𝐌𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐢━━Nico di Angelo

56

"Hey, guys!" Piper called from the bow. "Better get over here. You need to see this."

They'd found the source of the dark lightning.

Somehow Leo had rigged a booster to the Argo II which is how they'd crossed the distance to Greece in time that seemed impossible. Ajax could still not wrap his head around everything.

Jason had pulled him aside and told him to sort everything out with Nico.

"I need you guys focused. If you want, I can talk to him"

"No!" Ajax protested. "We'll talk, don't worry"

If there was anything that could make this situation worse, it would be Nico finding out that Ajax told Jason.

He could see Nico right now, he was on deck like the others and Ajax was torn between slamming him against the rails and kissing him until he couldn't breathe and ignoring him.

A little creepily, Ajax ignored the very real threat they were about to face. Instead he stared at Nico.

Anchor.

If there was anyone or anything that could calm him down, it was him. But Ajax was mad at him right now.

The anger drained out of him when he looked at the son of Hades. His posture, as usual was crap, but then again, so was Ajax's. His nose was classically European, a little bump where he had told Ajax he had broken his nose in the Casino. Ajax wanted to trace over his cheekbones and his jaw. His expression was grim, his eyebrows drawn together.

He had his jacket back on and Ajax wanted to take it off.

Gods, he was glad no one on the ship was a mind reader.

"Hey, Loverboy" Piper called, "you good?" She was close to him and further from everyone else. She could sense something was going on, "Uh.. see, I have this thing where I can sense romantic and uh other attraction. And it keeps coming from you. What's going on?"

Ajax shifted closer to her and lowered his voice so no one else would hear.

"I like Nico"

"Shut the fuck up" Piper punched him in the arm. "I called it! I knew it!"

Ajax clamped his hand over her mouth, looking around wildly with a half grin on his face. "Shhh" It was hard to keep a straight face.

"Is there any way you can make these feelings go away for now?" Ajax asked her. It was a stupid idea, but worth asking, "I can't focus"

"Hmmm" Piper teasingly smiled at him. Ajax poked her harshly. "So are you like really into emos and creepy people or is it because he's the only single guy?"

"He's so much more than that" Ajax whispered. Piper was not hiding that they were talking about Nico at all. She kept openly looking at the other boy on deck. "He's.. fuck, he's an angel"

Piper took a step back like she was overwhelmed, then she looked up and smiled so wide, Ajax bit the inside of his cheek as heat rose to his face. What had he just said?

"I've been around a lot of sappy couples, but Ajax, you have really intense feelings about him"

"Yeah, I'm having unholy thoughts, what can I say?"

Piper laughed and Ajax regretted saying what he did. "I mean- that's not what I-" Ajax punched her shoulder, "I hate you"

The two looked off the ship. It was nice to goof around and act like they didn't have anxiety pooling in their stomach. Ajax hated the feeling, it felt too much like a panic attack, except slower, which terrified him.

The Argo II hovered directly over the river. A few hundred meters away at the top of the nearest hill stood a cluster of ruins. They didn't look like much—just some crumbling walls encircling the limestone shells of a few buildings—but from somewhere within the ruins, tendrils of black ether curled into the sky, like a smoky squid peeking from its cave. As Ajax watched, a bolt of dark energy ripped through the air, rocking the ship and sending a cold shockwave across the landscape.

"The Necromanteion," Nico said. "The House of Hades."

Nico could read a dictionary out loud and Ajax would hang on to every word he said.

Ajax steadied himself at the rail. He supposed it was too late to suggest turning back. He was starting to feel nostalgic about the monsters they had fought until now. Hell, getting blasted in the face by poison cows in Venice had been more appealing than this place.

Piper hugged her arms. "I feel vulnerable floating up here like this. Couldn't we set down in the river?"

"I wouldn't," Hazel said. "That's the River Acheron."

Ajax squinted in the sunlight. "I thought the Acheron was in the Underworld."

"It is," Hazel said. "But its headwaters are in the mortal world. That river below us? Eventually it flows underground, straight into the realm of Pluto—er, Hades. Landing a demigod ship on those waters—"

"Yeah, let's stay up here," Leo decided. "I don't want any zombie water on my hull."

Half a kilometer downstream, some fishing boats were puttering along. Ajax could feel the mist warp their perception of everything. They didn't know or care about the history of this river, they couldn't see the black lightning. Must be nice, being a regular mortal.

Next to Frank, Nico raised the scepter of Diocletian. Its orb glowed with purple light, as if in sympathy with the dark storm.

Even if it was Nico controlling it, the scepter troubled Ajax. It had the power to summon a legion of the dead...well, Ajax wasn't sure that was such a great idea.

"So, uh, Nico..." Frank gestured at the scepter. "Have you learned to use that thing?"

"We'll find out." Nico stared at the tendrils of darkness undulating from the ruins. "I don't intend to try until I have to. The Doors of Death are already working overtime bringing in Gaea's monsters. Any more activity raising the dead, and the Doors might shatter permanently, leaving a rip in the mortal world that can't be closed."

Coach Hedge grunted. "I hate rips in the world. Let's go bust some monster heads."

Frank looked at Hedge. "Coach, you should stay on board, cover us with the ballistae."

Hedge frowned. "Stay behind? Me? I'm your best soldier!"

"We might need air support," Ajax said. He remembered Hedge talking with someone he cared about back home. Ajax had nothing. No one. No home, no person waiting for him, only death. In a way it was comforting, because no matter what happened, he was destined to die. He didn't have to wonder about where he would stay, where he would go after this

He wanted Coach to go back to that person he loved. "Like we did in Rome. You saved our braccae."

Frank looked at Ajax with a smile.

Hedge apparently got the message. His scowl relaxed. Relief showed in his eyes.

"Well..." he grumbled, "I suppose somebody's got to save your braccae."

Jason clapped the coach on the shoulder. Then he gave Frank an appreciative nod. "So that's settled. Everybody else—let's get to the ruins. Time to crash Gaea's party."