Michael
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I rubbed my thumbs along twin rings I had on my fingers. Twin double sided sword staffs appeared in my hands. Beckendorf made them for me after he made Percy's sword. Named Freeze and Frost, they radiated cold like me.
Thalia went straight for Lace. The power of her shield was so great that his dragonwomen bodyguards fled in a panic, dropping the golden coffin and leaving him alone. But despite his sickly appearance, Lace was still quick with his sword. He snarled like a wild animal and counterattacked. When his sword met Thalia's shield, a ball of lightning erupted between them, frying the air with yellow tendrils of power.
Killian and I charged straight for Atlas.
He laughed as I approached. A huge javelin appeared in his hands. His silk suit melted into full Greek battle armor. "Go on, then!"
I swung Freeze at Atlas. He knocked it aside with his javelin but wasn't prepared for Frost to fly towards him. He stepped back to avoid being cut by Frost's blade.
I spun around, swinging both of my weapons at Atlas. He braced himself with his javelin. My sword staffs bounced off it and he pressed the attack. He fell backwards, dodging his swing. I rolled out of the way as he brought his javelin down on me, the earth rumbling as its tip pierced it.
Killian ran towards him, blasting flames, but the Titan seemed unbothered by them. He smacked Killian aside, sending him flying in a black wall. It wasn't Mist anymore. The palace was rising, brick by brick. It was becoming real.
"Fool!" Atlas screamed gleefully, swatting aside one of Zoe's arrows. "Did you think, simply because you were the child of a Titan, that you could stand up to me?"
I swung Freeze in his direction and a blade of ice raced toward him. He swung his javelin and broke it half mid stride.
He brought down his javelin like a sword and I thrust Freeze and First above me, making an X above me. The javelin clanged against them, making me grunt in pain. Atlas pushed, forcing me to one knee.
"Hey!" shouted Killian. He appeared on Atlas's back, wrapping his flaming arms around the Titan's neck.
"ARGH!" He bellowed, stumbling back. My arms fell to the ground, feeling like lead. Atlas grabbed Killian by his collar and pulled him off him. He threw him away like a discarded piece of clothing.
Lace and Thalia were fighting like demons, lightning crackling around them. The girl and Bianca were missing. I hoped Bianca had got her away from the carnage and they were taking cover.
Atlas had turned towards his daughter. Her arrows seemed to be finding the chinks in Atlas's armor, but it was only serving to enrage him.
I hefted Freeze and charged, leaving Frost behind. I ran the tip into the back of Atlas's knee, causing him to howl in rage and pain. He tried to swat at me but I rolled in between his legs. I thrust a hand towards his face and sent a spray of ice at him.
He stumbled back, rubbing his eyes. I swung one end of Freeze upwards, slicing through the front of his chestplate. He stepped back and swung his javelin at me. I tried to block but mid strike he changed tactics and swiped my legs out from under me.
My breath escaped me as my back hit the ground. My head hit the ground and my eyes went fuzzy. The sounds of battle was replaced by ringing.
I was vaguely aware of Atlas raising his javelin over me, ready to impale me, but he was suddenly knocked away by a silver blur.
Then I was being lifted up. I saw a face next to me that I recognized as Zoe's. She was yelling something but I couldn't hear her.
She pointed and I saw who had saved me. Artemis was a blur as she fought Atlas. She had two wicked hunting knives, each as long as her arm, and she slashed wildly at the Titan, dodging and leaping with unbelievable grace.
Thalia and Lace went spear on sword, lightning still flashing around them. Thalia pressed Lace back with the aura of her shield. Even he was not immune to it. He retreated, wincing and growling in frustration.
"Yield!" Thalia yelled. "You never could beat me, Lace."
He bared his teeth. "Well see, my old friend."
And over by the sky...It was Killian. He was holding the weight of the sky on his back. Sweat was pouring down his face. His entire frame shuddered.
I didn't have time to be amazed or terrified. Zoe pushed my out of the way as Artemis ran past us, Atlas hot on her tail.
She was fast, but his strength was unstoppable. His javelin slammed into the earth where Artemis had been a split second before, and a fissure opened in the rocks. He leaped over it and kept pursuing her. She was leading him back toward Killian.
"You fight well for a girl." Atlas laughed. "But you are no match for me."
He feinted with the tip of his javelin and Artemis dodged. I saw the trick coming. Atlas's javelin swept around and knocked Artemis's legs off the ground. She fell, and Atlas brought up his javelin tip for the kill.
"No!" Zoe screamed. She leaped between her father and Artemis and shot an arrow straight into the Titan's forehead, where it lodged like a unicorn's horn. Atlas bellowed in rage. He swept aside his daughter with the back of his hand, sending her flying into the black rocks.
I wanted to shout her name, run to her aid, but I was distracted. I looked over and saw Killian, pushing himself up. His face was scrunched up in pain as he got one foot on the ground. He pushed upwards, managing to get both feet under him. He screamed in effort, pushing the sky higher than it had been in eons.
"The first blood in a new war," Atlas gloated over Artemis. He stabbed downward.
As fast as thought, Artemis grabbed his javelin shaft. It hit the earth right next to her and she pulled backward, using the javelin like a lever, kicking the Titan Lord and sending him flying over her. I thrust a hand out, spraying a sheet of ice over the ground to make sure he didn't catch himself as he flew towards Killian.
Atlas slammed into Killian, knocking the kid out of the way. The ground cracked underneath Atlas as the sky fell on him, almost smashing him flat until he managed to get to his knees, struggling to get out from under the crushing weight of the sky. But it was too late.
"Noooooo!" He bellowed so hard it shook the mountain. "Not again!"
Atlas was trapped under his old burden. I tried to stand and fell back again, dazed from pain. My body felt like it was burning up.
Thalia backed Lace to the edge of a cliff, but still they fought on, next to the golden coffin. Thalia had tears in her eyes. Lace had a bloody slash across his chest and his pale face glistened with sweat.
He lunged at Thalia and she slammed him with her shield. Lace's sword spun out of his hands and clattered to the rocks. Thalia put her spear point to his throat.
For a moment, there was silence.
"Well?" Lace asked. He tried to hide it, but I could hear fear in his voice.
Thalia trembled with fury.
"You're a traitor!" she roared. "A traitor!"
"I'm just like Luke, right?" he shouted at her. "Just what you wanted!"
Thalia snapped. She pulled back her spear, crackling with electricity.
Lace anticipated the thrust. He dodged ever so slightly, but Thalia didn't let up. She kept stabbing, her attacks becoming faster and faster, until Lace couldn't dodge.
Her spear found the son of Hermes's ribcage. He stared at her.
"Tha-" He choked as his own blood bubbled in his throat.
Thalia screamed one last time. And with it came a large bolt of lightning. It struck the daughter of Zeus head on, but she just channeled it into her spear. It was so bright that I had to look away.
I heard Lace scream in pain.
The light suddenly died away. I opened my eyes and nearly doubled over.
Lace was dead. No doubt about that. His body was a husk of what it once was, burned to an absolute crisp. Steam rose from the barely recognizable corpse.
Thalia stepped back. She dropped her spear. Then she fell to her knees and retched.
I started to make my way towards her but a groan grabbed my attention. I had forgotten about Killian!
I ran to where the kid was laying, passing Atlas screaming curses at us. I knelt next to him and put his head in my lap. There was a streak of gray in his brown hair. Probably from holding the sky.
He groaned again and opened his eyes.
"Michael?" he breathed.
I was so relieved I forgot how to speak english. "Sí, soy yo, Killian."
"Am I...am I dead?"
I shook my head. "No, Killian. You're alive. You were the reason we won. You freed Lady Artemis."
"Oh. Good." He closed his eyes. "Everything hurts."
"I'm not surprised."
I looked up in surprise to see Bianca and the other girl standing behind me. Bianca led the girl over and kneeled down next to me.
Artemis and Zoe suddenly appeared on his other side. Zoe was leaning heavily on Artemis, but she seemed to be alive.
"Come," Artemis urged. "We must go."
She raised her hunting horn to her lips, and its clear sound echoed down the valleys of Marin.
The moonlight brightened, and a silver chariot appeared from the sky, drawn by the most beautiful deer I had ever seen. It landed right next to us.
"Get in," Artemis said.
Thalia limped over. I helped her get in, then Bianca. Zoe pulled the other girl in, then I hoisted Killian to his feet.
"World spinning," he moaned.
I laughed. "Yeah, just wait."
We got in and Artemis pulled the reins and the chariot sped away from the mountain, straight into the air.
"Like Santa Claus's sleigh," the girl murmured.
Artemis took time to look back at me. "Indeed, young half-blood. And where do you think that legend came from?"
Behind us, the army of Kronos roared in anger as they gathered on the summit of Mount Tamalpais, but the loudest sound was the voice of Atlas, bellowing curses against the gods as he struggled under the weight of the sky.
