Kronos stepped dramatically off his chariot, scythe in one hand, and the reigns of Artemis and Apollo in the other. I threw my knife which sailed through the air and sliced the reigns. Then, like a boomerang, my knife returned to my hand. Kronos just made that pfft sound that seemed to be on everyone's lips today.

"So," I said breaking the silence, "do you want to get beaten now or later?"

"Jackson. You aren't dead after all," was his only reply.

"I get that a lot," I quipped.

Kronos swung his scythe, but thanks to the power of Hermes, I was way too fast for him. Kronos turned to face me and sliced again. Again the swing met open air. He turned to face me again, but instead of attacking directly, he slowed time around me. I had more resistance to it now, but I still felt like I was moving through syrup. I wouldn't be able to move in time to dodge his next attack.

So I willed vines to entangle him. They wrapped around his arms and legs, and then coiled tightly around his neck. I hardened the vines into stone and continued my struggle to break free of the time slow down. I broke out just as Kronos broke out of my trap.

I blasted him with dark energy, but he merely batted away the blast with his scythe. I rolled in close and tried to stab with my knife. Kronos caught my wrist and made me stab myself. Thanks to my invulnerability, the blade skidded across my skin. I returned with a head butt, which made him stumble back.

Bad idea. Kronos was now out of range of my knife, but I was still well in range of that scythe. He attacked, and the blade sparked off of my face. He followed up by making a stabbing motion with the butt end of his scythe. The blow sent a crack through my skull. I felt my jaw heal itself instantly.

Kronos could hurt me, not very seriously, and not for very long, but he could hurt me. This was unexpected. Kronos took a few steps back. I watched as he began to glow a stunning gold.

"Let's try that again," the glowing Kronos said.

I rolled in close and stabbed. The blade pierced his skin, but it was a small victory on my part. Kronos kicked out and sent me flying. He followed up by slicing open my stomach and stabbing me in the shoulder with the point of his scythe.

I stumbled back while tainted ichor, silver blood that results as a mix of mortal and immortal blood, flowed from by wounds. Kronos laughed.

"I bet you didn't see that coming did you Jackson?"

I shadow traveled behind him and tried to stab him in the back. Before I could, Kronos sent an elbow into by bleeding stomach. Before I could even cry out in pain, Kronos spun around and took a slice at my neck. I clutched it to stop the bleeding.

"Come now Jackson, get up. Try to remember when you stood a chance against me. Oh that's right. You never did!"

"Go to Tartarus," I spat.

Kronos laughed and responded, "Been there, done that. I think I'll kill you now."

Thankfully, he let out a loud cry of pain before he could. He turned, and I saw hundreds of silver and gold arrows embedded in his back. He raised his scythe against Artemis and Apollo. Before he could blast them to bits, I shielded them with a wall of vines, wood, and grass. By the time he turned in my direction, I was already at the edge of the wheat field with Artemis and Apollo right behind me. Ignoring the pain I was in, I hoisted the twin archers onto my shoulders and used the speed of Hermes to dart out of there as fast as possible. Behind me, I heard Kronos curse my name.

We jumped into Charon's ferry where the other gods were still waiting. The goddesses looked at me in horror, Hades turned away, and Ares congratulated me on getting my sorry butt whipped.

I looked at Charon and shouted, "Take us out of here!"

Charon merely made the by now infuriating pfft sound. "I don't see any drachmas on any of you."

I was about to say "Are you kidding me?", but Hades took it form there. He grabbed Charon by the collar and after shaking his skull loose, he shouted, "If you don't get this boat moving this instant, I will personally dump your ass INTO THE RIVER STYX!"

I had never seen a non-motorized boat move so fast before in my life.

We exited the Underworld in Los Angeles. Or rather, what was left of it. Like New York, many of its most iconic structures had been reduced to ash and rubble.

Artemis looked at me and asked, "What now?"

"We get somewhere safe to think of our next move," I decided.

"And where would that be?" Apollo asked.

I thought about it. There weren't many places on Earth still safe from the Titans. Ogygia was one, but I didn't feel like facing Calypso, and I wasn't even sure I could get back. Last I'd heard Cleveland was still good, but odds were it had fallen to siege. The only other place I knew of was Typhon's Prison, and I still didn't know where the Hades that place was.

"I don't know," I answered Apollo.

Exhausted, we all set up camp for the night.

I finally made it to the exit to the Underworld. Charon was in his boat looking like he'd been threatened with eternity in the Fields of Punishment. Again. When he saw me coming he straightened up. I was Kronos's prime servant while Luke was still out of it, so it got me a decent amount of respect in the world.

"Got the money to get across?" he asked.

"Fields," was all I had to say to get him to take me across. As he rowed away, I heard him mutter something about 'free loaders' in abundance.

I looked out at the ruins of LA. True, I didn't agree with all the things the Titans did, like tearing apart all the mortal cities, hunting demigods into extinction and, and enslaving any and all who got in their way. But it's not like I had any other option.

I couldn't join the rebellion. For one they'd shoot me on sight. But the main reason I didn't try to join was because they were hopeless. They lost more people every day, and they'd made no progress since they'd formed. I hadn't even considered thinking of the rebellion for a long time. I only started when...

When Percy showed up. I realized why Kronos wanted Percy dead so badly. Percy didn't lose. He had already done what the rebellion couldn't and freed the gods. Who's to say he couldn't do everything else the rebellion couldn't? Like steal back the weapons of the Big Three from the Titan armory. Or free Iris and restore Iris-messaging to the rebellion. Heck, he would've beaten Kronos a year ago if I hadn't–

Oh Titans. I was the cause of all of this. I'd stopped Percy from defeating Kronos a year ago, and now everything Kronos had done since then was on me. Massive enslavement, destruction of monuments of all kinds, the utter chaos the world had entered was all my fault. Talk about a guilt trip. I hadn't wanted this. Most demigods who joined the Titans had fallen under the spell of Kronos. But I had fallen under Luke's spell. I just wanted to be with Luke. But lately, he'd been distant, and not just because of his injuries.

He was acting like his life had been in vain, and in the end nothing he did would matter. When we kissed, he didn't return it like he used to. It was sadder somehow. He had a look on his face like he was proud of what the future had in store for me, albeit also jealous.

At that moment, I decided I was done with the Titans. I officially declared myself a double-agent for the rebellion. I was siding with the gods. Or, since Percy was acquiring their powers, a more accurate statement was that I was siding with Percy.