Hello everyone and welcome back to Hidden Secrets and Shared Lies!
This is part 2 of the most important part of this story. It was too long to add to the last chapter so this is like... the second part of an update. Also, this way it's way more dramatic and like *BAM!* so I split it.
I hope you enjoy and let's get right into this!
A/N:
So I've had a couple of questions about the Shadow Creature, mostly being what happened to it. The answer:
So The Shadow Creature is Its own being and has own's own intentions. For a while, It was helping Ganabranth as the two searched for Makayla but once she was found by Ganabranth, it sorta just stayed in the background. So It is still alive and everything (kinda cuz it's a shadow) but It's just chilling and doing its own thing now.
The glow faded from Makayla's eyes and hands before her knees buckled.
"Whoa, are you okay?" Nico worried as he and Leo jumped to their feet to catch her before she hit the ground. Makayla shook her head to clear it.
"Yeah, yeah I'm good. My legs just hurt a lot so it's hard to stand." She answered, sounding fine.
"What the hell was that...?" Leo gaped, amazed confusion in his voice. Makayla shrugged, wrapping her arms around her brother to stay upright.
"I'm gonna be honest: I'm not a hundred percent sure." She admitted.
"What do you mean?" Percy frowned.
"Like, I knew what I was doing but I don't really know how I was doing it. It- It's hard to explain."
"Could you at least give a summary?"
The redhead paused for a moment as she tried to think of how to phrase her words
"I've always been so scared of my powers but I finally accepted it. I embraced my power and used it to- how do I put this... I used it to make him feel all the pain and suffering he's put on others. So he's dead-dead cuz I..." She blushed. "Iscatteredhisspiritanderasedhimfromexistence."
Makayla finished quickly, nervous about how her friends would react. There was silence for a moment.
"But-but how? Like I get that you're two-thirds god and all, and that's awesome, but how did you get powers that make you able to do something like that? Hermes and Hephaestus don't have any powers even close to what you just did." Percy's voice was filled with awe. Makayla shrugged, stumbling.
"I honestly have no idea." She winced, shaking her head. "I mean, yeah, it makes sense that I'm stronger than most other of us and that's understandable. But being able to erase a person from existence? I feel like a wizard; all I need now is a broom."
Despite the tension in the air, her friends laughed. Then Makayla's smile slowly faded as the completely unbelievable truth finally began to settle.
"Hey. Are you okay? Leo asked, seeing her smile fade. His sister slowly shook her head.
"He's gone." She murmured, voice a whisper.
"Yeah, but isn't that a good thing?" Nico wondered. Makayla slowly shook her head.
"You don't get it." She stuttered, tears coming to her eyes as realization set. "He's gone. He's gone and he's not coming back! I'm- I'm-"
Makayla's voice cracked from the absolute joy that filled her heart, mind, and body. She shook her head in minor disbelief as her hand moved to her mouth. Glancing over she saw that Lauren looked no better; the mortal was frozen in place, crying her own tears as she too realized the truth of Makayla's words.
She looked over and nodded slowly before a sob-like laugh escaped her lips. The two girls hugged each other tightly as they cried.
"He's gone! Kaykay, he- I-" Lauren repeated, sobbing tears of joy. "He's gone forever, you're free from him now!"
"I know, Lauren, I know. But it's not just me." Makayla broke the embrace enough to look at her sister-by-heart. The demigod smiled and wiped a tear from her friend's cheek. "You are too. Everyone is safe because he will never ever hurt anyone and guess what? You're a part of everyone."
Lauren sobbed again and embraced her again.
Leo, Percy, and Nico stood in respective silence as they happily watched the two girls. They knew how important that moment was for them; having been tortured captives of Ganabranth, Makayla and Lauren had obviously been severely traumatized. Both would undoubtedly have nightmares and flashbacks of The Serpents group but never again would they have to run or hide or live their lives in constant fear.
The threat to people, gods, and life itself was now gone.
Forever.
And that concludes part 2/2 of chapter forty-eight of Hidden Secrets and Shared Lies!