Author's Note: I just wanted to thank all of my reviewers again: Lord Axxingtons, White Weasel, Obiwanlivesforever, LilacWinters21, and THE real assistant. Thanks for your support, and have a merry Christmas!
"Hey, Athena. Can we talk?"
She looks up from Juniper's knitting, blinking. "Sure..." Getting to her feet, she looks over me. "Are you feeling all right? You sound like you're in pain."
"I'm fine." My eyes dart across the little camp before I seize her wrist. "Come on."
"Oh!" She takes a second to catch on as I lead her away from the others, but she's able to keep up easily until I duck through the trees to the false summit. My grip loosens, and I suddenly panic that she'll break away and run back to the others, but she follows me in.
"Wanted some privacy?" She smiles. "No problem. I'm a psychologist—I won't tell the others anything you don't want them to know. So, what's on your mind?"
My breathing is difficult to control. I just have to stay calm and do this. I can't fall for her smile. I can't fall for Widget remaining a deep blue. I can't fall for her act if I'm going to do this.
Forcing myself to take a deep breath, I pull my sword out of its sheath. It's heavier than I remember, but I can still handle it.
Athena frowns. "Apollo?"
"Draw your sword." My voice is dry.
"Wh-what?" Her necklace flashes yellow. "Why? It... It's Simon's, so I don't want to mess with it unless I have to..."
"You have to. Draw your sword."
I don't know how this fight is going to go. I'm still in bad shape, but I've never seen Athena at the sword station. All I know is that I have to give her a chance. Even if she murdered Clay, I can't kill her in her sleep. She needs to be able to fight back. That way, if... if I'm wrong, then I won't kill someone I shouldn't. But if I'm right, I'm bringing Justice right now.
With a twinge, she draws the katana. "O-okay... Is everything all right, Apollo? If you want to blow off steam, jogging would be a lot less dangerous than trying to spar."
"This is no spar, you murderer!" I give my sword its first swing of the fight, and Athena backpedals out of the way.
"Wh-what are you talking about?!" Her grip tightens as I catch up to her. "I thought... everyone said Simon's death wasn't my fault...!"
"Of course it wasn't. But Clay's?" I strike again, and she blocks with the katana, although my blade still scratches her cheek.
"What are you saying, Apollo?! You can't possibly think I killed my own district partner—my own friend!"
"Then prove that you didn't!" I tense my grip and jab at her chest, but she sidesteps it. "Because as far as I can see, all of the evidence points to you!"
Our swords clang with another blocked strike.
"You recognized the knife!"
She dodges another slash.
"He was killed by someone he trusted!"
The next time she blocks, the sword almost flies from her hands.
"And you don't have an alibi!"
My blade connects with her shoulder, but she forces me back with a kick to the chest. Knocked breathless, I do my best not to fall backwards but fail. She doesn't approach me as I push myself up.
She shakes her head. "But there's no way I would do something like that!"
"Are you sure?" I wobble onto my feet and ready my grip again. "You can't remember. Can you be certain you didn't do it?"
"O-of course!" She grips her injured shoulder for a minute before eyeing me and putting her hand on the katana grip. "I would never have done such a thing to Clay! Why... wouldn't you believe me?"
I go for another slash, which she parries. I must be slower than I thought. "I told you, the evidence points to you! And evidence is everything! If you didn't do it, then prove it!"
She tears up a little as she ducks under my next strike. "B-but I—"
"PROVE IT!" I remain in my stance, breathing so heavily I don't expect my voice to crack. "Please..."
She lowers her sword a bit so I can more clearly see her face. "A-Apollo! You don't have to do this! I can tell you don't want to!"
I grit my teeth. It's just a lie. It's all a lie to save herself...
"That's not proof, Athena." I slash again, forcing her back against the trees. "I'm going to assume you can't prove you didn't kill your mother, either, huh?"
The next swipe at her head hits, splitting the outside of her ear and knocking her aside. With a cry, she stumbles and tries to get closer to the middle of the summit. I follow, chasing after her with a few more strikes. My arms are getting tired, but I can't stop...!
"My... My mother?" She takes another step back, her breaths shallow. "What do you mean? I... couldn't have..." She drops her sword, covering her ears with her hands. "O-of course... If Simon is innocent, then someone else had to have done it... Did I... Did I... kill my own mother?"
Her guard is down, but I'm frozen to the spot. Why would she drop her sword when I'm armed. Am I... Am I wrong after all?
She shrieks a "No!" so loud it hurts my ears. Struggling for breath, she lowers herself to her knees, her hands still planted over her ears.
Is it an act? It's too dangerous if she's trying to win. So... So is she...?
"It's not true!" she screams, tears streaming down her face as she grabs her sword. "I didn't kill anyone! I didn't kill any of them!"
She gets to her feet, shaking hard but holding the katana up. "It's... not... true!"
Despite the pain and fury in her scream, Widget remains completely black as she charges for me.
With a gasp, I block two strikes and jab at her neck. She bends back to avoid it and raises the katana again.
"I didn't kill anyone!"
She brings it down towards my head, but I sidestep it.
"I didn't kill my mother!"
She's too fast for me to hit before she swipes again. I parry.
"I didn't kill Clay!"
She slashes across my chest, and it stings like crazy.
"I didn't kill Simon!"
The sword slashes into my side before I can force it away. Crying out, I stop it before it goes too far and swipe at Athena's torso while she's open. I land a superficial strike.
With a shout of pain, she leans over, nearly backing into the feast table, but straightens up.
"Apollo! Athena!" The shrill cry comes from above us, and we both risk a glance. The other three have found us. They can't come and stop me! Athena's attacking me—surely they can see that...! She can't be trusted!
Before I can try to land another blow, the ground beneath me rumbles. Gravel rattles, and I can sense the world turning before the floor suddenly pitches down.
"Aah!" It's going out from under Athena's feet, too, and she grabs the table to keep herself tethered. Since she's not swinging at me, I might as well do the same.
Gravel continues to fall at the edges of the circle as the table and the ground supporting it come to a stop. It looks like a door is behind me, but it's heavy steel and bolted shut. The mountain around us goes up in a sheer cylinder, and I don't think anyone would risk coming after us when the fall would kill them. I had clung to the table, and it was still hard enough to jar my knees.
It's just me and Athena now. A duel to the death.
May whoever is right win.
Athena recovers from the fall before I do, but she's dropped her sword. I can't get to her before she's picked it up. She blocks my first strike and then puts in a swing herself, but I duck out of the way. The katana slices into the table, and I lunge forward while her arms are occupied.
My sword plunges straight through her stomach. A bit of blood seeps out before the blade moves any more, and I can feel the vibration from her muscles tensing in pain. This is probably the last hit I'll need.
I've killed Athena. I just have to take out the sword, and...
I hear my breath rasp as my eye loses focus.
This... can't be real. This can't be happening. Athena, being a killer? Me, killing her in response? No way. It's impossible to believe in something this ludicrous. Of course this isn't real. Everything would make much more sense if this wasn't happening. So it's not.
All right. Good. I'll go with the rational answer. That solves... so many problems. This simply isn't happening right now.
So, then... what is happening right now?
The back of my neck prickles.
If I'm imagining this whole situation, then what's actually happening right now? I... I can hear myself breathing and some gravel falling. I can't hear anyone else breathing, but maybe a little shifting. I smell blood, sweat, the infection in my eye, mustiness. I don't taste much but a little salty sweat. I feel the ache in my arms, the sword in my hands, the tremor in the blade, the blood sliding down my abdomen, the gravel underfoot. And I still see my hands around a sword that disappears inside Athena's stomach.
What other explanation is there, then? Am I dreaming? I never would have had that thought if I was, and I'm in pain besides. So... the only other explanation... is that this is happening.
So I'm really killing Athena, who's a murderer. This is real. Of course it is. I don't want it to be, but it is...
I pull the sword out with a slight twist, and Athena sucks in an "oof." My hands lower, and I take a step back.
Shaking, Athena nearly drops her sword before pivoting and swinging it into the back of my knee.
I collapse with a shout, losing my grip on my blade, but Athena falls, too.
Aagh... Aagh...! H-how much am I bleeding...?
But she's... bleeding, too. I did what I had to. I... I can bleed out here... My friends are safe now... I've done all I can.
I fumble to clamp a hand over my knee, but that just sends blood squirting between my fingers. I'm parched, my head is throbbing, I... I'm going to black out and die...
An arrow tied to something embeds itself in the table before my vision goes dark.