Clarisse

I sat with the other surviving demigods in the underground base. It's been days and we haven't heard any sign from Nico about whether he completed his mission or not. 

I looked up to see Will Solace walk towards me, carrying two steaming hot mugs of coffee in both hands. He set them down on the table before pulling out a chair with his foot and sitting down. 

"Take one." The son of Apollo said, gesturing towards the coffee as he reached over and curled his fingers around the handle of a mug. I eyed the coffee for a moment before I grabbed one and pulled it towards me. 

"Thanks." I muttered as I raised the mug to my lips and took a sip. The coffee tasted delicious. 

"No problem." Will leaned back in his seat, fixing his blue eyes on me. I was a little uncomfortable with the gaze he was giving me before he finally spoke. "I know you're thinking about Nico. Don't worry, he's fine." 

"And how do you know that?" I demanded as I pressed the palm of my hand against the mug. The hot coffee warmed my cold hands. 

A small smile appeared at the corners of Will's mouth. "I know that because I think about that little son of Hades every single moment while he's in Tartarus. I know he's ok, he's gone through so much." 

I raised an eyebrow, before I chuckled. "Looks like someone has a crush." Will flushed deep red and he opened his mouth to protest but thankfully he was saved by Malcolm's appearance. 

 The son of Athena had a worried look on his face and he had his sword clutched tightly in his grip. "Clarisse, Will, I think there's someone trying to break into the base." 

"What?" I shouted, leaping to my feet and grabbing my electric spear. Will was quick to follow, moving over to the wall and seizing a bow with a quiver of arrows. We followed Malcolm towards the archway, where we passed underneath it into the main hallway. 

Malcolm stopped and pointed up at the small trapdoor that we use to exit and enter the underground base. I listened hard, and I could make out the distinct sounds of whispering and the footsteps.

Will pulled back on the bowstring, aiming the arrow at the trapdoor. I spun my spear, and Malcolm stepped forwards, drawing his sword and approaching the trapdoor silently.

Just as he took several steps forward, the trapdoor suddenly open. Malcolm jumped back as a figure dropped down. I aimed my spear at the figure, ready to skewer him when I saw who it was. 

"Holy Hera!" I shouted as I dropped my spear in shock. Nico Di Angelo grinned tiredly at me. His hair was rumpled and dirty, and his clothes were ripped in various places. His face was covered in monster dust and sweat.

"Nico." Will said in disbelief as he put away his bow and put the arrow back into the quiver. The son of Hades glanced over and his face brightened considerably. "Will!"

"You...You're back. You actually made it." Malcolm murmured. He was staring at Nico with bewilderment and a bit of awe.

"Of course I made it! And I brought some people you all would be happy to see." Nico smiled and he looked up at the open trapdoor. "You guys can come down now, it's all clear! Just don't kill anyone!" 

"Kill-What?" Will spluttered but he didn't get to finish his sentence as someone else jumped down. It was a female with long, flowing auburn hair and silver eyes. Her clothes were ripped as well, but she was in better shape than Nico.

"Lady Artemis?" I asked in astonishment. The Goddess of the Moon looked at me before her lips curled into a small smile. "Clarisse La Rue, daughter of Ares."

"How, what?" Will froze as more people jumped down. We all backed up as the space in the hallway became crowded. Soon, in front of Malcolm, Will and I stood Nico, Artemis, Athena, Hades, Apollo and......Atlas.

"What is a titan doing here?" I growled as I reached for my spear again. "No, he's on our side!" Nico shouted as his hand shot out and gripped my wrist with surprising strength. I paused for a moment before I gave in and nodded.

Nico released me before turning to the five immortal beings. "This is our underground base that we've built to hide from Percy and his army. So far, it worked, because well, we're still alive."

"Not that impressive but it'll have to do." Artemis said as she walked past us, practically shoving her shoulder into Malcolm as she did so. The Goddess reached the archway and stopped, turning back to face us. "There's other surviving demigods here too?"

"Yes, but there isn't a lot of us left. About 50 or so." Nico explained as he hurried over to Artemis and ducked under the archway. Artemis raised an eyebrow before she followed Nico inside the base. 

I was quick to tail them, and judging by the sound of heavy footsteps behind me, everyone else was doing the same. We entered the base, and the demigods there all stared at us in shock and disbelief. Especially at the sight of four Gods and a Titan.

"Nico!" Katie Gardner, daughter of Demeter shouted in joy. Everyone else was quick to notice the appearance of the son of Hades, and the demigod all crowded around us, congratulating Nico on his success. 

"Okay, we have more pressing matters at hand." Nico said, shooing everyone away as he walked over to the table and sat down. He gestured for the five immortal beings to do the same, and they warily took a seat at the table. 

I sat down next to Athena, and the Goddess of Wisdom smiled at me. I awkwardly returned the smile before I grabbed my cup of coffee and set it down in front of me. The demigods in the room all walked over to the giant table and took their respective seats. Once everyone was seated, Nico cleared his throat and leaned forwards.

"As you all can see, I've returned from Tartarus with some of the Olympians. The rest had not reformed yet, so I was only able to escape with them." Nico said, but he was interrupted by Mark Damian, my half brother.

"And you brought a Titan along too? What were you thinking?" Mark glanced at Atlas, who was seated directly to Nico's left. The Titan just gave the son of Ares a harsh glare, which made Mark flinch. 

Nico rolled his eyes and laced his fingers together. "Shut up. He's on our side, he helped us escape Tartarus and he's saved my life on multiple occasions." Mark glowered at the Titan but he remained silent.

"So what's the plan now?" Will asked, who was seated on Nico's right. The son of Hades glanced at Will before a light blush appeared on his cheeks. No one seemed to notice except for me, and I smirked. 

"The plan now is to give ourselves a couple of days to train our hardest before we launch the attack on Percy." Nico said once he recovered. "I also want to use those couple of days to bring the Gods and Atlas with me on a scouting trip to show them what things are like after my cousin took the throne." 

"Okay. Sounds good." I said, but I tightened my grip on my spear. I was nervous about the final fight. Percy wiped us out completely, with an army of about 50 people. Now, he has mortals and monsters under his control, and his army along with his stupid girlfriend. 

Everyone else seemed nervous as well. Even the Gods seemed nervous. Atlas, on the other hand, looked indifferent. 

"Everyone's dismissed." Nico said finally as he stood up. As he did so, Will's hand shot out and grabbed Nico by the arm. "Where are you going?" 

Nico looked at Will's hand before he muttered "I'm going to train. Is there a problem?" Will huffed and stood up as well, towering over Nico's small frame. I snickered quietly at the sight. 

"Of course there's a problem. Look at you. You've just returned from Tartarus, and you're going to go train? I don't think so, you're going to clean up and get some rest." 

Nico's cheeks turned fiery red and he yanked his arm out of Will's grip. "Who are you, my mom? I know how to take care of myself, thank you very much!" Will opened his mouth to continue arguing when Hades' cold voice interrupted the two demigods. 

"I think that's enough. Nico, go listen to the son of Apollo and get yourself cleaned up," Hades snapped his fingers and his torn clothing was replaced with a new set of black robes. The other Gods followed his example, and Nico scowled before storming off. 

Will started to go after him but Apollo held out a hand to stop his son. "No, leave the boy alone. Give him some time."

Will hesitated before he nodded and sat back down next to Apollo. "At least he returned safely, and with you guys no less." I said, looking around at the grim faces of the Gods and Atlas. 

"Yes, but the war against Perseus will be hard." Hades ran a hand through his hair, before he continued "But we will win, because I'm not losing to that sea scum again."

"We will win, no matter what it takes."

Word count: 1593

school is killing me inside slowly. on the bright side, Christmas is coming :)