The House of Hades

The path leads to a beautiful garden where Leo finds the girl crying. She tells him to leave her alone. She is Calypso, daughter of the Titan Atlas, whom she supported in his fight against the gods and was imprisoned on Ogygia as punishment. She allowed herself to hope after the Second Titan War when Percy made the gods vow to offer amnesty to their enemies, but nothing changed. Leo remembers Percy saying she was sweet and helpful. For 3,000 years the gods sent Calypso the greatest heroes to fall in love with before they leave, and now they mock her by sending Leo. Leo is angry because he knows if he was Jason she would fall in love with him. He agrees to leave her alone and build something to get off the island. She says the gods have closed Ogygia, so he can’t leave.

Leo has no idea what is happening in the outside world or how many days have passed. Calypso sends him food and clothes, and he makes camp near her footpath. One day Leo finds metal scraps from Hephaestus’s workshop, lugs them to his camp, makes a forge, and begins to work. Calypso brings him his fireproofed favorite clothes that burned up months ago. Leo teases her about liking him, and she says it’s in return for him fixing her things. He shows her the mirror he made to see his friends, but it doesn’t work. Calypso enchants it with song, and it shows Camp Half-Blood getting ready for war. Not far away, the Romans assemble, but their ranks are scattered by Akmon and Passalos who Leo sent. Octavian holds a Roman standard that shoots lightning according to Percy. Calypso tears up at his name, and Leo gets angry at Percy for hurting her. The mirror goes dark after showing Reyna being attacked by monsters while crossing the ocean. Leo begs Calypso to get the picture back, but she thinks Reyna is his girlfriend. Leo tries to explain when Gaea erupts from the earth and promises she will destroy Ogygia and let Calypso leave if she will kill Leo. Calypso tells Gaea she is trespassing, so Gaea disappears. Calypso says his friends need him if Gaea wants him dead and he must go back.

Calypso gathers supplies for Leo’s journey. He shows her the navigation device he’s making and offers to take him with her. Calypso is touched, but she’s cursed not to leave. He must go stop Gaea. Leo wonders why she cares, and Calypso knows the gods are better than the Titans and giants. Leo asks her to make a fireproof fabric bag and get him a crystal from her cave. She agrees and helps him twist screws. Leo tells her they could open their own machine shop, a dream he’s never shared with anyone else.

Two nights later, they sit on the beach eating dinner. Leo plans to build a boat and leave in another week. Calypso asks if his navigation device works, and he tells her it will work to leave but getting back is complicated. Calypso says it’s impossible for any man to come to the island twice. Leo insists he’s always been a rule breaker and is coming back because he can’t leave her after she helped him. A raft appears in the waves, and Calypso hurries Leo to get everything on board before it disappears. Leo asks why the raft came since it only comes for people she loves. She kisses him and tells him to go. As Leo’s raft takes him away, he swears on the River Styx to come back for Calypso.

The goddess Night, Nyx, announces she wants to kill them. Annabeth stalls by talking about the Tartarus brochure, which barely mentioned her. Nyx is confused, and Percy and Annabeth explain they booked the Tartarus excursion to see cool stuff, but Nyx wasn’t important enough to be featured. Waves of darkness roll off Nyx, and Annabeth forces Percy to lower his sword because she can’t be defeated by force. Annabeth questions how many other demigods have visited on Nyx the tour because she isn’t newsworthy.

Nyx cracks her whip and calls her army of children to her side. Percy is on the verge of panic, but Annabeth, as a daughter of Athena, controls her mind and tells herself it’s a scary movie. She worries a photograph won’t come out and suggests going to a restaurant near the Doors of Death instead. Nyx claims they can only reach the Doors through the halls of her Mansion of Night, which appears in the abyss below. Annabeth knows it’s the way they must go, so she asks for a photograph of Nyx and her favorite child. They begin to fight, and all Nyx’s children release darkness until it is so dark no one can see. Annabeth and Percy hold hands and jump.

Annabeth and Percy hurtle toward the Mansion of Night and Annabeth envisions her death before hitting the floor. She pulls Percy into a run as Nyx and her children continue to argue. Annabeth uses her senses other than sight to guide them through the Mansion. She hears a throbbing heartbeat and runs toward it. Percy stops her before she falls over the edge.

Percy stops her from falling off a cliff. He can sense the River Acheron, the River of Pain, below them with no bridge across to the other side. The souls in the river remind Annabeth of all the deaths that were her fault, and Percy grabs her. They hear Nyx and her children, so Annabeth holds onto Percy, who uses the force of the river to propel them across to land on the heart of Tartarus. Between them and the Doors of Death is a plain crowded with monsters. Bob appears and greets them with a hug. Annabeth hopes the Death Mist works.