Glitter ran across the sky like a street of light. I swear we had already passed over all of Texas.

"After I passed out what happened?" I asked. I didn't need to hold on. There was also nowhere to hold on, there were no reins. But I had no need, it was like I was born to ride. It must have been an Apollo thing.

"We fled the area and came to rest on the desert mountains on the border of New Mexico and Texas, right by the ocean. You needed rest. As we touched down. Lord Apollo and Lady Artimis showed up."

"Where are we now?"

"My geography isn't very reliable, but I believe we are just passing into Arkansas."

Glitter was racing across the sky. I had never traveled this fast. She was galloping, but at suck incredible speed we out ran a plain.  In no time at all I saw the familiar outline of New York. I wished I had time to stop by the apartment and call Dad and Sally. But I knew camp was in trouble.

"Almost there!"

I could feel the anticipation. I didn't know what to expect, but from everything I had seen and heard and experienced on this quest, I knew it wasn't going to be good.

"Yes My Lady-"

"Please just call my Nora."

"Nora. As you wish My Lady."

I sighed and figured there was no point in arguing.

"I'm going to call up The Sight."

"Yes Lady."

The air in front of me shimmered in heat, everything around me dissolved and the camp shimmered, and sharpened.

Every camper was at the clearing, dressed in full battle armor, but this time it wasn't for capture the flag. The Hephaestus cabin had set up traps around the entrance to the Labyrinth- razor wire, pits filled with pots of Greek fire, rows of sharpened sticks to deflect a charge. Beckendorf was manning two catapults the size of pickup trucks, already primed and aimed at Zeus's Fist.

The Ares cabin was on the front line, drilling in phalanx formation with Clarisse calling orders. I saw Raph. And my heart fluttered. He was pale, but he was holding a shield and sword. I zoomed in just slightly and saw how fractured his eyes were. But he was up and he was fighting.

I saw Lee and Michael and Austin and Kayla and the rest of the Cabin 7 and Hermes's cabins were scattered in the woods with bows ready. Many had taken up positions in the trees. Even the dryads were armed with bows, and the satyrs trotted around with wooden cudgels and shields made of rough tree bark.

Annabeth went to join her brethren from the Athena cabin, who had set up a command tent and were directing operations. A gray banner with an owl fluttered outside the tent. Our security chief, Argus, stood guard at the door. Aphrodite's children were running around straightening everybody's armor and offering to comb the tangles out of our horsehair plumes.

Even Dionysus's kids had found something to do, they were running around providing all the sweaty warriors with water bottles and juice boxes, on the orders of Will. He had set up a front line medical tent. He had his cargo shorts stocked full and had two bags slung over his shoulders full of emergency medical supplies.

I saw Percy talking to Chiron. Chiron had his bow and a full fee quivers. Percy was clipping up his armour as he talked. I saw Grover talking to Juniper. I saw Tyson helping the Hephaestus kids prepare the defenses. He was picking up boulders and piled them next to the catapults for firing.

I blinked and shook my head releasing the Vision.

"NICO!"

I wasn't sure if he would be able to hear. No idea if distance was a problem or we needed like wifi for this to work or what. I figured Hecate was interfering in our connection back in the fortress.

"Oh gods! Nora! Nora is that actually you?"

"Yes you emo grandpa who else can mind link with you?"

"When I see you I'm going to kill you!"

"Awww did you miss me?"

"No."

"Ha. Lier."

"Where are you?"

"You're avoiding my question. I'm in my way. Look to my coming on the first light of the fifth day, at dawn look to the east."

"What was that? Five days?"

"It's a quote from Gandalf!"

"Who?"

"Dude , weren't you born in the 30's? You don't know Gandalf? The wizard from Lord of the Rings?"

"I living in the hotel for 70 years!"

"Oh right. Well it's an awesome book. You should read it. Or watch the movie. Anyways. I'm on my way!"

"Good! 'Cause here they come!"

He cut the mind link off. And I feel sick to my stomach. We need to get there. The fight was starting.

"It's starting!"

"Yes my Lady, I can hear the clash of warriors from here. Time to get ready."

I pulled my bow off my back. Glitter let out a wild battle cry, her hooves letting sparks fly, streams of gold flames and sparks. We sorred across the skyline of New York. She had to slow down or we'd shoot right past camp. I saw Thalia's tree. I could feel the tingle and the heat rising inside my body. I knew the glowing Sol power flowing in my veins.

"There!"

"I see it!"

She touched down smoothly, and galloped up the hill. I saw Peleus. He sat up as we raced up the hill. He bowed his head as we passed through the barrier. He turned and followed us back down the hill. The heat in my veins was intensifying. Glitter raced the the fields and kept over abandoned chariots and over benches and other random things left. I could feel the vibrations of battle. There must be giants amongst the monsters.

Glitter stormed into the forest and without any issues she navigated the first underbrush. I trust her to navigate without issues. While I did my best to see what was happening. I could make out boulders hurtled from catapults, sailing toward the giants. One deflected off a car shield with hardly a dent, but the other caught one in the chest, and the giant went down. I saw Lee and Kayla fire a volley, and more archers followed, dozens of arrows sticking in the thick armor of the giants like porcupine quills. Several found chinks in armor, and some of the giants vaporized at the touch of celestial bronze.

The next wave of monsters surged out of the maze: thirty, maybe forty dracaenae in full battle armor, wielding spears and nets. They dispersed in all directions. Some hit the traps the Hephaestus cabin had laid. One got struck on the spikes and became an easy target for archers. Another triggered a trip wire, and pots of Greek fire exploded into green flames, engulfing several of the snake women. But many more kept coming. Argus and Athena's warriors rushed forward to meet them. I saw Annabeth draw a sword and engage one of them.

I saw Tyson riding a giant. Somehow he'd managed to climb onto the giant's back and was hitting him on the head with a bronze shield—BONG! BONG! BONG!

I took this all in as  We broke through the trees and I saw fully what kind of battle we were dealing with. It was chaos and the campers were going to get overwhelmed so fast.

Glitter reared up and let out another loud battle cry. I let my arrow fly. As it flew through the air it burst into flame. Sticking a giant and ripping its arm to shreds it exploded into ash.

Campers everywhere turned to see. Heads swiveled and mouths dropped open. A few even pointed. I saw out of the corner of my eye Will jumping and whooping. I pulled arrow after arrow taking monster down as Glitter stormed into the frenzie of battle, her hooves stomping monsters sending them back to Tartarus with her fire.

I ducked under a giant who tried to swing at us.

"Circle around. I'll take it out."

"Yes Lady!"

Glitter turned gracefully and charged back at the monster. I got my feet under me, crouching on her back, as she raced inches from monster I leapt off and onto its arm. Im not sure how I managed but I ran up its arm and stood on its shoulders. Pulling two arrows I aimed down and let them go. With the force of two celestial bronze arrows burring up to the feathers in its neck it poofed into ash immediately. Without anything to stand on, my stomach flew into my throat as I dropped from the sky. I lost my grip on my bow, but I knew in a minute it would show back up. I huddled towards the ground. I tucked my body and rolled twice. I came up on my feet. My knives held in my hands. Standing in front of me was none other then a very confused looking Raph. He had lost his helmet and was gripping his sword a d should right.

All I had time for was a grin and a wink before I had to dive out of the way of a hell hound- who was not Miss O'Leary. As I rolled with the animal, I stabbed my knives into its chest and it burnt up in a second. I pushed to my feet, and quickly took in what was around me. I needed to find someone who had my back, I couldn't fight alone, being dead on the battle field was a challenge. I couldn't hear if anything was behind me. And I couldn't keep my head swiveling constantly.

As I quickly looked, sure my hearing was gone, but my eyesight seemed to have sharpened because now I saw horrible things.

An enemy half-blood was fighting with a son of Dionysus, but it wasn't much of a contest. The enemy stabbed him in the arm then clubbed him over the head with the butt of his sword, and Dionysus's son went down. Another enemy warrior shot flaming arrows into the trees, sending our archers and dryads into a panic.

A dozen dracaenae suddenly broke away from the main fight and slithered down the path that led toward camp, like they knew where they were going. If they got out, they could burn down the entire place, completely unopposed. I took off after them. Percy also seemed to notice this. He pointed and must have shouted something. Percy pointed.

He looked where Percy was pointing, saw the serpent women, and immediately understood. Nico took a deep breath and held out his black sword. I saw his mouth moving, and then slammed his sword into the ground. He did the same thing in the Labyrinth to summon the skeletons to help with the grate. And even those three skeletons he was tired after...

The earth trembled. A fissure opened in front of the dracaenae, and a dozen undead warriors crawled from the earth—horrible corpses in military uniforms from all different time periods- U.S. Revolutionaries, Roman centurions, Napoleonic cavalry on skeletal horses. As one, they drew their swords and engaged the dracaenae. Nico crumpled to his knees.

"Nick!" I screamed in my head.

"Tired." He mumbled. "Go...kill stuff...you...Gee..."

His words faded. I knew he was still breathing but didn't have a chance to get over there because I saw a giant swing his bat that was as big as the trees around us. He slammed it into a tree and I saw a few of my Apollo siblings leap from the branches.

I ran towards them. Glitter galloped up beside me, and I leapt into her back. She raced even faster leaving little flickers if flame in her prints. I sent an arrow, but this giant seemed to be the biggest one and the smartest, he was covered in armour. My arrow just got stuck. I cursed. He was swinging his tree club around wildly. I saw Lee and Michael dodging and trying to find an opening. I kept off her back again as she circled behind. I tried the same thing as before, landing in his arm I had to let go of my bow to hold on. He tried to shack me lose.

I pushed off as he tried to use the tree to swat me. He ended up smacking himself. I landed back on the ground, on my feet and a hand for balance, but the moment made me slid back. I felt like a real life super hero doing that move. I lifted my helmeted head and narrowed my eyes at this giant. He opened his mouth a roared. Lee was beside me, trying to talk.

I held my hands out and sighed faster then I ever have.

"Deaf. And mute. We need to kill a giant story time later. Also I missed you. Also I love you!"

Lee pulled me into a tight bone crushing hug. I only had time to quickly hug him back before pushing him away as a tree sized club swung our way. I saw Lee scramble to his feet. As I leapt to mine. Lee and I both pulled arrows out. I let mine fly, Lee for some reason held his a split second longer. So he didn't have a chance to jump out of the way of the club which connected with his head.

I screamed. But nobody heard. I watched, in slow motion as his body sored through the air and slammed into a tree. His broken body rumbled to the ground and he didn't get up. I must have moved my feet, because now I was kneeling beside his bloody and broken body and I hugged his lifeless body. I couldn't even try to fix him. The club to the skull killed him in impact. I let out another guy wrenching broken scream. But no body heard. No one could hear my anguish.

I felt vibrations of the giant storming closer. I spun around on my knees. I could feel the pain of rising it felt consuming and like I was going to drown in the sudden title wave of it. I layed his body back down. Getting to my feet I pulled out my knives and with a silent scream, I charged. The pain and sorrow of losing a brother fuild me.

I ducked and leapt up onto his back using my knives to stab in and climb up until I reached an open part with no armour.

"Go to Tartarus!" I snarled and stabbed both knives into the crack of his armour. He finally poofed into dust.

Just when it seemed like the battle had balanced out again- like we might stand a chance- something came from the Labyrinth, something that made the ground shake, sending vibrations into my legs. I spun my knives. Ready for this new threat. I was angry, and I was ready.

This monster shot into the sky, she had bat wings fully extended. She landed on the top of Zeus's Fist and surveyed the carnage. Her face was filled with evil glee. The mutant animal heads in her belt growled at her waist. Snakes hissed and swirled around her legs. In her right hand she held a glittering ball of thread- Ariadne's string- but she popped it into a lion's mouth at her waist and drew her curved swords. The blades glowed green with poison. Kampê was her name, she was a jailor of some kind in Tartarus I thought, how could she be here?

She opened her mouth and apparently made a noise that scared the campers. Every face I saw twisted in fear and terror. I saw O
others run and get trampled by hellhounds or giants.

I cursed. Maybe it was a good thing I couldn't hear. I wasn't easily scared. With my entire body glowing fire hot, sparks and flames of fire from my hair, my eyes glowing with angry sparks, I ran towards this monster, dodging monsters or slicing through them.

I saw Tyson untangling himself from the giant whom he'd pummeled into unconsciousness. He ran at our lines, shouting, something. He spotted me and waved a big crooked tooth grin.

But a hellhound leaped on him, and Tyson and the hound went rolling away.

Kampê landed on the Athena command tent, smashing it flat. I ran towards it, Percy and Annabeth joined my side. Percy glanced at me and nodded solumly. I just nodded back, my jaw clenched. I knew I had hit burning gold tears running down my cheeks.

Annabeth joined us on Percy's side, keeping pace, her sword in her hand. And I felt another presence, I glanced to my other side and I saw Raph. Beat up and bruised, but he was beside me. He didn't look over but he was beside me and that's what mattered at the moment. The four of us charged the huge terrifying monster.

Together we leaped into the monster's path. Kampê hissed and sliced at us. Percy dodged, Raph swung his sword at the monsters face, trying to distract her, while Annabeth and I went in for a strike, but the monster seemed able to fight with both hands independently. She blocked Annabeth's sword, and almost at the same time blocked my strime. Annabeth grabbed my armour strap and had pulled me back to avoid the cloud of poison. Just being near the thing was like standing in an acid fog. My eyes burned. My lungs couldn't get enough air. I knew we couldn't stand our ground for more than a few seconds.

Percy called something. We needed help.

But no help came. Everyone was either down, or fighting for their lives, or too scared to move forward. Three of Chiron's arrows sprouted from Kampê's chest, but she just roared louder.

The four of us lined back up, shoulder to shoulder. Annabeth threw her fist in the air and together we charged, dodged the monster's slashes, got inside her guard, and almost...almost managed to stab Kampê in the chest, but a huge bear's head lashed out from the monster's waist, and we had to stumble backward to avoid getting bitten.

Slam!

I flew threw the air. Me and someone else hit the ground hard and I rolled a few times, my head slammed into the ground. My world went fuzzy.

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