A/N: Spoilers from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in this chapter! Read at your own risk!

~*~

"Alright, all passengers!" Leo's voice echoed around us. We were all gathered in Percy's room, me being rather cheery.

"We have arrived at The Red Wood Forest. Prepare to kick some half-centaur booty!" We all whooped and rushed on deck, waving our weapons like monkeys.

"Everyone got their amulets!?" Leo screamed over us. "YEAH!" We yelled back. "I can see you've got your weapons!" Leo commented. "YEAH!" We roared.

"THEN LET'S FRICKING DO THIS!"
"YEAH!"

"Greeks, Greeks!" Leo began to cheer. "GREEKS, GREEKS!" We screamed back. "AND ROMANS!" Frank and Hazel added.

Laughing, we all filed out of the ship and brandished our weapons.

We charged into the trees. I found myself running next to Percy, who was still a little pale. His breath rattled in his chest. "You okay?" I panted, watching him nervously. "Never been better." Percy replied, grinning weakly. I bit my lip but continued to run, pushing worry for Percy out of my mind. He could take care of himself.

Finally, we all pulled to a stop at a small tree surrounded clearing. Annabeth held a finger up to her lips, and I was reminded violently of Severus Snape from Harry Potter before he killed Dumbledore.

We all fell silent. We could hear voices beyond the trees surrounding the clearing.

"Where are they?" One asked. I heard a sharp crack and a loud groan. "They will come." It was Arc's voice now. "But...master, how can you be sure?" A different voice this time.

There was no reply. Instead footsteps echoed around us. "They will come." Arc repeated. I heard a slapping sound and a loud yell.

Nico.

It was painful, being so close but unable to look him in the eye. I couldn't save him even though I was so close. I had to wait.

"So close to death, little demigod." Arc said quietly, though loudly enough that we could still hear him. "How long will you last?"

Annabeth looked at all of us and nodded in the other direction. We all followed her to a large tree. "Okay, we have eleven people. Four groups of two and one of three. Stay with your group. We're going to ambush from all sides."

We all nodded and latched onto someone. I ended up with Percy and Reagan. "Okay," Annabeth muttered, surveying us. "The signal is a bang. We'll hit two weapons together." We all nodded.

"Ready to save Nico?" Percy whispered. I nodded. Reagan winked at me.

We took our different positions around the clearing. I caught snatches of conversation as I scaled the trees. I couldn't really get much out of it, though. It sounded angry and mocking at the same time.

Reagan, Percy and I crouched behind the trees, listening for the clang of two weapons. The voices coming from the clearing were fainter now. I could still make them out, but barely.

"I won't let you touch Erica." Nico's weak voice floated over to me. Arc laughed. "And what condition are you in to stop me?"

"I can-"

A loud clang interrupted Nico's sentence. Yelling, we all charged into the clearing and started cutting down Arc's minions left and right. There were millions of them, so once they recovered from their shock things got a little harder.

Arc's evil laugh rose above the screech of weapons and the yells of ferocity. "Didn't I tell you? Didn't I?"

I found myself fighting back to back with Percy, slashing at the two minions in front of me. "Take that!" I screamed, stabbing one through with my dagger.

Yup, noting like a blonde-haired blue-eyed shish-kabob in the evening.

I fell into a rhythm. Slash, dodge, stab. Slash, dodge, stab. Slash, dodge, stab. Slash, dodge, stab...

Finally I came to the tree where Nico was hanging. "Thank the gods." I whispered, running up to him.

Suddenly, I found my path blocked by someone. I ran right into whoever it was. Pain momentarily blinded me, before it disappeared just a quickly as it had come.

"Just as I had planned it..." Arc whispered, looming above me. "Stop!" He roared at his forces. The battle around me fell silent as everyone turned their heads toward me and Arc.

"Thank you." Turning his head back toward me, Arc smiled. "She's here."

Laughs exploded around me, harsh and cruel. Mocking and hateful. "Stupid girl." Arc purred. I narrowed my eyes. "Let Nico go." I growled, holding my dagger up to Arc's throat.

Arc laughed again. He tore my dagger out of my hand and aimed it at his chest. "Do you want to see what celestial bronze does to me, child?" He asked. When I didn't reply, Arc brought the dagger down, right on his heart.

A hush fell over the clearing. I watched the sharp blade bounce painlessly off of Arc's chest. "Nothing, girl." He whispered, aiming the dagger at me. "But to you..."

~*~

A/N: WARNING! THE FOLLOWING SCENE MAY COMPLETELY DISGUST THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE AFRAID OF DAGGERS GOING THROUGH SOMEONE ELSE'S HEAD! BLOOD INVOLVED! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!

~*~

With a loud laugh, he brought the blade down on my head. I screamed in fear. Blood seeped into my eyes. Black spots danced across my vision.

I laid there for a moment, stunned. I couldn't feel anything. I had just been stabbed through the head with a dagger.

"ERICA!" Nico's voice shattered the silence around me. "NO! YOU CAN'T BE DEAD! I WON'T LET YOU BE DEAD!"

I felt like I was slowly being pulled back to reality. I opened my eyes, then gasped when I realized that they had been closed. I felt my heart beat again, the breath get sucked back into my body. My head ached.

Reaching a shaking hand up to my head, I pulled out the dagger. No blood, no pain. Touching the place where it had hit me, I felt no wound.

Arc's surprised face stared down at me. "How?" He whispered. I laughed feebly. "You tell me." I got shakily to my feet, realizing what I had to do.

I tore the amulet off of my neck. Suddenly I felt sicker, my head hurt more.

"YOU!" Arc rounded on Nico, his eyes blazing with fury. "YOU DID THIS!" He flung out his hand.

I jumped on top of Arc with my remaining strength and thrust the amulet into his skull. Two horrible screams followed this. One from Arc, and one from...
Nico.

I fell limply to the ground, the last of my strength leaving me. Fresh blood dripped from my head. I heard two thumps. Arc disintegrated, but another body laid on the ground.

Nico.

"No..." I whispered, dragging my dying body over to him. I felt for a pulse. There was none. He was dead.

Then I felt myself get almost wretched from my own body. Pain exploded everywhere.

Blackness swallowed me. I couldn't feel, or breath, or hear.

"I'm sorry..." I whispered, hoping Percy could still, somehow, someway, hear me.

Nico was dead.

And now, as everything finally left me, as all feeling disappeared, as the last of my consciousness floated away, I knew one thing.

I didn't belong in the world anymore.

I was dead.

I shouldn't be coming back.

It's funny, sometimes, where love can take you.