A/N:

Alright guys, this is it. The climax is here. Just a heads up this may be the longest chapter I have ever written. Also, sorry it took so long to post this chapter. I had to make sure this chapter was extra special, but bouncing back from writer's block makes that really hard to accomplish. Anyway, enjoy the chapter, sorry again for taking so long to update. As always feel free to comment!

-Echo

Chapter 28: the Nuke Option

I woke up to someone shaking me. "Nico? Nico, wake up! Wake up, sleepyhead!"

Groaning, I reluctantly cracked my eyes open only to be blinded by the demonic lighting in the sky called the sun. "What time is it?" I mumbled.

Bianca's face slowly came into focus, a silhouette of silver in the pale lighting. I could clearly count the number of freckles splashed across her nose with how close she was to me. Her dark eyes shined with amusement as she smiled. "Time to wake up, sleepyhead."

I stared at her, wondering what could possibly be so funny. After all, her death may very well be today. She must have felt the somber change in the atmosphere too because the smile slipped off her face just as soon as it came. "Hey, are you okay?" She asked gently.

I stared into her dark eyes, debating if I should tell her. On one hand, telling her could very well save her life. She would be aware of the risk touching any object in that junkyard presents. Maybe, just maybe she won't feel compelled to snatch the Hades figurine. Perhaps then she wouldn't if she knew her life depended on it.

On the other hand, what good would it be to tell her at the expense of her innocence? Innocence is perishable, fragile, and nonrenewable. Once you lose it, it's gone for good. That is, unless you take a swim in the River Lethe, which at the moment is currently unavailable to use. Bianca has had a hard enough life as it is. I've cost her enough stress. I don't need to stress her out on this too. If I can help it, her lighthouse will never go out.

Not like mine did.

So, I'll go with option three: Tell everyone not to touch anything. Perhaps now that they know I'm a time traveler, they'll take me seriously.

I flashed a convincing smile. "Yeah, I'm fine." The truth is, I am fine. Bianca isn't gone yet. I can still save her.

I will save her.

Five minutes later, we're up on our feet and trotting through the sandy dunes of the Arizona desert. We all stopped in our tracks once we reached the entrance of the Junkyard of the Gods. I eyed the entrance wearily, taking note of the sparkling knickknacks scattered this way and that, all catching the light of the sun captivatingly. The sun shone like a spotlight on the celestial bronze mound in the distance, which seemed to be waiting patiently for its actors to come up on stage so the tragedy can unfold.

I'm beginning to have second thoughts about this.

Can't I just shadow travel everyone to the other side? It would save everyone a lot of trouble. Except me. I would probably be dead by the exertion, or at the very least passed out for a week or two. Or, worse case scenario, I end up accidentally shadow traveling everyone to China. Shadow travel would probably end up making matters worse for everyone. So, that's an out.

That's when the reality finally hit me: I have no other back up plans besides the nuke option if anything goes wrong, and something is bound to go wrong. Call me pessimistic, but I choose to focus and rely on the cold hard facts instead of being optimistic enough to believe everything will turn out well in the end. From experience, I know it won't turn out well, which is all the more reason to focus on the facts that I've gathered:

Talos will wake up if any property of the Gods is stolen.

My sister has a track record of stealing the Hades figurine from the Gods.

She's already died because of it.

The facts, on top of the awful premonition I'm getting all points to one outcome: This isn't going to end well.

I turned to the other questers. They each had identical solemn expressions and all looked on edge.

It seems I'm not the only one who has a bad feeling about this.

"Before we enter the junkyard of the Gods, I want to establish a few ground rules first," I said. "Do not, under any circumstances touch anything!" I looked at each of them in the eyes as I said this before finally settling on Bianca. "The junk may look cool, it may look pretty, and it may be tempting. Don't touch it. Trust me, it's a trap. It's a failsafe designed by the Gods to keep intruders from stealing their possessions they don't want anymore." I sighed, rubbing my face tiredly. "If, or more likely, the inevitable chance that we do touch something and grab it, a prototype machine made by the God of Forge will awaken. Believe me when I say this, you do not want to awaken the prototype of Talos." I looked Bianca dead in the eye. "Especially you.

"Do I make myself clear when I say we are not touching or grabbing anything?" I asked. Everyone exchanged a look of concern before nodding. "Good. Stay on the trail and don't wander off. The sooner we leave, the better."

With that speech in mind, we headed off to our impending doom.

The silence of the junkyard was nothing short of eerie. No one said a word as we all gazed wearily at our surroundings. We mostly stayed in the shade of the humongous piles of junk, despite trying to steer clear of it. If the annoyed expressions of my friends were anything to go by, it's obvious the Arizona heat is getting to us. Awesome. Delirium and piped up rage is exactly what we need right now. Couldn't Apollo just, I don't know, dial the temperature of the sun down a bit? Or at the very least make it cloudy? But even as I thought about it, I knew Apollo wouldn't be able to help us. He's done so much already, and continuing to aid us in the quest would look too suspicious.

That being said, we're in this alone.

I made sure to stay close to Bianca in case she tries anything. Normally I wouldn't be hovering over my sister like this, but I have to make sure. This place is a stage of horrors and we are the actors caught in the spotlight. Anything can happen.

"Wow," Grover breathed in amazement, breaking the silence. "Look at all this stuff! Is that a golden reed pipe?" He pointed to a particularly sparkly object in arm's reach.

I pulled him back by the hood of his jacket. "Grover, don't!" I stopped him just before his fingers grazed the reed pipes.

This isn't good. The temptations are simply too much, even for people as considerate and selfless as Grover. Too much temptation is dangerous and dangerous means losing the people I love to a gigantic failsafe.

"Sorry," the satyr apologized sheepishly, realizing his mistake.

"Just be more careful, okay?" I said, placing a hand on his shoulder. I didn't wait for an answer as I walked farther up. I don't want to be here any longer than I have to. I stopped short when I realized I left Bianca alone.

Annabeth's eyes locked with mine before glancing at Bianca. She smiled and gestured farther up. Move along. I'll stay behind and keep watch, was the message I could clearly see in her steel grey eyes.

I sent her a look of gratitude before making my way to my cousins. It was at that moment I realized just how much I trust her. Not just with my own life, but with my sister's life too. I suddenly felt glad that she was the first person I told my secret to. If I had told anyone else first, things would have turned out very differently. Everyone I'm close to has something to bring to the table, but I needed someone with a fresh perspective and clear mindset to help me sift through my damaged one.

Was it wrong for me to tell her first? I didn't even consider how that might affect Bianca. Was it because I was afraid of what my sister might do or what she might say if I told her first, or was it more than that? No. I was afraid Bianca would see the real me, and with our spiraling life at the moment, I didn't think she would be able to handle it. But miraculously she did. It took some time, but she finally came to terms with the fact that the little brother she thought she knew was gone and I've taken his place. Or at least, I am the result of an unfortunate tragedy that in another timeline already unfolded.

Still, was it right not to tell her about this too? I've been trying so hard to protect her. I don't want her innocence to go out just like mine did. But is this really the right way to go about it? Maybe her innocence isn't such a loss compared to her trust. Was Percy right? One of the greatest inconveniences I have come to understand as a time traveler is that I know what will happen in the future, yet I have no clue how people will react. People are already complicated enough as it is and me being here may have just complicated things more.

Zoe and Thalia's animated conversation interrupted my thoughts.

"Thou should have joined us when thou had the chance! We offered thou freedom! We offered thou redemption! Now thou will have thoughts that forever dwell on a boy," Zoe spat. I couldn't help but roll my eyes in annoyance. Why do they have to do this now?

"I don't care about the stupid offers you made! Stay out of my business!" Thalia hissed, her venomous words more deadly than Gorgon's blood.

If I know Thalia—and I definitely know Thalia—then this situation is going to escalate faster than kerosene catches fire.

"What's going on?" I muttered to Percy, who was trying and failing to calm Thalia down.

"I think Zoe said something to Thalia about… about Luke," he answered in a low voice. I nodded in understanding. Luke is a difficult subject to talk about. Sure he wronged me personally, but not as much as he wronged Thalia, Annabeth, and Percy personally. As much as I hate that guy's guts, it may not be so simple for them.

"He has turned! Thou will not find what thou art looking for!" The lieutenant of Artemis exclaimed.

Thalia's glare never looked so murderous. A stray spark of electricity crackled along her fists. "Do not ever bring him up again! Do you understand me? That's my business to know and I will not have a nosy, peppy idiot like you from freaking Ancient Greece giving me boy advice when you couldn't even handle Hercules!"

The Daughter of Zeus unsheathed her spear.

"Thalia, stop!" Percy and I screamed simultaneously. We both made a move to hold our cousin back when she aimed her spear at Zoe. Bianca and Gorver immediately ran up to Zoe and held her back when she aimed her bow and arrow at Thalia. Annabeth stationed herself in the middle of the scene, trying to prevent a fight from happening.

"Guys, this is not the time not the place to be doing this. You want to work something out, work it out when we leave the junkyard—or better yet, when this quest is over," Annabeth said.

It seems the nerves are getting the better of us, and if we aren't careful, they will kill us.

"It is not my fault she threw away an opportunity to join the Hunt," Zoe turned to Thalia and spoke coldly. "Do not come crying to the Hunters for a second chance when he breaks thy heart into pieces once again."

That was the last straw and everyone knew it.

With a cry of rage and fury, Thalia held her hand to the sky, summoning a bolt of lightning. "STOP TALKING ABOUT HIM!" She roared as she hurled the bolt at a wide-eyed Zoe.

Zoe ducked just in time as the lightning bolt crackled harmlessly over her head. But a terrible feeling erupted in my stomach, telling me the trouble's just begun. I watched in silent horror as the bolt skipped over the bits of metal and knickknacks scattered around the junkyard while everyone around me scrambled to pull Thalia and Zoe apart from their fight.

My stomach dropped when I saw where the bolt finally hit its mark.

I didn't realize I was hyperventilating until someone shook my shoulders. "Nico? Nico, are you alright? You look really pale."

Bianca's voice of concern snapped me back to reality. Looking into her innocent dark eyes, seeing the ignorance, the worry, I suddenly felt a wave of anguish overcome me. I should have told her. I should have been completely honest. Now?

Now it's too late.

A rumbling sounded in the distance.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered.

Bianca's eyes widened, "What are you sorry about? Why are you crying, fratello?" She asked as she gently wiped the tears sliding down my cheeks.

I felt everyone's eyes on me as the fighting ceased. "I should have been more honest with you, Bianca," I said with a quiet sob. "I should have been a better brother to you."

If I had just told her, none of this would have ever happened. We wouldn't be in this mess, and she probably would've opted not to join the Hunters in the first place, or at the very least decline in going on the quest. But I couldn't tell her. Now, I may have just set into motion something far worse than before.

"Hey, don't talk like that. Tell me what's wrong," she kneeled down in front of me.

A loud clatter echoed across the junkyard.

I grabbed her warm hand, knowing this could very well be the last time I do. "Bianca… last time, you…" my voice cracked. "Last time you died on this quest. Now because of me, you might very well die again."

"I—I died?" Tears began to slide down her cheek. "How… How did I die?" She asked in shock.

I finally turned to face the automaton forming in the distance. It rose from the ground with an air of silent glory. It's stoic face was carved handsomely like a marble bust and it's humongous bronze sword glinted dangerously in the sunlight. The automaton looked as ready as ever for battle in its celestial bronze armor and I knew I couldn't say the same for us.

"The prototype of Talos killed you," I answered shakily. "If we don't move now, it will kill you again."

Without another word I yanked Bianca along with me, ignoring her yelp of surprise, and made a break for the nearest cover, but not before dragging Annabeth along with me. I've already lost three sisters—Bianca, Hazel, and Reyna. I will not lose a fourth. The others followed, and Thalia and Zoe seemingly forgot about their fight from earlier.

Talos, in all of its 200 foot glory followed closely behind, its emotionless molten eyes searching for the intruders. How did Talos wake up? As far as I'm concerned, no one stole anything. Bianca couldn't have stolen the figurine if Annabeth was keeping an eye on her the whole time. Sure Thalia and Zoe were fighting, but that couldn't have been the reason—

Wait.

Thalia's lightning bolt.

When it hit the bronze mound, aka Talos, the disturbance must have activated it, thereby giving it a perfectly valid reason to kill us.

Or more likely—kill my sister.

Suddenly I felt a rush of anger. I just time traveled from a future where I witnessed, heard, and felt every single one of my friends die. I just held my little sister in my arms as she took her last breath. I didn't come all of this way just to watch another one of my sisters die all over again. Screw the Gods, screw the rules, and screw the Fates.

This is my story, so I might as well write it how it should be.

"We need a plan," Annabeth and I said simultaneously. We stared quizzically at each other for a second. I waved her off before she could speak. "You're the Daughter of Athena, so therefore you automatically make better plans."

In the rush of the moment, she smiled and ruffled my hair. "Thanks, Neeks." I side glanced Bianca and was surprised to find no jealousy in her eyes.

"Just make sure you don't get us all killed, Annie."

"Noted."

The Daughter of Athena studied the automaton calculatingly, her steel grey eyes seemingly sifting through the celestial bronze like sand to find the weakness. Her face suddenly lit up like a lightbulb.

"The automaton is impenetrable due to its celestial bronze armor. If we can somehow access the underneath, we can beat it. Cutting the wires and short circuiting it should do the trick," she explained. Annabeth turned to me. "Do you know how we beat the automaton last time?"

I was about to answer her, but Percy interrupted us. "Uh, guys?" Hearing him say that brought back sweet memories of the Smithsonian Museum. "We really need to move."

He was right. With a step or two more, the automaton can crush us like ants. I unsheathed my dagger, knowing very well it wouldn't do much good against the prototype of Talos. The others unsheathed their weapons too. I took a deep breath. "Let's take this stupid sparkle machine down."

Zoe and Bianca ran one direction, scaling the tall mounds of junk for a better vantage point while Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, and I ran towards the automaton's feet. Grover joined the hunters and played his reed pipes at a distance to grow vines that wrapped around the automaton's ankles, slowing it down a smidge.

We weaved skillfully in between Talos' gigantic feet, swiping the celestial bronze while the automaton moved slower than molasses. But I fear we're about as annoying as gnats to the automaton. With every step Talos took, we dodged and rolled out of the way. My eyes scanned the feet, taking note of the thick sheets of celestial bronze melded flawlessly together. Everyone tried to penetrate the sheets of metal, but it wouldn't budge. Zoe and Bianca's arrows couldn't even make a dent. Grover's vines snagged and ripped with an awful sound, and roots of green flew everywhere. We barely had enough time to roll out of the way before Talos could squash us.

This isn't working. We need a new plan. We need a better strategy to get underneath the sheets of celestial bronze. Once we do that, taking this thing down should be a heck of a lot easier.

That's when I spotted it.

Screws. Tiny screws all over the edges of each sheet of bronze.

A spark of hope ignited and new found determination flooded through me.

We can beat it.

"Annabeth! The screws!" I shouted. "We can pop them out to get underneath!"

Annabeth's eyes widened in understanding. We rolled out of the way for what felt like the millionth time and darted away from the airborne junk flying above us. "Help me pop them out!" She dug her knife into the ridges of one of the sheets and I did the same. Thalia and Percy quickly caught on to our strategy and tried the screws on the other foot.

"Bianca! Zoe! Aim for the screws!" Thalia shouted.

It's not much of a strategy, but it's all we got.

We strained our weapons under the stress of the screws. No matter how much pressure we applied, they simply wouldn't budge. At one point, I even tried sawing at them, but it wouldn't cut. Thalia jabbed under the ridges, even going as far as twisting the screws out with the tip of her spear. Percy and Annabeth weren't having much luck either, both of them trying and failing to get under the screws with their blades.

It's no use. This isn't working either.

Talos ambushed us with a surprise attack, swiping at us instead of Bianca, Zoe, and Grover. We narrowly dodged the attack, but Annabeth wasn't so lucky. She flew through the air in seemingly slow motion before hitting the ground with a horrifying thud.

"ANNABETH!!" We darted towards her motionless body, running faster than we've ever ran before.

"No, no, no, Annabeth! Annabeth, come on! Wake up!" Percy shook her shoulders but she was unresponsive.

"Annabeth, wake up! I can't lose you too!" Thalia cradled Annabeth's head, stroking the curly sun rays tinged with scarlet.

I can't lose you too!

Jason.

The thought of him made my stomach churn with guilt.

I was relieved that I heard no ringing, but the blood running down Annabeth's head seriously worried me. Best case scenario: She only has a minor concussion. Worst case scenario: She's comatose.

I glanced nervously behind me, taking note of Talos' advancement. "Guys, we need to move her to some cover and fast."

Percy picked her up bridal style while Thalia and I offered some cover. We advanced behind a nearby pile of junk and found Zoe, Bianca, and Grover already waiting for us. They had the ambrosia and nectar out and ready. We got to work quickly and stuffed a few squares of ambrosia into Annabeth's mouth before sliding down a bit of nectar.

Annabeth groaned in pain but otherwise didn't open her eyes.

"What are we going to do now?" Grover asked helplessly. His eyes kept glancing at Annabeth nervously.

Grover's right. What are we going to do now? Annabeth is out cold and chances are she won't be back in the play for a while. We have no plan that's worked so far in penetrating the prototype's impenetrable skin. We have no back up plan, no strategist, and no way out.

I can try shadow traveling us out one at a time, but I doubt my 10 year old self would have enough energy to do it back and forth for miles. With Annabeth injured like this, I don't think her body could handle the G-force.

"Wait, I think I see something," Bianca said, perking our attention. "There!" She pointed to the foot of the automaton. "You see? There's a small hatch at the heel of the foot! We can get inside and sabotage the machine from the inside out!"

She's right. I had to squint to see it, but it was definitely there. It was an incredibly small space with a celestial bronze door. You wouldn't notice it unless you knew where to look. Why would a hatch be at such a vulnerable area of the automaton? Well, this is a prototype. Maybe this was one of the reasons the machine didn't make the cut.

Zoe narrowed her eyes at the hatch. "The mechanical beast is moving too fast! There is no way we can enter the hatch without meeting death himself."

I studied the movement of the automaton, noting the amount of seconds between each rise and fall of the foot. Approximately six seconds. That means six seconds to slide under the foot, open the hatch, and climb inside. That's not even taking into account how complicated the hatch is to open.

Wait a second. It's metal.

Heat melts metal into a liquid form.

I can create heat with my hands.

A plan D began to formulate in my mind.

"I think I have an idea. But you're not going to like it," I said, keeping my eyes set on the hatch.

"At this point, I'm open to any ideas you have in mind," Thalia said with a tired sigh, wiping the slick sweat off her forehead. "It's probably better than being crushed alive by a gigantic machine."

"Agreed," Zoe surprisingly said.

"Getting crushed by a giant foot is a painful way to go," Percy added. "Not as painful as some deaths, but it's pretty far up there."

"What kind of plan do you have in mind?" Bianca asked.

"I counted the number of seconds between each rise and fall of its feet, and it's about six seconds," I said. "If we can get inside the hatch within six seconds, we can sabotage the automaton from the inside out."

Thalia frowned. "So who's going into the hatch?"

"I'll go," Percy offered. "I've done the impossible before."

"To Hades you are!" Thalia said. "I've got more experience than you in this sort of thing. It's easy to see you've got a role to play in the future, Kelp Head. You and Annie."

"I'm a satyr," Grover said. "My job is to protect the demigods on the quest, and it's time I've done my job right."

"No, I will go. I have more experience than the both of thou. I have lived for thousands of years. With my heightened strength and agility, the task can be accomplished," Zoe said.

"What?! No! Zoe, you're the leader of this quest! You can't just go on a suicide mission like this! I'll go. I'm expendable," Bianca argued fiercely.

No. This is wrong. I will not sit here and play God, deciding who gets to live and who gets to die. I didn't just come here to prevent the war. I came here to prevent the deaths of my friends, the very same topic they are discussing right now.

I was about to speak up but something in the pile of junk next to us caught my eye. It was small, black, and carved delicately. I recognized the object almost immediately.

A feeling of dread flooded through me because there, sitting on top of a mound of gold, the Hades figurine shined eerily in the lighting.

I grabbed it and studied it, running my fingers along the intricate ridges of the molded plastic. How did this get here? Did the Fates leave it here on purpose? Is this where my sister picked it up last time? Probably. I'm surprised she didn't pick it up this time.

No, now it's my turn it would seem.

I stared at my friends, watching them argue. Is it so ironic that I found the figurine this time, Hades, the only piece of the set I was missing? I thought back to that fateful day when Percy handed me the figurine and broke the news. No, what was ironic was the figurine was of my father, the person I never knew I was missing from my life. I watched Bianca argue with my other friends, her face contorted in pain.

Bianca would've done better, my father's callous voice reverberated in my skull.

He was right. She would've done better, and she will do better. But I'm not doing this to prove him right. I'm not doing this for empty revenge on Percy. I'm not doing this for anyone but Bianca.

It's been for Bianca and it always will be for Bianca.

"No one is going into the hatch except me," I decided, interrupting the rapidly pacing argument. "I won't make the same mistake I made last time."

I won't let my sister die again.

Bianca's eyes were wider than saucers. "Absolutely not. I won't allow my younger brother to go inside a freaking murder machine just to be crushed to death! I have tolerated the craziness you've pulled already, but this is going too far! I will not lose you!"

"Bianca, I have been through two wars, the Labyrinth, and have survived Tartarus! I have done the impossible before and I can do it again. I will not risk the safety of the future! I'm going into that hatch. This is not up for negotiation," I I argued.

I'm bluffing of course. If the prototype of Talos killed Bianca, I have no doubt it will kill me too. But the difference is she won't have to die by the hands of Talos. At the end of the day, that's what matters most to me. Besides, Percy is the child of the prophecy, Thalia will be the new Lieutenant of Artemis, Zoe will lead them to Mt. Orthys, and Grover is meant to find Pan and become the Lord of the Wild.

I guess I won't be a part of that future and that's okay.

"And what about your time travel?" Percy asked. "Who's going to know how to fix the future?"

"I gave Annabeth the framework. She can make the blueprints," I answered. Of course, there are so many details to tell and so little time, but Annabeth is smart enough to find the missing pieces.

"But you're more valuable than us! You are prophesied to save the world! You're the Angel of the Fallen! Percy, Bianca, you, or I could complete the Great Prophecy given time, but only you can complete yours," Thalia said.

"That may be true, but the prophecy could very well have proclaimed Bianca the Angel of the Fallen. Both of our last names mean 'of the angels.' She could very well be the savior that will ultimately prevent the second Gigantomachy. Not me."

"You were given the prophecy," Percy retorted. "That has to mean something."

"Percy, just because you receive a prophecy does not always guarantee you will be the one to complete it," I said.

"But—"

I interrupted Bianca. "Bottom line, I have more experience than all of you, including Zoe. I will not sit here and watch one of my friends or my sister go into that killing machine. Not again. I am going and you will not stop me."

For days I have been worrying about how to prevent my sister's death. Now I finally know how. Fate has a funny way of circling things back. If there's one thing I've learned from this experience, you can't prevent your fate. You can either run and be forced to face it eventually, or you can face it with grace and the sense that you did some good in this world and now it's time to go.

I'm choosing the second option.

I turned to my older sister. "Bianca, live your life. Don't waste it on me. Don't let me hold you back. Show Olympus why they are wrong to think all children of Hades are evil." I enclosed the Hades figurine in her shaking hands and kissed her forehead. "I'll wait for you, sorella."

Everyone seemed to connect the dots pretty quick with what I was implying. The tension in the air thickened.

"Nico, I've met a lot of demigods with big hearts, but yours is definitely the biggest," Grover said.

Thalia smiled sadly. "Good luck, Demon Boy. If you die on us, I'm going to the Underworld to re-murder you myself."

"It is because of thou that I finally see not all men are evil," Zoe said. "The Hunters will honor thou through the centuries."

Percy places a hand on my shoulder. "Thank you."

I frowned. "For what?" If anyone should be saying thank you, it's me. Percy is one of the first people to accept me and believe me, after all.

Percy hugged me. "Everything."

I returned the hug, relishing the comfort of warmth before I would have to face the cold of the Underworld. I nodded to the others in farewell. "Thank you, guys. I won't forget you. Please tell Will and Annabeth I'm sorry."

I walked away and took out my knife, breathing in deep. But Bianca snatched my wrist and death gripped it. "Don't go." I have never heard her sound so desperate in my life.

I turned back to her as the tears streamed down my cheeks. I wiped her tears gently. "I'm sorry," I whispered. I looked Percy dead in the eye. "You want to make it up to me for letting her die last time? You hold her tight and don't let go. You understand?"

Percy's eyes widened in understanding. He wrapped his arms around Bianca, pulling her back. Startled, Bianca fought in Percy's grasp and she fought hard. "NICO!! NICO, DON'T GO!!" My sister screamed bloody murder. I had an inkling feeling this would be the last time she screamed my name. It took all of my will power not to run back to her and sob. If I were my naive 10 year old self, I wouldn't have even hesitated.

But we all have to grow and face the bitter truth some day.

I roughly wiped the tears flooding in my eyes and channeled my fury and pain into igniting my knife. Like a torch, the blade of my dagger glowed the eerie green of Greek Fire. Suddenly a piercing sound echoed in my skull, making me hold my head and wince in pain. The ringing.

I'm going to die.

That's okay. As long as no one else has to die, I know it won't be in vain.

The thought made me sprint faster toward the prototype of Talos.

I finally reached the automaton. I dodged and rolled away from its humongous feet, keeping the knife ignited long enough to reach the hatch. My sister's screams long since faded in the symphonies of the cacophonous ringing. I wish it didn't have to end this way. But it was either me or her. I won't allow my sister to die. Who knows, maybe Bianca will try to resurrect me and find Hazel instead.

At least they'll finally meet each other.

On the bright side, maybe I won't ever see the wildflowers again either. I almost scoffed at the thought. No, the wildflowers in the field will always haunt me whether I'm gone with them or not.

Talos lifted its feet and I rolled under, jabbing my knife into the bronze and melting the hot metal. I traced an outline of a hole big enough for me to fit through in the locked hatch door. Sweat dripped down my forehead from the hot liquid metal slowly sinking down my sleeve and the pressure of the small window of time. But within three seconds I was already more than halfway done.

I can make it.

With a hiss, the celestial bronze gave into the heat and I kicked the door, revealing a newly formed hole. In the midst of the moment, I completely forgot the sides were still hot with liquid metal as I used my left hand to get a good grip. I winced in pain and quickly recoiled, and with it, I dropped the dagger. I made a move to grab it, but before I could, Talos began dropping its foot. My mind weighed the options and deduced that my life is more important than my weapon. In a split second, I used my elbows to pull myself up and scrambled into the foot just as it dropped. Breathing heavily, I heard my dagger crunch under the pressure of the automaton and realized that could've been me.

Thankfully it wasn't.

I looked around, seeing I was in a compartment of some sort full of a tangle of wires and cords. The room was pitch black and dark, but I could see just fine. Without another second wasted, I slipped off my pack and grabbed the ambrosia and nectar. I shoved a few squares of ambrosia in my mouth and poured some nectar over the burn. I decided if I'm going to die, I'm going to go in the least painful way possible that could be done when you're in a gigantic murder machine.

I breathed a sigh of relief when the throbbing in my hand ceased and the swelling went down. I stared at my hand, mesmerized by the interesting light pink swirling pattern wrapping around my palm and fingers.

A scar to remember exactly how I died.

Lovely.

If scars hold painful memories, then I've got loads of those.

The symphony of the fallen crawled higher in pitch, borderlining unbearable. But it will never be as unbearable as that day of the war. I looked around, deciding what would be the most effective way to damage this thing and keeping in mind what Annabeth said before. The copper wires caught my eye.

I immediately ripped out the tangle closest to me and winced as a shock coursed through my body.

Electrocution.

That's how Bianca died last time, and that's how I will die this time.

Well, it's not the worst way to go.

I unrolled the sleeves of Percy's hoodie, figuring the fabric is better than coming into direct contact with the wires. Gods, I want nothing more than to snuggle in this thing and pretend this life I'm living doesn't exist. Still, I ripped out a bunch of wires and was satisfied to hear the creaks sounding from outside of automaton, a clear sign it's working. As I ripped out the wires, I gave myself a mini pep-talk.

I am going to die, I thought. It's going to hurt, but what matters is my friends and my sister won't get hurt.

That's all that matters.

But what about the war effort?

Annabeth has all the information she needs. All she needs to do is what she does best: making blueprints and making plans.

Can't I just rip a few more wires and shadow travel out? No. I have to see this through. I have to make sure this automaton goes down and doesn't hurt anyone else. Besides, what's the use? The ringing is a sure sign I won't make it out of this one.

Suddenly a loud rumbling sounded, vibrating the entire machine. The creaking of metal and popping of screws, on top of the rapidly increasing pitch of the ringing told me it's almost time to go.

But I don't want to go.

I'm afraid.

Maybe it's because the 10 year old part of me that never left is afraid, but it's more than that. I'm not afraid of death, I'm afraid of leaving the people I love behind. Bianca, Annabeth, Percy, Will, Thalia, even Grover and Zoe. I don't want to leave.

I don't want to leave my sister like she left me.

These thoughts running through my head… It makes me wonder if this is what Bianca thought when she was dying. A rush of anger overcame. Did she even think about how I might feel about her going into that stupid machine?

What about me? She saved them, but where did that leave me?

I had no one else. Was it because I pushed everyone away? Was it because I was already alone to begin with?

No, it doesn't matter anymore. What matters is I'm no longer alone, even as I left behind the very people whom I come to see as my family. Bianca will be okay. They'll support her and she'll let them. Not like me. She won't end up alone like I did.

I couldn't hold back the sob from escaping my lips. I have never wanted to hug Bianca as much as I do now, even when I first saw her back at Westover Hall after all of these years.

Well, it looks like I failed Hestia and all my friends back in the future after all. That's okay. I know Bianca, Annabeth, Percy, and Thalia won't fail them. I've left the heroes of the future in good hands.

The automaton creaked loudly, falling apart limb by limb. The ringing, if possible, increased in pitch until it no longer sounded like ringing. Just white noise silently listening from the background.

I hope Bianca finds Hazel. By the Gods I will come back as a ghost to tell Bianca myself if it means she'll meet Hazel and Reyna. I hope they all become good friends. Annabeth too.

Maybe Dad will accept Bianca. I hope he doesn't treat her the same way he treated me.

"I'm sorry." I wasn't sure who I was saying sorry to. At this point, probably everyone.

"Goodbye, Bia," I whispered. I hoped somehow Bianca could still hear the message. Who knows, maybe Hestia or some other God is passing it along for me. But I'm sure she already knows.

A pop sounded in the machine and the sound of something heavy crashing into humongous cables outside echoed in the metal chamber.

The power lines.

This is it.

This is where the tragedy unfolds.

No.

I have to try to shadow travel. I have to try for Bianca. I have to try for Hazel. I have to try for the sake of the future. I can't give up, not like this.

I tried to summon the shadows to my aid, but with each power line knocked over, a jolt shocked me. My body shook violently as the electricity coursed through me.

One more jolt and I'm gone.

I closed my eyes, simultaneously preparing for certain death and wrapping the shadows around me at the same time. It was so hard to focus with the shocks of electricity flowing through me. But I have to do this. I can't let Bianca go through the same thing I did. Her lighthouse won't go out if I can help it, and if it does, by the Gods I'm going to be there to help her through it.

I felt the automaton topple over once more and snag on the next power line.

One more jolt and I'm gone.

I closed my eyes and held out my shaking hand, concentrating all of my focus on getting the shadows to respond. They licked my skin, their cool touch the only thing keeping me from losing my sanity.

I thought back to the time Bianca and I used to sit in our hotel room back at the Lotus Hotel and Casino, watching funny movies and giggling while eating buttery popcorn. The memory of Hazel and I sitting on the roof of Pluto's temple, her smile more precious than any diamonds she can summon. The time Reyna, Hedge, and I traveled the world to deliver the Athena Parthenos, the smell of the breakfast Hedge made and the warmth of Reyna's cloak. The hug I shared with Percy and Annabeth and the promise they made among the stars. When Will and I climbed the tree, his bright eyes sparkling in a thousand shades of the bluest of skies. Yesterday when I confessed a secret more deadly than the Giants to my friends—my family.

These are the people I am fighting for. These people are the reason I fight not just for revenge, but for love. They are my family, and if I want to see them again, I have to step up to the plate once more.

With this newfound determination came the cooperation of the shadows. I snapped my fingers and let the shadows engulf me whole.

Black invaded my vision as the next jolt came.