Figures. Sammy gets some alone time with the most beautiful girl in the room and BAM- the damn place explodes. Perfect. Dream come true.
The explosion had come from the outside, the source still unknown as Sammy sat up coughing as debris filled his throat, the billows of dust and smoke rising among the screams and shouts of panicked guests. He whipped out his goggled through his coughing, adjusting the green tinted lenses until he saw Emily, who had been blown several feet away from him. He muttered a curse and scrambled over to her, shaking her arm.
"Emmy, Emmy c'mon, you... you're okay right?" he kept the panic out of his voice as she coughed and sputtered, sitting up. "You good?"
"Ugh... yeah, yeah, I'm alright..." she held her head and stood. "What happened?"
Sammy's goggles focus in and out as he surveys the scene, his hand on her back. The smoking remains of the galla were shrouded in an almost too foggy cover of smoke while black figures darted in and out of it. He caught a flash of gold every once in awhile as well.
"Eidolons," his voice was a growl. "Dammit. C'mon we gotta find Charlie and Silena,"
He helps her up but she looks around blindly, eyes watering from the sting of the smoke.
"How?" she coughs. "There's no way- too much-"
She erupted in another fit of coughing. Sammy bit his lip.
"Stay here,"
"What? No, you need help I'm going to come with you," Emily looked around blindly, trying to see past the smoke.
"Emmy, we can't do anything until I get this smog out- look, if you have goggles that can detect heat signatures and pinpoint moving shapes through the cover of darkness-"
"Fine!" she groaned, her gold eyes wide on his, staring into them so deep Sammy could've sworn he was looking at the sunset. "Just be really careful-"
He couldn't help himself. He didn't stop to think about it- he just grabbed her face and stopped her lips with his own. His heart fluttered as he felt her own lips softly move against his until he pulled away, both of them looking shocked.
"Um..." he suddenly grinned widely, a sense of ecstasy washing him in a glow. "That's just in case I bite it. Had to do it at least once!"
Before she could respond, he took off down the shattered ballroom, dodging the chaos of gods and creatures bumping into each other and furniture. The thick grey smog was far too condensed to find Silena or Charlie, so the obvious solution- get rid of the fog. But the place was enormous, and there was blocked exits by dark figures all around. His lungs were burning as he struggled to come up with a solution, his sharp eyes flicking back and forth. There, on the other side- a skylight. If he could find a way to get up there he could blast it open. Of course, that only left the problem of how to get up there.
He was no Jason Grace, he couldn't exactly fly up there, and all his useful gadgets were left in his other clothes. Not to mention he had to keep moving to avoid getting trampled. He half expected to try to find Astraeus, but he wasn't exactly the most reliable of help anyways, and there would be no way to find him. Thats when he saw the eidolon making a beeline for him.
"Crap!" he jumped out of the way two seconds before a table flew into where he was standing. The eidolon- and it was very clear by the yellow glow this was an eidolon- growled at Sammy. "Hey there, sparky just hold on..."
"Death unto you!"
This was a surprise.
"Kill me? You don't want me captured?"
"We have no further use for the scum of the earth demigods like you!" he growls.
"Well alright then, rude."
The eidolon jumps and charges at Sammy who rolled out of the way just in time. "Shit!"
The eidolon bares its teeth, snarling at Sammy as he made a break toward the skylight, his mind racing for a plan. The ceiling was twenty feet high at least- there was no way to jump or get up to climb towards it- then it hit him. He didn't have to get up there so long as he could make sure it exploded- and if he could find the right materials he could jury rig a pretty good catapult and bomb- that was assuming the eidolons didn't kill him or his friends first. Sammy looked through his green lenses and focused on a few meters away- planes, which meant engines. He grinned and made a beeline for the nearest one, his mind already racing with imaginary schematics for the object- then he fell.
He hadn't seen it coming. Of course, he thought. As soon as I come up with a dashing, heroic plan, I faceplant. Great job, Sammy. He looked down to see the damage and found that a cord had been wrapped around his ankles, tethering them together. He knit his brow and cursed at the eidolon bounded for him, his mind thinking fast as he desperately kicked free of his entanglement. C'mon, Valdez...
He made a desperate leap for the wall just as he heard an explosion to his right, propelling him off course. He growled, struggling back up to his feet and jumping up and forcing himself up and back to the skylight as a series of eidolons slowly encircled him. His eyes narrow through the green lenses, their yellow eyes glowing bright.
"Samuel Valdez," one sneers in amusement. "You're actually putting up a fight aren't you? How very interesting..."
"Yeah well I'm just full of surprises," Sammy growls, his hands flowing suddenly with red and yellow flames. The eidolons shift in surprise and some hiss, but the leader keeps his eyes trained on Sammy.
"Your ancestors tricks with manipulating the flames is more distracting than harmful to us," he smirks knowingly. "The hero would never harm the innocent mortals we possess."
Sammy bit back a curse as they moved closer, eyes searching desperately around for a way out. To his left was the hanging plane, just a few feet lower than the skylight. If he could just get his flames high enough... it was the only plan he had that was worth a shot. However, the eidolons were closing in fast. He needed a distraction.
"Hey! You yellow-eyed, demonic pieces of-" Charlie didn't need to finish his sentence as the eidolons turned their several pairs of glowing eyes on him. He flashed Sammy a look, telling him to hurry up as held the eidolons attention for the time being. Sammy quickly turns his hands to the ceiling, focusing all his energy and power up as twin shots of white hot fire shot for the plane. His eyes widen as he had time to scream.
"TAKE COVER!" he dived as his flames hit the plane with a colossal explosion, knocking the eidolons off their feet and launching them several directions. Sammy's hearing went nearly deaf as he looked around at the aftermath, everything muted and dull as he struggled to his feet, the smoke now being tunneled out through the gaping hole... in the side of the building?
Instead of crashing through the glass, the explosion had knocked out the majority of the western wall, shrapnel and carnage littering the building and surrounding area, the smoke pluming out the wall and into the sky above. The haze was clearing in the ballroom, Sammy's eyes combing through the crowds until they settled upon Charlie and Silena, coughing. He sprinted for them, nearly slipping as he grabs onto Charlie's arm for support.
"Through the wall! Now!" he coughed, trying to corral them out as Silena sputtered.
"Emmy-"
"I'll get her. You two go!" he pushed them out, something catching the corner of his eye. Was that... was that an eidolon... going into the plane wreckage?
"Sammy!" Emmy ran over to him, eyes teary from the smoke, red and puffy. "C-C'mon, we gotta get out of- Sammy!"
She snapped him out of it, jarring him enough to look away from the seemingly trembling shrapnel.
"Yeah... yeah sorry. Let's go, get out." he ushered her over and through the wall, running into the black night before they both collapsed onto the pavement, wheezing and panting. Sammy looked up, grinning at her weakly. "S-Sorry... didn't mean to take your breath away,"
She rolled her eyes but allowed a large smile before she looked up, paling. Sammy furrowed his brow and turned back towards the building and his stomach dropped. Rising from the wreckage was a collection of steel beams, rods and other shrapnel, all meeting and forming a dark cloud of sharp, heavy metal, heading straight for them in a death spiral. Sammy did some quick calculations but there was no endgame, the dark metal projectiles were hurtling towards them too fast. His throat catches as his eyes shut, awaiting the painful, sharp death.
He waited.
He waited.
He waited.
Nothing happened.
Sammy looked up. He was alive. The enormous metal projectile was nowhere to be seen. Emily was standing defiantly in front of him. The shrapnel was in pieces all around him. Emily had forced it all away. Sammy broke out into a huge grin.
"Yes!" he shouted, running out in front of her, looking at the wreckage. "Emily you did it! You-"
He spun around to face her, and his heart stopped. She was staring at him, eyes stinging with tears, looking confused and horrified at the same time. He started to her.
"Emmy, what's-" then he looked down. He had been so caught up in her expression he had failed to notice the eight inch wide projectile sprouting from her stomach. His world flipped upside down. His stomach dropped. Silence. There was nothing. Not a word. Not a sound. He saw her lips mouth his name.
"Sammy?" she swallowed, then fell to her knees. Sammy ran to her. It was so slow. It was happening so slow.
"No," he whispered. His heart thundered in his chest- his mind in shock. "No, no, no. Emmy, no."
He grabbed her in his arms, cradling her as she stared up at him. Her blood burned his palms. She looked so scared.
"Oh, no, Emmy, no. No you're going to be fine. You hear me?" but tears already streamed down his face. His heart was convulsing in his chest as black blood washed his fingers in crimson. He moaned. "Oh, Gods, Em. Hey! Look at me! You're fine- you listening to me?! Hey! Emmy, you're going to be all right, okay?"
"I'm sorry," she cried, choking on the words. He shook his head furiously.
"NO you aren't. You have nothing to be sorry for," he forced the words out between his sobs. "You're going to be just fine,"
"I'm sorry because I really, really, really liked you," she sobbed. "I think I...I could have..."
She coughed, blood spattering on his shirt sleeve. He broke down.
"Don't." he pleaded. "Don't leave me, Emmy."
"I don't want to," she wept in a voice that broke his heart. "I'm really sorry, Sammy!"
"Why? Why are you sorry, Emmy?" he cried.
"I never wanted to hurt you so bad," she raised a shaky hand on his cheek, and he wiped the blood off the corner of her mouth. "Tell my parents I'm sorry too,"
Her voice was barely more than a whisper. She wasn't crying anymore, but he wished she would. He wanted more proof she was still alive. Still breathing in his arms.
"We both knew it would end," she forced the words out. Her teeth were chattering, and he pulled her closer. "We knew it was coming to this, didn't we?"
"No," he said angrily, vision still blurred by tears. "No! It's not ending like this! Emmy, do you hear me? Emmy!"
"It's fate, Sammy," she looked so sad. He closed his eyes, trying to stop from crying. He didn't want her to see him like this. He felt her hand slipping from his face. His eyes snapped open- and hers weren't moving. The gold eyes that once sparkled and held so much life were listless and empty, staring at nothing. Panic seized his throat.
"Emmy? EMMY?!" he screamed at her, shaking her. She was limp. "Emmy, no you can't do this to me, you can't leave me like this, Emmy please! Please, Emmy I love you, don't you know I love you? C'mon, Goldie, c'mon Emily! I love you! Please..."
But nothing cared.
His voice went hoarse, and he hugged her to him. He was sobbing, wailing, and a pain sharper than any he had ever felt before trembled in his chest. It was like a snap, a rapture, a crack. Sammy felt his heart breaking in two. He howled. He prayed to the gods. He prayed to God. He crumbled into rubble. It was the tension of pulling and stretching a rubber band further and further back until it would snap back. But it didn't. It broke.
This. This was what he felt in Mnemosyne's chamber. This was the indescribable pain, the untouchable fury that had destroyed him over and over again. It was this horrible moment. He collapsed, defeated. He pressed his head against hers, fiery tears tracing scorch marks down his face.
"But we don't believe in Fate," his voice broke.
"It was never up to you," a sad voice said behind him. Blinded by tears, Sammy whirled around with Emily in his death grip. Aphrodite stood behind him in a black chiton. She looked as though she'd been crying. "She never had a chance,"
"You," his voice shook. "You knew this was going to happen. You knew!"
"Yes," she said sadly, looking down. A constellation of teardrops hung on Sammy's eyelashes. "The greatest love tragedies are always known to me. But I can't stop them."
"Bring. Her. Back." Sammy's nostrils flared, his heart thundering in his ears. Aphrodite looked truly upset.
"I can't,"
"Yes you can! I know you can! Gods do it all the time!" Sammy screamed at her, choking on his voice. Aphrodite looked pained.
"I cannot defy the Fate's command," she explained, looking as beautiful as ever. Sammy hated her beauty. It was like insult to injury. She had so much, an abundance, while Emily had hers taken from her. It wasn't fair. "Not for one who was so clearly destined to die,"
"She wasn't!" Sammy yelled, panicked. "She was never supposed to die! Never!"
Aphrodite tilted her head sympathetically.
"Samuel Valdez," she said. "You know as well as I that the Fates decreed that Sammy Valdez will always lose his Levesque. His Hazel. His Emily. They couldn't resist. It was just too delicious a fate."
Sammy's despair was quickly turning into boiling rage in his chest. His breathing increased, rapid and ragged. His teeth ground into each other, threatening to break his jaw from the tension. Fury balled up in his throat, and he gently laid down Emily before his hands erupted into flame- only it was green. Greek Fire.
No one could do this to him. Not Aphrodite, not even the Fates. He wouldn't let it happen. He wouldn't.
"You will bring her back," he promised, fire dancing in his cold eyes. "Or you won't ever live to hear another tragic love story again."
hear another tragic love story again."
"Your threats are aimed at the wrong god, my dear," she said just as coldly. "Take your business up with the girl's grandfather- though I would strongly recommend against it."
"Where to?" he growled. But Aphrodite gave him one last sad look, dissipating into a black vapor. A rose lay where she had stood. As soon as she was gone, pain overwhelmed Sammy again. He roused enough energy to wrench the projectile out from Emily's abdomen, then picked up her limp body. He got to about his knees when the others came upon them.
"Sammy!" Silena was calling him. Her words reached him as though he were underwater. "Hey, Sammy- is Emily okay?!"
But as they got closer, it was very clear she was not. Charlie was the first to get there, and he doubled over.
"Oh gods," he choked, covering his mouth. Silena ran up close behind him. Silena made a sound as though someone had sucker punched her, and her face went white. Silena dropped to her knees next to Sammy, hands shaking over Emmy's body.
"She...no she's..." she sobbed, breaking. Charlie stormed away at the rest of the wreckage. Horrified confusion. Sammy was staring at the ground. Crystal tear drops speckled the dirt. She was cold in his burning arms.
Charlie yelled profanities, kicking and impaling the wreckage around them. Tremors shook the earth as Charlie's emotional level rocketed. "A hero's final farewell," Silena whispered. "What...what was the secret?"
Sammy's head snapped up.
"What?" his voice wasn't his own. Silena swallowed, tears streaming down her beautiful face.
"The secret. From the prophecy," she keened. "A secret to share with a hero's final farewell,"
Sammy had trouble processing what had been said. There was no secret. She told him nothing he didn't already know. At some level.
"There was no secret," his voice was rough and harsh, but he didn't care. He wasn't Sammy Valdez. He felt like his world was gone. And he was going to find the god responsible for taking it.