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"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?"

was the first sentence andromeda heard as she regained consciousness. she blinked her eyes open, but even then, she couldn't see much.

"were you even thinking at all?"

"annabeth?" andromeda guessed.

"yes, annabeth!" her blonde friend scolded. "and you've got a lot of fucking explaining to do."

annabeth never cursed. that meant something serious was going on.

"what's wrong?" she tried to sit up, leaning on her hand to do so. and the daggers of pain that shot up her arm almost made her pass out again.

"you're poisoned." annabeth scolded. "that's what's wrong,"

she blinked, trying to remember.

it all slapped her in the face, nearly knocking her back with the force. "percy," she recalled. "where's percy? what happened to him?"

annabeth rolled her eyes. "i think you'd do well to worry more about yourself. how did this happen?"

andromeda told her the sequence. and annabeth was left gaping at the end.

"but he has invincibility!" annabeth pointed out. "he wouldn't have been injured even if ethan got to him."

annabeth was right, but andromeda couldn't explain why she did what she did. she just felt like she had to. like something bad would've happened if she didn't.

"where is percy?" she asked again.

"we haven't had any word from him yet," annabeth frowned. "was he still on williamsburg when you last saw him?"

andromeda nodded. her head was still heavy, eyes still dizzy and unfocused. annabeth's image blurred in and out. she blinked to steady her vision.

"the poison's spreading," annabeth frowned. "we've already given you so much ambrosia and nectar."

the door of the terrace opened. silena stepped in, rushing to her side with a warm towel that she placed on her forehead. she exchanged some words with annabeth that andromeda didn't catch.

"girls," she called. "where are we?"

"the plaza," annabeth answered. "it's become an unofficial temporary headquarters."

"the others," she breathed heavily. "are. . .are they okay?"

both of them were silent. andromeda's consciousness was too blurry to decode their expressions.

"i'll try to contact percy," silena volunteered. "tell him to get a medic from apollo's,"

and with that, she went away.

"annabeth," andromeda called. "what happened to the others. jasmine and evander and michael?"

"you need to rest, 'rome," annabeth persisted. "we'll talk about this later."

andromeda wanted to protest, but she didn't have the strength to. her mind was having trouble even keeping consciousness. she accepted silence and faltered.

sometime later, the door of terrace burst open, and two sets of footsteps echoed as they walked in.

"andromeda,"

her eyes squinted open, catching a faint gleam of sea green. "percy,"

the look on his face when he heard her was the same look he had when he was told his mom was alive. but andromeda didn't trust her brain to make reasonable comparisons. he released a shaky breath, and his hand took her's with a shiver. he only stared at her.

"poison on the dagger," she mumbled. "pretty stupid of me, huh?"

will exhaled with relief. "it's not so bad, andy. a few more minutes and we would've been in trouble, but the venom hasn't gotten past the shoulder yet. just lie still. somebody hand me some nectar."

percy grabbed a canteen and will cleaned out the wound with the godly drink. the wound seared. andromeda imagined this is what meat felt like when it was being fried.

she sucked in a sharp breath through her teeth, grip tightening on percy's hand. her face contorted in anger. "fucking hell,"

she could vaguely make out silena muttering words of encouragement through the overwhelming pain. the stinging only subsided when will began humming a hymn to apollo in ancient greek. he applied fresh bandages and stood up shakily.

even in her condition, she could see how much energy it took will to do the healing. he looked as bad as she felt.

"that should do it," he said. "but we're going to need some mortal supplies."

he grabbed a piece of hotel stationery, jotted down some notes, and handed it to annabeth. "there's a duane reade on fifth. normally i would never steal, but this is an emergency. i've got a feeling we're going to have a lot more people to treat."

nobody disagreed. there was hardly a single demigod who hadn't already been wounded.

"i'll pass on the message," annabeth nodded. she turned to andromeda and percy, looking between the two of them, then she sighed and stood up. "i'll give you guys some space. we'll talk later, but it's under control. i'm using the shield to keep an eye on things. i did notice the armies withdrew at sunrise; not sure why. we've got a lookout at each bridge and tunnel."

"thanks, wise girl," percy gave a small smile.

annabeth returned it. "no problem seaweed brain. take care of her for me." she looked at andromeda.

andromeda tried her best to give a smile. "thanks."

she gave andromeda side-hug on her good arm. "get well soon," then she left, closing the terrace doors behind her.

silena pressed a cool cloth andromeda's forehead. "this is all my fault."

"no," andromeda tried to say. "silena, how is it your fault?"

"i've never been any good at camp," she murmured. "not like you or percy. if i was a better fighter . . ."

her mouth trembled.

"silena," andromeda called. "i was the worst at fighting for a long time. but that doesn't mean i didn't contribute at all in camp."

"yeah," percy agreed. "you're a great camper, you're the best pegasus rider we have. and you get along with people. believe me, anyone who can make friends with clarisse has talent."

she stared at him like he'd just given her an idea. "that's it! we need the ares cabin. i can talk to clarisse. i know i can convince her to help us."

"whoa, silena. even if you could get off the island, clarisse is pretty stubborn. once she gets angry -"

"please," silena said. "i can take a pegasus. i know i can make it back to camp. let me try."

"you shouldn't get off the island at all," she told silena. "the city is packed with the enemy. one pegasus and a rider wouldn't be too hard to take down."

"i can reason with clarisse," silena insisted. "i'm not good at this fighting stuff and i know it. just please, let me do what i'm good at,"

andromeda exchanged a look with percy.

she didn't like the odds of silena making it to camp safely, even less of her convincing clarisse. but what silena said was true, her reasoning skills would prove to be helpful moreso than combat. and clarisse did listen to her. . .

reluctantly, she gave percy a nod. and his frown deepend by barely an inch. and andromeda didn't think he liked this either. still, he did say alright, i can't think of anybody better to try.

silena threw her arms around percy in a hug. then she backed away awkwardly, glancing at andromeda, who broke into a genuine smile for the first time that night. "um, sorry. thank you, percy! i won't let you down!"

once she was gone, percy looked after her like she was his firstborn. he would kneel next to her, check her temperature, caress the bandage on the wound. andromeda couldn't help but adore his duality. the way he could laugh with joy while he killed and stabbed, perfectly stoic and humoring danger in the face. but in this moment, he poured over her injuries like they were his own, like every bit of pain she was feeling was passing through his body as well, despite the invincibility. this was hero. this was just percy. and she loved him too.

"what?"

his voice broke her trance. she blinked a few times, only now realizing how dry her eyes had gotten.

"what, what?" she asked.

"you're looking at me weird."

"oh," she had been staring. "right. sorry," she closed her eyes.

"why did you take that knife?"

"what?"

"will you just make me repeat everything i say?"

she gave him a light slap. "i took a poisoned knife. i think you can cut me some slack," he grinned sheepishly, and her heart skipped a beat. she inhaled sharply. "besides, that was a stupid question. you would've done the same for me."

he looked at her with such intensity, she nearly drowned in the waves lapping in his irises. "how did you know?"

"know what?"

his eyes sweeped the perimeter, then he leaned in closer. close enough for her to differentiate the shades of blue in his eyes.

"my achilles spot." he whispered. "if you hadn't taken that knife, I would've died."

she remembered the little tug in her mind driving her to do it. she had developed immense impulse control over the years, but that was one impulse that she couldn't seem to resist. "i don't know, i just had this feeling you were in danger. where. . .where is the spot?"

even as she asked, she expected him to deny her the answer. his focus shifted between her eyes."the small of my back."

she lifted her hand. "where? here?"

she put her hand on his spine, her eyes searching her's for confirmation. she could feel his sharp intake of breath. he didn't blink as he caught her wrist and moved her fingers.

"lower," he whispered.

her fingers grazed the one spot that grounded him to his mortality. currents of electricity went through her body, conducting from his eyes into her's. her hand shivered from the tingles. her heart clenched with emotions. the fact that he was trusting with such intimate information; things you weren't supposed to tell anyone. her stomach lurched nervously, feeling like someone was tickling her from the inside.

"you saved me," he said breathlessly. "thanks."

she removed her hand, but he didn't withdraw his.

she gave him a smile. "savior, remember?"

he frowned. "i don't want you to be a savior," he traced the lines on her palm. "if it means you keep getting hurt. i want you to be kept safe. i want you saved by me for once. i want you away from this war. i want you to be with me. i want you to know why i want all this. i want you to know how much you mean to me. i just. . .want you."

andromeda's heart sped a mile a minute and increased further with each of his words. here she was, bandaged, broken and bruised, and he was confessing his desire for her in the middle of a war on his name. her hands felt like they were overheating, her face warm.

he looked at her. "i don't know why i'm saying this. maybe the achilles curse makes rejection painless, too. i guess. . .i just want you to know."

rejection? andromeda scoffed in thought. but while she wanted to yell at him for his impeccable timing then kiss him speechless, she tried to conjure a tame reply.

"what makes you sure of rejection?"

she watched him search her eyes.

"what would you do if i didn't reject you?" she asked curiously.

he stayed so still. and so did she. even a sound of the lowest decimals could break this fragile moment. and she had a feeling too many good things were broken for this to be next.

"any of us could die." she began. "you've already given me so many scares." she recalled the two weeks last year when he had been marooned on calypso's island. the two weeks of pain and misery.

"well, you went missing." percy argued.

"i was abducted."

"same thing."

"i hate you."

"no you don't."

"i should've let ethan stab you."

percy frowned. "that was your dagger, wasn't it? the one luke gave you?"

andromeda nodded, knowing where this conversation was headed.

"how did ethan have it?" percy asked.

"you'll get mad if i tell you."

he raised an eyebrow. "i'll try not to. i promise."

"ethan won it from me in a duel."

"a duel?" percy repeated. "andromeda, when did you duel him?"

andromeda sighed, in the effects of the poison, she was too tired to argue. "look, i wanted to help ethan. i knew he could resist the titans. so i convinced nico to track down ethan. i met him near the river lethe. i set a deal. we would duel. the one who lost would have to join the winner's side. ethan won. but he didn't want my loyalty. he wanted my dagger. so i gave it to him."

"do you realize you could've died?" percy said, anger dripping from his words, she could tell his outburst was barely restrained.

"yes. i knew the risks. but wanted to impression ethan. atleast if i lost, i tried to help him."

the anger in percy's eyes melted into something else. his expression softened. "your prophecy. it said you would initiate the course. the duel was the starting point, wasn't it?"

andromeda looked down at their touching hands. "half of the prophecy has come true. initiate the course, check. gift used to pierce, check. save the one who bears the curse, check. now the only things left to do is take a life and have my name glorified at an unreasonable cost. no big deal."

percy gave a smile, and andromeda would've killed anyone to keep it on his face.

they sat over the city view. the silence was deafening. this time of day, new york should be bustling with noise. but the only noise andromeda could hear was the loud beating of her own heart. in that moment of peace, she replayed everything that happened today in her head.

she still couldn't believe percy had trusted her with his mortal point. his most vulnerable place. something he had and would never tell anyone. it gave her a little courage to open up about her own vulnerabilities.

"you wanted to know about that scar, right?" she asked.

"you don't have to if you don't want to."

she looked him in the eye, nodding. "i want to."

there was a beat of silence.

"i think i was seven, eight at most. back then, i had less impulse control, and even less knowledge of my parentage. we were learning about greek mythology in class, and i hated zeus. i guess i always have. me and my friends were all laughing about his. . .um, stories and then suddenly, i remember just feeling like i was being given an electric shock. i guess it was an electric shock, seeing how zeus had hit me with a fucking lightning bolt. i don't know how i didn't die. that kind of injury leaves a scar. mine goes from the shoulder, all the way to the waist."

andromeda didn't dare look at percy. "no one else knows about this," she realized out loud.

percy took a few moments to speak. "andy. . .that. . .you were seven. . ."

she gave a shrug with her good arm. "i was a demigod."

he frowned with a faraway look on his face. he opened his mouth to ask, but he never got the chance.

the terrace door opened. connor stoll stepped through.

"percy." he glanced at andromeda like he didn't want to say anything bad in front of her, but she could tell he wasn't bringing good news. "mrs. o'leary just came back with grover. i think you should talk to him."

"i'll be there," percy affirmed.

connor nodded and turned to leave, glancing between the two of them urgently.

"will you be okay?" percy asked her.

"i'm coming with you," she decided, trying to stand up. immediately, the dizziness caught up to her and her vision swayed, percy's figure blurring before her eyes. she blinked to steady her sight.

"no," percy argued. "you need to rest. that wound still needs healing."

she hated that he was right.

"but i want to see grover," she frowned.

"i'll tell you everything." he assured. "but later. right now, you need to rest. please, rest."

he pushed back her shoulders, laying he back down on the lounge chair.

"you are so annoying," she sighed.

he gave grin. "only when i'm right, though." he flicked away a strand of her hair. "i'll be back."

and then he left.

andromeda sighed, looking at the sunset. it was a pretty morning in new york. purple pink skies and a cool breeze blowing through the city, golden sunrays descending on the roads and buildings. but the absence of people. ths work, the noise, the birds. it was deeply unsettling. it was picturesque, but the picture wasn't a good one.

andromeda closed her eyes and layed back, immediately falling asleep as fatigue overtook her.

three figures stood over a table. dim light flooded in through the room, casting a golden glow on the surroundings. andromeda didn't recognize the place, but it was filled with loads of statues, all who had different expressions etched into the clay. some amazed, some accepting, some terrified. though none were smiling.

out of the three figures, one was a woman. blonde hair slicked back in a clean ponytail, torches around her body. the other was a man with a small beard, black hair falling to his shoulders. and the last was a man above average height, seven feet maybe. his hair was tied back in a small ponytail as he stood in a tux.

"have you done your part, prometheus?" asked the woman.

"yes, hecate," prometheus rolled his eyes. "i can be trusted."

hecate's torches flared. "i have contributed greatly to this cause. do not disrespect me. morpheus, your sleep needs to expand. we have to clear the way for kronos of any mortals."

the third guy, morpheus, frowned. "i am doing my best. perhaps it is you who needs to do better. that daughter of yours is no help."

the torches burnt bright purple. "she has just be stabbed," hecate spat. "you would do well to keep her name off your tongue."

"you know what kronos has planned for her," morpheus retorted. "or have you forgotten where your loyalties lie?"

"i know." hecate seethed. "i know he ploys for her. but he will not need to go that far. once jackson is disposed of, i know she will see the truth."

prometheus laughed.

"what is so humorous?" hecate demanded.

"i suppose you don't know how she was stabbed?" prometheus grinned.

hecate frowned. "by that insolent son of nemesis, ofcourse."

prometheus shook his head. "she was saving him. she took the knife for him."

hecate slipped into silence, seemingly speechless.

"i also don't see how you know why kronos's new interest in her has peaked?" prometheus went on. "she is his vulnerability. if we cannot target his physical weakness. we will target an emotional one."

"that is my daughter!" hecate bellowed. "i do not care for the hero, spare my daughter!"

"she brings it upon herself," morpheus hissed. "she had the nerve to ask a duel with our soldier behind our back. to make him put his loyalty on the line."

"no matter, though," prometheus waved off. "ethan still won. and he made the right choice, taking her weapon rather than her loyalty."

"she would have had a trick up her sleeve as well," morphwus glanced at hecate. "after all, those are inherited."

hecate gave him a cold glare. "she will not succumb to her fate. she will not be killed."

the two men stayed silent.

"be that as it may," prometheus went on. "we must leave this abode,"

morpheus touched one of the statues. "the infamous medusa resided here before jackson killed her."

"that is not reason enough." prometheus frowned. "their fates approach. and we must be ready for action."

hecate stormed out of the room, torches swinging out with her.

"i have never been so attached to my children," morpheus huffed.

"we all have exceptions," prometheus mumbled. "she must be disposed of if we are to win. with pandora's pithos in percy's grasp, and him seeing luke's fate, i can only hope he surrenders. if he does, then the plan will go as we wish."

"and if it does not?" morpheus prompted.

prometheus sighed, he stood straighter, fixed his blazer. "then we must hope the girl is reason enough for the boy."

"she cannot be spared in any way, prometheus," morpheus pressed. "the hero will face a choice. the savior is obligated to defend olympus."

prometheus grinned. "she will die defending the gods. how do you think our hero will think of them then?"

morpheus seemed to catch on. he smirked. "i see."

"hmm," prometheus walked to the door. "and now we wait."

he walked out with morpheus, and her dream ended.

andromeda woke up to the daylight hitting her in the face. reflexively, she conjured a block of mana to shield her vision.

she was pleasantly surprised to see her magic work. with the poison in her veins, she was almost sure she wouldn't be able to. but she realized she was healing faster than normally. she mentally thanked will and his amazing healing techniques.

she sighed and layed her head back, reviewing her dream.

she could see the mild worry her mom felt for her. but she couldn't understand that if she was worried for her, why not help her? then again, she had learned to not expect help or empathy from the gods.

her mom had told morpheus he needed to expand his spell for kronos. which meant kronos would be attacking soon. she knew now that they saw her as percy's vulnerability. an emotional one. she did not trust the achilles curse enough to bet on it relieving him from any emotional pain.

she wondered what kronos planned for her. he seemed to have many, she remembered evan had told her one when he had woken up from his mission. that kronos planned to use her as a stepping stone to get rid of percy, then would kill her. she knew now that he planned to get percy on his side by giving him the gift of hope. pandora's pithos.

she knew percy wouldn't open it. but she also knew that kronos had other plans for his victory in store. one that required her to be enough of a reason for percy, apparently.

she also knew now that the titans knew she had called ethan to a duel.

the day haunted her mind even now. morpheus was right, in a way. she did have a trick up her sleeve.

her actual plan was to bathe ethan in lethe and then influence his cleansed brain into joining their side. she was way worse than him at dueling. even with a missing eye, he fought incredibly well. she managed to hold on to the bank of the river.

then she faltered, and ethan almost drowned her in the lethe. she didn't know how she escaped and disarmed him, but she took his sword and held it to his neck.

but ethan had come prepared with tricks, too. he used her fatal flaw to trick her. to manipulate her with words. words she wanted to forget.

he weakened her enough to defeat her. he didn't want her loyalty, though. he knew she would have to die anyway. he wanted her dagger. she knew now that he guessed her dagger was the 'cursed blade' from the prophecy, so he took it.

and now he had pierced her with it.

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hehe i love adding side-plots to already existing stories