Chapter Twenty Nine
The answer to what to do with the zombies of their friends was still not given. Athena, still holding Hazel, looked disgusted, as did Poseidon, with his trident on another undead child's chest.
No one had noticed, what with the arrival of Zanna's father, but Tyson had stumbled over, creeping towards Percy. "Brotherrrrrrrr." he groaned. Percy's face was horrified. He stepped back, breath catching. Tyson turned his bloodshot eye to Annabeth. "Annaaabeth." he moaned, reaching out. She stepped back in terror.
Tyson's face, gray and white and inhuman - or, in-cyclops, contorted with anger. He brought his hand up, but everyone stayed frozen. Zanna caught the arm that would have met Annabeth's head with her sword blade.
"NO!" Percy yelled, shoving her down. She hit the ground and looked up at him, angry. He wasn't looking at her, though. He was looking at the blood dripping from his ex-half-brother's arm. "Oh gods..."
Tyson snarled, a sound that shouldn't come from his kind, sweet form. He took a swing at Percy, and reflex won over mind. Riptide came up, deflecting the hit and tearing the glowing skin on his brother's hand. Percy paled.
Annabeth snapped out of her horror and grabbed Percy, pulling him back as Tyson attacked again. "Percy its not him!" she cried.
"Hades and Thanatos said it was!" he yelled back, and Zanna was shocked to see tears forming in his eyes.
"It doesn't matter! If you want to free their souls, and let them move on, we have to kill them again! Or do you want you brother to be a monster?" she shoved herself to her feet, snatching up her sword as she did so.
Percy raised Riptide. "We can't just kill him!"
Nico was at her side again in an instant, "Percy! We have to! Tyson is suffering right now! It's torturing him!" he yelled, and Percy's sea-green eyes flickered.
"Do it, son." Poseidon called, looking very grim. "Let him go." Zanna backed off. It had to be Percy. It would be wrong, all wrong, any other way.
Percy swallowed and Annabeth's fingers intertwined with his own. They stepped forward together, Percy choking out, "Tyson... buddy." Tyson snarled and limped forward. Percy lifted his sword slowly. Silence rang. It was the loudest silence Zanna had ever heard, more painful than all that time she spent alone. "I'm... sorry." Percy whispered, driving his sword deep into the undead Tyson's body.
Tyson jerked and pulled himself from the sword, falling at Percy's feet. His blood splattered his brother's Nike sneakers, and he reached out a hand. "Brotherrrr..." he gurgled before falling silent and still. Percy bowed his head.
"Brother." he agreed painfully.
A/N: Doesn't that just break your poor half-blood heart? Don't write me off as heartless just yet... I swear there's something like a heart in this chest of mine. Anyways, review! Please please(:
