So, I've been gone for a couple of months, but I was writing and stuff. I had a lot of things going on. Trust me. I would've updated if I had the chance and a concrete idea. So, consider this my gift for the Holidays. I hope you enjoy it. My computer is acting ditzy again, please, excuse any mistakes.

The same warnings and disclaimers apply.

History Lesson

"What do you know about Satan?" Percy asked seemingly out of the blue. He seated himself next to Annabeth on the lone bench. The daughter of Athena had been in the middle of reading a very thick book with many words and pages, which sounded incredibly boring the more Percy thought about it. So, he ended the thought smartly and waited until Annabeth finished whatever page she was on to glare at him with her fearsome grey eyes for interrupting her precious reading.

"He's evil, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said in a huff.

"I know that, Wise Girl," he mocked. "What else can you tell me about him? Like what about his birth: was he always this evil, is a trickster like everyone says he is, can you compare him with anybody in Greek Mythology?" Percy fired off, choosing to ignore the ticked off expression Annabeth sent to him.

Annabeth threaded her fingers through his blond curls; throwing him an exasperated look, "Pick up a book, Percy. Ask any Christian."

Percy was persistent though. Annabeth had to tell him all of this now. He didn't have the time to scope out the information, or to investigate for himself. "Look, I came to you because you're the quickest way to find answers when one is searching for them. So either answer my questions or I'll be forced to find answers from one of your more smarter siblings since you can't help me." He only had to wait a couple of minutes for Annabeth's fatal flaw to kick in. He knew if he jabbed at her pride a little, she'd fall. He wasn't an idiot like everyone thought he was. It was just easier to pretend to be oblivious.

"Fine," she grumbled. She sat her book down on her lap after doggy earring the page. "The Devil comes from the Greeks, meaning slanderer or accuser. He has played many roles throughout history. In two of the main three religions, the Devil was originally a divine being in heaven but he hated humankind or saw himself above it. In different texts, it is said he was thrown out of Heaven and along with that he took away a third of the angel population, and they became his minions, which are demons. I'm sure you know the story that he turns into a snake, and approaches Eve in the Garden of Eden. He goads her into the eating the apple, and this that and the third. Right?"

Percy nodded avidly.

"Good. Now, in many books in the Bible: don't give me that look, kelp for brains! There are many books in the Bible and versions of it. In many of the books they refer to him as a serpent of some sort like a snake or dragon. They may even depict him with horns, but that doesn't come much later. Like around the time Christians come in conflict with the Pagan religion. However, that's another story for later. Moving on, Satan tempts humankind from God, damning those souls for eternity in Hell, barring them from Heaven forever. It's a bit like a child playing tug-o-war with another child," Annabeth chuckles.

"Now, there are many methods on how he goes about this. By the way, Satan goes by many names. Lucifer, the Beast, Satan, the Devil, and the list goes on. As does how he appears to humans. Going on to say that, Judaism refers to Lucifer or Satan as something as a necessity. It's his job to do all of the evil things, and continually test humanity. I guess you can say he balances out good and evil." Her fingers tapped at her chin in thought. "The more I think of it, he's always played a rather interesting role in how humans develop and their viewpoint of things. The Beast doesn't even exist, but he plays such a huge role for humans. I mean there are only the Greek and Roman Gods, haha."

Percy cracked a grin at the blonde girl. If she knew the plethora of things that lay outside the Mediterranean area. He wouldn't have believed himself it until he showed him. Their world was much, much bigger than he had ever imagined it to be. He wished that he only knew of the realm of the Grecian and Roman Gods. Ignorance was bliss in his situation.

"He can be comparable with his Lord Hades or the Egyptian God Set," she said. "He matches better with Hades, since they both reside deep within the Earth. Many people naturally fear them and view them as bad omens. In retrospect, there are those that understand the need for a death and evil in the world. There can be no Utopia or eternal life," she said with a note of sadness.

"Can you trust him?" Percy pressed. That was the most important thing. If he'd ask for it, can he willingly forsake his soul for something in return? He didn't want to be tricked into something he asked but he didn't. He was jarringly reminded of the tale of the monkey's paw.

"Can you trust Death or the personification of evil?" she bounced back, crossing her arms. "I couldn't give you a solid answer even if I had the knowledge. Its' all based on you and your perspective. Personally, I wouldn't just because. I know it lingers in the back of all of our minds, and,its something virtually inescapable, but I'd live in the Mist per se. For all this knowledge, I'd like to live naively and obliviously as possible." A sad smile played on her lips, a smile Percy recognized as one she wore whenever she thought of Luke.

"Thanks," Percy said.

"No problem." Annabeth shrugged her shoulders. "What's with the sudden interest anyway? Feel like dabbling into some creepy occult today? The welcome pamphlet didn't provide enough information?" she snickered. Percy shook his head and pushed her gently.

"Shut up." He grinned at her.

"I'm serious!" Annabeth yelped, taking a moment or two to gain her composure. "I've never seen you so serious about a question unless it's about your Mom, quest, or him." Percy suddenly felt cold. Empty even. He bowed his head, his dark hair falling over his eyes. His fingers embedded themselves onto the bench. Annabeth was quick to act. She inched closer to him, and gently placed her hand on his shoulder, the supported weight did little to comfort him. "I'm sorry," she whispered. Percy shook his head in two short beats.

"Stop. It's not your fault. I'm pathetic for acting like this whenever he's mentioned," Percy said quickly. He tried to block out the image of a casket made out of special stone that seemed to glitter with all the colors of the rainbow. Tons of people were tight-lipped and crying for the young boy laying in the coffin with bottle-top glasses and a famous lightning bolt scar hidden by an array of messy pitch-black hair.

"No," Annabeth protested.

Percy abruptly stood up. He kept his head down as he walked away from Annabeth, ignoring her cries of wait. He had his answer now. He could do what he needed to do. He'd make the deal with the devil. He needed him back.

Percy sat on his bed, his little fountain pulled to sit in-between his legs. The drachma was heavy in his fingers. He debated whether he should do this, but what other way was there? Percy was rather ignorant of any other method of communication that was safe for a demigod. Obviously, cellphones were a big fat no. Letters would take too long, and for an email: that would've brilliant if not for the fact that he didn't have a computer or an email address. So, he was back to the drachma issue. He had assured him that this Iris-message would be personal. No one, but the intended would be able to look or interfere. He was a hero for Zeus' sake; he fought the Minotaur's and gods on a daily basis. He shouldn't be such a pansy. He sneered with a disgust at himself, throwing the golden coin into the water.

"Oh Iris, goddess of the rainbow, please accept my offering," Percy said the magical words. He waited a moment for the rainbow to shimmer slightly before saying, "Alabaster Torrington." The rain shimmered some more until it took on a curious shade of acid-green.

Percy watched the message with caution waiting for someone to appear on the other line. "Jackson," a voice growled from the rainbow in the water. Percy blinked at the rippling picture of a gangly teen with muddy brown hair and swamp-green eyes. "It took you long enough. Your impudence has wasted a great deal of time for our Lord."

Percy scowled. "Let's get this straight. He is not my Lord, and second of all, while you spend your time lazing about I'm here at a camp surrounded by campers and Gods every single day." he snapped at him. Zeus, he must've been one to serve for Kronos in the Titan War. Luke must've had loads of fun with him. Alabaster's expression darkened.

"I don't have time to bicker with children like you," he jabbed at Percy, which affected the son of Poseidon none. He had heard worse insults from the Pegasi. "Do you remember the slip of paper given to you a week ago?" Percy nodded guardly. He had been so freaked out when it appeared to him out of nowhere when he awoke from a conversation with him. "Good boy," he mocked. "Stick it on the son of Hades' back and meet me at Zeus' fist in an hour.

Percy didn't get the chance to question him on why. The annoying son of a gun waved his hand over the Iris message, ending the transmission. He twisted on his bed to turn up his pillow and grabbing the crumpled up sticky note in his hand. He looked at the green sharpie written all over the vanilla paper, but he couldn't read it. It looked like a mixture of runes and hieroglyphics. All this confusing writing was making his head hurt. "Whatever," he scoffed. If all he had to do was put the thing on Nico, he had no problem with it.

He bounced off the bed and out of his cabin. As usual, he kept up with appearances. He waved to the cheerful campers around him, patted a couple of the younger children heads, and even laughed at the overrated jokes thrown his way. The walk to the Hades cabin was pleasant enough. He found the youngest of the big three on the steps of his cabin, relaxing under the shade. "Hello, Nico," Percy greeted amiably, taking a seat next to the black-clad boy.

"What do you want, Jackson?" Nico went straight to the point. He didn't even go through the trouble of small talk.

"I wanted to talk to you, is that so weird?" Percy clamped the half-italian on his back. He used the hand that happened to hold the sticky note. The hand slowly retracted back to its owner. Percy watched him curiously, waiting to see any changes in Nico. Nothing changed except the sticky note had somehow sunk into Nico's being. "Neeks, are you okay?" he used the nickname hoping to elicit some sort of response. To his slight surprise, Nico turned to face him, his dark brown eyes, startlingly blank.

"Nico?" he poked the boy.

He was like a mindless zombie... oh, duh. "Nico, come." He gestured 'up' to the boy from the steps. Nico sluggishly arose to his feet. "Follow," Percy commanded. He walked side-by-side with Nico, making it look like he was actually speaking to the young boy. Many campers took the hint and didn't bother him on his way to the forest. Nymphs of all kinds arose from the different spots in the rivers and plants. Percy waved to all of them, giving them an award-winning smile to which they blushed. They eventually fell back when he reached the forbidden part of the forest. It was supposedly cursed ever since a Kampe was killed there, but Percy seldom believed any of that mumbo-jumbo crap.

He rolled his eyes. Despite what the campers said, they didn't believe in the curse either since they still used this area to play capture the flag. Just thinking of the game, he came to his destination: the giant pile of deer droppings. Or, as Chiron liked to call it, Zeus' fist.

"Sit Nico," he snapped his fingers at the base of the fist. Nico scrambled to follow his command. He sat on the grassy field, the rock his support for his back. He looked up at Percy expectedly. The brunette boy shot a grin down at the younger boy, seating himself next to Nico. This time he wanted to start a real conversation with him. It was much easier dealing with the admittedly scary son of the Death God when he was completely out of it. This way Nico wouldn't shoot him dark, brooding, and judgmental looks. "I'm sorry, Nico," Percy said seriously. "I know if you were in your regular state you'd totally kick my ass with your skeleton soldiers."

"But," Percy twiddled his thumbs. "I remember how you were when you lost Bianca. You were constantly sad and angry at the world. Nothing you seemed to do lessened your pain. I sympathized with you, but I couldn't understand your feelings. Not completely at least, until I lost my precious one. The person I had loved as a friend, a brother, and then something more. When he died, Neeks, I was and am lost. I didn't know what to do until he came along. He offered me my greatest desire: he said if I joined him he'd bring hm back from the dead. With a conscious, memories, and everything.

"I'd be a fool if I didn't accept the offer, and I realize that if you were in my shoes you'd to the same thing." Percy stared at the dark brunet beside him, "Who knows, maybe he'll give you the chance too."

"Awww, feeling sentimental are we?" a dark voice interrupted. Percy shot up from his side. Riptide in his hand, ready to be uncapped. His defensive stance slackened when he realized it was Alabaster coming from the rock. He was decked out in multiple layers of protective clothing, and what was that? Percy tilted his head in slight confusion. Was that a Burger King meal and a red Icee? Ok, that was odd. He wouldn't question it.

"Took you long enough, Torrington, I was beginning to think you weren't coming."

"Don't be ridiculous, Jackson. I had to procure items of necessity. I've seen that you've done your part, without messing it up," Alabaster moved from the opening of Zeus' fist to walk over to Nico. He squatted down to the ground to inspect the boy, poking him from all different places and pulling out a green permanent sharpie. He drew all over Nico's face with precision, appearing like some sort of tattoo artist.

"What are you doing?" Percy questioned, feeling oddly protective over Nico. He realized he was using Nico, but he hoped that the young demigod wasn't going to get hurt in some way.

"Quiet, Jackson, I'm writing the necessary enchantments on the boy so; he can increase his necromancer abilities. It would be better if this was a night under a full moon and we had one of Circe's servants with us. Even something of that fool Sisyphus would be better to conduct this ritual, but we don't have time for that. Our Lord wants to be raised now," Alabaster hissed, sounding strained. He drew all over Nico's face until not an inch of skin (minus his nose) wasn't covered by a doodle of some sort.

Afterwards, he pushed past Percy, going back near the opening of Zeus' fist. He settled over a darkened spot on the forest floor where it looked like fresh blood had been spilled. A shiver traveled down his spine when he watched the son of Hecate actually dig the spot up. Alabaster continued to dig until there was a nice sizable hole. Percy noted that someone could easily twist their ankle if they had unluckily stepped into it. Alabaster poured fries and chicken nuggets from the Burger King bag into the small ditch. He pushed some dirt over the food before he drained the Icee cup down the hole. "Jackson, tell Nico to come over here and summon our Lord, Lucifer."

Percy gulped, but did as he was told. Nico traipsed over the hole. He placed his hands down on the ground and chanted. Shadows seem to pour from Nico's small body, rushing to the hole. The ground shook beneath them and the green writing on Nico's face glowed an eerie color. His chanting went faster and faster, and the sky darkened above them. All Percy could do was watch in a sort of horrific awe as the shadows continued to slip inside the hole, and it overflowed with an inky black liquid.

"He's coming!" Alabaster yelled with an unrestrained glee. "Yes, Nico. Yes! More, just a little more!" he said crazily.

Percy inched back when the shadows started to bubble and boil, taking form. The shadows rose from the pit in a weird silhouette. It took moments or minutes, Percy wasn't sure, for the shadows to start sculpting and dropping off. Percy started to see hands, feet, a face, and wings. What was it? Would it be a beast from the tales like in Dante's Divine Comedy, or did it resemble the cherub angel from Heaven.

"Arise, Morning Star. Come forth to the world once again!" Nico cried. The shadows fell from the form to reveal a beautiful man with pure-black angel wings and an olive-colored skin tone. He was utterly divine, but he was like a mere image. He flickered like a candle in the wind.

"Who is to host me?" he asked. Although, he phrased it like a rhetorical question as if he already knew the answer. Percy looked wide-eyed at the thing resembling an angel. What in the world was he talking about? Host? He glanced at Alabaster whom just pointed at a wobbly Nico that looked ready to pass out.

"Wait, I never agreed to this!" Percy protested.

Lucifer, or whatever, did not hear or did not care. He nodded at Alabaster, "He will do." And with that he shot toward Nico in a blink of an eye. He appeared to be hugging the young demigod, but in reality he was sinking into him like the sticky note had done earlier. Nico dropped down to the ground like a ragdoll, a silent scream accompanying him. Percy hurried over to his side, grabbing him by his arms and sitting him upright.

"Nico?" he hesitantly called him. Terribly afraid of the what-if's that crossed his mind.

"Nico," he tried again, shaking him. "Please, wake-up."

"Cease calling me that infernal name," Nico or not Nico groaned. He violently pushed Percy back, groaning some more. He squeezed his eyes shut and scratched the top of his head.

"Who are you?" Percy breathed.

Nico swiveled around to face a more than startled Percy, who was fingering Riptide in his pocket, just waiting for the moment to strike. Nico smiled at him indulgently, his deep-brown eyes morphing into black bottomless pools. "Don't be daft boy and try to hurt me. I go by many names, but I am the 'Evil One'."