I'd seen more souls than the average person in my lifetime. God knows the number of hours I've spent in the Underworld and the countless oddball jobs I've completed in Punishment and Asphodel.

I met Hazel while she was still in Asphodel, and who knows how many hours we sat there under a poplar tree, exchanging stories.

I've traversed the Styx in Charon's boat numerous times, helping guide souls to the afterlife if they got lost along the banks.

I've fought souls who came back to cause harm and chaos, banishing them to the worst parts of Punishment or Tartarus based on their crimes.

None of those experiences adequately prepared me for this.

Maybe I should've brought Psyche with me.

If it wasn't for the fact that I'd brought myself into Nico's mindscape, I'd have no idea what was going on. Everything looked like it had gotten thrown in a blender without the lid. Puddles of memories laid on the ground, overlapping each other, turning the edges to static. The sky had turned into Swiss cheese, massive black gaps punching out the faces of those in the memories.

My eyes burned if I stared at one memory for too long.

Voices leaked out of the memories, quietly at first, rapidly reaching a crescendo that left my ears ringing. The black and white images now blazed in fluorescent colors, utterly blinding. Under the sensory assault, the ground rhythmically pounded in what I recognized as Morse code after the third cycle.

Dot, dot, dot. Dash, dash, dash. Dot, dot, dot.

SOS.

"I'm here!" I shouted into the void. "Let me help!"

"A-A-A?" asked a disembodied voice.

"Yes! Yes, Nico, it's Andy!"

The colors and noise ebbed, dialing down from a twelve to a much more manageable four.

"Andy! Andy!"

It was Nico's voice but not at the same time. There was someone else speaking, too. It sounded deeper, older.

Refusing to get my hopes up, I lifted the winged sneaker charm into the air.

"Reveal yourselves," I whispered.

A moment of pure darkness, as if the universe had blinked out of existence.

Then brilliant light brought me to my knees.

The charm scalded my palm, bringing my flesh to boil. I held on for all I was worth. Nothing short of death would keep me from completing my mission. Even that wouldn't be enough to stop me.

It felt like eternity.

It felt like nothingness.

It felt…

I made no move to stand. Exhaustion ran deep into my bones. My muscles trembled. Everything hurt.

There was no more of me left to give.

Slowly, my arm lowered to my side. The charm clattered onto the ground, perfectly intact despite having gone supernova.

I glanced at my hand expecting a mangled mess and a sneaker branded into my flesh. Instead, my palm was as smooth and scarless as ever, only tinged the slightest hint of pink.

The feeling of a set of hands on my shoulders had me pushing through any exhaustion, hunting knives in hand in a matter of nanoseconds. Hunting knives which were then immediately tossed aside as I threw myself at the people connected to those hands.

To my right, Nico, in perfect health. He looked like the child I saw growing up in the Lotus Hotel with slightly rounded cheeks and healthy olive toned skin. He hugged me tight enough that breathing would've been an issue had I been mortal. I hugged him back, my fingers carding through his hair as he hid his face in the crook of my neck, silently sobbing.

"I've got you," I reassured him. "I've got you."

Nico's cries faded into slight sniffles as he eventually pulled away. His eyes were red rimmed and puffy but no longer heterochromatic.

That meant that to my left…

"So, is my hug going to last that long? I expect a ten percent inc-"

I cut him off as it was my turn to sob like a baby. He rested a hand at the small of my back and the other at the base of my neck, our foreheads softly pressed together. He hummed a familiar tune that brought me back to a house in Connecticut at Christmastime.

"I will search the world. I will face its harms," he sang, softly swaying us side to side. "I don't care how far, I can go the distance. Till I find my hero's welcome waiting in your arms."

Somehow, I found it in me to cry harder.

He brushed away my tears, holding me like I was something precious, like I hadn't…like I hadn't…

"It's okay," he said, somehow reading my mind.

"No, it's not," I sobbed. "This is my fault. I did this to you. I killed you."

"Look at me." I hesitated. "Please?"

I could never say no to him.

I stared into baby blue eyes, shining with joy and relief. I found unblemished skin save for the scar on the left side of his face. I saw him completely intact, his flesh warm to the touch and heart…no heartbeat. He was right there in front of me, smiling, breathing, but still as dead as the day I sent him to my brother's kingdom.

"I need you to know that I forgive you, Andy," Luke said, continuing to dry my tears. "I knew this was my fate since I was kidnapped last summer. There was nothing to be done."

"I could've tried something, anything," I gasped, struggling to catch my breath. "Why didn't you tell me?"

He smiled his famous troublemaker smile. "I was selfish. I'd rather have the little time we got with you being happy than spend the rest of my days without you in it. You would've run to all the corners of the Earth to find a cure, but you would've done it alone. I wanted you with me."

I hated that he made sense.

"I could've brought you with me," I tried.

He softly laughed. "As if you would've let me run into danger without fourteen backup plans in your mind. I'm sorry that our time together got cut short, but I won't ever regret keeping this a secret. I got to fall in love with a beautiful, intelligent, powerful girl and I thank my lucky stars for every second we had."

"I lo-"

Luke pressed his lips to mine, effectively shutting me up. We stayed like that until Nico cleared his throat.

Right, there was an audience present.

"Keep it PG," he huffed, ears tinged red as he made a big show of turning around.

We laughed to ourselves. Glad to see some things never change.

Luke's form flickered.

He sadly chuckled. "Heh, I'm running out of time. Ironic, no?"

"I found your soul, so you should be able to go to Elysium," I said, swallowing my bitter disappointment. I shouldn't be so selfish. He deserved his eternal rest in the best place the Underworld had to offer (excluding the Isles of Blest). "Hades will have hell to pay if he tries any funny business."

"Before I go, there's something I need you to know."

"Yes?"

I yelped as Luke quite literally swept me off my feet and kissed me once more like our lives depended on it.

"PG!" Nico screeched and covered his eyes. "Gods, it's like watching your parents make out!"

We pulled apart, and I knew that this was goodbye.

For real this time.

"I need you to know that I love you with my entire being, Andromeda Lilliana Collins. I hope that one day you find someone else who loves you just as much as I do, if not more."

"Setting the bar high, no?"

He smiled. "Absolutely. Nothing but the best for my lady."

My face burned.

"Take care of yourself, Andy."

"I'll do my best."

Nico came back and gave Luke one final hug. Luke ruffled his hair and smiled at Nico.

"Be at peace," Nico said, voice breaking at the end.

I suppressed a new onslaught of tears as Luke bowed toward Nico in deference to his position as Ghost King, pressed a kiss to the back of my hand, and stepped back. He flickered one last time, and just like that, he was gone.

Coming back to reality hurt a hundred times more than dealing with separating two souls, and I don't just mean physically.

In the time it had taken me to collect all my emotions into the box I had in the recesses of my mind – I'm aware that it's not a great coping mechanism, but therapy can wait until after I beat my grandmother into submission and kick the snot out of Python – and down some Olympian grade ibuprofen, someone had whisked Nico to the upper deck.

After splashing water on my face and schooling my expression to something more neutral, I headed upstairs. There was no need to stop by my room anymore. Everything was ready for the next set of emotional damage I had coming my way.

I arrived in time to see Nico doubled over in a fit of coughing.

Hazel held his shoulders until he could stand again.

"I-I thought Dad meant because of Hazel," Nico continued. "I'd need a safe place to take her. But now…I think he wanted me to know about both camps so I'd understand how important your quest was, and so I'd search for the Doors of Death."

The air turned electric – literally, as Jason started throwing off sparks.

"Did you also find the Doors?" Percy asked. "Andy told us that she'd found them, too."

Nico nodded. "I was a fool. I thought I could go anywhere in the Underworld, but I walked right into Mother Earth's trap. I might as well have tried running from a black hole."

"Um…" Frank chewed his lip. "What kind of black hole are you talking about?"

Nico started to speak, but whatever he needed to say must have been too terrifying. He turned to Hazel.

She put her hand on her brother's arm. "Nico told me that the Doors of Death have two sides – one in the mortal world, one in the Underworld. The mortal side of the portal is in Greece. It's heavily guarded by Mother Earth's forces. That's where they brought Nico back into the upper world. Then they transported him to Rome."

Piper must've been nervous because her cornucopia spit out a cheeseburger. "Where exactly in Greece is this doorway?"

Nico took a rattling breath. "The House of Hades. It's an underground temple in Epirus. I can mark it on a map, but – but the mortal side of the portal isn't the problem. In the Underworld, the Doors of Death are in…in…"

"Tartarus," Percy guessed. "The deepest part of the Underworld."

Nico nodded. "They pulled me into the pit, Percy. The things I saw down there…" His voice broke.

"Yeah, it's not sunshine and rainbows, I know," I said, suppressing a shudder.

Hazel pursed her lips. "Nico is one of the first mortals to ever go to Tartarus," she explained. "At least, of those who have ever gone in and returned alive. It's the maximum-security prison of Hades, where the old Titans and the other enemies of the gods are bound. It's where all monsters go when they die on the earth. It's…well, not many know exactly what it's like."

Her eyes drifted between Nico and me. The rest of her thoughts didn't need to be spoken: Except for us.

She handed him his black sword.

Nico leaned on it like it was an old man's cane. "Now I understand why Hades hasn't been able to close the doors," he said. "Even the gods don't go into Tartarus. Even the god of death, Thanatos himself, wouldn't go near that place. Andy, of course, is the exception."

"Woo-hoo."

Leo glanced over from the wheel. "So, let me guess. We'll have to go there."

"Absolutely not," I said, shaking my head. "I ever don't want any of you near that hellscape if I have any say about it. The things that are down there aren't meant for mortal eyes."

Nico nodded his head in agreement. "It's impossible. I'm the son of Hades, and even I barely survived. Her forces overwhelmed me instantly. They're so powerful down there…few demigods would stand a chance. I almost went insane."

"Then we'll sail for Epirus," Percy said. "We'll just close the gates on this side."

"I wish it were that easy," Nico said. "The doors would have to be controlled on both sides to be closed. It's like a double seal. Maybe, just maybe, all seven of you working together could defeat Mother Earth's forces on the mortal side, at the House of Hades. But unless you had a team fighting simultaneously on the Tartarus side, a team powerful enough to defeat a legion of monsters in their home territory-"

"There has to be a way," Jason said.

Nobody volunteered any brilliant ideas, and I most definitely wasn't going to tell them about my plan for Tartarus Part Two: Electric Boogaloo.

The sensation of my stomach sinking alerted me to the descending ship. I'd been so preoccupied these past few hours that I forgot about Annabeth and the Mark of Athena.

I hope she's set Arachne on fire by now.

"We'll figure out the Tartarus problem later," Percy said. "Is that the Emmanuel Building?"

Leo nodded. "Bacchus said something about the parking lot in the back? Well, there it is. What now?"

"We have to get her out."

"Well, yeah," Leo agreed. "But, uh…"

He looked like he wanted to say, What if we're too late?

Wisely, he changed tack. "There's a parking lot in the way."

Percy looked at Coach Hedge. "Bacchus said something about breaking through. Coach, you still have ammo for those ballistae?"

The satyr grinned like a wild goat. "I thought you'd never ask."

Coach Hedge had the ballistae loaded in record time. After some quick aiming courtesy of Leo's brilliance, Coach shouted, "FIRE IN THE HOLE!"

The ballistae's ammo sounded like a firecracker: a high-pitched WHEE followed by an explosion that blasted a massive hole into the parking lot. Chunks of asphalt and Italian cars indiscriminately plummeted below, undoubtedly ripping through Arachne's webs.

"Leo, start securing the Athena Parthenos the moment you can!" I ordered.

Percy leaned over the railing. "Annabeth!" he shouted.

We heard the faintest, "Here!" and collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

I swung the rope ladder over the edge of the Argo II. Percy beat me down to the unstable floor, but I was hot on his heels. The others were quick to follow.

Percy was by Annabeth's side in an instant, interlacing their fingers.

"It's okay," he said. "We're together."

As our friends gathered around us, I started cutting the webbing free from Annabeth's ankle and shoved ambrosia squares into her hands. A part of me felt comforted at the sight of a high quality brace underneath the cobwebs. It was nice to know that she'd made use of the first aid kid. But speed was the name of this game since chronokinesis was still being used as a last resort only. I pulled water from the air and set the bones in place as fast as I could, barely sparing a second to warn Annabeth that she might feel some discomfort.

"Gods of Olympus," Jason said. "You did all that alone. With a broken ankle."

"Well…some of it with a broken ankle."

Percy grinned. "You made Arachne weave her own trap? I knew you were good, but Holy Hera – Annabeth, you did it. Generations of Athena kids tried and failed. You found the Athena Parthenos!"

Everyone gazed at the statue.

"What do we do with her?" Frank asked. "She's huge."

"We'll have to take her with us to Greece," Annabeth said. "The statue is powerful. Something about it will help us stop the giants."

"The giants' bane stands gold and pale," Hazel quoted. "Won with pain from a woven jail." She looked at Annabeth with admiration. "It was Arachne's jail. You tricked her into weaving it."

"Look, we can discuss the prophecy later," I said, cringing at my unusually snappy tone. "This floor is one strong gust of wind away from collapsing, and no one wants to go down there." I gestured to the gaping pit beneath us.

"Andy's right," Annabeth said in a rushed breath. "We're standing above an entrance to Tartarus. This place isn't safe."

Grappling lines from the Argo II wrapped around the Athena Parthenos as it tilted to one side, the marble foundation under the pedestal crumbling.

"Time's up," I mumbled to myself. I pointed to the rope ladder. "Everyone up, now!"

This time, when the floor started to go, Annabeth's ankle had been freed from the thread that would've sent her and Percy over the edge of the cliff. However, to keep the universe in balance, it seemed fitting that I was the one pulled to the ground by a stray cobweb tied around my ankle, speeding toward the edge.

"ANDY!" my friends cried.

I burnt away the web and got to my knees.

Go time.

I walked toward the growing gap in the center of the web.

"Get out of here, you crazy kids! I'll see you there on the other side! Understand?"

Nico's eyes went wide. "But-"

"Lead them there, Nico!"

"Andy, no! Don't do this!"

"Let's talk about this!"

"Come back!"

"We can find another way!"

"Promise me!" I screamed, overpowering anyone else's protests.

"I-I will."

I snapped my fingers and shadow-traveled the rest of my friends onto the Argo II. I could see them pressed to the railing, horrified expressions on their faces. Percy and Jason were moments away from flinging themselves overboard. Hazel and Piper openly sobbed, pleading for me to stay. Frank and Annabeth restrained Percy and Jason but were just as distraught as the others. Leo wasn't there, busy with securing the Athena Parthenos, but he had some choice words sent in my direction through his charm.

I wanted to reassure them that everything would be okay.

But I didn't like lying to them.

I made sure to send them the brightest smile I could muster. Even if things went horribly wrong, I hoped they kept that image close to their hearts.

Below me, a voice I first heard months ago laughed in the darkness. Sacrifices. Beautiful sacrifices to wake the goddess.

I paused to take in a moment more of sunlight.

My friends screamed in my head via charm chat. Some screamed out loud too, begging me to turn around.

I hoped they would forgive me.

I steeled my thoughts and jumped off the edge, once again plummeting into the endless darkness.

It's still May 20th where I'm at, so happy birthday, Andy!

Sorry, not sorry about her surprise party location. (I should probably hide, huh?)

In other news, ya girl's a college graduate! I'm running around like a chicken with its head cut off getting stuff ready for medical school applications, so please bear with me if updates take a little longer than usual.

As always, I love you all! Have a great day/night wherever you're at!