GETTING KILLED BY Tartarus didn't seem like much of an honor.

As Val stared up at his dark whirlpool face, she decided she'd rather die by her curse. And that was saying something.

It wasn't the first time Val had faced an enemy she couldn't defeat by force. There had been million down here. Normally, this would've been Annabeth's cue to stall for time, or for, naturally, Val's charmspeak.

Except her voice wouldn't work. She couldn't even close her mouth. For all she knew, she was drooling as badly as Connor did when he looked at Drew.

She was dimly aware of the army of monsters swirling around her, but after their initial roar of triumph, the horde had fallen silent. Val, Annabeth, and Percy should have been ripped to pieces by now. Instead, the monsters kept their distance, waiting for Tartarus to act.

The god of the pit flexed his fingers, examining his own polished black talons. He had no expression, but he straightened his shoulders as if he were pleased.

It is good to have form, he intoned. With these hands, I can eviscerate you.

His voice sounded like a backward recording — as if the words were being sucked into the vortex of his face rather than projected. In fact, everything seemed to be drawn toward the face of this god — the dim light, the poisonous clouds, the essence of the monsters, even Val's own fragile life force. She looked around and realized that every object on this vast plain had grown a vaporous comet's tail — all pointing toward Tartarus.

Val knew she should say something, but her instincts told her to hide, to avoid doing anything that would draw the god's attention.

Besides, what could she say? You won't get away with this!

That wasn't true. She, Annabeth, and Percy had only survived this long because Tartarus was savoring his new form. He wanted the pleasure of physically ripping them to pieces. If Tartarus wished, Val had no doubt he could devour her existence with a single thought, as easily as he'd vaporized Hyperion and Krios. Would there be any rebirth from that? Val didn't want to find out.

Next to her, Percy did something she'd never seen him do. He dropped his sword. It just fell out of his hand and hit the ground with a thud. Death Mist no longer shrouded his face, but he still had the complexion of a corpse.

Tartarus hissed again — possibly laughing.

Your fear smells wonderful, said the god. I see the appeal of having a physical body with so many senses. Perhaps my beloved Gaea is right, wishing to wake from her slumber.

He stretched out his massive purple hand and might have plucked up Percy like a weed, but Bob interrupted.

"Begone!" The Titan leveled his spear at the god. "You have no right to meddle!"

Meddle? Tartarus turned. I am the lord of all creatures of the darkness, puny Iapetus. I can do as I please.

His black cyclone face spun faster. The howling sound was so horrible, Val clutched her ears and her knees buckled. Bob stumbled, the wispy comet tail of his life force growing longer as it was sucked toward the face of the god.

Bob roared in defiance. He charged and thrust his spear at Tartarus's chest. Before it could connect, Tartarus swatted Bob aside like he was a pesky insect. The Titan went sprawling.

Why do you not disintegrate? Tartarus mused. You are nothing. You are even weaker than Krios and Hyperion.

"I am Bob," said Bob.

Tartarus hissed. What is that? What is Bob?

"I choose to be more than Iapetus," said the Titan. "You do not control me. I am not like my brothers."

The collar of his coveralls bulged. Small Bob leaped out. The kitten landed on the ground in front of his master, then arched his back and hissed at the lord of the abyss.

As Val watched, Small Bob began to grow, his form flickering until the little kitten had become a full-sized, translucent skeletal saber-toothed tiger.

"Also," Bob announced, "I have a good cat."

No-Longer-Small Bob sprang at Tartarus, sinking his claws into Tartarus's thigh. The tiger scrambled up his leg, straight under the god's chain-link skirt. Tartarus stomped and howled, apparently no longer enamored with having a physical form. Meanwhile, Bob thrust his spear into the god's side, right below his breastplate.

Tartarus roared. He swatted at Bob, but the Titan backed out of reach. Bob thrust out his fingers. His spear yanked itself free of the god's flesh and flew back to Bob's hand, which made Val gulp in amazement. She'd never imagined a broom could have so many useful features. Small Bob dropped out of Tartarus's skirt. He ran to his master's side, his saber-toothed fangs dripping with golden ichor.

You will die first, Iapetus, Tartarus decided. Afterward, I will add your soul to my armor, where it will slowly dissolve, over and over, in eternal agony.

Tartarus pounded his fist against his breastplate. Milky faces swirled in the metal, silently screaming to get out.

Bob turned toward Annabeth, Percy, and Val. The Titan grinned, which probably would not have been Val's reaction to a threat of eternal agony.

"Take the Doors," Bob said. "I will deal with Tartarus."

Tartarus threw back his head and bellowed — creating a vacuum so strong that the nearest flying demons were pulled into his vortex face and shredded.

Deal with me? the god mocked. You are only a Titan, a lesser child of Gaea! I will make you suffer for your arrogance. And as for your tiny mortal friends . . .

Tartarus swept his hand toward the monster army, beckoning them forward. DESTROY THEM!

* * *

Destroy them.

Val had heard those words often enough that they shocked her out of her paralysis. Annabeth raised her sword and yelled, "Percy!"

He snatched up Riptide.

Annabeth dove for the chains holding the Doors of Death. Her drakon-bone blade cut through the left-side moorings in a single swipe. Meanwhile, Percy drove back the first wave of monsters. He stabbed an arai and yelped, "Gah! Stupid curses!" Then he scythed down a half dozen telkhines. Val lunged behind him and sliced through the chains on the other side.

The Doors shuddered, then opened with a pleasant Ding!

Bob and his saber-toothed sidekick continued to weave around Tartarus's legs, attacking, and dodging to stay out of his clutches. They didn't seem to be doing much damage, but Tartarus lurched around, obviously not used to fighting in a humanoid body. He swiped and missed, swiped and missed.

More monsters surged toward the Doors. Val killed any monster in her path, though she did get injuries, she couldn't feel them through the adrenaline of fighting.

Ichor flowed through her veins. She was everything — immortal and mortal, good and evil, light and dark. She felt as if she was in space, molding the earth with her hands as if it was clay. That was what these monsters were to her as she killed everything in her path. There was some kind of dark aura around her that killed most of them, but some of them survived. She sliced her knives on the ones that did, or just charmed them to death.

It wasn't that hard, though. Val was the chosen demigod of Cupid, after all.

She found herself right next to the button. Just a couple more monsters, and Val could get Annabeth and Percy out of here . . .

"Tina!" Val heard a familiar voice scream, and she immediately ran to where the elevator was, slicing her way through monsters, seeing Annabeth and Percy.

The Doors of Death stood right behind them — their exit from this nightmarish world. But they couldn't use the Doors without someone manning the controls for twelve long minutes. If they stepped inside and let the Doors close without someone holding the button, Val didn't think the results would be healthy. And if they stepped away from the Doors for any reason, she imagined the elevator would close and disappear without them.

"What's up?" Val breathed out, quickly checking over Annabeth before turning to fight more monsters. "You two don't seem hurt."

"I couldn't see you," Annabeth admitted. "I was scared."

"I'm fine. I always am." Val didn't look back at her as her eyes darted around.

Bob's attacks were getting slower. Tartarus was learning to control his new body. Saber-toothed Small Bob lunged at the god, but Tartarus smacked the cat sideways. Bob charged, bellowing with rage, but Tartarus grabbed his spear and yanked it out of his hands. He kicked Bob downhill, knocking over a row of telkhines like sea mammal bowling pins.

YIELD! Tartarus thundered.

"I will not," Bob said. "You are not my master."

Die in defiance, then, said the god of the pit. You Titans are nothing to me. My children the giants were always better, stronger, and more vicious. They will make the upper world as dark as my realm!

Tartarus snapped the spear in half. Bob wailed in agony. Saber-toothed Small Bob leaped to his aid, snarling at Tartarus and baring his fangs. The Titan struggled to rise, but Val knew it was over. Even the monsters turned to watch, as if sensing that their master Tartarus was about to take the spotlight. The death of a Titan was worth seeing.

Val looked back at them. "Stay here. I've got to help him."

"Tina, you can't," she croaked. "Tartarus can't be fought. Not by us."

"Then I'll get the button," Val said, her voice void of any positivity. "You two need to get out of here. I'll die anyway. I'm surprised August tenth hasn't passed while we were in here."

"No," Annabeth said firmly. "We — I — can't leave you here."

"Annabeth, you have to," Val pleaded. "I can't . . . I can't face my last days up there. Might as well die doing something heroic."

"No." Percy repeated, and Val looked at him, shocked. "You've saved us multiple times, Val. You deserve to go to the surface, too. We'll fight together."

Val bit her lip. She hated this idea. She hated it. Why wouldn't they go up?

Then, a ripple of alarm passed through the army. In the distance, Val heard shrieks, screams, and a persistent boom, boom, boom that was too fast to be the heartbeat in the ground — more like something large and heavy, running at full speed. An Earthborn spun into the air as if he'd been tossed. A plume of bright-green gas billowed across the top of the monstrous horde like the spray from a poison riot hose. Everything in its path dissolved.

Across the swath of sizzling, newly empty ground, Val saw the cause of the commotion. She started to smile.

The Maeonian drakon spread its frilled collar and hissed, its poison breath filling the battlefield with the smell of pine and ginger. It shifted its hundred-foot-long body, flicking its dappled green tail and wiping out a battalion of ogres.

Riding on its back was a red-skinned giant with flowers in his rust-colored braids, a jerkin of green leather, and a drakon-rib lance in his hand.

"Damasen!" Annabeth cried.

The giant inclined his head. "Annabeth Chase, I took your advice. I chose myself a new fate."

just looked at the faceclaim for will and he's so hot but he's not will solace y'know but im too lazy to change it lmao

<3 maybel