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"THIS WAY!" rachel yelled, once they were back in the labyrinth.

"you sure it doesn't lead into another death trap?" annabeth asked, an edge to her voice.

"it was the way you needed to go," rachel said. "and so is this. come on!"

rachel seemed to know exactly where she was going. she whipped around corners and didn't even hesitate at crossroads.

"wait," she said.

they all stood still. even mrs. o'leary.

rachel looked at andromeda. "you might need to get off, there are swinging axes up ahead."

andromeda climbed off the hellhound, she'd eaten some ambrosia, but her wound was still fresh, and so it ticked when she put her foot down, like someone was hammering it from the inside.

"you can't run with that wound," percy panted.

"i'm fine, hero." she insisted, subtly leaning on annabeth for support, the blonde said nothing. andromeda hoped percy didn't notice.

he frowned.

"alright," rachel began. "let's go."

andromeda held onto annabeth's hand while they ran, she was sure she was limping, her shins were crying out in agony. but she managed.

"duck!" rachel yelled, and they all crouched as a huge axe swung over their heads.

then they kept going as if nothing had happened.

they made innumerable amount of turns, only stopping to rest when they came to a room with old marble columns holding up the roof. percy put an ear to the doorway, listening for luke or any other monsters. but he was met with silence. this was a true moment of peace.

then andromeda realized something else: mrs. o'leary was gone. she didn't know when she'd disappeared. she felt immense guilt. she'd saved their lives, and carried her halfway so she could heal, and andromeda hadn't even made sure she was following them

their companion collapsed on the floor. "you people are crazy." he pulled off his helmet. his face gleamed with sweat.

annabeth gasped. "i remember you!"

andromeda felt the vague familiarity to the face, too. like she might've seen him in a dream. then it clicked.

"ethan nakamura!" she guessed. "one of the undetermined kids in the hermes cabin, years ago."

he glared at her. "yeah, and you're annabeth and andromeda. i remember."

"what - what happened to your eye?"

ethan looked away, and andromeda got the feeling that was one subject he would not discuss.

"you must be the half-blood from my dream," percy guessed. "the one luke's people cornered. it wasn't nico after all."

"who's nico?"

"never mind," andromeda said quickly. "why were you trying to join up with the wrong side?"

ethan sneered. "there's no right side. the gods never cared about us. why shouldn't i —"

"sign up with an army that makes you fight to the death for entertainment?" annabeth sassed. "gee, i wonder."

ethan struggled to his feet. "i'm not going to argue with you. thanks for the help, but i'm out of here."

"we're going after daedalus," percy informed. "come with us. once we get through, you'd be welcome back at camp."

"you really are crazy if you think daedalus will help you."

"he has to," annabeth persisted. "we'll make him listen."

ethan snorted. "yeah, well. good luck with that."

andromeda grabbed his arm. "you're just going to head off alone into the maze? that's suicide."

he looked at her with barely controlled anger. his eye patch was frayed around the edges and the black cloth was faded, like he'd been wearing it a long, long time. "you were claimed by hecate, weren't you?"

andromeda shrunk back. "yes. why?"

"if i remember correctly, they never built you a cabin. you were forced to stay like the undetermined kids."

andromeda shrugged a shoulder. "i still do. . .but that's not important,"

ethan scoffed. "not important? the gods don't care about you enough to distinguish you from those who are unclaimed. they are unfair to other gods, think how low they think of us."

andromeda heard luke in him. it saddened her.

"luke told me about you," ethan said, his whole body facing her. "he's told me what you can do. how you've held the sky for so long. your abilities. . .why don't you join the titans? your mother has. and your magic could be powered a ten times if you did. the titans recognize you, you know. they reward you."

andromeda had never considered the choice. she always chose her friends. but the way ethan had said it. they recognize you. lately, andromeda had felt the need to be recognized. and some part of her was hesitating due to that very fact.

someone grabbed her shoulder. they stepped in front of her defensively.

"well, she's with me." percy defended. "and luke won't be taking her away. maybe he didn't tell you that she blew him off the first two times."

ethan backed away. "you shouldn't have spared me, jackson. mercy has no place in this war."

then he ran off into the darkness, back the way they'd come.

the other four were so exhausted they made camp right there in the huge room. percy found some scrap wood and they started a fire. shadows danced off the columns rising around them like trees.

"something was wrong with luke," annabeth muttered, poking at the fire with her knife. "did you notice the way he was acting?"

"magical interference, annabeth," andromeda said, working up a healing spell on her leg. "kronos's spell is probably messing with him."

"he looked pretty pleased to me," percy sneered. "like he'd spent a nice day torturing heroes."

"that's not true!" annabeth defended. "there was something wrong with him. he looked. . ."

"nervous?" andromeda asked. she had felt it in that moment too. the little hint of desperation and urgency in luke's voice when he spoke to annabeth.

annabeth nodded. "he told his monsters to spare me. he wanted to tell me something."

"probably, 'hi, annabeth! sit here with me and watch while i tear your friends apart. it'll be fun!'"

"jackson," andromeda warned.

"why are you defending him?" he glared. "you say you hate him, then make up excuses for him."

"i hate him for his choices." andromeda cleared. "not for his actions. he's under kronos's influence. i can sense the magic he radiates."

percy sighed, but he didn't argue.

annabeth sheathed her knife. "so which way now?"

rachel didn't respond right away. she'd become quieter since the arena. she'd burned the tip of a stick in the fire and was using it to draw ash figures on the floor, images of the monsters they'd seen. with a few strokes, she caught the likeness of a dracaena perfectly.

"we'll follow the path," she said. "the brightness on the floor."

"the brightness that led us straight into a trap?" andromeda asked.

"lay off her, won't you?" percy defended. "she's doing the best she can."

it hurt her, not because he was defending her. but because she realized she was giving rachel a hard time for no reason. it was unfair to her. but making those comments seemed so easy. and they just flowed out of her, like she said them without meaning to. she didn't like that. her impulse control had increased in the years, but this seemed to nullify the work she was putting in to improve herself.

she stood up. "the fire's getting low. i'll go look for some more scraps while you guys talk strategy."

"but your leg," percy protested.

"it'll be a nice walk." she smiled, she looked at rachel. "i'm sorry." and she left into the shadows.

she walked, but she didn't really think. she tried to turn off her mind for a while, just humming songs and melodies as she picked up sticks she could find. she missed that leisure time she'd spent in her house. her mind was rarely ever quiet like this, so she treasured these moments. and the darkness of the maze was unnerving, but this time, it enveloped her like a blanket in winter.

her thoughts cleared away. and she could make reason of her decisions. she knew why she was being so mean to rachel. she knew why she wanted to punch calypso. she knew why. she just didn't like it. she knew why annabeth and silena and basically everybody teased her about percy. she knew what sally might've thought in the kitchen. but again, she didn't like it.

so now she only had to do one more thing to be better: change it. she could conjure shields and kill with a look and hold the sky for two straight days. how hard would it be to stop feeling for percy jackson? it had to be easy. feelings were just feelings. she could control them.

right?

she broke her chain of thoughts. no doubts. she would.

she returned from the walk to find annabeth and rachel asleep, percy staring into the burning fire.

she tossed some more sticks into it. she looked at rachel, then at him.

"i'll take first watch," she said. "you should sleep, too."

he nodded silently. but didn't move.

"listen," andromeda called as she sat down. "i really am sorry. i don't want to give the poor girl a hard time. it's just. . ."

she couldn't bring herself to tell him. not today. not now. maybe one day, when she was over him, they could laugh about this over coffee, or at a reunion or something. but today wasn't it.

"just what?" percy prompted.

"never mind." she shook her head.

he frowned, but layed down.

andromeda put her hand on his cheek. the cut that scarred his face. he flinched a little, it probably burned at touch.

she swiped her thumb over it, muttering a quick healing spell, and the vanished. she retracted her hand, he smiled up at her. then began fishing out his pocket, from which he drew out his ballpoint pen and tossed it to her.

"in case you're tired," he yawned. "and want to sleep."

and he fell asleep.

andromeda smiled at his sleeping figure, the way his eyes fluttered even when he was asleep.

she recalled how she told herself she would change her feelings towards him. she still intended to, but the way looking at him made it impossible to not smile, she knew it was going to be hard.

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andromeda didn't realize when she went to sleep, but she was definitely conscious when waking up.

the underground tunnel shook around them, rattling the rocks and cavern.

andromeda shook annabeth awake. "annabeth! earthquake!"

annabeth sat up instantly, already in her fight or flight mode. "wake the others, quick!"

andromeda moved her hand over rachel's shoulder, and annabeth called percy.

"rachel!" she called. "rachel, up!"

her eyes opened instantly. she grabbed her bag, and by the time she did, so had the other three. they ran, almost to the far tunnel when a column next to them groaned and buckled. hundred tons of marble crashed down behind them.

they made it to the corridor and turned just in time to see the other columns toppling. it wasn't long before they saw light up ahead — like regular electric lighting.

"there," rachel said.

they followed her into a stainless steel hallway. fluorescent lights glowed from the ceiling. the floor was a metal grate.

"this way," rachel said, beginning to run, andromeda's eyes took a while to adjust to the ligh. "we're close!"

"this seems wrong," annabeth frowned. "the workshop should be in the oldest section of the maze. this can't —"

she faltered, because they'd arrived at a set of metal double doors. inscribed in the steel, at eye level, was a large blue greek Δ.

"we're here," rachel announced. "daedalus's workshop."

annabeth pressed the symbol on the doors and they hissed open.

"so much for ancient architecture,"

"percy," andromeda warned.

"sorry."

together they walked inside.

the sun blazed through giant windows. the workshop housed thirty-foot ceilings and industrial lighting, polished stone floors, and workbenches along with windows. a spiral staircase led up to a second-story loft. half a dozen easels displayed hand-drawn diagrams for buildings and machines. several laptop computers were scattered around on the tables. glass jars of green oil — greek fire - lined one shelf. there were inventions, too — weird metal machines that didn't make sense. a bronze chair with electrical wires attached to it, a giant metal egg about the size of a man. a grandfather clock entirely transparent, showing the churning gears. several sets of bronze and silver wings hung on the wall.

"di immortals," annabeth muttered. she ran to the nearest easel and looked at the sketch. "he's a genius. look at the curves on this building!"

"and an artist," rachel said in amazement. "these wings are amazing!"

the feathers were tightly interwoven. self-adhesive strips ran down the sides.

andromeda didn't like it here. it reminded her too much of her father's office. the sketches sprawled on his table, the different deviced he used. even down to the coffee cup and half-eaten snack. it was so familiar it felt threatening. this place had absolutely no magic. it unnerved her more. she could see that even though daedalus wasn't here, the workshop looked recently used. she felt around for her spear.

she looked through the window. the rocky mountains stood in the distance. they were high up in the foothills, at least five hundred feet, and down below a valley spread out, filled with a tumbled collection of red mesas and boulders and spires of stone. it was even more unnerving that the view was this when they were actually in the middle of an underground labyrinth.

"where are we?" percy wondered.

"colorado springs," a voice said behind them. "the garden of the gods."

standing on the spiral staircase above, with his weapon drawn, was their missing sword master quintus.

"you," annabeth said. "what have you done with daedalus?"

quintus smiled faintly. "trust me, my dear. you don't want to meet him."

"look, mr. traitor," she growled, "i didn't fight a dragon woman and a three-bodied man and a psychotic sphinx to see you."

"if only you could talk to luke like that," andromeda muttered to her. she turned to quintus, spear extended and pointed. "she asked you a question: where is daedalus?"

quintus came down the stairs, holding his sword at his side. he was dressed in jeans and boots and his counselor's t-shirt from camp half-blood. "you think i'm an agent of kronos, that i work for luke."

"well, duh," said annabeth.

"you're an intelligent girl," he said. "but you're wrong. i work only for myself."

"luke mentioned you," percy informed. "geryon knew about you, too. you've been to his ranch."

"of course," he said. "i've been almost everywhere. even here."

he walked past them, disregarding them completely as he stood by the window. "the view changes from day to day, it's always some place high up. yesterday it was from a skyscraper overlooking manhattan. the day before that, there was a beautiful view of lake michigan. but it keeps coming back to the garden of the gods. i think the labyrinth likes it here. a fitting name, i suppose."

"you've been here before," percy noted.

"oh, yes."

"that's an illusion out there?" he asked. "a projection or something?"

"no," rachel murmured. "it's real. we're really in colorado."

quintus regarded her. "you have clear vision, don't you? you remind me of another mortal girl i once knew. another princess who came to grief."

"stop stalling," andromeda ordered. "what have you done with daedalus?"

quintus stared at her. "my girl, you need lessons from your friend on seeing clearly. i am daedalus."

"yeah right," she scoffed. "and i actually want to be here."

"but you're not an inventor!" percy reasoned. "you're a swordsman!"

"i am both," quintus explained. "and an architect. and a scholar. i also play basketball pretty well for a guy who didn't start until he was two thousand years old. a real artist must be good at many things."

"that's true," rachel said. "like i can paint with my feet as well as my hands."

andromeda almost laughed at how silly that sounded.

"you see?" quintus mused. "a girl of many talents."

"but you don't even look like daedalus," percy protested. "i saw him in a dream, and. . ." he trailed off, and andromeda had a hunch he knew, somehow, that quintus was telling the truth.

"yes," quintus decided. "you've finally guessed the truth."

"you're an automaton. you made yourself a new body."

"percy," annabeth said uneasily, "that's not possible. that — that can't be an automaton."

quintus chuckled. "do you know what quintus means, my dear?"

"the fifth," andromeda translated. "in latin. but —"

"this is my fifth body." he held out his forearm. he pressed his elbow and part of his wrist popped open — a rectangular hatch in his skin. underneath, bronze gears whirred. wires glowed.

"that's amazing!" rachel burst.

"that's weird," percy expressed.

"that's scary," andromeda shivered

"that's. . .not natural." annabeth decided.

"oh, i assure you, my dear, it's still me. i'm still very much daedalus. our mother, athena, makes sure i never forget that." he tugged back the collar of his shirt. at the base of his neck was the dark shape of a bird grafted to his skin.

"a murderer's brand," annabeth said.

"for your nephew, perdix," percy guessed. "the boy you pushed off the tower."

quintus's face darkened. "i did not push him. i simply -"

"made him lose his balance," andromeda filled in, remembering the tale. "let him die." her father had told her every story of daedalus, even the odd ones. she supposed even he admired the myth as an architect, perhaps he even knew that he was more than a myth.

quintus gazed out the windows at the purple mountains. "i regret what i did, andromeda. i was angry and bitter. but i cannot take it back, and athena never lets me forget. as perdix died, she turned him into a small bird — a partridge. she branded the bird's shape on my neck as a reminder. no matter what body i take, the brand appears on my skin."

he met her eyes, and just through the soul that was in there, she could tell this was daedalus — the same intelligence and all the sadness.

"you really are daedalus," percy seemed to be thinking along the same lines.

"but why did you come to the camp?" andromeda asked. "why spy on us?"

"to see if your camp was worth saving. luke had given me one story. i preferred to come to my own conclusions."

"so you have talked to luke."

"oh, yes. several times. he is quite persuasive."

"but now you've seen the camp!" annabeth persisted. "so you know we need your help. you can't let luke through the maze!"

daedalus set his sword on the workbench. "the maze is no longer mine to control, annabeth. i created it, yes. in fact, it is tied to my life force. but i have allowed it to live and grow on its own. that is the price i paid for privacy."

"privacy from what?"

"the gods," he said. "and death. i have been alive for two millennia, my dear, hiding from death."

"but how can you hide from hades?" percy wondered. "i mean. . .hades has the furies."

"they do not know everything," he said. "or see everything. you have encountered them, percy. you know this is true. a clever man can hide quite a long time, and i have buried myself very deep. only my greatest enemy has kept after me, and even him i have thwarted."

"you mean minos," andromeda guessed.

daedalus nodded. "he hunts for me relentlessly. now that he is a judge of the dead, he would like nothing better than for me to come before him so he can punish me for my crimes. after the daughters of cocalus killed him, minos's ghost began torturing me in my dreams. he promised that he would hunt me down. i did the only thing i could. i retreated from the world completely. i descended into my labyrinth. i decided this would be my ultimate accomplishment: i would cheat death."

"and you did," annabeth marveled, "for two thousand years."

the impressed tone of her voice made andromeda a little uncomfortable. that one merit wouldn't outweigh all the demerits he had.

just then a loud bark echoed from the corridor, a few beats, and mrs. o'leary bounded into the workshop. she licked percy's face once, then almost knocked daedalus over with an enthusiastic leap.

"there is my old friend!" daedalus grinned, scratching mrs. o'leary behind the ears. "my only companion all these long lonely years."

"you let her save me," percy deduced. "that whistle actually worked."

daedalus nodded. "of course it did, percy. you have a good heart. and i knew mrs. o'leary liked you. i wanted to help you. perhaps i — i felt guilty, as well."

"guilty about what?"

"what your quest would be in vain."

"what?" annabeth scoffed. "but you can still help us. you have to! give us ariadne's string so luke can't get it."

"yes. . .the string. i told luke that the eyes of a clear-sighted mortal are the best guide, but he did not trust me. he was so focused on the idea of a magic item. and the string works. it's not as accurate as your mortal friend here, perhaps. but good enough. good enough."

"where is it?" andromeda prompted.

"with luke," daedalus said sadly. "i'm sorry, my dear. but you are several hours too late."

a chill passed through her as she realized why luke had been in such a good mood in the arena. he'd already secured the string from daedalus. his only obstacle had been the arena master, and now that antaeus was dead, it had been overcome.

"kronos promised me freedom," quintus reasoned. "once hades is overthrown, he will set me over the underworld. i will reclaim my son icarus. i will make things right with poor young perdix. i will see minos's soul cast into tartarus, where it cannot bother me again. and i will no longer have to run from death."

"that's your brilliant idea?" annabeth yelled. "you're going to let luke destroy your camp, kill hundreds of demigods, and then attack olympus? you're going to bring down the entire world so you can get what you want?"

"your cause is doomed, my dear. i saw that as soon as i began to work at your camp. there is no way you can hold back the might of kronos."

"atleast we're trying!" andromeda defended.

"trying is not enough, i'm afriad. the offer was too sweet to refuse. i'm sorry."

annabeth pushed over an easel. architectural drawing scattered across the floor. "i used to respect you. you were my hero! you — you built amazing things. you solved problems. now. . .i don't know what you are. children of athena are supposed to be wise, not just clever. maybe you are just a machine. you should have died two thousand years ago."

daedalus hung his head. "you should go warn your camp. now that luke has the string —"

suddenly mrs. o'leary pricked up her ears.

"someone's coming!" rachel warned.

the doors of the workshop burst open.

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