CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
SILVIANA       DUVALL

Sylvie had accepted that she was going to die. Despite having gone through so much, and pushing herself to reach unprecedented powers, she figured it was entirely unsurprising that she would still die in the end. Her beliefs were only confirmed when it started raining cars.

As the roof of the cavern collapsed, sunlight blinded her. She got the briefest glimpse of the Argo II hovering above. It must have used its ballistae to blast a hole straight through the ground.

Chunks of asphalt as big as garage doors tumbled down, along with six or seven Italian cars. One would've crushed the Demeter of Knidos, but the statue's glowing aura acted like a force field, and the car bounced off. Unfortunately, it fell straight toward Sylvie.

She jumped to one side, twisting her bad foot. A wave of agony almost made her pass out, but she flipped on her back in time to see a bright red Fiat 500 slam into the black ivy entangling Mnemosyne, punching through the cavern floor and disappearing with the unruly vines.

As Mnemosyne fell, she screamed like a freight train on a collision course; but her wailing rapidly faded. All around Sylvie, more chunks of debris slammed through the floor, riddling it with holes.

The Demeter of Knidos remained undamaged, though the marble under its pedestal was a starburst of fractures. Sylvie was covered in black ivy. She trailed strands of leftover vines from her arms and legs like the strings of a marionette, but somehow, amazingly, none of the debris had hit her. She wanted to believe that the statue had protected her, though she suspected it might've been nothing but luck.

The black ivy had lost its movement since Mnemosyne fell, no longer harboring a mind at all. As daylight flooded the cavern, Mnemosyne's books began toppling off their shelves. Wretched emotions lodged themselves in Sylvie's throat at the realization that those were her sibling's memories; they would be forever lost and forgotten, physically and figuratively.

But none of that mattered when she heard Percy's voice from above: "Sylvie!"

"Here!" she sobbed.

All the misery seemed to leave her in one massive yelp, being replaced with pure guilt. As the Argo II descended, she saw Percy leaning over the rail. Maybe in another universe, he would've been smiling at Sylvie, but she remembered he was under the impression that she forgot him. He just looked worried and concerned and almost as pained as Sylvie felt on the inside.

The room kept shaking, but Sylvie managed to stand. The floor at her feet seemed stable for a moment. Her backpack was missing, along with Leo's stuffed dragon. Her bronze dagger—Cereal—was missing from the duct tape splint. She'd had that weapon since she was eleven. She'd named it herself. And now it was gone forever, fallen into the pit.

At least Sylvie was alive.

She edged closer to the gaping hole made by the Fiat 500. Jagged rock walls plunged into the darkness as far as Sylvie could see. A few small ledges jutted out here and there, but Sylvie saw nothing on them—just vines of black ivy draping over the sides like Christmas tinsel.

Sylvie wondered if Mnemosyne had told the truth about the chasm. Had the Titaness fallen all the way to Tartarus? She tried to feel satisfied with that idea, but it made her sad. Mnemosyne was just like Sylvie had been not too long ago—a clueless amnesiac. Even for a Titan goddess who tried killing her, falling into Tartarus without any memory seemed like too harsh of an end.

Sylvie was dimly aware of the Argo II hovering to a stop about forty feet from the floor. It lowered a rope ladder, but Sylvie stood in a daze, staring into the darkness. Then suddenly Percy was next to her, hovering uncertainly, not knowing how Sylvie would react to his presence.

She was sure he wasn't expecting her to collapse into him and break down in tears.

"I'm sorry," she cried. "I'm so, so sorry. Perce. Percy. I didn't know. I—I'm so sorry. I love you. With every piece of my being and soul. I love you."

Percy turned her gently away from the chasm. He wrapped his arms around her, burying Sylvie's face into his chest. He held her as she sobbed incessantly.

"It's okay," he said. "Don't apologize. It was never your fault. We're together now."

That only made Sylvie cry harder. She clutched desperately at his shirt—the same shirt he'd worn on the date Sylvie ruined. She couldn't stop mumbling incoherent apologies. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it, please don't hate me.

Percy cupped the back of her head and leaned down to press a kiss at the top of her hair. "I love you so much," he whispered.

Their friends gathered around them. Nico di Angelo was there, but Sylvie's thoughts were so fuzzy, this didn't seem surprising to her. It only felt right that he would be with them.

"Your leg." Annabeth kneeled next to her and examined the duct tape cast. "Oh, Sylvie, what happened?"

"I'm sorry," she choked. "I remember you. I remember all of you. I treated y'all so horribly before I—"

"Don't," Leo said. "You couldn't control that. We're just glad to have you back."

"I lost your dragon," she cried.

Leo grinned. "It's okay. You can just get me a new one in Greece."

Sylvie started to explain the rest of her journey. Talking was difficult, but as she went along, her words came more easily. Percy didn't let go of her, which also made her feel more confident. When she finished, her friends' faces were slack with amazement.

"Holy shit," Jason said, and he never cursed. "You did all that alone. With a broken ankle. And no memories."

"Well... some of it with a broken ankle and no memories."

Percy grinned. "You absorbed Mnemosyne's memory powers? She's an ancient Titan goddess! I knew you were powerful, but fuck—Sylv, you did it. Generations of Demeter kids tried and failed. You found the Demeter of Knidos!"

Everyone gazed at the statue.

"Okay, Duvall, this really is impressive as fuck," Finley said. "What do we do with the statue now? She's huge."

"We'll have to take her with us to Greece," Sylvie said. "The statue is powerful. Something about it will help us stop the giants, stop Gaea."

I'm the only one who is prophesied to end Gaea. And I will.

"Suffer the curse of memory that reigns," Hazel quoted. "And win the frailed marble that remains." She looked at Sylvie with admiration. "It was Mnemosyne's curse. You suffered it and gave it back to her. You really did win the statue back."

With a lot of pain, Sylvie thought.

Leo raised his hands. He made a finger picture frame around the Demeter of Knidos like he was taking measurements. "Well, it might take some rearranging, but I think we can fit her through the bay doors in the stable. If she sticks out the end, I might have to wrap a flag around her feet or something."

Sylvie shuddered. She imagined the Demeter of Knidos jutting from their trireme with a sign across her pedestal that read: WIDE LOAD.

Then she thought about the other lines of prophecy: Twins snuff out the angel's breath, Who holds the key to endless death.

"What about y'all?" she asked. "What happened with the giants?"

Percy told her about rescuing Nico, the appearance of Bacchus, and taking down the twins with him and Jason. Nico didn't say much. The poor guy looked like he'd been wandering through a wasteland for six weeks. Percy explained what Nico had found about the Doors of Death, and how they had to be closed on both sides. Even with sunlight streaming in from above, Percy's news made the cavern seem dark again.

"So the mortal side is in Epirus," Sylvie said. "At least that's somewhere we can reach."

Nico grimaced. "But the other side is the problem. Tartarus."

The word seemed to echo through the chamber. The pit behind them exhaled a cold blast of air. That's when Sylvie knew with certainty. The chasm did go straight to the Underworld.

Percy must have felt it too. He guided her a little further from the edge. Her arms and legs trailed black ivy like a bridal train. Her dazed mind started thinking something attuned to cutting the junk off, but she got distracted by Percy saying, "Bacchus mentioned something about my voyage being harder than I expected. Not sure why—"

The chamber groaned. The Demeter of Knidos tilted to one side. Its head caught on one of Mnemosyne's thick vines, but the marble foundation under was crumbling.

Nausea swelled in Sylvie's chest. If the statue fell into the chasm, all her work would be for nothing. Their quest would fail.

"Secure it!" Sylvie cried.

Her friends understood immediately.

"Zhang!" Leo cried. "Get Annabeth and I to the helm, quick! The coach is up there alone."

Frank transformed into a giant eagle, and the three of them soared toward the ship.

Jason wrapped his arms around Finley and Piper. He turned to Percy. "Back for you guys in a sec." He summoned the wind and shot into the air.

"This floor won't last!" Hazel warned. "The rest of us should go to the ladder."

Plumes of dust and black ivy blasted from holes in the floor. The unruly vine support cables trembled like massive guitar strings and began to snap. Hazel lunged for the bottom of the rope ladder and gestured for Nico to follow, but Nico was in no condition to sprint.

Percy gripped Sylvie's hand tighter. "It'll be fine," he muttered.

Looking up, she saw grappling lines shoot from the Argo II and wrap around the statue. One lassoed around Demeter's neck like a noose. Leo shouted orders from the helm as Jason and Frank flew frantically from line to line, trying to secure them.

Nico had just reached the ladder when a sharp pain shot up Sylvie's bad leg. She gasped and stumbled.

"What is it?" Percy asked.

She tried to stagger toward the ladder. Why was she moving backward instead? Her legs swept out from under her and she fell on her face.

"Her ankle!" Hazel shouted from the ladder. "Cut it! Cut it!"

Sylvie's mind was woolly from the pain. Cut her ankle?

Apparently Percy didn't realize what Hazel meant either. Then something yanked Sylvie backward and dragged her toward the pit. Percy lunged. He grabbed her arm, but the momentum carried him along as well.

"Help them!" Hazel yelled.

Sylvie glimpsed Nico hobbling in their direction, Hazel trying to disentangle her cavalry sword from the rope ladder. Their other friends were still focused on the statue, and Hazel's cry was lost in the general shouting and the rumbling of the cavern.

Sylvie sobbed as she hit the edge of the pit. Her legs went over the side. Too late, she realized what was happening: she was tangled in the black ivy. She should have cut it away immediately. She had thought it was just a loose line, but with the entire floor covered in unruly vines, she hadn't noticed that one of the strands was wrapped around her foot—and the other end went straight into the pit. It was attached to something heavy down in the darkness, something that was pulling her in.

"No," Percy muttered, light dawning in his eyes. "My sword..."

But he couldn't reach Riptide without letting go of Sylvie's arm, and Sylvie's strength was gone. She lost her grip on Halcyon. She slipped over the edge. Percy fell with her.

Her body slammed into something. She must have blacked out briefly from the pain. When she could see again, she realized that she'd fallen partway into the pit and was dangling over the void. Percy had managed to grab a ledge about fifteen feet below the top of the chasm. He was holding on with one hand, gripping Sylvie's wrist with the other, but the pull on her leg was much too strong.

Sylvie was reminded of Mnemosyne's recurring taunt. Goodbye, Silviana. Go to that field of flowers, where all finished stories go. Yours will be forgotten.

The pit shook. Percy was the only thing keeping her from falling. He was barely holding on to a ledge the size of a bookshelf.

Nico leaned over the edge of the chasm, thrusting out his hand, but he was much too far away to help. Hazel was yelling for the others, but even if they heard her over all the chaos, they'd never make it in time.

Sylvie's leg felt like it was pulling free of her body. Pain washed everything in red. The force of the Underworld tugged at her like dark gravity. She didn't have the strength to fight. She knew she was too far down to be saved.

"Perce, you're gonna fall if you keep tryin' to pull me up," she croaked. "Let me go."

His face was white with effort. She could see in his eyes that he knew it was hopeless.

"Never," he said. He looked up at Nico, fifteen feet above. "The other side, Nico! We'll see you there. Understand?"

Nico's eyes widened. "But—"

"Lead them there!" Percy shouted. "Promise me!"

"I—I will."

Below them, a voice laughed in the darkness. Sacrifices. Beautiful sacrifices to wake the goddess.

Percy tightened his grip on Sylvie's wrist. His face was gaunt, scraped, and bloody. His clothes were stained with wine. But when he locked eyes with Sylvie, she thought he had never looked more handsome.

"I belong wherever you are," he promised. He managed to run his thumb along the inside of her wrist, and Sylvie choked on a cry. "We're staying together. You're not getting away from me. Never again."

Only then did she understand what would happen. A one-way trip. A very hard fall.

Sylvie knew what it was then: karma. This was karma for letting Eurydice slip down the hole back on Olympus. Sylvie deserved this. She needed to pay the repercussions for letting her wayward sister die.

"As long as we're together," she said. "Every piece of my being and soul."

She heard Nico and Hazel still screaming for help. She saw the sunlight far, far above—probably the last sunlight she would ever see.

"Every piece of my being and soul," he echoed.

Percy swept his thumb over Sylvie's wrist one last time. Then he let go of his tiny ledge. Together, holding hands, he and Sylvie fell into the endless darkness.

╰━━━ ◦ ✸ ◦ ✸ ◦ ━━━╯

Bailey has no words...