This AU has been in the works for a few months now. I'm very excited to finally share it with all of you.
For the last month, Thalia had been debating just ending it all with a bullet to the brain. She spent every night with a pistol pressed against her forehead. It took her almost half the month to even take the safety off, but she still couldn't pull the trigger. All she could do was stare down the barrel at the darkness that held what could be her salvation.
Her life didn't have meaning anymore. She didn't have anyone or anything left. Her father left when she was very young. A few years later, her mother got drunk and drove into a tree, killing herself instantly. Thalia tried to take care of her younger brother, but the government tore them apart and put them in separate foster homes.
Thalia ran away from her foster parents multiple times and had been arrested even more than that. She could start writing her rap sheet on one arm and then have to finish it on the other. Her life had started to turn around a year ago when she got out of jail and reunited with her brother. Then, it all fell apart when her younger brother was killed.
Thalia knew who did it. It was five men who ran the criminal organization that ruled her state. They owned more companies than they had bastard children. Jason had been a young lawyer and was helping sweep the streets of corruption. In response, he was taken out of his home, tortured to death, mutilated, and then dumped on the street like he was a pile of trash.
When the police brought Thalia in to identify her brother's body, she hardly recognized him. His face was swollen, bruised, and his skull had been bashed in. Blood had drenched his entire body, and Thalia could see where they had smashed damn near every bone.
The police didn't dare go after the men who did it. They just blamed it on a criminal with a vendetta that Jason had put behind bars. They acted like it was an open and shut case, but it wasn't. Thalia knew the truth. She had seen the men who followed her and Jason around. But, that wasn't how Thalia knew beyond a shadow of a doubt.
No. Thalia knew who had killed her brother because she had been dating one of the bastards. Luke Castellan was someone she had known since childhood. They ran away from foster care and survived on the streets together. They were separated as they were caught and thrown in jail. Luke ended up joining a gang, but Thalia still didn't know how he had joined one of the biggest criminal organizations in the world.
The night that Thalia's entire world shattered had been normal enough. Luke invited her over for dinner, and they ate one of the best meals she ever had. Luke gave her some of his finest wine, and Thalia had noticed how sweet it was. Luke gave her some bullshit pick-up line, saying that it wasn't as sweet as her.
Their night then progressed to where it normally did: sex. Luke must've slipped something in her drink. With her mind dulled, she couldn't stop what came next. She tried to protest Luke when he cuffed her hands behind her back. She didn't think anything of it when he bent her over his desk and fucked her harder than he ever had before.
Thalia remembered trying to resist, crying out that Luke was hurting her, but her mouth wouldn't work for her. Luke wouldn't have listened either. He just kept thrusting further and further into her until there were tears in her eyes. When Luke was done, he kept himself inside her and put all of his weight on her back. Then, he told her what they were doing to Jason.
Luke described it in sickening detail, and he laughed in her ear as he mocked her. When Thalia begged him to leave Jason alone, he just laughed even harder. Worst of all, he showed Thalia pictures and videos of her baby brother being tortured and killed.
Luke whispered in her ear that she was next. Thalia had been so emotionally destroyed that she just screamed and yelled at him. Luke only laughed and taunted her. He then dragged her over to his bed and promised the rest of her life would be miserable. That was his big mistake.
Adrenaline and boiling rage overrode the dullness long enough for her to deliver a swift kick backward that caught him in the groin. She then slammed her full weight into Luke, knocking him into the side of his desk and gashing open his cheek. Thalia ran towards the door and struggled to get it open. Then, she ran until her body gave out on her.
Thalia had spent the last month hiding from Luke and his friends. It was only a matter of time until they found her, and Thalia knew they were going to do a lot worse to her. She still couldn't bring herself to pull the trigger though. Was it because she wanted to avenge Jason? Or was she just scared?
Thalia wanted to avenge her brother, but how the fuck was she supposed to do that? Those five men that were responsible for his death were untouchable. One person couldn't possibly do something like that. Thalia just needed to accept her fate and pull the trigger. She told herself that every night. Yet, here she was.
"This is stupid," Thalia muttered hopelessly under her breath as she looked around the road that she stood on. She was about a mile out of town, and trees surrounded her on each side. The road that she stood on was made of dirt. Tire tracks were the only indication that people came out here, but it still felt wrong. Evil.
The hair on the back of Thalia's neck raised, and her stomach twisted. She looked around. Was Luke here? Or, was it another one of those bastards? Thalia let out an angry breath and slowly walked towards the middle of the road. The four-way intersection didn't have any cars coming, so Thalia crouched down on the ground.
Thalia wasn't even sure who she had heard the story from. She had just been at some shithole of a bar trying to drink herself to death. That had to be more fun than a bullet, but it wasn't working. Someone had told her the story of how people down on their luck used to go to the crossroads, offer up something, and then be given a gift that would change their life.
What the hell was Thalia doing here? It wasn't like she was going to bury a twenty in the ground, beg for a solution, and the five assholes would drop dead instantly. She would have better luck trying to kill the five of them herself.
Who was she even offering something up to anyway? Was God waiting there to make all her problems go away, or was this her atonement for how she acted when she was younger? Did Jason suffer for her mistakes? Thalia looked down at the gun that was tucked hastily into her belt. She pulled it out and placed it against her temple.
All she had to do was pull the fucking trigger. Then, all her problems would evaporate, just like that. Thalia willed her finger to the trigger. Just one squeeze, and it's all over! She could do it! So why couldn't she just pull?!
"Fuck!" Thalia yelled to the sky, throwing the gun into the dirt. "Why did Jason have to die? Why couldn't it have been me? Why can't I do anything to avenge him? Am I nothing more than a coward? Is that what you want to hear?! Fine! I'm a coward! I can't bring myself to even try and kill Luke or the others! I'm not strong enough!"
Yelling at nothing felt great. It really brought all of her hopelessness out. Thalia fell to her knees and cried miserably. She just wished Jason was alive. Why did he have to be taken so unfairly? Why like that? Picked apart and mutilated like a lion's quarry. It wasn't fucking fair! Jason was a good kid. He should have grown up to be a loving husband with two kids. Not discarded like garbage.
"I just want to avenge Jason," Thalia whispered. "I can't bring him back. I know that, but please. Please just give me the means to avenge him. Give me the power to make those five bastards pay. I would give anything that I have. Please."
Thalia wasn't sure who she was talking to, but it did make her feel better. Thalia was a coward, but she was also a coward who wanted to avenge her brother. She would avenge him. Somehow.
Thalia wiped her eyes and slowly calmed her breathing. Then, she stood and turned around. Her heart dropped to her stomach as she saw the figure standing across from her. Thalia scrambled to grab the gun that she had thrown to the ground. She picked it up and aimed it at the person.
"Did Luke send you? Or was it one of the others?" Thalia snarled. "Just walk away."
The figure titled their head. The shadows seemed to wrap around them. After a few moments, they walked forward. Thalia cursed and fired her gun. Her hands were shaking so bad that the bullet merely grazed the shoulder of the figure. Their hand shot to their arm.
"Can you lower that?" the figure questioned. Thalia stared and fired the gun once again. The figure disappeared, and Thalia couldn't believe it. "Will you stop?"
Thalia yelled in surprise and turned, swinging the gun like a club. It slammed directly into the figure's face, and they stumbled backward. Thalia raised the gun quickly, but she was disarmed before she could bring her finger to the trigger. The figure shoved her to the ground and threw the gun to the side.
Thalia hit the ground but scrambled for the gun. She grabbed it and aimed up at the figure, firing the gun. It jammed on her, and Thalia desperately tried to take out the magazine. The figure simply stepped back and placed a hand to their bloody nose.
"Who sent you?" Thalia yelled. When she didn't get an answer and couldn't get the magazine out of the gun, she did the only thing she could think of. She threw the gun right at the figure's face. Thalia scrambled to her feet and turned to run.
Thalia didn't even make it a single foot as the figure appeared in front of her out of thin air. She crashed into them and fell backward. They caught her, and the moonlight caught their face. Thalia stared up at the woman and felt herself relaxing slightly.
"That's a rude way to greet someone," the woman commented. She placed the back of her hand to her nose. Thalia allowed herself to relax slightly. Knowing how sick and twisted Luke was, she doubted that he or any of his partners would work with females, so this woman hadn't been sent to kill her. Hopefully.
Thalia studied the woman that stood before her. The woman was wearing a leather jacket that was half zipped up. A purple shirt peeked out from underneath her jacket. Her black jeans were tattered and looked like something Thalia wore the last time she went to church. Thalia's gaze moved up to the woman's face, and her breath caught in her throat.
Despite the blood that was covering her nose, the woman's face was an absolute regal beauty. Her eyes were a pitch black color that drew Thalia in like she was falling into the void. The woman's black hair was in a single braid down her back.
"Who are you?" Thalia slowly questioned. She remembered how the woman seemed to just appear out of the darkness, faster than a human could move. Faster than anything could move.
"Better question. Did anyone ever teach you how to use a gun?" the woman questioned. She scooped up Thalia's gun and examined it.
"How did you do that?" Thalia questioned as she thought back to the disappearing act. "What are you?"
"You're the one who called me here. Why are you acting so shocked?" the woman questioned. She wiped the blood away from her nose and looked at it distastefully. "Are you drunk?"
"I think I'm dreaming," Thalia admitted. That was the only explanation for what was going on. She closed her eyes tightly. "This can't be happening."
"Here we go again with this," the woman muttered with a hint of annoyance. When Thalia opened her eyes, she found that her gun was no longer jammed, and the woman was examining the magazine. "My name is Reyna, and you called for help."
"I was shouting at the sky," Thalia began.
"Can you shut up? Thanks," Reyna retorted. Thalia opened her mouth to speak, but Reyna placed a finger to her lips. "Shut up. You're not dreaming. You're not dead either. You are alive. And very sad and pathetic. You came here to the crossroads and made your plea. I am here to answer it."
"I'm dreaming," Thalia decided. She pulled away. Thalia knew what had happened. She had drunk so much that she blacked out and was currently having the craziest dream ever. Reyna sighed and rubbed both of her temples.
"I hate being on idiot duty," Reyna grumbled.
"I was at a bar," Thalia continued not hearing the words. "Some guy was there talking a bunch of bullshit about the crossroads granting what you want. I knew it was a bunch of shit, and this is just a dream."
"This is not a dream, okay? Just please realize this isn't a dream. It will make our lives a whole lot easier. You came to the crossroads, which puts you right in the jurisdiction of my employer; therefore, you are in my jurisdiction. "I am here to help you fulfill your pleas until you die or get what you want. If you're feeling generous, you could just save me the trouble and pop a bullet in your head."
"Or," Reyna offered. She grabbed Thalia's belt and slipped the gun into Thalia's waistband. Thalia's breath hitched. "You can get your revenge on those who tortured and killed your brother. All you have to do is tell me what you desire."
Thalia stared at Reyna and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and tried to calm down. Thalia opened her eyes, and Reyna studied her quietly. The woman's face was unreadable, looking like it had been etched in stone.
"Just tell me who you are," Thalia whispered. "You're bleeding like a normal person, but you move like a demon."
Reyna smirked and didn't respond. She stuck her hands into her leather jacket. Thalia looked Reyna up and down. This was exactly the kind of woman she would seek out in a sleazy bar for a one night stand. Thalia waited for an answer, but when she didn't get one, her temper started to flare.
"I'm a human like you. Just a little more special," Reyna said after a moment. The smirk grew. "Tell me, Thalia Grace. Do you believe in magic?"
"Magic?" Thalia slowly asked. "Are you going to pull a rabbit out of a fucking hat and solve all my problems?"
"If you want dinner, sure. If you want to avenge your brother, shut the fuck up and listen," Reyna ordered. Thalia glared at her but forced herself to remain silent. "My boss and I have been watching this city for a long time. We've watched Luke and his cronies wrap this city around their fingers. We've been waging a silent war against them for years, and they're like cockroaches. They keep coming back."
"But, we have a new spray to try on them," Reyna informed. She closed her eyes and rolled her shoulders. "I don't know if you know your mythology, but I can tell you that some of those gods are real. They used to walk the mortal world a long time ago and fucked like rabbits."
"They had kids just about everywhere. They were called demigods. Hell, I was one in a past life. I was a daughter of-"
Reyna froze mid-sentence, and her gaze moved off to the side. A look of either disgust or confusion came to her face. Then, she smirked, but it looked forced. "Point is. I was a demigod. Made a good friend with the prince of the Underworld and got a few perks along the way. It didn't help much when I was alive, but when I was dying, I was saved. Given new life with magic. Just can't remember much from the first one."
"Wait," Thalia interrupted. She held her hands up. "I have to be drunk or high. I am too strung out and fucked up for this."
"No," Reyna said. She grabbed Thalia's wrists and pushed her hands down. "Look at me. I know this sounds crazy, but it's true. I should have died about ten years ago when I was sixteen. My boss, best friend, buddy, whatever the hell you want to call him, saved me. He used magic to stop my beating heart and then bring me back. Thanks to him, I was granted powers that once belonged to his father."
"What happened to his father?" Thalia slowly asked.
"No one really knows," Reyna answered. "I know there was a war between the Olympians and Titans a really long time ago, but no one won. They put themselves into deadlocks, and some god or goddess, maybe a group of them, decided to destroy the Fates. You know, those three old ladies that decide everyone's lives and decided what they would do."
"From there, there was chaos. Olympians and Titans fell left and right, most going to Tartarus. Their power was scattered everywhere in the form of their weapons or symbols of power. My boss and his siblings share the responsibilities of the Underworld. And my boss shares his powers with his inner circle."
"I don't understand," Thalia began. Her head was starting to hurt. Reyna let go of her hands and sighed again in annoyance. She rubbed her forehead.
"Your buddy Luke, he got some of that power as well. Took up the spot of a Titan. We think. We're not sure, but it would explain a lot. We've been in a stalemate with him, but we learned that we have to act like the gods and use a mortal to help us achieve our goal," Reyna explained.
"If you want revenge, turn around and walk to the middle of the crossroads. Dig down a few inches, and you'll find the answer to your problems," Reyna instructed. Thalia just stared at her. She blinked a few times to process all of the information she had been told, but all she could think was that she was still dreaming.
Thalia closed her eyes tightly and felt like her chest was constricting. It became harder to breathe. A hand grabbed her shoulder, and Reyna spoke, "Hey. Stop. I'm not lying to you, and you're not going insane. If you want to avenge your brother, you just have to listen to me."
Those words caught Thalia's attention. She opened her eyes and looked up at Reyna. Then, Thalia slowly walked towards the middle of the crossroads. She crouched down and started to dig through the dirt. Part of her felt ridiculous, but she kept digging.
Her hand hit something solid, and she brushed away some of the dirt. Thalia pulled a small box out of the ground and studied it. The box was as dark as the void. She slowly opened the box and stared down at the gun inside.
"That is a Colt Python. Fully loaded with six bullets. And only six bullets," Reyna explained. "This is a special little gun. Five of those bullets are in your control. They'll hit whatever you want. You just need to have a clear line of sight and a clear focus on exactly who or what you want to shoot."
"The sixth bullet, well, it gets a little complicated when we get to that point," Reyna mentioned. "Make no mistake about it though. Sooner or later, that sixth bullet will be fired, and I guess we'll see where it goes from there."
Thalia slowly pulled the gun out of the box. Reyna grabbed her face and looked her in the eyes. Thalia met her gaze. Reyna smirked and spoke, "Make each bullet count and be sure to watch your back. Once the bodies start dropping, they'll come looking for you, and I can only do so much to protect you."
"Protect me?" Thalia whispered.
"Haven't you been paying attention?" Reyna interrogated, clearly getting irritated with how slow Thalia is. "This battle you just started with Luke has been part of our long waged war. You're just a new player on the field. You're stuck with me until all six bullets fire," Reyna said. She stepped backward and started to fade into the shadows. "Try to get some sleep. You have a long day ahead of you."
I hope everyone enjoyed the first chapter. See you next Thursday for the second one.