A/N: Hullo everyone! It's finally summer for me, and I can WRITE ALL I WANT! Also, I graduated from high school teehee, I'll be a uni girl in a few months!

Anyway, here's the prologue of a story I've been wanting to post since FOREVER. I just never got the chance to write over senior year *sigh*. I'm also committing a huge fanfiction author crime by posting a chapter without the other chapters written in advance…oops. However, I assure you all that I have written the entire story board and you have no need to fear that I will get stuck in the middle of writing this story and leave you guys hanging for eternity.

Hope you guys enjoy the untold adventures of Luke, Thalia, Annabeth, and Grover! ENJOY!

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO! I don't own the cover photo either! Wonderful art by Viria hehehe

Elysium.

Gods, he never thought he'd make it here.

Luke blinked, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the light. Over him, tall, shady willow trees blocked out most of the orange-tainted sky. Birds chirped sweetly overhead, their song echoing throughout the woods.

Luke rolled over to his side, expecting his muscles to protest in pain. But he moved freely, his arms and legs obeying like newly-oiled machines. He let his fingers travel up to his Achilles' spot under his left arm; he was surprised to find that there was no wound where he had supposedly stabbed himself. He rubbed his eyes and sat up, taking in his surroundings.

Elysium.

Dear gods of Olympus, he had actually made it to Elysium!

After all he'd done...he thought he'd end up in the Field of Punishment. Heck, he had hosted Kronos!

But you were also the one who eventually destroyed Kronos, a tiny voice in his head contradicted. You were the true hero of the prophecy. You deserve to be here.

A Half-Blood of the eldest gods,

Shall reach sixteen against all odds,

And see the world in endless sleep.

The hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap,

A single choice shall end his days,

Olympus to preserve or raze.

Luke swallowed hard, his saliva suddenly tasting like rust. How could he, Luke Castellan, host of the evil Titan Kronos, be the "hero" referred to in the prophecy? Luke was the bad guy!

If there was anyone else Luke thought who could actually be worthy of being called the "hero" of the prophecy, it was Percy Jackson. The Son of Poseidon was always the good guy. He returned Zeus' Lightning Bolt to prevent a war between the gods; he went on a dangerous quest across the Sea of Monsters to save Camp Half-Blood and his friends; he held up the weight of the sky (yes, literally); and he journeyed through the Labyrinth to thwart Kronos' plan.

In all those situations, Luke had been the bad guy. He was the one who stole Zeus' Lightning Bolt and framed Percy Jackson. He was the one who poisoned Thalia's tree. He had set the demigods up as pawns to Kronos' plans, and he had watched as one by one, his friends suffered by the hands of the evil Titan. Ethan Nakamura. Charles Beckendorf. Michael Yew. Silena Beauregard.

All those deaths had him to blame.

Luke was suddenly overcome with emotion. He balled his hands into fists and punched the nearest tree. So many people, both demigods and mortals, have died because of him. His choice to host Kronos had more bad consequences than he had initially foreseen. The deaths and destruction he had caused...he was disgusted with himself. How was he still considered a hero? Ending up in Elysium was a joke. He didn't deserve this.

With every self-reproaching thought that crossed his mind, he jabbed at the tree, the rough bark scraping his knuckles raw. He clenched his jaw as he pulled his bloodied right fist up to his face. Apparently, it was still possible to hurt yourself in Elysium. He was about to punch the tree again when he heard a familiar voice call his name. "Luke? Luke...is that you?"

Luke spun around and came face to face with a girl in a white silk dress standing a few meters from him. Luke's heart skipped a beat "Silena!" he exclaimed,

The daughter of Aphrodite ran over to him and tackled him in a hug? "Oh my gods, Luke! I didn't think you'd follow us here so quickly!"

Luke hugged her back. She smelled like freshly-picked roses. He felt his body relax against hers, his heart beat slowing down.

"Holy Hades," Silena muttered, pulling away. "Your hand is bleeding. Are you okay?"

Luke opened his mouth to reply but no words came out.

"What's the matter?" Silena asked him. She took hold of his injured hand.

"I d-didn't expect to end up in Elysium, "Luke stammered. "I mean, I've always dreamt of it, and Annabeth told me just before I died that I'd end up here, but…"

"Luke?" Silena prompted. She tilted her head and looked at him intently. "You look like you want to cry."

Luke drew his hand back. He hated how well Aphrodite's kids could read emotions. "I don't belong here."

Silena shook her head. "Nonesense, Luke. You killed Kronos. You chose to kill him even if it meant sacrificing your own life. That was brave."

Luke remained silent, mulling over Silena's words. Did that final, single act of sacrificing his own life really make him a hero? What about all the bad stuff he had done? Didn't those outweigh his "heroic" deeds?

"Luke, if it's any consolation, I felt undeserving of Elysium when I woke up here too," Silena said. She brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear ad took a deep breath. "I was a spy for Kronos, you knew that. My actions caused the death of so many demigods. My boyfriend –" she paused. "Charles, well, I had to live with the heavy weight of guilt until I died. But even after, here in Elysium, I thought I deserved the Fields of Asphodel, or even the Fields of Punishment. But I later realized that I did do some pretty good things while I was still alive. I just didn't remember them as much compared to all the bad stuff I did. Luke, trust me when I say you did more good deeds than you give credit to yourself."

A soft breeze blew through the woods, rustling the leaves of the willow trees and bringing with it the sweet scent of lavender, gardenia, jasmine, and other flowery scents Luke couldn't even name. "You'll love it here. It's everything you ever expected it to be. You deserve to be here," she told him.

Luke tried to smile but he felt like he had left all his happiness on Earth. Actually, if he were to be frank with himself, he hadn't felt genuine happiness in such a long time.

Why couldn't he bring himself to feel happy about being in Elysium? Wasn't this everyone's dream? "Something's missing," he murmured.

"What?"

"I...I don't know. I mean, I get the whole 'hero' thing now, but I think I want a second chance."

Silena pursed her lips. "You mean like, rebirth?"

"Isles of the Blest."

It was Silena's turn to be at a loss for words. "You want to try for rebirth, thrice?"

Luke nodded slowly. That was exactly what he wanted. He wanted to work for it this time, to feel like he truly deserved what he got. He was going to earn Elysium two more times. He was going to find a way to feel deserving of the Isles of the Blest.

Silena nodded slowly, like she was having difficulty coming to terms with Luke's plan. "I support you, Luke. If this is what you really want, then I'm here for you." She sat down on the grass, drawing her silk skirt around her lap. "So when do you plan to jump in the River Lethe?"

Luke bit his lip. Honestly? He wouldn't jump in the River of Forgetfulness if given the choice.

Silena patted the grass beside her, motioning for Luke to sit down. "I'm going to take your silence as a 'no'?"

Luke settled down beside her, taking a deep breath. "I'm not ready to forget everything yet," he admitted. How could he just forget everything and everyone? Thalia, Annabeth, Grover, his adventures with his friends, the Quests he'd been on, all the activities at Camp Half-Blood…He winced. "Isn't there another way to do this?"

Silena shook her head, smiling sadly. "I wish there were another way, but unfortunately, I don't think there is." She ripped a small part off the lower end of her skirt and wrapped it around Luke's bleeding hand. "But there is something people choose to do before the jump in the River. You might find it helpful."

"What is it?"

"They choose to retell the story of their life to someone in Elysium," Silena said. "When you tell your story, it's almost like you get a second chance to experience all you've lived through. You get to relive your memories one more time just before you forget all of them."

Luke cleared his throat. "Um, but if I retell my story to you, won't that be pretty useless? I mean, you know me so well. You've been there with me since the start."

Silena shrugged. "I don't mind hearing it the second time around. I've got more than enough time to waste in Elysium," she said, spreading her arms wide. "Go on, start at the beginning. When you met Thalia, Annabeth and Grover. I never really heard that part in detail."

Luke gulped. He realized that he had never actually opened up about his past to anyone. He suddenly felt it difficult to breathe. Why was he so nervous about confronting his past? "Well…"

Silena smiled warmly. "Okay, I'll help you out. How did you meet Thalia? I know it had something to do with a dragon, right?"

Luke nodded. His palms were sweating all of a sudden. "Yeah, we met outside a dragon cave. I w-was injured - " he paused and looked down at his bandaged hand. It looked a lot like how it did on that fateful night when he had met Thalia. "And she helped me kill that dragon. If it weren't for her, I don't think I would've survived."

Silena nodded. "Go on."

Luke took a deep breath. "Well, she was kind of annoying at first. She always wanted to get her way with things." He chuckled at the memory of their first argument. Thalia had wanted to charge straight at the dragon, but Luke thought that was pretty unwise. He felt his fingers relax, his heart rate slow down, his lungs loosen up.

Silena smiled and nodded again. "Yes, you're getting to the little details. Go on, I want to hear everything."

Luke found himself returning her smile. He took another deep breath, feeling his entire body relax as the oxygen travelled through his veins. Maybe opening up wasn't so bad. Anyway, it would be the last time before he forgot everything.

"Yeah, so if it weren't for Thalia, I wouldn't have lived to tell this tale."

A/N: So how was that for a prologue? Tell me what you think in your reviews!