agreed. This was going to be really interesting.

Shannon said, "I can't promise I won't try to help you though. I won't take on Krios, you can see as what happened to me, but I can keep his minions away from you. Win, please. I really don't want to end up a concubine." I had to laugh at her bizarre comment. I knew that's what was at stake, but I just thought it was weird.

"Ok, lets find a lake or something. I'm not going near Ariel's-" I spun around sensing something was there. I saw a blur whizz past me. I concentrated on the water vapor, reaching out to sense what was there, It was a humanoid form, filled with a lot of water. I moved the form until it was pressed up against a tree. When I opened my eyes, I saw one of Krios's empousa presses against the tree.

She snarled, "You'll never defeat Kratus! He is the strongest master there is. Only Ares himself may order him." I chose to ignore her comment. I could feel the water in her and I willed it to expand quickly. The empousa exploded into dust. I turned back to Nico and Shannon, to find them also pressed up against trees.

"Sorry!" I exclaimed. "I'll let you down." Shannon shook her head after she came off the tree.

Nico stared wide-eyed, "How in Hades did you do that?"

I shrugged, "most living things have some degree of water in them. And Nico, this is Florida, it's really humid."

Shannon laughed, "So, you can feel all the water sloshing around in us right now? Creepy."

"I've been ignoring you guys actually. And its not sloshing around, more like, running through a sewer. You have really low blood pressure by the way." Shannon looked shocked.

Nico had gotten paler. He said, "Come on. Lets get your last meal of the day, or for a long time. Dad's not gonna like you bartering away my servitude." I rolled my eyes and followed him to the street of the magic kingdom. We ended up near the Harmony Barber Shop. I grabbed a map off the stand.

"Where to, guys?" I asked. They shrugged. I acted offended, "Fine, I'll choose. Why is it I've hardly had anything to eat these past few days, yet I don't feel hungry at all? Rhetorical question." I quickly added before Shannon could answer me. We walked to the Be Our Guest Restaurant in Fantasy Land and quickly ate some food. We then headed to Ariel's Grotto, where I would fight Kratus.