Favonius turned to Nico. “You must face the god of ____.

”
“Nico, you can do this,” Jason said. “It might be embarrassing, but it’s for the scepter.”
Something about this place seemed even creepier than the palace basement
in Split. Jason had never thought much about ____. He’d certainly never thought of ____ as
scary.
“Everyone has the wrong impression of ____…until they meet him.”
“____,” Jason called, “where are you?”
Where you least expect me, ____ answered. As ____ always is.
____ is on every side, _____ said. And no one’s side.
Very good, Jason, ______ said. At least you can sense my presence. Even a glancing hit at
______ is more than most heroes manage.
“Is this guy ____ or Death?” Jason growled.
We are not so different.
Except Death is sometimes kinder.

It is a costly thing, _____ said, looking on the true face of ____.

My wife Psyche learned that lesson, ____ said. We met only in the dark. She was warned
never to look upon me, and yet she could not stand the mystery. She feared I was a
monster. One night, she lit a candle, and beheld my face as I slept.
The god laughed. I was too handsome, I’m afraid.
Nico snarled. “You don’t scare me.”
I scare you very, very much. Face
me. Be honest.
____ is no game! It is no flowery softness! It is hard work—a quest that
never ends. It demands everything from you—especially the truth. Only then does
it yield rewards. Tell him, Nico di Angelo, _______
said. Tell him you are a coward, afraid of yourself and your feelings. Tell him
the real reason you ran from Camp Half Blood, and why you are always alone.
Still hiding, ______ said, You do not have the strength.
Psyche had been right. _____ was a monster. ______ was the most savage
monster of all.
……
“Oh, I wouldn’t say _____ always makes you happy.” His voice sounded smaller, much more
human. “Sometimes it makes you incredibly sad. But at least you’ve faced
it now. That’s the only way to conquer me.”

‘Piper, it’s like the House of Night,’ Annabeth said. ‘We should close our eyes.’
‘No!’ Piper said. ‘Keep them open. We can’t try to hide.’
‘Why did we just plunge in?’ Annabeth demanded. ‘We’re lost. We did what he wanted us to!
We should have bided our time, talked to the enemy, figured out a plan. That always works!’
“We can’t defeat this place with reason. You can’t think your way out of your emotions.’
The giant’s laughter echoed like a detonating depth charge. ‘I am the breaker of plans, the
destroyer of the well-oiled machines. Nothing
goes right in my presence. Maps are misread. Devices break. Data is lost. The finest minds turn
to
mush!’
‘I – I’ve faced worse than you!’ Annabeth cried.
‘Oh, I see!’ The giant sounded much closer now. ‘Are you not afraid?’
‘Never!’
‘Of course we’re afraid,’ Piper corrected. ‘Terrified!’
Days ago, Piper had started talking without thinking,
following her heart no matter what her brain said.
She had to go against
reason, follow emotion instead, keep the giant off balance.
…
‘Piper, stop,’ Annabeth begged. ‘How – how are you dealing with this? The fear, the anger –’
‘Don’t try to control it. That’s what the temple is about. You have to accept the fear, adapt to it,
ride it like the rapids on a river.’
‘How do you know that?’
‘I don’t know it. I just feel it.’
Through her fingertips, she could feel Annabeth’s rapid pulse. ‘Fear can’t be reasoned with.
Neither can hate. They’re like ____. They’re almost identical emotions. That’s why Ares and
______ like each other. Their twin sons – Fear and Panic – were spawned from both ____ and
_____.’
‘But I don’t … this doesn’t make sense.’
‘No,’ Piper agreed. ‘Stop thinking about it. Just feel.’
you can’t control every contingency. You have to accept that. Let it scare you. Trust that it’ll be
okay anyway.’
We’re going to run out there together.’
‘Then what?’
‘I have no idea.’
Fear and ____ really were related.
They ran in no particular direction.
‘Weak mortals!’ Mimas struggled to stand. ‘No plan of yours can defeat me!’
‘That’s good,’ Piper said. ‘Because I don’t have a plan.’
…