The gunshots, the shouts of pain, the final breaths all of the noise died away to a background buzzing as Mikey grinned at me. He rasied his hand, and a ball of yellow light grew in it like Dragon Ball Z and with a wicked smile it launched like a coment and I dove to the ground as it crashed into the people behind me and I smelled burning flesh and heard screams of complete agony.

"It's Apollo actually," he told me as a bow and arrow materialzied out of nowhere and he fired one. The golden staff bright as the sun. I instinctively blew a gust of wind across the room remembering the archery unit in PE. The arrow missed me by an ich the window it smashed into shattering and melting on contact.

I jumped to my feet, heart pounding and weapon out. "What the Hades? You can't be Apollo you're my friend! You wouldn't have just let me go into that place and not have tried-!"

He laughed, notching another arrow and testing the bow string a second like this wasn't a life-or-death duel. Just like it was pratice and we had all the time in the world. "Damn I knew you were an idiot, but I didn't think you were this bad. I like keeping tabs on my siblings, let's me know who I have to worry about."

"WE WERE FRIENDS!" I shouted, disbelief a tsunami through my mind. This couldn't be, it wasn't even possible. Chance dressing like a hooker and dying her hair hot pink was more likely than Mikey being a god! Mikey who couldn't talk to girls, Mikey who couldn't cook a decent meal if his life depended on it. Mikey who was my best friend next to Chance was not a god! He was not Apollo and he was not trying to kill me, he couldn't! We were friends! This just wasn't happening! "There is no way this is real! Mikey I've always been like your brother since the eighth grade what the hell man?"

Mikey laughed and raised his bow, eyes turning from their normal brown to golden like the sun. "I am your brother moron. Or at least a half-brother, and there is no way I'm about to let my half-mortal brother become king of the gods. You're not cut out for it." The arrow flew and I let another blast of wind go but Mikey-or Apollo whatever-wasn't going to keep them coming forever. Sooner or later he was going to blast me with an attack I couldn't doge or deflect. My wind was fast, but not faster than the speed of light and that was what would kill me sooner or later. I was guessing it was going to be sooner.

I backed up and spat on the floor, my spit still read from my brawl with Ares. "And what?" I asked, anger hot as lava  and hurt like sharp glass mixing with my disbelief. "You are? You let all of us rot in some Hell and  you want to be king? You think you're cut out for it? Damn I thought I was supposed to be the idiot!" My voice started to rise as I talked and my anger grew too. So my best friend was a liar? Fine. So he was my half brother? Fine too. So he was a god who was just out for power like dear old dad? Fine, he wasn't the first person to betray me and my trust, wasn't going to be the last either. But there was no way on the gods green Earth I was going to let him take Zeus's throne.

"Oh you are," he assured me with a grin that made me squint they were brighter than his eyes. I focused on the spot past him, one right above his head where I saw a flash of red hair being ripped apart in the wind. Chance was battling it out with some god and the cold feeling that overtook me told me it was none other than my dad. I had to think of a plan, and I had to do it fast. I gripped my scythe tighter and began to move around a bit, working my way closer to Apollo and by extension Zeus.

Apollo narrowed his glowing eyes at me and notched another arrow as chaos raged around us, gods and demigods brawling and shouting in pain as they fought to kill. "No you beat me," I replied with gritted teeth, trying to keep my eyes on Apollo and Zeus at the same time. Whatever was going on, Chance was fighting a loosing battle. As huge of an asshole as he was, he was the most powerful god. I had to get rid of him and then this would be over. I egan to shiver, the Fates power chilling every part of my body.

"I'm smart enough to know being the ruler of the gods would suck balls." I felt my legs spread into a firmer stance as Apollo lined up his arrow with me. "I don't want to rule the world like  you do." I said looking above him to Zeus who had Chance pinned to the ground with his foot. Blood was trickling into her hair line, her face was twisted in pain and fear. I didn't have to see my father's face to see the twisted look on it.  I knew it was there, any man that could throw his own children into a prison and abuse and terrorize the others wasn't above enjoying watching a strange girl suffer before her death.

"I'm not ready to take on that job, but I can't let another corrupt asshole do it either! The only way to get good leaders is for good people to take office." Saying that I toook a deep breath and went through with my crazy plan. I threw the sycthe and at the same time he let the arrow go. I held my ground blasting the bronze blade with wind as strong as a tornado. I coul die if I brought Zeus down with me. Chance would be fine leading the rest of us towards a better life, she could do it if I could. I closed my eyes against the arrow that was glowing bright when it ran through my chest in a blaze of white-hot agony.

Everything about me was on fire, I wasn't even aware if I was on my feet or if I'd fallen to the ground. All that mattered now was the pain, the blinding pain with iron claws dragging across my body, ripping out my veins and lightening them on fire. This was what it was like to get too close to the sun you burned and that made sense. I just never thought I'd die by slow cooking from my best friend, turned half-brother, turned asshole god out for power. Something was on my chest, crushing me I couldn't breathe! My ribs were going to break into a thousand peices and puncured everything important on the inside! Terror gripped me in a chokehold and I tried to scream but no sound came. My vocal chords were raw bits of flesh inside my neck, they strenched and burned but sound wouldn't come.

The burning faded away and for a moment all I felt was nothing, then I screamed. The animal like sound ripped out of my broken body as cold spikes of ice were driven into every inch of my skin. Was this was Hades had planned for all us demigods? Just enteral torture? Was this going to be my afterlife? I should've just let the Furies devour my soul on the other side of the river!

Get up, said a creepy voice in my head but I frowned. It wasn't a voice per se, it was voices. Three voices speaking together. Get up Xander, you can end this. You have to end it. Finish what you started.

How?  I asked, I don't where I am.

Open your eyes and stand up, they replied and though my arms and legs felt like bags of wet cement I forced my eyes open and the first thing I was a peacock quil with a spoint as sharp as a sword above some demigods spine about to be driven in. I didn't think, I stood to my feet, legs shaking and did something completely usless. I shouted, "NO!" and stood usless and faraway as the point dove down and I waited for the shower of blood as their spine was severed.

That didn't happen, but a gale force wind crashed into the building, glass shattering all over everything and I looked into the flying shards against every better instinct I had and though I shouldn't have been able to I saw a storm moving across the grey water. It was massive, water swirling and twisting in an unstoppable force and I felt it. I felt it's hungry, angry winds whipping everything into a massive swirling pool of destruction. I looked away from the storm that was going to tear everything in it's path down to nothing but piles of rubble and sludge.  I had some job to do according to the Fates. I was sure it didn't involve stoppping a hurricane.

I turned my attention back the black haired goddess I'd seen earlier and somehow I knew her now. "Hello Hera!" I said stepping up to her and grabbing her arm and she looked back at me with eyes wide in fear though I had no idea why. What was so scary about me? Maybe the fact that Apollo's arrow fried my brain and burned everything else on my body? That could be it, shaking my head at my inner thoughts I felt the cold power of the Fates and I spoke their words. "You will pay for your crimes former queen of the gods." Former? What the hell? If the Fates noticed how weird I was feeling they didn't let on, but kept forgaging ahead. "You are no longer needed, as the ruler of Olympus I strip you of your powers, I strip all of Council of their powers!"

I tried to speak now, question those three old hags aloud and ask them what the hell was going on, but my voice wasn't mine anymore. All that came out was a strangled sound as Hera screamed and her eyes turned the same color as lava. A sound like a choir of banshes went off and I let go of her arm, covering my ears, head splitting open in pain from the sound. I screamed again and I felt the coldness of the Fates leave me and I collasped against the glass covered ground into a blanket of black that I was never happier to see than I was at that moment. I didn't have anymore fight left in me.

***

Everything was swimming in black, shifting shapes of ink that meant nothing to me. I felt like shit. Everything was so heavy....my arms, my legs, my head even felt like a ten ton boulder on my neck. "Is he coming to?" asked a voice.Was I still dreaming? I remembered the storm out on the water...was I dead? Had I drowned from it's massive waves?

"Xander? Xander can you hear me?" said the voice again. I remembered it...It was from my early escapee days. I should listen to it, it needed me, but I was so tired, I was spent. I couldn't keep going. I was done fighting, I didn't have anymore strength left.

"WAKE UP YOU IDIOT!" shouted a voice that sent a shockwave through my body and I broke through the blackness, shoting up into a sitting postion, gasping for breath, heart hammering against my ribs.

"CHANCE YOU SCARED THE SHIT OUT OF ME!" I shouted, grabbing my chest to keep my heart from exploding out of my chest. "Where the Hades am I?" I asked coming down from my fear long enough to study my surroundings. I was sitting on a couch, Alexa, and Hestia kneeling at my bedside and Chance standing behind them arms crossed and grinning.

"It worked didn't it? You're awake aren't you?" she asked grinning at me with her crooked teeth and gasping still for breath I couldn't help it. I grinned back. "How  ya feeling?"

"Like I just took a beating from Ares, a grizzly bear and Optimus Prime." I groaned rubbing my temples. "What I miss?"

"You did take a beating from Ares," Alexa reminded me with a smile that was as kind as it was tired. "The other two didn't happen."

"Doesn't answer my question," I mumbled yanking a heavy green blanket off my legs and standing up. Or trying to, my legs buckled the instant I was on my feet.

"Careful!" Hestia exclaimed grabbing me by the arm and lowering me back onto the couch. "Using that much power even tires out the gods kiddo. You need to take it easy for a little while longer."

"Power?" I asked giving her what I was sure a deer- in- the-headlights look. "All I did was blow a scythe at my dad."

"No it's not," Chance said with a grin. "You hit him by the way, and when he faded you took his place."

"No seriously," I said, "what happened?"

"We won," Chance said and I saw her grin turn into a full smile and she jumped up, hands clasping together with an excited and girly scream I didn't think she'd ever do. "We did it! You took out your dad and went full on god and somehow I lived to see it! You did good for an idiot. I'm proud of you!"

It took a second for that to sink in and when it did  I didn't jump for joy or any of that stuff like I thought I would. I fell down onto my back and started laughing. We'd done it. By a combination of luck, stupidity, and maybe strength and smarts we'd done it. The Council wasn't in charge of the world anymore. My abusive dad wasn't their boss anymore, I was.

That stopped my laughter, I sat up, eyes wide and heart pounding. I was a god now. I was the head whoncho of the new Council whoever made that up. What the fuck!? How in the Hades was I supposed to do this? I couldn't be charge of something this huge! I'd mess it up! I'd do something stupid and send the world into anarchy!

"Breathe dude," Chance said like she was reading my mind. "You're going to be great at this. I know it."

"Thanks for the faith in me but this is a bad time to have it!" I said standing up again this time glad to find I had no problems with it. "I can't do this! I'm a screw up! The only reason I got this far was because I had someone telling me what to do the whole time! I can't run the world! I'm going to do something stupid and mess it up big time! I know it!"  I gripped handfuls of my hair as I spoke, my scalp burning as I tugged at it.

"You won't," Chance said grabbing my shoulders to stop me from walking around. "You have to appoint eleven other people who want to help you do this job. You won't be alone and I'm sure some wise person somewhere said those best suited to have power where those who were scared of it. You said so yourself, the only way to get good leaders is to put good leaders in office."

She smiled at me, and I tried to smile back, "You mind being my first appointment?" I asked looking down at my shoes.

"I don't," she said with a grin. "I'll take up my father's job until I can find someone to replace me."

"Replace?" I asked my head snapping up and Chance gave me a tired smile. "What do you mean?"

"I'll help you until you find someone else to trust and I find someone who can understand those powers. But I don't want to be a goddess forever Xander. I want to be human, I want to go to college, travel the world and go grey like everyone else."

"You will," I said patting her on the shoulder. "We all will," I felt a plan form in my mind, it was hazy on nearly every detail, but it was centered on one thing. "No matter what we are, gods or mortals no one should be in power forever."

"How do you plan to do that?" Alexa asked and I shrugged.

"No clue, but it's going to happen. I'll have to start thinking about who I want on my panel of advisers." I laughed again, feeling weird for even thinking about it, but knowing I had my smarter best friend with me, even if it wasn't going to be for as long as I'd hoped it gave me some since of normality.

"Yeah," Chance agreed, "but before we do that, I have a favor to ask you. It's midnight right now, I think this all can wait until morning right?"

"Yeah," I agreed, "why?"

"I need a best man, you up for going to Vegas again?" she smiled again her whole face lighting up and I answered without even giving myself time to be shocked.

"Hestia? You mind getting us there? I'm sure I'd miss."

"Not a problem," she replied and I shut my eyes as I was lifted off my feet and I landed outside some neon lit chapel in Sin City.

"I've gotten better at that landing thing," I muttered, brushing off my clothes and then realzing I was not in the t-shirt and boxers I'd woken up in. I was wearing a tux. "This isn't funny Hestia!" I shouted into the neon glow and I heard laughter behind me and turned around to see the goddess herself and Alexa both wearing pretty nice clothes. Hestia was back in a long blue sweater-coat thing, and a brown pencil skirt smiling at me. Alexa was dressed in a dark green dress that brought out her eyes and holding a flower in her hand.

"Hold still you look great," she said pinning something to my coat. "Let's get inside this should be starting soon."

I held out my arm like I'd seen in movies and followed her inside the tiny chapel. "Never been to a wedding before, what am I supposed to do?"

"When the music starts playing you walk me down the asile and stand by Thantos and they get hitched. Simple!"

"Okay, good," I said walking up towards the painted white doors. "When did they decide to do all of this? Isn't this something you aren't supposed to rush into?"

"I don't think they are," Alexa said pursing her lips. "They said back when Chance had first escaped that if they both came out alive they'd tie the knot. They've been together for six years nearly, guess they just don't see the point in waiting any longer."

"Well I guess running for your life does put things into perspective," I said as I heard the music start and Alexa tugged at me arm to get me to start walking.  I did what she told me and stood by Thantos who was likewise dressed in a monkey suit and I heard that old music change as Chance came walking after us.

She looked happier than I'd ever seen her and more like a girl too. Her hair was longer somehow and I was willing to bet Hestia might've helped fix her home done haircut. Her dress was white like most brides, but it was shorter, falling to about mid-thigh and had a flower belt around the middle. She was wearing Converse sneakers that where blue and I suddenly thought of that old saying about weddings. Something old, something new, something blue and I forgot the other one.

Chance made it up to the altar and the guy dressed like Elvis got things started.

***

If I ever got married I decided that I was going to go to Vegas, they got things done really fast and for many reasons I appreciated that. We were in an out in ten minutes tops and then the wedding party piled into a vintage, bright red Cadillac.

"Congrats guys!" I said as we took off down the Vegas streets ready to celebrate everything that had happened over the last couple of days. Our win over the gods, the fact that we were alive and two people in love starting a life together.

"Thanks!"  Thantos called from the front seat and I tapped his shoulder deciding I'd better say what I needed to right now before I got too drunk to remember it. 

"You ever break her heart again and I break you." I warned and I saw his usually tanned skin turn a sickly shade of olive oil green. I smiled at him pretty sure it looked more like I was bearing my teeth. "Just so we understand one another."

"Yeah," Thantos said and I was pretty sure I'd done my job as the best friend and smiled happily. I had no idea what was going to happen now, I'd never thought about what I'd do if we somehow survived all this what I'd want to do and what I would do with my life. I had no idea who else I was going to ask to join the new Council. I had no idea how I was going to get us all to stop being gods without fading and then pass the jobs onto someone else. I had no idea how many people we lost in the battle at Ellis Island. I had no idea how to explain all of what happened to my mom and explain what happened to Apollo/Mikey if anyone asked. I had no idea if he even existed in the records of the USA or any other countries.

But as I looked  up at the stars just barely visible above the neon lights I decided not to worry about all of it just yet. I was still here, living and breathing, so was Chance, Alexa, Hesita and Thantos. We all had a lot to be happy for right now.

"Turn on the radio!" I called and Chance obliged and Sweet Child O' Mine blasted through the cab and I did the only thing I could at that point. I started singing along with it. I was loud and off key, but I heard other voices join in with me. As we started driving through the streets singing and smiling I leaned back in my seat and closed my eyes a moment. I still didn't know what was going to happen with us now that we were the gods now.

I just needed to have faith that it'd be okay, and as long as I had some good friends to keep me grounded and on the right track I was more than hopeful that it would be just that. Not perfect, not great all the time, not easy, but it'd be a life worth living and that was exactly what I wanted. I wanted all those ups and downs that came with life. I wanted to laugh, I wanted to cry, I wanted to scream in pain and fear, and in excitement and nervous energy. I wanted to be unsure sometimes, and then certain other times. I wanted to have a life, not an existence, and now, looking around at all the good people I was with, I was sure that was exactly what I was going to get.