I tightened my grip on my sword as I stood between Percy and Piper. My eyes glanced around the room for any exits or ways to help us get out of here. Piper turned around to check the way we entered. She spun back around with a bitter look. I glanced over my shoulder to see the way we entered was gone.

"Who are you?" Percy demanded.

"Ah...names." The central nymph turned her head. "We once had names. I was Hagno, the first of the nine!"

I bite back a comment about her acting and looking like a hag. That would only upset the nymph more. Piper must've been thinking the same thing because the both of us look at each other and had to stifle a laugh. Luckily Jason distracted the nymphs from throttling us.

"The nine." Jason repeated. "The nymphs of this shrine. There were always nine niches."

"Of course." Hagno bared her teeth in a vicious smile. "But we are the original nine, Jason Grace, the ones who attended the birth of your father."

"You mean Jupiter?" Jason's sword dipped. "You were there when he was born?"

"Zeus, we called him then." Hagno said. "Such a squealing whelp. We attended to Rhea in her labor. When the baby arrived, we hid him so that his father, Kronos, would not eat him. Ah, he had lungs, that baby! It was all we could do drown out the noise so Kronos could not find him. When Zeus grew up, we were promised eternal honors. But that was in the old country, in Greece."

The other nymphs wailed and clawed at their niches. They seemed to be trapped inside of them. It was as if their freedom was glued to the stone along with the decorative seashells. I felt pity for them. I couldn't imagine be taunted by the sound of water that was my life source to never come up the fountain.

"When Rome rose to power, we were invited here." Hagno said. "A son of Jupiter tempted us with favors.  A new home, he promised. Bigger and better! No down payment, an excellent neighborhood. Rome will last forever."

"Forever." The others hissed.

"We gave in to temptation." Hagno said. "We left our simple wells and springs on Mount Lycaeus and moved here. For centuries, our lives were wonderful! Parties, sacrifices in our honor, new dresses and jewelry every week. All the demigods of Rome flirted with us and honored us."

The nymphs wailed and sighed.

"But Rome did not last." Hagno snarled. "The aqueducts were diverted. We were forgotten, buried under the earth, but we could not leave. Our life sources were bound to this place. Our old master never saw fit to release us. For centuries, we have withered here in the darkness, thirsty...so thirsty."

The others clawed at the throats. I could even feel mine feeling like it was closing up. I thickly swallowed.

"I'm sorry for you." Piper used her charmspeak. "That must have been terrible. But we are not your enemies. If we can help you-"

"Oh, such a sweet voice!" Hagno cried. "Such beautiful features. I was once young like you. My voice was as soothing as a mountain stream. But you do know what happens to a nymph's mind when she is trapped in the dark, with nothing to feed on but hatred, nothing to drink but thoughts of violence? Yes, my dear you can help us."

I didn't like the way she said it. Something about it seemed like there was another meaning behind it.

"Uh..." Percy raised his hand. "I'm the son of Poseidon. Maybe I can summon a new water source."

"Ha!" Hagno cried, and the other eight echoed. A shiver went down my spine. "Ha! Ha! Indeed, son of Poseidon. I know your father well. Ephialtes and Otis promised you would come."

"Percy." I lowly muttered toward him, placing a hand on his arm. He leaned slightly toward me, his eyes never leaving the crazy nymphs. "We need to go. Now. I'm not getting a good feeling about this."

"Me neither." Percy agreed, keeping his voice low. "But I don't see any exits."

"Then we'll have to fight our way out. We still need to help Nico."

"The giants." Piper looked like she was losing her balance, her head spinning with realization. She put her hand on Jason's arm. "You're working for them?"

"They are our neighbors." Hagno smiled. I exchanged a weary glance with Piper. "Their chambers is beyond this place, where the aqueduct's water was diverted for the games. Once we dealt with you...once you have helped us...the twins promised we will never suffer again."

"When you say help," I lazily pointed my sword at her, "do you mean we volunteer or are we voluntold? Because I hate being voluntold and that means problems."

All I received was croaky laughs. My grip tightened on the hilt of my sword.

"You, child of Jupiter-for the horrible betrayal of your predecessor who brought us here, you shall pay." Hagno turned to face Jason. "I know the sky god's powers. I raised him as a baby! Once, we nymphs controlled the rain above our wells and springs. When I'm done with you, we will have that power again. And Percy Jackson, child of the sea god...from you, we will take water, an endless supply of water."

"Endless?" Percy's eyes darted from one nymph to the other. "Uh...look, I don't know about endless. But maybe I could spare a few gallons."

"Ivy Pittaluga, the daughter of the wine god." The nymph smiled.

"Uh, he actually hates it when people called him that." I pursed my lips together.

"From you, we will settle our hunger and thirst." Hagno continued. "The grapes you grow will help us grow back into our original strength."

"Look, if you're hungry, I can go grab you a Snickers bar or something. You're not you when you're hungry." I jabbed my thumb over my shoulder, taking a step back. One of the nymphs scoffed, well, at least I think she did. It eased as if something got caught in the back of her throat and she was trying to cough it out. Percy grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze to shut up. Jason side eyed me, giving me a look. But I couldn't stop, it was like word vomit. "We can be quick to go grab one-"

"Okay." Piper clamped a hand over my mouth.

"And you, Piper McLean." Hagno's purple eyes glistened. "So young, so lovely, so gifted with your sweet voice. From you, we reclaim our beauty. We have saved our last life force for this day. We are very thirsty. From your four we shall drink!"

All nine niches glowed. The nymphs disappeared, and water poured from their alcoves-sickly dark water, like oil. The basin filled with alarming speed. The four of us rushed towards the walls, pounding our fists against them, looking for an exit. Nothing.

We climbed into the alcoves to gain some height, but with the water pouring out of each of niche, it was like trying to balance at the edge of a waterfall. Even with me standing in the niche, the water was soon up to my knees. From the floor, it was probably eight feet deep and rising fast.

"I could try lighting." Jason said. "Maybe blast a hole through the roof."

"That would bring down the whole room and crush us." Piper told him.

"Or electrocute us." Percy added.

"I can try to grow some vines." I offered, peering at the water now resting at my waist. "But I don't know how it will react with water like this."

"Can you?" Piper glanced at me.

I nodded and closed my eyes to concentrate. There was resistance as I tried to will the vines to grow. I could feel the roots and vines trying to grow, but something kept eating at it, as if a poison was burning it away. I tried again, using as much power as I could to force it to grow. My eyes opened as I looked into the dark liquid. I saw a small vine grow in the water before it withered away. I frowned and shook my head.

"Not many choices." Jason said.

"Let me search the bottom." Percy suggested. "If this place was built on a fountain, there has to be a way to drain this thing. You guys, check the niches for secret exits. Maybe the seashells are knobs, or something."

Percy jumped into the water. Jason, Piper, and I climbed from niche to niche. We kicked and pounded our hands against the niches. We wiggled seashells embedded in the stone, but nothing happened. I ended up breaking a seashell from the stone and tossed it over my shoulder into the water.

Sooner than I expected, Percy broke the surface, gasping and flailing.  I quickly held out my hand for him to take. His hand grasped mine and almost pulled me in before I had a good grip. My hand reached out to grasp the edge of the niche. With a slight struggle, I pulled Percy to the niche I was standing on.

"Percy, what happened?" I noted he looked pale as he slouched against the wall.

"Couldn't breathe." Percy choked. "The water...not normal. Hardly made it back."

"How are you feeling? Are you okay?" I placed a hand on his arm, worried he got water in his lungs.

He gave me a shaky thumbs up as he tried to breathe normally again. He was drenched in water, which was rare for him, and shivering. The water never affected him like that. His hair looked lighter, as if the color was leaching out. I looked at the growing water. If the water was poisoned and malicious for even Percy, the son of the sea god, how bad was it for the rest of us?

The water rose around us. I was starting to feel the effects of the bitter water. My leg muscles trembled like I ran a hundred miles without stopping. My hands shook as they turned wrinkled and dry despite being in water.

The others were moving sluggishly. Jason's face was also pale. He was having trouble holding his sword. Piper was trembling slightly. Her hands were similar to mine. She glanced at me with a frown.

"They're taking our power." Piper said. "Draining us."

"Jason." Percy coughed, eyeing me as I leaned against the wall for support. "Do the lightning."

Jason raised his sword. The room rumbled, but no lightning appeared. The roof didn't even break. Instead, a miniature rainstorm formed at the top f the chamber. Rain poured down, filling the fountain even faster, but it wasn't normal rain. The stuff was just as dark as the water in the pool. Every drop stung against my skin.

"Not what I wanted." Jason uttered.

The water was up to our necks now. I was tip toeing on the niche since I was the shortest of the group. Piper muttered something to herself, her words lost with the sound of the rain pouring into the pool. Dread pinched my heart as I realized we would have to swim to stay afloat in the water with how fast it was growing. With how weak we were starting to grow, I don't know how long we would last until we tired out and drowned.

Percy started pushing the water away with the back of his hand, like he was shooing a bad dog. Frustration took over his facial expression. He kept glancing at me and his eyebrows would crease.

"Can't-can't control it!" Percy exasperated.

"We can't fight this." Piper spoke up. I looked at her in disbelief. "If we hold back, that just makes us weaker."

"What do you mean?" Jason shouted over the rain.

The water was to our chins. My foot slipped and the water momentarily went over my head. I quickly stood back up. I coughed and caught my bearings. I wiped the poisonous water from my eyes. Percy placed a hand on my waist to help support me. He noticed that my height was interfering with the tallness of the water. Another few inches and I'd be forced to swim. The water wasn't even halfway to the ceiling yet.

"The horn of plenty. We have to overwhelm the nymphs with fresh water, give them more than they can use." Piper explained, eyeing me with worry. "If we can dilute this poisonous stuff-"

"Can your horn do that?" Percy struggled to keep his head above water, which was a new experience for him. He looked scared out of his mind.

"Only with your help." Piper glanced at the three of us. "I need you three to channel everything you've got into the cornucopia. Percy, think about the sea."

"Salt water?"

"Doesn't matter! As long as it's clean. Jason, think about rainstorms-much more rain. Ivy, think about the grapes and strawberries you grow-the vines. The three of you hold the cornucopia."

The three of us huddled around Piper as the water lifted us off the ledges. I started to kick my legs to stay afloat. I thought about growing strawberries back at camp. The way I grew grapes and vines.

Nothing happened. The rain came down in sheets, still dark and acidic. My legs were starting to feel like lead. The rising water swirled, threatening to pull me under. I could feel my strength fading.

"No good!" Jason said, spitting water.

We're going nowhere." Percy agreed.

"Piper, how can we make this work?" I asked, trying to keep my head above the water.

"You have to work together." Piper cried, looking at Jason and Percy. "Both of you think of clean water-a storm. Ivy, thinking about him growing vines, grapes, and strawberries. Don't hold anything back. Picture all your power, all your strength leaving you."

"Okay." I nodded, spluttering out water that got into my mouth.

"That's not hard!" Percy said.

"But force it out!" Piper told us. "Offer up everything, like-like you're already dead, and your only goal is to help the nymphs. It's got to be a gift...a sacrifice."

It got quiet after she mentioned the last word. The word felt heavy. It was as if it was pushing my shoulders down into the water even more. Biting the inside of my cheek, I knew Piper was right. It was the only way to help us get out of here alive...hopefully.

"Let's try again." Jason said. "Together."

I stared at the cornucopia we all held. This time, I put all of my concentration toward the horn of plenty as well. The nymphs wanted grapes, I'll give them grapes to settle their hunger and thirst. I gave it up willingly and imagined the power flooding out of me into the cornucopia.

Clear water blasted from the horn with such force, it pushed us against the wall. My back ached, but I ignored it and continued to pour my power into the cornucopia. The rain changed to a white torrent, so clean and cold, I let out a gasp.

"It's working!" Jason cried.

"Too well." Percy noted. "We're filling the room even faster!"

The water rose quickly, the roof was now only a few feet away. I could've reached my arm out and touch the miniature rain clouds.

"Don't stop!" Piper encouraged. "We have to dilute the poison until the nymphs are cleansed."

"What if they can't be cleansed?" Jason asked. "They've been down here turning evil for thousands of years."

"They have to." I swallowed thickly. "We need to save Nico and stopped the giants from destroying Rome."

"Just don't hold back. Give everything." Piper reminded us. "Even if we go under-"

Piper's head hit the ceiling. I had to angled my head an awkward way to breathe in fresh air. The rain clouds dissipated and melted into the water. The horn of plenty kept blasting out a clean torrent. The water kept rising.

Fear crawled in my throat as I realized this was it. I looked at Percy to see him already staring at me. His eyes held a storm of emotions that I couldn't identify all of them. He pulled me close and pressed his lips against mine. I tried to savor the kiss and embed it in my brain. This could be the last kiss we shared.

"I love you." Percy murmured against my lips.

"I know." I smiled at him. "I love you, too."

It was only a second before I was underwater. I barely had enough time to catch my breath, losing sight of Percy in the murky water. The current roared in my ears. Bubbles swirled around me. Light still rippled through the room and I had to blink away the surprise that I could actually see light with the clearing water.

With little air in my lungs, I poured as much of my power into the cornucopia as I could. It felt like my lungs were about to burst from the lack of oxygen. Panic started to rise in my throat to inhale. My head was starting to feel lightheaded and my vision was blurring. There was a road in my ears that made me think I was listening to my dying heartbeat. It took a little while to realize it was the room shaking. The water swirled faster and I felt myself sinking.

I panicked and accidentally inhaled water, causing me to panic more. My lungs started to fill with water and I thrashed around trying to surface. My vision was darkening and my movements were growing weaker. I felt someone wrap their arm around me and pulled me up.

"Ivy!" Percy brought me closer to him. I coughed out water, my vision returning. Percy stared at me in concern. I gulped in fresh air, leaning my forehead against his shoulder. "You okay? Can you breathe alright?"

"Yeah." I croaked out, stumbling a bit as we landed on the damp floor.

"Jason!" Piper cried, her hands on Jason's chest as she knelt on the floor.

The son of Jupiter laid motionless and pale. Piper glanced at me with panic in her eyes. I leaned away from Percy to go stand beside her, about to help her lay him on his side.

"Piper, I can help." Percy told her.

He knelt next to her and touched Jason's forehead. Water gushed out of his mouth. His eyes flew open, and a clap of thunder threw Piper, Percy, and I backward. Whenever my vision cleared, I noted that Jason was sitting up and gasping for air. Color had returned back to his face.

"Sorry." Jason coughed. "Didn't mean to-"

Piper tackled him into a hug. Percy pulled me toward him. A smile grew on my face as Percy's hold tightened. I leaned against him, wrapping my arms out him. Percy pressed his lips against my forehead, letting it linger for a few seconds.

"In case you're wondering, that was clean water in your lungs." Percy grinned. "I could make it come out with no problem."

"Thanks, man." Jason clasped his hand weakly. "But I think Piper's the real hero. She's saved us all."

Yes, she did, a voice echoed through the chamber.

The noches glowed. Nine figures appeared. Instead of withered women, they were young, beautifully nymphs. They wore shimmering blue gowns, their glossy black curls pinned up with silver and gold brooches. Their eyes a gentle shades green and blue. Eight nymphs dissolved into vapor and floated upward. Only the one in the center remained.

"Hagno?" Piper asked.

"Yes, my dear." Hagno smiled. "I didn't think such selfishness existed in mortals...especially in demigods. No offense."

"How could we take offense?" Percy stood to his feet. He extended a hand to help me up. "You just tried to drown us and suck out our lives."

"Sorry about that." Hagno winced. I stood beside Percy, crossing my arms. "I was not myself. But you have reminded me of the sun and the rain and the streams in the meadows. Percy and Jason, thanks to you, I remembered the sea and the sky. I am cleansed. Ivy, thank you for satisfying my hunger and thirst with grapes. It's been years since I've tasted anything as sweet as that. But mostly, thanks to Piper. She shared something even better than clear running water, food, and water." Hagno turned toward her. "You have a good nature, Piper. And I'm a nature spirit. I know what I'm talking about."

Hagno pointed to the other side of the room. The stairs to the surface reappeared. Directly underneath, a circular opening shimmered into existence, like a sewer pipe, just big enough to crawl through. That must've been where the water drained from.

"You may return to the surface. Or, if you insist, you may follow the waterway to the giants. But choose quickly, because both doors will fade soon after I'm gone." Hagno informed us. "That pipe connects to the old aqueduct line, which feeds both the nymphaeum and the hypogeum that the giants call home."

"Ugh." Percy pressed on his temples. "Please, no more complicated words."

"Oh, home is not a complicated word." Hagno sounded sincere. "I thought it was, but now you have unbound us from this place. My sisters have gone to seek new homes...a mountain stream, perhaps, or a lake in a meadow. I will follow them. I cannot wait to see the forest and the grasslands again, and the clear running water."

"Uh." Percy and I exchanged a nervous glance. "Things have changed up above in the last few thousand years."

"Nonsense." Hagno said. "How bad could it be? Pan would not allow nature to become tainted. I can't wait to see him, in fact."

I bit my tongue from saying anything. Tears welled in my eyes at the mention of Pan. A memory of his death popped into my mind.

"Good luck, Hagno." Piper told her. "And thank you."

Hagno smiled one last time and vaporized. Briefly, the nymphaeum glowed with a softer light. The smell of exotic spices and blooming roses filled the air. There was distant music and happy voices talking and laughing. It was as if someone through a celebration.

"What is that?" Jason questioned.

"The ghosts are dancing." Piper slipped her hand into Jason's. "Come on. We'd better go meet the giants."

I always wondered how the original nine nymphs adapted to the modern world and realized Pan was gone