gone girl.
━━━ chapter twenty nine

❀

Amaryllis wasn't okay.

She was laying down, with Annabeth above her giving her another piece of ambrosia. The last one she could give her, before the medicine turned deadly and burnt her alive from the inside. None of them could be really sure if she had lost consciousness or if she was just taking a long well-deserved nap and honestly, it didn't really matter. Percy had ordered everyone to let her rest.

He stood right next to her, once in a while glancing at Annabeth like he was wondering if they were supposed to talk about it. So much had happened since Amaryllis lost consciousness - his weird break-up that wasn't a break-up with Rachel, giving Pandora's jar to Hestia, talking to his father after risking his life by sitting on his throne - and yet all he could think about was her.

"If it wasn't for Achilles' curse, she would be dead," Percy said and Annabeth nodded. "What she did was..."

Terrifying. It was as if her brain turned off and couldn't listen to anyone as she was trying to bring Silena back from the dead. Percy witnessed her cheeks get hollow and her flesh go almost transparent as she breathed life into a dead person that still didn't look alive. As if that wasn't enough proof that she was overusing her powers, when she finally snapped out of it, she accidentally caused an earthquake. For a few seconds, he truly didn't think she would make it. They had been the most terrifying seconds of his life.

The last time she did that was when they had visited her mother last summer. It was back when she had no idea what she was truly capable of and thinking back to that moment, Percy doesn't understand how he didn't pick up on the signs. Maybe if he had, things would have turned out different.

"She'll be fine," Annabeth said. "It's just that... Silena meant a lot to her. To all of us."

Percy nodded, agreeing. The situation became incredibly complex the moment it was revealed that Silena was the spy - if he was being completely honest, he thought that was what drove Amaryllis to completely lose it. Betrayal paired with grief; the daughter of Hades had really lost more than anyone and yet, she never gave up. She was one of the most admirable people he had ever the honour of meeting.

That's what he had been thinking as he was watching her sleep. She looked like an angel, finally at peace. He couldn't help but fantasize how life would be if they weren't demigods, rather just normal teenagers - it was a habit he had picked on during the year. To dream of a better life. He could see them exchaning mp3's to listen to each other's playlists, go for car rides around the town. He'd teach her how to skate and she'd teach him how to dance or sketch. Their biggest problems would be last-minute cramming for history exams and getting through gym class. They'd be okay, because they'd be together and they'd have all the time in the world.

He watched as Amaryllis opened her eyes and looked around in utter confusion. "What- Where are we?" Then, with a panicked expression on her face, she asked, "Is the war over?"

"Far from it," Annabeth replied. "We're in Olympus."

"How long have I been sleeping for...?"

"A few hours," Percy replied. "And before you give me one of your lectures, you really needed to rest. You almost died back there."

"Yeah, but I'm still breathing, aren't I?" she snapped.

Annabeth and him exchanged a look. "Do... do you remember anything from before?" the daughter of Athena asked hesitantly.

Amaryllis scoffed. "Do I remember Silena dying? No, of course not. Why would I?" she said, faking a non-chalant attitude, even though it looked like those words caused her physical pain. "It's not like it was revealed that she was the spy and basically the reason why two of my brothers are dead."

She couldn't contain all of the anger, the bitterness anymore. Percy couldn't lie and say he could understand what she was feeling, but he also remembered how they had to drag Amaryllis away from Silena's body because she just refused to leave. He remembered her saying "I love you" and repeating it like a broken record.

"I get why you're angry," Annabeth tried to be helpful but Percy shook his head trying to warn her against it, "but she was just manipulated by Luke. Most kids that joined him were."

Amaryllis glared at her. "So now it's about Luke?" she raised her voice. "You're not defending him anymore? I thought he was secretly a big ol' softie with a golden heart deep down."

"Mar, I-"

"It took two of my siblings and Silena dying for you to understand that Luke is gone, huh?" Her voice was laced with poison. "Gods, and I always thought you were the smartest out of all of us."

Percy didn't need to see Annabeth's expression to know that Amaryllis had gone too far. "Hey, stop this," he said. "That isn't fair."

"Well, life isn't fucking fair so why should I be?"

Annabeth got up, biting her lip before she could reply back - which, to be fair, Percy thought was very mature of her. "You're just lashing out right now. We'll speak when you're feeling better," she said and left the two alone, closing the door behind her.

Percy stared awkwardly at her. A part of him wanted to call her out on how rude she was, but he supposed that he would be lashing out too if he were in her position. "Are you feeling any better? Physically, I mean."

"My throat is sore and I'm hungry, but overall, I'm fine."

Percy searched his pockets for something and then he pulled out a chocolate bar. "Here," he handed it to her. Her lips turned like she was almost smiling, but not quite, as she tore the wrapper off and ate it in three bites. He updated her on what she missed while she was sleeping, just because he knew she was curious but afraid to ask. When he was done, she sighed.

"Do you remember Dionysus' son? Pollux?" she asked.

Percy furrowed his brows as the image of a tall, blonde guy crossed his memory. "Yeah, why?"

"Did you see him at all? Was he okay?"

He didn't really know how that was relevant and how that was the first thing she wanted to ask after he explained the whole chaotic situation to her, but he did his best to remember. "Uh, yeah. He was alive the last time I saw him. He was with that... scary redhead daughter of Hecate."

Amaryllis nodded, the answer clearly good enough for her. "Mr. D asked me to keep his son safe. It was surprising to me too, but he actually seems to care."

Percy thought about it for a second before speaking. "Mar... you know, you can't save everyone, right?" he said.

A big part of him was also talking to himself. He had that insatiable need to take care of people, to be the one to save them when push came to shove. And when he wasn't successful, he felt the guilt eating him away piece by piece. Beckendorf, Michael, Silena. The names were far too many, the smoke from the shrouds seemed to follow him everywhere. He knew that was how she felt too. Perhaps it was because both of them were powerful, they were supposed to be the Heroes with a capital H. With great power would always come great responsibility.

"Clearly, I can't save anyone," she laughed heartlessly.

"You have to stop doing this!" he told her and sat right opposite to her. "You're always putting yourself down. You act like you're not the brightest, bravest person anyone could meet. You're so... so important to so many people. You're so much more than your powers. You're Amaryllis Kalomiri, for fuck's sake!" To that, she snorted as her pretty hazel eyes turned glassy. "I'm serious! I doubt I'd still be alive without you."

"I wouldn't be alive without you."

"See? We need each other."

"Yeah... yeah, I suppose we do," she smiled. A genuine, honest smile that made Percy's heart leapt for joy. He knew the timing was less than ideal, but with a sudden but rare wave of confidence, he leaned in to kiss her.

Just as he was about to, the doors of the throne room swung open. Thalia marched in with her bow snapped in halfand her quiver empty. "You've got to get down there," she told them both. "The enemy is advancing. And Kronos is leading them."

❀

Thankfully, Percy seemed to understand that trying to convince Amaryllis to stay up there and rest was pointless so he didn't even attempt to. She felt recharged after her nap, although she decided to try her best not to burn out herself again.

By the time they got to the street, it was too late. Campers and Hunters laid wounded on the ground. Clarisse must've lost a fight with a Hyperborean giant, because she and her chariot were frozen in a block of ice and Noelle was nowhere to be seen to help them out. The centaurs were nowhere to be seen either. Either they'd panicked and ran or they'd been disintegrated. The Titan army ringed the building, standing maybe twenty feet from the doors. Kronos's vanguard was in the lead: Ethan Nakamura, Deena Smith, the dracaena queen in her green armor, and two Hyperboreans. Kronos himself stood right in front with his scythe in hand. The only thing standing in his way was...

"Chiron," Annabeth said, her voice trembling. If Chiron heard them, he didn't answer. He had an arrow notched, aimed straight at Kronos's face.

As soon as Kronos saw Amaryllis and Percy, his gold eyes flared. Every muscle in her body froze. Then the Titan lord turned his attention back to Chiron. "Step aside, little son."

Hearing Luke call Chiron his son was weird enough, but Kronos put contempt in his voice, like son was the worst word he could think of. "I'm afraid not." Chiron's tone was steely calm, the way he got when he was really angry.

Amaryllis tried to move, but her feet felt like concrete. Standing besides her, Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and Thalia were straining too, like they were just as stuck.

"Chiron!" Annabeth said. "Look out!"

The dracaena queen became impatient and charged. Chiron's arrow flew straight between her eyes and she vaporized on the spot, her empty armor clattering to the asphalt. Chiron reached for another arrow, but his quiver was empty. He dropped the bow and drew his sword. Everyone knew he hated fighting with a sword.

Kronos chuckled. He advanced a step, and Chiron's horse-half skittered nervously. His tail flicked back and forth."You're a teacher," Kronos sneered. "Not a hero."

"Luke was a hero," Chiron said. "He was a good one, until you corrupted him."

"Fool!" Kronos's voice shook the city. "You filled his head with empty promises. You said the gods cared about me!"

"Me," Chiron noticed. "You said me."

Kronos looked confused, and in that moment, Chiron struck. It was a good maneuver - a feint followed by a strike to the face. She couldn't have done better herself, but Kronos was quick. He had all of Luke's fighting skill, which was a lot. He knocked aside Chiron's blade and yelled, "Back!" A blinding white light exploded between the Titan and the centaur. Chiron flew into the side of the building with such force the wall crumbled and collapsed on top of him.

"No!" Annabeth wailed. The freezing spell broke. They all ran toward their teacher, but there was no sign of him. Thalia and Percy pulled helplessly at the bricks while a ripple of ugly laughter ran through the Titan's army.

"You!" Annabeth turned on Luke. "To think that I... that I thought-"She drew her knife.

"Annabeth, don't." Amaryllis tried to take her arm, but she shook her off. She attacked Kronos, and his smug smile faded. Perhaps some part of Luke remembered that he used to like this girl, used to take care of her when she was little. She plunged her knife between the straps of his armor, right at his collar bone. The blade should've sunk into his chest. Instead it bounced off. Annabeth doubled over, clutching her arm to her stomach. The jolt might've been enough to dislocate her bad shoulder.

Amaryllis yanked her back as Kronos swung his scythe, slicing the air where she'd been standing. She fought her and screamed, "I hate you!" Amaryllis wasn't sure who she was talking to - her or Luke or Kronos. Tears streaked the dust on her face and Amaryllis felt so much guilt for the way she spoke to her before.

"We are the ones that have to fight him," Amaryllis told her, referring to her and Percy.

"It's my fight too!"

Kronos laughed. "So much spirit. I can see why Luke wanted to spare you two. Unfortunately, that won'tbe possible."

He raised his scythe. Amaryllis got ready to defend, but before Kronos could strike, a dog's howl pierced the air somewhere behind the Titan's army. It was too much to hope, but she called, "Mrs. O'Leary?" The enemy forces stirred uneasily.

Then the strangest thing happened. They began to part, clearing a path through the street like something behind them was forcing them to. Soon there was a free aisle down the center of Fifth Avenue. Standing at the end of the block was their giant dog, and a small figure in black armor, someone she recognized instantly.

"Nico?" she called, grinning despite everything as she stared at her younger brother.

Mrs. O'Leary bounded toward them, ignoring the growling monsters on either side. Nico strode forward. The enemy army fell back before him like he radiated death, which of course he did. Through the face guard of his skull-shaped helmet, he smiled. "Got your message. Is it too late to join the party?"

"Son of Hades." Kronos spit on the ground. "Do you love death so much you wish to experience it?"

"Your death," Nico said, "would be great for me." In classic older sister style, Amaryllis had the urge to cheer him on by screaming That's my brother, everyone! Yet, she was too speechless to say anything.

"I'm immortal, you fool! I have escaped Tartarus. You have no business here, and no chance to live."

Nico drew his sword - three feet of wicked sharp Stygian iron, black as a nightmare. "I don't agree."

The ground rumbled. Cracks appeared m the road, the sidewalks, the sides of the buildings. Skeletal hands grasped the air as the dead clawed their way into the world of the living. There were thousands of them, and as they emerged, the Titan's monsters got jumpy and started to back up."HOLD YOUR GROUND!" Kronos demanded. "The dead are no match for us."

The sky turned dark and cold. Shadows thickened. A harsh war horn sounded, and as the dead soldiers formed up ranks with their guns and swords and spears, an enormous chariot roared down Fifth Avenue. It came to a stop next to Nico. The horses were living shadows, fashioned from darkness. The chariot was inlaid with obsidian and gold, decorated with scenes of painful death. Holding the reins washer father himself, Hades, Lord of the Dead, with Demeter and Persephone riding behind him.

Hades wore black armor and a cloak the color of fresh blood. On top of his pale head was the helm of darkness: a crown that radiated pure terror. It changed shape as she watched - from a dragon's head to a circle of black flames to a wreath of human bones. Amaryllis knew that if that wasn't her father, who she had gotten used to, she would be so scared that she'd want to crawl into a hole and hide, and she could tell the enemy army felt the same way. Only Kronos's power and authority kept his ranks from fleeing.

Hades smiled coldly. "Hello, Father. You're looking... young."

"Hades," Kronos growled. "I hope you and the ladies have come to pledge your allegiance."

"I'm afraid not." Hades sighed. "My son here convinced me that perhaps I should prioritize my list of enemies." He glanced at Amaryllis with the closest the King of Underworld could do to warmth. "I suppose I owe both of my children an apology, so this is it. Besides, I would miss bickering with my siblings. And if there is one thing we agree on - it is that you were a terrible father."

"True," muttered Demeter. "No appreciation of agriculture."

"Mother!" Persephone complained.

Hades drew his sword, a double-edged Stygian blade etched with silver. "Now fight me! For today the House of Hades will be called the saviors of Olympus."

"I don't have time for this," Kronos snarled. He struck the ground with his scythe. A crack spread in both directions, circling the Empire State Building. A wall of force shimmered along the fissure line, separating Kronos's vanguard, her friends,and her from the bulk of the two armies."What's he doing?" Percy muttered.

"Sealing us in," Thalia said. "He's collapsing the magic barriers around Manhattan - cutting off just the building, and us."

Sure enough, outside the barrier, car engines revved to life. Pedestrians woke up and stared uncomprehendingly at the monsters and zombies all around them. No telling what they saw through the Mist, but she was sure it was plenty scary. Car doors opened and at the end of the block, Paul Blofis and Sally Jackson got out of their Prius.

She felt Percy tense up next to her. "No," he muttered. "Don't..."

His mother could see through the Mist. She locked eyes with her son, said something to Paul, and they ran straight toward them. Amaryllis glanced at Percy to show him he shouldn't call out to them, because the last thing he wanted to do was bring them to Kronos's attention.

Fortunately, her father caused a distraction. He charged at the wall of force, but his chariot crashed against it and overturned. He got to his feet, cursing, and blasted the wall with black energy. The barrier held. "ATTACK!" he roared. The armies of the dead clashed with the Titan's monsters. Fifth Avenue exploded into absolute chaos - mortals screamed and ran for cover, Demeter waved her hand and an entire column of giants turned into a wheat field, Persephone changed the dracaenae's spears into sunflowers, Nico slashed and hacked his way through the enemy, trying to protect the pedestrians as best he could. Percy's parents ran toward him, dodging monsters and zombies, but there was nothing he could do to help them.

"Nakamura, Smith," Kronos said. "Attend me. Giants-deal with them." He pointed at her friends and Amaryllis. Then he ducked into the lobby, leaving the girl stunned. She'd been expecting a fight, but Kronos completely ignored her like she wasn't worth the trouble. That made her so mad that she saw red.

The first Hyperborean giant smashed at Percy with his club. He rolled between his legs and stabbed Riptide into his backside, causing him to shatter into a pile of ice shards. The second giant breathed frost at Annabeth, who was barely able to stand, but Grover pulled her out of the way while Thalia and Amaryllis went to work. They sprinted up the giant's back like gazelles, slicing their weapons across his monstrous blue neck, and creating the world's largest headless ice sculpture.

Amaryllis glanced outside the magic barrier. Nico was fighting his way toward Percy's parents, but they weren't waiting for help. Paul grabbed a sword from a fallen hero and did a pretty fine job keeping adracaena busy. He stabbed her in the gut, and she disintegrated.

"Paul?" Percy said in amazement.

He turned toward them and grinned, effortlessly cool as always. "I hope that was a monster I just killed. I was a Shakespearianactor in college! Picked up a little swordplay!"

Then, Percy's mother fired a shotgun and blast a giant twenty feet backward, right intoNico's sword. "Nice one," Paul said.

"When did you learn to fire a shotgun?" Percy demanded.

Sally blew the hair out of her face. "About two seconds ago. Percy, we'll be fine. Go!"

"Yes," Nico agreed, looking at Amaryllis. "I'm glad you're okay, sis. We'll handle the army. You have to get Kronos!"

They left Mrs. O'Leary digging to find Chiron and the five of them raced for the elevators.

❀

Only four of them reached the throne room. Thalia had been trapped under a statue, leaving her out of commission. The doors of the palace were big enough to steer a cruise ship through, but they'd been ripped off their hinges and smashed like they weighed nothing. They had to climb over a huge pile of broken stone and twisted metal to get inside.

Kronos stood in the middle of the throne room, his arms wide, staring at the starry ceiling as if taking it all in. His laughter echoed even louder than it had from the pit of Tartarus. "Finally!" he bellowed. "The Olympian Council-so proud and mighty. Which seat of power shall I destroy first?"

Ethan Nakamura and Deena Smith each stood to one of his sides, trying to stay out of the way of their master's scythe. The hearth was almost dead, just a few coals glowing deep in the ashes and Hestia was nowhere to be seen. Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and Amaryllis stepped forward into the torchlight. Deena saw them first and she didn't hesitate before speaking. "My lord," she warned.

Kronos turned and smiled through Luke's face. Except for the golden eyes, he looked just the same as he had when she last saw him as his regular old self. As much as she wanted to believe the good Luke she knew and loved was still there, her anger blinded her. Annabeth made a painful sound in the back of her throat, like someone had just sucker punched her.

The final fight, Amaryllis thought. Our last chance to save the world.

"Shall I destroy you first, Kalomiri?" Kronos asked. "You were a surprise I didn't expect. But I do love a good challenge. Is that the choice you will make - to fight me and die instead of bowing down? Prophecies never end well, you know."

"Luke would fight with a sword," she said. "But I can tell you don't have his skill."

Kronos sneered. His scythe began to change, until he held Luke's old weapon, Backbiter, with its half-steel, half-Celestial bronze blade. Next to her, Annabeth gasped like she'd suddenly had an idea.

"Mar, the blade!" She unsheathed her knife. "The hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap."

Before she could think about what that meant, Kronos raised his sword. "Wait!" Annabeth yelled, but the Titan came at her like a whirlwind.

Her instincts took over. She dodged and slashed and rolled, but it felt like she was fighting a hundred swordsmen. Ethan ducked to one side, trying to get behind her until Annabeth intercepted him and the same happened with Deena and Percy. They started to fight, but Amaryllis couldn't focus on how the rest was doing. She was vaguely aware of Grover playing his reed pipes. The sound filled her with warmth and courage - thoughts of sunlight and a blue sky and a calm meadow, somewhere far away from the war.

Kronos backed her up against the throne of Hephaestus - a huge mechanical La-Z-Boy type thing covered with bronze and silver gears. Kronos slashed, and she managed to jump straight up onto the seat. The throne whirred and hummed with secret mechanisms. Defense mode, it warned. Defense mode. Amaryllis jumped straight over Kronos's head as the throne shot tendrils of electricity inall directions. One hit Kronos in the face, arcing down his body and up his sword. He crumpled to his knees and dropped Backbiter.

Annabeth saw her chance. She kicked Ethan out of the way and charged Kronos. "Luke, listen!"

"What the fuck-" Amaryllis tried to say, but she felt someone push her out of the way, just barely avoiding Deena's sword. Percy just barely caught her before she fell down.

Kronos flicked his hand. Annabeth flew backward, slamming into the throne of her mother andcrumpling to the floor."Annabeth!" Percy screamed.

Ethan Nakamura got to his feet. He now stood between Annabeth and them. Percy covered for Amaryllis as she focused enough to summon a shadow strong enough to start choking him, but then Deena crashed through them and managed to free Ethan from Amaryllis' hold. Grover's music took on a more urgent tune. He moved toward Annabeth, but he couldn't go any fasterand keep up the song. Grass grew on the floor of the throne room. Tiny roots crept up between the cracks of the marble stones.

Time passed and Amaryllis felt as if she was watching a movie instead of actually fighting for her life.

She saw Kronos murdering Ethan after the boy decided to turn against him at the last minute and she even felt some sympathy for him as he talked about the children of the minor gods deserving better. She saw herself summoning shadow and molding them into chains to hold down Deena as they were dealing with Kronos. She fought with as much ferocity as she could muster. She could barely catch her breath as she tried her best to keep an injured Annabeth out of harm's way as she also tried to help Percy by attempting to wear the Titan down. She smirked as she saw Kronos' reaction to Poseidon rushing in to help the rest of the Olympians to defeat Typhon. She cried in pain as Kronos stabbed her in her ribs and tossed her aside, smacking her head against one of the thrones.

And perhaps it was because she hit her head, but suddenly she started piercing things back together; Rachel saying that neither Percy or Amaryllis were the heroes of the Prophecy. Nowhere in the Prophecy did it actually state that the hero would be a child of the Big Three, they had just assumed it did. May Castellan seeing the future and finding out that her son would have a cruel fate. The cursed blade that Annabeth mentioned earlier.

Annabeth. Battered and half dead with exhaustion, had the strength to fight a Titan like Kronos as she stood face-to-face with the Titan lord, holding him at a standstill. "Luke," she said, gritting her teeth, "I understand now. You have to trust me."

It didn't take Amaryllis too long to realise that Annabeth had also figured it out. Kronos roared in outrage. "Luke Castellan is dead! His body will burn away as I assume my true form!"

Amaryllis tried to move, but her body was frozen again and apparently the same applied to Percy. Kronos pushed against Annabeth, trying to dislodge his blade, but she held him in check, her arms trembling as he forced his sword down toward her neck. "Your mother," Annabeth grunted. "She saw your fate."

"Service to Kronos!" the Titan roared. "This is my fate."

"No!" Annabeth insisted. Her eyes were tearing up, but no one could be sure if it was from sadness or pain. "That's not the end, Luke. The prophecy: she saw what you would do. It applies to you!"

"I will crush you, child!" Kronos bellowed.

"You won't," Annabeth said. "You promised. You're holding Kronos back even now."

"Lies!" Kronos pushed again, and this time Annabeth lost her balance. With his free hand, Kronos struck her face, and she slid backward.

Even though Amaryllis couldn't stand up quick enough to defend her, she tried using her powers again. With one hand, she still had Deena chained down. With the other, she summoned a shadow over Annabeth, somewhat of a protective bubble that she knew wouldn't last long. It tear her body apart - she could literally feel her arm dislocating as she tried to keep up both shadows. Kronos loomed over Annabeth, his sword raised and tried to slash through the shadow, but nothing happened.

Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. She croaked, "Family, Luke. You promised."

Percy took a painful step forward. Grover was back on his feet, over by the throne of Hera, but he seemed to be struggling to move as well. Before either of them could get anywhere close to Annabeth, Kronos staggered.

He stared at the knife in Annabeth's hand, the blood on her face. "Promise." Then he gasped like he couldn't get air. "Annabeth..." But it wasn't the Titan's voice. It was Luke's. He stumbled forward like he couldn't control his own body. "You're bleeding..."

"My knife." Annabeth tried to raise her dagger, but it clattered out of her hand and fell close to Percy. Her arm was bent at a funny angle. She looked at him, imploring, "Percy, please..."

He seemed able to move again. He surged forward and scooped up her knife. He knocked Backbiter out of Luke's hand, and it spun next to Amaryllis, who kicked it within her arm's reach. Luke hardly paid him any attention. He stepped toward Annabeth, but the shadow didn't let him get too close. As if he sensed that Amaryllis wouldn't be able to keep it up for a lot longer, Percy stepped between it and Kronos.

Anger rippled across his face. Kronos's voice growled: "Jackson..." His body slowly started glowing gold and Amaryllis managed to get up. He gasped again. Luke's voice: "He's changing. Help. He's... he's almost ready. He won't need my body anymore. Please-"

"NO!" Kronos bellowed. He looked around for his sword, but it was behind Amaryllis.

He stumbled toward her and Percy tried to stop him, but Kronos pushed him out of the way with such force he landed next to Annabeth and cracked his head on the base of Athena's throne. Annabeth opened her mouth, but she didn't seem able to speak, either from the shock or the exhaustion.

"Percy!" Amaryllis called out to him. She wasn't able to keep up with her shadows anymore and they faltered. "You have to give him Annabeth's knife. It's the... the cursed blade!"

Luke turned and collapsed, clutching his ruined hands. "Please, Percy..." He struggled to his feet. "You can't... can't do it yourself. He'll break my control. He'll defend himself. Only my hand. I know where. I can... can keep him controlled."

It was unmistakingly Luke's voice. Amaryllis couldn't help but sob as his skin started to smoke. Percy raised the knife to strike and with a sudden surge of strength, she managed to rush next to him, positioning herself between Luke and him, desperately holding her injury with her palms full of blood. It was something she never expected to do after everything she went through and yet, it was the right thing.

"We are not the heroes," she told Percy with tears in her eyes. "Please, Percy."

"Please," Luke groaned. "No time."

Amaryllis knew he was telling the truth. If Kronos evolved into his true form, there would be no stopping him. Percy looked deep in her eyes and finally decided to trust her fully. With a pained look, he caved in and gave the knife to Luke.

Grover yelped. "Percy? Are you... um..."

It seemed completely ridiculous and crazy but they watched as Luke grasped the hilt. Amaryllis stood before him, entirely defenseless. If he wanted to kill her, he could very easily do so. Instead, he unlatched the side straps of his armor, exposing a small bit of his skin just under his left arm, aplace that would be very hard to hit. With difficulty, he stabbed himself.

It wasn't a deep cut, but Luke howled, his eyes glowing like lava. The throne room shook, throwingher off my feet. An aura of energy surrounded Luke, growing brighter and brighter. Percy brought Amaryllis next to him and she buried her head into his chest, but she still felt a force like a nuclear explosion blister her skin.

It was silent for a long time. When she opened my eyes, she saw Luke sprawled at the hearth. On the floor around him was a blackened circle of ash; Kronos's scythe that had liquefied into molten metal. Luke's left side was bloody but his eyes were open - blue eyes, the way they used to be. His breath was a deep rattle."Good... blade," he croaked.

Amaryllis felt her knees buckle and she fell, kneeling next to him. Percy followed suit and Annabeth limped over with Grover's support. They all had tears in their eyes.

Luke gazed at Annabeth and Amaryllis. "You knew. I almost killed you, but you knew..."

"Shhh." Annabeth's voice trembled. "You were a hero at the end, Luke. You'll go to Elysium."

He shook his head weakly. "Think... rebirth. Try for three times. Isles of the Blest."

Annabeth sniffled. "You always pushed yourself too hard."

He held up his charred hand and Annabeth touched his fingertips. "Did you..." Luke coughed and his lips glistened red. "Did you love me?"

Annabeth wiped her tears away. "Of course I did, Luke," she said softly. "You... you were like a brother to me."

He nodded with a satisfied, but sad smile, like he was happy he had someone that cared about him during his last moments, and then winced in pain. "We can get ambrosia," Grover said with a shaky voice. "We can-"

"Grover," Luke gulped. "You're the bravest satyr I ever knew. But no. There's no healing..."

Then his eyes fell on Amaryllis, who hadn't realised she was crying until that moment. "I'm... I'm really glad to see you again. I never believed that you... were dead."

She couldn't respond to that. There were so many things she wanted to say, but she felt unable to form any word. She had spent the last year training to kill him, but now she was crying over his soon-to-be-dead body. All she saw in front of her was the mischievious but endlessly fun guy that used to train her and she'd eat stolen ice-cream with. That didn't mean she ignored what he had done - there were no excuses for the pain and damage he caused. Still, it was impossible to feel any hatred when she was opposite someone she used to love dying.

He gripped Percy's sleeve. "Ethan. Me. All the unclaimed. Don't let it... Don't let it happen again." His eyes were angry, but pleading too.

"I won't," Percy said. "I promise."

Luke nodded, and his hand went slack.

"NO!" a voice cut the sudden silence. They turned to see none other than Deena - she looked like she had just crawled through hell and came back. They had all forgotten she was there, because up to that point she was unconscious. Her armor was somehow still intact but the rest of her body seemed weak.

"It's over," Percy tried to tell her. "Kronos is gone."

"Yeah, but I'm not," the daughter of Eris said. "It's not over until I say it is. As for you..." she smirked and it caused Amaryllis a cold feeling, like the temperature had suddenly dropped. "I'll make sure you meet him soon enough."

And just like that, chaos erupted.

𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒.

▊well... good job to anyone who guessed deena was going to be important! her character was created mainly because i wanted to show a demigod that joined kronos and didn't regret that, didn't get a redemption arc, but stayed loyal to their ideals till the end. chris, ethan, silena, luke; they all ended up getting redempted (whether luke can actually get redempted or not is up to you).

▊also, in case you missed it, i made a change in luke and annabeth's dialogue. originally he asks her if she loves him, romantically. it always seemed extremely weird to me how rick put a twenty three year old crush on a sixteen year old and i felt disgusted even typing that dialogue so i changed it. in the gone girl universe, luke is still a piece of shit, but at least he's not a pedo <3 his feelings for annabeth remain platonic and if you dont like it... welp sucks for you

▊we have three (or four) chapters left and gone girl is completed!! stay tuned 😏

(also go put my spam book in your library bc im often talking about my ocs/gone girl and go check out my frank fic, who will be connected to this story!)

thank you for reading <3