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ANDROMEDA GOT NOT SLEEP THAT NIGHT. even though she felt very tired.

everybody else seemed to have passed out from exhaustion. grover was dozing in the blue light of the television. in a corner, nico stared off into the screen, having thoughts way far away from the nature channel that was going on.

andromeda desperately wanted to go up and talk to him. but. . .after what happened with bianca, she could see how nico had been affected. and she wanted to remind him that even if his sister was gone, she still loved him. but bianca ignoring him altogether and answering instantly to percy was a little wrong.

but most of what bianca had said was right. about the grudges, and kronos. and andromeda wanted nico to realize the weight of it. she wanted bim to know that he was important. but she could think of no polite way to tell your existence is a threat to the world and you could be kidnapped for that! so she didn't say anything.

"stop staring."

she shook her thoughts away. "what?"

nico glared at the screen. "stop. staring. at. me."

"are you sure i was staring?"

nico looked at her, unamused.

"why are you mad at me, nico?"

"because you're his friend. you never said you were. and if you are, i don't like you."

"i'm not his friend."

nico raised an eyebrow.

"i don't even like him. he's barely tolerable. but he wouldn't do what you accuse him of. i saw him with bianca in my dream last winter break. he was very careful of her. he wouldn't do that to you. he promised."

"people break promises."

"i don't. and can promise you he didn't. i can promise you i won't let anything like that happen to you. i can promise to help you and protect you. i can promise to never betray you or let you down. and i can keep these promises."

nico's eyes softened. just a little. "those are a lot of promises."

andromeda smiled. "you've been through a lot."

nico looked away.

"minos isn't your friend, nico." andromeda warned. she turned to face the wooden ceiling of the house. "don't trust him. the way he spoke. . .he's manipulating you. he definetly has some tricks up his sleeve. and i don't want you falling into them."

nico was silent.

"i mean well, nico. i mean the best for you. . .you deserve it."

she couldn't be sure whether or not he heard it, because she had said it in an almost incoherent voice, but she knew she would be crossing a line if she spoke more. so she resolved into silence.

grover was wide awake ahead of the television screen, watching the nature channel with a frown on his face. she could only imagine what rollercoaster this must've been for him.

she saw the date on the channel, and with a shock, she realized that they had been away from camp for a week. a whole week had been spent while this was their second night sleeping. seven days? that was a lot, even by labyrinth standards.

and oh gods grover's searcher's license. it would be revoked the moment he stepped foot into camp grounds. she knew it. the cloven elders wouldn't give them another extension.

but it wouldn't be revoked. because she promised herself she would find pan for him. and she intended to keep her promises.

● _____《°•○ \|/ ○•°》_____ ●

the next morning, they walked down to the cattle guard and said our goodbyes.

"nico, you could come with us," percy blurted out.

he shook his head. none of them slept well in the demon ranch house, but nico looked worse than anybody else. his eyes were red and his face chalky. he was wrapped in a black robe that must've belonged to geryon, because it was three sizes too big even for a grown man.

"i need time to think." his eyes swept over her face for a moment, but from his tone she could see that he was still angry. she decided not to say anything, she was stepping over a line already.

"nico," annabeth said. "bianca just wants you to be okay."

she put her hand on his shoulder, but he pulled away and trudged up the road toward the ranch house, the morning mist seemed to clinging to him.

"i'm worried about him," andromeda frowned at his retreating figure. "if he starts talking to minos's ghost again -"

"he'll be al right," eurytion promised. the cowherd had cleaned up nicely. he was wearing new jeans and a clean western shirt, geryon's boots and he'd trimmed his beard. "the boy can stay here and gather his thoughts as long as he wants. he'll be safe, i promise."

"what about you?" percy asked.

eurytion scratched orthus behind each chin. "things are going to be run a little different on this ranch from now on. no more sacred cattle meat. i'm thinking about soybean patties. and i'm going to befriend those flesh-eating horses. might just sign up for the next rodeo."

percy shuddered. "well, good luck."

"yep." eurytion spit into the grass. "i reckon you'll be looking for daedalus's workshop now?"

annabeth's eyes lit up. "can you help us?"

eurytion studied the cattle guard, suddenly uncomfortable. "don't know where it is. but hephaestus probably would."

"that's what hera said," annabeth agreed. "but how do we find hephaestus?"

eurytion pulled something from under the collar of his shirt. a necklace — a smooth silver disk on a silver chain. the disk had a depression on the middle, like a thumbprint. he handed it to annabeth.

"hephaestus comes here from time to time," eurytion said. "studies the animals and such so he can make bronze automaton copies. last time, i — uh — did him a favor. a little trick he wanted to play on my dad, ares, and aphrodite. he gave me that chain in gratitude. said if i ever needed to find him, the disk would lead me to his forges. but only once."

"and you're giving it to me?" annabeth asked.

eurytion blushed. "i don't need to see the forges, miss. got enough to do here. just press the button and you'll be on your way."

annabeth pressed the button and the disk sprang to life. it grew eight metallic legs. she shrieked and dropped it, leaving eurytion's confused.

"spider!"

"she's, um, a little scared of spiders," grover explained. "that old grudge between athena and arachne."

"oh." eurytion looked a little embarrassed. "sorry, miss."

"if it bites me, do i become spider man?"

annabeth slapped evander's hand away with a scolding look. the spider scrambled to the cattle guard and disappeared between the bars.

"hurry," percy urged. "that thing's not going to wait for us."

tyson pulled the cattle guard off the hole, and they dropped back into the maze.

the mechanical spider scuttled along the tunnels so fast, most of time, it was thanks to tyson's and grover's excellent hearing, that they knew which way it was going.

they ran down a marble tunnel, then dashed to the left, almost falling into an abyss. andromeda hauled percy back before he could. the tunnel continued in front, but there was no way to get across the gap except a series of iron rungs in the ceiling. the mechanical spider was about halfway across, swinging from bar to bar by shooting out metal web fiber.

"monkey bars," annabeth said. "i'm great at these."

she leaped onto the first rung and started swinging her way across.

"she's scared of tiny spiders," said evander, right behind her. "but not of plummeting to her death from a set of monkey bars. i love my girl."

annabeth got to the opposite side and ran after the spider. evander followed.

andromeda sighed as she jumped on the first bar. her upper body strength was just fine — she'd held the damn sky — but she just didn't like how her legs swung under her like they might fall off. she looked back after crossing and saw tyson giving grover a piggyback ride, he made it across in three swings, which was a good thing since, just as he landed, the last iron bar ripped free under his weight.

they kept moving and passed a skeleton crumpled in the tunnel. the spider didn't slow down. percy slipped on a pile of wood scraps, but in the torchlight they were seen as pencils — hundreds broken in half.

the tunnel opened up onto a large room. a blazing light made andromeda squint her eyes, once she could see, the first thing she noticed were the skeletons littered the floor. some old and white. others more recent and disturbing.

then she saw the monster. she stood on a glittery dais on the opposite side of the room with the body of a lion and the head of a woman. her hair in a tight bun and her face plastered with too much makeup. she had a blue ribbon badge pinned to her chest that took andromeda couldn't read.

tyson whimpered. "sphinx."

annabeth started forward, but the sphinx roared, showing fangs in her otherwise human face. bars locked them in on both tunnel exits.

immediately the monster's snarl turned into a brilliant smile.

"welcome, lucky contestants!" she announced. "get ready to play. . .answer that riddle!"

canned applause blasted from the ceiling. spotlights swept across the room and reflected off the dais, throwing glitter over the skeletons on the floor.

"fabulous prizes!" the sphinx said. "pass the test, and you get to advance! fail, and i get to eat you! who will be our contestant?"

annabeth turned to them, determined. "i've got this, i know what she's going to ask."

andromeda had full confidence in annabeth. if the sphinx was going to ask riddles, annabeth was the best one of them to try. she gave her friend an encouraging smile.

she stepped forward to the contestant's podium, pushing aside a skeleton in a school uniform as it clattered to the floor.

"sorry," annabeth told it.

"welcome, annabeth chase!" the monster cried. "are you ready for your test?"

"yes. ask your riddle."

"twenty riddles, actually!" the sphinx said gleefully.

"what? but back in the old days —"

"oh, we've raised our standards! to pass, you must show proficiency in all twenty. isn't that great?"

applause switched on and off above them.

annabeth glanced back at them nervously. evander gave her an encouraging nod.

"okay," she told the sphinx. "i'm ready."

a drumroll sounded from above. the sphinx's eyes glittered with excitement. "what. . .is the capital of bulgaria?"

annabeth frowned. and andromeda wouldn't blame her for not knowing. that wasn't a riddle.

"sofia," she said, "but —"

"correct!" more canned applause. the sphinx smiled widely, her fangs showed. "please be sure to mark your answer clearly on your test sheet with a number two pencil."

"what?" annabeth looked mystified. then a test booklet appeared on the podium in front of her, along with a sharpened pencil.

"make sure you bubble each answer clearly and stay inside the circle, if you have to erase, erase completely or the machine will not be able to read your answers."

"what machine?"

the sphinx pointed with her paw. over by the spotlight was a bronze box with a bunch of gears and levers and a big greek letter êta on the side, the mark of hephaestus.

"now," said the sphinx, "next question -"

"wait a second," annabeth protested. "what about 'what walks on four legs in the morning'?"

"beg your pardon?" the sphinx said, clearly annoyed.

"the riddle about the man. he walks on four legs in the morning, like a baby, two legs in the afternoon, like an adult, and three legs in the evening, as an old man with a cane. that's the riddle you used to ask."

"exactly why we changed the test!" the sphinx exclaimed. "you already knew the answer. now second question, what is the square root of sixteen?"

"four, but —"

"correct! which u.s. president signed the emancipation proclamation?"

"abraham lincoln, but —"

"correct! riddle number four. how much —"

"hold up!" annabeth shouted. "these aren't riddles,"

"why is she mad? she's doing great! let's get this over with so we can get out of here!"

"what do you mean?" the sphinx snapped. "of course they are. this test material is specially designed —"

andromeda agreed with percy a little. annabeth could answer the twenty questions like rapid fire.

"they're just a bunch of dumb, random facts, riddles are supposed to make you think."

"think? how am i supposed to test whether you can think? that's ridiculous! now, how much force is required —"

"stop!" annabeth insisted. "this is a stupid test."

"um, annabeth," grover cut in nervously. "maybe you should just, you know, finish first and complain later?"

"i'm a child of athena, and this is an insult to my intelligence. i won't answer these questions."

the spotlights glared. the sphinx's eyes glittered pure black.

"why then, my dear," the monster said calmly. "if you won't pass, you fail. and since we can't allow any children to be held back, you'll be eaten!"

the sphinx bared her gleaming claws. she pounced at the podium.

andromeda pulled annabeth back and waved a shield encasing them inside. the sphinx growled, clawing at the purple mana.

"let's get out of here." andromeda tried to strengthen the magic. "quick!"

they all drew their weapons.

"turn invisible," evander told annabeth, standing in front of her.

"i can fight!"

"no!" the three of them yelled.

"the sphinx is after you!" percy approved. "let us get it."

with a hit from the sphinx, the shield shattered and the statue ran for them. grover poked her in the eye with somebody's leg bone. she screeched in pain. annabeth put on her cap and vanished. the sphinx pounced right were she'd been standing, but came up with empty paws.

"no fair!" the sphinx wailed. "cheater!"

with annabeth no longer in sight, the sphinx turned on percy. he raised his sword, but tyson ripped the monster's grading machine out of the floor and threw it at the sphinx's head. it landed broken beside her.

"my grading machine!" she cried. "i can't be exemplary without my test scores!"

the bars lifted from the exits. they all dashed for the tunnel. the sphinx started to follow, but evander turned and did some gestures with his hands. the pencils collected around the sphinx's paws, grew roots and branches, and began wrapping around the monster's legs. the sphinx ripped through them but it brought them just enough time. the bars slammed shut just as they fell in.

"annabeth!" evander yelled.

"here!" she said, right next to them. "keep moving!"

they ran through the dark tunnels, listening to the complaining roars of the sphinx.

they breathed a sigh of relief. annabeth materialized before them.

evander was the first to reach her. "you okay?"

she nodded feverently. "i'm okay."

"i think we lost the spider," percy frowned, looking around.

"no," tyson said. he tapped his ear. "i can hear it."

"lead the way big guy,"

they made a few turns, backtracked a few times, and eventually found the spider banging its tiny head on an oval door with metal rivets around the edges and a wheel for a doorknob. where the portal should've been was a big brass plaque, green with age, with a greek êta inscribed in the middle.

they all looked at each other.

"ready to meet hephaestus?" grover asked nervously.

"no," percy admitted.

"yes!" tyson said gleefully, and he turned the wheel.

as soon as the door opened, the spider scuttled inside with tyson right behind it. the rest of them followed.

the room was enormous. it looked like a mechanic's garage, with several hydraulic lifts. some had cars on them, others had stranger things: a bronze hippalektryon with its horse head off, a bunch of wires hanging out its rooster tail, a metal lion hooked up to a battery charger, a greek war chariot made entirely of flames.

smaller projects cluttered a dozen worktables. tools hung along the walls. each had its own outline on a peg-board, but nothing seemed to be in the right place. under the nearest hydraulic lift, which was holding a ninety-eight model of toyota corolla, a pair of legs stuck out — the lower half of a huge man in grubby gray pants and shoes bigger than tyson's. one leg was in a metal brace.

the spider scuttled straight under the car, and the sounds of banging stopped.

"well, well," a deep voice boomed from under the corolla. "what have we here?"

the mechanic pushed out on a back trolley and sat up. andromeda had seen hephaestus once before, briefly on olympus, but here in his own workshop, he wore a jumpsuit smeared with oil and grime. hephaestus, was embroidered over the chest pocket. his leg creaked and clicked in its metal brace as he stood. his left shoulder was lower than his right, so he seemed to be leaning despite standing up straight. his head was misshapen and bulging with a permanent scowl. his black beard smoked and hissed. periodically, small fires would erupt in his whiskers then die out. his huge hands handled the spider with amazing skill. he disassembled it in two seconds, then put it back together.

"there," he muttered to himself. "much better."

the spider flipped happily in his palm, shot a metallic web at the ceiling, and swung away.

hephaestus glowered. "i didn't make you, did i?"

"uh," annabeth said, "no, sir."

"good, shoddy workmanship."

"we've met, sir," percy told him.

"have we?" the god asked absentmindedly. "well then, if i didn't smash you to a pulp the first time we met, i suppose i won't have to do it now." he looked at grover, frowing. "satyr." then he looked at tyson. his eyes twinkled. "well, a cyclops. good, good. what are you doing traveling with this lot?"

"uh. . ."

"yes, well said, so, there'd better be a good reason you're disturbing me. the suspension on this corolla is no small matter, you know."

"sir," annabeth said hesitantly, "we're looking for daedalus. we thought —"

"daedalus?" the god roared. "you want that old scoundrel? you dare to seek him out!"

his beard burst into flames and his black eyes glowed.

"uh, yes, sir, please," andromeda said.

"humph. you're wasting your time." he frowned at something on his worktable. he limped over to it, tinkering with a lump of springs and metal plates. seconds later, it was a bronze and silver falcon. it spread its metal wings, blinked its obsidian eyes, and flew around the room. tyson laughed, clapping his hands. the bird landed on his shoulder and nipped his ear affectionately.

hephaestus regarded him. his scowl remained, but something kinder twinkled in his eyes. "i sense you have something to tell me, cyclops."

tyson's smile faded. "y-yes, lord. we met a hundred-handed one."

"briares?"

"yes. he — he was scared. he would not help us."

"and that bothered you."

"yes!" tyson's voice wavered. "briares should be strong! he is older and greater than cyclopes. but he ran away."

hephaestus grunted. "there was a time i admired the hundred-handed ones. back in the days of the first war. but people, monsters, even gods change, young cyclops. you can't trust 'em. look at my loving mother, hera. you met her, didn't you? she'll smile to your face and talk about how important family is, eh? didn't stop her from pitching me off mount olympus when she saw my ugly face."

"but i thought zeus did that to you," percy said.

hephaestus cleared his throat and spat into a bronze spittoon. he snapped his fingers, and the robotic falcon flew back to the worktable.

"mother likes telling that version of the story, makes her seem more likeable, doesn't it? blaming it all on my dad. truth is, she likes families, but perfect families. she took one look at me and. . .well, i don't fit the image, do i?"

he pulled a feather from the falcon's back, and it fell apart.

"believe me, young cyclops," hephaestus said, "you can't trust others. all you can trust is the work of your own hands."

and maybe last winder break, andromeda would have agreed. she would've presented her own case as evidence. but on closer inspection, she would be proven wrong. because even back then, whatever she was doing was for the people she loved. if she had no one to love, she would not have made it to fifteen. and love didn't form without trust.

still, she could understand where hephaestus was coming from. his wife had been cheating on him for the past millenia with a better-looking god who earned the favour of the parents that abandoned him.

his eyes swept over her face, and his eyebrow raised, as if he was questioning her thoughts. then he looked at percy. "oh, this one doesn't like me, no worries, i'm used to that. your girlfriend seemes to understand, though. what would you ask of me, little demigod?"

"she told you," andromeda said. "we need to find daedalus. there's this guy, luke, and he's working for kronos. he's trying to find a way to navigate the labyrinth so he can invade our camp. if we don't get to daedalus first —"

"and i told you, girl. looking for daedalus is a waste of time. he won't help you."

"why not?"

hephaestus shrugged. "some of us get thrown off mountainsides. some of us. . .the way we learn not to trust people is more painful. ask me for gold. or a flaming sword. or a magical steed. these i can grant you easily. but a way to daedalus? that's an expensive favor."

"you know where he is, then," annabeth pressed.

"it isn't wise to go looking, girl."

"my mother says looking is the nature of wisdom."

hephaestus narrowed his eyes. "who's your mother, then?"

"athena."

"figures." he sighed. "fine goddess, athena. a shame she pledged never to marry. all right, half-blood. i can tell you what you want to know. but there is a price. i need a favor done."

"name it," annabeth said.

hephaestus laughed — the sound boomed. "you heroes, always making rash promises. how refreshing!"

he pressed a button on his workbench, and metal shutters opened along the wall, revealing a huge window overlooking a gray mountain ringed in forests. seemingly a volcano, since smoke rose from its crest.

"one of my forges," hephaestus said. "i have many, but that used to be my favorite."

"that's mount st. helens," grover said. "great forests around there."

"you've been there?" evander asked.

"looking for. . .you know, pan."

"wait," annabeth said, looking at hephaestus. "you said it used to be your favorite. what happened?"

hephaestus scratched his smoldering beard. "well, that's where the monster typhon is trapped, you know. used to be under mount etna, but when we moved to america, his force got pinned under mount st. helens instead. great source of fire, but a bit dangerous. there's always a chance he will escape. lots of eruptions these days, smoldering all the time. he's restless with the titan rebellion."

"what do you want us to do? fight him?"

hephaestus snorted. "that would be suicide. the gods themselves ran from typhon when he was free. no, pray you never have to see him, much less fight him. but lately i have sensed intruders in my mountain. someone or something is using my forges. when i go there, it is empty, they sense me coming, and disappear. i send my automatons to investigate, but they do not return. something. . .ancient is there. evil. i want to know who dares invade my territory, and if they mean to loose typhon."

"you want us to find out who it is," percy guessed.

"aye," hephaestus said. "go there. they may not sense you coming. you are not gods."

"glad you noticed," percy mumbled.

"go and find out what you can," hephaestus said. "report back to me, and i will tell you what you need to know about daedalus."

the four of them shared looks.

"all right, how do we get there?"

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y'all i actually love andromeda and nico's relationship they're so precious

i also did not expect to like evanbeth as much as i do but here we are

shout out to bad boy supreme <3 andy just met his dad