AN: Happy Halloween everyone! I hope everyone has had a great Halloweek, and that everyone has fun tonight on Halloween itself! Here's the next chapter. I know I said I'd try and get it up yesterday, but unfortunately I wasn't able to get it all edited by the time I went to bed. So yeah. I want to thank everyone for the support I've gotten so far, and I hope you enjoy this chapter. It's a little bit spooky, and though I didn't intentionally line this chapter up with Halloween, it's sort of a happy coincidence.

So enjoy the chapter! DFTBA!

Chapter 14: Erin Cross Makes a Bad Decision

I found myself back in Erin Cross's house. She and a young Gaius were sitting in the living room watching something on TV. I looked around the room. Toys littered the floor and tables, pictures on the wall showed Erin with Gaius doing different things. Other showed some of Gaius's school pictures. When I looked at Gaius, I could tell that a few years had passed. He looked about eight now. Which meant –

The doorbell rang. Erin looked up, slightly confused. Clearly she wasn't expecting company. She stood and walked around the dividing wall to the front door. I followed her, leaving Gaius to watch his show, although he didn't seem all that interested in it. His eyes followed his mother curiously. Erin pulled open the door and I frowned. I didn't recognize the man at all. Apparently neither did Erin. He wore jeans and a brown leather jacket. His brown hair was long and shaggy and his eyes were shockingly green, like a neon sign. There was another figure behind him that I didn't notice immediately. He didn't seem to be all there. He might've been middle aged, but his features were strangely blurred, so it was hard to tell.

"Can I help you?" Erin asked uncertainly.

"I hope so, ma'am," he held out his hand. "My name is Alabaster Torrington. I was wondering if I might come in?" My eyebrows shot up. So I was right. If Alabaster Torrington was here, that meant it was likely that something bad was about to happen.

Erin frowned. "I'm sorry, but I don't know you. I don't mean to be rude, but I'm not really in the habit of letting complete strangers into my house for no reason."

"And that's completely understandable," Alabaster replied pleasantly. "But what I would like to speak to you about is something that should really be discussed in private. You never really know when there are prying ears, after all."

"And what do you want to speak about?" Erin asked. "If you want therapy from me, you'll have to stop by the clinic."

Alabaster chuckled. "No, no, nothing like that. It's about Luke Castellan."

Erin's breath caught. "Luke…"

"You knew him, didn't you?" Alabaster pushed.

"I – A long time ago," Erin said. "It's been… It's been a long time since I last saw him." It may have been a long time, but I could tell that Erin still hadn't moved on from him yet. Just the mention of his name had made her jittery.

"Indeed," Alabaster agreed. "About eight years since he died. I'd imagine closer to nine when you last saw him, yes?" Erin didn't reply. Alabaster used the opportunity to push his advantage. "Now, may I please come in?"

Erin hesitated, then, almost in a daze, stepped back to allow Alabaster in. No no no, I thought. You're gonna get yourself killed! Somehow I knew that without the events that were about to transpire, Lukas Robert Cross never would have grown up to become Gaius. But I couldn't change the past. Alabaster entered the Cross residence, followed by his blurry companion, who Erin didn't seem to notice at all.

In the living room, Gaius looked up. "Who are they?" he asked suspiciously.

"My name is Alabaster Torrington," the man said, kneeling down in front of Gaius and holding out his hand. "What's your name?"

Hesitantly, Gaius shook Alabaster's hand. "Lukas. Who's the guy with you?" He motioned to the figure standing behind Gaius. Erin looked confused and slightly concerned. Alabaster glanced over his shoulder, then looked back at Gaius, a small smile on his face.

"Ah, so you can see him," Alabaster said. "That's good. Not many people can. His name is Dr. Claymore. Think of him as my imaginary friend. Do you have an imaginary friend, Lukas?"

Gaius shook his head. "No, I don't. But how come I can see your imaginary friend?"

Alabaster chuckled. "Well let's just say I've got a very powerful imagination. Not strong enough to make him visible to everyone, but very special people can see him, just like you."

"You can make your imagination become real?" Gaius asked skeptically.

Alabaster nodded. "Yes, I can. Remember that, Lukas. If you imagine something hard enough, you can make it a reality."

Erin cleared her throat. "Lukas, honey, why don't you go to your room? Mr. Torrington and I need to talk about something."

Gaius moaned. "But mom…"

"No buts," Erin said. "Go to your room. If you're good, after Mr. Torrington leaves I can make some popcorn and we can watch whatever movie you want."

Gaius considered a moment, decided that it was a good deal, and bounded out of the room. He went through a doorway which no doubt led in the direction of his room.

Erin scooped up the TV remote and turned it off. She turned to Alabaster. "Can I get you some coffee or tea? Maybe a glass of water?" Erin asked politely.

"No thank you," Alabaster said.

"Can I at least take your jacket?"

"I'll leave it on for now, if that's alright," Alabaster said, adjusting his jacket's zipper ever so slightly. I got the feeling that he was hiding something underneath there, but it was hard to say what. Obviously nothing bulky or it would have been noticeable. "May I sit?" he asked, indicating a squishy looking armchair.

"Go ahead," Erin said. "Sorry about all those questions Lukas was asking just now. Eight is a very inquisitive age, you know?"

"I wouldn't know," Alabaster replied, taking a seat in the armchair. His misty friend stayed standing, and took up a spot just behind him. "I don't have children myself."

Erin looked completely uncomfortable and nervous. Her arms were crossed tightly across her chest and she rocked a little on her feet. Nevertheless, she sat down on the edge of the sofa across from Alabaster. "Well it was kind of you to humor Gaius about your 'imaginary friend.' You didn't have to, though. He can be very mature for his age."

"Oh, I wasn't humoring him," Alabaster said. "Though the imaginary part was something of a lie. But I really do have my friend Dr. Claymore with me."

There was dead silence. Then Erin said, "I'm sorry, I think I made a mistake, I –"

"Come now," Alabaster said, interrupting her. "Luke told you about who he really was, correct?"

"I – yes, but –"

"Then you'll know about the Mist," Alabaster said. "Although, you might need a refresher. I imagine it's been a while since you thought about Luke's world. The Mist is the magical veil that separates the world of ordinary mortals from Luke's world, and mine. I do have my friend Dr. Claymore with me, but you can't see him because he's what we call a Mistform, a being formed out of Mist and then animated."

"So how could –"

"Your son see him?" Alabaster finished. "He has the ability to see through the Mist because of his father. He inherited it. That's why he can see my friend, and also why all those times he says he saw monsters, he probably really did."

Erin blinked a few times. "Lukas always said the monsters he saw were nice to him." That seemed to genuinely surprise Alabaster. He actually recoiled slightly. But I think I understood. It's because they knew, somehow, he was descended from Kronos. Maybe his scent was stronger than a demigod's? Or perhaps it was just different. I didn't really understand how the monsters-smelling-demigods thing worked. Erin came out of something of a confused reverie. "So let me get this straight. There's someone in my house right now that I can't see, but he's definitely real?"

Alabaster set aside whatever he was thinking about Gaius and the monsters and nodded. "Yes, you've got the gist of it. He's actually standing right behind me. Of course, it used to be that everyone could see him. I could make Mistforms so well that they could be visible to ordinary mortals, but Dr. Claymore has been fading the last few years. I'm afraid he's going to fade away completely soon. Which brings me to why I'm here."

"I thought you said something about Luke?" Erin asked warily.

"Yes, I did," Alabaster agreed. "It's all connected."

"How?" Erin asked. "How do you even know who I am? How did you find me? What does this have to do with Luke?" Erin was getting more worked up, and I could hardly blame her. Maybe it's because I already knew she was going to die, but I had a very uneasy feeling about all of this.

"Please calm down," Alabaster said. "I will explain everything, but there's a lot to understand. I only ask that you are patient. How did I find you? I looked you up online. Using the internet is dangerous for demigods, such as myself, but then very few things aren't dangerous for us. How do I know who you are? Well I was rather high up in the titan army. I was directly in charge of the demigod forces. I knew Luke personally, and I saw how much he cared about you. That's why I've come to you today. Luke loved you very much."

"You don't need to tell me how much Luke loved me," Erin said darkly. Her eyes were very red now. Alabaster had definitely hit a nerve.

"You still seem on edge," Alabaster observed.

"Why are you here?" Erin asked sharply.

Alabaster held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay." He placed his fingertips together in thought. After a few moments, he spoke again. "Back to my friend Dr. Claymore, then. Shortly after your boyfriend's death I was… let's say unemployed. At the same time, a psychotic half-sister of mine was coming after me."

"Why?" Erin asked.

"She was trying to kill me," Alabaster said nonchalantly, as if it was completely normal for half-siblings to kill each other. Of course, anyone who looked at Greek mythology could see that it was, at least for our world. "The reason is not really important to the story. The important part is that this half-sister of mine was recently returned from the dead."

A cold chill seemed to fill the room. My breath caught in my throat. Already, I could see where this was going, and I really didn't like it. "That's possible?" Erin asked quietly, alarmed. It may have been my imagination, but she also sounded the tiniest bit hopeful.

Alabaster nodded. "Oh yes. Take a look at Greek mythology. Tantalus managed to stay on earth for years after he was supposed to die, and even after he made it to the Underworld, he tricked Hades into letting him return to the surface, and he stayed there for several more years. Orpheus was almost able to leave the Underworld with his dead wife, until he screwed up and looked at her. And at the time my half-sister was trying to kill me it was actually fairly easy to return from the dead, provided you had the right connections. At any rate, she and I were fighting. Unfortunately, Dr. Claymore, who was an ordinary mortal at the time, got caught in the cross-fire and died."

"I thought your friend Dr. Claymore was with you?" Erin asked. "Isn't that what you just said? Did you bring him back from the dead?"

"Well, I didn't," Alabaster said. "See, my mother, Hecate, goddess of magic, intervened between my sister and I, and she sent me Dr. Claymore as a guardian and a companion. See, after he died, she made a Mistform of him and animated it with his actual soul."

"Could that work for other people?" Erin asked, and I definitely didn't imagine the greed in her voice. This is bad, I thought. This is very, very bad.

Alabaster smiled coyly. "Quick to catch on," he noted. "In theory, yes, it could be done with other people. But you see, there's a problem. Less than a year after my half-sister and I fought, death stopped being so lenient. All those people who'd escaped to the world of the living during that time period were slowly but surely taken back to the Underworld. Dr. Claymore started to get dragged to the Underworld. I was able to cast a spell to anchor him here, in the mortal world in his Mistform body, but it's only a temporary solution. Over the past seven years the spell has weakened greatly. Dr. Claymore's soul is like… It's like he's got one foot in the Underworld and one foot out. Does that make sense?"

Erin nodded slightly. "Yes, I think so."

"Good," Alabaster said. "I've never tried explaining this to someone else before, so I'm glad it's understandable. Anyway, Dr. Claymore is the only friend I have. I have no one else. I don't want to lose him. So, I've been trying to develop a new spell. A spell that can summon a soul, or parts of a soul, out of the Underworld. And I think I've succeeded. The only trouble is, it's not the easiest spell to test."

"And that's why you're here," Erin said, sitting forward. "You want to test this spell on Luke."

"Yes," Alabaster said. "I can tell that you miss him. Just over the course of our short conversation, I've seen plenty of evidence to that fact. But of course, the choice is yours."

"Why are you even offering to try it on Luke?" Erin asked, somewhat suspiciously. I'd like to know the same thing, I thought.

"Two reasons," Alabaster said. "First of all, I feel like you deserve justice. Losing Luke wasn't fair to you or him. The second reason is, I'll admit, is rather selfish. You see, if I messed up my new spell… Dr. Claymore could be sent to the Underworld completely. But Luke… well, he's already in the Underworld. There's nothing to lose if the spell goes wrong. But if it goes right, I could bring him back all the way."

"And if you fail he just stays in the Underworld?" Erin asked.

"Correct," Alabaster said. "I understand if you don't want to, and I'll respect your choice –"

"I'll do it," Erin said. I pinched the bridge of my nose. This was incredibly dangerous. Didn't Erin know better than to mess around with the dead?

"Are you sure?" Alabaster asked, clearly surprised by how quickly Erin had agreed to his idea.

Erin nodded. "Like you said, if you fail, Luke just stays dead, but if you succeed…"

"Well thank you very much for agreeing," Alabaster said. "If I can, I will make it up to you. I'll bring Luke back. Now, is there a good time for me to come back so we can do this?"

"Can we try now?" Erin asked. "Why wait?"

Alabaster looked a little bit alarmed. He glanced over his shoulder at his Mistform friend. Please decide not to, I wished, although I knew it was going to happen. There was no way this would have a happy ending. Alabaster turned back to Erin. "Alright," he said. "Let's give it a shot."

"Do you need anything from me?" Erin asked.

Alabaster was standing up. "Do you have something of Luke's? Something he was connected to? An item that held symbolic significance for him?"

Erin reached underneath her shirt and pulled out a necklace strung with beads. Luke's camp necklace. She was still wearing it? She passed the necklace to Alabaster. "This was his. He gave it to me the last time I saw him. He wanted me to keep it safe for him."

Hesitantly, Alabaster took the necklace. I could tell from the look on his face that he didn't know how to feel about the necklace. Clearly, even after years, he was having trouble letting go of any resentment he held towards Camp Half-Blood. Just like Erin, Alabaster couldn't let go of the past.

Alabaster unzipped his jacket and produced what looked like a blue piece of chalk. That's what he'd been hiding inside his coat? He turned to Erin. "Could you stand up? I've got to move the furniture, make a good space on the floor."

Erin stood up. "I can help you."

"It'll be quicker if I just do it," Alabaster replied. He held up his hands. Instantly, symbols blazed to life all over his body, glowing green runes on his pants, his jacket, even his face. His eyes, too, glowed a brighter green than before. I really hoped that didn't happen every time Helen from camp used magic. It was creepy, and chances were I'd see her use magic at some point. Instantly all the furniture in the room moved out of the way, up against the walls. The couch ended up blocking one of the doors. The toys that littered the floor flew out of the way and landed in neat piles on the couch.

Alabaster walked to the exact center of the room and set Luke's necklace on the floor. Using his blue chalk, he traced a circle around it. Then he moved outwards, drawing different shapes and symbols. Erin looked on, equal parts confused and fascinated. I looked on in horror. This was unnatural. Speaking to the dead, that was one thing. Nico did that, the kids in the Hades cabin back at camp did that, heck, I'd even done it when I spoke to Houdini a year ago. Aunt Hazel had come back to life during the war with Gaea, but the gods had condoned that. But what Alabaster was trying to do? It was just wrong.

Alabaster had finished drawing his shapes and symbols. He inscribed the whole thing in one large circle. It took up most of the room. Erin stood just behind him. "What now?" she asked.

"Now we cast the spell," Alabaster said. Dr. Claymore the Mistform leaned close to him, like he was whispering something. Alabaster nodded. "Ah yes, of course old friend." He pulled a card from the inside pocket of his jacket. He gave the card a flick and Dr. Claymore was sucked into it. "Dr. Claymore asked to be returned to his card," he explained to Erin. "If I mess up the spell while he was standing here, it would destroyed him."

"He can be returned to a card?" Erin asked. "Why didn't you do that right when you got here?"

"He doesn't like being in his card," Alabaster replied. "Now, let's begin." Let's not begin, I thought. How about you call this whole thing off? Alabaster raised his hands and the weird symbols glowed all over his body again. The lines he'd drawn on the floor changed from blue to green and glowed as well. The overhead light exploded, casting the room in semi-darkness, lit only by the glowing green symbols on the floor and on Alabaster himself.

Alabaster began to chant in another language. Latin maybe? I didn't have a great ear for those types of things. The symbols on the floor began to move, the circles he'd drawn as part of the pattern started to spin. A whooshing sound filled the living room. Across the room a door opened. Gaius poked his head out. He stared at the glowing patterns. The couch blocked his access to the room, but nevertheless, he called across to his mother.

"Mom, what's happening?" he asked.

"Go back up to your room, sweetie," Erin said. "I'll be up in a little while. Everything is going to be fine." Erin locked eyes with her son across the room. "I promise it will be okay."

Gaius stood stock still, but he didn't go back to his room. Meanwhile, Alabaster reached the end of his chant. He cried out in English, "Rise Luke Castellan! Return from the Underworld!" The symbols on the floor blazed gold. The same gold as Gaius's eyes. In the center of the room, an apparition rose. Luke Castellan emerged from the floor, shimmering gold.

Erin gaped. "Luke," she whispered.

"It worked," Alabaster said, stunned. "It actually worked!"

Luke looked around the room, his head slightly tilted. The symbols on the floor continued to move. Gaius was gaping now. I couldn't imagine what was going through the little kid's head.

"Why isn't he doing anything?" Erin asked Alabaster.

"He may not be back fully yet," Alabaster explained. "The spell is still going, see?" He pointed to the symbols on the floor. "Try saying something to him."

Or don't, I thought. How about don't do that.

Erin spoke. "L- Luke? Can you hear me?"

Luke turned his head and looked at Erin. A wide smile appeared on his face, but it wasn't the sort of smile one has when they see someone they love for the first time in years. No, it was a sinister smile. Erin took a hesitant step back. Alabasters eyebrows furrowed. "Ah, Erin Cross, we meet again," the apparition in the middle of the room said, but it wasn't Luke. The voice was too deep and had an edge like a knife scraping across rock. It was Kronos. Alabaster had summoned Kronos.

"No," Erin gasped. "You're not Luke."

Kronos laughed cruelly. "Well done, Miss Cross." He turned and looked at Alabaster. "Ah, if it isn't Alabaster Torrington. I suppose I have you to thank for this second chance?"

"I didn't summon you," Alabaster said, his voice quavering, though whether from fear or rage, I didn't know. "I summoned Luke."

Kronos chuckled. "And did you not consider the possibility that he chose rebirth? Luke isn't in the Underworld anymore. Somewhere in the world is a child who houses Luke's soul. Well, most of it. As you can see, I kept some of it for myself. Not that either Luke or I had a choice in that matter."

Alabaster couldn't respond, he just gaped. Kronos turned his attention back to Erin. "And how is our son doing?"

"You're my dad?" Gaius cried out. For the first time, Kronos's attention shifted to young Gaius.

"He's not your father," Erin said to her son. "And he's not your son," she added harshly to Kronos. "He's my son, he's Luke's son."

"You foolish woman," Kronos said to Erin. "When the boy was conceived, Luke and I were already bound. The boy is my son, too."

"But… but why?" Erin asked. "Why does it matter to you?"

Kronos opened his mouth to respond, but Alabaster seemed to have found his voice again. "Kronos! I don't know how my spell was able to bring you back, but that doesn't matter. You must leave! You must return to whatever state you were in before!"

"Come now, Alabaster, where's the loyalty?" Kronos asked. "You were one of my top lieutenants. Well, I'm back. Don't you still want to destroy the Olympians?"

"Yes," Alabaster said. "But I don't want it badly enough to want you back. You're no better than they are! Maybe even a little worse," he added quietly. "Now leave!"

"It's too late for that," Kronos said. "You do not control me, Alabaster Torrington. In just a few moments enough of my soul will have gathered that I will be able to leave the petty bindings you drew on the ground. A smart idea, and certainly enough to hold any lesser spirit. But not enough to hold me. Not for long. I am a titan."

"Then I'll stop you now," Alabaster said, the symbols on his body blazing to life again. "I'm sorry Erin Cross, I'm sorry Lukas. I have to stop Kronos."

Kronos snarled. "Don't be foolish! You'll destroy yourself, this woman, and the boy!"

Erin looked alarmed. "Please, Alabaster, don't… I don't want my son to die."

"Mom?" Gaius choked out. "What's going on!?"

"I'm sorry," Alabaster said, "but if I don't thousands will die. Maybe millions. I have to do this!" He thrust out his hands. The outermost lines on the floor switched back to green. Kronos grunted.

Erin ran across the room to Gaius. She leaped over the couch and wrapped him in a hug. "It'll be okay, honey. It'll be okay."

"You won't succeed!" Kronos yelled. "You don't have enough strength!"

Alabaster's veins became visible as they, too, started glowing green. His eyes were entirely green now, no whites, no pupils, just glowing green light. "I will stop you," Alabaster said, his voice magically magnified. "I have to!"

More symbols and circles on the floor changed to green until only the innermost circle around Kronos remained gold. Alabaster dropped to his knees, but he didn't release his magic. "No!" Kronos yelled. "Stop this! I will destroy you!"

"You don't have the power anymore Kronos," Alabaster said. "I do now! Be gone!"

"No!"

"GO!" Alabaster yelled. He slammed his hands against the floor. Magical energy surged outwards from him in a wave of green light. Kronos screamed. There was a huge blast of golden light. The world itself seemed to shake, and my dream went to static.

I woke up screaming in the backseat of the SUV. Augustus looked back at me in alarm. "What's wrong? Is everything okay?"

I just sat there, gasping.

"Elizabeth?" Gus asked. "Are you okay?"

I managed to nod. "It was… it was a dream."

"What about?"

I shook my head. "I don't want to talk about it. Not yet. I just… I just need time to sit and think."

"How much time do you need?" Jake asked.

"I don't know," I said. "Why?"

Jake pointed out the windshield at a sign. Welcome to Quebec City. "Because we're here," he said. "And I believe we have an appointment with the lord of the north wind."

AN: And that's it! See you guys next time!