Chapter XXXIII NICO
Nico sprinted to his sister, who was lying on the hard ground, unmoving. He fell to her side and gently eased her onto his lap.
"Hazel?" he said urgently.
"Hazel!"
Her eyes fluttered open and she stared up at him. Nico felt beneath her head and, to his complete horror, drew his hand back covered in blood. She must have struck it against the rock.
Nico snapped into action, grabbing the jacket she'd come back for and pressing it firmly against the wound, trying to stop the blood flow.
"You're going to be fine, Hazel. You'll be fine." he kept saying. Nico wasn't sure if he was comforting her or himself.
The other demigods had arrived, crowding around them. Nico ignored them, still occupied in trying to help his sister. But Hazel was pushing his hands away.
"There's nothing you can do, Nico." she whispered,
"Yes, there is. I never let things go, you know that." he said brusquely.
"This was inevitable, anyway." Hazel said.
"I never belonged in this world, not really."
Nico shook his head in disbelief, holding the jacket harder against her head. Hazel pulled it from his grasp and reached into a side pocket. With trembling fingers, she withdrew a piece of wood.
"Frank," she called weakly.
"I kept it safe."
Frank reached for her hand, holding it tight.
"Hazel, why would you do that?" he said.
"I made a promise to you."
Nico exhaled sharply.
"An oath to keep with the final breath." he muttered.
He turned on Frank then, shoving him backwards,
"Why would you do something like that? You knew the prophecy!"
Frank looked like he was ready to start sobbing. Hazel whimpered in pain and Nico turned straight back to her. He'd seen enough people die to know what was happening. But that didn't mean he was about to accept it.
"Hold on, Hazel! You're going to be okay, I swear!" Nico said desperately, holding her close as if that would heal her wounds.
Hazel stared up at him, her eyes clear and bright. Except she wasn't looking at him.
"Sammy?" she whispered.
"Is that you, Sammy?"
Nico looked behind him, seeing a spirit that looked eerily like Leo. Being a son of Hades, Nico was the only person besides Hazel who could see him. The spirit, apparently named Sammy, reached out a hand to Hazel,
"Come, dearest. Come with me." he said, addressing Hazel.
Sammy looked at Nico and said,
"I'll take good care of her. She deserves to go to Elysian."
Hazel's spirit rose up and took Sammy's hand.
"Goodbye, my brother." Hazel said.
The spirits then disappeared in a shadowy light.
Nico stared at the ground beneath him, trying to think. Like a robot, he stood up and slowly walked away, not passing anyone a second glance. They were all distraught, everyone crying, but Nico paid no notice. He continued walking, on and on.
Hazel's death was his fault. He'd allowed his feelings to get the better of him and attack the giant. She was dead because of him; his only true family...oh gods...
He walked to the Argo II and climbed aboard, ignoring Coach Hedge's anxious questions. He strode toward the fridge and pulled out armfuls of food and drinks. Jumping back off the ship, he allowed his senses to travel, searching for the nearest graveyard. The final fight with Gaea could come any day, and they needed an army. Preferably one who was already dead.
"Nico!"
He kept walking, not bothering to look at who was calling him. They ran after him and put an hand on his arm, holding him back. It was Calypso.
"Nico, please talk to me!" she begged.
Nico sighed and turned back around.
"What do you want?" he spat out.
Calypso flinched backwards, surprised at his tone. He saw the recent traces of tears on her cheeks and felt a pang of remorse. But then he pushed it away. He would feel nothing.
"Where are you going?" she asked finally, her warm eyes searching his.
"Getting things done." he replied.
"I'll be back soon, don't fret."
Calypso bit her lip and tried to kiss him, but he held her back.
"I can't do this anymore, Cal." he said softly
"W-what?" she stammered out.
"I can't do this- whatever this really is. Over the past month or so, I've let my feelings control my actions, be the guiding voice in my life. For someone like me, that is the worst possible thing to do. So I simply can't keep it up."
Calypso teared up and Nico bit his tongue from taking back what he just said. He knew what he was doing to Calypso, and how much it would hurt her. But the hardest thing would be pretending that it didn't hurt him as well. Could she not see how badly he didn't want to do this? But he had to.
"I don't want to be alone." Calypso whispered miserably,
"Please- Don't leave me, Nico."
"But you won't be alone." Nico said tenderly,
"The others will stay beside you."
Calypso was nodding, a resigned look on her sorrowful face. She was used to accepting heartache. Nico gave a curt nod of his head and walked away, trying to ignore the feeling of her eyes trained on his back. His eyes stung with tears and he angrily brushed them away. He had to stay strong, not break down.
As he walked farther and farther away, Nico regained control of himself. He took a deep breath of the cold night air and walked into the graveyard, preparing to raise an army of the undead. They were going to put Gaea back to sleep. She had messed with the wrong person. Nico di Angelo was back. And he wanted revenge.
END OF BOOK FOUR