| The Rising Moon: The Awakening of a Demi-Goddess |

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Celeste hated everyone. She was surrounded by people she didn't know. People she didn't trust. Sure, they had all survived. But they had all tried to kill her.

"Welcome, survivors! I see you managed to make your way out of Tartarus. Very good," Eris's voice echoed through the chambers as she sat down on a large obsidian and royal purple throne.

"You all must be very hungry- how many days have you been under there? Two? Five? Ten? It matters not, because you are all alive! And for that, you must relax now!" Eris clapped her hands, and an assortment of dishes appeared. There was chicken, turkey, bread, wine, pudding, cake, grapes, smores, steak, mashed potatoes, and so many other assortments. 

"Enjoy!" Eris said sweetly. Celeste eyed the food wearily. In the past few days, even on the Argo III, she had been.. avoiding food. 

'What if it's poisoned? How can I trust Eris? Or anyone?' She quietly avoided touching anything, keeping her hands to herself. She heard Jessica scoff quietly.

"What food is this? I've had much better things!" If Eris heard it, she didn't say anything. James and Elizabeth ruefully agreed, not touching anything as well. 

Many kids, (almost all of them,) immediately reached out to the food, picking up slices of cake and pieces of chicken and slabs of beef. Once everyone who had picked out food had finished, Eris clapped her hands.

"Great to see that you are all very hungry! And gullible, at that as well," Eris mused quietly. Celeste blinked. 'What? Did she.... oh no,"

"The food you have been eating was poisoned. Those who were cautious enough- congratulations! As for the others... it will be over soon," Eris said darkly. One kid, a boy with brown hair and a bowl cut, started to scream, clutching his neck. His eyes turned red and started to water. He coughed up blood.

"Ahh, the side effects. Don't worry, you should be gone in just a few-" The kid dropped dead, his lifeless body thumping on the floor.

"Moments,"

More and more kids screamed and received the poisons effects, their screams ringing in Celeste's ears. She looked at the food. 'If I had eaten that... If I hadn't been cautious..." She would have died. A cold feeling made her shiver.

This was a warning.

Trust no one.

She closed her eyes, dread washing over her.

She wouldn't eat from anyone else. She wouldn't trust anyone else.

She was alone.

—————————————————————————————————————

Nico's insides tumbled. He could hear his mind scream different emotions. Sadness. Confusion. Rage. And worst of all..

Heartbreak. How had he ever gotten feelings for her? She had been lying from the start, manipulating him with every evil intention. Even that girl from the party, the one who had complained about the spider, had confirmed it.

She was the top general of Eris. She could have been working for the goddess for months, years before she joined him and the others on the Argo III.

And he had let her.

"Hey, Nico, you alright? That was.. pretty rough," Leo said from behind him. The son of Hephaestus must have slipped in and witness the whole argument. Nico swiftly whirled around to him, rage and anger flashing in his eyes.

"Uh- I'll take that as a no. The others are- er- asking for you. Wanted to talk- oh geez okay," Nico pushed Leo away and opened the door, the dark whispers speaking in his mind. Being the son of Hades, he was used to dark voices in his mind every now and then. But whenever things got messy, like when Celestial betrayed them, the darkness fed off his mind. And that's what it was doing right now.

She betrayed you...

Kill her. Make her know what suffering she caused you...

No child of Hades ever has had a happy life- and neither will you,

He scoffed at the voices and shut them up. Leo was silently walking behind him, sensing the thick atmosphere.

"So.. are you.. alright? That was pretty- you know- brutal," Leo commented quietly. Nico's scorching glare said enough. The both entered the room where the others were chatting and discussing. Percy patted a seat beside him, offering it to Nico. Nico went to the farthest chair. He didn't even know what to think.. what to feel. The emotions hadn't even fully registered yet.

"Hey Nico! Hey.. Nico? Is everything alright?" Jason asked, giving Nico a puzzled glance. Nico scowled at him and shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Could we just get this over?" He asked sourly, not meeting anyones gaze. Concerned looks were exchanged.

"I- uh- sure. We've been deciding. About Celestial, I mean," Piper started. Nico flinched at her name, the words emotionally burning him.

"Do you think we should still get the truth serum from Meda's mall? We're about an hour away, but getting the potion will be a lot of work, but she doesn't seem to be as bad as we thought..." Annabeth added, twirling a strand of golden hair. They all had known about his past... relationship with her, so his opinion mattered.

The familiar seething hatred coursed through his veins, and he let out a scoff. "I can say one thing's for sure. She's been the villain the whole time," he spat out angrily. A few surprised looks came his way. Percy perked up.

"What do you...?"

"She told me. Right now. It. Was. All. A. Lie. She was Eris's top general- she planned out the whole betrayal," He hissed, rage burning in his veins. The silence thudded in his ears. Everybody exchanged wild glances, the atmosphere distraught and tense.

"It's settled. We need that potion," Annabeth broke the silence. Everyone else wordlessly agreed, and Nico sat up to leave the room. He didn't want to listen to everyone.

Even himself...