AN:

I really like this chapter. Like a lot. It's kind of dark, but really good, I think. Now I know I kept you guys waiting so go ahead and read on, I'll catch you at the end. Here's chapter 6 of "All That's Left"

XxXxX

"Funny that you of all people would be asking that question, brother."

By the time Hazel turned around, Percy had already drawn his pistol, aiming it at their surprise guest. To the man's credit, he didn't seem fazed in the slightest staring down death itself. His cold blue eyes were narrowed in challenge, and a vicious pale scar stood ugly yet proud on his face. His mouth was upturned in a sneer, seemingly amused by the notion that Percy would even consider shooting him.

The new arrival gave off a strange aura, even from across the room. He looked ordinary enough despite his maniacal grin, but something about him just seemed off. There was a weird force clinging to him, a vibe that screamed 'I'm not quite all there'. It was markedly unnerving to say the least. Just the chill that he sent racing through her veins was evidence enough to confirm her suspicions. She didn't need anyone to spell it out for her, she knew exactly who this was.

"You're Luke Castellan, aren't you?" Hazel spoke confidently. It wasn't a question in the slightest.

He smiled a cheshire cat smile, his teeth columns of marble glinting in the dim light. Heavy bootsteps reverberated through the empty lab as he took a few steps closer. Each footfall was slow and methodical, his gait uncannily even and smooth. Everything about him was so uniform. So sculpted. He seemed almost… Robotic.

"Not a single step closer." Percy warned, pulling back on the hammer of his pistol. The soft click was vividly audible in the quiet room.

"Oh, I wouldn't dream of it." Luke grinned, raising his hands in mock surrender as he came to a halt. "I'm not here for a fight. I just came to see who had taken such an interest in my work, only to find you of all people. Scurrying through my basement like a lowly rat."

His words started friendly enough, but quickly devolved into a snarl as he spoke. He was almost foaming at the mouth, face red as he addressed the two intruders. Hazel blinked. It shouldn't have come as a shock to her that the man running the secret human testing lab was going to be mentally unstable.

"Yeah, some operation you've got going on down here." Percy commented drily. "Just what the hell is going on here? Where the fuck is everyone? And what in god's name is project Genesis?"

Luke laughed at his words. It was a low and guttural sound, one that grated against Hazel's ears.

"So, it's true then?" Luke said, sobering up quickly. His voice seemed filled with wonder now. "You truly don't remember? You see Percy, you and me, we were the start of all of this. Before anything else, before anyone else, we are project Genesis."

Hazel's eyes flickered from Luke's face to Percy's, searching her friend's features for any reaction. All she saw there was confusion and pain. No recollection, no sudden realization, no sign he had any idea what this madman was on about. All she found was pure unfettered bewilderment at what he was hearing.

"There is no we." Percy protested. "I'm not your brother. I don't even know you. You're just some sick fuck who's been kidnapping innocent people."

"Nobody is innocent!" Luke shouted, his voice a thunderclap through the calm room. "Everyone is criminal. Unjust. Impure. They all require cleansing. You believed that once. Come home Percy, you can believe it again. You can be… Re-enlightened."

"Percy…" Hazel said nervously, golden eyes dancing over his face.

Her friend looked far from convinced by Luke's words, but his eyes radiated pain. He seemed at war with himself, wrestling with his own mind. It was as if his brain was attacking him from within, and it was causing his eyes to glaze over. He may not remember whatever Luke was hoping he would, but it was having a very dangerous effect nonetheless. Percy was losing focus.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Percy muttered, pressing his off hand to his temple. His voice was wobbly. He sounded unsure of just about anything at this point. "But I know that I'm going to stop whatever you're planning, save everyone you've taken, and then when I'm all finished, I'm putting you in the ground."

"That's the thing Percy. You can't stop me." Luke said cheerfully, apparently unthreatened. "You don't even know what it is you're trying to stop! You don't even realize the magnitude of what you face! You don't even know who you are! You're a soldier with no war. A dog with no leash. A boat with no sail. You have no direction! You're scrambling and flailing for purchase, dragging yourself and your friend here to damnation in your endless pursuit of something you've never truly known. But you won't find it, will you? Instead, all you're going to find is the truth."

"Which is?" Hazel questioned, trying to squeeze something out of the raving lunatic.

"That he's no different than me. He and I are cut from the same cloth. Forever linked. We're the first of many. The backbone of the very project Genesis you want so desperately to stop. And the best part is? He doesn't even realize it."

"You don't know me." Percy hissed; his knuckles white around his gun. Luke laughed; a full belly guffaw directed right at Percy.

"Maybe so..." Luke finally responded. "But I do know one thing for certain. If you keep interfering with my operations, you'll soon be no different than Sally Jackson."

Hazel stiffened. She knew for certain that mentioning Sally Jackson was something only done lightly around Percy, and it seemed Luke knew it too. His smile was broad and maniacal, reveling in the lavish delight he was taking in taunting her friend. It was clear he was trying to goad a response, and one glance told her it had worked.

Stiff posture, a vein extruding from his neck, and eyes flaming with anger, it was Percy had heard enough. He completely lost control. His face bubbled over in rage, and his finger constricted around the cold trigger of his gun. With a scream, he unleashed a flurry of gunfire, not even hesitating to ponder the repercussions of killing their biggest lead. The bullets crackled from his pistol, whizzing towards Luke with the promise of death written on each shell casing.

Across the room, the bullets almost reached the sandy haired man, but were stopped dead in their tracks. They took turns bouncing off some invisible wall as if it were a divine shield. Each time the bullet neared Luke, a shockwave of blue would erupt in the air like ripples in a puddle, warding off the projectiles. The pointed metal dropped harmlessly to the ground, ringing as gently as sleigh bells. Behind his shield, Luke frowned, a displeased glint in his eyes.

"What the?" Percy breathed out; eyes trained on the barrel of his own gun. His eyes were furrowed in confusion.

"An unwise decision." Luke muttered, shaking his head as he started pacing back and forth behind his incorporeal wall. "You know, I was going to let you go. The idea of watching you desperately scramble to figure things out, to figure me out, to figure out what my plan was? It was too amusing to pass up. But now? I can't let your unchecked aggression go unpunished."

His pacing stopped. His back was to them, but even from afar his muscles were clearly tensed, ready for action. The hairs on the back of Hazel's neck stood up, all pointing away from the man across the room. The far wall seemed to have a gravitational pull of its own, yelling 'Get away now!' as she waited for whatever came next.

"Percy, I don't really like where this is going." Hazel murmured, taking a few subtle steps back.

Percy opened his mouth to respond, but he was cut off by a flicker of motion. Faster than the eye could follow, Luke drew a gun of his own, seemingly drawing it from thin air. They sprang into action, but there wasn't time to get behind cover. There was a bright muzzle flash and then the sound of a loud bang. The trademark whistle of a bullet slicing through the air permeated the room, and then silence.

In slow motion, she turned to her left, hoping with all of her that Percy wasn't hit. Relief washed over her when she saw he was fine. That was until she saw the look on his face. He was screaming, face raw with emotion, and now that she could see it, she could hear him too. He sounded muffled and quiet, like he was yelling at her from an island while she was out at sea. Why was he so far away?

Her legs crumpled underneath her. She tumbled to the ground, collapsing into a heap. Why was she so weak? She took a breath. The air came in slow and heavy, as if she was breathing in porridge. Why was it so hard to breathe?

"You have two options. Chase after me or clean up my mess." She heard someone say. It had to be Luke, right? His voice was garbled, almost as if she was hearing it through a cup on a string, all with her head ducked under water. It was a strange sensation.

In another moment, she felt someone at her side. Was it Percy? Her vision was too blurry to make him out. Why couldn't she see? Why was he with her? Why wasn't he going after Luke?

She blinked and blinked and focused until she couldn't anymore, fighting against the fugue state that had suddenly befallen her. Her vision started to clear, and she saw Percy's face looming over hers. His eyes were wet. Why were his eyes wet?

Her chest was starting to hurt. Why did her chest hurt? Why did her chest feel wet now too? She felt like she was drowning. Her vision was fading. Everything sounded so quiet now. The world was the water's surface, and Percy's face was the sun slowly disappearing as she sunk into the murky depths.

She felt a sharp pain in her chest, right where her heart should be, then she heard another throaty scream. Was that her name? Why was he yelling her name? Then the yelling stopped, and she missed it. It was so quiet. And now it was so dark. Where did he go? Where did anything go? Why was the world so dark? Why was the world so dark? Why was the world so…?

XxXxX

Darkness. Complete and utter black. It was an odd feeling, waking up and not seeing. Every day of everybody's life, every time someone returns from the realm of unconsciousness, they start by opening their eyes. It was just the way of things. Not this time.

Silence. There was always something. Some noise. Even in the quietest library, the most abandoned building, the most remote forest, there was a sound. Even in silence there was noise, a piercing ringing in your ears. It had never before been so muffled. There had never been such an isolating silence. Not until this time.

Numbness. A complete lack of control, of sensation, of feeling. The average man takes for granted how blessed he is to feel. To touch. To taste the kiss of the air on his skin. To relish in the sensation of blood running through his veins. It's hard to miss the ability to feel, it was always there after all. Not this time.

This lonely damnation was the prison Hazel found herself in when she woke up. She had no sensations, no senses, no form. There was nothing. She felt like a consciousness floating through space. Nothing was tangible. She was just a presence gliding across an empty void. A stream of thoughts attached to nothingness. A picture on the wall observing the passage of time. It was terrifying to say the least, and lasted for what seemed like an eternity.

The first thing that came to her was a smell. It was faint, but there. A notable improvement to the abysmal nothingness of just moments ago. Her mind pulled at the smell, tugging it to her ravenously. It was subtle, but it smelled like… Like air. Like clean air and cotton balls and too many cleaning supplies. She bathed in it, absorbing the sensation, able to relish in something, for the first time since her awakening.

Her hearing returned next. It faded back with a sharp beep, punctuated by another moment of agonizing silence, before another beep took its place. The periodic beeping filled her mind. She counted each and every beep, each one following the previous like clockwork. The noise drilled into her consciousness, but it didn't matter. It was noise.

After the hearing, the numbness faded. For a moment, she almost exploded with joy, but then she started to truly feel. She could feel everything. The bed beneath her, the air on her skin, the tube in her nose. Worse, she could feel every groaning pain in her body, and there were plenty, but she couldn't do anything. Her chest in particular was engulfed in white hot flames of excruciation. She wanted to curl up in a ball and hide from the sensations that were plaguing her so recently numb body, but that was the other problem. She could feel, but she couldn't move.

She tried to open her eyes, but even that was impossible. Confusedly, she wondered if someone had replaced her eyelids with anvils. Her entire body seemed to be filled with lead. She'd escaped her isolation in the endless abyss only to find herself somewhere equally painful and imprisoning. The world was so tantalizingly close now, but she couldn't open her eyes and see it. She couldn't spread her arms and embrace her return to the land of the living.

She could feel her heart pounding in her ribs as her stress rose. The beat was getting faster. More violent. A tribal drumbeat echoing through the valley of her chest. Distantly, the methodic beeping that had become her background noise picked up its own pace, racing closely with her heartrate as it climbed in frequency. The beeping must have garnered attention, because she felt the bed dip beside her. Carefully, a large calloused hand swallowed hers, clutching it gently like an injured bird.

"Will, I think she's waking up." She heard a voice say. She knew that voice. Where did she know that voice?

The dip in the bed disappeared, and the hand around hers with it. Her fingers fell limply back to the bedsheets. A new pair of hands, different than the first, ghosted over her palm for a moment, before fading away. In the span of a second, she felt the same fingers lower softly onto her eye. They rested there for a moment before they started to pull, and then like a switch was flipped she saw the light.

It was blinding. A single point of light on the horizon resembling a distant star had quickly transformed into a blaring headlight aimed straight for her retinas. Her eyes seared, watering under the intense brightness. She had to get away, had to hide from the intense light. She forced her eyes shut. It hit her faster than a speeding bullet. She forced her eyes shut. She moved them. She moved.

"Yeah, she's definitely waking up." Came a second voice.

This voice was different from the first. Light, airy, smooth, nothing like the deep voice she'd heard before. It was a singer's voice through and through. One you'd hear on the radio or blasting from the speakers as you sang along in the shower.

"Hazel." The first voice was back again. "Hazel open your eyes. Talk. Something. Let us know you're there."

He was pleading. Desperate for her to respond. By now, she'd recognized the voice. It was the voice that had been in her ear for months now. Chirping guidance, humor, and camaraderie into her every waking moment. But now all she heard was hope. Hope that she'd open her eyes, that she'd speak, that she'd come back.

She tried. She truly did. She struggled with all her might to speak, to open her eyes, to twitch a finger, but it was just as difficult as it had been before. Pushing with everything she could, exerting her will on her own lungs, she was finally able to manage a few words, her lips fighting against her with the desperation of a pack of starving wolves.

"I'm awake." She slurred out. Or at least she meant to. The sound that came out was nothing like her own voice. It was barely intelligible, and came out in a hoarse croak, as if she'd been living off of cigarette smoke and tobacco for years.

"You're almost there Hazel, come on. Try again." The voice encouraged, closer now. The voice was excited now. She could hear the smile in it.

Hazel gathered herself. With all the effort she could muster, she forced her eyes to open, fighting against her own weighted eyelids, and like that she was back. She had to squint so her eyes could adjust, but after a few moments they fluttered open for good. Swirling pools of gold finally returning to the light.

A maelstrom of green peered back at her, alight with relief, but buried deep in the sunken sockets of a tired man. His eyes were heavy and ringed, his hair disheveled. His face was unshaved and unkempt as if he hadn't bothered to move in days. Honestly, he looked pretty similar to the overweight racoon that had spoiled their last mission. Despite all this, he was smiling, a full-blown crystal white grin from ear to ear.

"I'm awake." She choked out more clearly. Her voice was still dry and weak, a whisper on her lips, but it was there.

If possible, the smile sparkling in her vision broadened. His head dipped infinitesimally, a small nod of agreement.

"You're awake."

XxXxX

Hazel hadn't wanted to sleep, but Will had insisted she get some rest only a few hours after she woke up. At first she had protested, because what sane person would want to sleep after waking up from a weeklong coma, but resistance had been pointless. After just a few hours, and the most barebones explanation of what had happened, she'd found herself profoundly tired. Despite her best efforts, she had once again visited the realm of the unconscious.

Now though, finally rested, her eyes fluttered open. Golden orbs drank in the world around her with gluttony. It was dark in the medical room, and eerily quiet. The only thing she could hear was her heartrate monitor beeping uniformly beside her and the slow exhalation of her shallow breathing.

As her eyes continued their journey around the small room, she took scope of her own being. She still felt weak, but her pain was gone, muffled by the powerful pain killers Will had given her. Now, the only thing she cared about was enjoying being able to see again. That was until something in the corner of the room caught her gaze.

It was a blotted and organic shape, unlike the rigid and uniform edges of the rest of the room. Perhaps it was a trick of the light, or some strange shadow, but it looked dangerously like a human lingering in the darkness. Her eyes slowly trailed up its form, stopping just before the shadow ended, coming into contact with two beacons of sea green shining through the darkness. Curiosity bubbled in her stomach.

"Percy?" she questioned, calling out into the dark. Her voice was still weak and raspy, but she knew he would hear her.

A muffled curse came from the corner, followed by a slow shuffling from the shadow. It ghosted across the room, halting near the exit. Overhead, the bright LEDs flickered on, casting a vibrant white light throughout the entire room. It took her a moment for her eyes to adjust to the new light, but after they did her suspicions confirmed. Standing near the doorway was Percy Jackson, freshly shaven, with a duffel bag slung over his shoulder.

"Going somewhere?" she intoned, nodding minutely towards the bag across his back. A bad feeling brewed in her chest as she took in the sight of him.

"I uh..." Percy muttered, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "Yeah."

Her eyebrows furrowed in suspicion. Percy was never this nervous, especially around her. He usually radiated confidence and bravado, but now he was closer to a kid who'd gotten caught with his hand in a cookie jar than he was to his usual self.

"Mind sharing with the class?" Hazel asked, arching a dainty eyebrow. She could tell he wasn't going to elaborate further, so she chose to force the conversation forward herself.

"You're not supposed to be awake." He scolded. "I didn't mean to wake you; you need your rest. I just wanted to check on you one more time before I go…" he patted his legs awkwardly as he trailed off.

"Go where?" she said after a few moments, biting her lower lip. She was afraid of the answer.

"Away." Was all she got in response.

"Why?"

Her voice quivered. For months now, the two of them had been inseparable, and now he was leaving? When she'd just woken up from a coma? And where was he going? He couldn't leave. It wasn't fair. She needed her best friend, her mentor, her brother, now more than ever.

Percy sighed, unslinging his bag from his shoulder. Slow bootsteps carried him to her bedside. He gently placed himself on the foot of her bed, idly drumming his hands against the sheets as he gathered his thoughts. After a while he spoke, his voice gentle and his tone guarded.

"Jason's orders. He let me stay until you woke up as a favor, because he knew I wouldn't leave your side until I knew you were okay… But you're okay now so… It's time for me to-"

"What!" she interrupted. "He can't kick you out! And why the hell would he?"

Percy held up a hand to appease her. Reluctantly, she cut off her own tirade, leaning back into her pillows. He gave her a grateful smile before continuing.

"Because Hazel. I've done plenty of things I should've been booted for anyways, and he's still done everything to convince some of the more skeptical people around here that keeping me around is a good idea. He can't justify letting me stay anymore. Not after what happened to you. I'm too dangerous to everyone here."

"That's not fair!" Hazel protested, her chest exploding in pain as her voice rose.

"It is fair, Hazel." He argued, his voice steady and unwavering. "If it wasn't, I would be fighting his decision. As you can see, I'm not fighting. For too long I've let my own recklessness put myself and others in danger. Usually, it all turns out okay in the end. I'm able to pull something miraculous together, save the day, and despite the danger we all go home happy. Sometimes I end up banged up pretty badly, but it's okay because I put myself in that position so that others wouldn't have to. But what happened to you… I can't forgive myself for that. I shouldn't be here."

Her eyes traced the outline of his profile as he spoke. He was looking at the ground, gaze averted, but his posture said it all. It was apologetic, filled with remorse, and most of all, ashamed.

"Percy…" she paused. "Percy you can't blame yourself for what happened. I played just as much a part of what happened as you did."

He laughed, but it was entirely humorless.

"That's not true and you know it." He said bitterly. "You tried to talk me out of going in there without any help, but I was insistent. You and I both know that there wasn't a chance you would've done that if anyone but me had asked. But I did. You and I are more family than anyone else in this entire little organization we have, you'd do anything I asked you, and I you, and I took advantage of that. And now…"

He trailed off, waving his arm wearily at all the medical equipment still attached to her. The IVs, the breathing tube in her nose, the heartrate monitor still timing her life as it pumped through her veins, the bandages still wrapped around her chest, all serving as a reminder of what had happened.

"It wasn't that bad. I'm fine, see?" she argued, waving an arm vehemently in protest, doing her best to hide the pain that came with it. "Maybe it was more your fault than mine, but that's okay. I forgive you. Case closed. You can stay."

He smiled at her apologetically, like he knew how much this was breaking her heart. Maybe it was doing the same to him. If the look in his eyes told the truth, it was.

"Not this time. It's not that simple." He said softly. "I can't trust myself around anyone down here. If my recklessness actually get's someone killed, I couldn't live with myself. Hell, it almost got you killed. It was so close… Too damn close… I thought I lost you forever. My partner. My best friend… My little sister. My family. I thought you were gone, Hazel."

Moisture dripped down her face, a trail of sadness glittering as it rolled over her cheeks.

"It wasn't that bad." She protested once again, weaker this time.

Her voice came out a fragile sob. She knew this was a losing battle. He had the same look of determination on his face that he did when they'd first entered Luke's base. His mind was already made up.

"It was." He solemnly replied. "The bullet went clean through your heart. There was so much blood. So so much. I've killed more people than I could ever hope to count, and I've never seen so much blood in one place before. From one person before. I swear I saw your life leak out of you half a dozen times. The fact that we're having this conversation right now is a miracle."

"I… How…?" she stuttered, unable to believe she had survived such a grievous wound.

"Three shots of nectar. Back to back. Right to the heart." He explained, his voice filled with a dark laughter. "I was that desperate to save you. Thank god it worked just enough that I could get you to Will. It was touch and go, but once you were here, I knew you would pull through."

Her jaw dropped at his story. Three shots of nectar? As far as she knew, more than one syringe was dangerous territory. The nectar worked by temporarily increasing your cell division, allowing your body to heal faster, but too much would lead to too much growth, basically giving the recipient cancer that matured to fatal stages in minutes. To survive two shots was considered absurdly lucky. To survive three? That was unheard of. She had a better chance of winning the lottery three times in a row. He was right. The fact that she was there right now was a miracle.

"That's…" she couldn't find the words to accurately convey her disbelief.

"Impossible. I know." He agreed, smiling this time. "But I'm glad it worked. Because now I can leave, knowing that no matter what mistakes I've made, at least you're still here. Safe."

His words reminded her of what was coming so soon. He was really leaving.

"You can't go…" she argued feebly.

"I have to." He said simply. "If not because Jason said so, then because I said so. I need this Hazel."

"And what if I need you?"

"You and I both know that's not true." He scolded. "Months ago, maybe, but now? I've been working with you for months. It may not seem like it, but you've learned so much. I promise you can handle whatever Jason throws at you."

"That's not what I meant." She whispered, tears once again nipping at her eyes.

"Yeah… I know." He acknowledged, his tone apologetic. "But I believe you'll be able to manage without me. I believed in you when I first brought you here Hazel, and I believe in you now."

He reached out a hand, resting it so lightly on her shoulder, it almost wasn't there. He gave it a tiny comforting squeeze, rising from the bed as he did so. She bit her lip, willingly letting more tears fall. In his eyes, she swore she could see the start of moisture beginning to form.

"Where will you go?" her voice was raspy and pained.

"I'm not exactly sure." He said with a grimace. "But Luke said some things that I'm not positive I understand. And I still don't know why my mother and I don't have any record of existence. Those are questions I need to answer. So, I guess that's where I'll be. Searching for the truth, no matter what it is."

She smiled a watery smile, gold meeting sea green for what might be the last time.

"Well then I hope you find what you're looking for." She choked out.

Percy smiled forlornly, a single tear tracing down his own face. He bent down slowly, wrapping her in a warm and gentle hug, careful not to hurt her, but firm enough to convey his emotion in a way words could not.

"I will." He said, pulling away from the embrace. "And when I do, you'll be the first to know."

He ruffled her hair affectionately, backing away from the bed. Lips pressed together sadly, he began walking towards the door, hefting his duffel bag over his shoulder once again. As he passed by, he flicked off the lights, once again shrouding her in darkness. He slowly pulled the door shut as he crept out, the handle quietly clicking into place deafening in the emptiness of the room, and like that, he was gone.

She tried not to cry any more than she already had, but it was pointless. Just like that, Percy was really gone; she could feel it in her bones. For the first time since he had found her, she felt just as she had when her mother had disappeared. More than even in her isolating coma, she felt truly, utterly, undeniably alone.

XxXxX

AN:

Ouchie, this one kinda stings. Kind of a total bummer of a chapter, sorry to do that to all of you, but it had to be done. I'll be honest, I hate splitting up Hazel and Percy like this. Hazel relies on Percy so much for guidance and for being a friend, and Percy relies on Hazel so much to keep him somewhat grounded. The two of them need each other, even if Percy doesn't want to acknowledge that right now. They'll be back together to take down Luke soon, I promise, but Percy has some demons he needs to fight first. As mentioned in the story, he does crazy shit all the time, and it puts people in danger sure, but usually he's the one who gets hurt. Now though, with someone nearly dying because of him, and it being Hazel of all people, he's hurting, big time. He needs to work through that, plus there are crazy questions revolving around him right now. All in all, things are wonky as hell, and this chapter is trying to show how dark and desperate times are. After all, this story is supposed to be pretty bleak. Anyways, I'm sorry you had to wait, but I hope you enjoyed it. Be sure to let me know with a review, and until next time,

Peace