Nico's POV

When Percy fell face first in the water I snorted. Then I felt guilty. What if Percy didn’t survive this? Then it would be all my fault. We needed him to win this war. It was stupid to allow him to do this.

I fidgeted nervously for the first five minutes, then started to worry a lot more. Shouldn't he be back by now? What if he had dissolved? After another five minutes I started to despair. He should definitely be back by now. I felt tears rise to my eyes and let them fall. If Percy was dead, I didn’t mind crying for him .

I stood there for a few minutes, with tears streaming down my face, then knelt down to the water. “I’m sorry, Percy. I shouldn’t have made you do this.”

Then someone materialized next to me. I jumped up, my sword out and swinging, until I saw who it was. It was Hades. I put my sword away reluctantly.

He was looking at me with sympathy, and a little sadness.

“Why are you here?” I tried to say with as much venom as possible. It didn’t work.

“I am truly sorry, son. He did not deserve to get his soul dissolved. He truly was a great hero.”

I stared at him in horror. I hadn’t really wanted to believe it until now. But this confirmed it. “H-he’s really dead?” My voice cracked at the start, but either Hades didn’t notice, or didn’t care.

“Not dead.” He corrected me. “His soul dissolved. It was obliterated. Wiped from existence. Even I can’t fix that. He will never exist again, not even as a reincarnation, unless the Creator wills it.”( Ha! So, he doesn’t know everything. *Triumphantly smiles*)

My face went extremely pale. He looked at me nervously. “It’s not your fault. It was his choice. He knew the risks. He knew what could happen.”

My voice was extremely high-pitched as I answered him. “But it is! I'm the one that told him about it. He wouldn’t have done it at all if not for me.” (That poor poor kid.)

He shook his head and reached out to grab my arm, but I flinched and backed away a few steps. I could almost swear, I saw a flash of hurt in his eyes.

I continued, “And we need him to win the war. We’ll lose without him. There’s no other child of the Big Three that is sixteen.” My voice had risen even higher as I talked, and it had an edge of hysteria.

Hades shifted uncomfortably. “That’s not exactly true…” He mumbled.

I froze, my hysteria escaping. “What!” But my voice was still super high pitched. Hades flinched. He actually flinched!

“Uhhh.” He said nervously, running his hands through his hair. “How about we go somewhere more… comfortable to talk about this.”

I was about to protest, but he grabbed my arm before I could escape. He shadow traveled to a room in his palace and pushed me onto a sofa. He then sat down across from me.

I looked around the room, because I have never been in this one before. The walls were black (Cliche) with red designs painted around the edge. There was a fireplace with cool black fire, and some pictures on the mantle. There were two sofas, two armchairs, and a table.

I looked back at my father, feeling sick. Percy was dead and he wanted to talk about some child that apparently also fit the great prophecy! Like Percy could be easily replaced!

“Well, what do you mean, ‘ that’s not exactly true ’,” I said in the coldest voice I could manage.

He looked around nervously, as if checking to see if there were any eavesdroppers, or not. Which was stupid. Nobody would evesdrop on us in his domain. Then he blurted out “You have a sister, Nico. And she turns sixteen the same day as the Percy does - or did” I ignored the ache in my chest at the mention of Percy, focusing on the detail, where I HAVE A SISTER.

“WHAT!!!”