Matt shook me awake a while later. I pulled out my headphones, and watched him pull something from his backpack, a water bottle and an oddly familiar bottle in his hand.

"I got Caleb to give me your Clozapine when you asked me to go instead of Simon. He was hesitant, because it's sort of against the rules for anyone in support group to have medication on their person, but he allowed it. Even in the Underworld, you have to take your meds."

I frowned. It wasn't like they'd been helping since I got them, though I suppose since I got to the Underworld the hallucination had been few and far between... But I figured that was for the same reason they were non-existent on Olympu. Nonetheless, I took the pill and chased it down with water. Matt seemed satisfied.

"Okay," I said. "Your turn to sleep. I'll wake you up in a few hours, then we'll start for the Fields of Asphodel."

Matt looked at me, and shook his head. "I'm okay. We need to go."

"Um... No." I said. He was obviously exhausted, and he needed sleep just as much as I did. "Matt, you can't tell me you're not tired."

"I accidentally fell asleep when I was supposed to be on watch, I'm fine." He said quickly. I furrowed my brows, but as I opened my mouth he'd already moved on. "Besides, we don't have time. It's gotta be at least Wednesday now, the eighteenth. If it took us so long to reach the Acheron in the middle of the Fields of Punishment, it's going to take time to get to the Fields of Asphodel and then all the way bak. Factor in recovery time from shadow travelling again..."

I shuddered at the thought of shadow travelling again any time soon. "Okay. I get it. This would be a whole lot easier if Hades gave us some sort of help. He is, you know, my dad."

It was said as an empty statement. I didn't think Hades would hear, much less respond. The ground shook below us like a mini earthquake. Startled, I turned to face Matt. It seemed to take him a second longer to realize what was happening, all the while the souls around us were screaming more frantically. Then I saw a soul in the next section over dive into his flaming fire pool, charring him black. Whatever was coming was enough to scare him into willingly being punished.

Then, it came into view. A silver chariot emblazoned with Greek depictions of death make the ground quake underneath it. It rolled over the lava streams that separated the sections like there was no break in the ground whatsoever, and it pulsed with black light like energy. It was pulled by two very large, very scary skeleton horses. They fixed me with red, glowing eyes, and were wearing black feathery plumes on their heads.

Inside the chariot was what appeared to be a Roman soldier. He had a helmet on, gold shoulder plates and body armour, a red woollen tunic, and was holding a javelin in the had he wasn't using to hold the horses' reins. The charioteer pulled the horses to a halt in front of us. He moved big, muscular arms (that were slightly transparent, allowing a view of the inner workings of an arm that I did not need to see) to lift off his - no, her helmet. She looked at me behind translucent skin, and after a moment she stepped down off the silver chariot.

"You asked for help?" She asked in a gravelly voice, pulling whisky tendrils of brown hair from the bun that was previously hiding in her helmet.

"Um... Hi." I offered. "Didn't really expect my dad to answer."

She blinked. "I did not answer to Lord Hades. I answered to you, m'lady."

Matt, very confused, looked at me for some sort of explanation. Then his expression softened as he came to a conclusion. "Oh. Just like when you yelled 'stop'. Y/N, you have control over the Underworld, and apparently a legionary on Hades' elite guard."

I paused. Okay, so I could stop the Underworld for ten seconds at a time, and I had a dead chauffeur. I noted the javelin; a dead chauffeur and fighter. That was actually pretty helpful.

"Get in, demigods." The Legionary instructed. "I will bring you where you seek."

Matt and I scrambled to get our sleeping bags and bed rolls into our backpacks. I took my stand in the chariot to the right of the Legionary, feeling an awkward calm beside her. Like her muscly arms and javelin could protect me from anything.

"What's your name?" I asked. It seemed like an innocent question, but she looked at me with wide brown eyes. I swallowed. Those big, beefy arms might also be good for strangling me. I put my hands up, "Unless you don't want to answer, that's totally fine."

She dipped her head. "My apologies, m'lady." She looked back up at me. "I am just stunned. Lord Hades does not stop to ask for names. I am Fabia Paulina, daughter the praetor Quintus Fabius Maximus."

"Well, Fabia," Matt climbed into the chariot beside me. "Take us to the Fields of Asphodel."

She didn't move. Matt and I locked eyes.

"Fabia?" I tried, she nodded at me.

"Yes, m'lady?"

"Take us to the Fields of Asphodel?"

Fabia lifted her helmet over her head, tightened her grip on the reins, and the horses started running.

"Guess she doesn't like you." I shrugged to Matt. We gripped on tight as the chariot sped up. Where the souls had previously screamed my name and begged for my help, now they dodged out of the way and cowered from the silver chariot I was riding in. If a particular soul looked rowdy, Fabia would point her spear in its direction and growl.

I'll admit I was a little calmer now that we had a fast mode of transportation, though I wondered if Fabia had any means of crossing the Acheron. If not, only half our problems were solved. At least we had someone with a weapon now. That might count for something. Either way I couldn't help but feel antsy, like something was happening. I pressed my thumb into my forefinger while still gripping the edge of the chariot.

~

I was surprised when Fabia stuck her javelin towards the horizon. "We are almost there, m'lady."

I'd expected it to take longer. Silently, I thanked Hades for giving me free roam of the Underworld and its occupants. Without this transportation, it could have taken a lot longer. Even still, my knuckles were sore from gripping tight to the chariot, and I was glad we'd be stopping soon.

We passed by the pavilion of judgement in the peaceful quiet between the Fields of Punishment and the Fields of Asphodel, and I was surprised by how few souls were passing through. I looked past to see Cerberus, and the few souls waiting to pass him, too. We had four days left, and so far we'd been in the Underworld for probably two. With Fabia I had no doubt we could make it on time, granted we actually found a cure and everything worked out okay, but still it was noticeable that a lot of souls were not where they were supposed to be.

I'd just assumed seeing the Fields of Asphodel would bring me joy. I'd see the place and heave a sigh of relief, knowing the souls in the Fields of Asphodel, shades as I'd come to learn they were called, wouldn't scream my name and beg for help, or yell in agony.

Of course, my reaction was the exact opposite. Mostly because it wasn't the shades I was seeing.

As the Fields of Asphodel came into view, I was confronted with possibly my worst nightmare. My breath caught in my throat. Was I Henry now? Trapped in my own hallucination? Because there in front of me were the men and women in white, come to bring me out of my fantasy and into the real world.

They were all dressed like my normal hallucinations, in various articles of pure white clothes from head to toe. Hats, scarves, dresses, suits, t-shirts, shorts, socks, sandals, shoes, everything. And they all looked at me. They all smiled. They all knew, I was trapped.

In a blur I released my grip on the chariot, furiously pulling up my sleeve.

Pain is real.

But before I could press into the wound poisoned by the Dieffenbachia tree, I tumbled out of the fast-moving chariot. I heard it whistle to a halt as Fabia aggressively pulled on the horses' reins. Despite the aching pain now present in my right side after an awkward landing with my backpack, I stood. Pain was real, so maybe that was enough - but no, they were still there. I pulled the backpack off my shoulders and dropped it to the side.

The chariot stood between me and the Fields of Asphodel, and Fabia and Matt jumped from the chariot to join me. I lifted my right arm to my left but stopped, the pain in my side made it hard for me to move my arm.

"Y/N," Matt said softly, standing in front of me. No matter how calm he made his voice, I could see the worry and panic on his face. "Y/N, look at me. It's going to be okay."

Okay? I grit my teeth and moved my arm fast and hard into my wound. I cried out, but didn't look away from the hallucination. There were a hundred of them, unwavering, none disappearing. I tried to breathe, I tried to figure out what was happening, and why now. A second ago I felt confident in the Underworld and my ability to control it. Now the Underworld had become my prison, my room in the psych ward.

It only got worse when they moved closer, and I could see their faces. My eyes widened as I saw familiar faces - the man from Simon's dad's car, the old woman who was only sleeping, and the girl. The girl from outside Dr. Clinn's office. Before any of this happened.

I didn't let go from pressing down until Matt pulled my hand away.

"Tell me what you see." He said. Without hesitation, I opened my mouth.

"They're everywhere." I said shakily. "They won't go away, and they're everywhere."

"M'lady, what is it you wish me to do?" Fabia asked, javelin at the ready. I ignore her. Matt's gaze shifted from eye to eye, like he was thinking.

"Y/N, what do they look like."

"It doesn't matter what they look like!" I said, falling to my knees. I could feel heat rise to my cheeks, tears prick my eyes. "They're everywhere. It's over."

"I don't—" Matt stopped himself. "I don't like doing this to my friends. But Y/N, look into my eyes."

I furrowed my brow as he kneeled in front of me.

"Be calm." He said. It was like he'd whispered it inside of my head. My breath slowed. I took a shaky breath, moving to speak, but I couldn't get any words out. "What do they look like."

"There's a small girl with blonde hair and glasses, beside a tall man in a white leather jacket. And a girl with dark skin and curly dark hair. There's a boy with a backwards cap on. An old woman and an old man holding hands." My eyes locked on a woman more familiar than the others. One who wasn't smiling, but held a look of urgency. "There's—"

"A guy with Elvis hair. A woman in a white pantsuit. A red-head with a million freckles." He paused. "And Francine." Matt added. The calm had dropped.

"What?" I asked quietly. For some reason, I could tell he'd dropped his hypnotic stare and traded it with one of sympathy. He glanced over his shoulder at Fabia, who seemed confused and waited patiently in a stiff stance.

"Y/N, do you see the people I just described?" Matt asked.

"I... You can't see my hallucinations. How...?" I closed my mouth. It was like deja vu.

"Y/N," he stood in front of me. "What you're seeing right now... It's not a hallucination." And everything clicked.

I swallowed. Slowly, I stood. I moved my sore arm into my pocket, and retrieved my iPod nano. Matt nodded to himself, like he'd expected as much. I felt numb as I used my left hand to put the earbuds in. I pressed play, and turned up the volume.

I slowly walked over to the chariot, slower still I sat down and rested my back against the side of it.

I took a deep breath.

I started to cry.

Perhaps you don't understand yet why I was crying. You don't understand what Matt seeing the people in white meant. Let me tell you. It meant that the last four years had been a lie.

If Matt could see them, if Matt could see Francine, Matt could see my hallucinations. Only, they weren't hallucinations if he could see them. What once meant I was schizophrenic now only confirmed my heritage; a child of Hades. Because these were the shades of Asphodel, the neutral souls, only their memories hadn't been destroyed since Monday, the worst day for me in terms of hallucinations. Or, I guess, not hallucinations.

But I still had so many questions. Why had I seen some before Monday? Why hadn't Hades said anything when I'd brought up my diagnoses. Why didn't anyone else see... There were some questions only the gods themselves could answer. And I intended to ask him when I got the chance.

I don't know how long I sat there. Matt and Fabia didn't try to intervene. I build walls around myself since the first time I'd sat in Dr. Clinn's office. Rules that my hallucinations followed. How to deal with them. I built these walls to protect myself from impending insanity. The walls crumbled around me.

~

It took a while for me to get control of myself again. I knew that the longer I sat here, the more of a chance the souls had to run ramped around the worlds. They didn't seem to be harmful, but I'd come to realize that's not what Hades meant. If their testimonies to me when I thought they were hallucinations meant anything, it meant that the reason they'd escape the Underworld wasn't to destroy the world or anything - it was to fins their loved ones and pretend to be alive again.

I pulled my headphones out, and stood to face them. They hadn't moved since the last time they moved forward, and I couldn't tell if it was because of me or because there was some sort of boundary between this area of calm and the Fields of Asphodel.

"Francine." I said.

Matt, who'd previously been distracted by trying to talk to Fabia, stepped quickly to my side. He looked exhausted, and when he noticed me looking he stood up a little straighter.

The twenty-one year old stepped away from the other shades, and walked until she was in front of me. Francine locked her dark brown eyes on mine, she was still in her white robe.

"You knew." I said shortly.

"I tried to tell you." Francine agreed, voice hoarse like a smoker. "I shouldn't know everything, I shouldn't remember anything. I was under the impression you'd understand. As a demigod, I used what little strength I had left to cause disturbance to your iPod. I'm sorry, but I needed you to listen."

"And before you could explain, Hades found you and dragged you back to the Underworld." She nodded. "You've been in the Fields of Asphodel ever since?"

"Yes."

"Did you see who poisoned the Lethe?" Matt asked suddenly. I remembered him saying there was a small fountain of it in his cabin that had stopped flowing.

Francine shook her head. "When I died on a quest three weeks ago, I had died a heroes death. My questing partners buried me with drachma, so I could pay for a ferry to the Underworld a week later. I was sent to the Isle of the Blessed; Elysium. I was supposed to be reborn, this Tuesday actually, but by the time I was supposed to drink from the Lethe, nothing happened."

My mouth opened. She didn't know who'd done it, but she knew something else that was equally if not more important. "The River Lethe," I said. "Can you take us there?"

Francine nodded, and looked at Fabia warily. "But the warrior does not come."

I furrowed my brows, but Matt managed to ask "Why?" first.

"Any souls not in Elysium were thought to be escapees of the Fields of Asphodel. The only secure place is the Fields of Punishment, that do not rely on the Lethe. Before you now are those of us who remember, throughout the field are the shades who came before Monday. Because I was found far from the Isle of the Blessed, Hades' guards and minions placed me here without seeking out who I was. They thought I was fleeing."

"M'lady," Fabia cut in for the first time. "If I may, I am not leaving you alone. You called upon me, it is my duty to protect and serve you. You asked my name, that kindness will be repaid in my protection."

"I promise, Francine," I said, "When we fix this, I'll make sure Hades sorts through who belongs where. You will get rebirth... Whatever that means. But with all due respect, I don't think Fabia is going anywhere."

Francine pursed her lips. "Okay. Let's go."

I looked at Matt, who smiled at me. That was reassuring. I picked up my backpack, and got ready to step into the chariot.

Fabia stopped me. "Apologies, m'lady." She said. "No souls are permitted to ride this chariot. It is better if we go on foot."

~

Our quest of two had quickly doubled to a quest of four. Fabia was adamant about the other shades staying behind and not following us. The ones that had long forgotten who they were wouldn't come close, as if they knew just by seeing the Legionary at my side that I was not to be talked to.

Francine, who seemed to know Matt at least in passing, stuck by his side rather than mine. They led, and I walked beside my designated bodyguard. I'm not going to lie, walking to the Lethe was harder than walking through the Fields of Punishment. Everywhere I turned I was reminded of my latest discovery. Everywhere I turned I had to remind myself not to have a mental breakdown.

"It's here." Francine said shortly.

I caught up to them, and stepped onto the bank of the river. Poplar trees stood around us like stone guards around the Lethe. It's poppies, like I'd see in the vision Hades showed me, were shrivelled up and dead. The Lethe itself was a dirty grey colour, like sewage.

Matt dropped his backpack from his shoulders and pulled out a metal flask the size of my fist. It made sense, Simon would have had it instead of me, which is why Matt had it now. But even still I'd completely forgotten to even consider bringing one, because I hadn't known it had been packed.

"Usually you shouldn't touch the Lethe," Matt told me. "A single drop of this stuff will revert your mind to that of a newborn baby." He uncorked the vial, and moved closer to the slow moving river.

Francine cut in front of him. "Even so, Matteo, I'd rather if I did it. We still don't know what poison could have done this, and just because I'm okay after bathing in it to try and erase my memories, maybe you won't be. I'm already dead."

Matt nodded, and handed Francine the flask. She dipped it into the murky water. "When you return to Camp, can you do me a favour?"

"Of course." Matt replied.

"Tell Caleb I say hello."

"I will." Matt promised.

Her caramel skin seemed to dissolve within the river, yet when she pulled the now full flask out, her hand seemed fine. I shrugged it off. Who knows if that was just the poison doing whatever it did? I figured if Matt had stuck his hand in there, the same thing would happen, but instead of his hand coming out intact, he'd lose the whole thing. I shuddered and pushed past the thought.

She straightened up, and turned back to us. As she reached to pass Matt the flask, her whole body went stiff. Her eyes widened. Piercing through her abdomen was an arrow with a purple pulsing arrow head. Fabia jumped in front of me, spear ready. Matt moved to catch Francine as her eyes closed and she fell into him, but as her skin met his, she dissolved into mist, leaving only the flask in his hand. I pulled him by the elbow to my side.

Completely stunned, I looked to the other side of the Lethe. Poised on a hill ten feet away was a boy in Greek battle armour. Without a helmet, he showed off his neatly trimmed black hair, his blue anisocoria eyes pierced through his porcelain skin, one pupil larger than the other. On his forearm I noted a tattoo, but couldn't make out what it was. He smirked at me.

"Normal arrows would have gone right through her." He mused as he walked closed. As he descended down the hill, more people in Greek armour marched after him. "That one's magic. Kills the dead."

He hadn't shot the arrow. A girl with blonde hair and dark eyes behind him had. She held the bow with a proud grin on her faced. I noticed the the boy, maybe sixteen years old, the same age as Matt, was holding some sort of sword. It was a mix of gold, bronze, black, and silver - I wasn't sure what it was made out of.

My eyes widened. He poisoned the Lethe, and with a sword forged from four metals attacked my palace while I was distracted, I recalled Hades saying.

"Who are you?" I asked. Fabia held her javelin at the ready. The boy had four people behind him, I didn't know if it would be a fair fight. Matt had his powers, but I couldn't do much besides cower behind my Legionary.

"Me?" The boy asked in a rather low voice. Matt looked at me behind tired and frightened eyes. I understood why. Hades never said anything about this guy still being in the Underworld.

"Well," He continued, grinning. "I'm the child of Hades."