"This is... nice," Thalia decided as she looked around the throne room that she stood in. Her blood was still pumping, and her heart was roaring in her ears. She let out a shaky breath and crossed her arms as she tried to calm down. It felt like she was going to go to war, but her surroundings told her that the war had long passed.
Thalia looked around the room. She expected the floor to be made of skeleton bones, and people being tortured would serve as the decorations. Hell, she expected a fountain of blood or two to be the centerpiece of the room. Instead, this almost looked like the room of a teenager.
The floor was made of black tiles, and a black carpet covered most of the floor. At the far end of the room was a throne that most likely belonged to Nico. That was something she had been expecting. And, she was not that surprised to see that there were skeletal heads impaled on spikes at the top of the throne.
Nico walked towards his throne and threw himself back onto it. The bottom popped out as the seat moved backward like a reclining chair. Across from the chair was a television that literally covered the entire wall. Every game console ever released was to the side, along with shelves full of movies. Did Nico get interested in the Underworld?
"I see you cleaned up around here," Bianca commented. Nico grunted and closed his eyes. He rested his head back as his entire body seemed to sag. Nico looked like he was about to pass out then and there.
Bianca studied her brother for a moment. She finally spoke softly, "Thank you."
Nico grunted again and didn't answer. A sigh left Bianca as she turned towards her remaining Hunters. A few of the Hunters had died as they appeared in the throne room. Bianca had said a blessing over each of their corpses, and Nico even muttered a word or two for each fallen one. The bodies were taken away, and all that was left now was the living.
Not that Thalia felt alive at that particular moment. She just felt numb. Tired. And her heart ached. From seeing Luke to watching Reyna be destroyed left her wanting to do nothing more than curl up into a small ball and just lay there forever. She didn't know whether to cry or scream.
Thalia slowly walked towards an empty space on the wall and sat down. She stared ahead and allowed a tired sigh to escape her. Piper walked towards her and studied her. Thalia kept eye contact for a moment before looking at the ground.
"How are you feeling?" Piper questioned.
"I don't know," Thalia answered after a few moments. "I stood up to Luke. I stabbed that bastard in his eye, but fuck. Fuck I wish it was his heart! And... Reyna. He destroyed her."
"She'll be back," Piper reassured. She slowly sat next to Thalia. "Reyna is one of Nico's Furies, which means she is a monster. She will reform."
"And how long will that take?" Thalia muttered bitterly. She brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs.
"I don't know," Piper admitted. "Normally, monsters take decades if not centuries to come back. Reyna's a little smarter than the average monster, so it shouldn't take her that long."
"Decades," Thalia repeated. She let out another tired sigh and buried her face in her knees. Her body ached in exhaustion, and all she wanted to do was sleep for the next five years. Thalia still wasn't sure about her exact feelings for Reyna, but that woman was like a drug. Thalia needed her.
"It won't take Reyna that long," Piper reassured again. She gently grabbed Thalia's arm, and Thalia slowly looked up. She was given a smile but didn't have the strength or will to smile back.
"Think she'll still want me when I'm an old woman?" Thalia muttered. She tried to smile, but she really just felt hollow inside. Bitter.
"You don't have to be an old woman," Piper began. Thalia shook her head.
"I should have known you were just going to approach me with your sales pitch," Thalia grumbled. She wanted to stand up and storm away, but she just didn't care enough. Most of her just wanted to lay down and give up. What was there really to live for anymore?
Her brother was dead. The one woman she had grown close to had been destroyed. A need for revenge against Luke just wasn't fueling her anymore. She had nothing left to give. And nothing left to do.
Besides killing Luke Castellan.
"I'm not trying to give you a sales pitch for anything," Piper said softly. "I just don't want you to make a mistake when you're wrapped up and consumed by grief."
"What if joining the Hunters of Artemis is a mistake," Thalia bit back. Piper looked away. "You're just trying to take advantage of me when I'm distracted and not thinking clearly."
"You can leave the Hunters anytime you want," Piper said. She sighed and shook her head. "I'm just trying to help you, Thalia. You deserve to be happy, and I'm worried about what you'll do after we destroy Luke."
Thalia remained silent. Truthfully, she just wanted Reyna. Whether it was for sex or just to be near her, Thalia didn't know. She just needed Reyna. Thalia laid her head back against the wall and closed her eyes. Her head was starting to ache.
"If you don't join, I'm still going to keep an eye on you," Piper promised. She settled in next to Thalia. "I am going to protect you. I promise that. Let me ask you this: what are you going to do after this?"
"I don't know," Thalia grumbled to herself. "Everything in my life has changed. Jason's dead, and I don't know what I'm going to do without him. Luke was most of my life before he stabbed me in the back and ruined my life. Reyna is the only one I've really gotten close to, but what am I going to do without her?"
"You two bonded through grief," Piper noted. Thalia nodded. "Can you promise me two things?"
"Depends on what they are," Thalia answered after a moment. She met Piper's eyes.
"The first one is easy," Piper said. "Just think about my offer. A life in the Hunters of Artemis guarantees you immortality. It will take time, but you will be happy."
"I'll only be happy when I see Jason again," Thalia rejected the thought. She grabbed the gun from her belt and examined it. "Maybe, I should kill Luke with the fifth bullet and then put the sixth one in my head. I'll be able to see Jason after that."
"Maybe not," Piper said softly. Thalia looked at her. "Nico has a hand in what happens to you after you die, and I think you've made him pretty mad. He might keep you from Jason as punishment."
"You're lying," Thalia challenged.
"I'm not," Piper promised. "Nico can hold a mean grudge, and I'm worried that he might ruin your afterlife as a punishment. If not for you, then it would be for Reyna disobeying him."
Thalia moved her eyes to look across the throne room. Nico was still lounging in his chair. He held a frown on his face, but other than that, he didn't move an inch. Thalia didn't get good vibes from him, and he did seem like the kind of asshole to enact such a harsh punishment. If Piper wasn't just trying to convince her to join the Hunters of Artemis.
"Even if you don't join, I want to stay in contact with you," Piper said. Thalia glanced at her and nodded her agreement. "As for the second promise, please don't fire the fifth bullet. Never fire that gun again. Please."
"What is so bad about firing the gun again?" Thalia questioned. Piper opened her mouth to answer, but a shadow appeared over them. Nico looked in between the two of them. He fixed Piper with a long and disapproving look, and she fell silent.
Thalia hadn't heard the man stand or move. It was like he had just appeared in front of them. Which was probably what he had done. Nico turned towards Bianca and spoke, "Are we going to finish this?"
Bianca looked at Nico. She was sitting with some of the Hunters of Artemis. Bianca moved her gaze to look around the throne room. She seemed to be counting how many people they had, which was only a few dozen. Bianca spoke, "Yes."
"Then, I'll be back. Get your plan ready," Nico said. He walked towards a door at the far end of the throne room. Thalia looked back at Piper.
"Where is he going?" Thalia questioned.
"I don't know," Piper answered as her eyebrows scrunched together. That made Thalia's decision easy. She stood and walked towards the door that Nico had gone through. "Thalia!"
Thalia ignored the protest and stepped into a large hallway. No, large didn't cover it. Thalia looked up and couldn't see the ceiling. It was either so high up that her eyes could not make it out, or there was no ceiling. On both of her sides, pillars stretched up and out of her view. The ground was made of gray stone that was covered by a red carpet.
Thalia saw Nico disappear into darkness at the end of the carpet. She quickly walked after him and stopped as she came to a large door. A hand was holding it open. Thalia froze as she saw Nico was watching her closely.
"You don't want to be here for this," Nico warned.
"You're bringing Reyna back," Thalia stated. She just knew it in her gut, because Nico needed Reyna. She was the only reason they had made progress against Luke. Well, it was because of Reyna and Thalia.
"I am," Nico confirmed. "It's not a pretty process. Just wait out here."
Thalia hesitated and then stepped away. She stared at the ground. Most of her wanted to follow behind Nico, but she also knew how lucky she was to not just be thrown back into the throne room. Thalia leaned against the wall and slowly sat against it.
"It shouldn't be long," Nico said. A sigh left him. "We're going to take the fight to Luke, and we are going to end this once and for all."
"I know," Thalia said. She hung her head and closed her eyes, trying to calm down. They would kick in Luke's front door, and then, they would kill him. Thalia tried to relax, and she felt her exhausted body give out on her. She was asleep before she even realized it.
"Wake up."
Thalia groaned softly as an annoying noise penetrated her sleep. She shifted slightly and felt something nudge her leg.
"Get up."
Thalia shifted once again and started to lift her head. Sleep lulled her head back to the ground. A foot nudged her side, and she winced.
"Will you wake the fuck up already?"
Thalia's eyes snapped open, and she lifted her head. She jumped to her feet and wrapped Reyna in a tight hug. A hiss of pain escaped the woman, and she stumbled back. Thalia held her close and didn't let go. Nico walked by them, and he had a disapproving look on his face. It disappeared as soon as they made eye contact.
"You're alive," Thalia said as she pulled away and studied Reyna's face. Reyna's face was pale, and her eyes were a mix of red and black. She still wore her leather jacket and jeans. There were no holes in her clothes, and it didn't look like she had been destroyed at all.
"Can you let go?" Reyna complained. "My body is still reforming."
"You feel pretty solid," Thalia mumbled into Reyna's hair. She smelled of smoke, which was the most wonderful smell that Thalia knew at the moment.
"Not on the inside," Reyna grumbled. Thalia pulled away and then kissed the woman gently. Reyna kissed her back, and Thalia ran a hand through her hair. Reyna pulled away slightly. "We need to make a plan."
"You need to rest," Thalia whispered as she reluctantly pulled away.
"She doesn't have time," Nico interrupted. "We need to make a plan now and move while Luke is backpedaling."
"He's right," Reyna agreed. "I heard what you did to Luke. Too bad you didn't finish the job."
"I would have been able to if you didn't get destroyed," Thalia retorted. She wanted to say more, but her voice died on her. She pulled Reyna into another hug, and the woman groaned in pain. "I'm ready to kill Luke."
"Same," Reyna said as she wrapped one arm around Thalia.
"We all are," Nico added. He started to walk back towards his throne room. Thalia followed behind, and when Reyna was slow to follow, she helped the woman walk. Nico glanced back at them and studied them. He smiled slightly. "Today, Luke Castellan dies."