Angel from Tartarus

The Boy with Sea Green Eyes

Two horrible years have passed since Iapetus fell in the River Lethe. The only time I had ever seen him again was when I hid in the corner of the temple, "Bob" helping two other... were they demigods? One of them looked exactly like the one in my dream! Now they're gone again, and I have only Kelli and Reese. Kelli is now teaching me everything Iapetus taught me as well. I'm already learning Twelfth grade level stuff, and Kelli said I could probably hold up a political argument better than her. Don't let my intellect fool you, though, I'm still only eight.

SCREEEECH! I look up from my textbooks. Kelli is already outside, looking at what's charging toward us. A Drakon. my legs shake. They're extremely powerful. I ran back inside, dress myself and Reese, who is now big enough to ride easily, in armor. I grab a dagger made of bone and run back outside. The Drakon is close now. Kelli grabs my hand.

"Idiot girl," she says, "Why would you want to fight a Drakon?" she half drags me back inside. The fire is burning, food appearing again. She holds me by the shoulders and looks straight into my eyes. "Listen Lilly," she says, "I'm going to throw you into the fire. This might just about be the most reckless thing I've ever done. If this works, then you'll be in a safe haven, at least for a while. if not, well, you're dead either way."

"Why not come along?" I cry.

"Because, I'm a monster. We'd both be killed on sight. Reese will protect you if they do try to hurt you. Remember, when you arrive, do not freak out, don't try coming back, and, most importantly, whatever you do, do not mention my name." "Before I could protest, Kelli throws me into the fire, muttering, "Have a safe trip to Camp Half-Blood."

The last thing I see is Reese jumping after me as Kelli turns to face the Drakon.

~~~~~~~~~

I land, coughing and sputtering, on dark ground. You don't see soil like that in Tartarus. I hear Reese whimper as he lands next to me. I hug him, to make sure that he is real. He is. I'm sobbing, and gasping for air. The first thing that comes to my mind was Kelli. I panic.

"I have to go back!" I turn towards the fire. "K-Kelli!" Then I remember.

"Remember, when you arrive, do not freak out, don't try coming back, and, most importantly, whatever you do, do not mention my name." Sorry, Mom.

The second I said "Kelli," I find myself at a celestial bronze sword point, the boy from my dream, with sea green eyes, holding it to my throat. There is a flicker of doubt in those eyes. He looks about eighteen years old. When I can finally tear my eyes from him, I see someone throwing a giant fireball at Reese, who is about to pounce towards the boy for me.

"REESE!" I cry. I twist around and kick the boy in the side. He falls over, probably more from shock than anything else. Before anyone can do or say anything, I grab protectively onto Reese, getting in front of the fireball, smiling at him instead of looking at the fire. He whimpers, and I see the fireball flashing in his eyes. I keep smiling. Then, I screamed. It had hit me. I meant for it to. White hot pain sears throughout my back. Black creeps into my vision. Some demigods begin to freak out. Some want to finish me off. Some are worried. It was all chaos.

"LEO!" Shrieks a girl with long brown hair.

"I-I didn't mean to, I freaked out... Come on, It's a hellhound for Pete's sake!"

I sink to the ground, Reese whimpering and nudging me. "Darn, Kelli, I screwed up. I knew you shouldn't have sent me here. I should have fought instead. Sorry I failed you, Mom." my lips are hardly moving, my words a little slurred, but I don't want to stop talking. Tears stream down my face. Blood trickles down from my mouth. "He could have been there to help us both. If I find out whoever pushed Iapetus into the Lethe, I'll kill..." I stop talking. The boy with the sea green eyes. He is the only one who isn't talking. His eyes are trained on me with mixed emotions. He's holding onto my every word. He knows what I'm saying.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," he says.

My eyes widen. "You," I gasp, "You... did it..." Coughing and sputtering blood, I reach for my dagger. "I- I will..." My hand falls. The blackness fills my vision, and I slide out of a painful consciousness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Percy

Gods. Oh, gods, what have I done?

Iapetus? Bob, the Titan? How was I supposed to know? And Kelli. An Empousa being a mother figure to a demigod is unheard of. But, the damage was done. I sigh and look at the girl, who we had moved to the infirmary. She couldn't possibly be more than ten years old! Her skin is pale, and heavily callused. Before she was cleaned to have her burn treated, she didn't look like she had had a decent bath in forever. When we did clean her, we found a lot more scars on her body. Poor thing. We deemed her hellhound too dangerous to have in camp, but he was obviously important to the girl, so we left him outside our borders. I wince. Not a very good idea. I haven't gotten much sleep thanks to the howling. He misses her. I wonder if those two had ever been separated before.

I hear the door open. Leo's here. He's been visiting the girl frequently since the incident. I avert my gaze. This girl has been out for nearly two weeks now. Her weapons and armor, made from materials in Tatarus, have been placed somewhere in the Big House. As I sit beside her, I think about the look in her eyes as she had reached for her dagger. She wanted to kill me.

I hear a gasp for air. She's awake. I shakily hold an ambrosia square to her lips.

"Eat this." She looks at it skeptically.

"Who are-" she looks at me and Leo and jumps, then flinches. her wounds still hurt.

"Please, eat it."

"I can't trust you."

"Eat it."

"Where's Reese?"

"Eat it."

"Is it poison?"

I shake my head. "It's Ambrosia."

Her eyes widen. "Godly food?"

"Please. Eat it. I promise, it's much better than Phlegton fire." She takes the ambrosia and nibbles it. Deciding it was edible, she ate the whole cube and moans at the relief of pain. Now for questions. "Who are you?"

"What is this, an interrogation?"

"Answer me, please."

"I'm Aikaterina. AKA Kat."

"Aikaterina? As in 'Pure?' And you're from Tatarus?"

"Didn't name myself. Next question: How long have you been in Tatarus?"

"Since I was an infant." That was unheard of.

"You're lying."

"You're the first other human I ever saw. I had a dream the night you drowned Iapetus. I swear, when I get my weapons back, I'll kill you."

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it. How's Reese?"

"Who?"

"The hellhound."

"You named a hellhound Reese?"

"I was a baby!"

"He's outside the border."

"Safe?" I nod.

Leo speaks up. "I'm sor-"

"Hellhound and a girl appear in the middle of Demigod grounds. It's okay," she says. He breathes a sigh of relief. Kat struggles to get out of the bed. We both urge her to stay down.

"But... Reese..."

"He's okay. We'll bring him in. No need for you to hurt yourself anymore for his sake." She hesitantly lays back down.

"Thank you."