There are few words that can be said about this chapter. It speaks for itself. So, I just want to say thank you for everyone that's been sticking with this through all of this. No, this is not the end, but it really means a lot to me. I'm not sure how much longer this will last, maybe like ten or so chapters. We'll just have to see. But I think I've kept you all waiting for this long enough. I know I've been waiting for this moment for a very long time now. So, let's just get on with the chapter.

Warning: Death. Violence. Language. Gore.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 37

Robert watched as his love paced around the room with a frown on his beautiful face. Robert couldn't help but smile as he watched the smaller blond worry. Arya sat several feet away, her hand interlaced with Midna's. His father had already left to go defend the north from the White Walkers, which was where Robert wanted to be, but he would have to talk that over with Apollo later.

"Where is she?" Apollo finally broke the silence.

Robert smiled and grabbed Apollo's wrist, jerking the young man into his lap. "Calm down," he whispered into the blond's ear, causing him to shudder.

"I can't help it. She was supposed to be here by now."

"I'm sure she will be here soon," Arya tried to reassure him.

As if on cue, the High Mother walked through the chapel doors. She cleared her throat upon seeing them before making her way to the front of the church. "I do apologize about that. I just needed to take care of something," she began. "Now then, I trust we all know why we are here?"

Robert and Arya stood up and walked in front of the woman. "Yes, Your Grace," they both said, nodding.

Iris smiled and laced her hands together in front of her. "Good, then we can proceed." Her lips formed a thin line as she looked between Robert and Arya. "I just want to make it clear that I do not do what I am about to do lightly." The soon to be divorced couple nodded again. Iris nodded as well and cleared her throat. "We stand before the Earth Mother today to bring an end to this marriage." She turned around and took a pot of water and poured it over a brazier, extinguishing the flames forever. "I hereby severe the holy bonds that bind you. Not for sake of enmity, but for need most dire. Do the two of you understand that nevermore shall you be bound by the gods' graces unto eternity?"

"I do," Robert stated.

Arya nodded. "I do," she said as well.

Iris took a deep breath before turning back around and picking up a golden sword that was laid on a table behind her. "So shall it be," Iris whispered, swiping the sword through the space that was between Robert and Arya. Robert, Apollo, Arya, and Midna turned their heads at the sound of banging. Arya raised an eyebrow as she looked back at her now ex-husband. "As the Magna Mater as your witness, you are now released from the bonds of matrimony."

Everyone looked in surprise as a door burst open outside of the chapel. A few seconds later, Hebe and a priest came rushing into the room. "Wait! Stop the divorce!" The priest yelled.

Hebe panted as she walked up to Iris. "Your Holiness, it seems that Arya's brothers are still alive. They are in Atlantis. There is no need to have this divorce," the Revered Mother informed them.

Arya gasped and a smile crept onto her face. The other three young adults, however, all looked at each other with worried glances. Iris simply smiled and nodded. "Well, I'm afraid it is already done," the High Mother apologized. She walked up and took Robert and Arya's hands. "I do hope you will accept my apologizes, as I was too late to stop this before this recent news was delivered."

Robert blinked in surprise. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "It's, uh, fine," he mumbled.

Hebe frowned. "I wish we could have gotten here sooner," she said. "It was so odd, though, the doors outside wouldn't open."

Iris tutted and shook her head. "Oh dear, that is most unfortunate," Iris agreed before briefly meeting Robert's eyes. She walked off with a nod of her head. "If you'll excuse me, I must make my return to Atlantis."

Robert watched her walk off in shock and confusion. "O-of course, Your Grace," he stuttered.

The doors to the chapel shut, leaving the four young adults alone in the room. "What just happened?" Midna asked in confusion.

"I'm not really sure."

Midna and Apollo shared a look. "You don't think she..." Apollo trailed off.

Midna shook her head. "No, she wouldn't...would she?" The girl replied.

Robert turned to Arya. "How are you holding up with the news?" He whispered.

Arya smiled up at him. "I'm good. This is great news. My brothers are alive, and we can still be with the people we care about," she answered.

Robert smiled and nodded. "Yes, I suppose we can." He sighed and glanced at Apollo. "Would you and Midna mind giving us some privacy?"

Arya tilted her head and glanced at Apollo, who had his eyebrows furrowed as he watched Robert. The young woman finally nodded. She took Midna's hand, and the two made their way out of the chapel. A frown slid onto Apollo's face as he continued to watch his lover.

"This isn't good news, is it?" Apollo whispered.

Robert pursed his lips and sat down beside the shorter blond. "I sort of wanted to go north," he replied.

Apollo narrowed his eyes at Robert before shaking his head furiously. "Absolutely not! How can you even ask me to agree to something like that? I just got you, and now you want to run off to get yourself killed?"

Robert sighed and grabbed Apollo's hand. "I love you, you know that, right?" He asked, leaning in to kiss the tan blond on the cheek. Apollo pursed his lips, but reluctantly nodded. "I need to protect you, and the best way for me to do that is to make sure they don't get anywhere near you. We need to make a stand. We can't let those things get further into the kingdom."

"But what if you get killed? What if Tartarus falls?" Apollo whispered.

Robert brushed some of Apollo's hair out of his face. "I'll be fine, I promise." Robert leaned in and captured Apollo's lips with his own.

Apollo pulled back from the kiss first, his lips hanging slightly open. "I don't... Please don't put me through this." He bit down on his lip. "Can we at least enjoy being together for a few nights first? I just got you back, and I don't like that you just want to run off to fight the legions of undead."

Robert gave a lop-sided smile. He kissed Apollo's forehead. "Of course."

Nico scowled as the castle doors slammed shut in front of his face. Lupa whined up at him as he turned around to scowl at the young man that was refusing to let him leave. Percy stood a few feet away from him, a frown set firmly in place on his face. "I said you're not leaving," the young lord mumbled.

"And I said I am," Nico retorted. "I'm not going to sit around while my home is in danger. Besides, you're the one who told me to leave in the first place." He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest.

Percy's jaw tightened as he mumbled something under his breath. He refused to meet Nico's eyes, though he still wore a scowl on his face.

Nico arched an eyebrow. "What was that?" The boy asked.

"I said I don't want you to get hurt," Percy mumbled.

Nico sighed and rolled his eyes. "I can take care of myself, Percy. But you have no right to keep me here." They stood in silence for a while, and eventually Nico looked at the young man in disbelief. "Really, Percy?"

Percy shook his head. "I'm not opening the doors."

Nico threw his hands up in frustration. "What right do you have to keep me here?" He asked, stepping closer to Percy. He grabbed Percy's jaw and forced the young lord to look at him. "Tell me. Give me one good reason I should stay."

"You know why," Percy whispered, an angry look still in his eye.

Nico shook his head. "I'm starting to wonder, that's why I wanted to hear you say it." He sighed. "I'm not my brother, Percy, so I don't appreciate you taking out your anger with him on me."

Percy's eyes softened and he reached up to touch Nico's hand, which was still clutching his chin. "I still love you," he whispered.

Nico gave Percy a weak smile. "I know, but it's still nice to hear you say it every so often."

Percy pulled Nico into his chest and buried his nose in Nico's hair. "I'm sorry. But do you really have to leave? I'm leaving soon anyways, you could just travel with us."

Nico bit on his lip, which went unseen by Percy. "I, uh, really just want to travel on my own. Besides, I'll get there faster this way."

Percy smiled into Nico's dark locks. "It's not like one person will make a difference," he chuckled. Lupa growled at him. Percy smiled at the large wolf. "Well, I suppose she counts as a small brigade of soldiers."

Nico pushed himself away from Percy. "I'll be fine," he tried to reassure Percy. "I just want to go be with my family as they prepare."

Percy reluctantly nodded. "I'll be up there before the undead reaches Tartarus, you have my word. I'll do everything I can to make sure it doesn't fall."

Nico nodded as well. He glanced around to make sure that they weren't being watched before leaning up to place a brief kiss on Percy's cheek. Percy gave him a lop-sided smile before he waved his hand. The doors to the castle slowly opened behind Nico.

"I'll see you soon then," Nico sighed before climbing on top of Lupa. Percy nodded and waved. Lupa raised her head and howled so loudly that the sound echoed through the entire castle. Before Percy could finish blinking, the wolf had bounded out the door, and was running as fast as it could out Percy's sight.

He raised an eyebrow and turned around as he heard someone approach. He smiled at Kinzie as she walked down the stairs. "Oh, was that Nico leave?" She asked. Percy nodded his head. "Pity, I didn't get to say goodbye."

Percy frowned at the blonde. "You don't have to do that, you know?" He mumbled.

Kinzie tilted her head to the side. "Do what?"

"Pretend you like him. I know you don't, so there's no reason to fake it. Though, I suppose it's better than dealing with you two bickering."

Kinzie smiled as she walked up to her husband and kissed him on the cheek. "Anything to make you happier."

Percy smiled down at her. "Thanks." He cleared his throat. "Anyways, I'll be leaving soon."

Kinzie nodded. "As will I."

"Thank you for going down to see Olympus and Marcarth. But if something goes wrong in Tartarus, make sure you come right back here."

Kinzie nodded and rolled her eyes playfully. "Yes, yes, I know. Besides, I won't be gone long. I don't like being gone from the children so long, so I'll make it as fast as I can," she said. "I just wish you didn't have to go up there."

Percy tilted his head to the side. "I'll be fine."

A minute frown appeared on Kinzie's face. "Oh, I have no doubt, but there are other reasons a girl can worry." She leaned up and kissed the edge of Percy's lips.

Percy frowned as she walked off. He turned his head when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He smiled down at Annabeth. "You looked troubled, brother," she said.

Percy shrugged. "Just a lot on my mind. I'm not really sure what to do about the dragons or the undead right now," he sighed. He glanced down at a sack she had in her hand. "Are you going somewhere?"

Annabeth followed his eyes down to the sack. She put on a smile and placed the item behind her. "I just thought I would go check on Charles and the others."

"But I'm going to send out some men to bring them back here."

Annabeth shrugged. "I just thought I'd give them a few things. I'll probably be gone before your men get there."

Percy sighed and nodded. "Very well. Just make sure you keep your ears open for any news from the north."

Annabeth smiled and patted his shoulder. "Of course, dear brother. Don't worry about me," she assured him before walking out of the castle.

Percy let out another sigh before walking into the throne room. So much was happening at the moment, and just wished things would slow down. Atlantis was nearing a state of panic, due to the news that the Wall had been destroyed. He had hardly believed it himself when Nico had told him. They already had dragons to deal with, and now this?

And Nico was being stubborn, running off to join the heat of the battle. All he wanted to do was lock the boy in his room and keep him there until this whole mess was settled, but he couldn't. It just felt like everything was falling apart, and he didn't know what to do. He had no idea how to stop this undead legion. He was hoping Zagereus did, but he wasn't going to get his hopes up on that.

Zagereus frowned as he shut the carriage door. Rachel stuck her head out to scowl at him. "I don't like leaving you like this," she grumbled.

Zagereus reached up and touched her cheek. "I'll be fine, trust me," he assured her. "I just want to make sure you, Persephone, and Hazel are taken care of."

Hazel's head appeared beside Rachel's with a matching expression. "I could help you fight," she pleaded.

Zagereus shook his head before kneeling down to Luna, who sat beside Morgrem. "Take good care of them."

"You have my word," Luna promised.

Zagereus nodded and stood back up. He turned around to Octavian, who was preparing his own horse. "Take them straight to Atlantis. Stop as little as possible," he ordered. "I want them to get away as fast as possible."

Octavian bowed. "I understand, sire," the blond said.

"I don't want to go," cried Hazel.

Bianca stepped forward and hugged her sister through the window. Persephone

placed a hand on Hazel's shoulder and the girl sat back in the carriage. "Both of you take care of yourself," the woman said, giving them a sad look.

Zagereus and Bianca both nodded their heads. Zagereus snapped his fingers and the carriage began rolling away from the castle. Luna howled and shot off ahead of it. Zagereus let his head drop as he turned around and marched back inside, his fur cloak flowing behind him.

Bianca frowned and followed after her brother, their two wolves bounding up the stairs after the two di Angelos. "Ah, there you are," Ulfric greeted them when they entered the throne room. "All is accounted for then?"

Zagereus nodded. "My family is on its way to Atlantis. Nico will be on his way up here soon, and Percy's army will be marching up shortly after that," the Lord of Tartarus informed the tall blond man.

Ulfric nodded, stroking his beard lightly. "That's what Martin tells me. Robert says he wants to come up and fight as well, but we'll see how that plays out. Chiron and Ares both send word that they are both marching this way as well."

"What about the dragon attacks?" Bianca asked.

Ulfric frowned. "Ares says the attacks stopped, though he can't figure out why. From what he says, they've all assembled back at Marcarth."

"Odd," mumbled Zagereus. He walked up to Ulfric and clasped the man on the shoulder. "Thank you for your support. You and your men are very much appreciated."

Ulfric gave a nod. "I'm sorry to hear about your brother. It was such a shocking thing to hear, the Wall I mean."

Zagereus's lips formed a thin line as he sat down on his throne. The temperature had dropped significantly over the past few days, so Zagereus's breaths were clearly visible. It was dark, as most of the candles had not been tended to lately. Everyone was in a panic to abandon the city, and Zagereus honestly didn't blame them. Report after report had been coming in over the past few days, all the same horrific tale of the land being swallowed up by thousands of undead.

With such low lighting, the young lord nearly blended in with his dark surroundings. The only thing that really stuck out was his pale skin. None of this bothered him, though. His mind was too troubled with the matter at hand. His people were dying, and there was nothing he could do about it. What would his father have done?

"I just want to make sure we give everyone as long as we can to evacuate," Zagereus finally whispered.

Ulfric's eyebrows furrowed. "You don't mean to win this fight, do you?" He asked.

Zagereus looked up, meeting his sister's eyes. "Don't tell anyone. I would hate for moral to fall, and I know it would if that got out." His eyes flickered over to Ulfric. "When the time comes, make sure everyone pulls their armies back."

"You can't mean to sacrifice yourself like that, lad."

"What other choice do I have?"

"Brother, this is ridiculous. I'm not going to have you kill yourself, just to ensure we get a few more hours of life," she jumped in. "Where would we go to be safe? Atlantis? It's not going to hold us all? There's no way Percy can sustain the entire kingdom in his walls."

"Listen to your sister, Zagereus," Ulfric agreed.

Zagereus frowned at both of them. "If we fail here, what other hope do we have? If we fail here, all of my Hold will fall, and our next best shot at driving them back would be at the border," Zagereus whispered.

"Then we will find a way to defeat them," Bianca said confidently.

Ulfric nodded. "All of the kingdom's power is gathering here. It will be the largest gathering of magic in a thousand years. There is hope, Zagereus," he agreed.

"Perhaps," Zagereus sighed, "but they do not sleep, they do not eat, and they do not grow tired. What happens when hours pass and our men begin to fatigue? What happens when our men grow hungry? Where will we rest? They won't simply wait while we regain our strength." The Lord of Tartarus shook his head. "This is why they move so quickly through my Hold. This is why my armies have been unsuccessful to stop them so far. How do we win against a force like this?"

Percy paced along the battlements, glancing at his army preparing to march north. He shuddered as a gust of cold wind blew in. Ever since the Wall was destroyed, the temperature seemed to be slowly dropping, as if signifying what was coming for them. He couldn't stop pacing, either. He was worried, and he couldn't help it.

Kinzie was on her way south, where the dragons were at, and Nico was on his way to his home, where the legion of the undead was headed. So, Percy's nerves had taken a serious toll on him ever since they had both left the day before. He looked up and frowned. "What is it?" He sighed.

"Everyone's ready to head out," Jason informed him. He clapped Percy on the shoulder before turning around and walking back the way he came.

Percy nodded his head and glanced at the sky to the north, frowning at the dark grey clouds that loomed in the distance. What if they were too late? What if he arrived to find nothing but death? What if Nico...

He shook his head as he headed down to where Blackjack was waiting for silently climbed onto Blackjack and rode to the front of his giant army. He didn't say anything, there was no need to say anything. Everyone that was present knew why they were there. They knew why they were marching north, and they knew what possible fate awaited them. There was no need for Percy to speak those possibilities, especially when he himself didn't even want to hear them.

The sun was setting on their kingdom, or so it seemed. Was this really to be their end? Were they to be slaughtered by the undead, only to rise again as Minos's servants? Martin rode up beside him and nudged Percy's foot with his own. "Are you alright?" The blond whispered.

Percy stared at his friend in silence for the longest time. "I'd be lying if I said yes, but I don't really want to talk about it," he replied.

Martin frowned, but ended up nodding his head. "As you wish."

Percy looked back around, meeting Jason's eyes briefly. The two had barely spoken since their argument in the throne room, though Percy didn't feel as upset about it anymore. He just didn't know what to say to Jason at the moment, so they had both been acting like the issue had never happened. Perhaps that was just the best way to handle it. What was there really to say about it? He couldn't blame Jason for not wanting the thing. No one seemed to want it.

"Percy?" Martin said quietly.

Percy blinked and turned his head back to the Septum boy. "Yes?" He replied.

"I just wanted to...talk to you about something."

Percy's head tilted to the side. "What is it?"

Martin rubbed his arm awkwardly. "Well, we've been friends for a long time, right?"

Percy nodded, unsure of where this conversation was going. "I'd say so. We've been friends for as long as I can remember," he chuckled.

Martin chuckled nervously, glancing away from Percy. "Well, it's just that...y-you...and I... You see...Nico...and..." Martin trailed off with a sigh. "Never mind."

Percy frowned at the blond. "Are you alright, Martin?" He asked.

Martin nodded, but kept his eyes trained on the horse he was sitting on. "Yes. I think we should get moving."

Percy gave the blond an odd look as he rode away from Percy, choosing to stay towards the middle of the army. That was strange, Percy thought. He finally shook his head and set his face in a solemn expression. He tossed a final look back at his castle before pulling out his sword and holding it into the air. "Let's move out, men!" He yelled. "We will not let the north fall, not while we draw breath."

Annabeth walked into the clearing and sat her sack down. She let out a sigh as she glanced around. A frown slipped onto her face as she looked up at the setting sun. "Where is he?" She whispered.

A branch creaked overhead and a second later, Nico came swinging down from the tree. He smirked as Annabeth playfully punched him on the shoulder. "About time you showed up," he chuckled.

"Were you trying to scare me, or something?"

Nico shook his head. "I was just doing some tracking." He nodded his head off to the right. "Lupa is following her caravan now. I was just waiting on you to show up."

Annabeth smirked at him. "What, you can't do it by yourself?" She asked.

Nico scowled at her. "She has a lot of guards. I could probably take them out, but she would be able to make a run for it during that time." He shook his head. "I don't want to chance it."

Annabeth crouched down and opened up her sack. A second later, she brought out a small pouch. She smirked at Nico. "Well, it's a good thing I brought these then, isn't it."

Nico nodded, but didn't smirk back at her. "What did you tell Percy?"

Annabeth sighed. "I told him I went to check on Charles and the others, which I did. I need to make it believable, just like you do," she reminded him.

Nico rolled his eyes. Annabeth picked her sack back up and strapped it to her back before they set off walking. "I remember," he mumbled. "Don't worry. I'll get there before Percy does."

Annabeth placed a hand on his chest. "Make sure you do. If you don't, Percy might suspect what you've done."

Nico nodded. His eyes started dilating rapidly before he smirked. "Come on, Lupa has them in her sights," he informed her.

After running for several long minutes, Lupa came bounding through some bushes. "Come, the prey awaits," she growled. Nico nodded and climbed on her back before extending his hand down to help Annabeth up. Lupa bounded off through the forest without making a sound. "We travel light next time. I do not like such weight on my back."

Nico smiled sympathetically and rubbed his wolf behind the ear. "I'm sorry. It's not very far, right?" He asked.

"No, they stopped fill up their water skins at a stream up ahead."

It wasn't long until the three of them spotted Kinzie's caravan. The two humans climbed off the wolf's back as they stalked through the woods, making sure to keep the carriage in sight at all times. Nico finally perched himself on a fallen tree and drew his bow. He looked down at Annabeth. "Do any of your runes explode?" He asked with a smirk.

Annabeth smirked back at him and dug in her pouch before pulling out a rune and handing it to Nico. Nico felt the stone in his hand for a few seconds before nocking it on his bow and taking aim. Annabeth pulled two more runes from her pouch, and took her dagger in her other hand. Lupa sunk low to the ground, growling under her breath.

Nico's eyes shimmered to yellow as he zeroed in on the spot he was aiming at. He took a deep breath and held it. With a final smirk, Nico released the rune from his bow, and it went sailing through the air towards the caravan.

The run hit the ground in the dead center of the guards before exploding. Men screamed and went flying, some on fire. The carriage's horses whinnied and reared back before ripping themselves away from the carriage. Nico, Lupa, and Annabeth stepped out of the forest, and Nico released two arrows, which plunged into the necks of the carriage's driver and the guard sitting next to him.

He growled under his breath as he saw Kinzie emerge from the carriage and take off running for the nearby woods. Hylla began screaming after her and soon stepped out of the carriage as well. A few of the guards began getting their bearings back, but Annabeth tossed another rune at them, setting fire to all of them. She tossed her second rune at the carriage, which exploded and sent Hylla flying away from it.

Nico's eyes continued to burn yellow as he bared his teeth and set off running after Kinzie, ignoring Annabeth's cries to wait. He had done enough waiting. This had been what he had been waiting for for all of these past months, and he would not be denied a moment longer. He let out a loud whistle and Lupa bounded off ahead of him.

He frowned as Hylla started climbing back to her feet, blood dripping from her forehead. He pulled another arrow from his quiver, and without blinking an eye, let his arrow fly into the back of the woman's head. He didn't even wait to watch as the woman's lifeless body hit the ground, he just took off running into the deep woods.

He followed the sounds of Kinzie's screams and Lupa's growls, and soon found Kinzie on the ground, pressing herself up against a tree. Lupa growled and snapped her massive jaws at the girl's neck, but didn't actually attack her. No, she knew Nico wanted the satisfaction of killing the whore. Nico glanced at the ground in front of Kinzie, frowning when he saw a dagger there.

Nico stepped up to it and crouched down to pick it up. He turned it over in his hand for a few seconds before lifting it to his nose. His nose wrinkled as he tossed the blade down with a curse. "Poisoned," he whispered. He slid his bow onto his back and walked up to stand beside Lupa, placing his hand on top of her head. "I take it you were expecting me?"

"N-Nico, you don't have to do this," Kinzie tried pleading. "We can just walk away from this, and I'll act like nothing happened. You can even have Percy. That's what you want, isn't it? I could divorce him, and you two could be happy again."

Lupa continued to growl and bare her fangs at the blonde girl. Nico stared down at the girl with a blank expression as he stroked his wolf's fur. "Your deceits may work on Percy, but they won't work on me," he said darkly.

"I'll give you whatever you want, Nico. Just name it."

Nico's hand reached to his back, where his fingers slid across the handle of one of his blades. "I want back what is rightfully mine." He pulled the blade from its sheath and held it at his side.

"You-you can't really expect to get away with this," she hissed.

Nico's eyes seemed to glow in the fading light, while his canines slowly sank down in his mouth. "And who's going to say anything? I certainly won't, you'll be dead, Annabeth wants you dead as much as I do, you mother and men are dead, and the only other people that know are my siblings." A dark smirk slid across his lips, showing off his canines to Kinzie. "And trust me, my brother told me to make this hurt as much as possible, just for him."

"No!" Kinzie screamed and tried to make a run for it, but was pounced on by Lupa. The wolf took her blond hair in its mouth and dragged the screaming girl through the dirt. Nico grabbed her throat and pinned her against a tree. He took her wrists and held them above her head. He pulled out some rope and Lupa took it in her mouth. The wolf paced around the tree, while Nico secured one end of the rope to Kinzie's wrist. He smirked as Lupa handed him the other end, and he carefully tied the blonde's wrist to the other end.

He slowly dragged the tip of his blade across the girl's cheek. "You know," he began, "it's funny. I get my revenge on the very day that allowed you to make your move on Percy." He narrowed his eye as he drove his blade into the girl's thigh, causing the girl to scream. "I find it funny, since this time last year, you were celebrating my supposed death."

"Percy will hate you if he finds out you did this," she growled at him through her sobs.

Nico took a firm grip of her blonde hair and slammed her head against the tree. "Then I guess I'll just have to make sure he doesn't find out, now won't I?" A sadistic smirk slowly slid onto Nico's lips.

"What are you smiling about? Just get it over with," she snapped.

Nico narrowed his eyes and twisted the blade that was in her thigh. He leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Morgrem wants her to taste your blood for him." Nico pulled back with a frown. He silently ripped the blade from her thigh. "I want you to suffer for every moment I had to suffer without him." He lowered the blade between Kinzie's legs, using his other hand to rip her dress. "You will not enjoy this."

Kinzie's eyes widened as her own words were thrown back at her. With a vicious snarl, Nico plunged the blade between Kinzie's legs, twisting the blade harshly inside of her. Kinzie screamed as loud as she could, helplessly trying to struggle against her restraints. Nico gripped his blade more firmly and curved the hilt of his blade upwards.

Kinzie's screams fell on deaf ears as Nico continued to mutilate her. The dark haired boy was too focused on his task to pay her any attention. All that mattered to him was that Percy would finally be his again. He ripped his blade out of Kinzie, slinging blood across his cheek. He grabbed Kinzie's jaw so harshly that he thought he heard her bones crack. He held his blade across her neck and slowly dragged it across her flesh.

Much to his appreciation, her screams became quiet as the blonde's body slumped against the tree. He reached up to her restrained wrist and made sure there was still a pulse. He smirked when he found one. Lupa growled and dug her fangs into the girl's neck before snarling and shaking her mighty jaws. Nico watched as Lupa ripped a portion of the girl's neck away, swallowing it with much satisfaction.

As he looked at her surely dead body, he found that it just wasn't enough. So, he took his blade and drove it into the center of her forehead. He pulled out his other blade and hacked off her right hand. He plucked the hand from the ground and removed her wedding ring from her finger. He glared at the object for a few seconds before tossing it to the ground. He stood up to his full height and ground the ring into the ground with his boot.

He fell to his knees as his hands began shaking. He watched quietly as Lupa continued to lap up the blood that was pouring from Kinzie's neck. He felt burning hot tears began to stream down his face. Lupa pulled away and whined at him. He pushed himself off the ground and lunged at Kinzie's dead body, blade in hand. He yelled at the top of his lungs before lopping off the blonde's head.

"Nico?"

He didn't turn around at the sound of Annabeth's voice. He merely walked over to Kinzie's head and removed his second blade from her head. Without a word, he sheathed both of his blades and turned to face Annabeth, though his eyes were hidden behind his bangs.

"We're done here," he said darkly, pushing past Annabeth.

Annabeth pursed her lips as she tossed a glance at Kinzie's desecrated body before looking at Nico's retreating form. She let out a sigh and followed after him. He never said anything on the walk out of the woods, only lifted his hand to place it on top of Lupa's head.

"You got your horse," Nico whispered, finally breaking the silence.

Annabeth nodded. "I figured you needed a moment," she replied.

Nico gave a single nod before climbing on top of Lupa. "I need to get going."

Annabeth nodded again. She raised a hand to point at Nico's face. "Make sure you wash that blood off before Percy sees you."

Nico nodded back at her. "Will you burn the body for me?" He whispered.

Annabeth silently nodded. "I already took the liberty of burning the caravan, as you can see." She let out a silent breath as Nico's yellow eyes finally turned back to their normal brown color, though the flakes of yellow still remained behind.

They both looked up as they heard a loud thundering sound. They moved back under the trees mere moments before Gaea's purple dragon flew overhead, disappearing seconds later. Nico's brows furrowed as he glanced down at Annabeth.

"It was headed north," Annabeth said.

Nico nodded. "And I don't like the thought of that thing going to my home right now." Lupa howled and bounded off at full speed, carrying Nico on her back.

Kinzie is dead! Ding dong the witch is dead! She was fun, but she will not be missed. If you're reading Shadows, I'm actually trying to make her nice in that story since I made people actually hate her in this one. But I am thankful she is gone. This means Percy and Nico will be on the road to getting back together, which I'll celebrate with some smut when the time comes. Well, I'll see. I assume no one cares? I just realized the other day that it's been several chapters since smut was included. Next chapter, will probably take place entirely in Tartarus. But I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. I hope you approve of how I ended Kinzie's story arc. And I will see you guys next time.