Most of my comments will be at the end of the chapter, for a change. But in case anyone was wondering, chapter six is where the info about Pam's brother being at a friend's appears. A long way away, I know.
Disclaimer: I don't own Class of the Titans. If I did, there would definitely be some missions where the ending may be good, in the sense that the world has been saved, but not sweet. I mean, they're only human. Not everything can end well.
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Breaking and Beginning
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"Neil!" Odie's voice was like gunfire in the silent hall.
The blonde flinched quite visibly and whirled on a heel. "What?" he asked. "Do you want to spray me with that," he gestured to the fire extinguisher, "too?" His voice was hard, angry. As Odie and Archie drew closer, the thinker noticed the shadows under his eyes.
"No. We're all on the same side." At Archie's slightly skeptical look, he added a quiet, "Aren't we?"
"Well I thought so," Neil huffed. He was halfway toward a pout, an expression that both Odie and Archie hardly expected at a time like this. "I've been through enough tonight and it would be nice if I didn't have to worry about you two, too."
Archie swelled in his seat. "You've had a rough night? You haven't even been here! What could possibly be worse than fighting an army of statues that resemble your friends," he paused, remembering who had been chasing the blonde, "and yourself?" To the warrior, nothing short of Chronus himself could top what he, Odie and the others had endured.
Neil shot Archie a look that the warrior couldn't immediately place. "Do you know where the others are? I don't have my PMR, as you can see."
"The other you might know," Odie said, indicating his own communicator which he had muted to allow for their conversation. "Question is, should we play along?" The thinker had a few doubts, thinking how all the occasions with switching sides had hit an unforeseen snag; his own enduring friends foiling his Trojan Horse scheme, the statue Neils being exposed before they could fully tear the team apart. He wondered if the third time really would be the charm.
Archie didn't wait for a debate to take place. He snatched the PMR out of Odie's hand, forgetting that he had his own, and pressed a button. "Neil? Archie. Where have you been?" He sounded quite convincing with a slight touch of worry under all his manly annoyance. "And more importantly, do you know where the others are?"
"Yeah, chill out. I haven't exactly been off on vacation." The small image turned in profile as if looking at something off screen. "Oh boy. This isn't good. We're by the gym and there are two people who look like Theresa." He frowned. "Jay's in trouble."
"We're on our way." The warrior tossed the device back to Odie, who swiftly pocketed it. "Well, you heard him. To the gym." He gestured dramatically down the hall, his usual confidence back in order.
Odie grabbed Neil and pulled him behind the chair. "It's your turn to push," he said with an innocent smile.
--
"So, Jay, who will it be?" Chronus watched in delight as both fighters protested their innocence and validity. "Will you trust your prophecy in the hands of a possible imposter, or will you simply outcast both of them and be only five?"
Neil coughed. "Ahem, six," he called. The blonde had arrived soon after making contact with Theresa and had since assured the team that their missing members would be joining them shortly.
"Seven," one Theresa growled, the one who had appeared behind Jay. "I'm not going to let some statue stand in the way of vanquishing you, Chronus." She took a few steps closer to Jay and Pam, who were still sprawled on the floor. The Titan eyed her but didn't move, intent on keeping at least one of the two at bay with his scythe. "You believe me, don't you, Jay?" she pleaded with the leader.
The second fighter laughed bitterly. "As if. Jay knows who his friends are, and you aren't one of them." She looked ready to take Chronus on in spite of his weapon or immortality.
Jay, for his part, was beginning to feel the first worries of confusion and doubt nag at him. Since they had been split up, the only one he really could trust was Atlanta. But this bothered him. He had gone through so much with his friends, it felt strange to suspect any of them as being anything other than sworn against the end of the world. He shook his head, hoping to clear his thoughts. Who was he going to trust?
"I can see you're having some trouble, dear boy." Chronus chuckled. "And something tells me you're about to have a little more." And right on cue, the whir of wheels heralded the appearance of the missing heroes – and another Neil.
"Why can't things ever be easy?" Herry lamented. "We must have fought close to fifty Neils, but there's always at least one more." He made a show of rolling up his sleeves and getting ready to shoulder check the newcomer.
Odie pulled up short, hands shooting into the air to wave a warning. "Wait! This is the real Neil. He was being chased by a fake Archie when we ran into him."
"Yeah," Archie said, pulling himself to his feet with a grunt. "I wouldn't chase anyone except the enemy. And the enemy to a copy would have to be the real thing." He drew out his whip, extending it with a snap. "So, clone Neil? I'd get running if I were you."
The other heroes froze. "Do we trust them?" Atlanta asked, looking to Jay. "They could be copies, too."
"I did make statues of them," Pam admitted. "I don't know what happened to them after they were animated, either."
For a moment, Jay was as uncertain as his team. Chronus certainly had done his best to sow the seeds of distrust and suspicion. He wasn't sure which Theresa was the real one – if one of them was even the real one – let alone if an entire group was who they claimed to be. He rose to his feet grimly, weighing his options. He was the leader, and he was the one who ultimately had to figure things out.
"Atlanta," he called. "Do you trust me?"
"Of course. Why wouldn't I?" She allowed herself a small, wry grin. "Even if you had me wondering with that Chemistry business."
"But what if I was a statue?"
She fell silent. Everyone was silent, staring at him. Then, the Theresa behind him spoke. "But you aren't a statue. You can't be." She drew back slightly, confused and worried.
The descendent of Jason smiled, glancing over his shoulder at her. "You aren't the real Theresa," he said. "She has every right to doubt me, since I'm just as likely to be a fake. But since you took me to be real, someone had to tell you that I was." His expression hardened. "I'm guessing that person is Chronus."
"So does that mean you think I'm a statue?" the fully clothed Neil asked. "Even though I have the PMR and I brought the rest of the team here? I could've sent them in the wrong direction, or tried to betray you in another way."
It was Odie's turn to apply logic. "But that would have tipped your hand and we would have known you were a fake. My guess is you wanted us to turn on the real Neil." He frowned. "But why?"
"Yes, Galen," Pam echoed. "Why?" She stood just behind Jay, emotion playing across her face. "You were just supposed to keep him occupied for a little while as Chronus attacked the other six, not hurt him."
Chronus chuckled. "But your sentiment goes against my designs, so I gave him new orders. Like I said, he's mine now."
Galen spread his hands slowly. "It seems I've been discovered. There isn't really anything else I can do, is there?" He met Archie's gaze. "Are you going to melt me, then, like you did all the others?"
"Yeah, sure." Archie grabbed the fire extinguisher from where it rested on the chair and pointed it. "Good riddance," he said and squeezed the trigger. It make a low hissing sound and dribbled some wet foam, then fell silent.
"Empty?" Galen asked, mildly amused. "How lucky for me." And then he turned and ran. Neil took off after him without a word. The other heroes, momentarily stunned, could only watch the spectacle of the model chasing himself into the dark gymnasium.
Odie quickly regathered his thoughts. "We need to help him," he shouted, pushing the chair forward suddenly, scooping Archie up. "If Galen, or whoever, escapes, he might try all of this again." The thinker struggled to build up speed, grabbing at Herry and Theresa as he passed them. Atlanta quickly fell into step beside him, helping to push.
"Go!" Jay shouted. "We're right behind you." He whirled and reached for the statue Theresa, pulling her toward him. She hardly resisted, her function exposed and nullified. The leader pushed her into Chronus and used the distraction to skirt the drawn weapon, pulling the sculptor after him.
Chronus spared no time simply vaporizing the offending copy. He watched the retreating heroes for a moment, vanishing his weapon. "That's right," he murmured. "Chase your friend." He strolled leisurely after them.
--
As soon as they were in the gym, Neil twisted the lock on the double doors until he was sure they wouldn't be interrupted. He turned to the scan the dim interior and jumped when he found Galen a lot closer than he had expected. The tall windows behind his double showed signs of light and pink. It was almost dawn.
"So," Neil started, uncomfortable and very aware of how he was dressed. "Did you lie to me the whole time? Was everything just part of Chronus' plan?" He wanted to ask if the night they had spent together was just as fake as Galen was, but the words got stuck in his throat. "Did you mean it when you said you loved me?" he managed to choke out.
Galen observed him silently for a moment, completely impassive. He drew closer, bringing his face within inches of Neil's. "Do you think I love you?" he asked. "Or do you believe that I'm just a pawn in all of this, a puppet of a guy in a bad suit?"
Struck by a bout of initiative, Neil closed the gap and kissed Galen, only pulling away with a small squeak when the muffled voices of his friends could be heard behind the door. "I think you do," he said quietly. "You did too much to just consider it a job."
"Well then," the double smiled. "I suppose, in the face of so much trust, I have no choice but to reform. Love, as they say, conquers all. Right?" Galen grabbed Neil's wrist and pulled him away from the door, leading the blonde to the opposite wall. "Unfortunately," he said, "I'm not really you. I don't have your sense of morals, or romance."
"So learn them," Neil protested. "Maybe the good gods can make you real. I'm sure Aphrodite would help, if you apologized for kidnapping me." The goddess had to see reason, she had to. She couldn't be a proper mentor if she wouldn't do what was in the best interest of her student.
Galen simply smiled, drawing his hand up to cup Neil's cheek. He ducked his head in close and kissed the blonde as the other heroes began pounding on the door. Neil didn't hear it. He sighed softly as the kiss deepened, believing for a moment that everything would work out like a dream. But then he realized his dreams had been nothing but nightmares lately. And reality intruded.
Where usually they would break apart, the model flushed and panting, the double sly and amused, the kiss continued. Neil's chest began to burn slightly and he tried to breathe through his nose to relieve his hungry lungs. He choked slightly, his hands reflexively pushing against Galen's shoulders. Still, Galen's lips pressed on, cold and unrelenting. The burning increased, Neil's lungs beginning to starve. The kiss shifted slightly and his nose was crushed, sealing it. He couldn't breathe.
--
On the other side of the door, the heroes were being balked by a simple locked door. Archie cursed under his breath, frustrated that something so simple was standing in their way. Jay and Odie studied it, trying to fathom if it could be opened any other way. Atlanta and Theresa hovered in the back, watching Chronus slowly walk toward them.
"You'd better hurry," the Titan called, stopping a safe distance away. "Both of them are emotionally unstable. There's no telling what might happen."
Pam glared at him. "What did you do to Galen?" she demanded. "He would never do something like this on his own."
Chronus shrugged offhandedly. "Are you so sure? It seems to me that you've done quite a bit yourself."
Jay had heard enough. He backed the group a few steps back and clapped Herry on the shoulder. "Open the door, Herry," he said. "We don't have time to waste."
--
Distantly, Neil registered a shout and a bang, the sounds of Herry putting his superhuman strength to work on doors not meant for that kind of punishment. Heroes spilled in, pulling up short as the registered what was happening. Theresa stifled a gasp and Atlanta politely averted her eyes. Jay quickly cast about for something he could use as a weapon. It was obvious to him that Neil was not enjoying the situation.
Odie, however, was preoccupied with something else. He had seen Neil making out with Neil, so it was nothing terribly surprising. Quickly, he checked his watch. "This can't be right," he said, mostly to himself. "Outside it's almost dawn, but we haven't been here that long. It's only nine o'clock."
"Chronus can control time," Jay said, dismissing it. He was more concerned with his friend who was about to be smothered. "Anyone have any ideas?"
"Just one." Archie's whip sang through the air, cutting deep into Galen's shoulder. A chunk was ripped out, the grey clay being exposed beneath the flesh color of the surface. Galen's head jerked back and Neil staggered back, coughing and gasping almost frantically. His mouth was bruised where he had been kissed.
Pam seemed to be in shock. "But-But I'm the one who made you," she yelled. "I'm the one who loves you. You're supposed to be my true love, like Galatea and Pygmalion."
"You're also the one who made me into a copy," Galen said bitterly. "First I was to be your little brother, because you were lonely. But then your parents managed to conceive, so you turned me into your best friend." He bent down to retrieve his missing piece. "When you hit puberty, though, that wasn't enough. You wanted me to love you." His face twisted in a sneer and he grabbed Neil's wrist, the blonde too weak to resist. "You made me look like him, because you always sort of liked him. And then you made me act like him, when you and Chronus made your deal. You erased everything I was, so how could I love you?"
"You were going to be real," the sculptor said. "Chronus was going to make you real." She seemed to be trying to convince herself as well as Galen that her actions had been justified. "I thought that was what you wanted."
The statue rolled his eyes. "It was what you wanted. Chronus wasn't going to make me real until I had been stripped of my identity and sent to love someone else. I did love you, Pam, as much as I was able to. But when you sent me away, made me a pawn, I stopped." Galen wrapped a hand around Neil's throat and started to squeeze. "So it's only fair that I get rid of the root of the problem."
Jay was quick to grab the whip from Archie's hand and send it sailing toward the pair, aiming to sever Galen's hand and draw them apart. By some ill twist of fate, the cord wrapped itself diagonally around the statue's torso. The leader froze, keeping his hand completely still so as not to pull the line tight. A portal opened beside the blondes, and Chronus emerged.
"I see I'm just in time for the climax," he said, grinning. He rested a hand gently on Galen's shoulder. "Pam? I've decided to be generous. You've done more than I could have asked for." Chronus pulled a flashing bit of gold from his pocket, holding it up to catch the slowly growing light. "So I think I'll grant you your reward after all."
There was no flash or sign of magic, but the shirt over Galen's shoulder where the chunk had been torn blossomed in red. He inhaled sharply in pain, glancing down at the spot of blood. "I don't want to be real," he said sharply.
"But then how would the lady ever learn?" the Titan asked. "And I certainly can't let my careful plans end here." With a laugh, Chronus shoved Galen sharply, causing him to stumble. The Hephaestus cord tightened, slicing through fabric and flesh in a smooth motion, even as Jay dropped the other end.
Neil stared in horror, watching himself slide to the floor in two pieces. The dawn light seemed suddenly incredibly bright and his head swam. Someone screamed. He lost sight of his friends in the glow, and even the god, standing next to him. As his own legs buckled beneath him, and as Chronus' gloating laugh crowded in his ears, Neil could only think, I don't want to remember this and wish that Galen's beauty had been more than skin deep.
A light, feminine voice greeted his thoughts. "You don't want to remember?" it asked. "Why, that's my specialty." She laughed, a sound like the tinkling of bells. "I'll gladly take away your pain, good-looking." The light surged, pushing away any response Neil might have tried to make. His fatigue overwhelmed him and he slipped into unconsciousness, listening to a laugh like bells.
Fin.
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That's right, the end. But as you can see, this is all according to Chronus' master plan.
Before you all scream in outrage, I have already begun planning the sequel which will show you who the owner of the voice is, among many other things. And it should focus more on the other characters, so if you're hoping to see pairings like JayxTheresa, or ArchiexAtlanta, you just might. With further luck, it'll be a bit better written. I'm looking forward to it.
Thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story. You've been inspirational and kept me on a semi-regular update schedule, for which I'm thankful. I hope to see many of you at the continuation. Thanks for sticking with me. I hope you've enjoyed the story.
(Incidental Note: The ester having just a hint of pineapple actually makes it worse than if it just smelled bad. Horrible chemical smells you can ignore, given time. Smells that you're familiar with, you tend to try and inhale, leading to a big noseful of ick.)