Hey gang! Happy Monday! Well, not for me since I'm back at work... I miss sleeping in. It'll be later by the time I post this, but I'm writing this note at 7:13 AM. Far too early.

Heh, anyway, thanks to all of you who reviewed last chapter! Got another nice long one for you. Enjoy!

XLVIII
NICO

Hades didn't even look at Nico. He stood up slowly, cold gaze fixed on the gods of mockery and pain. Everyone had fallen completely silent, causing the rain pounding the cobblestone to echo almost deafeningly. Hazel's sword fell from her hand, but she didn't seem to notice. She was too busy staring in shock at the Greek counterpart of her father.

"Hades?" Momos stammered in surprise. Hades arched an eyebrow and Moros quickly backtracked, "I-I mean—Lord! Lord Hades!" He gave an obviously-forced smile and tried for an awkward bow, but Nico's sword was still impaling his chest and must have made it rather difficult.

"I must admit," Hades said coolly, "that I'm surprised to see you both. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believed you to be serving time as boundary guards in the Fields of Punishment."

"Oh, we were!" Oizys insisted, nodding vigorously. The jewelry had ceased attacking her upon Hazel's being distracted, and she was now standing slightly behind her brother and seeming to shrink more and more by the second. "But things were getting out of hand down there, so we—"

"So instead of restoring order," Hades interrupted, "you decided to abandon your duty and go crawling to your traitorous parents, is that it?" Momos and Oizys didn't respond. They looked at each other, avoiding Hades's eyes, and the Lord of the Dead clasped his hands calmly behind his back. "And to make matters worse, I finally find you attempting to kill my children."

The twins paled. "Ah, yeah…" Momos said weakly. "About that, uh… Y'see, we can explain—"

"Please. I would love to hear it."

Nico didn't envy the two cowering gods. He knew full well what happened to people who displeased his father; he'd seen it plenty of times. All gods were scary when they were angry, but Hades, who was scary most of the time already—well, it was best not think about it.

"H-He…" Oizys muttered, wide eyes shooting toward Nico. "O-Our brother…"

"I know full well what became of Moros. He is back in the Underworld as we speak, facing punishment for turning against us. I had hoped no one else would be foolish enough to follow his… example." Hades's eyes darkened. "It would appear I was wrong."

"No!" Momos argued quickly. "No, Lord Hades, we're loyal to you! You and the other gods! Forget the Kin—I mean, forget Erebos. That old geezer can rot in Tartarus for all we—"

"Enough," Hades cut him off, holding up a hand, and Momos fell silent. "I haven't the time right now to decide whether or not to believe you. Return to your posts and do not think of nearing the border again until I've returned. If all goes well tonight, I may even be in a good mood."

"Oh, it will!" Oizys said at once. "Erebos is no match for you guys! We know you'll crush him, right, Momos?"

"Duh," Momos agreed in an obviously fake impression of nonchalance.

"Hm," Hades mused, eyebrows rising a fraction of an inch. "You 'know' so, do you? I wonder, then, why you decided to follow him in the first place."

Momos and Oizys hesitated, again exchanging uneasy glances. "We'll just, uh… be getting back now," Momos said with a forced grin.

"Wait," Hades said suddenly as the twins started to turn away from him. They both flinched in response, and Hades's gaze hardened. "My son's sword, if you would, Momos."

Momos looked down. "Oh. Right." He reached up and pulled the sword from his chest, wincing in discomfort. He was about to set it down when Hades shook his head curtly and jerked it to his right. Momos followed the movement and when his eyes landed on Nico his jaw tightened. Stiffly he strode toward Nico and held the sword out hilt-first; still stunned silent, Nico reached up and took it from him. Then there was a brilliant flash of light, and Momos and Oizys were gone.

Hades stepped forward into the middle of the road, frowning at the spot from which the twins had vanished. "A questionable appointment, I'll admit…" he mused seemingly to himself. "Perhaps a regime alteration will be in order upon my return."

Slowly Nico climbed to his feet, staring at his father's back and trying to wrap his head around what had just happened. "Why…" he said distantly, before clearing his throat and asking in a stronger voice, "Why'd you save me? I thought…"

"You thought as Lord of the Dead I would prefer not to interfere in a life that's clearly at its end," Hades finished the sentence for him without turning around. "Ordinarily, that would be true. But I have my reasons." Finally he turned and looked Nico in the eye, and his gaze appeared to soften just barely. "I understand you've been busy in my absence. Not only did you banish Moros, but you wrested Nyx's control from one of the Underworld's largest hellhounds and brought the Furies back under our command. These are accomplishments befitting any son of mine and I was pleased to hear of them. Consider this compensation. Do not expect any further token or admission of gratitude."

Nico stared, dumbfounded. Had Hades just… thanked him?

"And you," Hades went on, turning on the spot to look down at Hazel. Hazel breathed in sharply and seemed to shrink under his gaze. This was the first time the two of them had stood face to face since Nico had pulled Hazel from the Underworld almost two years ago, and he suspected she had no idea what to expect from the sudden meeting.

Surprising them both, however, Hades made no mention of the fact that Hazel as well was supposed to be dead. "I seem to recall you didn't give me a chance to reward you for your efforts last year in stopping the Giant War," he said flatly, as though it was Hazel's fault he hadn't thought to compensate her until now.

"Y-You don't have to…" Hazel squeaked in reply. She shook her head, but her eyes shot downward to where Frank was lying. With a jolt, Nico noticed that though the slice marks on his neck had stopped bleeding, the Ker's poison had been busy. Frank's fingers were twitching weakly, but his eyes were closed and his breathing was barely noticeable.

Hades followed Hazel's gaze and his eyebrows drew together a tiny bit. "Very well," he said in answer to her unspoken question. Then in one sweeping movement he stepped sideways, crouched down, and touched a hand to Frank's forehead. Instantly the color began returning to Frank's skin and he took a deep, gasping breath, his eyes shooting open. Hades stood as Hazel gasped and dropped instantly to the ground, tears filling her eyes as her boyfriend groaned and pulled himself into a sitting position. As soon as he did so, Hazel gave an odd, high-pitched squeal and threw her arms around him.

"W-What…?" Frank said blankly as he tentatively returned Hazel's bone-breaking hug. "What happened?" Then his eyes traveled up and widened as they landed on the god standing stiffly before him. "You're—!" he choked out.

"Responsible for saving you?" Hades suggested. "Yes, I am. And I'd advise you to be less careless in the future, child of war. Seeing my daughter in any kind of pain could very well make me rethink on my actions."

Hazel released Frank as he paled visibly and stammered, "Y-Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. You don't have to worry about me, sir." Nico thought Frank might have been laying the 'sir's on a little thick, but Hades seemed pleased by the response. Well, as close to 'pleased' as the Lord of the Dead ever got, anyway.

"If that is all," the god said, "I am needed elsewhere. You three did well in clearing out the Keres, but the city is still under siege. There is no time to waste."

"What's going on at the palace?" Nico asked before his father could disappear on them. "The storm—it's getting bigger. Is Erebos trying to drive the fight down here?"

"Erebos was born of Chaos," Hades explained with a frown. "His power is akin to that of the Earth Mother—perhaps greater under this Endless Night that he and Nyx conjured. It will not be easy to bring him down."

Nico felt a twinge of dread. "Even with all of you fighting together?"

"Erebos was prepared for this. All darkness obeys him, is part of him. He has divided his essence among the shadows—a crude way of copying himself and hiding from us. We're working to eliminate him, but until we find his original form—the true source of his power—then he has the ability to attack us from all sides."

"What?" Hazel gasped.

"Destroying his army, though," Hades went on, "would give us an advantage. I believe it will allow us to corner him. And that is why you all must do your best to free the city. The minor gods have dispersed themselves among you. They will help."

"But… what if we can't do it in time?" Frank said, a worried look on his face. "What if we fail?"

Though it was Frank's question, Hades looked directly at Nico when he answered firmly, "Don't." Somewhat strengthened by his father's trust, Nico nodded resolutely. Hades gave a curt, satisfied nod in return, and with a swish of his black cloak he disappeared.

"Well, that was terrifying," Frank said matter-of-factly, and Hazel grinned and swatted him on the arm.

"He's right, though," Nico replied grimly, shaking himself back to reality after that oddly surreal encounter. "The faster we take out this infestation, the better our chances of winning this war." He flipped his sword in his hand and looked around. The bazaar which used to play temporary home to the Keres was now empty save for the three of them, but Nico could hear the sounds of battle coming from both directions of the road. "We should split up," he decided. "You guys head west. I'll go east. Spread Hades's news if you can. Everybody needs to know how important this is."

Frank nodded in understanding and moved to retrieve his bow and quiver. A conflicted look appeared on Hazel's face for a brief moment, but she sighed shortly after and said, "Okay, let's get moving."

Nico waved to them and turned to leave, but stopped when Hazel suddenly called out, "Nico, wait!" He spun around to see her striding toward him and he took an unconscious step backward, which she ignored as she stalked up and wrapped him in a tight hug without any hesitation.

"I know I say it all the time," she muttered in a slightly strained voice, "but be careful, okay?" She backed up to look him in the eyes, hands remaining on his shoulders. "If Father hadn't come… I mean, I don't want—" Her eyes shot down to the blood on Nico's shirt and she broke off, looking troubled. He knew she had a point. If Hades hadn't shown up when he did, Nico would be dead. Plain and simple. Maybe he really was as reckless as everyone said.

"Don't worry, I'll watch my back," he promised, offering Hazel a weak smile which she gratefully returned. "You be careful, too. And watch out for the big guy," he added, nodding over Hazel's shoulder toward Frank. "He needs you more than I do."

Hazel chuckled lightly. "Oh, I'll be having a talk with him, too." She squeezed Nico's shoulder before letting go and turning away from him. Frank gave her a puzzled expression, not having heard the siblings' conversation, but she only shook her head and smiled. Then with one final wave goodbye, Hazel and Frank set off at a jog down the road. Nico smiled to himself and turned away from them, tightening his grip on his sword and mentally saying a quick prayer of thanks to his father.

-ψ-ψ-ψ-

"Nico, watch out!"

At the sound of his name, Nico spun around in time to see fangs and a long, reptilian tongue shooting toward him. He ducked and rolled sideways, dodging the basilisk so it landed sliding on the street, then turned around and barely deflected the following swing of its oversized claws. He stumbled backward just as a thin, focused beam of orange fire shot over his shoulder and blasted the monster in the eye. It hissed and spit angrily before dissolving promptly to dust.

Nico shook his head and turned as Leo added, "I told you, man, your mind's wandering." He grinned and pointed to his head. "Gotta be attentive."

Just then there was a loud hissing growl and another basilisk nearly tackled Leo from the side. He yelped and jumped sideways as the blade of a sword blocked the monster, vaporizing it with a metallic swing.

Piper arched an eyebrow and rested her sword on her shoulder. "You were saying?" Leo gave a sheepish laugh and shrugged.

Camp Half-Blood's army was making good progress. The monster count in the mountainside city was dropping heavily, now that almost everyone from camp had arrived and fanned out to join the battle. For a while Nico had tried to travel quickly, helping out where he could and updating anyone who could listen about the situation at the Olympian palace. A few people had suggested they send some fighters to assist the gods, but no one was crazy enough to volunteer. Still, Nico assured everyone that by defeating Erebos's army, they were, in a way, helping the gods already. This, more than anything, served to considerably boost the general morale among the Resistance, which was a welcome bonus. Also helpfully, he'd run into Leo and Piper very shortly after leaving Frank and Hazel and they'd both agreed to help him spread the word. Between Leo's enthusiasm and Piper's charmspeak, Nico couldn't really have asked for a better PR team.

Joining up with them did, however, bring back to mind something he'd been puzzling over for most of the day. Part of him wanted to say something, but for a while he refrained to avoid the risk of sounding crazy or stirring up trouble. He must have been a bit too obvious in his confliction, though, because after sending off the small group of Hermes campers they'd been helping, Leo pointed a finger at Nico and said, "Alright, you've been looking at me funny all night. What gives? Am I possessed or something?"

Nico blinked. "What? No—no, you're not possessed. I'm sorry, it's just…" Leo raised his eyebrows expectantly and Piper turned to them in interest, crossing her arms. Glancing between them, Nico sighed shortly in defeat and said, "I just don't get it. I went back to Death Valley. There wasn't anyone alive there apart from Nyx. I couldn't sense anything in those ruins. I just… I don't understand how you did it."

Leo's tentative grin deflated at the sudden conversation topic. "Maybe you got there after I left," he suggested.

But Nico shook his head. "Festus was still there. You brought him back with you, right?"

"Well…" Leo said with a frown. "Look, I told you guys everything I remember. You can see me now, right? I'm not dead?"

"No, you're not," Nico admitted.

"So… maybe we just missed each other, you know? That crash site was pretty big, and you were sort of out of it, right? Maybe your death sense was just off."

"Maybe…" Nico replied uncertainly. It was true that he'd been exhausted when he'd gone back to Death Valley early that morning. He supposed it was possible that he'd just missed the fact that Leo was still alive. But something still felt different about the son of Hephaestus, something Nico couldn't pin down. Once this was all over maybe he'd have time to do some investigating and figure it out.

"This area looks clear," Piper reported, looking around them in a painfully obvious forced change of subject. "We should get moving. Where do you guys want to—?" She broke off as a deafening growl interrupted from somewhere to the east.

Leo pointed over his shoulder in the direction of the sound. "I vote not that way." Nico gave him a pointed look and started past him, prompting him to sigh in defeat and say, "Okay, okay, it was worth a try."

A short jog down the road later, Nico, Leo, and Piper came across what had very obviously made the sound. In the middle of a small park littered with busted stone statues, a dozen hellhounds were duking it out. Most of them were big but not massive, around the size of a few rhinoceroses, but one in particular was as big as a garbage truck—and had a very familiar bark.

"Is that Mrs. O'Leary?" Piper said in surprise, eyes widening as their friendly hellhound swatted one of its opponents away before another rammed her in the side. Evidently the smaller pack was ganging up on her.

"Let's go help her!" Leo shouted, rushing forward without waiting for a response. Nico and Piper followed immediately.

Mrs. O'Leary barked excitedly when she noticed them approaching. In her moment of distraction, one of the other hellhounds leapt for her neck with its jaws open wide. Leo blasted it back with a blaze of fire as Nico dashed in and blocked another's claws with his sword. Back in action, Mrs. O'Leary growled and lunged for the one Leo had burned, snapping her teeth on thin air as it leapt out of the way. It had barely landed before Leo hit it with another fireball, knocking it back toward Mrs. O'Leary, and she flattened it beneath a paw a second later. Nico and Piper cornered another hellhound at the same time, and when it tried to dodge between them it was rewarded with two blades through its back. As soon as it was gone, though, another bounded forward to take its place. Piper blocked it while Nico sliced it across the front legs. It growled and snapped its teeth threateningly at them, and they were forced to back up toward Mrs. O'Leary.

"Can we take all of these guys?" Piper asked uncertainly as she blocked another attack aimed at the giant hound behind her.

"Hey—Nico!" Leo's voice called from Mrs. O'Leary's other side. "Any chance on some more giant hellhound backup?"

"What?" Nico yelled back blankly.

There was a roar of fire as Leo must have thrown an attack. "Call Benny!"

"Oh yeah!" Nico wondered why he hadn't thought of their new friend sooner. Maybe Benny could have helped them out against Momos and Oizys.

"Who's Benny?" Piper asked with a frown.

Nico didn't answer. "Cover me," he said instead, and without waiting for a response he shut his eyes and tried to locate the hellhound's consciousness. It was difficult with so many other Underworld creatures nearby, but Benny had managed to find him before. Hopefully he would be able to do it again.

Benny! he called out with his mind. Where are you? We need your help!

For a few long seconds, nothing happened. Then something heavy slammed Nico in the chest and shoved him to the ground, and he opened his eyes with a pained grunt to see the jaws of one of the smaller hounds a foot from his face. He flinched in alarm and brought both arms up in defense, using his sword to block the snap of the monster's jaws. Then its teeth closed around the blade and tried to yank it from his grasp. Caught off guard, he almost lost his hold. But the jerk was enough to get the sword out of the way, and again the hellhound lunged downward in an effort to bite off Nico's face.

This time, there was a deafening growl from somewhere above them and the hellhound was suddenly wrenched into the air with a loud yelp. Heart pounding from the close call, Nico looked up to see that by the grace of the gods, Benny had heard his call. The smaller hellhound had time for one last whine before it was smashed to dust between Benny's enormous teeth.

"W-What the—?" Piper sputtered in surprise from nearby, her eyes wide. She staggered backward away from Benny as he tore through another hellhound.

"Piper, say hello to Benny," Nico responded, prompting her to gape at him in shock. He picked up his sword and climbed back to his feet, but almost at once his path was barred by a huge, furry leg. Mrs. O'Leary stepped protectively between him and Benny, growling at the new arrival. Benny smacked aside a smaller hellhound, vaporizing it in the process, and cocked his head sideways in interest at Mrs. O'Leary, who, despite being smaller than he was, stood her ground.

"No, Mrs. O'Leary, stop!" Nico shouted, stepping around her leg and trying to get her attention. "He's a friend!" Mrs. O'Leary blinked at Nico and barked in apprehension, so he reached an arm toward her and tried to carefully penetrate her mind, showing her his memories of Benny and impressing on her that he wasn't dangerous. For good measure, he did the same with Benny, just in case the larger hound decided to attack Mrs. O'Leary as well.

It must have worked, because after a few tense seconds both hellhounds turned simultaneously and resumed beating back the pack of smaller monsters. With Nico, Piper, and Leo's help, the ten or so remaining were gone in no time.

"Well, that was fun," Leo said wryly, standing beside Mrs. O'Leary and brushing his hands together. The hound responded with a great WOOF! and wagged her enormous tail. She opened her jaws and gave Leo a surprise bath with her tongue, knocking him over in the process. She spun around toward Nico and Piper, probably to thank them in the same way, and they backed quickly away to avoid a similarly messy fate.

"So, uh…" Piper began as Mrs. O'Leary moved to inspect Benny, who sat down heavily on his hind legs and made the ground beneath them rumble. "You guys want to explain this?"

"We met Benny in Indiana," Leo said, picking himself up and doing his best to wipe the hellhound slobber from his face and arms. "He was under Nyx's control, but Nico broke him free and kind of adopted him."

Benny let out a friendly bark that was even more deafening than Mrs. O'Leary's and Piper cringed. "Oh, good. One more monster pet to look after."

"Hey, he comes in handy," Leo pointed out, looking down at a pile of black dust at his feet. He kicked it tentatively, and then backed quickly away as though expecting it to kick back. When it didn't, he breathed out in apparent relief and said, "Man, it's good to see that stuff staying still again. If I ever run into the death guy, remind me to thank him."

Nico rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to respond, but a deep, slow voice interrupted from nowhere, "You're in luck." All three of them jumped and whirled around as there was a bright flash of light and a figure appeared in front of the nearest overturned park bench—a tall, muscular figure with dark, ebony skin and huge, feathery wings.

"Whoa, what the—?" Leo said, stumbling backward in surprise.

Nico's eyes widened. "Thanatos," he recognized his father's lieutenant easily.

As Thanatos offered a miniscule smile, Leo's mouth dropped open. "You're the death guy?" he said in disbelief.

Thanatos raised a dark eyebrow. "Problem?"

"No, no," Leo replied hurriedly, doing his best to regain his composure. "I just mean, uh… Well, when I think 'death' you wouldn't be exactly what comes to mind, you know?" He shot a glance at Piper, possibly for help, but Piper was busy staring at Thanatos with her mouth slightly open and her eyes as wide as yo-yos.

Thanatos chuckled in amusement, and Leo seemed to relax as he realized the god wasn't going to vaporize him. "I do get that often, as you can imagine," he said in his deep, calming voice.

"What are you doing here?" Nico asked in wonder.

"The same as you. Many of us have spread out to occupy the city in hopes of vanquishing Erebos's army. I have been making rounds, assuring that those defeated remained that way. The balance had been gravely altered in my absence. It will take some time to restore things to the way they should be." His eyes shot to Leo and narrowed just barely noticeably, and Nico felt an odd cold chill—though for what reason, he couldn't explain. "I heard mention of myself—though, for future reference, I do not typically go by 'the death guy'." Leo grinned sheepishly and Thanatos went on, "And when I saw who it was, I had the urge to make an appearance."

Leo frowned. "Meaning…?"

Thanatos regarded him for a long few seconds before asking carefully, "Are you not curious why you're here?"

"Here? I'm exterminating, same as everybody else—"

"Not 'here' as in Olympus," Thanatos corrected. "'Here' as in alive. You know what happened in Death Valley, correct?"

Leo winced like he was reluctant to resume this topic of conversation, but Nico felt his heart skip a beat in anticipation. Maybe Thanatos could help them figure out what was off. "Well, I…" Leo said slowly, "…was wondering how I survived, I guess, yeah—"

"You didn't."

Again Nico felt that chill of cold at those words. His eyes darted toward Leo to see the thoughtful expression vanish from his face. His eyes widened and his eyebrows knitted slowly together in bemused disbelief as he said weakly, "What?"

"The building collapse this morning killed you," Thanatos explained matter-of-factly, and Leo staggered like he'd been punched in the gut. Piper gasped as her eyes shot back and forth between Leo and Thanatos, and she placed a hand over her mouth. "However, while you were prepared and willing to die, part of you still did not want to. As you know, I was not there to police the veil. Your soul did not cross over, regained contact with your body, and brought you back. You woke in the desert shortly after."

Leo blinked hard and shook his head. "Wait, so I'm—I'm supposed to be dead?"

Thanatos lowered his chin. "Yes."

"But…" Piper said in a small voice, "wasn't Erebos controlling you? He said that our friends' deaths wouldn't be temporary—"

"He had power over me as my father, yes," Thanatos agreed. "But only when he chose to use it, such as the moment he killed Drew Tanaka. He did not, however, pay attention to every mortal death, and his focus this morning was not trained in California. He was too preoccupied with goings-on here."

Suddenly it all made sense. Nico didn't sense any living souls when he'd returned to Death Valley because there were no living souls. It must have been after that that Leo had come back to life. Ordinarily, the death of a friend—whether permanent or temporary—would be something Nico would feel right away. But shadow-traveling himself and Reyna all the way from California to New York had drained so much of his strength that his senses must have been weak and dulled. Then later, when Leo had come back, Nico had had the odd feeling all day that something felt different about him—and now he knew he was right. Something was different. He was just like Hazel, someone alive beyond their time. The question now was what that meant for his future.

Leo must have realized this same predicament, because when his eyes rose to look at Thanatos there was a distinct nervousness in them. "I guess you're… here to collect, huh?" he asked, a dull sort of acceptance in his voice like he knew the most likely answer. Piper bit her lip and took an unsteady step toward him, but her gaze shot toward the god of death and she hesitated.

But then Thanatos sighed and replied, "Actually, no. Were I to reclaim all the escaped souls who failed to cross over during my absence, the influx would be… unmanageable." He frowned as though imagining such a situation, and Leo and Piper exchanged glances of surprise. Then a small smile appeared on the god's face and he added, "Besides… I'm not the only one who feels that defeating the Queen of Night has earned you a second wind, so to speak."

Leo blinked, looking stunned. "You… Really?"

Thanatos's smile grew. "Really."

Leo cracked a grin and laughed in relief, and Nico couldn't help but smile with him after that brief moment of panic. To the god, Leo said haltingly, "I don't… know what to—"

"You need not," Thanatos interrupted, holding up a hand. "Consider it a trade. Just know that the next time your soul leaves your body will be the last. No more exceptions." Leo gave a tentative grin and rubbed the back of his neck, and Nico shook his head. Their group of friends had gotten surprisingly good at cheating death over the years.

"I can no longer delay," Thanatos went on, his tone growing serious. "I have work to do. Though I want to thank you, demigods. In causing this work, you and your friends have succeeded in eradicating almost all of Erebos's army. I suspect it is only a matter of time until he admits defeat."

"Seriously? We're almost done?" Piper said, her pitch rising hopefully. When Thanatos nodded, she responded with a crazy grin to rival one of Leo's.

"Yes, it is good news," Thanatos agreed. "But until it is over, do not lower your guard. Erebos may yet have a few tricks up his sleeve." And with that cryptic message, the god of death stepped backward and vanished in a swirl of light and shadow.

The instant he was gone, Piper released her breath in a heavy sigh and threw her arms around Leo, squeezing his shoulders tightly. As he gave a giddy, disbelieving laugh and hugged her back, Nico folded his arms and said, "Well, guess that explains a lot."

"I just… I don't believe it," Piper said as she released Leo. "You're right here—I mean, you're real and everything." She gripped his chin and inspected his face as though looking for an 'on' switch. She tugged his hair, patted his shoulders, even lifted his shirt and poked at the bandages wrapped around his stomach. When he grimaced and jerked away from her, she put her hands on her hips with a look of wonder.

"Jeez, cut it out," Leo complained. "No artificial ingredients here. You're lookin' at one-hundred-percent, grade-A, flame-grilled finery."

"So how do you feel?" Piper asked.

Leo shrugged. "The same? I don't know, not like a zombie or a ghost or anything. I swear, I had no idea any of that happened."

"You are the same," Nico said flatly. "The fact that you don't remember only means you weren't dead for that long—maybe an hour tops. When your soul came back, the shock would have healed the more serious injuries to your body, otherwise it wouldn't have been able to sustain life for much longer. You should have a really weak trace of the Underworld on you—I could sense it earlier, but I didn't realize what it was. Monsters and Underworld gods can probably sense it, too. But I promise, you're really you. I mean, look at Hazel. The same thing happened to her and she seems normal, right?"

Leo had looked a bit startled when Nico explained what had happened, but the mention of Hazel helped clear that away. "Yeah… Yeah, you're right," he said, looking visibly relieved.

"I know. Anyway, we should get moving. Thanatos said the army's almost done for. I don't know if the gods will need our help, but waiting around here isn't gonna—"

Suddenly a blinding spike of pain hit Nico between the eyes and his voice broke into a yell as he gripped his head in both hands. Leo and Piper must have felt the same thing because they both cried out in pain and doubled over, just before a harsh, whispery voice spoke over all other sound.

"You think this is over," the voice growled threateningly. "You think you've won. But I warned you before and I will warn you again—my darkness is eternal! Your light, your hope—soon it will all be consumed by darkness and despair!"

There was bright flash of light behind Nico's eyes and images flashed in his mind—images of Camp Half-Blood, bathed in black fire. The cabins, the forges, the Big House, everything was being eaten away by Erebos's powerful Nightflame. All around people were running and screaming, trying to escape the dark, deadly flames.

"You can fight me all you want," the King of Darkness went on, "but while you fight your precious home burns to the ground! So what will it be? Surrender to the darkness, or watch as the light you so cling to is swallowed by the shadows? The choice is yours." The god's voice began to laugh—a cold, empty laugh that seemed to drain the warmth and will from Nico's body and leave only fear. There was another flash of light, before finally the laughter faded, the pain died down, and he was back in the ruined park on Mount Olympus, surrounded by the black dust of defeated monsters and the broken statues of gods.

"Wh-What was that?" Piper asked in a weak, wavering voice. Nico glanced up and realized that all three of them were on their knees on the grass. Benny and Mrs. O'Leary were nearby, both lying down with their paws over their noses, whimpering.

"I don't know," Leo replied shakily as he stumbled to his feet, eyes staring wide and fearful at the ground. "But I'm filing it under 'definitely not good'."

Nico swallowed hard as he tried and failed to push the images of their camp in flames from his mind. Blinking and glancing up at the others, he said gravely, "Well, now we know what to do."

Leo and Piper turned to him slowly, and Nico got the feeling by their expressions that they were thinking the same thing he was when he finished, "We have to get back to Camp Half-Blood."

Dun DUN DUNNNN!

So now we've got some info from the gods, we know what went down in Death Valley, the monster army is pretty much gone, and it's time to head back to Camp for the final brawl. Only six chapters left, guys. Next two are really long and action-packed, too, so there's that to look forward to.

How 'bout dem reviews? The end is in sight now... I can just barely see it, haha.

Later days!

-oMM