Death and Madness|| Nico di Angelo

Hell hounds and bad dreams

Before dinner Percy and I stopped by the sword arena. 

He talked about the real island where he had been marooned and not gonna lie, it sounded like paradise. Percy chuckled when I voiced my thoughts. 

"You know, you remind me of someone" He said. I hummed for him to continue. "My sister, Alexandra"

His smile turned into a frown. "What happened to her?" 

"She ran away, years ago" Percy said softly. "Gods I don't even know if she's alive"

I didn't know what to say to that. Then we entered the Arena. Sure enough, Mrs. O'Leary was curled up in an enormous black furry mound in the middle of the stadium, chewing halfheartedly on the head of a warrior dummy.

When she saw Percy, she barked and came bounding toward us. I thought I was dead meat. I just had time to say, "Whoa!" before she bowled Percy over and started licking his face as I stood to the side, laughing.

"Whoa, girl!" Percy yelled. "Can't breathe. Lemme up!"

Eventually we managed to get her off him. I scratched her ears and found her an extra-gigantic dog biscuit.

"Where's your master?" Percy asked. Her. "How could he just leave you, huh?"

She whimpered like she wanted to know that, too.

I was thinking about that and toweling the dog spit off Percy's face when a girl's voice said, "You're lucky she didn't bite your head off."

Clarisse was standing at the other end of the arena with her sword and shield. "Came here to practice yesterday," she grumbled. "Dog tried to chew me up."

"Clarisse!" I yelled, I ran over to her, barely giving her time to move before engulfing her in a hug. It had become sort of a joke between us. It had started when Clarisse had said something about never hugging someone, which was where I came into place. 

"Violet" She greeted. She no longer sounded like she wanted to kill me so I took that as a win. 

Percy stared at us both in shock. "You two..."

"She insisted" Clarisse said. 

I gasped dramatically. "Don't say that! Percy, everyone knows Clarisse is the one true love of my life"

"Sure" Clarisse said, though I caught her trying to not smile. 

Percy gave me a thumbs up away from Clarisse's eyes, 

"Stupid hell hound," Clarisse said. "Not going to keep me from practising."

"I heard about Chris," Percy said. "I'm sorry."

Clarisse paced a circle around the arena. When she came to the nearest dummy, she attacked viciously, chopping its head off with a single blow and driving her sword through its guts. She pulled the sword out and kept walking.

"Yeah, well. Sometimes things go wrong." Her voice was shaky. "Heroes get hurt. They...they die, and the monsters just keep coming back."

She picked up a javelin and threw it across the arena. It nailed a dummy straight between the eyeholes of its helmet.

Shit. She was good.

She had called Chris a hero, like he had never gone over to the Titan's side. 

"Chris was brave," Percy said. "I hope he gets better."

She glared at Percy as if he were her next target. Mrs. O'Leary growled.

"Do me a favor," Clarisse told me.

"Yeah, sure."

"If you find Daedalus, don't trust him. Don't ask him for help. Just kill him."

"Clarisse—"

"Because anybody who can make something like the Labyrinth, Violet? That person is evil. Plain evil."

For a second she reminded me of Eurytion the cowherd, her much older half brother. She had the same hard look in her eyes, as if she'd been used for the past two thousand years and was getting tired of it. She sheathed her sword. "Practice time is over. From now on, it's for real."

---

That night I dreamt I was underground in a stone chamber. Luke and another half-blood warrior were studying a map by flashlight.

Luke cursed. "It should've been the last turn." He crumpled up the map and tossed it aside.

"Sir!" his companion protested.

"Maps are useless here," Luke said. "Don't worry. I'll find it."

"Sir, is it true that the larger the group—"

"The more likely you get lost? Yes, that's true. Why do you think we sent out solo explorers to begin with? But don't worry. As soon we have the thread, we can lead the vanguard through."

"But how will we get the thread?"

Luke stood, flexing his fingers. "Oh, Quintus will come through. All we have to do is reach the arena, and it's at the juncture. Impossible to get anywhere without passing it. That's why we must have a truce with its master. We just have to stay alive until—"

"Sir!" a new voice came from the corridor. Another guy in Greek armor ran forward, carrying a torch. "The dracaenae found a half-blood!"

Luke scowled. "Alone? Wandering the maze?"

"Yes, sir! You'd better come quick. They're in the next chamber. They've got him cornered."

"Who is it?"

"No one I've ever seen before, sir."

Luke nodded. "A blessing from Kronos. We may be able to use this half-blood. Come!"

They ran down the corridor, and I woke with a start, staring into the dark. 

A lone half-blood, wandering in the maze.

 It was a long time before I got to sleep again.