Jason didn’t think fate was very kind to demigods like him.

  He didn’t have much hard evidence, so it was more of an educated guess. Destiny always seemed to rear its ugly head when it was most inconvenient, to the point where Jason thought the Morai might have been actively working against them.

  And yet, every so often things fell into place. Where Jason realized more likely than not, something helpful had lined up in the cards, as if it was meant to happen.

  Conveniently, now was one of those times. Somehow, Kronos’ Sarcophagus was inside the museum with the imperial gold cache. It was almost as if this encounter was destined to happen.

  Good or bad, fate was certainly artistic.

  Frank looked at the building dubiously. “Are you sure it’s there?”

  Reyna rolled her eyes. “For the hundredth time, yes I’m sure.”

  “This is good,” Jason said. “We’ll go in, secure the imperial gold that we originally came for, then look for the sarcophagus.”

  “Say we got the coffin,” Reyna didn’t sound very thrilled at the prospect. “What would we even do with it?”

  “Bring it back to New Rome. That way, no one can use it. Lupa will know what to do, if anything else.”

  The Warren Lasch Conservation Center wasn’t a large museum. Its main attraction was the CSS Hunley, and it was more of a research facility than a tourist attraction. Most of the Civil War relics that could be useful to the legion weren’t open to the public. They couldn’t exactly walk in, grab the gold torpedoes and artifacts, and then just walk out.

  Jason told this to Reyna and Frank. “We need to earn the favor of the Confederate ghosts there if we’re going to get those.”

  They looked at Frank.

  “No pressure.” Reyna said.

  “I got this,” Frank assured. “Hopefully, I can also get them to help us against the magician and the empousa.”

  They entered the center. It was air-conditioned, which was nice. The few tourists inside were absent-minded elderly folks, while a dozing security guard sat in the corner.

  “Slow day, huh?” Reyna muttered.

  Jason shrugged. “All the better for us.”

  They quickly swept through the museum. As they passed the Hunley, Jason checked the secret compartment in the sub. The imperial gold torpedoes were there, safe and sound.

  “That reminds me, what are we even going to use those for?” Frank asked.

  “Melt it down for the gold,” Jason said. He thought about it for a second, then added, “They’ll try to fire a few from the ballistae, though.”

  “That wouldn’t work,” Reyna frowned. “Would it?”

  No one was watching, so they moved on to the artifacts next. Jason tried to recall which ones were the most important. Several were fake, and only a few of them were imperial gold. It was difficult to tell. Frank reached out toward one of the relics on display as if to inspect it.

  He was answered with a ghostly wail.

  And a whole battalion of glowing zombie dudes in gray uniforms suddenly shimmered into existence like a mirage.

  Reyna gasped. Jason thumbed his coin nervously. But Frank didn’t seem fazed at all, as if he had completely expected this.

  The spirits were more or less incorporeal. They floated in the air, in the walls, and in the glass displays with no issue. All their eyes were trained on the three demigods, and their expressions weren’t exactly friendly.

  The foremost soldier, maybe the general, made a big show of stepping forward. He had a full beard and a worn, stoic expression–as if he was perpetually ready to run facefirst into a stone wall and was about to do it. His face looked familiar, but Jason couldn’t quite tell from where.

  “ Why are you here, godlings?” The soldier sounded weary. “Why are you transgressing us by approaching our relics?”

  Jason opened his mouth and shut it just as quickly. He realized the soldier wasn’t talking to him–his gaze was directed to the Son of Mars beside him.

  Frank held the eye contact firmly. “They are needed for war again, General Jackson.”

  Reyna inhaled sharply, and Jason barely stopped himself from doing the same. This must be Thomas ‘Stonewall’ Jackson, one of the most famous generals of the Confederacy.

  Jason had met him before of course, and recognized the ghost’s face from his last life. But he had never quite realized who the ghost was until now; it hadn’t really seemed important at the time.

  The general’s face hardened, living up to his name. “Our last curios will not be used to fuel another war by the machinations of the gods. My men and I fought for the country and our beliefs, not for the godlings.”

  Clearly, Stonewall was not a big fan of demigods. Chiron had told Jason that the Civil War was a mere reflection of the battle between Roman and Greek demigods. But he wasn’t sure how much of the American conflict was fueled by the demigod one.

  The general seemed to be implying that the feud of the gods orchestrated everything . That couldn’t be possible.

  Right?

  “You lost that war,” Frank reminded. “And you are now bound to service. Help me now, and I can finally free your souls from Mars.”

  The general looked at him derisively. “And where does your confidence come from, godling?”

  Frank’s eyes narrowed. He raised his arm and showed his SPQR tattoo. “I am Frank Zhang, legionary of the Twelfth Legion Fulminata, and son of Mars.”

  Immediately, the ghosts began to clamor loudly. They sounded surprised and alarmed, but Jason also saw that many were angered. Several soldiers were reaching for their spectral guns. Jason prepared to summon Ivilis, but before things got ugly, Stonewall Jackson raised a hand. The army fell silent, watching their leader reluctantly.

  “You’d take care to mind your words, Zhang,” He said. “ It’s been a long time since we fought with your legion, and many of my men do not take kindly to your…Camp Jupiter.”

  The general spat out those last words as if they disgusted him. Jason tried, but he couldn’t quite help himself after hearing the thin-veiled insult. He directed a sharp look at Stonewall Jackson.

  “The Romans and the South fought on the same side. This hostility seems unwarranted.”

  Stonewall glared at him. “We may have fought together, but we were not on the same side. We were fighting for different things completely. They ignored our battles and only cared about settling their own grudges against that… other group.”

  Goodness. The general was as difficult as Jason remembered. It was like talking to a…well, a stone wall.

  “If you don’t want to associate with us, give us the imperial gold,” Frank interjected. “They may be of your time, but they originated from Rome.”

  “I refuse. You have no claim over them anymore.”

  “I disagree,” Frank frowned. He shook his head. “Besides, I wasn’t asking.”

  The general stared coldly at him. The rest of the army glared too, and the temperature seemed to drop as a thousand frigid gazes bore down on them. They radiated violence and hostility, which was absolutely their intention. To an ADHD demigod trained to fight, this was practically a direct threat and invitation for battle.

  It took everything in Jason to not attack right then and there. Similarly, Reyna bristled under their hostile eyes and drew her knife.

  Jason put his arm in front of her, gesturing her to wait. He glanced at Frank, who hadn’t budged. His friend wanted to do this, and Jason didn’t want to step in if he wasn’t going to back down.

  “Your effort to cow me is a bluff and you know it. You owe Mars tribute for your loss. Therefore, you owe me as well.”

  As he spoke, Frank drew his gladius, slowly, staring firmly back the entire time. He calmly pointed the blade at the ghost.

  Stonewall stared at it impassively. He glanced at his men as if to see their reaction. Whatever he saw, he didn’t like it.

  “We will not bow down to your gods,” The general scowled. “ Tribute or not, we will not fight for a child.”

  Jason stopped himself from snorting. Ignoring the fact that he and Frank had over two decades of memories, not a single demigod was a normal child, and it was wrong for the general to assume that this was the case. Halfbloods lived short lives and were therefore forced to grow up fighting.

  But Jason supposed he shouldn’t have expected mortal soldiers to know that.

  “Willing or not, I don’t really care,” Frank shrugged. “But we will be taking the imperial gold. Serve me, or don’t. I’m releasing you from Mars’ service today, one way or another.”

  He tilted his blade toward the general as a clear offering. Jason was a bit surprised, but last he checked, Imperial Gold was still able to destroy ghosts. Stonewall stared at the gladius, for the first time looking taken aback.

  “Was that a threat?”

  Frank smiled. “Was it?”

  “Yes,” Reyna decided for them. Her face was calm, but her eyes shined excitedly. “Yes, it was.”

  She nudged Jason, who sighed. He supposed it wasn’t an unsalvageable outcome. As long as they completed their mission. So, he responded with a nod. With a quick flip, his sword landed in his hands.

  The army gazed at them again, but the pressure was no longer there. They seemed to realize that the demigods were not bluffing.

  Stonewall Jackson huffed angrily, but his shoulders dropped in resignation. “ Kids these days. How arrogant.”

  “I take it you will help us, then,” Frank said.

  The general glowered but flicked his hand. The ghostly soldiers acted immediately, obediently taking the relics out of their stands and gathering them up. Jason breathed a sigh of relief. He patted Frank on the shoulder with a smile.

  Reyna pursed her lips. “Won’t the mortals notice the artifacts are gone?”

  “So what if they do? Would that be a problem?” Stonewall said monotonously.

  “Uh…I guess not.” Reyna looked unnerved. She leaned over to Jason and whispered, “You know, I think we should leave quickly.”

  “We can’t. We still have to find Alabaster and the sarcophagus.” He reminded her.

  She made a dissatisfied noise but nodded.

  The ghosts were making fast work of the relics. They took the torpedoes from the Hunley in the other room, and the museum was quickly looking emptier and emptier. A few relics that were not imperial gold were still on display, but Jason knew the staff would have a heart attack the next time they had a checkup. He sent them a silent apology.

  “This isn’t all of them,” Jason told Frank. It was something he learned in his past life. “There’s more underground.”

  His friend nodded and turned to the general, who was still sulking. “You heard him. Take us underground.”

  Stonewall glared at Frank hard, but once again, Frank won the staring contest. Jason wondered how the general felt being intimidated and commanded by a random pudgy teenager. Not well, he’d wager.

  The soldiers kept gathering while the general pointed out a secret doorway with stairs that led underground. They followed Stonewall down until they reached the underground room. It was more of a storage room or bunker, rather than an exhibit, and Jason doubted mortals knew of this place. There were a few more Civil War antiques that weren’t of much interest, as well as trophies that looked Roman: old swords, dented shields, and a broken chariot in the corner.

  Importantly, the first thing in the hall was a pair of metal sculptures. Two dog-like statues, one colored gold, and the other silver. Their ruby eyes seemed to follow Jason as he approached.

  Frank inhaled sharply. “Those dogs…”

  Reyna looked intrigued. “They’re very detailed for statues.”

  “Hmph. They are not merely statues. They are automatons,” The general said. “ They’ve been deactivated since the war. I doubt they will ever come back to life.”

  “That’s a shame,” Reyna murmured, pausing in front of the dogs. “I wonder who made them and why.”

  To this day, Jason did not know why Aurum and Argentum were here. But he did know Reyna was the only person who could wake them up.

  “Those are weapons of war,” Stonewall said. “ Or at least, they were. Now, they’re merely decorations.”

  Jason remembered that Kronos’ sarcophagus was supposed to be in this museum too, but he had no idea where. It had to be in this underground room–there was no other place that would make sense.

  But just like in Jason’s past life, there was nothing in the hall but dusty relics. He tapped Reyna on the shoulder.

  “You’re sure that magician’s here, right?”

  Reyna tore her gaze from the silver and gold dogs. She glanced around the room and her brow furrowed. “Yeah. But it’s weird. It feels muffled, somehow, if that makes any sense. It’s like he’s here and not here at the same time.”

  “Is he using the Mist to hide himself?” Frank jumped in.

  “No, I’d be able to see through it easily,” Reyna looked perplexed. She touched her forehead. “Maybe I’m miscalculating.”

  Frank and Jason exchanged glances. Somehow, Alabaster was just out of reach. While it explained why Jason never met him in his past life, it didn’t make it any more mystifying.

  “Let’s search around.”

  It was a fruitless endeavor. The three of them began to upturn the hall (much to Stonewall’s disapproval) but found very little. They cleaned up the clutter. They double-checked the antique trophies. Jason and Frank even pushed the old chariot in the corner to the side in hopes that there might have been some secret tunnel behind it, but found nothing but a cracked brick wall.

  That wasn’t to say they didn’t find any interesting or useful stuff. A few rifles that fired imperial gold bullets. A sword or two in decent condition. Magazines full of golden ammo. Frank even dug up a bayonet with a blade made of celestial bronze, which made Jason feel like they were searching through a thrift store for demigods.

  At one point, Reyna picked up an imperial gold pirate saber. She stared at it long and hard, before her face contorted in disgust. The blade was tossed aside with a little more force than necessary.

  (Jason tried not to wonder too much. He failed.)

  But regardless, they were no closer to progress than they were when they first arrived at the museum.

  Frank cursed in Latin. “Not even the general knows what might be going on. This might be a lost cause.”

  Jason, as much as he hated it, was inclined to agree. This was out of their element and out of their past knowledge. He wasn’t sure what Alabaster was doing with the sarcophagus, but surely, if they won the Titan War last time they could do it again regardless of whatever the magician did.

  It was a bit of a naive way of thinking, but it was the only justification Jason had for giving up. Because at this rate, they’d miss their flight back to California looking for a magician who could already be long gone.

  “Reyna,” Jason turned around. She was sitting in front of Aurum and Argentum. “Have you figured it out? If not, we should try something else.”

  “Hmm? Oh…no, nothing. It still doesn’t make sense to me.” She seemed distracted.

  Frank looked at her curiously. “You seem very interested in those dogs.”

  Reyna didn’t deny it. “I just feel like…gah, it’s stupid. But they feel like the Temple of Bellona at camp. Like they were calling to me.”

  Jason couldn’t help but smile. Reyna noticed and looked embarrassed.

  “I told you, it’s stupid.”

  “No, no,” He assured. “I think you’re on to something.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes. The general called them weapons of war. Bellona’s the goddess of war, and it’s not impossible this is a gift from her.”

  Reyna looked dubious. “That feels like a reach.”

  Jason couldn’t help but roll his eyes. What he had just said was a theory Reyna herself came up with, back when they came to Charleston in his past life. “Hey, you’re the one who said that they’re ‘calling’ to you.”

  “Shut up, Grace.”

  “My point is,” Jason tried again, “They might respond to you. You should try it.”

  “How?”

  Jason shrugged. He didn’t know the specifics, after all.

  Receiving no answer, Reyna sighed. She stared at the automatons for a moment longer, clearly having an internal debate. Jason watched silently as she hesitantly placed one hand on each of the dogs and closed her eyes in concentration.

  And almost instantly, ruby eyes flared to life.

  Jason knew it was coming, but the sudden red light still left spots in his eyes. Frank, startled and blinded, tripped into a pile of dented shields.

  Reyna slowly stood as the automatons began to creak and whirr. Aurum and Argentum fixed their mechanical gaze on Bellona's daughter. They began to bound up and down, barking excitedly.

  “What’s happening?” Reyna sounded panicked.

  Jason smothered a laugh. “I think they like you.”

  The metal dogs seemed very excited to see Reyna, as if she was a long-gone owner who had finally returned. On the flip side, Reyna looked completely out of her element.

  Aurum was trying to jump on her now. She managed to hold him off, but it was too late. Argentum perked up, as if realizing ‘Oh, we’re doing this now!’, and joined in the fun. He all but tackled Reyna, and with an oof, Reyna sat down hard.

  “What do I do?!”

  “You’ve never had a pet before?” Frank asked.

  “No!”

  “Neither have I,” Jason added.

  “You were raised by wolves; you were the pet,” Reyna hissed, trying in vain to calm the automatons down and get them off her. “Now help me!”

  Frank stepped forward, but Jason stopped him. The dogs were happy right now, but he had to remember Aurum and Argentum didn’t know who he was. If they interfered and came off as hostile…well, Jason had seen those teeth tear through monster flesh with ease. He doubted a demigod would fare much better.

  He told Reyna as such with an apologetic smile. For some reason, she didn’t find it comforting.

  Eventually, she wriggled out and jumped to her feet. Before the dogs could lunge at her again, Reyna pointed at them firmly.

  “Stay!”

  The dogs momentarily paused, gears grinding to a halt. They looked about as shocked as robot dogs could be. Reyna herself looked surprised that that had worked, but she quickly cleared her throat and put on a stern expression.

  “Sit.” Reyna commanded.

  Two automatons thumped onto the ground.

  “Good boy.”

  She nodded, satisfied. Jason’s lips twitched, but he managed to hold the laugh in. Beside him, Frank was grinning ear to ear.

  Reyna turned to them. “What’s so funny?”

  “Nothing,” he replied.

  “That went well,” Frank remarked, glancing significantly at Jason. Having a second chance at life was convenient that way. “But we still don’t know where the Titan Lord’s coffin is.”

  Reyna sighed in frustration. She rubbed her temples, muttering. “Yeah. I just don’t get it. He’s nearby, but also far away?”

  “Is it because we’re underground?” Frank suggested unconfidently, evidently unsure of what to even say.

  “I’m not sure why it would have to do with the underground, but I guess it’s possible…”

  If only Hazel was here right now. She’d probably figure it out, with her magic skills and underground senses. Jason’s gaze wandered the room. He tuned out Frank and Reyna’s discussion.

  Magic. Underground. Hazel.

  His brain slowly connected the dots to a faint possibility. Back on their quest to Athens, on the Argo II, they stopped at Olympia. There, Percy, Leo, Frank, and Hazel had fought Nike. According to them, Hazel had summoned part of the Labyrinth from underground to even the playing fields.

  The Labyrinth. Percy and Annabeth had mentioned it on occasion. A magic maze under the surface like Earth’s second skin, where the rules of time and space were bent and distorted.

  Jason's eyes snapped up as he heard barking.

  Aurum and Argentum were near the corner of the room, growling at…seemingly nothing. At the very least, the brick wall did not seem to be intimidated by the automatons.

  “Calm down!” Reyna scolded them, walking over. “Behave.”

  Jason observed them carefully. The dogs were oddly agitated. Something inside Jason told him not to dismiss it. Aurum and Argentum had the uncanny ability to…sense things, like when someone was lying. What if that wasn’t the only thing they could sense?

  He approached Reyna and her dogs. The daughter of Bellona was chastising them, but Jason stopped her.

  “Wait. Let me check something…”

  Frank and Reyna looked on curiously as Jason studied what appeared to be an empty corner of the room. The brick wall was cracked and worn, and Jason ran his hands over it slowly.

  He wasn’t quite sure what he was looking for. But he found it anyway.

  What he had mistaken as just another crack in the wall was a shape. A symbol, the Greek letter Delta: ?

  As soon as Jason’s fingers brushed over it, it glowed. The ground rumbled slightly, and before they knew it, the wall parted like sliding doors. A pathway leading down appeared in front of them.

  Frank’s jaw dropped. “That’s the Labyrinth.”

  “The Labyrinth? That exists?” Reyna asked.

  Jason stayed silent, his stomach churning. If what he remembered was right, the Labyrinth was extremely dangerous. Well, everything he and his friends did was dangerous, but the Labyrinth was on a different level. How did Leo describe it?

  Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

  (“That illusionary maze in the House of Hades? Yeah, I remember all too well. We almost died about every six feet.”)

  He peered into the tunnel. It started off as normal brick, but twenty feet in the ground changed to black volcano rock. There was a new scent in the air. As someone who lived in California his whole life, Jason recognized it immediately. Eucalyptus trees. But that was impossible.

  “There’s something evil down there. Something powerful.” Reyna looked calm, but she was petting Aurum a little too anxiously to be normal.

  “Then it has to be there, right? The magician, too?” Jason said.

  She nodded.

  Frank made a time-out gesture. “Hold on a second. The Labyrinth is a death trap–literally, that’s what it was made for! We can’t just waltz in there.”

  Frank was right. If they went in, it was possible they wouldn’t be able to get out. But Alabaster and the coffin were right down there; Jason could feel it. They couldn’t just ignore it and back off now.

  Once again, Jason wished their underground expert was here with them.

  Reyna took one small step into the tunnel. Immediately, her face soured and she quickly took a step back.

  “Frank has a point. It feels very hostile,” She frowned at Jason. “We’ve accomplished our mission here, and more. We could bring the gold and the information we learned back to camp and to the praetors.”

  Jason considered it. But eventually, he shook his head.

  “No. We should pursue Alabaster,” He turned to Frank. “Think about it. I doubt the Titans have a way to navigate the Labyrinth. If he brought the sarcophagus here, then that means he was confident he could do it safely.”

  Reyna tried to look as far into the tunnel as possible. “Well…it does look like a one-way path.”

  “That’s still risky. The maze could change,” Frank said.

  “ Audentes fortuna iuvat, friend,” Jason responded. Fortune favors the bold. “We’ve done worse.”

  “ You’ve done worse,” Frank muttered. He gave a resigned sigh. “Fine. But we should make it quick.”

  Reyna sent Aurum and Argentum in first, scouting the path for traps. Those dogs were like danger detectors. Jason probably wouldn’t have entered if the automatons weren’t with them. They all entered the Labyrinth, slowly, one by one.

  Frank kept glancing back at the entrance, as if afraid it would disappear any moment. Fortunately, Jason’s guess seemed to be right. Even as they went farther into the tunnel, he could see the door behind them stay in place. However, it did little to comfort him. Each crunch of the ground below them made alarm bells go off in his mind. Ivilis, in coin form, was held in a death grip between his fingers. It was hard not to be on edge when the Labyrinth practically oozed malice toward them.

  Jason flexed the fingers on his left hand. The unicorn draught had done its job nicely, and besides some stiffness, it was back to full health. At least he could count on it in the fight that was feeling more and more likely to come, any moment now.

  The doorway seemed to grow ever so slightly narrower with each step. Eventually, the end of the tunnel came into sight. Jason breathed a sigh of relief. He had been starting to feel claustrophobic. From what he could tell from the distance, the path opened up into a much larger hall. Cautiously, they made their way to the tunnel’s end.

  Argentum growled quietly. Immediately, Reyna pressed herself to the wall, motioning Frank and Jason to do the same.

  With his back firmly up against the wall, Jason glanced at the exit through the corner of his eye. It seemed to lead into a circular room–perhaps an arena?

  Indiscernable voices came from the corridor ahead. Frank caught his eye and made a gesture toward his ears. Jason nodded. They needed to hear it, whoever was speaking. He concentrated on the air around them, the slight breeze blowing through the tunnel.

  It was a trick he had been practicing for a while now. He first came up with it during their time on the run after Gaia rose. Jason had found that being able to hear things from far away was very useful for avoiding monster ambushes.

  The breeze picked up faintly, enhanced just enough so that the words were carried to Jason and his friends.

  “There’s no better option?”

  Guessing from the voice, it was Alabaster. So he had truly been here after all. While that was good for them, it did also confirm that Kronos’ forces had already begun exploring the Labyrinth, which was disconcerting.

  “ Even you have much to learn about magic, child,” A female voice chided, and Jason felt the hairs on his skin stand up. “ The magic of the Fleece is unique in its power. It is not so easily replicated.”

  Alabaster sighed in frustration. “But we don’t have enough.”

  “ You must reach out, then. While the remains of the Titan Lord are in this coffin, his soul is still largely trapped in Tartarus. I will cast a spell to bind his soul to the sarcophagus; but, he cannot awaken until the conditions are met.”

  Reyna twitched. Her new metal dogs growled obligingly, but Jason shook his head. Not yet; they needed to know more. And something about that female voice made him nervous. It was mysterious and dark, and it reminded him of the howling wind on a pitch-black night.

  “I don’t understand, though,” It was Alabaster again. “Why is this necessary?”

  “Have you ever wondered why the gods have received human offerings since the beginning of time?”

  A scoff. “To fuel their ego?”

  “ Partially,” The voice sounded amused. “ But offerings have power, Alabaster. They are a symbol of devotion and loyalty, and at times, even sacrifice. This spell will make use of that. When a child of the gods turns their back and pledges their soul to Kronos, a piece of the titan’s soul will be bound to his form. A soul for a soul, given and dedicated willingly. That is all you need.”

  “But our souls are tiny compared to the Titan Lord’s,” Alabaster said. “We’ll need so many more demigods to turn to our side.”

  “It is not as much as you think. And even so, every conqueror needs a loyal army. And you godlings are not as insignificant as you seem. You will have ample time to recruit…”

  The voice grew darker, and a dangerous tone was carried with the next words. “ And perhaps you could start with those three eavesdroppers in the tunnel.”

  Reyna cursed, and Frank and Jason weren’t far behind. “Go–”

  Before any one of them could move, the space they were in warped, and Jason felt his head spin. Suddenly, they were all standing in the center of the circular hall, facing two figures who looked at them with contempt. Behind them was the sarcophagus of Kronos, still idly radiating evil.

  Jason shook his head madly, trying to clear the dizziness. He wanted to summon Ivilis, but he highly doubted he could flip and catch the magic coin in this state.

  The brown-haired boy leveled an imperial gold sword at them. Alabaster, Jason assumed.

  “How much did you hear?” He demanded.

  Jason couldn’t help but stare at the blade pointing at his face. It wasn’t a gladius or a spatha. It didn’t look Roman at all, in fact. It more so resembled Percy’s Riptide, a leaf-shaped blade, very Greek. How in the world did this magician get an imperial gold sword like that?

  “Enough,” Frank was the one to answer. “We know you’re trying to revive Kronos with her…”

  Frank trailed off as he looked at the second figure. She was deathly pale, dressed in dark robes. Her black eyes seemed to be endless voids, and they effectively stared them down, as the woman was also ten feet tall.

  And in her hands, two twin torches blazed with white fire. The image caused dread to fill Jason. He remembered the battle against Clytius in the House of Hades and immediately cursed himself for not remembering earlier.

  “Lady Trivia–er, Hecate,” Jason guessed. “You’ve sided with the Titans.”

  The goddess looked at him for a long time, as if studying him. She glanced at Frank and Reyna, searching them each. A pleased expression slowly spread across her face.

  “ I’m impressed you recognized me, Roman,” Hecate said. “ Though it is strange that you are here.”

  “Who are you and how did you find this place?” Alabaster barked again, evidently much less amiable than the goddess. “What do you want?”

  “We’re from the Twelfth Legion Fulminata, magician,” Reyna bit back. “And we’re going to stop Kronos from rising.”

  Alabaster growled. “Then you’re an enemy.”

  “ Peace, my child, do not be so hasty,” Hecate extended a huge hand in front of him. “ If you are this hostile, how are you to draw more followers to Kronos?”

  Frank knocked an arrow into his bow. “We heard enough of your plan earlier. We’re not going to pledge loyalty to him.”

  “ And instead, stay blindly loyal to the Olympians?” Hecate did not seem fazed. She spread her arms, the casket of Kronos beginning to glow behind her. “ Choices like these should not be so easily determined. This is a time of great change, a pivotal moment of fate. And though you do not realize it, children, it lies in the hands of you demigods.”

  Unfortunately, Jason knew that. He realized it better than most…because he lived through it.

  “Why would we side with the Titans?” Reyna challenged. At her feet, Aurum and Argentum were crouched, ready to spring.

  Hecate opened her palms invitingly to them. Three doorways appeared around her, each swirling with Mist.

  “ Jason Grace, Frank Zhang, Reyna Ramirez-Arellano…You stand at a crossroads. A choice. A decision.”

  She extended her hand to the door on her left. In it was a bleak battlefield, demigods and monsters fighting to the death. A giant made of stars and wearing a horned helmet cut through soldier after soldier, unstoppable in every sense. Jason’s heart twisted as he recognized the figure and the landscape.

  “ You could do the same thing you’ve always done. Return to your camp with the spoils, return to your legion. You can fight with your brethren, and trust in Rome as you always have. But the Titans are returning, and your meager weapons and formations will not be enough to stop them.”

  “A trick,” Frank said. He pointed to the image of Krios unsteadily, looking slightly pale. “That–that’s not set in stone. We could win, even if we made that choice.”

  A lazy smile spread across Hecate’s face. “ Perhaps. But more likely, you will all die in this fruitless war. Riding to your death like proud soldiers, fighting for your ungrateful gods. Expecting change while doing the same thing over and over…most would call that insanity.”

  She pointed to the door on her right. Inside was not one image, but many. Jason saw Frank stumbling through an underground passage, bleeding from a dozen wounds. He saw Reyna screaming in the ruins of the Principia, grabbing her head in pain.

  And he saw himself. Mist-Jason was on his knees with a golden spear lodged into his back. The bloody tip poked out of his chest.

  Something about that last image shook Jason to his bones, far beyond simply seeing his own death. He couldn’t describe it.

  It scared him.

  “You can take what you’ve learned and try to stop it. Devote the next years to foiling each of our plans and prevent the rise of the Titans. Saturn has not risen yet. Perhaps you can stop this war before it even begins. I would even call it possible. But it will be an even bloodier path than the first. Life will be sacrificed again and again.”

  Reyna’s eyes flickered over to the doorway and back to Hecate. “This isn’t exactly convincing.”

  “ Indeed,” Hecate agreed. She stepped to the side, revealing the third doorway. “ So the third choice is to live for yourselves.”

  Jason knew what she was implying. He didn’t need to look, but he did anyway. The third doorway showed Olympus falling. Jason saw temples turning into rubble and gardens being torn apart. The thrones of the gods were in pieces in the council room. In its place were Jason, Frank, and Reyna–bruised and battered, but very much so alive. They stood tall in the rubble of the thrones, and more demigods surrounded them. They were all looking up to a glowing light with awe–as if it were their savior, their ruler.

  Jason knew what they were looking at.

  It disgusted him.

  “You call that living for ourselves?” He said. “Serving the Titans? Lady Hecate, the prospect alone sounds laughable.”

  Alabaster laughed harshly, startling him. Jason had forgotten he was there; the magician had been quiet for a while.

  “You know what’s laughable? Being a servant to the gods who are no more than glorified bullies. You’re blind if you think following them will help you. They’ll cast you aside before you even realize it.”

  “They’re our parents,” Frank said.

  “They’re a divine mafia. Selfish and corrupt. Negligent at best, but most of the time, they’re downright malicious. My mother offers you a better path forward for demigods,” He paused, narrowing his eyes at each of them one by one. “Tell me, Romans, do you enjoy being used as tools by these ‘parents’ of yours?”

  Jason stepped forward, refusing to make eye contact with Alabaster. He focused on Hecate instead, peering into those soulless black eyes. She peered down at him, reading his face.

  “ How resolute you are, Jason Grace,” She mused. “ Come to a decision already? You should consider it carefully.”

  Jason paused, cocked his head, and nodded. “Okay, they’re considered.”

  He flipped Ivilis, and a javelin landed in his hands.

  “I will not choose any of these paths,” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Alabaster’s face contort incredulously. Hecate’s expression wasn’t far off. “We’ll find a way to stop Saturn. We’ll save Camp Jupiter and defeat the Titans. And most importantly, we’ll survive.”

  Alabaster snarled. Green runes glowed on his clothes. “How naive.”

  “I’ll start slow,” Jason assured. “Right here, we’re going to take that coffin and stop you from casting your spell.”

  Hecate did not seem surprised. She shook her head, letting out a sigh.

  “Once, I betrayed the Titans to side with the gods. I was not blind to Kronos’ cruelty, after all, and I hoped Zeus would be a better king,” Her face made it quite clear how that had turned out. “ But you have made your choice; an ill-advised one, but a choice nonetheless. Now, we shall see if you have to strength to back up your decision.”

  The goddess raised her hands and began to glow with purple light. Aurum and Argentum began barking–a clear warning.

  “I am the goddess of magic, the night, and ghosts. You have shunned me as the Olympians have so often. Now, you shall face the consequences.”

  She slammed her hands down on the ground, creating a shockwave that blasted all three of them backward. A mist began to fill the room, making the air hazy and foggy. Jason scrambled to his feet, but he had to bite back a scream as he looked down.

  Spectral skeletons were crawling their way out of the ground, their hollow eyes glowing black with Hecate’s magic. Jason looked up and saw empousa prowling out of the Mist, their hair already on fire.

  “Frank, Reyna!” He ran over to his friends, dragging them up.

  They faced the approaching foes together. Jason summoned the wind to clear the mist, but it wasn’t as effective as he hoped. It seemed to be the real Mist, magical and ever-annoying.

  Skeletons and empousa lunged. Frank transformed into a bear and plowed into the first force like a bowling ball, sending empousa, bones, and bronze legs flying in every direction.

  Reyna charged, dashing into the fray and causing chaos. Her knife flashed like lightning, cutting down a foe every second. She stabbed an empousa in the throat, turned around, and threw her dagger into the skull of a skeleton. Another vampire was sneaking up on her, but Aurum lunged out of nowhere and tore the monster to shreds.

  Jason couldn’t help but realize that her fighting style had changed vastly from his past life. While Reyna, as a daughter of Bellona, could fight in any situation with any capacity, she usually preferred the traditional Roman style: precise and minimalistic, utilizing counterattacks and brutally wearing down an opponent's guard piece by piece.

  This was the style that worked in a formation. A style that she honed and perfected side by side and shield by shield with her comrades, right in the tight lines of the Roman legion. Even in duels, that was Reyna’s go-to way of fighting. He had sparred with her enough times to know.

  Though sometimes, she would surprise him. He remembered seeing her wield two swords at once during the battle of Orthys, spinning through the enemy lines like a Beyblade, causing abject carnage. Another time during as par, she changed her gladius to a pilum mid-swing and vaulted over him (subsequently kicking him in the head mid-air). These free-flowing movements and attacks were rare for her, but still present.

  And now, this rarity had practically become her new standard of fighting. He couldn’t help but stare as Reyna rolled under two lunging empousa, then turned around and decapitated both in an instant.

  She stood up and cut down three more skeletons in a similar fashion. Beside her, Aurum and Argentum took down twice as many.

  She met his eyes and scowled. “What are you doing, just standing there?!”

  He blinked. Jason quickly turned and blasted a group of skeletons to smithereens with lightning to cover up the fact that he had gotten distracted. He flew up into the air, summoning a small tornado that pulled in empousa and skeletons alike.

  To his left was Hecate and the sarcophagus. The goddess’ eyes were closed, and her hands were placed on the coffin. Her mouth moved as if she were chanting, but Jason couldn’t hear her over the battle.

  The sarcophagus began to glow brighter. Jason didn’t need to be a genius to figure it out. Hecate was casting her spell. He had to stop her.

  Jason narrowed his eyes, tucking in his arms into a dive. He flew straight for the goddess. Hecate opened her eyes as if she sensed him, but she merely looked up at him, completely unconcerned.

  Right as Jason was about to crash into Hecate, an invisible force slammed into his side. He crashed into the ground, groaning in pain. Jason staggered to his feet to find Alabaster waiting ahead, imperial gold sword in hand.

  He coughed, wiping dust off his cheek. “Rude.”

  “You’re going to die here, so I don’t really care.” Alabaster shrugged.

  Jason huffed, picking up his spear. “I don’t think so.”

  “Look around you, son of Jupiter,” Hecate’s voice came from above. She stared down at him coldly. She spread her arms, gesturing to the battlefield. Skeletons kept crawling out of the earth; empousa kept creeping out of the Mist. “ Do you really think you can defeat me, the goddess of magic? Sooner or later, you’ll be overwhelmed. You cannot win.”

  “That’s what they always say,” Jason said. “It’s never stopped us before.”

  He lunged at Alabaster, aiming to take care of him quickly. His javelin crackled with electricity as it stabbed toward the magician. Alabaster raised his sword, and a glowing barrier appeared.

  Jason’s attack struck the magic shield so hard it shattered, but he couldn’t reach Alabaster. The magician counterattacked, slashing at him again and again, forcing Jason on the defensive.

  He automatically shifted his mind into combat mode–analyzing his attack patterns and reading Alabaster’s style. It was difficult; the magician fought unlike anyone Jason had battled before. Sword strikes and magic attacks blended together seamlessly, hitting Jason with both the blade and green energy.

  He sidestepped and counterattacked, but was still knocked aside by a blast of Mist. Jason growled, growing irritated. He sent a harsh wind at Alabaster, then lunged while he was distracted. Alabaster expectedly summoned a shield, but Jason feinted at his head, then spun on his heel and hit him in the chest with the butt of his javelin.

  Green runes glowed on his shirt and absorbed the impact. Instead of toppling backward, Alabaster just grinned.

  Jason barely got to curse in Latin. A shockwave of energy exploded from Alabaster’s shirt, throwing Jason back twenty feet. He managed to land on his feet, but his head was spinning.

  For the first time, he took a look around the battlefield. Hecate was still at the coffin, casting her spell leisurely. It didn’t seem like she was going to attack.

  While he had been fighting Alabaster, though, Reyna and Frank had been holding off the hordes. And they were starting to get overwhelmed by the sheer masses. They stood back to back, slashing and stabbing the monsters trying to swarm them. Frank’s shoulder was bloody, and his quiver was out of arrows. Reyna’s forehead glistened with sweat, and her metal dogs were nowhere to be seen.

  Alabaster and Hecate were still there, but he needed to help his friends. Jason flew to join them, landing in the middle of the chaos. The wind tore a dozen skeletons and empousa to pieces, but they were simply replaced in an instant.

  There were too many of them. Jason couldn’t help but feel a sense of deja vu. He looked over at Frank and opened his mouth, but Reyna beat him to it.

  “There’s too many of them. Frank, call the ghost army!” She shouted.

  Frank hesitated. His shoulders were trembling, but Jason doubted it was from battle nerves. “I–I’m not sure if they’ll answer me!”

  “You were bluffing?!”

  “They’ll answer, Frank,” Jason assured him. “You know they will! We know they will!”

  Frank nodded shakily. He wiped the sweat off his brow and raised his sword. His eyes widened, ever so slightly red.

  “I call in in your debt!” He shouted over the noise of the battle. “Serve me!”

  For a moment, nothing happened.

  Then, chaos.

  Ghosts poured in from the tunnel entrance, roaring as one. Gunfire erupted from their ghostly rifles, mowing down a swathe of Hecate’s summons. Stonewall Jackson himself floated in, skewering the empousa surrounding them with his bayonet. He paused in front of Frank.

  The general did not look happy, but he bowed his head. “ We are here to serve, to fight.”

  “Then this shall be your final fight,” Frank replied. “Fight, and when victory is achieved, you and your men may rest in peace.”

  Jackson nodded. He turned back to the battle, shouting orders at his ghost army. They formed into disciplined lines, driving Hecate’s forces back and keeping them at bay. The ground was soon littered with monster dust and fragmented bones.

  Jason turned to his friends. “The sarcophagus! Let’s go!”

  As the Confederate ghosts battled the monsters, the three of them charged for Hecate. The goddess’ chanting was growing louder and louder, building in power. The sarcophagus’ glow was growing brighter at an alarming pace.

  “Stop!” Frank shouted.

  He snatched up an arrow from the ground and fired it at the goddess. Hecate, without even opening her eyes, caught the arrow with her giant hand. Her chanting continued without missing a beat.

  Jason let out a battle cry. He summoned the wind to push them forward. The distance closed, and the sarcophagus was barely ten feet away.

  And then Hecate finished her chanting. Her dark eyes opened, and a satisfied smile spread across her face.

  “ Too late.”

  A wave of energy erupted from the sarcophagus, stopping them cold in their tracks. Jason looked up in horror. Hecate was standing over the coffin triumphantly. The golden casket hummed with power.

  “It’s not too late! We have to take it from her!” Jason ordered.

  Hecate laughed. “ Take it from me? Your confidence amuses me. How can three godlings stand up against the goddess of magi–ACK!”

  Reyna had taken the goddess by surprise. While Hecate was busy talking, she ran forward and drove her knife into the goddess’ Achilles’ heel. Hecate fell to one knee, gasping in shock and pain.

  “ Insolent child!” Hecate snarled.

  She flicked her hand, and Reyna went flying back at the speed of sound. She crashed into the wall behind them with a sickening crunch . Her figure slumped to the ground limply.

  “Reyna!” Jason screamed.

  He channeled his anger into a white-hot lightning bolt. It crashed into Hecate, sending her stumbling back. Her injured foot slipped, and she fell.

  Frank transformed into a dragon, shaking the ground with his roar. He hit the downed goddess with a stream of fire. Hecate managed to summon a magic barrier, eyes blazing with anger.

  While Frank battled the goddess, Jason flew to the other side of the arena. He ignored the mess of ghosts and monsters battling each other, making his way to his friend.

  Reyna was leaning against her personal crater in the wall. A thin line of blood trickled down her forehead, and she was soundly unconscious.

  He checked her vitals. Thankfully, she was very much so alive. Jason let out a sigh of relief.

  He heard a pitiful whine behind him. Jason turned to find Aurum and Argentum, pawing at the ground. It was hard to read robot expressions, but he was pretty sure they looked guilty.

  “Watch over her, okay?” He told the automatons.

  They barked in agreement, and Jason flew back to Frank. He summoned the wind and rode his personal tornado to the battle. Hecate had managed to stand again, so Jason and Frank pummeled her with lightning and fire, wearing down her shields little by little.

  Hecate gritted her teeth. She kept trying to summon the Mist, but Jason’s wind made it hard for the fog to form, all while Jason and Frank did their best to break her focus with concentrated and coordinated elemental attacks.

  Eventually, the barrier broke. Hecate screamed as she was burned by flames and electricity, collapsing to the ground. She glared up at them, her dark eyes spelling out wishes of death and hatred.

  Jason wasn’t fazed; he had seen worse. “Frank, the coffin.”

  Frank’s dragon head dipped into a nod, and he began descending to grab the sarcophagus.

  “You underestimated us, Lady Hecate,” Jason stated. “I’ll say it again. I’m not taking any of your paths, I will carve my own.”

  Hecate trembled. It took a moment for Jason to realize she was laughing.

  “You didn’t remind me of Jupiter before. But you do now,” She sneered. “ So arrogant.”

  Hecate began chanting. Jason lunged forward, but he was much too slow to stop the ancient words from being formed.

  Dark tendrils shot from the ground like weeds. Jason felt them wrap around him like ropes and dragged him down. He slammed into the ground hard, and a pained roar and crash behind Jason informed him Frank had suffered the same fate.

  Jason immediately began struggling, trying to get out of the magic ropes. He managed to turn his grip on his javelin, beginning to saw away at the dark restraints with the blade.

  “Alabaster, my son!” Hecate cried out. “ You know what you must do! We need his power!”

  Alabaster leaped out of the Mist, looking none the worse for wear. Jason wondered where he had been all along. Frank, whose huge wings were straining against Hecate’s bindings, roared in alarm.

  “Understood, Mother,” He nodded and reached for the sarcophagus. “I will be the first. The first demigod to pledge my soul to him.”

  The casket seemed to hum louder as he approached, beckoning and calling Alabaster forward. Jason felt a malevolent hunger from the coffin. He could feel it practically craving for Alabaster’s allegiance.

  Snap! Frank broke free of Hecate’s spell, claws slashing the dark ropes to nothingness. He wasted no time, flying forward and tackling Hecate with his huge reptilian body.

  He roared at Jason, tail pointing at Alabaster. The message was clear: stop him.

  With a blast of lightning, Jason’s bindings shattered. Alabaster scrambled for the sarcophagus, but Jason was just too fast.

  Jason punched Alabaster in the jaw, sending voltage through his entire body. The magician rocketed to the other side of the room, far away from Hecate and the sarcophagus, and Jason quickly flew in pursuit. He caught Alabaster mid-air and slammed him into the ground.

  The magician reached for his sword again, but Jason pinned him down and slammed him into the ground again and again.

  But on his third slam, Alabaster simply dissipated into Mist. Poof.

  “Damn!” He swiveled around. An illusion!

  The real Alabaster was behind him, running to Kronos’ Sarcophagus on the other side of the room. Jason wouldn’t let him.

  He harnessed the wind and closed the distance easily. Alabaster looked back in surprise.

  But before Jason could grab him, a body flew through the air and hit him. They both tumbled to the ground, dazed. Jason realized it was Frank, in human form again, who had slammed into him. How…?

  Up ahead was Hecate. Ichor dripped from wounds on her face, but she extended a steady hand out toward Alabaster.

  “ Come, my child! Hurry!”

  He sprinted at an unnatural speed, likely boosted by magic. In just seconds, he would reach Kronos' coffin.

  Alabaster began to shout. “I renounce the gods!”

  The casket reacted to his words, pulsating brightly at each syllable. Jason pushed Frank off him in a panic. He tried to summon the wind, but his head was still spinning from the impact. He couldn’t focus…!

  “Someone stop him!” Jason cried out.

  But Alabaster looked unstoppable in his mission. He dodged a random confederate ghost, then threw aside two more with magic without even missing a step.

  “I will see them destroyed!”

  The sarcophagus shone like the sun. Hecate’s face lit up. Jason’s slackened with dread.

  “I…” Alabaster was breathless from running, yet he screamed with all his might. “ Side with…the Titans!”

  They had failed. Alabaster was but a few feet away from the coffin, a few words from a binding oath. Nobody could stop him in time.

  “I will serve…!”

  Nobody.

  Except.

  One.

  BANG!

  Alabaster slipped mid-step and fell. He slowly reached down and touched his chest. His fingers came back up red. The magician looked down…to see the bullet hole in his heart.

  Jason’s jaw dropped. Off to the side, twenty feet to the right, with a perfect line of sight at Alabaster’s running path, was a rifle with a celestial bronze bayonet.

  And the person holding it was Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arrelano.

  Only one person could have positioned themselves so well.

  Only one person could have taken aim so perfectly.

  Only one person could have pulled the trigger without hesitation.

  Reyna lowered the barrel slowly. Her forehead was still bleeding, but her eyes were feverishly bright. The bayonet shimmered slightly, causing Jason to jolt in realization. Reyna had hidden the celestial bronze bayonet they had found in the museum with the Mist. Somehow, she had the foresight to do so.

  Hecate shouted and tried to grab her son. “No! ”

  Jason got up and sprang, the wind back on his side.

  Behind him, Frank scrambled to his feet and transformed into an eagle, soaring after Jason.

  Reyna leveled her new bayonet and charged.

  They all reached for Alabaster, who still seemed to be in shock. Jason was flying fast, faster than he had ever before; he could get there first! He reared up on the fallen magician, javelin ready.

  And then Alabaster’s bloody lips moved.

  “I…will serve…Kronos…”

  Jason stabbed downward.

  It never reached him.

  A blue light flew out of Alabster and into the coffin. The room darkened. The battlefield went quiet. His movements grew sluggish, and it wasn’t just him. Everyone seemed to be the same, like the world was turning to Jell-O. Ghosts and skeletons were locked in battle, looking like flies trapped in amber.

  Time slowed down—the power of Kronos.

  The sarcophagus was now glowing blue–bright enough to hurt Jason’s eyes. A cold laugh came from nowhere and everywhere at once. The voice made Jason want to scream, but he couldn’t move his tongue.

  “Ah…I had forgotten the feeling… ” Kronos’ voice was like a razor blade scraping against glass. Ancient and horrible. “ Finally, fully awake…but not quite yet alive.”

  Another laugh. “All in due time though.”

  A sound like ice shattering. And suddenly, Hecate was moving, kneeling before the coffin. No one else could move but her.

  “My lord.”

  “Dark Lady,” Kronos mused. “I see you have chosen the correct side this time.”

  Hecate flinched but nodded. “ My spell has worked.”

  “Indeed. Well done, I suppose.” Kronos did not sound very grateful. But that was probably too much to ask for. “I am not able to do this forever. Your job is finished. Let us return.”

  “Understood.”

  Hecate gingerly scooped up Alabaster, who was limp in her hand. She scowled in concern and began to chant. Alabaster’s whole body began to glow as Hecate cast a spell over him, probably to save his life.

  Eventually, she placed a hand on the golden sarcophagus. She turned and fixed her cold, dark eyes on the frozen demigods. “There is still time to make a choice. You do not have to continue on this pointless path. It brings only pain and suffering.”

  Pain and suffering were old friends to Jason, unfortunately.

  “This is the end for today,” Hecate summoned a portal behind her. She levitated the coffin without even touching it. “Goodbye, godlings.”

  Kronos chuckled, a terrifying sound. “ Yes…goodbye, for now, godlings…till we meet again.”

  Hazel tapped her golden fork against her plate awkwardly. The food in front of her was largely untouched, but it wasn’t as if Hazel was hungry. She was dead.

  But she had agreed to eat dinner with her father at the palace every once in a while.

  It was strange, honestly. Despite Pluto’s generally cold and stoic attitude, the god of the dead had a unique desire to…have a normal family. To be a normal father as much as he could, with a normal relationship with his daughter. Hazel found it confusing, but it was also quite endearing once she wrapped her head around it.

  And so now, she and her father were eating together on the jewel-studded obsidian dining table.

  Well, kind of.

  Families were messy. Demigod families were really messy.

  Demigod step-families? Don’t even get her started.

  It was late in the autumn, after all. That meant Persephone was here. And Hazel, frankly, was a little intimidated by her.

  Persephone wasn’t a big fan of her, expectedly. But she wasn’t openly hostile to her, most of the time. It just felt like Persephone was subtly irritated at Hazel any time she saw her.

  So, usually, Hazel just stayed quiet while Hades and Persephone talked about godly happenings and Olympus protocols and whatnot. Was this what normal teenagers did with their parents?

  Today, they were arguing. That surprised Hazel. It didn’t happen often.

  Persephone was talking about some sword and some key. Hades was calling it too dangerous. Honestly, Hazel wasn’t listening. She kind of wanted to leave at this point.

  The argument shifted at some point. And this time, the subject actually caught Hazel’s attention.

  “You’re going to take them out of the hotel? Now, of all times?” Persephone sounded incredulous.

  “They need time to grow and mature,” Hades said. “These are desperate times. I can wait no longer.”

  The goddess of springtime scoffed. “Oh, please. It’s because of that woman again. Sixty years, and you still can’t get over her!”

  Hazel had to mentally kick herself, reminding herself that Persephone wasn’t talking about Marie Levesque. She was talking about Maria di Angelo, the mother of Bianca and Nico di Angelo.

  “My dove, please,” Hades sighed. “I thought you didn’t want to talk about her.”

  Persephone huffed. “You’re right, I don’t. But since you’re so focused on that Great Prophecy…”

  “I’ve explained it before,” Hades clenched his fists around the obsidian table. “That idiot son of Poseidon cannot be allowed to be the child of the prophecy.”

  “You do know that’s not how it works, right?” Persephone dryly pointed out. “Even you can’t control fate, my love.”

  Hades didn’t seem to be listening. “Bianca is twelve as of now. In just four years, she has the chance to become the child of prophecy. And finally, a child of mine will be welcomed as a hero. All will know and respect the House of Hades.”

  Hazel pushed her plate across the table. She interrupted their discussion with a cough. “Can I be excused?”

  Persephone glanced at her briefly. “Yes, yes, Hazel, go on.”

  Hades spared her a few more seconds. “Already finished?”

  “I don’t need to eat, Father,” Hazel pointed out with an awkward smile.

  He nodded quickly. If Hazel didn’t know any better, she’d say he was a little embarrassed.

  She made her way out of the room quickly and headed to the Garden of Persephone, the only place with anything resembling sunlight. She summoned a chunk of gold; a laughably easy feat to do in the mineral-rich Underworld, even with her powers weakened by…well, being dead.

  It was time to make some calls.