Eyy this week was not too hellish and I actually had the energy to write!

CONTENT WARNINGS: Brief mentions of suicide-related topics and suicide ideation.

Godly Perks and Powers

Instead of having nightmares like I was expecting, I found myself sitting at a small, hole-in-the-wall café. It was early morning, but already warm. It felt more like summer than the middle of winter. (My prickles rejoiced.) Near me, sat a couple speaking in Italian. That's when I realized someone was sitting across from me.

"Nico," I said, slightly surprised. "Why…" I trailed off, looking around. It reminded me of when he'd taken me for hot chocolate in Italy when the Seven were on their "save the world" mission as the prophecy had specified. They'd picked me up along the way, so I'd been on the ship at the time. (I'd had an episode, shall we say, and had nearly killed myself, but Nico was able to talk me down.)

"Not that I don't appreciate it," I added quickly, looking back at him.

Nico gave me a serious look, eyebrows slightly furrowed. "I wanted to talk to you. Alone. Will refuses to leave the infirmary."

"Right." I deflated a little.

"You promised," Nico reminded me.

"I know."

"Telling me in a dream is probably the safest way, anyway."

"What do you know?"

"Rachel made it to camp," Nico began.

"Oh! Did Herbert and Millard make it back okay, as well?"

Nico blinked. "Oh, yeah. They're a little worse for wear but they made it back with Rachel. They actually helped heal you with some poultice and nature magic. It's currently helping suck out the poison. But when you wake up, it'll be a little…slimy."

I let out a small breath. "Good, I'm glad. Sorry, you were saying about Rachel?"

Nico nodded. "She's been doing research into what could be the cause of…well, everything that's going on in New York. And, well, everywhere, actually." Nico paused, watching me closely. "The Triumvirate. Three emperors that funded the Second Titan War, and have been working behind the scenes for centuries to grow their wealth and power. Apollo also figured out what's going on with the disappearances at camp: The Grove of Dodona. An ancient oracle that's now located in the woods here at camp. Apparently, it's been calling people from camp into the woods."

"Oh. An oracle?" I sat back, frowning.

I hated how little they told me. I hated just having to get orders and follow them blindly. What was their point? What was their game? What purpose did that serve? They were the ones who'd said they wanted me working for them because they said I was powerful, so why did they keep playing games with me? I just didn't understand the angle they were coming from, and it was starting to frustrate me. I felt helpless and like I wasn't all that powerful at all.

Had they said I was powerful when Hargrave and I first met as some kind of powerplay? Or did they think it would stroke my ego? As if threatening to kill my loved ones wasn't enough to make me sign on.

"You didn't know?" Nico asked, breaking me from my thoughts.

I crossed my arms. "No. They don't tell me anything. I get my marching orders and don't ask questions."

"They?"

I sighed and let my arms fall into my lap. "The emperors—" I broke off, realizing my arms were bare. My eyes darted to my shirt—just the tank top I always wore underneath my turtlenecks. Cold dread seeped into my body, my pin-pricks burst painfully, and the dream around us flickered.

"Whoa, Tori," Nico said, his voice low and calm. "What's wrong? What can I do to help?"

"I—" I broke off and instead tried to get my breathing under control, tried to stabilize my emotions (and my prickles) so we weren't yanked from this nice scene and thrown into Tartarus. It took me a long moment but I finally managed to get my brain out of fight-or-flight mode. My heart was still pounding, my breathing a bit ragged, just not as bad as it was before. And, great, my prickles were now trying to be front and center. I could push them away for now. That this was a dream helped a little bit.

"Tori?" Nico asked slowly, eyeing me with concern.

I looked up at him cautiously, nervously, and gently drew my left arm over my right. Nico's eyes flickered to my right and his face cleared in understanding.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," he said softly. "I will say, though, Will and Apollo both have questions about it. I don't think I have to remind you, but you don't have to tell them either, you know."

"I know," I mumbled, then muttered, annoyance coloring my tone, "But they probably won't leave me alone until I do. And that's worse."

Nico chuckled. "Will takes after Apollo in that respect, I suppose." His dark eyes sparkled with amusement. "So do you."

I stuck my tongue and made a face at that comparison. "Ew."

Nico let out a loud laugh at that.

I grinned back but sobered up quickly. "I find it easier to tell you things. I don't know if I'll tell Will and Apollo just yet. But first, Triumvirate."

Nico nodded, serious again.

"They recruited me," I began. "They're forcing me to work for them. Apparently, they'd had bigger plans for Luke, and since he died, well, they wanted what they were owed and decided I was the next best choice."

Nico was silent for a moment, looking at me with a stricken expression. His voice was quiet when he finally asked, "Forcing you?"

"Currently," I began, my voice wavering. I had to look down at the table. The mug of hot chocolate in front of me. "They hold the life of my brother and his fiancée in their hands. If I try to quit, they die. If I disobey them, they'll hurt Dan and Anya."

"Tori, I'm so sorry," Nico breathed. "Is that why…you were so worried about me knowing?"

I nodded, looking back up at him.

"And that's why you have a phone?"

"They're somehow able to use technology, yes. I don't know how." A jolt of panic shot through me, my prickles bursting again. "My phones! They were in my jacket pocket—"

The scene around us shimmered, like summer heat.

Nico raised his hands in a calming gesture, leaning toward me. "I made sure no one found them, don't worry."

"Oh." I breathed, sitting back. But my heart wouldn't stop pounding, and my chronic pain was getting worse by the second. It took me a few moments to get my breathing to sound less ragged and push away the pin-pricks long enough to think. "Th-thank you."

Nico sat back as well, nodding, but his expression was still tight with worry.

"Just let me handle this," I said. "I don't want you on the emperors' radar."

"You're dying, Tori," Nico said quietly, but there was an intense undercurrent of urgency in his tone. "I can't just ignore that."

"I—" I exhaled sharply. I couldn't blame him for feeling as such. That didn't make it any less frustrating. "Ju-just…give me a little more time, then. Please. I don't want you putting yourself in danger if I can help it."

Nico gave me a skeptical look, frowning. "I'm a child of Hades. I think I can handle myself."

"You're also fifteen, Nico," I responded, in the same tone he'd just used with me. "I'm not going to let you get yourself killed."

His frown turned into a pout. "Fine. But like with Will, I'm not going to wait forever. You're my friend, and I want to help you."

"I know. Thank you." After a moment of silence, something occurred to me. "Why won't Will leave the infirmary?"

Nico rolled his eyes, pursing his lips. "I…may…have used some child of Hades powers or something," he muttered. "So I'm resting up in the infirmary now, too. I passed out to Will chastising me."

I snorted. "Yeah, sounds like him. But, what powers?"

His dark eyes focused on me, intense. His brows furrowed. "I…I pulled you back from the brink."

Even though this was a dream, I felt my body go cold, and a wave of prickles washed over me. "Of death?"

Nico shook his head, which confused me. "Something…else," he said slowly. "I-I can't explain it. It didn't feel like death—believe me, I know what that feels like—but I really couldn't tell you what it was. I don't think I've ever encountered something like that before. I just knew I needed to…bring you back."

I thought about the whispers I heard. The door I'd seen. What I'd heard among those whispers. Nothing Nico told me gave me any clarity. What did it all mean?

Absentmindedly, I rubbed my left hand up my right arm.

I took a small, steadying breath. "Now, about this." I gestured to my arm.

December

I was just crawling into bed when my small, Celestial bronze phone began buzzing. Frowning, I picked it up off the nightstand and looked at the caller ID. I don't know why I did because it wasn't like I was going around memorizing numbers. At the least, I knew it was someone from California.

See, when I'd acquired this phone, I'd given the number to several people I thought might want to get into contact with me. Dan, of course, and Anya. Some of Dan's friends, in case of an emergency. As well as some people from Camp Half-Blood, including some of the seven demigods of the prophecy that culminated in the Second Giant War. Not all of them, because I didn't feel close enough to do so.

I didn't save their numbers on the phone, however. In fact, I erased all my call history as frequently as possible, most times right after I'd gotten a call from someone. It was safer that way. The phone also had a self-destruct directive. It was a bit like a cyanide pill, but for the phone. Since Triumvirate was already threatening the lives of my brother and Anya, I wasn't going to allow them to threaten anyone else close to me if I could prevent it.

Anyway, all that to say, I didn't recognize the number.

Still, knowing only a select few had this number, I answered.

"Hello?" I asked. Silence followed. If I listened carefully, I thought I could hear breathing. After a few more moments of silence, I said, "It's getting late over here." And I would probably need to take more ibuprofen for my pin-pricks. "Could you call back tomorrow?"

"Tori?" They paused. "It's Piper. Can we…can we talk?"

I froze. Piper was calling? Me?

We'd had some interactions while on the Argo II, when the Seven had been on their mission to save the world and stop Gaea, but she generally hung out with the other Seven. I didn't know what she thought about me, or what Drew (current head counselor for the Aphrodite cabin) had told her about Luke's betrayal and my being with Luke. (I knew Drew hated me, but that was more because I'd inadvertently gotten Silena, previous head counselor of the Aphrodite cabin, killed.)

"Tori…?" Piper asked, her voice wavering with uncertainty.

I blinked and tried to shake off my shock, and shove away my prickles. "Yeah, I'm here. Sorry, I'm…just unsure why you're calling?"

Piper chuckled but it sounded tired and bitter. "I hope you don't mind. Jason gave me this number. I guess…in case of emergency, or something, I'm not sure."

I sat up. "Emergency? Is something wrong?" I began thinking of a way to get across the country as fast as I could, or how I could send help her way when Piper quickly halted my thought processes. I would definitely need to take some pain meds before I went to sleep tonight.

"Oh! No! No, I'm…I'm not in any serious trouble," Piper assured, her voice stronger. "Not involving monsters or anything immediate, anyway." Her tone sounded heavy but I held my tongue, knowing there was a different reason she had called. "I'm calling because…well, because I need some advice?"

I blinked and sat back again, frowning. "Advice?"

Piper sighed again, letting out a slightly hysterical laugh. "Oh, this is so embarrassing, but advice about…love and life, I guess."

I stayed silent, not sure how to respond to that.

"I know, I know, it sounds stupid, I guess—a child of Aphrodite going to someone else for love advice, but. I don't know. My mom has messed with your love life pretty badly, hasn't she?"

I scoffed. "Yeah."

Piper also barked a laugh. "And I guess I just thought with everything you've gone through with Luke and having to deal with everything after that, I thought…" Her voice got quiet. "I just needed someone to talk to."

"You don't love Jason anymore," I guessed.

Piper was silent. "W-wow, is it—was I that obvious?"

I chuckled, but it was half-hearted. "Just a lucky guess." I paused, but Piper didn't say anything more, so I explained. "This would be a very different call if he'd died. You mentioned love and life, which is pretty general, but you also mentioned my relationship with Luke. And I have a feeling the life part is the fact that I've continued on after Luke's death." I tried to keep the pain out of my voice, but I could feel it squeezing my chest tightly.

"I honestly don't know what to think," Piper said quietly. "I'm just…" She trailed off. I could hear her hesitation in the way her breath shook as she breathed.

"…you don't." I paused, trying to figure out how I wanted to word what I was going to say. "You know, you don't have to tell me if it still…feels too fresh; if you still feel like you need time to work through your feelings."

Piper laughed without humor. "It's a bit ironic. I want to talk to someone about it to figure out my feelings. But…I'm extremely nervous about it. I don't…want to say it out loud."

"I understand."

"But I feel like I can't talk to anyone else!" Piper burst, exhaling sharply. "Percy and Annabeth are the perfect couple. And I love them to death but maybe I can't live up to that expectation! Hazel and Frank are too…Roman. They look up to Jason. I don't think they'd understand. And Leo—" she broke off, making a choking noise.

After a moment of silence, Piper found her voice again. "Do you know how Jason and I got together?"

"No."

Piper chuckled bitterly. "When Hera wiped Percy and Jason's memories, and swapped them between camps, she also implanted memories of Jason and I's romantic relationship." I don't know if she meant for her tone to sound so disgusted, but I was surprised at just how strong it was. "My mom told me a power Aphrodite children hold is being able to make something from nothing. Make a relationship from fake memories." Piper paused. I could practically hear her rolling her eyes. "But I never even got a moment to even decide if I wanted that. If I wanted to be in a romantic relationship with Jason. Everyone just…expected it! And I didn't even question it until…"

"Until the war was over?" I finished softly. "When your brain finally realized it was no longer in mortal danger and it felt like the fog cleared. Like you could think clearly for once?"

Piper's voice was ragged as she replied, "Yeah." Then, "I guess you've felt similar?"

"Kind of." I sighed. "I've never questioned if I wanted to be with Luke. But it's something I've discussed with my therapist regarding other things. They told me that when your brain is so focused on simply surviving, there are a lot of things it will gloss over to protect you; to get you through those tough times. But once the danger has passed and your brain registers that you're actually safe, everything it's been holding back comes to the fore and is allowed to sink in."

"That makes sense," Piper said. "I do feel like I've finally had time to breathe. I just…I still love Jason. Just not in that way. And I guess…I guess I feel like I'm letting people down. My friends to be like Annabeth and Percy. My mom, who encouraged me to make something from nothing. Hera! Queen of the gods and goddess of marriage. I…I—" She scoffed. "Would it be wrong of me to say I feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders? Over a relationship?"

"I don't think so," I said, violently shoving away the allusion to Atlas and all the memories it brought with it into a box. My prickles responded unkindly, but I did my best to shove them away, too. "But I'm also incredibly biased." I let some sarcasm sneak into my voice and Piper laughed in response.

"I suppose it's not just about a relationship," Piper sighed. "Realizing that I don't love Jason romantically has made me realize I feel like I don't even have a good grasp of who I even am. Cherokee? Greek demigod? Teenager? World savior? I feel like I can't grasp the meaning of what those mean anymore." Piper took a deep breath. "But I do have a starting point. I want to strengthen my connection with my Cherokee heritage."

"A starting point is always good," I said. "I hope it gives you a little more clarity. And, Piper, if it's worth anything, remember you're sixteen. You don't necessarily have to know who you are yet. Your teenage years are for figuring that out. So, you're not falling behind. You're exactly where you need to be."

Piper scoffed but there was more humor to it this time. "I save the world and I still have to be a teenager? I still have to ride the tumultuous rollercoaster of figuring out who I am? That seems unfair."

I shrugged even though she couldn't see it. "What can I say, saving the world is a thankless job. If it makes you feel any better, I'm about ten years older than you and I'm still trying to figure it all out."

Piper belly laughed and I couldn't help but smile. "That actually makes me feel worse! You're telling me I'm going to be on this ride for ten years?"

"Maybe longer!" I grinned.

"Now that's truly terrifying."

We laughed again, and as our laughter died down, Piper sighed. It sounded a lot less heavy.

"Thanks, Tori," she said. "Is it okay if…if I call again, if I need someone to talk to?"

"Of course. I'm glad I could help. Have a good night."

"You too."

I hung up, letting my hand (and with it my phone) fall into my lap, letting out a long sigh.

I don't know if the Fates were pulling a prank on me at Styx's insistence or what, but the next day after talking with Piper, I was assigned a new mission. To California of all places.

I was used to Triumvirate's lackeys bursting through my door the moment I opened it—can you believe I was always thankful they at least knocked so I didn't have to pay for a new lock each time?—but, when they shoved me back into the apartment and I spotted Dan and Anya get dragged in, I knew something was wrong. As dread welled in my chest, so did my pin-pricks.

The last person in slammed the door shut and stood in front of it. As if any of us could've fled. There were two holding Dan, and two holding Anya, then the merc at the door, and two behind me. Then, of course, Hargrave. Who stood between the two who'd pushed past me as soon as I'd opened the door.

"What's going on?" I asked, my voice strained, half-turning so I could see Hargrave but also keep an eye on Dan and Anya. Pushing away my chronic pain to focus on things today was already hard (sometimes it was just like that; no trigger, they just wouldn't behave some days), this was not helping in the slightest.

I did not like it when they involved Dan and Anya in this way. Knowing they could kill either of them at any time should have been enough to keep my cooperation. And it had been. So why bring them now?

Dan, for what it's worth, looked mildly annoyed and in slight discomfort. I guess he just expected to be kidnapped for ransom all the time now. Anya, who was decidedly not used to this, looked more scared. I really couldn't blame her.

"We were in the middle of rehearsal," he muttered at no one in particular, but he threw a worried look over to Anya.

Hargrave smiled at me.

"You're being assigned a new mission," he exclaimed. "You'll love it. It's in southern California. Nice and warm, even for this time of year."

"Then what's with the show?" I asked through gritted teeth, my hands curling into fists.

Hargrave hummed, his infuriating grin never leaving his face. "Because if our sources are correct, you can't leave the five boroughs of New York City." He paused, waiting for my confirmation. I didn't respond but the change in my expression must've told him everything he needed because he nodded to himself and continued. He gestured to Dan and Anya. "Just a little extra encouragement to remind you that when we tell you to go somewhere, you go."

I licked my lips, facing Dan and Anya fully for a moment before turning to face Hargrave.

"How long do I have?" I asked.

"You leave a week from now."

I blinked. "A week. I-I need more time! I need to figure out—"

"This isn't up for negotiation," Hargrave interrupted pleasantly.

"No, you don't understand, I—" I tried, but Hargrave sighed and snapped his fingers. I turned to see one of the men holding Dan kick him in the back of the knee, forcing him to kneel. Anya shrieked and tried to pull away from her captors, but they held fast. I lunged forward, only to be stopped by the two mercs who'd been flanking Hargrave. They twisted both my arms painfully behind my back, making my prickles burst in response, but I didn't stop struggling.

It was easy for the mercs holding Dan to then push him to the ground. One of them put their leg over both of Dan's, and practically sat down to keep Dan from kicking. The other placed a knee in the middle of Dan's back, holding one of Dan's arms behind his back, and forcing the other arm out, pinning it to the floor, outstretched. Dan struggled, but the more he did, the harder the merc pressed his knee into Dan's spine.

"Stop!" I shouted, still struggling, even though pain rocketed up my arms and through my body with each jerk. Both from how they held me and my chronic pain in response to everything.

"Please!" Anya added, her voice shill. Tears had begun streaming down her cheeks, and I wished our lives weren't so dangerous for her sake. I hated that they had pulled her into all this. Hated that she was suffering because of me.

Hargrave came around to stand in front of me, momentarily blocking my view of my brother. I glared at him, breathing heavily, resisting the urge to spit in his face.

"It would be a real shame for Dan to lose his fingers," Hargrave said in mock sympathy. "I hear he's a masterful violinist."

"I-I need more time," I protested. "I can't get an audience with the gods so quickly—"

"Not my problem," Hargrave interrupted again. He gestured for the merc at the door to come forward. As she did, she pulled out a pair of gardening shears from her pants pocket. Hargrave stepped to the side, allowing me full view of my brother again.

"No!" I screamed, struggling harder. "Stop!" I yelled in frustration and pain as the woman knelt next to Dan, who was also struggling but huffing and wheezing as the merc on his chest pressed his knee harder into my brother's back.

I struggled harder as the shears began to close in on Dan's pinky. "No! Stop! Stop!" I shrieked. Anya screamed and squeezed her eyes shut.

"Alright, alright!" I relented; my voice hoarse now. "I-I'll figure something out! Please."

Hargrave held up his fisted hand and the shears stopped moving. He smiled at me, and all I wanted in that moment was to wipe that smirk off his face.

"Very good, Victoria," he said. He gestured again and the mercs let us go before silently filing out of my apartment. Hargrave lingered in the doorway. "I'll text you the details." He exited and closed the door behind him.

As soon as I heard the soft click of the latch, my knees buckled and I collapsed to the floor, breathing hard. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. I looked over at Dan, who had sat up and was leaning against the wall, chest heaving. His eyes gazed into the distance; he flexed his right hand like he was making sure all his fingers were still there.

Anya had come to sit next to him, leaning against his arm, resting her head on his shoulder. She was trembling.

Their hands were intertwined, gripping the other's so hard both their knuckles had turned white.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, defeated. My body trembled; my prickles screamed. I wanted to collapse and pass out. "I'm so sorry."

That night, I was crawling into bed, exhausted, when my bronze phone began to ring. I flopped onto my bed, groaning into my pillow, before reaching over to grab my phone. It was going to be another "double-up on pain meds" night, I could feel it. I rolled over onto my back and answered, not even bothering to look at the caller ID this time.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Tori?" a deep voice asked. One that I actually recognized.

I blinked in surprise. "Jason?" I asked, to confirm. Then tensed. "Is something wrong?"

"No, no," Jason assured. "I'm fine." He paused. "Well, I'm not…immediately in danger, or anything, at least."

I winced. "Sounds rough," I sympathized.

Jason laughed, sounding…embarrassed? "Not really. It's not…well, it's not, earth-shattering, or anything. Nothing compared to saving the world, or anything."

"Does it feel earth-shattering to you?" I asked.

Jason was silent for a long time. For so long, I almost thought he'd hung up. I even checked the screen to make sure the call was still going.

"Yeah, a little," he finally said, his voice sounding more ragged than I'd ever heard it sound before. He exhaled, his voice stronger as he continued, "It seems so stupid. After everything I've been through. All the promises I've made. The duties I still have to…to Camp Jupiter and Camp Half-Blood. To the minor gods. To my friends."

"Jason, you're still only sixteen," I reminded him gently.

"I've saved the world," he retorted, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"You're going to high school and you like physics," I said. "Face it, big shot, you're just like any other average sixteen-year-old going through sixteen-year-old things." I heard Jason suck in a breath to respond and quickly added, "With a few godly perks and powers."

Jason chuckled.

"But that's not why you called, I assume?" I asked when he didn't say anything else.

"…I guess I just…needed someone to talk to," he said quietly.

"I'm flattered you thought of me," I joked.

That got a genuine laugh from Jason.

We had a rocky relationship. Having resided at Camp Half-Blood for several months before his big excursion with the other Seven to save the world, he'd heard about my contributions to the Second Titan War. Because of his Roman upbringing, he had a very black-and-white perspective on right and wrong, good and bad.

It caused quite a bit of contention between us, so when I arrived on the Argo II, he was less than welcoming. After a few harrowing quests and serious talks, though, I think he came to…trust(?) me. I wasn't really sure; he was hard to read sometimes.

At the least, he didn't seem to dislike me, anymore. After the end of the Second Giant War, he'd even given me a small gift before he left Camp Half-Blood, back to California.

Jason spoke, breaking me from my thoughts, "To be quite honest, I think you're the only older person I could call a friend," he said. I was shocked at how easily he said this because I hadn't really known what to quantify our relationship as. "At least, an older friend I feel I can talk to about—" He broke off.

"About…?" I prompted softly, when he didn't continue.

Jason half-sighed, half-chuckled. It sounded embarrassed again. "It sounds so stupid," he repeated, frustrated."I…don't like feeling this way." He broke off again and let out a small growl.

"Would it be easier to talk about in person?" I asked, remembering I'd be in California in a week's time.

"Oh. You're in California?" Jason asked.

"I will be soon. In about a week," I told him. "I'll let you know when I have some free time and we can meet up. If that's alright with you, of course."

Jason paused. I assumed he was thinking about it. I had to fight my drooping eyelids, even with my pin-pricks, signaling how tired I really was. Your loved ones being threatened with bodily harm could really take it out you.

"Yeah, I think that'd be nice," Jason finally said. His voice startled me out of my twilight sleep.

"I'll call again when I'm in California, then," I managed. Hopefully I wasn't slurring my speech.

"Great, I'll talk to you then."

"And Jason," I said, before he could hang up. He hummed, waiting.

I don't know what compelled me to say what I did. I didn't consider myself matronly in the slightest. Hell, I didn't consider myself all that social. But I thought about my mom, what she would do or say to get me through a rough patch, or when I was feeling particularly emotional about something. And the words just came spilling out.

"It's going to be okay," I told him. Before he could respond, I hung up. Part of it was because I didn't want to hear his response (I know, it was a little shameful). The other part was the fact that I was actively falling asleep. As soon as my hand flopped onto the bed, I closed my eyes and fell asleep with my lamp on and my phone still in my hand.

"Are you sure about this?" Huixing asked, leaning forward from the backseat.

"I don't have a choice," I murmured, keeping my eyes out the window as Ellery drove us to an alley at the edge of one of the five boroughs of NYC.

Huixing sat back with a huff. That was the fifth time she'd asked that, as if she thought if she asked one more time, my answer would change.

We rode in silence after that. Ellery pulled down an empty alleyway, stopping just a few feet away from the invisible border. I straightened up in my seat as the SUV slowly rolled to a stop. Ellery looked at his phone again.

"The line should be right before that dumpster." He pointed to the right, where a dark green dumpster sat against the brick wall.

I took a deep breath, which only trembled a little bit. I'd taken pain meds before we left, but I was starting to think it wasn't enough.

Then I looked at Ellery and back at Huixing. "I'll see you guys on the other side." I said, unbuckling my seatbelt and getting out. "Hopefully."

I pushed my door closed just as I heard the door from the backseat open. Huixing stepped out, closing her door, scowling at me.

"You can't—" I started.

"Stop you?" she interrupted. "I'm not allowed to see you off?"

I gave her a look before walking up to the line, looking down at the ground, as if I could see it. I shoved away my growing prickles.

I didn't want to be doing this either but I really didn't have any other choice. Not if I wanted Dan and Anya unharmed.

I looked over at Huixing, who'd come to stand next to me. "Wish me luck."

Before I could step over the line, she stepped closer to me and caressed my cheek, pressing her lips to my other cheek. Just as quickly as she had moved toward me, she stepped back.

"I don't need to," she said before turning and getting back into the car. This time in the passenger's seat.

I blinked, trying to shake off my astonishment at her gesture. Why'd she have to go and rattle me right before this? Taking another big breath, I looked down and stepped over the line. Before I could even set my foot down on the other side, I was falling. I blacked out before I hit the ground.

I ended up in a cell I was all too familiar with. It was somewhere on Mount Olympus, with bars made of enchanted Celestial bronze. There was a cot in the corner. No toilet or sink, so I figured that meant I wouldn't be here long. That or, because mostly gods and nature spirits resided on Mount Olympus, they'd forgotten I needed one.

The reason I was so familiar with it, though, was because I'd been kept in a cell similar to this after the Second Titan War and the Second Giant War. As I'd said before, the gods needed someone to punish and I was the demigod in the wrong place at the wrong time (not necessarily by accident).

And the reason I had ended up here now was due to the last time I'd had an audience with the gods, after the Second Giant War. They had wanted to keep track of my movements around New York City, specifically within the five boroughs, so they'd implanted a tracker (or did some magical tracking; I actually wasn't 100% sure), and if I ever ventured outside of that area, I'd be sent to Olympus and have a punishment doled out to me.

With a sigh, I sat down on the edge of the cot and waited. I'd expected this. (Didn't make it any less nerve-wracking, more so because time worked differently in magical places like these. I didn't want my deadline to pass without my knowing, all because I'd been stuck in a cell on Mount Olympus.)

A little time later (enough time, I was definitely regretting not having taken some pain meds with me), two godlings showed up at the door to my cell. I stood and made my way to the door as they opened it up. They flanked me as I made my way to the throne room, not needing an escort to find my way there, this time.

One of the large, ornate doors that led into the throne room was already open, so I stepped in without hesitating. The godlings followed, as if they'd been expecting that. Zeus was sitting on his throne, 20 feet tall, and extremely imposing.

His expression was stormy (ha, get it?), and I could tell he was extremely displeased with what I'd done. The other thrones, which were for the other eleven Olympians, were empty (which made sense).

"Please explain to me exactly why you broke your agreement to stay within the five boroughs of New York City," he said, his voice booming and impatient. I hadn't quite been expecting that, but perhaps he was beginning to realize the mistake of overseeing my punishment personally. Though, to be honest, I was more surprised he was giving me a chance to explain myself. I had feared he would've just smitten me first, and asked questions later.

"I apologize, my lord," I said, bowing out of courtesy and to hopefully appease him somewhat. I straightened up and swallowed hard before beginning, "I was hoping you would grant me an allowance, regarding that."

Zeus's eyes sparked and he raised an eyebrow. Any annoyance he had for being called back disappeared and he straightened up on his throne. "Oh?" he asked, his tone dangerously quiet. "And what could possibly be the reason you would risk my wrath to ask for a request? A request, mind you, that you have not even close to earned?"

I had to steel my nerves once again. Mostly because I was about to tell Zeus, lord of the sky, king of the gods, a white lie.

"I was contacted by someone who wants my help," I began slowly, "and I feel I am better able to help them if I could talk to them in person, but they are not in New York."

Zeus's annoyance returned. "So you'd break the rules for what? I'm a busy god! I don't have time to address your issues. You should have thought of that before you betrayed the gods."

"Well, my lord," I said carefully. "That's the reason I broke the rules. I knew you were busy and I wouldn't get an audience for a long time. I needed to speak with you immediately."

A small area of Zeus's beard sparked. I began to smell ozone and my head buzzed with an uncomfortable pressure. My pin-pricks responded in kind. I heard my godling guards shift uncomfortably.

When Zeus spoke again, his voice cracked like thunder, "Why would you break the rules for a single person? I command you to tell me who they are."

I tried to go over my choices as fast as possible, so as not to test his patience any more than I already had. If I continued to lie, he would probably kill me. If I told him the truth (or, a half-truth, anyway) would he understand? He might. Ugh! It was so difficult trying to think past my ever-growing pain.

Risk it, the voice that sounded too much like Luke's whispered, slicing through my pain momentarily.

I'd have to; in the hope I wouldn't die. (Not that I particularly cared if I did or not.)

"Jason Grace, my lord," I said quietly.

The ozone disappeared, and so did the buzzing and pressure. I didn't exactly feel that was a good sign.

"Jason Grace?" His voice was quiet, even in his 20-foot-tall appearance.

I wet my lips. "Yes, my lord."

The ozone smell and pressure reappeared, this time so strong, my knees nearly buckled. I was very nearly lost to my chronic pain. I don't know how I managed to focus on anything other than the pain.

The godlings quickly stepped away from me. If they were smart, they would've fled the throne room altogether. I didn't look back behind me to check. For obvious reasons. And because I didn't really have the wherewithal.

"You dare presume that I cannot take care of my own son? That he cannot take care of himself?" Zeus boomed, shaking the whole throne room.

"That is not what I was implying, my lord," I said quickly, trying to calm him. Though my vision was very quickly going fuzzy and black. "Jason asked me for my help, and I would like to help him. That is all."

Zeus stood and I instinctively took a step back. Stumbled would probably be a better descriptor. This had definitely been a mistake.

"You have defied the gods twice now! There is no reason to trust you or your intentions. AND YOU DARE PRESUME TO ASK ME TO EXPAND HOW FAR YOU MAY TRAVEL?" As he said this, the air crackled with bursts of electricity. My head buzzed and the pressure increased to the point of pain.

I remember seeing a blinding flash of white, searing pain, searing cold, and then nothing.

I sucked in a sharp breath and my eyes snapped open. I probably would've sat up, too, but every single muscle in my body felt sore, like I'd just had one of those bursts of super-strength and lifted a car off a person. Even the muscles that moved my eyes strained as I looked around.

My head pounded, which didn't help with any of the pain. And, wonders of wonders, below all that my prickles buzzed. Surprisingly, though, they were tolerable.

Before I could really gather my bearings, Huixing came into view. As soon as she saw I was awake, she gasped and came over to me, sitting down on the edge of the bed and taking one of my hands.

"You're awake," she breathed. "Oh, I'm so glad. I wasn't sure if you were going to make it. How are you feeling?"

I swallowed and winced. "Sore." My voice was hoarse.

Huixing nodded. "Here, I'll go get you some more nectar and some water."

"N—" I began to protest to the nectar but she gave me a look and stopped me in my tracks.

"You need it, Tori," she said in a hard voice. "I know you don't like it, but you need it."

I closed my mouth and exhaled sharply but nodded. She let go of my hand and got up to go get the nectar and water.

I was lying on her bed in her loft. It was a small thing, with the kitchen nearly in view of where I laid. I could hear her as she rummaged through her cupboards and got glasses out. Across from her little bedroom nook was an open living space, where she had a TV, a sofa, and a coffee table. In the far corner was a small desk, and a rolling chair, with a standing lamp next to it.

Huixing came back and set both glasses on a small bedside table, before reaching forward to help me sit up. I groaned and my body shook as I carefully and slowly pushed myself into a sitting position. I leaned heavily against Huixing—my head resting against her shoulder—who put a gentle arm around my waist to help support me.

She carefully reached for the glass of nectar first. I went to reach for it, but sitting up had expended all my energy. So, I let her bring the glass to my lips and drank the whole thing. My body grew hot and my prickles were silenced. I let out a shaky breath, closing my eyes, and waited for them to return. They did, not a moment later. Quieter than I was expecting, but was appreciated nonetheless.

I opened my eyes again and Huixing brought the glass of water to my lips next. To my own surprise, I downed the entire glass. The nectar did its work, though. I was able to pull away from Huixing and sit up on my own. My body still felt extremely sore. Now, though, it felt more like I'd just had an intense workout.

"What…happened?" I asked.

Huixing gazed at me with a worried expression for a long moment, gripping the empty water glass. Then she looked down at it and sighed.

"You were gone for…" She let out a shaky breath. "You were gone for three days?"

I blinked. My prickles began to rise again. (Damn. Nice while it lasted, anyway.)

Three days? How could that have been? I stayed quiet, though, wanting to know how I'd ended up at her place. (And at least I hadn't missed Hargrave's deadline, either.)

Huixing shook her head and wet her lips, continuing, "I don't know. I was just—I was just turning to exit the kitchen and you were just there." She shrugged, but her voice was thick and tense. "Lying on your back, on the floor. You were bleeding from every—everywhere on your face: your nose, your eyes, mouth, ears. It was like looking at a horror show. I-I didn't even know if you were still alive." She chuckled. It sounded a bit hysterical. "I dropped and smashed my favorite mug." She finally looked at me with a tired smile, tears in her eyes. "You owe me a new mug."

I let out a wheezing laugh. "I can buy you a new one."

Huixing sniffled and looked back down at the glass she held, stroking the rim of it with one of her fingers.

"You were out for another two days," she said quietly, all humor gone. "I was afraid you weren't going to make it. By some miracle, you pulled through, though. Just in time for us to leave for California." Her tone turned bitter and sarcastic.

Her hands stopped tracing the rim of the glass. She looked up at me. "Do you…remember what happened?"

I shook my head. "I remember being in a cell and seeing Zeus in the throne room. I think he got angry at my request. But after that, I don't remember much." Huixing nodded but her expression tightened. I frowned, a cold stone forming in my stomach, my pin-pricks also starting to grow. "What aren't you telling me?"

Instead of answering my question, she set the glass back down on the nightstand before reaching for my right hand and taking it into hers.

"I'm surprised you didn't notice this earlier," she mumbled, stroking the back of my hand with her thumb.

My frown deepened. "Notice what—" I began to demand, my eyes flickering down to where her hand held mine, breaking off when I saw a glimpse of a scar. My eyes flew back to my hand where, beginning at my wrist—though the scar had bled ever so slightly onto the back of my hand—was a scar in fractals that branched out jaggedly, following a thicker line up my arm and to my shoulder. I looked back at Huixing, feeling panic build in my chest. My chronic pain roared; I could barely hear over the roaring of blood in my ears.

"What—?" I tried, breathless.

Huixing stopped stroking my hand and met my eyes. It grounded me just enough to hear what she said next: "They're called Lichtenberg, or fractal, burns," she said. "They sometimes occur on people who've been struck by lightning."

"H-how far does this extend?" I asked, reaching up to my shoulder with my left hand to carefully stroke the fractals. They didn't feel like the scars I'd received from the hellhound. They weren't raised, and they didn't feel numb when I pressed into them.

Huixing's eyebrows furrowed, and I could tell she wanted to say something, but she reached up with her free hand and gently pressed her fingertips to my collarbone, following the pattern up to my neck. Chills blossomed where she touched.

"It peeks up just above your collar," she said. She pulled her hand away. "It continues down your shoulder and back, the very tips stopping around the small of your back."

Grimly, I laughed (internally) at the thought that now I had matching scars on both my arms and shoulders. One from a hellhound, and one from—

"Wait," I choked, chills shooting up my spine, followed by my pin-pricks. "It only occurs in people struck by lightning?" I asked, to make sure I'd heard her right.

Huixing nodded and then exclaimed, "Tori!" when I began to fall over. She caught me and laid me back down.

The room spun around me. My heart pounded painfully. My chronic pain burst in time with my heart. She stood over me, eyes worriedly searching me. "Tori? Are you-are you—" She broke off, as if realizing asking if I was all right, was a stupid question.

"That could only mean he…" I tried, breathless. My own voice sounded far away, almost echo-y. "He…he struck me. He struck me with one of his lightning bolts. How—how did I survive?"

Huixing shook her head silently, sitting back down.

Silence yawned between us. Then, "Do you know if…if you can travel outside the boroughs now?"

I shook my head. "I don't even know if he knows I'm alive."

"Surely he must," Huixing said. "He's a god. The god of the gods."

"Triumvirate existing is a testament to the fact that the gods don't know everything," I retorted.

"I still can't believe you didn't tell me!" Ellery griped, twisting the steering wheel like he was trying to kill—well, like he was killing someone.

"Keep your eyes on the road!" Huixing exclaimed from the passenger's seat, smacking his arm. I was in the back, behind the passenger's seat. "I told you, I didn't tell you because it wasn't like there was anything you could do. And I didn't want you pacing in my apartment. It's annoying and you would've ruined my floor."

"It's concrete," Ellery snapped back, through his teeth.

Huixing opened her mouth to respond but I sighed and closed my eyes. "You guys are giving me a headache." I knew I should've taken more pain meds with me before we left. And not just for the headache.

My head rested against the cold window, but the car was warm. Ellery had the heat blasting, to which I was secretly grateful.

I was still feeling pretty weak but I'd insisted they take me out to see if I was still being monitored or if I could move freely again. Especially since we were leaving tomorrow for California.

After resting up for a few more hours at Huixing's, I had asked she take me to the border again, and just as we were about to leave, we got a text with the information about our next mission.

"Sorry," they both muttered in unison.

The rest of the ride was silent, blessedly. We went to a different part of town this time, but to another alley.

It wouldn't do if a mortal saw me disappearing into thin air after stepping over an arbitrary line. Though, the Mist would probably take care of it. Still, we didn't want to risk it.

This time, Ellery turned the car off and they both got out. Ellery helped me out of the car as Huixing glared at him (and he glared back).

At least they were quiet.

He walked me up to the line, Huixing on my other side. I looked down at the ground, weirdly nervous. The worst that could happen was getting transported back to Olympus and killed for real.

I felt Ellery's grip tighten on my arm as I took a step forward, putting my foot over the line that marked the end of the five boroughs.

Nothing happened.

I waited a few more seconds before fully stepping over. Still nothing. A smile crept its way onto my face and I looked back and forth between Ellery and Huixing.

"Looks like I'm a free woman," I said to them.

Present

"Zeu—" Nico began, then cut off quickly and reiterated. "He struck you with one of his bolts?" His voice was quiet, tight with worry, even though there was nothing he could do about it now. "How did you…survive?"

"I—I don't know," I murmured, looking down at my hot chocolate. I didn't remember any of it. One moment Zeus was yelling at me and the next I was waking up in Huixing's loft. I had no idea how I'd survived; let alone how I'd just appeared in Huixing's place.

I let out a big breath and looked back at Nico. I could tell he hadn't gotten over his shock, but there wasn't really anything else he could say.

He couldn't help. It'd long since passed. Any words of comfort would feel hollow because of the mystery surrounding my survival.

As a child of Hades, I'm sure that bothered him to no end, but he also knew asking me about any more wasn't going to get him anywhere. I wondered if the sources he used to find out these types of things would be able to give him any information. And if he would tell me if he found anything.

"You still have a question for me." I inclined my head.

Nico's eyebrows furrowed slightly. He paused a moment before asking slowly, "Little Finch?"

I jolted like I'd been shocked, my prickles rose and fell. "Who…how…?" I couldn't finish the sentence, not sure what I even wanted to ask. My brain felt suddenly and violently scrambled at the mention of a nickname I hadn't heard in years. Since my mom had died.

Nico opened his mouth, probably to clarify but I managed to blurt out, "My-my mom used to call me that." Nico's mouth snapped shut. He'd also lost his mom. Though, Zeus had been the one to strike her down. He'd been aiming for Nico and his sister (who was also dead now), but Hades had managed to save them.

All that to say, he probably understood my intense and emotional reaction.

I continued, stuttering, "She…well the full pet name had-had been Little Goldfinch because, you know"—I gestured to my hair, then remembered it was brown now and frowned—"well, because my hair used to be blonde. And I liked singing. But it was shortened to Little Finch—" I sucked in a sharp breath as a flashback (could you have a flashback within a dream?) struck me like…well….

In the vision, I saw a man. It looked like he was in his late twenties. He had dark, curly hair, and tanned skin. He didn't look anything like Apollo, but I could tell that it was him. There was a warm halo surrounding him and his godly aura was strong. I wasn't sure if this was true to the moment I was recalling, but in that moment, it seemed glaringly obvious this was Apollo, standing in front of me.

My mom stood behind him, smiling as he knelt in front of me and Dan, who stood to my right. He rested a warm, gentle hand on the crown of my head.

His voice was low and rumbly as he said to me, "I'm proud of you, Little Finch." He turned to Dan and said something similar but it was like someone had pressed the mute button.

I gasped and reached for purchase, gripping the edge of the table I sat with Nico. My chronic pain roared to life.

"Tori!" Nico exclaimed, leaning toward me in his seat.

Around us, the scene flickered violently. Before he could help me gain control back, I jolted awake in my cot in the Apollo cabin infirmary. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest, I felt like I was about to be attacked by a monster. I tried to shove away my chronic pain, my eyes darting around the room, looking for the danger but paused when they rested on Nico, in the cot next to mine.

He'd woken, too. He turned his head toward me, eyebrows furrowing in silent question.

I opened my mouth but struggled for words, and ended up shaking my head. I wanted to make a phone call, but another glance around the room told me Will was, indeed, still there.

He was at the end of the little alley between Nico and I's cots, asleep in a chair, despite the fact that, based on the slant of the sunlight coming through the windows, it was mid-morning. To be fair, he'd probably had a long night.

Whispering, hoping Will would stay asleep for a moment longer, I looked back at Nico. "I need to make a phone call."

Nico nodded. "I'll get him to go lie down in his bed."

"Thank you."

I closed my eyes again and pretended to sleep (and tried not to grimace because of the pain I was in) as I heard Nico throw the blankets off him and stand up. As Nico walked over to Will, I realized he'd been right about feeling…slimy.

There was a cold spot where I'd been hit by those vines, and it felt like it'd been coated in a layer of goo, that was now only staying where it was because of the bandages on my wound, and the gauze wrapped around my middle.

"Hey, sleepyhead," Nico murmured as Will grumbled. "You should get some sleep in a real bed."

Will sucked in a sharp breath. "Tori!" he exclaimed, then silence. I continued to pretend to sleep. Will's voice was quieter as he said, "Is she—"

"She's fine," Nico assured. "I checked. You should go back to the Apollo cabin and sleep there."

Instead of protesting, like I thought he might do, Will hummed in agreement and mumbled something nonsensical. He was probably still half-asleep if he didn't put up a fight.

There was shuffling, then the sound of stumbling footsteps heading toward the door that led into the corridor that connected the Apollo cabin infirmary to the Apollo cabin.

When I heard the latch click, I opened my eyes again.

I tried to sit up too quickly but when pain shot through me, I yelped and fell back onto my cot. Wish I'd gotten Nico to grab some pain meds for me, first. Too late for that now, unfortunately.

It seemed like I was no longer in trouble of being poisoned, but the wounds sure were unhappy. And so were my pin-pricks. I suppose I should've expected that. Just because we could consume small amounts of the food of the gods didn't mean its healing properties were that of a god. (My chronic pain was another testament to that.)

With a huff, I began to sit up again. This time slower. It was still painful, and taxing; by the time I had managed a sitting position, I was breathing hard and a thin sheen of sweat had formed on my forehead. My limbs felt shaky and my body was cold. My prickles buzzed at an uncomfortable level, but it wasn't so bad I couldn't push them away if I concentrated hard enough.

I looked for my jacket, which was hanging off the left post of my cot. Gritting my teeth, I shifted back toward the headboard. Reaching for my pocket with my left hand was out of the question, as stretching my side sent knives of pain shooting through me. Twisting to reach with my right hand still sent the knives, they were just smaller.

First, I checked my black phone. By some miracle, Hargrave hadn't called. I dropped that phone in my lap and called my brother on my bronze phone.

"Tori, are you okay? What's wrong?" Dan asked as soon as he picked up.

I wheezed a chuckle. "I'm fine." Dan sucked in a breath and I could practically feel him getting ready to lecture me. "I-I'm not immediately dying," I quickly amended. "I'm calling because I wanted to know if you remembered Apollo visiting us when we were younger. When Mom was still…"

Dan paused for a long time. Then, "Yeah, I remember." in a quiet, ragged voice.

I exhaled and leaned my head back. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"You were so angry at him," Dan explained. "I didn't think it would help."

More flashes of seeing Apollo being the father I never thought he was flashed before me and I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut and rubbing the bridge of my nose, trying to dispel them, alongside the flare-up of my pin-pricks.

"Tori?" Dan asked, his tone tense.

"I'm fine," I muttered, opening my eyes again. "I just…I don't know."

"What brought this on?" he asked.

I shook my head, then remembered we were talking over the phone. "It would take too long to explain. I'll try to visit soon. We can talk more then, okay?"

"Sure."

"I'm sorry."

Dan sighed. "I'm sorry, too."

"I promise I'm not purposefully keeping things from you. I just don't need people at camp asking questions about my phones."

"I know. Talk soon."

"Talk soon. Love you."

"Love you, too."

Long boi! A lot of exposition! But I hope it was entertaining.

As always, hope you enjoyed! Comments are appreciated ^_^

Thank you for reading,
TheBrightestNight