Here we go, let's not waste any time.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters (except the OC's) Percy Jackson & The Olympians, Heroes Of Olympus, or Trials Of Apollo. All of that belongs to Rick Riordan.

6. The Blade Of Love (Not Lame, I Promise)

Matt

Hunger.

Typically, as a demigod, you don't think about it too much. Most of the time, you're fighting monsters, and some of the time, you find yourself in the deepest part of the underworld, where at literally every turn, something is trying to kill you.

Food isn't top priority, to put it plainly. But when my stomach growled, Yuri immediately shot me a glance, her eyebrow raised.

And that's how we found ourself in the upper level of the wasteland, searching for something to eat.

By upper level, I mean above the ground floor. There were several caves and holes in the rock walls of the 'cavern' so to speak, and with a simple jump, we were inside of several of them.

Of course, we didn't find anything for about an hour. An excruciating hour, because when I get hungry, it doesn't make me weaker, per say, but it certainly makes me more irritable, and anything starts to look edible. Heck, I was ready to tear off a piece of the stalagmite and chew on it if it meant quelling this feeling.

But finally, after a long time of searching, we found an infestation of giant rats, much like the ones we'd found in the insect tunnels earlier. They were about the size of my leg, ferocious, and disgusting looking. They had red eyes, sharp teeth, matted fur, and didn't look tasty whatsoever.

But when push comes to shove, and when you're in Tartarus…

Needless to say, Yuri and I had 'defeated' them and placed them on her sword. We squatted next to one of the streams of magma and held two of the rats over it, roasting them. Yuri skinned them, I didn't, because I didn't know the first thing about skinning an animal. She did, surprisingly.

I watched her with curiosity, "Who taught you that? Artemis is the only goddess I can think of that actually…well, hunts."

She shook her head, and twirled the sword around to look at the color of the cooking meat. "Common misconception. She only hunts threatening monsters. Anything docile is protected."

I thought about it, and remembered that one time a couple of years ago when we actually ran into Artemis.

"Yeah, you're right. The one time I spoke to her, she was protecting this deer Harper and I were trying to capture. The Cerynian Hind, I think." That's how I know it's been a long time; I wasn't even sure if that was it's proper name.

"I remember seeing that in your memories." She said, and shot a sympathetic glance at me. "Again, I'm sorry about your loss."

Normally, I would've felt angry at her bringing it up, but now I only felt anger towards Tartarus, the one that caused it. I sighed, "It's okay. It won't be in vain, I can promise you that." My shoulders slumped, ever so slightly, "I just hate that the last time we saw each other, we argued. All of the disagreements and downs we had seem so…pointless and stupid now. I should've been nothing but kind to her, considering what she's had to go through." The guilt was creeping in.

Yuri didn't look at me, but her voice was nothing but reassuring. "People disagree, it's just the way of life. There's no such thing as a relationship, platonic or romantic, that's completely without an argument. It can be as simple as an opinion on a favorite Olympian, what shape the clouds form, or anything. Don't think about the bad times, think about the good times, and cherish those." She said her next words carefully, "Judging from your memories, it's clear you had a lot of them. She loved you."

She was right. I couldn't argue with anything she said, because…yeah, no relationship is perfect. I used to think Percy and Annabeth always saw eye to eye, so you'd imagine my surprise when I heard around camp that they used to actually dislike each other when they first met, and see it myself in person after Chiron's passing. It taught me a lesson.

Yuri didn't give me time to respond, she continued, and answered my original question. "I suppose I taught myself. I don't know how it is in the world now, but when I roamed the Earth, or rather, the waters, hunting was a necessity. You didn't hunt, you didn't survive."

I cocked my head, "But…do immortals even need to eat?"

"Not really. If we don't, we won't die. But food is a pleasure." She then turned her head to look at me questioningly, "If you were a god, would you stop eating just because you didn't have to?"

I almost replied instantly with 'I don't want to become a god' because the answer was so natural now. I actually hated the prospect, especially these days. Why anyone would want to, is beyond me. Living on as your friends die, becoming more bitter, more egoic and distant, is something I want no part of. Sure, you get a strength and durability boost, and that's certainly a plus, but the cons outweigh the pros.

But I managed to stop myself and actually think about her question, instead of snapping back. I thought about a juicy steak, fries, buttery bread…

"Yeah…I'd probably keep eating the way I do now. Probably more since gods don't gain weight."

"What gave you that idea?" She said, chuckling, "Have you seen Dionysus?"

That caught me off guard, "Yeah, he's always been fat, hasn't he?"

She snorted, "Of course not. He was rather pleasing to the eye when he was a young god, but he really started letting himself go. It's a shame."

I wasn't sure if she knew how bad it had gotten. But part of me was surprised. So those paintings were actually accurate, huh?

"Wow, I just figured all that old stuff was fake, because he wanted to make himself look good, or something."

She laughed, and I found that I oddly liked the sound. It was hearty, and it kind of reminded me of those old men that guffaw really loud at an old joke. I found myself smiling at her.

She looked up and raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"You." I said, "You're interesting."

"Interesting? How so?"

I walked over and sat promptly on the ground, "I don't know, it's not every day I make friends with an immortal. Let alone a titaness. I bet you've got a ton of crazy stories to tell, huh?"

It was at this moment, that Yuri frowned, and decided it the rats were done. She pulled her sword away from the magma and leveled it with me, offering one of the pieces of meat for me to take.

"Oh, thanks." I reached over and with both hands, pulled the rat off the blade, the heat surprisingly numb against my skin. The rat actually didn't look all that disgusting anymore. It looked like any regular piece of cooked meat, with a slight yellow shade and small burn marks, it kind of reminded me of something that came off a grill. I didn't let my head go too far down that road though, or I'd convince myself this was chicken I was about to eat. No need to be delusional. Although that might help make it go down…

So I went with it, and convinced myself that I was in fact not about to eat a giant, mutated rat I found in hell. I closed my eyes, and shoved it to my teeth, biting off a huge chunk and chewing it.

It was rather tough, not gonna lie, but it didn't taste too bad. Honestly, it was surprisingly good. I mean, it tasted like nothing I'd ever tasted before, but it wasn't necessarily a bad taste. A bit sour, sure, but nothing that was going to make me vomit.

I took another bite, practically inhaling it. But I stopped chewing when I saw Yuri glaring at her rat, like she wanted to laser a hole in it.

"You okay?" I said, mouth full.

She didn't respond for a minute, and just kept staring at the rodent, her eyes holding a thousand emotions.

I swallowed the meat, and took a moment to analyze her. What was going on? Was it something I said?

She seemed fond of me earlier, but now…now that all seemed to be gone. She still had the same jet-black hair as before, draped over her shoulders in a poof of soft, fluffy locks, wearing the same clothes, and holding the same sword. Nothing had changed, but that look told me something was definitely wrong.

Then for some reason, my eyes fell down to the muscles of her body. I traced along her tan arms, the parts of her legs that were exposed, and found myself once again, impressed by her physique. Come to think of it, no goddess I had met was naturally taller than me. Sure, they can adjust their size and height as they please, but in their normal forms, they were average height, and no more muscular than any mortal supermodel.

But Yuri wasn't in some godly form, she was just a good six foot four, maybe even five inches, with defined crevices in her muscles, that flexed with every movement. It was rather entrancing, and it made me wonder…was she holding back when she attacked me in that jungle? I don't remember checking for any latent, unused power. She seemed to be giving a good amount of effort, considering whatever she saw, she was trying to kill. But I wasn't sure.

"Yuri?" I said again, a bit louder, making sure she could hear me.

Her response was so immediate it almost made me flinch. "I haven't been honest with you, Matt."

I reared my head back, confused. "What do you mean?"

She set her sword and the rat down altogether, scooting closer, her legs crossed, sitting in a position so she could face me. It took me off guard, reminding me of a little kid sitting in a circle, surrounding the teacher during show and tell. But this wasn't a little kid, it was a very powerful titan. "I mean, I searched your memories, without your permission. I know everything about you, and I didn't even ask. It was…invasive of me. I apologize."

"Nothing to be sorry for, Yuri. I don't blame you. I'd probably get impatient too if someone just passed out on me for a few hours." I offered a nervous chuckle.

She didn't return it. In fact, her sparking, crystal blue eyes were dead serious. "You deserve to know me. The full me. Why I'm down here, and what I did on the surface."

My eyebrows furrowed. I was curious, definitely, but that tone she used, it was the same one as before, when I thought, she was trying to guard something. A certain edge and wariness.

She was worried what I would think of her. It was taking a good bit of her courage just telling me this.

But why? Why would she care what I think? She's a titan.

So I tried waving her off, "I don't deserve anything. You don't want to talk about it, you don't have to. End of story."

She reached forward and caught my hand, mid-wave, and clutched it tightly, like she'd blocked a punch. It was a strong grip. If I wasn't hesitant enough before about her holding back, I sure was now.

I looked at her in surprise, and found those blue eyes piercing me. She was completely serious.

Her touch softened, and she lowered both of our hands into her lap. The way she was looking at me, it was so vulnerable. I'd never, ever seen a titan, or even god, look this way.

"You do. I'm going to tell you, so you understand who you're travelling with." She averted her gaze to my chest, "I…I cannot keep this from you. You must know. I need to get it out of the way now, that way…if you want to leave me, you still can while there's time."

"Time for what? Yuri, what the hell are you talking about?!"

She winced, and let go of my hand. I honestly didn't want her to. Oddly, a small part of me found it comforting, and it reminded me of my mother, in some weird way. I always think women that fight regularly have calloused and rough hands, but it's quite the opposite for me. Harper's, and Yuri's are soft, and both seem to have different effects on me. I understand why for Harper, but Yuri? I'm still not sure.

"I'm going to tell you everything." She insisted, "Starting from the beginning."

Harper

I'm starting to regret not bringing Kyros.

Sure, I didn't want to put the bird in danger. But at least he wasn't sick.

Malachi was.

I knew we should've pressed harder for him to take it easy, for him to I don't know, not use his powers for five seconds. But I was too stupid, too anxious and adrenaline filled at the thought of saving Matt.

It cost us a good bit of time.

As soon as we reappeared into reality, it wasn't on the ground. We didn't land on our feet or even fall on our backs. I felt wind roar around me, and my gut go into my chest, as if I'd been suddenly thrown out of a plane.

My eyes widened as I flailed around, and saw everyone else doing the same, in mid air. The ground was far below us, but coming fast. We were free falling.

Through the wind, I heard Talon shout, "What the hell?! Why ain't we on the ground?!"

Wildly, I flicked my eyes around to see where everyone else was. Sera was beside me, opposite of Talon, looking just as terrified and confused as we were, her white hair flapping behind her like some sort of fire. Malachi took a bit longer to find, given that he was about fifteen feet further than everyone else, and in a much worse condition. Or at least, a much more worrying condition.

My chest began to shrivel as I took in his limp form. His back was facing the ground, his arms and legs were out in front of him, and his hair was hiding his face. He was completely untensed and slack. He was unconscious.

It suddenly dawned on me what had happened. The teleportation went wrong. It was too much for him and instead of zapping on the ground like usual, it was cut short, and we ended up in the sky.

I thrusted my finger at him, "It's Malachi! He's out!"

"OUT?!" Talon screamed, "Whaddya mean, out?!"

Sera looked over, and if her eyes could go any wider, they might just pop out of her skull entirely.

"He's fainted!" She shrieked, "Kai, wake up! Wake up!"

We were falling fast. We'd zapped in high enough for a few seconds of room to figure something out. But the Hollywood sign was approaching fast, and the ground next to it. Well, at least he got us in the right place, but pretty soon we were gonna be demigod pancakes spread out on the ground. Well, maybe not Talon and Malachi, or even Sera, but don't compare me to those freaks of nature. I'm practically made of glass next to them.

"What do we do?!" Sera shouted, clearly panicking.

I tried to keep a level head, despite the wind in my ears. Everything should've had me freaking out too, my mind running blank, with no plan whatsoever. But with a couple of breaths, I was able to keep my control. It was surprising, but I didn't dwell on it.

"Talon, parachutes!"

He hadn't heard me. "WHAT?!"

I cupped my mouth with my hand, "PARACHUTES! MAKE PARACHUTES!"

He heard it then and nodded. Immediately, he was focusing a golden light into his hand, and in no time, thank the gods, he had produced three parachutes.

Sera and I caught ours easily, snatching them out of the air and wrapping them around us like a blanket. Talon did the same for Malachi, even though the Demi-Primordial probably didn't need it.

"What about you?!" Sera screamed.

Talon gave a thumbs up, "I'm good, princess! You guys know how those things work?!"

Sera shook her head vigorously, and I bit my lip. We really didn't have time now.

I pointed at the little latch on her right strap, "You pull that cord when I say so, okay?!"

She nodded, and together, we put our hands on the cord.

"One...two...three!"

Simultaneously, we yanked on them, and I felt an instant lurch in my gut, and the momentum of us falling to the ground stopped, the wind ceased in my ears, and all was calm.

Well, nearly.

Talon had managed to pull Malachi's cord, and he was okay, dangling in his straps like a corpse, but okay. Talon on the other hand, not so okay.

He had a rough landing in a rocky patch on the grassy hill behind the Hollywood sign. He'd hit it so hard on the side of his body that he fell straight through, destroying the stone and all, and falling into some kind of dark hole.

"Talon!" Sera cried. She tried to force herself down faster, but it didn't really work that way with parachutes. You sort of land when you land, no questions asked.

"I'm sure he's alright." I said, "Invulnerability, remember?"

She didn't respond and looked quite scared. I couldn't blame her. What kind of place did he fall into exactly? Just the ground? Or was that the actual entrance to the underworld?

A few more seconds passed, and we hit the ground. I barely managed to stay on my feet, not expecting the landing to be that hard. Nether the less, I slipped off the parachute and crawled my way out of the massive sheet that had erupted out of the backpack. Sera landed before Malachi, so she was able to assure that she grabbed him out of the air so he didn't hit his head or anything.

I went straight to the hole Talon fell in, not even approaching cautiously. I jogged right up to it and leaned over, looking down into nothing but darkness. I didn't know how deep it was, or where Talon could've gone.

"Talon?" I called, and my voice echoed several times. For a minute, there was no response.

I turned to Sera and the still unconscious Malachi and shrugged.

"Is he in there?" She asked.

"Can't see him, and he won't say anything." I turned back around, a bit annoyed. He couldn't have fallen that far, could he? "Talon, you down there?"

Another set of dead silence. But then this time, I heard something...coming. That's the best way to put it. It was like foosteps closing in on my location. Rapid footsteps.

Then a voice. It got louder and louder with each step.

"Watch out, watch out, watch out, WATCH OUT!"

Out of nowhere, Talon was thrown out of the hole and into the air, barely missing my head with his shoulder.

He rolled down the grass and stopped on his elbows, groaning and cursing under his breath.

"What was that?!" I said, "Why'd you jump out of the hole like that?"

"Didn't jump." He growled, "Damn ghosts threw me out!"

Ghosts?

It wasn't long before I knew what he meant. Behind me, a series of moans came out of the hole, a group of them, hissing and moving like white fog. I stepped back several feet to avoid the oncoming army. In waves, they erupted from the pit, a slew of white, misty, humanoid figures that could fly, all over the place.

It was like a bunch of cows had gotten out of a pasture and wandered into a busy street. Ghosts and souls were everywhere, knocking me down, trying to swarm Malachi, and generally causing mayhem.

"It's souls from the underworld!" Talon shouted and pulled out his revolver. As if that was going to do anything. "How the hell did they get free?!"

He fired a shot at the one nearest to him, and it did nothing. The bullet went right through the soul's body, and it wasn't too happy about that.

I wasn't about to question what was going on, or how this was happening. All I knew was that we had several souls free from the underworld, and they were about to basically mug us of everything we had. If they could crack their knuckles, I imagine that's what they would be doing right now.

"Arketa!"

The raspy, ghoulish voice came from the edge of the hole. I turned away from the ghost mob to see an even more unsettling sight standing on the hill above us.

Standing there, in a line, were three grim reapers. Yes, grim reapers. At least, that's what they looked like. Tall, skeletons with black cloaks and hoods, all of them wielding Stygian Iron swords, material made from the underworld. They had no eyes, no skin, no anything, just a permanent bony smile, and an intent to do their job that even I could feel, without aura sensing abilities.

"Ah crap..." I said, slowly reaching for my knives, and even considering bringing out the big diamond one. Would that be necessary? Who the hell even were these...things. I don't want to say 'guys' because well, their freaking skeletons.

But instead of attacking us, they directed their attention to the souls, who were now trembling and screaming with fear. Several of them tried to fly or float away, but the reapers were quicker. At a much faster speed than I anticipated, they darted out at the souls, like cowboys wrangling cattle, they came up behind them one at a time, and struck them with their swords. Sometimes they would slash at them and get three at a time. With each strike, a reaper would hold up a small glass bottle, and the soul they 'killed' would become a small light and go into the bottle. They were collecting them.

Sera, Talon and I just stood there, watching them. We didn't move a muscle, because we didn't really know what to do at this point. Sneak past them and go in? I'm still not even sure what they are, or what relation they have to Hades. Do they work for Tartarus? Are they even in myth? Lot of questions, with no answers, as usual.

"W-What are they?" Sera whispered, now clutching Malachi into her side.

"Don't know." Talon mumbled, "But they ain't friendly, I can tell you that."

"They haven't attacked us yet," I pointed out.

"They're guards. We ought to jump in that hole while we still can. It's Charon's section of the underworld, and it'll lead straight into Tartarus. So let's-"

But before he could finish his sentence, the three reapers worked together to hunt down the last few sheep that had escaped the flock. Cornering them and slicing them to oblivion was easy, and soon it was just us and them. A hundred ghosts gone in a minute.

They floated down from their hovering position, and stood in front of us, regarding us with craning necks and unmoving faces. They were really tall, and a lot bigger than I thought. We didn't need to mess around here, I had a feeling these guys were strong, whatever they were.

The one in the middle spoke Greek, like before, but I translated it easily, the ability coming naturally to most demigods. He said, "Why do you come here, half-blood? You are not dead."

"Yeah, but we need to take Charon's ferry." I answered, "No time to explain, it's an emergency."

"You will explain to Lord Hades. None enter without his permission."

Talon shot me a look, and I knew what he meant by it. Hades was about the last person we wanted to answer to right now. The idea of asking him for help against Tartarus flickered in my mind, but it disappeared just as quick. That would never happen. Hades was stubborn and bitter, that much I could tell from the one time I met him. He'd never help us.

"Sorry, but we don't have time to explain." I said, putting my hands up, "Let us pass, and there won't be any trouble."

The reaper couldn't physically glare at me, but I'd bet a hundred drachmas that's what he was trying to do. "By not submitting, you are causing trouble. Leave now or prepare to die."

Before I could respond, Talon beat me to the punch, getting in the reaper's face, a wicked smile of his own to mirror it.

"Die? You Halloween monsters are gonna kill us? Not a chance on your boss's life." Without hesitation, he raised his revolver and fired it, quicker than the reaper could process, right into the middle of its white skull. It fell back on the ground, taken off guard, and Talon stepped forward, not missing a beat, firing the entire chamber right into the reaper's head, taking chips out of its bones and denting it.

Wreckless as ever, but now, I was a bit more grateful for it.

Sera and I took that as our signal to jump in and help. I grabbed a fistful of the reaper's cloak and pulled him to me, slamming the blade of the heavenly diamond knife in his skeletal back, while Sera took a different approach. She placed a hand on it's rib cage and encased it with a thick layer of ice, freezing it to the coldest possible temperature.

My reaper shook violently, before not moving altogether. Starting from it's fingertips, it turned into shimmering golden dust, and swayed off with the wind into nothing.

All of us stood straight, and looked around, a bit unimpressed.

"Guess they look scarier than they are, huh?"

Nobody had a chance to say anything, because right after, Malachi was awake, groaning and trying to get up.

"Kai!" Sera said, and reached down to gently keep him from trying anything, "You fainted. You must rest."

"S-Soul wranglers?" Was all he croaked, and I reared my head back. That's what these things were called?

Talon frowned down at him, "Take it easy, man."

"Wh-What happened?" He reached up to rub the back of his head, wincing painfully.

"Well, something went wrong with the teleportation. You zapped us a thousand feet above where we were actually supposed to land."

I shrugged, and gestured to the hole Talon fell in. "On the bright side, you opened up the door for us. Didn't have to say 'open sesame' in Greek or anything."

He mockingly smiled, "Glad I could help."

Against Sera's complaints, Malachi shakily stood up, looking worse off than he did before. Even worse.

"I cannot stand being so useless." He growled, "Don't worry about me, let's keep moving."

"You sure about that?" Talon asked, raising an eyebrow over his sunglasses. "You look pale as a ghost, not to mention your eyes are bloodshot."

Malachi's lip twitched in annoyance, and he reached forward to grab the collar of Talon's shirt threateningly.

"Don't you get it, fool, I am fi-"

Just as he started, his eyes rolled in the back of his head and he fell back on the ground, too quick for Sera to catch him. A low thumping noise came out, and he lay there, stiff.

"And that can't be good."

"W-What do we do?" Sera said, "I mean, ambrosia cannot be the solution, can it?"

"Obviously," Talon snorted.

Sera looked up to me for help, but I didn't have an answer. I just stood there, unsure of what to do. This ambrosia poisoning really did a number on him, and I had no idea how to fix it, or if anything could fix it. I guess...if he had just kept resting and didn't use his powers, he would be okay by now.

But I let him, like an idiot.

I wasn't sure what I was about to say, but I knew I needed to say something. Sera kept staring at me with big, hopeful blue eyes, and I wasn't able to resist any longer. I might've resorted to a mortal doctor, if Talon hadn't nudged me on the shoulder first.

"Hey, goth girl, you see that?"

I frowned, "You're gonna have to be more specific."

"It's a car." He pointed, "Look."

"Again, more specific."

He groaned, "It's coming up the hill! Look, dammit!"

I followed his direction, and...oddly enough, there was a car coming up the hill. A nice one too, at that. It looked like something you'd find in France, an exotic sports vehicle of some kind, just plowing through the grass and the altitude and roaring it's engine, coming right towards us.

Sera wasn't having it, "How can you two worry about a car when Kai is dying! Help me!"

I waved a dismissive hand at her, "Wait a minute, Sera, I think Talon might be onto something." The car didn't stop, it was still approaching us, and I finally recognized what it was. It was a limousine, a red one, at that. It looked like it had been freshly waxed. "Why would a limo be driving up a hill like this?"

Pretty soon, the thing cleared whatever distance it had left and parked beside us. One of the weirder things (as if this wasn't already weird enough) was that it didn't have any grass or mud on it, despite travelling on a steep hill, during a rather cold, damp part of the year. It was like it cleaned itself, or it physically couldn't get dirty.

The windows were tinted, so we had no idea how many people were inside, or if there was even a driver. This was no doubt something of our world. Who the hell drives a pink limo? Much less up a steep hill to the Hollywood sign in late December?

Talon still had his revolver in hand, as did I with the knife. Sera stood up to join our little wall around Malachi, tensed up and ready to fight.

But as the farthest door to the back opened, I knew that whoever it was, couldn't be hostile. A high-heeled, toenail painted foot stepped out, followed by a long, tan, curvy leg. It was enough to make me lean my head forward and let my jaw go slack. Okay, who the hell was this?

Gracefully, the figured stepped out, revealing probably the most beautiful, unattainable supermodel-like body I had ever seen, clad in a red dress that fit it in all the right places. It made me take a step back. Her skin, whoever it was, was flawless, as flawless as Sera's, and even as radiant as her.

But as I looked up to get a view of her face, what I saw nearly sent me to the ground. It wasn't even a woman, it was...Matt.

Matt's face, on that body. It was freaky, really freaky, but it didn't even look fake, and that was the strangest part. His head was in place so well that you'd genuinely think it was a sort of hybrid Son of Hercules mix up. He had that signature smile, the scar on his jaw, chocolate brown hair, and even the eyes to match. Everything was right to the tee.

Talon had dropped his pistol and looked even more surprised than I did. "M-Mary?"

His voice made me break away from the weird figure for a second. Did he say Mary? As in his old girlfriend from his childhood? Wait a minute, wait a minute. If we're all seeing different things...

I squeezed my eyes shut for a second, intending on wiping away whatever illusion I had been caught in, and told myself that it wasn't real. What I was seeing wasn't real.

But as I opened my eyes, I was somewhere else. Far away from the Hollywood sign, from Malachi, Talon and Sera. The air wasn't cold, and I heard the sound of crashing waves in the distance.

It became clear that I was on an empty beach, surrounded by palm trees, sand dunes, and tall grass. I stood at the edge of a path that led from a row of beach houses, to the beach itself. But there wasn't anybody on the streets, the balconies, or anywhere, in fact. I was alone.

Well, almost. I looked towards the ocean and found a small boy, sitting ten feet from the water.

It was a beautiful sunset. And I don't use that word too much, but it really was. It being December, the skies are really gray and foggy this time of year, so sunsets are a rarity. Seeing one here, so perfect, nearly took my breath away.

The dark orange orb was sinking into the sea, allowing itself to be dim enough so you could look at it and not hurt your eyes. The way it shined off the water reminded me of smoldering fire. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, so it had all the attention in the world.

Or at least, the boy's attention. He was the only one out here, and he was sitting down, with his elbows over his knees, staring out at the water.

I wasn't sure where I was, or what had even happened. But I didn't question anything, I just felt compelled to walk over to him. For some reason, I got the feeling that he was...sad, or something. I needed to be there for him.

So I walked over slowly, not wanting to scare him. I flanked around and came at his side, his face becoming clearer and clearer. He couldn't be older than eight or nine, at the most. He wore what any kid would wear, a red t-shirt with cargo shorts and sneakers. Nothing off about that. Around his neck, however, I noticed that he had on a necklace. It looked really familiar.

"Hey, you alright?"

I leaned down to look at him, but if he noticed I was here, he sure didn't show it.

That necklace...it was Matt's. It was a shark-tooth, the same one that I remember seeing the first time I met him. It had been such a relief, such a huge moment for me when I saw that. It was what my mother said would lead me to Levi. 'The boy with the monster-toothed necklace.'

Even looking at him, he was very, very similar to Matt. Like a younger version of himself. He obviously wasn't as tall or big, but he had a similar face, hair, and skin tone, even. All the signs pointed that I was looking at a small, younger Matt.

"Matt?" I said, "You okay? Can you look at me?"

I wanted to reach out and touch his shoulder. He was obviously sad, or sick, one, because he had his head tucked in his arms, not even peeking out at the sunset, which is what I thought he was doing before. That was unlike him. Usually, Matt would do anything to watch one of these, it was one of his favorite things to do.

For a minute, I just sat with him, trying to softly get him to look at me and tell me what was wrong. But he wasn't budging. He most likely couldn't even hear me.

So...what was I even doing here?

Young Matt's head finally rose, and he looked back at the entrance of the beach, where I stood before. I thought for a second he'd finally noticed me, but he was looking at something else. No wait, someone else.

My eyebrows furrowed. It was a girl, that...looked exactly like me, walking towards Matt.

I knew it was me. I'd recognize my younger self from a mile away. Dark hair and pale skin, with her left pupil still intact, no deal with Nemesis had been made yet.

Matt's eyes never left her, even when she came all the way up to him and sat to his left. It was then that I noticed he had been crying. His eyes were puffy and his cheeks were tear-stained.

It seemed like he wanted to say something, but all words were shushed the moment she put a hand on his own. It was smaller, so it didn't completely cover it, but it still somehow managed to make him feel better.

Young me gave him a reassuring look, and he nodded back at her, wiping his tears away. Together, they looked off into the ocean.

"Harper, are you okay?" A voice said, "Harper?"

The scene faded away from me and changed, slowly this time. Everything seemed to turn to black, and then a new image appeared. Above me, were two faces, both I recognized, but only one I could label a name to. Sera.

I felt my head pressed against something bristly and assumed it to be grass. I was back in the real world, but on the ground?

"You passed out." Said the woman in the red dress. Man, she really looked familiar.

I felt a little embarrassed at having fallen on the ground, so I waved them both off and got up quickly, dusting off my clothes from the grass.

"What happened?"

"Like I said, you passed out when you saw me."

"Yeah right." I retorted, "I don't just pass out so easily like that."

The woman chuckled, "Look at me."

I did, and found that her face had fully changed from Matt's. Had I been seeing things? Or did she do that on purpose?

"Aphrodite?"

The goddess nodded, "Yes. We met earlier on Olympus, remember? When..."

She trailed off, and her smile fell. It all came rushing back, as if it ever left me. The memory of Olympus, Tartarus and Zeus, Aphrodite being possessed, the whole terrifying nine yards.

"Yeah, I remember." I said, "What are you doing here?"

She glanced at the others, Sera, who was standing next to me, Talon, who was with a groaning Malachi, and smiled forcefully. "Could we speak in private, just for a moment?"

"Don't think so." Talon was there in a flash, glaring at the love goddess. "You can say what you gotta say in front of everyone."

I noticed his tone was laced with a certain bitter venom, like he wanted to tell the goddess where she could shove it and send her on her way. Wasn't sure why. Maybe it had to do with the face he saw.

I decided whatever it was, I'd make it quick. "It's cool. I'll talk to her; you guys just give me a second."

They didn't look so sure about that, but if they were going to oppose, Aphrodite didn't let them. She lightly pushed my back and we walked away from them, somewhere out of earshot.

Her smile was starting to get on my nerves, if I'm being honest. It reminded me of those chicks you see in beauty pageants. You know, the ones that get all dressed up, caked with makeup, having to pose and lie and smile all the time. That kind. It's all so fake.

"Not impressed, are we?" She said.

I didn't even care that she read my mind, but I didn't comment on it. "What do you want?"

"Looks like you all got into quite the tussle here." She noted, her voice high-pitched and annoyingly sweet. "What happened?"

"You know what's going on. We're trying to rescue someone, Tartarus is out there, etcetera, etcetera. What do you want with me?"

She raised a finger, still not wanting to answer my question. "Ah, but it's not just a someone, now is it? It's Matt Beckett. Your boyfriend."

"Yeah, and?"

She squealed and clasped her hands together, "I love a good rescue plot! It spices up everything so nicely!" She began to explain everything to me like it was some kind of book report. "When couples have time apart, it makes them truly understand how much they need each other! Oh, this is amazing!"

I was put off by this. Her attitude, everything was getting on my nerves. But then again, she was the goddess of love, so I suppose it's within reason for her freak out over this sort of thing.

"Yeah, yeah, sure. Now I'll ask for the fourth time, what do you want?"

She sighed at my unappreciativeness and frowned. "Well, normally it's against the rules to help out a demigod, directly at least. But Zeus has taken an interest in your little group. He wanted me to give you something, to aid you on your operation."

That caught my interest. "Give me something? What?"

She wasn't hearing me. "When I searched deeper into your mind, and I saw what kind of love you and the Son of Hercules share, I jumped at the opportunity! How could I not be a part of something so real and tragic?!"

I wanted to slap her, but I settled for grabbing her wrists. "What did Zeus want you to give me?"

"Oh, right!" She led me to the limo and reached in the seat next to hers, digging around in it for a few seconds. Whatever it was, it was sure taking a while to get ahold of.

Aphrodite turned around apologetically, "Sorry, I'm not used to carrying these sorts of things."

I managed to force a smile and keep my anxiety down while she continued to attempt to grab whatever it was she couldn't get.

Finally, with a heave, she managed to pull out one of the most unique, and awesome looking swords I'd ever seen.

My eyes widened. It was a good four feet long, with thick, silver metal making up the blade. No scratches, no marks or even signs of blood. It looked like it had never been used.

It's shape was really interesting. Instead of being dull or slightly curved, it had a medieval-like appearance. It came out like a triangle, and straightened out, thinning all the way towards the tip, with neat lines and intricate designs trailing all the way across it.

The hilt was a wrapped in a golden fabric, and just where it met the blade, sat a red ruby, large and shining. It was more of a royal, showcasing piece than an actual weapon. Still, I wasn't doubting how capable it could be. I could practically feel the power radiating off it and hitting my skin. It was ancient, and dangerous, no doubt about it.

Aphrodite handed it to me, and I hesitantly took it. It was pretty heavy. And considering the fact that I can stop a car going at full speed with ease, I'd say it's made of something very, very dense. It wasn't celestial bronze, but it wasn't Heavenly Diamond either.

I managed to hold it firm, and admired it. "What is it?"

"The Blade of Eros." Aphrodite explained, "As in the Primordial Eros."

"The love guy?"

She nodded, "Yes, I suppose. He represents love just as much as I do, in...different ways though, I suppose."

"Did he actually use it? I don't see a single scratch on this thing."

"Whether he used it or not is up for debate, but he imparted a great deal of power into it. I assure you, it's deadlier than just about any weapon you can find. Zeus has kept it locked away for centuries, until now."

I lowered it a little, until I looked down on it. Despite its 'pretty' appearance, it was kind of amazing. I'm sure if Malachi could reach out with his aura sense, he'd find this thing packed with tons of it.

That wasn't the thing that really surprised me though. It was the fact that Zeus actually thought about us and sent some form of help. I mean, it's a weapon, but still, that's more than I ever expected him to do.

I propped the tip of the blade on the ground and leaned my hand on the other end. "Is Zeus alright? Did Tartarus, you know..."

"He's fine." She assured, "He got rid of Tartarus shortly after you all left, quite handily. The cleanup was the more annoying part, if I'm being honest." She grumbled, "That devil ruined my makeup, taking control of my body like that."

I looked her in the eyes, my tone nothing other than serious. "What are you guys doing about it now? I mean, Tartarus is still out there obviously."

She sighed, "We are doing everything we can to find him. With both he and Ouranos loose, anything catastrophic is possible." She looked to the side, shaking her head. "In times like these, even goddesses like me have to fight."

I nodded. Everyone was still standing beside me, watching us, but unable to hear our conversation. It was then that I remembered Malachi's condition.

"Hey, you wouldn't be able to do one more favor for us, would you?"

Aphrodite smiled, "As long as it's within reason."

I gestured over to him, "Could you fix our friend? Or at least, get him back on his feet for the rest of the day?"

She knit her eyebrows and walked over to him. When we got close, Sera and Talon reluctantly stepped back, not fully trusting the goddess with Malachi. Couldn't really blame him.

She gave him a once over, and when finished, exhaled audibly through her nose. "My, this is a nasty one. I'm afraid the best I, or any other Olympian could do is give him enough strength to last the night. Perhaps Apollo and Asclepius could heal him, but whatever he has...he's dying from. What happened, exactly?"

The news didn't hit Talon and Sera so well, as both of them exchanged a nervous look and left me to answer the question.

"Ambrosia poisoning. He ate too much."

"Oh yes, that will do it." She pursed her lips and placed a hand on his arm. "This won't heal him, but it should last him for tonight and tomorrow. Although he'll need some sleep tonight. It's best not to even move until morning."

"Morning?" Talon said, "We can't wait that long!"

The love goddess shrugged, "You don't have to listen to me. I'm just telling you what would be best for him."

We were all left unsettled by the news, but what could we do? We couldn't force him to just get up and go with us. That would be horrible. I mean, I already agreed to let him use his powers, when I should've known what would happen.

Aphrodite's hand glowed a bright pink, and for a moment, so did Malachi's entire body. Then, it was gone as quick as it came, but in it's wake, Malachi's color came back, and he wasn't as sickly looking.

She stood up and straightened her dress. "There, that is the best I can do."

"Thanks." I said, and nodded at the sword, "For both."

"Thank Zeus for the sword." She said, starting to walk off. "He insisted on it."

I could only nod, not even able to think that far ahead. I'm not worried about seeing Zeus again, I'm worried about Matt. What if this sword, or any of us, are enough? If Malachi doesn't get any better, and if Matt's in a worse condition when we find him...

My thoughts were broken by Aphrodite's voice, now at a distance. "Ms. Pierce?"

I turned, "Yeah?"

She stood at her limo door, one leg already in. "You'll find Matt. Trust me when I say that love conquers all. It is the most powerful force in this universe."

I nodded and gave something akin to a half-smile. Her words were encouraging, and I wanted to believe them. But still...I couldn't fight down that creeping worry in my stomach.

Matt

"When I was born, the only thing that I remember, was water."

Yuri had begun explaining her past, and I was listening intently. She wanted me to hear this, so I would.

She smiled fondly at the memories, still able to remember the earliest ones, even. "I don't remember anyone else being there. Not my mother, nor my father, just...the fish, and the blue water. So many colors, so many forms of life, all coming past me. It was almost like they wanted to show off, they sensed me, and wanted to introduce themselves."

I nodded, taking another bite out of the giant rat. "Who were your parents?"

"Pontus and Gaea." She said, "But I've scarcely met them, or even talked to them. They have little to do with this."

I sensed a certain bitterness there, so I didn't press. "Oh, okay. Well, who did you meet first?"

"The other titans. Back then you see, there were no humans, no grand cities, special technology that you have today. Monsters roamed the Earth by the millions, animals on the ground and sky, far greater then than now. But I was told we were better, superior to all of them. We were different."

I nodded, curling my lip a little. Yeah, that sounded like titan talk.

She continued, "I wasn't concerned with such things. I really didn't care whether or not we were superior or inferior, I was simply fascinated by everything around me. I wasn't thinking about ruling the world, I just wanted to explore it, get to know it."

"Did you know Kronos?"

"I did. He was not a leader; he was a serpent. He filled our minds with nothing but nonsense, and we believed it. I...believed it." She looked at the ground shamefully, "I became like them. I became angry at nothing, prideful, monstrous. Everything I didn't want to be, I became. And when my relationship began with Krios, it only strengthened."

Relationship, with Krios? "The ram-head guy?"

"Yes." She nodded, "I believe you slew him at some point, right? I know he probably deserved it. But back then, I used to be quite fond of him. He was strong, brave, the definition of what I thought to be a warrior. Even though our minds had been brainwashed, we had nobody to fear, and nobody to instill our influence on." Her face darkened, "That is, until the gods came."

I wasn't sure where this timeline was at, but I didn't really care. I was just following along, interested to hear things from the perspective of someone who was actually there.

"Kronos had the Big Three first, didn't he?"

"Yes, he did. Then came the rest, throughout the years. You know the story, I am sure. There was a prophecy, that Zeus would become the ruler of the world, and kill his father, so Kronos became paranoid, and tried to kill his children. It didn't work, but what it did do, was spark a very long war."

"The titanomachy."

She winced, as if remembering specific details, she didn't want to get into. "Yes, the first one. It was horrible. So much bloodshed, death, and...horror. I'm ashamed to admit I was a part of it, and I did my fair share of fighting."

"So what happened?"

She took a moment to gather her words, and I gave her that moment. This was obviously a big deal to her, and I understood how hard it could be to open up to someone, especially someone like me, who wants to find out the next piece of information right away.

"I...wanted children. A son, specifically. Not for the reasons the others wanted, for power, or for glory, bragging rights, whatever. I wanted another to bond with, to make memories with, to teach and raise. I was fascinated by the concept of creating a smaller copy of yourself, and passing on a legacy that could potentially last several ages. I didn't even care that I was immortal, I never really thought about it." She shook her head, "But of course, Krios didn't want any. He hated the idea, and thought that if we had a son, he would betray and kill us. Kronos's paranoia got into his head."

I was a bit taken back. She had wanted a child? I don't know why it caught me off guard, maybe because I just can't see Yuri as the motherly type, or because of her reasons. Then again, what am I saying? She is the type. Everything that has happened with her so far has only proven that she would be a great mother. Her protectiveness, for example.

"So you didn't have any?"

"No. Things got much worse. Krios thought I had relations with another and betrayed me. I did no such thing, but of course, he never believed me. He set up a trap in which I would be killed by Oceanus, a fellow sea titan."

I was shocked. Oceanus? That was the guy that fought Percy, caused so much chaos at Camp-Half Blood, and on a bigger scale, the entire ocean. Hell, he even almost killed Poseidon a few months ago.

"Yuri, I can't even imagine." I was in disbelief, "Did you...you know, have to fight him?" I imagined it didn't go well for her, he's one of the strongest out of all of them.

She nodded grimly, "I managed to take him by surprise and clear an opening, barely escaping. He almost killed me."

"I'm so sorry." I said, not sure where the part was that she was so afraid of telling me about. All I've heard so far only makes me angry at the ones that hurt her. Why was she worried what I would think?

"After that...is the part I regret." She took a breath, "When Oceanus tried to kill me, I found out that it was Krios who set me up. I...felt so hurt, so blindsided by what he did, I wanted revenge. So...I set up a trap for him, and tipped off an Olympian on where he would be at a certain day. They found him and killed him. That was his first death."

I practically threw my arms up, "Why would you regret that? They wronged you. He tried to have you killed, for nothing!"

"Yes, but I loved him." She said, surprisingly quiet. "He was family, all of them, they were family, and I betrayed them. It went against the principle, against the entire war that we had. Regardless of what happened, I should've remained strong and not fell to my emotions."

I couldn't believe she was so torn up over such a thing, but then I stopped myself and knew that I had to remember; they were her family. Twisted, yeah, but family. I tried to imagine me and my friends in the same situation, and I knew that I would probably try to make whatever I could work. Even if they went against me, I would try to deny it, pass it off as a mistake. Anything to make it better and mend the wound.

"I just wanted you to know what I did." She said, "And that I promise, I won't do the same to you. But if you have doubts, and you don't want to continue...I understand."

I shook my head quickly and grabbed her hand tightly, taking her by surprise.

"Forgive me, Yuri, but that's completely ridiculous. To me, at least. You can't blame yourself for what happened, for what they did to you. You were a good seed mixed in with a bunch of bad ones, and they corrupted you. It was their influence that made you doubt your decision to this very day."

"But-" She started, but I wasn't letting her get another word out.

"No buts. Do you see me running? Leaving? I'm not phased at all. I know you wouldn't betray me, and I know that you're a good person. Whatever doubts I had about you are completely gone. You're nothing like the other titans. I've met them, believe me."

She was speechless, unable to respond. So I stood up and took her with me.

"People can change. Hell, I've changed a lot, and I haven't even been alive that long, nothing compared to you." I put my hand over my chest, "I used to be a bitter, lonely loser, that did nothing but sulk in my apartment and kill the occasional monster. Now, I have friends, I'm confident in myself, and I know who I am. I'm the son of Hercules." I pointed to her, "And you're Yuri, a good titan, and my friend."

"I-I don't know what to say." Her eyes were sparkling, "Thank you."

I let go of her hand, and took a big bite out of the rat, basically finishing all of it. I was good, and ready to get things moving along. Percy and Annabeth were still out there. I couldn't keep them waiting.

"You're welcome." I said. "Now, I think it's time we get things moving along, and we hand it to Tartarus. He's not going to know what hit him."

"Your friends?"

"Yeah. I'm reaching out with my aura sense now."

Energized, I reached out and felt all across the infinite landscape for that familiar feeling, both of them. A sea green and a bright orange.

I'm coming guys, I thought. Just hold on a little longer.

(000)

That's chapter six, everyone. Thanks for reading, and be sure to check out the next one.

Until Next Time.