I really tried to upload this sooner, but A LOT of stuff happened. Thankfully, ideas are already popping up in my head. Expect a chapter soon if all goes well.
Nyx didn't really enjoy being left waiting, but she did not have a choice at this moment in time. On one hand, the entire crew had to endure the screams of the goddess of victory as she underwent her... therapy session, for the lack of a better word. Although not all were present at the ship, since just earlier this morning, Miss Chase and Piper had left to find the chained god's heartbeat, or whatever Nike had said. It was probably makhai anyway, so it shouldn't have been too much of an issue for the demigoddesses.
That was if there wasn't a giant waiting for them at Sparta.
Mr. Jackson's reaction to the daughter of Aphrodite's dream had been understandable, despite what Leo Valdez would say. Their task to retrieve the ingredient would surely be complicated. Even from the Argo II, Nyx could feel the waves of fear emanating from... well, she wasn't omniscient, but it was being originated from somewhere. And it could easily break the demigoddesses. Especially Miss Chase...
And that's not mentioning the bane of Hephaestus, just waiting for their arrival. Night hadn't been around that much for the first Gigantomachy, so she didn't know much about Mimas, but being a giant, it could be a problem. The only reason she had left the two of them to go out alone was because of the vision Piper had on Katoptris, which completely lacked the presence of Night. But even then, it was tempting to just defy fate. However, she could almost see Lachesis pouting in front of her. Best to wait. Her advisors would say that.
That was a lie. Her advisors would want her to go to the Acropolis and blow all the giants up in a show of fireworks. Which was tempting, but the place would undoubtedly be protected by Gaia in some way. The plan B was to blow up Olympus, but that would have to wait.
Drifting away from her thoughts, Nyx took notice of the stare her husband was giving her.
"What is it?" She asked, impatiently.
Erebus looked away. "I am just admiring you."
"Rest assured, it's all that you ever do from now on." Crossing her legs, she summoned a straw cigarette and took a puff out of it. Smoking wasn't something she often did, but even to beings as powerful as her, it had a calming effect. "Do you think they're up for the challenge?"
Her husband looked back, seemingly surprised that she talked to him in such a civil tone. "You mean the quest in general or just the mission?"
"The current mission." Nyx stated, blowing the smoke away.
"I'm sure they'll manage it without casualties. Why are you so worried about them in particular?" In Erebus's dark eyes, there was that knowing look that signalled that he knew that she wasn't worrying about the two demigoddesses. But for one of them more than the other.
Nyx held her gaze firm, not backing down. "Trust me, the daughter of Aphrodite is useful. Her charmspeaking abilities are only rivalled by her mother." She said in a low voice. "But there is... something that drags me towards Chase. She is special."
"Special, you say." Erebus echoed. "I never envisioned you having mortal acolytes. I understand we had this conversation before, but do you even have end goals here?"
"I do." Night stated. "But I will admit I am not planning every step of the way."
"Making it up as you go, then." Erebus smirked, receiving a glare in return.
"An oversimplification on your part. I simply have not decided on her role in all of this. I am... afraid of what will happen with her."
Erebus's smirk faded. "What do you mean?"
"She will wake." Night drummed her fingers on the table. "And when that happens... How will she be destroyed?"
"The most logical plan is to do a reverse Ouranos. But..."
"We don't have a weapon as powerful as Kronos's scythe to slaughter her." Nyx completed bitterly.
Erebus nodded. "Indeed. However..." He paused. "Wouldn't you find it likely for one of the demigods to sacrifice themselves so the other wouldn't die?"
"That... isn't the most ludicrous thought." Nyx admitted.
"I know." Erebus said with a smile "And since the list narrows down to four of them according to Nike..."
Nyx brought her hand to her chin. "It's easier to find out who plans such a thing if there even is one willing to die for the world."
"We should look into what they are doing and find out their plan." Erebus said with determination in his eyes. "If it's good enough, it could be the key to defeating her."
Night nodded, but at this exact moment, a whisper ran close to her ear, even though Nyx sensed no one apart from her and Erebus at the table. Despite this, she quickly got up from her chair, looking frantically at all sides.
"What is it?" Erebus asked with concern.
"A voice." Nyx paid more attention to it, realizing it wasn't a whisper. This was...
A prayer. Even in antiquity, she didn't receive many of those. While powerful, the Greeks and Romans barely worshipped her, something that didn't help to tie her to the mortal world. Isolation had worked better.
As for what was said... Nyx could only understand one word.
Help.
"It's them." She announced, getting up from the table.
"Are they in trouble?" Erebus asked, frowning.
"I heard a prayer. It couldn't be from anyone else."
The primordial darkness stood still for a moment. "You don't receive many prayers, do you?"
Nyx felt anger burning in her stomach. She was losing time. "No. And I don't imagine you do either."
"I don't." Erebus admitted. "But can you even go help them? From what I heard that knife is very accurate in its vision, and you weren't there. Like the Acropolis, the temple is likely protected by her powers in some way so you cannot just go."
"I am aware of that." Nyx angrily stated, evaluating a possible way to deal with this, if her presence against the giant was indeed forbidden because of fate and her wicked sister. Soon, an idea sparked in her head.
"I'm going to need quietude. Can you give me that?" She asked Erebus, who narrowed his eyelids.
"Are you going to possess one of them?" He asked with skepticism.
"I'm not possessing anyone!" Night said while crossing her legs in the air, floating above the ground. "Just don't interrupt me. And don't let others interrupt me either. Do you understand?"
"Yeah." Erebus complied. Satisfied, Nyx closed her eyes and focused on her meditation. Oh, the perks of being a goddess, being able to sense all divine beings close by. Some were more noticeable than others. Jason and Percy. Hazel and Frank. But above the rest, all attention was brought to a figure who felt different than the demigods. Brutal, rude, cold. It could only be the giant.
Nyx felt the other two presences near the bigger one. They emanated fear like she had never seen in a long time. Not even when Mr. Jackson and Ms. Chase had appeared at their doorstep, she felt this much fear. Diving deeper into her mind to investigate, the waves of fear hit her head on, mercilessly, wanting to make her cower. But she wouldn't, she couldn't let whatever this was to affect her. Past memories became vivid in Nyx's mind, but she did all she could to resist, trying to find the mind of the one who intrigued her so much.
Annabeth.
Annabeth.
The voice made her stop in her tracks immediately, forcing Piper to also stop, earning a protest of alarm from the other girl.
"Annabeth, come on!" Piper urged, but she did not move. Instead, she felt herself paralyzed, unable to even comprehend what was going on. It was like her mind had broken, and it was the most terrible thing she had felt in a long time. The fear threatened to overtake her mind completely. They shouldn't be here, they should have brought one of the gods with them-
"Lost forever. Swallowed by the darkness!" In front of them, Mimas's voice came, booming like a thunderstorm. It was like Annabeth's legs turned to jelly, threatening to collapse. She couldn't stand this! Perhaps the giant was right, they would never leave this place, the darkness would just consume them-
No.
Again, the voice spoke in her head. A feminine voice.
You need not fear the darkness, Annabeth.
Who...
You are all aware of who I am. Fear shall not let you down, child.
Immediately after the voice ceased to speak, it was like Annabeth's blood pressure fell exponentially, just to return to normal the moment after. Out of a sudden, she could see clearly in the previous endless streak of darkness. Beside her, Piper was looking with concern and confusion, along with the terror that Annabeth also probably had on her face. Alarmingly, the giant, Mimas, was prowling in front of them, most likely unaware that now Annabeth could see him clearly. Using the last pieces of her mind that were still connected, she tried as hard as possible to still look like she was blind-sighted.
"Annabeth, please, let's move," Piper urged, somehow grabbing her arm. "I know what you're feeling, but we can't defeat this place with reason, trust me. There's no way to think yourself out of your emotions."
"Despair, Annabeth Chase!" Said the giant, approaching them slowly, footsteps inaudible. "I am Mimas, born to slay Hephaestus. I am the breaker of plans, the destroyer of the well-oiled machines. Nothing goes right in my presence. Maps are misread. Devices break. Data is lost. The finest minds turn to mush!"
Do not listen to this nonsense. The voice, Nyx, said. Focus on yourself. Even if your mind refuses to answer, make use of your emotions.
"I - I've faced worse than you!" Annabeth bellowed, her voice gaining composure as she spoke. No longer was she desperately fearing that they wouldn't escape alive from the temple, but of course, fear remained, no matter what she wanted.
"Oh, I see!" The giant got closer, raising his sledgehammer in the air. "Are you not afraid?"
Breathing shakily, Annabeth prepared herself to move, holding Piper's arm tightly. "Not of you." She answered, looking straight into the giant's eyes. The move was enough to distract Mimas, who attacked a second late, well after both demigoddesses were away from his range. They were now back in the circular room, with Annabeth's vision still being fully bright. Piper lunged forward and stabbed the giant in his thigh, making him scream in pain. The girls scrambled towards the state of Ares, still pulsing like a heart.
"You cannot defeat me!" Mimas said, the wound already closing. "In the last war, it took two gods to bring me down. I was born to kill Hephaestus and would have done so if Ares hadn't ganged up on me as well! You should have stayed paralyzed in your fear. Your death would've been quicker."
"Piper, do we have a... an idea of what we're doing?" Annabeth asked in a hurry, avoiding the word plan.
"There's... something with the statue..." She peeked behind, to see Mimas trying to pull his sledgehammer from the floor. "We need to just do it. Don't think about it. Thinking will get you killed here."
Listen to her. Nyx whispered in her mind. Wanting to groan in frustration, Annabeth nodded.
"Fine. But we need to do this quickly then." Without warning she pulled Piper off the ground, to get in front of the statue, facing the giant who was still yet to make his weapon usable again.
"And here was I thinking you would have succumbed to the terror." Mimas said with a cackle.
"This temple," Piper said, ignoring the giant's comment. "The Spartans didn't chain Ares because they wanted his spirit to stay in their city."
"Is that so?" Mimas responded with amusement.
"This is the temple of my brothers, Deimos and Phobos." Piper's voice noticeably shook at the mention of the two deities of fear, and even Annabeth couldn't help but shiver. "The Spartans came here to prepare for battle, to face their fears. Ares was chained to remind them that war has consequences. His power, the spirits of battle, the makhai, they should never be unleashed unless you understand how terrible they are, unless you've felt fear."
The giant simply laughed, finally managing to pull the hammer from the floor. "A child of the love goddess lectures me about war. What do you know of the makhai?"
"Probably more than you realize." And with that, she jumped forward, surprising the giant, who stumbled backward as he dodged the slash from her sword. Mimas hit the wall hard, creating a fissure that reached the ceiling. Dust fell from above, the entire temple shaking.
"This place is too unstable!" Annabeth warned. "If we don't finish this quickly..."
"We're working on it, Annabeth!" Piper answered, falling back as the giant got up from the ground.
"You will pay dearly for that, daughter of Aphrodite," Mimas said with gritted teeth. "You realize you cannot defeat me without a god, and Ares is not here. The next time I see him, I will crush him like I shall crush you soon! If just that coward Damasen did his job-"
At that, Annabeth saw red, running forward without any self-regard. "Do not insult Damasen!" She roared, and safe to say, Mimas wasn't expecting that. Unable to prevent her from slashing the drakon-bone sword across the side of his face. The giant yelped in pain, and along with dreadlocks, his ear also fell amidst a pool of ichor, dripping profusely from the wound. Before he could recover, Piper pulled Annabeth towards one of the doorways, falling into what Annabeth knew was complete darkness, but to her, it was all too visible.
The floor shook massively, as more dust fell from the ceiling. "I will tear down this chamber! The Earth Mother shall spare me, but you will succumb!"
Confront him.
"What?!" Annabeth asked out loud, causing Piper to stop in her tracks.
"Annabeth?" She asked with urgency.
Stop him from tearing this place apart. Let Piper deal with the makhai. Let him know fear.
"This is madness." She said under her breath, not noticing Piper calling her by tapping her arm.
"Annabeth, who are you talking to?"
Feeling almost lightheaded, Annabeth turned to face her friend, who, if her eyes weren't mistaking her, took a step back. "I will distract him. Do you really know how to deal with the makhai?
"I wouldn't say I know, more like I feel it," Piper answered just as a wall fell not too far from them. "We will need to run back there."
"I know. It's a terrible idea." She said as she adjusted her sword into her hand.
"Don't think about it and we will be fine. Come on." They ran through a hall on their right, with Annabeth guiding them just enough so they wouldn't hit straight into a wall. Soon, they were back in the shrine room, the giant with its back turned to them, holding the gaping wound where his ear used to be. In a similar fashion, Annabeth and Piper slashed their swords at the giant's legs, making Mimas cry out in pain once more.
"Pathetic mortals!" He yelled. "No plan of yours can defeat me!"
"That's great, because we don't have a plan." Piper confidently said, running towards the statue of Ares. Before Mimas could follow in pursuit, Annabeth began attacking the giant the best she could, and without a weapon of his own to counter the drakon-bone sword, Mimas found himself only able to receive the hits, and even if he wasn't going to be killed, it successfully prevented him from interrupting Piper.
"You will pay dearly for this!" Mimas managed to let out while Annabeth continued to slash forward, ichor flying everywhere. "The Earth Mother shall make your head a trophy, Annabeth Chase!"
"I suppose I would be lovely in a wall." Annabeth answered, stopping for a second to catch her breath. "But I don't think you are fully aware of the situation here."
"Perhaps you refer to the pathetic intrusion of that so-called goddess of the night?" Mimas tried to smash Annabeth with his fist, only for her to roll to safety. "The power of the Earth Mother shields this place from Night's range. She isn't here to save you. Nor will she save your friends. Do you think you're smart for trusting her?"
"Maybe I'm making a mistake." Annabeth said, her voice shaking slightly. "But I don't see how you can get worse than genociding the entire planet for one's personal use. Do you trust her?"
"My faith in the Earth Mother isn't capable of being shaken!" Mimas exclaimed. "She shall build a new world for her, and for those who follow her. What does Nyx have to offer to you, daughter of Athena?"
"Perhaps not much." Annabeth chuckled, with the giant narrowing his eyes in skepticism. "At least not yet. But I know she is helping us. Maybe you were too foolish to see the obvious happening right in front of you. She has been assisting for a while. So much so, we achieved what we needed to do."
To further prove her point, she pointed towards the statue of Ares which was now crumbling into dust as unnatural flames swirled around it. Mimas widened his eyes in surprise.
"So what? Is that what you wanted to show, the makhai abandoning you? Is that the height of Night's work?"
"Or maybe they have abandoned you." Piper was the one to answer, reading herself for battle, making the giant forget about Annabeth, who once more worked on stabbing him, succeeding in wounding the giant's leg, making Mimas lose his balance. The daughter of Aphrodite walked quite calmly towards the giant and pierced his guts with her sword. Mimas fell to the ground, only in time for the still intact statue of Phobos to fall directly onto his face.
With a last groan of pain, the giant disintegrated into a giant pile of golden dust, with, weirdly, only his ear remaining. Panting, Annabeth gave it a good look before turning to Piper.
"I think that's your trophy." She said to her friend, who laughed tiredly.
"Trust me, I don't want to keep it."
"It would make a loveable shield." Annabeth countered, earning a half-hearted glare from Piper. "Those spirits... how does them escaping help us?"
"They said they would come when called. That they would complete the cure." Piper answered with a sigh. "Maybe Apollo and Artemis can explain that to us-"
At that moment, the entire temple shook heavily once more, with a nearby wall falling into the ground and disintegrating much like the now fallen giant. Annabeth stumbled but managed to recover her balance, avoiding slipping on the ear.
You need to get out. Running, even with the help of Panic and Fear, might not be enough. Do you know of the ability that all dark beings possess?
With her mind much clearer and without the threat of the giant to fry her brain, Annabeth immediately knew the answer. "Shadow-travel. But I can't do it."
I will help you. Nyx's voice almost felt comforting. Step into that shadow. You will appear on the surface. Then, come back to the ship.
The mentioned shadow was almost highlighted to Annabeth, almost as if was... glowing. This was incredibly weird. But she knew exactly where to go.
"I know how to get out of here." She announced to Piper, who was staring at her with confusion once more. "Do you trust me?"
"Right now, I don't even trust myself, but I know I need to ignore these feelings. But I'm gonna need some answers later." Piper answered with a smile, which Annabeth tried to retribute.
"Then," She pulled the daughter of Aphrodite towards the glowing shadow. "Here goes nothing."
And together, she jumped into the shadow, with Piper's protest being cut short by the entire temple falling on itself.
I really tried to make Nyx's absence feel justifiable. Despite her power, she is going against someone who is arguably even more capable than her and after all, they are fighting in Gaia's domain. This chapter was kinda boring to write but I really tried to make Annabeth more capable than she was originally. I hope you enjoyed this, really.