Chapter 9

~Ariana's POV~

I stayed up all night as Vanessa slept. I couldn't believe Nico was already possessed. Leo didn't know who I was. Vanessa had finally found her power at the best time. My emotions were all over the place.

Soon enough, my black leather watch beeped at 6:00. I woke Vanessa up, and she gave me her earbuds so I wouldn't be controlled by the music.

i jammed them into my ears and blasted her music really loud. It hurt my eardrums, but it was for the best.

We pushed open the doors, and walked up to the desk that held the security guard.

"600th floor, please," I shouted over the music blasting in my ears.

He muttered something I couldn't hear. I watched as Vanessa sang, and the guard nodded and gestured toward the elevator door.

Vanessa waved me to the elevator.

I walked over, taking the headphones off. My ears rang with the aftermath of the loud music.

As I walked into the elevator, Vanessa pushed a button, closing the doors. "How do we get to the 600th floor? There's no button," I inquired.

Vanessa opened her mouth to reply, but she was cut off by the elevator shaking like an earthquake had suddenly started.

I grabbed the handrail on the wall, steadying myself.

But just as fast as it had started, the shaking stopped.

The doors opened to a bright, populous expanse.

A palace gleamed in the distance, a large, golden castle.

We stepped out of the elevator onto the white marble floor of a courtyard. We ran through the courtyard and towards the palace.

When we finally took our last step, we were out of breath. At least we had gotten there.

I bent over to catch my breath. Vanessa did the same. We looked around.

To the left was another garden. To the right was a large fenced in area that looked like a small park. It was heavily guarded, making me suspicious.

But the way I knew the apple was there was the magnetic feeling inside my chest. It was like it was pulling me. I took a few steps closer to the fence.

I felt weaker. I stepped away from it and instantly felt back to normal.

"That's it," I said decisively, "But I don't think I can get near it. Too much power."

"We have to get in there. I'll be right back," Vanessa said. She walked towards the fence with ease, obviously not feeling the sickness I had before. She nonchalantly chatted with the guards, and they all simultaneously nodded their heads and marched off to the left.

She sashayed back humorously. "Done," she said with a smile.

I didn't even want to ask. I just shrugged my shoulders. I stepped to the right again, almost forgetting what it would do to me.

I felt nauseous. I took another step, thinking I could endure the pain, but I couldn't. I doubled over in pain, the world spinning around me.

"Ariana! What's going on?" Vanessa rushed over to help me up.

I leaned against a short stone wall leading to the garden. I closed my eyes to stop the dizziness, but nothing helped. I couldn't get away from the nausea and pain.

"Too...much...power," I only got three words out.

"Well, I'll get it. I don't want you to be in pain," she said after a short thought. She helped me move the other way to feel better. I sat on the wall as Vanessa ran towards the garden.

~Vanessa's POV~

I burst through the gates to the garden. The apple sat on a pedestal, glowing as you'd expect from a children's book.

I inched closer to the pedestal. I reached for the apple, almost touching it, when a wave of electricity shattered through me.

I heard a voice.

"Eris put on a curse on this apple. Her offspring are the only ones able to touch it. I tried to break the curse so you could get it for me, thinking Ariana was an enemy, but it backfired, and later I realized that she was your friend. She could've hurt you while you were asleep, but she didn't, showing me she can be trusted. But the catch is that the curse only works on Olympus. Use your power to get her to the apple without her dying. I-" Her voice faded from my mind, and I couldn't hear her anymore.

I ran past the open garden gates and back to Ariana. She looked up at me expectantly, hoping to see the apple in my hands.

"What happened? Why didn't you get it?" she asked.

"You're the only one able to touch it. Eris put a curse on the apple to make sure no one but you could get to it, and my mother fought back thinking you were an enemy. But her spell didn't work. It's making you sick. But the good news is that she knows you're trustworthy now." I tried to lighten the mood after all that I had just explained.

"Seriously?! You've got to be kidding," she grumbled.

"I think I might know how to get you there without...dying," I finished.

"How?" she questioned.

After explaining my plan, we got to work. I grabbed a wheelbarrow from beside the path to the garden and dumped Ariana inside.

"pígaine gia ýpno," I sang.

Ariana's eyelids fell as she drifted off to sleep. I wheeled the wheelbarrow into the garden, keeping it steady so she wouldn't fall out.

Once we got to the pedestal, I grabbed her arm and used it to pick the apple up.

I wheeled her out of the garden triumphantly. We had gotten the apple.

"afypnízo," I sang to wake her up.

Her eyes opened.

"Ariana! We did it! We got the apple!"

But she didn't reply. She didn't even move. I looked closer at her eyes, but they were glassy.

She wasn't awake.