︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

DAYS IN THE SUN

chapter twenty-nine
❛ 𝚒𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚊 𝚕𝚘𝚝. ❜

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

IT WAS AFTER dawn when Amara made her Zeus' Fist, the fog had burned away during the night and left the sky a clear blue. Juniper and Grover stood a couple of feet away from her, the dryad preventing tears that threatened to spill while giving a smile to the Underwood boy.

An arm wrapping around her shoulders brought her out of her thoughts, dark brown hair could be seen from the corner of her peripheral vision. The son of Hephaestus had a far off expression, his eyes focused on the Labyrinth.

The adopted siblings stood in silence, Beckendorf's hand tracing small circles on the younger girl's jacket as reality seemed to hit the duo in deep waves.

"Mom says if you don't come back, she's grounding you for life." A ghost of a smile twisted onto Charles's lips, breaking the silence.

"I have a feeling she plans on doing that regardless of the outcome."

Laughter spilled from the older boy, earning a light grin from his adopted sister as he shook his head. "I have a feeling you're right about that too."

Silence overtook the duo again, their gazes locked on her quest members as they slowly approached the entrance to the Labyrinth.

"Silena?" Amara asked, moving her eyes to look up at the son of Hephaestus.

He was already looking down at her, his head softly shaking with a tight lip smile laced on his lips. "She said it would be too hard."

She nodded, understanding the older girl struggled seeing her off before a quest. The daughter of Aphrodite always seemed to blame herself when Amara was sent on quests, a trait she never could understand but figured it was because of the older girl's gentle nature.

"Mara," Percy joined the adoptive siblings, sparing Beckendorf a nod before focusing his attention on the younger demigod. "Ready?"

Amara looked at Charles once more, squeezing his hand and unwrapping herself from under his shoulder. "As I'll ever be, Seaweed Brain."

With that, the children of the big three bid goodbye to the older boy and headed off to the Labyrinth.

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·.

Not to Amara's surprise, it had only taken them one hundred feet before the group of demigods, satyr, and cyclops to become completely lost. The tunnel had been different compared to the one the children of the big three stumbled into, instead it was replaced with a sewer like tunnel that reminded her of a New York alleyway.

But that wasn't all, Annabeth's attempt to lead them by focusing on the left wall had been futile. At least, until they stumbled upon a wide room that was different from the rest of the Labyrinth.

The whole room had been covered in mosaic tiles, pictures covering the walls were grimy and faded. They were images of the olympian gods at a feast. Poseidon was there holding a trident in one hand, the other was holding out grapes for Dionysus to turn into wine.

Amara's father was partying with satyrs, while Hermes flew through the air paired by his winter sandals. The artwork was beautiful and well painted, but she knew the gods. They didn't look like that, not even close.

"What is this place?" Percy muttered. "It looks—"

"Roman," she finished, sparing the Jackson boy a look. "Those mosaics are about two thousand years old."

"But how can they be roman?" He asked, tilting his head slightly.

"The Labyrinth is a patchwork," Annabeth explained. "I told you, it's always expanding, adding pieces. It's the only work of architecture that grows by itself."

"You make it sound like it's alive."

A noise suddenly echoed from the tunnel in front of the group of five. Grover whimpered, shaking his head. "Let's not talk about it being alive, please?"

"All right," Annabeth sighed. "Forward."

"Down the hall with the bad sounds?" Tyson asked, nervousness seeping through.

"Yeah," Annabeth said. "The architecture is getting older. That's a good sign. Daedalus' workshop would be in the oldest part."

The daughter of Athena's logic made sense to Amara, but it seemed the maze picked up on that as it began toying with them

Every few feet, the maze twisted and branched off to a new place. The floor changed from cement, to mud, bricks, and back again in a repeated cycle. At one point the ceiling transformed too, turning into wooden planks and voices were heard above.

Eventually they were led back to the roman themed room, where this time a guest greeted them.

The first thing she noticed was his faces, each of them jutted out from both sides of his heads as they stared over his shoulder. The man dressed like a doorman, paired with a long black overcoat, shoes, and a black top hat that managed to stay on both heads.

"Well, Annabeth?" The left head spoke first. "Hurry up!"

"Don't mind him," the right head spoke. "He's terribly rude. Right this way, miss."

Annabeth's jaw dropped. "Uh . . . I don't . . ."

"That man," Tyson spoke, tilting his head slightly to the left. "Has two funny faces."

A smirk curled onto Amara's lips at his words, resisting the urge to make her own comment.

"The funny man has ears, you know!" The left head scolded. "Now come along, miss."

"No, no." The right face said. "This way, miss. Talk to me, please."

The two headed doorman held a sliver key, one he kept passing back and forth from his left to right hand. Behind the man, two doorways were closed and locked.

"The exits are closed," Annabeth stated.

"Duh!" The left face said.

"Where do they lead?"

"One probably leads the way you wish to go." The right head shrugged. "The other leads to certain death."

"I—I know who you are," Annabeth stammered, while Amara remained confused on who the man could be.

"Oh, you're a smart one!" The left face sneered. "But do you know which way to choose? I don't have all day."

"Why are you trying to confuse me?"

The right face smiled. "You're in charge now, my dear. All the decisions are on your shoulders. That's what you wanted, isn't it?"

"I—"

"We know you, Annabeth." The left face said. "We know what you wrestle with every day. We know your indecision. You will have to make your choice sooner or later. And the choice may kill you."

She wasn't exactly sure what the two headed man were talking about, but it seemed like the decision was about more than which door her oldest friend needed to pick.

Annabeth's face paled. "No . . . I don't—"

Percy glared at the doorman. "Leave her alone." He spat. "Who are you, anyway?"

"I'm your best friend." The right face answered.

"I'm your worst enemy." The left head replied.

"I'm Janus," Both heads said in unison. "God of doorways. Beginnings, endings, and choices."

"I'll see you soon enough, Perseus Jackson, but for now it's Annabeth's turn." The right face laughed giddily. "Such fun!"

"Shut up!" His left head yelled. "This is serious. One bad choice can ruin your whole life, it can kill you and all your friends. But no pressure, Annabeth. Choose!"

"Annabeth," the blonde looked at her best friend, an uneasy expression resting on her face. The latter offered the girl a reassuring look. "You don't have to choose."

"I'm afraid she has to." The right face insisted cheerfully.

"I—I choose—"

A brilliant light filled the room, cutting off Annabeth as a woman appeared. She was tall, graceful, with long hair the color of chocolate that was braided into plaits by gold ribbons. She wore a simple white dress, the fabric shimmering like oil on water with every move she made.

Amara and Grover glanced at one another, the latter immediately giving her a look to watch herself as she realized who the woman was.

"Janus," she began. "Are we causing trouble again?"

"N—No, milady!" Janus' right face stuttered.

"Yes!" The left head agreed.

"Shut up!" The right face protested.

"Excuse me?" Hera asked, arching a brow at the minor god.

"Not you, milady! I was talking to myself."

"I see," Hera said. "You know very well your visit is premature. The girl's time has not yet come. So I give you a choice, leave these heroes to me, or I shall turn you into a door and break you down."

"What kind of door?" The left head asked.

"Shut up!" The right face scolded.

"Because French doors are nice. Lots of natural light."

"Shut up! Not you, milady! Of course I'll leave. I was just having a bit of fun. Doing my job. Offering choices."

"Causing indecision," the goddess corrected. "Now begone!"

"Party pooper," the left head murmured. He raised his silver key, inserted it into the air, and disappeared.

The goddess turned toward the quintet, her eyes shining with power as she smiled. "You must be hungry, sit with me and talk."

With a wave of her hand, the old fountain began to flow with jets of clear water spraying the air. A marble table appeared before Amara, platters of sandwiches and pitchers of lemonade spread over.

"Who . . . who are you?" Percy asked.

"I am Hera," the wife of Zeus smiled. "Queen of Heaven."

With those words the demigods, satyr, and cyclops took a seat as the goddess began serving them with a smile. "Grover, dear," she called. "Use your napkin, don't eat it."

"Yes, ma'am." Grover obeyed.

"Tyson, you're wasting away. Would you like another peanut butter sandwich?"

"Yes, nice lady."

"Queen Hera," Annabeth held a look of disbelief at the woman. "I can't believe it. What are you doing in the Labyrinth?"

Hera smiled and with flick of a finger, the daughter of Athena's hair combed itself and her appearance became cleaner. "I came to see you, naturally."

Amara exchanged looks with Annabeth, the blonde held a confused look. "I didn't think—" she faltered. "Well, I didn't think you liked heroes."

Hera smiled indulgently. "Because of that little spat I had with Hercules? Honestly, I get so much bad press because of one disagreement."

"Didn't you try to kill him?"Amara asked, her tone filled with spite as her father's wife finally laid eyes on her. "Like more than once?"

"Water under the bridge, my dear," the goddess waved dismissively at the daughter of Zeus. "Besides, he was one of my loving husband's children by another woman. My patience worn thin, I'll admit it. But Zeus and I have had some excellent marriage counseling sessions since then. We've aired our feelings and came to an understanding — especially after these last little incidents."

She rolled her eyes at the queen's words, not caring for the consequence as Grover and Annabeth shot her warning looks.

"You mean when he sired Thalia and Amara?" Percy guessed. "Ow!" The Jackson boy sent the daughter of Athena a glare, whose foot went back under her chair like nothing happened.

"Percy Jackson, isn't it? One of Poseidon's . . . children." Hera's eyes had turned cold as she eyed the demigod. "As I recall, I voted to let you live at the winter solstice. I hope I voted correctly."

The goddess' attention landed on Amara next, her cold eyes gone in an instant with a bright smile lacing her lips. "No need to worry, Amara, I bear you no ill will my dear. Certainly not, you're the only child of Beryl Grace I can stand besides—"

The brunette eyes narrowed as Hera cut herself off, an anxious expression slipping onto the queen's face momentarily before she focused on Annabeth.

"I appreciate the difficulty of your quest," the goddess took a moment before continuing. "Especially when you have troublemakers like Janus to deal with."

"Why was he here?" Annabeth questioned. "He was driving me crazy."

"Trying too," Hera agreed. "You must understand, the minor gods like Janus have always been frustrated by the small parts they play in the universe. Some, I fear, have little love for Olympus, and could easily be swayed to support the rise of my father."

"Your father?" Percy questioned, only to suddenly remember. "Oh, right."

"We must watch the minor gods." Hera continued, nodding. "Janus, Hecate, Morpheus. They give lip service to Olympus, and yet—"

"That's where Dionysus went," Percy interrupted. "He was checking on the minor gods."

"Indeed," the queen spared the son of Poseidon a brief look of disbelief for his interruption before continuing. "You see, in times of trouble, even gods can lose faith. They start putting their trust in the wrong things, stop looking at the big picture and start being selfish. But I'm the goddess of marriage, you see. I'm used to perseverance. You have to raise above the squabbling and chaos and keep believing. You have to always keep your goals in mind."

"What are your goals?" Amara asked, raising a brow at the goddess.

Hera smiled at the Grace girl. "To keep my family, the Olympians, together, of course. At the moment, the best way I can do that is by helping you. Zeus does not allow me to interfere much, I am afraid."

She couldn't listen to the goddess after that anymore, having to resist the temptation to get lost in the Labyrinth rather then sit there and listen to Hera speak anymore. Her mind racing over the queen's slip up, like there had been more of Beryl Grace's children to stand other than her and Thalia.

Amara eyed her from the corner of her peripheral vision, not understanding why her face had made the look it did. Hera was anxious about the slip up, like there was something she didn't know.

Beryl Grace only had three children, two were alive and one . . . it couldn't be. She crossed her arms and slumped in her chair, her mind racing back to last December when she had ran into the blond boy and his friend.

The room rumbling brought her from her thoughts. Hera glanced at the ceiling as it rumbled once more, her eyes slightly rolling. "That would be my cue."

The goddess' attention returned to the demigods, satyr, and cyclops. "Think on what I have said, Annabeth, seek out Hephaestus. You will have to pass through the ranch, I imagine, but keep going. And use all the means at your disposal, however common they may seem."

The two doors behind the quintet melted away, revealing two corridors instead. "One last thing, Annabeth. I have postponed your day of choice, not prevented it. Soon, as Janus said, you will have to make a decision. Farewell!"

With a wave of Hera's hand, the room was filled with white smoke as the food, table, fountain, and lights disappeared and the room returned to its original state.

"What sort of help was that?" Annabeth stomped her foot. "Here, have a sandwich. Make a wish. Oops, I can't help you! Poof!"

"Poof," Tyson agreed, looking at his empty plate with a sad look.

"Well," Grover sighed. "She said Percy knows the answer. That's something."

Amara looked at Percy with surprise, an answer the goddess must of given while she was deep in thought.

"But I don't," Percy protested. "I don't know what she was talking about."

"All right," Annabeth sighed. "Then we'll just keep going."

"Which way?"

Then, Grover and Tyson both tensed and stood up together in unison. Their faces were pale as they spoke, "Left."

Amara raised a brow at the odd duo. "How can you be sure?"

"Because something is coming from the right." Grover said.

"Something big," Tyson agreed. "In a hurry."

"Left is sounding pretty good." Percy decided, and together they plunged into the dark corridor.

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·.

The left tunnel had turned out to be straight, no exits, twists, nor turns until they eventually ran into a boulder. Behind her, Amara could hear the sound of dragging footsteps paired with heavy breathing, making its way down the corridor.

"Tyson," Percy said. "Can you—"

"Yes!" Tyson slammed his shoulder against the rock, shaking the tunnel as dust began falling from the ceiling above.

"Hurry!" Grover urged. "Don't bring the roof down, but hurry!"

With a final push, the boulder gave away and the cyclops moved it enough for the demigods and satyr to run past it.

"Close the entrance!" Annabeth exclaimed.

Tyson quickly did as he was told, pushing the boulder back into place just in time to stop whatever had been chasing them.

"We trapped it," Percy announced, a ghost of a smile lacing his lips as he caught his breath.

"Or," electric blue met sea green as the former shook her head at the boy. "We trapped ourselves."

He turned around at her words, seeing they had tunneled themselves straight into a cell. "A prison," a look of disbelief flashed across the Jackson boy's face. "Maybe Tyson can break—"

"Shh," Grover interrupted. "Listen."

Above her, sobbing was heard as it echoed throughout the building. Another voice echoed as well, a raspy sound as it muttered words the brunette couldn't even begin to understand.

"What's that language?" Percy whispered, but she could only give a helpless shrug.

Tyson's eye widened. "Can't be."

"What?" Annabeth asked, but Tyson never responded. Instead, he bent the bars of the cell door and slipped out before taking off.

"Wait!" Grover called.

The demigods and satyr ran after him, barely managing to see his figure through the darkness of the prison.

"I know this place," Annabeth told the children of the big three as they ran. "This is Alcatraz."

"You mean that island near San Francisco?"

"My school took a field trip here, it's like a museum."

"Freeze," Grover warned, nearly sending the three demigods crashing into one another. Tyson attempted to keep going, but the satyr grabbed his arm and wordlessly pointed up.

Amara looked to where he was pointing, nearly taking a step back at the sight that greeted her.

It had a woman's body from the waist up, below was the body of dragon that stretched twenty feet with black scales, claws, and a tail. The women's hair and legs looked entangled in vines, only for the electric blue eyed girl to realize they were hundreds of vipers. Around the monster's waist, where human met dragon did her skin bubble and morph. Heads of animals were constantly changing, wolf, bear, and a lion.

Tyson whimpered at the sight, backing up from the monster.

Without warning, Annabeth and Grover pushed the cyclops into the shadows to hide. Percy had grabbed her arm, taking her with him and they hid opposite of the demigod, cyclops, and satyr.

"What's she saying?" Percy asked, turning his attention from the monster to the trio. "What's that language?"

"The tongue of the old times," Tyson shivered. "What Mother Earth spoke to Titans . . . her other children. Before the gods."

"You understand it? Can you translate?"

The cyclops closed his eyes and spoke in a horrible, raspy woman's voice. "You will work for the master or suffer."

"I will not serve," Tyson said in a different voice, this one was deep, and wounded.

He switched to the monsters voices. "Then I shall enjoy your pain, Briares." He faltered when he said the name and let out a strangled gulp, but continued in the monster's voice. "If you thought your first imprisonment was unbearable, you have yet to feel true torment. Think on this until I return."

The monster turned away from the prisoner, wings sprouting from her back that Amara hadn't noticed before. She soared across the courtyard, the quintet ducking further into the shadows until the creature disappeared around the corner.

"H—H—Horrible," Grover stammered. "I've never smelled any monster that strong."

"Cyclops' worst nightmare." Tyson murmured, shaking his head. "Kampê."

"Who?" Amara asked.

"Every Cyclops knows about her," the cyclops gulped. "Stories about her scare us when we're babies. She was our jailer in the bad years."

"I remember now," Annabeth recalled. "When the Titans ruled, they imprisoned Gaea and Ourano's earlier children — the cyclops and the Hekatonkheires."

"I'm sorry, the Heka-what?" Percy asked.

"The Hundred Handed Ones." Amara answered. "They called them that because . . . well, they had a hundred hands. They were elder brothers of the Cyclops."

"Very powerful," Tyson added. "Wonderful! As tall as the sky. So strong they could break mountains."

"Cool." Percy gulped. "Unless you're a mountain."

"Kampê was the jailer," the cyclops continued. "She worked for Kronos. She kept our brothers locked up in Tartarus, tortured them always, until Zeus came. He killed Kampê and freed Cyclops and Hundred-Handed Ones to help fight against the Titans in the big war."

"And now Kampê is back."

"Bad."

"So who's that in the cell?" Percy questioned. "You said a name—"

"Briares!" Tyson perked up at the name. "He is a Hundred-Handed One. They are as tall as the sky and—"

"Yeah," Amara interrupted. "They break mountains."

"I guess we should check it out before Kampê comes back." Annabeth suggested.

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·.

When Amara saw Briares, she wasn't entirely sure what she was looking at. The creature was human size, he wore a loincloth, his feet too big for his body. His chest sprouted more arms than she could count, all tangled together while some covered his face as he sobbed.

"Either the sky isn't as tall as it used to be." Percy muttered. "Or he's short."

She rolled her eyes at the Jackson boy, lightly smacking his arm and he shot her a look.

"Briares!" Tyson called, stopping the sobbing. "Great Hundred-Handed one! Help us!"

Briares looked up. His face long and sad with a crooked nose and bad teeth, his eyes completely brown like they had been formed from clay.

"Run while you can, cyclops." Briares said miserably. "I cannot even help myself."

"You are a Hundred-Handed One!" He insisted. "You can do anything!"

The hundred handed one wiped his nose with five of his hands, the others building a toy boat from wood and disassembling it just as fast. Some played hand games against each other, the resting making shadow puppets. She raised a brow, and could only wonder how long he had been imprisoned.

"I cannot," Briares moaned. "Kampê is back! The Titans will rise and throw us back into Tartarus."

"Put on your brave face!" Tyson encouraged.

The creature's face morphed into something else. His nose upturned, eyebrows arched, and paired with a weird smile. It only lasted for a few seconds, quickly returning back to the sad expression.

"No good," He replied. "My scared face keeps coming back."

"How did you do that?" Percy asked.

Annabeth elbowed him. "Don't be rude. The Hundred-Handed Ones have fifty different faces."

"Must make it hard to get a yearbook picture." Percy muttered.

The brunette grinned at that, sparing a look to the Jackson boy beside her who held an amused look of his own.

"It will be okay, Briares!" Tyson encouraged. "We will help you! Can I have your autograph?"

"Do you have one hundred pens?"

"Guys," Grover interrupted. "We have to get out of here. Kampê will be back, she'll sense us sooner or later."

"Break the bars." Annabeth ordered.

"Yes!" Tyson cheered. "Briares can do it, he is very strong. Stronger than cyclops, even! Watch!"

Briares whimpered, a dozen of his hands started playing patty cake.

"If he's so strong," Percy leaned closer to Amara, whispering as she resisted the blood that threatened to rush to her face from his closeness. "Why is he stuck in jail?"

"He's terrified," she turned to look at him, only to realize how close he truly was. She quickly looked straight, trying to calm her beating heart. "Kampê had imprisoned him in Tartarus for thousands of years, how would you feel?"

"Briares?" Tyson asked. "What . . . what is wrong? Show us your great strength!"

"Tyson," Annabeth said gently. "I think you'd better break the bars."

His smile melted slowly off his face. "I will break the bars." He grabbed the cell door and ripped the hinges with no problem.

"Come on, Briares." Annabeth voiced. "Let's get you out of here." She held her hand out to him. For a second, Briares' face morphed to a hopeful expression.

"I cannot," He said. "She will punish me."

"It's all right," the blonde promised. "You fought the Titans before, and you won, remember?"

"I remember the war." The creatures face morphed into a furrowed brow and pouting mouth. "Lightning shook the world, we threw many rocks. The Titans and monsters almost won, now they are getting strong again. Kampê said so."

"Don't listen to her." Percy replied. "Come on!"

But the hundred handed one didn't move. "Perce," Amara whispered, earning the boy's attention. She was one who hated more than anything to admit defeat, but she knew defeat when she saw it. And Briares? He looked like he had been ready to give up long ago.

"One game of rock, paper, scissors." He blurted out, moving his gaze from her eyes to the creature. "If I win, you come with us. If I lose, we'll leave you in jail."

"I always win, rock, paper, scissors."

"Then let's do it!"

They began the game, Percy with his one hand and Briares with his . . . hundreds of hands. He had a hand for every combination, one rock, paper, and scissors.

"I told you, I always—" Briares face morphed to confusion. "What is that you made?"

Amara's attention was pulled to Percy. The Jackson boy had a smirked twisted onto his lips, his head tilted with a smug expression and she couldn't help but admire his cockiness in that moment. "A gun," he answered, pointing his finger gun at the creature. "A gun beats anything."

"That's not fair," the hundred handed one argued.

"I didn't say anything about fair. Kampê's not going to be fair if we hang around. She's going to blame you for ripping off the bars. Now come on!"

Briares sniffled. "Demigods are cheaters." But he slowly rose to his feet nonetheless and followed them out of the cell.

Amara joined Percy's side once more, a smile curling onto her lips from the Jackson boy's previous actions. "Where'd you learn that trick?"

"My mom's boyfriend." An accomplished grin laced his lips, obviously proud of what he pulled off until it was suddenly wiped off.

"Percy?" The brunette looked down to see what took him so off guard, until her own smile was wiped off at the sight of Kampê snarling at them. 

"The other way!" Annabeth yelled, taking off down the catwalk and Briares managed to run ahead of the quintet.

Kampê took to the air, quickly following after the quest members while they ran into another block of prison cells.

"Left," the blonde announced. "I remember this from the tour."

They had managed to make it outside the Labyrinth, running into a prison yard filled with security towers and barbed wire. In the north, storm clouds swirled over Mount Tamalpais while San Francisco gleamed in the south.

"It's even worse," Annabeth mumbled. "The storms have been bad all year, but that—"

"Keep moving!" Briares wailed. "She is behind us!"

They ran to the far end of the yard, and Amara's chest was heaving as she tried catching her breath. She wasn't given much of an opportunity, before the wall exploded.

Kampê made her way out from the rubble, tourists screamed and the monster spread her wings. In her hands she held two long bronze scimitars that glowed green, boiling wisps of vapor.

"Poison!" Grover yelped. "Don't let those things touch you or . . ."

"Or we'll die?" Amara guessed.

"Well . . . after you shrivel slowly to dust, yes."

"Let's avoid the swords."

"Briares, fight!" Tyson demanded. "Grow to full size!"

Instead, Briares looked like he was trying to shrink even smaller as Kampê thundered towards them.

"Run!" Annabeth voiced.

Mortals screamed and ran as the group rushed past them, Kampê trailing behind and emergency sirens began to blare throughout the prison. They arrived to the wharf just in time for a tour boat to start unloading, looks exchanged amongst them.

"The boat?" Grover asked.

"Too slow," Tyson shook his head. "Back into the maze, only chance."

"We need a diversion." Amara muttered.

The cyclops ripped a large metal lamppost out of the ground. "I will distract Kampê. You run ahead."

"I'll help you." Percy said.

"No," Tyson argued. "You go. Poison will hurt cyclops. A lot of pain, but it won't kill."

"Are you sure?"

"Go, brother. I will meet you inside."

The brunette found Percy's hand, giving it a light squeeze that had his eyes locked on her instantly. She could only offer an attempt at a reassuring look, a small smile laced onto her lips. "He'll be okay, Seaweed Brain."

That seemed to be enough for the Jackson boy, he gave her a nod and grabbed one of Briares' hands alongside Annabeth, and Grover as they began running.

Tyson quickly got Kampê's attention, letting out a war cry as he impaled her in the chest with his pole. The monster shrieked, slashing wildly with her weapons and she turned the pole to shreds. Poison began dripping in pools around her, sizzling the cement.

The son of Poseidon jumped back as Kampê's snake hair lashed, hissed, and her vipers darted out. A lion was the next thing to appear from her waist, roaring at the cyclops.

"Can't make it," Briares huffed, drawing Amara's attention back to him.

"Tyson is risking his life to help you!" Percy yelled at him. "You will make it."

As they finally reached the cell block door, an angry roar sounded behind the group. When she looked back, Tyson was sprinting towards them with Kampê right behind him covered in ice cream.

"Hurry!" Annabeth said, her head whipping around as she memorized the cell block wall. "Look for the mark!"

"There!" Grover shouted, touching a small scratch that transformed into the greek Delta triangle. The symbol turned blue, opening the stone wall.

Percy pushed Briares into the maze while Amara guided Annabeth and Grover in, the demigods attention landing on Tyson when she turned around.

Kampê was gaining on Tyson, her weapons raised as a hiss soon followed.

"Come on!" Percy yelled, his eyes wide as they anxious waited for the cyclops.

"He's not going to make it," Annabeth spoke, electric blue and stormy grey eyes locking for a brief moment. There was a mutual understanding between the old friends, the blonde nodding and made her way to the son of Poseidon.

Ripping her necklace free, her sword morphed in her hands and she took off towards Kampê. "Amara!" Percy yelled, but Annabeth and Grover were faster.

The duo had grabbed hold of him, dragging the son of Poseidon deeper into the Labyrinth as he fought against them. His eyes locked on the brunette, who steadily made her way towards the monster with ease despite the crowd.

Tyson's singular eye widened as the daughter of Zeus advanced on the creature and stretched out her arm. The familiar power over the wind coursed through her body as she grabbed a current, launching herself towards Kampê and electricity covered her sword.

With a single swipe of her sword, a wave of wind and electricity mixed was thrown into the creature. The torturer was sent flying backwards, crashing into the wall.

She turned, meeting gazes with the cyclops who held a shock look. "Run," she instructed, the familiar hissing of the creature reaching her ears. "Now, Tyson!"

This time the son of Poseidon listened, taking off running once more with her right behind him. Her trick using the winds was enough for them to dive into the Labyrinth safely, the stone door closing before Kampê could make it in.

The duo didn't stop there, they continued running not wanting to testing the stone wall as the demigods, satyr, and hundred handed one quickly followed behind.

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·.

When they finally stopped running, it was in a room filled with waterfalls. In the corner of the room was a pit, where all the water eventually led too. Briares was slumped against the wall closest to it, scooping water in his dozen hands and cleaning his face. Amara's hands rested on her knees, catching her breath.

"This pit goes straight to Tartarus." He murmured. "I should jump in and save you trouble."

"Don't talk that way." Annabeth told him. "You can come back to camp with us, you can help us prepare. You know more about fighting Titans than everybody."

"I have nothing to offer." Briares replied. "I have lost everything."

"What about your brothers?" Tyson asked. "The other two must still stand tall as mountains! We can take you to them."

The hundred handed one's expression morphed to one sadder than his usual expression. "They are no more, they faded."

"What exactly do you mean, they faded?" Percy asked. "I thought monsters were immortal, like the gods."

"Percy." Amara spoke, her voice low and her breath finally caught. "Even immortality has limits. Sometimes . . . sometimes monsters get forgotten and they lose their will to stay immortal."

"I must go," Briares stated.

"Kronos' army will invade Camp." Tyson said. "We need help."

"I cannot, Cyclops."

"You are strong."

"Not anymore," Briares rose, but he didn't get far before Percy grabbed one of his arms and pulled him to the side.

Tyson met Amara's gaze, quickly making his way beside her as she stood to full height. "Amara," the brunette looked over her shoulder towards the cyclops.

"You," he paused, like he was trying to word it the right way. "You saved my life . . . thank you. But, I thought you didn't . . . like me?"

She focused her attention back to the ground, her lips becoming caught between her teeth as she realized the reality of his words. She had just risked her life to save . . . a cyclops, something she thought would never happen.

"I used to dislike you," she finally spoke, tearing her gaze from the floor and she met glances with his brown eye. "But, I was wrong about you Tyson."

The cyclops' face lit up at her words, a wide smile lacing his lips as she returned it with a smirk. Their attention was soon turned to the hundred handed one as he trudged off down the corridor, his footsteps being the only noise until Tyson began sobbing.

"It's okay." Grover hesitantly patted his shoulder.

"It is not okay, goat boy." Tyson sneezed. "He was my hero."

Finally, Annabeth stood. "Come on, guys. This pit is making me nervous. Let's find a better place to camp for the night."

It didn't take them long to find somewhere else to camp, settling in a corridor filled with marble blocks. To Amara, it resembled a greek tomb with torch holders fastened everywhere.

"We must be close to Daedalus' workshop." Annabeth said, noting the older architecture. "Get some rest, everybody. We'll keep going in the morning."

"How do we know when it's morning?" Grover asked.

"Just rest."

The satyr didn't argue after that, pulling a heap of straw from his backpack to form a pillow and was snoring in under five minutes. Tyson was a different story, tinkering with metal scraps as he assembled and disassembled the pieces.

He only stopped once Percy spoke to him, curling into the wall and resting his eye. The son of Poseidon made his way to the daughter of Athena next, while Amara placed her bedroll near Grover and quickly became comfortable.

Her attention was only taken off the snoring satyr when shoes came into view, Percy dropping his bedroll next to hers and he sat down against the wall beside her.

It was quiet between the children of the big three for a few moments, at least until the son of Poseidon broke it. "Mara," he spoke lightly, earning the younger girl's attention.

She didn't say anything, but lifted her gaze from the floor to him. Electric blue met sea green and they held a silent stare off. "I just," his finger tapped in a beat against his knee. "I wanted to say thank you, doing what you did for Tyson. I know you're still getting used to him, but it meant a lot."

"If it was Thalia, you would've done the same." She offered him a small smile as she thought over her next words carefully. "Losing a sibling . . . it's unbearable Percy, and you don't deserve that."

Blood rushed to his face at her smile, quickly looking away and she became amused at the effect she had over the boy in their little moments.

She rested her head on her crossed arms, attempting to become comfortable since she would rather sleep sitting up than against the cold, hard floor. A habit she had picked up from being a runaway, sleeping sitting up became natural to her.

A familiar arm slowly wrapped around her shoulder, guiding her head to his shoulder and she was tugged against him. "You looked uncomfortable," but Percy wasn't looking at her when he talked, red rushing up his neck and his head was turned the other way.

She was grateful, confident her face matched the same red shade as his. She buried her head further in his shoulder, hiding the redness and covering herself up with the bedroll. "Is this okay?" Percy's head was now facing her, but she couldn't bring herself to lift hers and she wordlessly nodded.

"Get some sleep, Mara." He traced light circles against her denim jacket as she closed her eyes. "I'll be here when you wake up."

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

12-17-24

hello hello ! we're gonna act like it hasn't almost been six months since i've last uploaded, but that's okay. i'm so sorry for not updating it's been a hectic, but i'm backkkk, anyway i hope you all enjoyed this chapter and i'll try getting the next one out as soon as possible <3