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Chapter 31

Thalia knew she didn't deserve any mercy. She knew she didn't deserve forgiveness.

But she wanted to talk to Percy one last time. She wanted to apologize before he killed her. She wanted to atone for her mistakes. Putting her head in her hands, she knew it was impossible. For a child of Zeus, nothing seemed to go right for her. Was this the cruel fate that Zeus told her she would have to endure? Maybe that was the reason she'd ran away in the first place. Maybe that was the reason she didn't want to go to Camp Half-Blood.

There was the policy she had always lived by until she met Annabeth Chase: don't care too much, otherwise it hurts more when it's been lost.

Just like with her brother, Jason.

Thalia huddled in the corner of the alcove. She had always tried her best to keep out of the watching eye of her father. There was so much pressure in being a child of Zeus. Everyone expected her to be a leader. Everyone expected her to be powerful. Everyone expected her to lead the charge when the time came to fight. People tended to look to the powerful to help them solve their problems. And unfortunately, that meant her.

To be brutally honest, as mad as she was when she found out Percy Jackson had kept his parentage a secret, she was also relieved that there was someone she could relate to. Annabeth had told her that they were alike, and she never knew why until that day. But it made so much sense.

The difference between them was that the Olympians weren't afraid of beating down on the son of Poseidon. Offend Zeus and he would definitely know. Offend Poseidon behind his back when he wasn't there and no harm done. Zeus' paranoia went further than Poseidon's pride.

And despite the fact that she'd run away from home, Thalia always had something to tie her to the mortal world. Percy didn't. Talking with other campers, she knew that he had been at camp for far longer than most campers. He was always this mysterious unclaimed child who tended to stay away from social activities. Of course, everyone knew about him. They just didn't want to bother him for fear of being rejected. He was… scary.

But she had found his bright side. He was a kind person at heart. He was just so angry all the time… and for good reason.

Thalia was never close with her mother. They fought. They argued. But Percy was close to his mother. He told her that they were close, and Thalia felt jealous. But that dissipated when he said she was murdered. Percy had been verbally, and sometimes physically, abused by his step-father, Gabe Ugliano, which must have been horrible for a child to endure. The two people he looked up to most at camp were killed. His father appeared to him without a warning and didn't even bother to apologize. Then his best friend, Grover Underwood, was killed by monsters meant to kill her.

Despite all of that, the Olympians still hated him because he was a "threat." What selfish bastards.

Thalia was angry at the Olympians for everything they did to him. She found herself angry on his part. The only thing keeping her from joining the fight against the Olympians was the fact that she knew the Titans were worse. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that she really cared for him.

"What a hypocrite," she told herself.

She'd tried to kill him and ended up killing Annabeth. He nearly killed her in retaliation and would not hesitate to kill her if he had the chance.

But the bad news from the end of the battle was enough to kill her mood.

She was dead tired from fighting and lying down to rest, but her mind still buzzed with energy. She couldn't help but think whether that was true or not. Could a person's soul burn up if their mortal connection died?

It sounded true enough. But the fact was Annabeth was in the Underworld waiting for him. That would be an invalid. Or did the mortal connection have to be alive? It sounded like the mortal connection had to be alive. The one spot they stayed mortal had to connect them to the living, otherwise it would connect them to the dead.

If that was so… Percy's soul would be disintegrating right now. Another question she had was why his soul didn't disintegrate immediately. Did Kronos need to draw from a soul to grow in power? Or was it just a shell until he could unleash his full power. Bianca told her that Percy said Kronos was using him like a stepping stone. Stepping stones didn't have souls.

How long did Percy have until his soul disintegrated?

She hoped he could stay strong for another year or so. That's how much time the campers needed.

Thalia found tears welling in her eyes. She never thought it would come to this. She always thought Percy and Annabeth would be the ones fighting Luke until the very end. Why did she have to be alone now? Luke was on the other side. Percy was hosting Kronos. Annabeth was dead. All she really had left to rely on was Bianca, and they were still awkward around each other, especially considering their parentage.

It wasn't like being with Percy. Bianca was similar to Percy in a different way. From what Thalia could figure, they were like the three points of a spectrum: she and Percy were on opposite ends, one fighting for the Olympians, one fighting for the Titans, and Bianca was the one in the middle who depended on her father to lead her.

Thalia would rather have had Bianca be older than her. The weight of the prophecy was still weighing down on her. But no… if Percy managed to hold on exactly one year… until August 18th of next year… he would still be the child of the prophecy. That would be his sixteenth birthday.

She wept in the corner.

What a weakling, a voice said in her head. All you do is cry, wimp!

She could imagine what he would say to her. Hurtful things. But he was right. She was weak. She was crying because she couldn't bear the thought of Percy yelling at her. She always made fun of him, and she guessed it was to distance herself from Annabeth and Percy. She found that they were a cute couple. Or… would have made a cute couple.

When she fell asleep, she had a horrible nightmare.

She and Bianca were surrounded at the base of the Empire State Building. Monsters made a ring around them. The dead bodies of demigods were strewn across the ground in front of them. For some reason, she couldn't make out their faces, as if her vision was fuzzy, but when the leader of the army and his henchman stepped forward, she saw their faces clearly.

Percy's face watched over her with a baleful look. He had the golden eyes of the time Titan. And Luke gave her a cold glare.

Just then, Chiron burst out of the building with an arrow notched. He let them fly, but Kronos deflected them easily. Chiron reached back for another arrow, but his quiver was empty. Hesitantly, the centaur dropped his bow and unsheathed a double-edged sword. Of course, the centaur was a strong sword fighter, considering he taught Achilles, but Kronos had his own strength and Percy's combat abilities. Percy was far stronger than Luke could have been.

Kronos merely dodged and knocked aside Chiron's blade and yelled, "BACK!"

A blinding white light exploded between the Titan and the centaur. Chiron flew into the side of the building with such force the wall crumbled and collapsed on top of him.

Then the Titan turned to her. Not Bianca. Her.

The Titan laughed. "Percy Jackson's hatred burns strong. But he's weak. His soul is slowly burning away as I rise in power. His body will burn away as I assume my true form. And then… finally, I shall destroy Olympus and the cast the Olympians into Tartarus. Mount Othrys will rise in power once again. The new Golden Age is finally here!"

Suddenly, something amazing and terrifying happened. The Titan's expression changed for a second, and there was a different expression on his face. This time, it didn't look so foreign. And Thalia realized that it was Percy's expression.

"I'll kill you!" It wasn't the Titan's voice. It was Percy's. And somehow… he managed to take back control of his body. His eyes were flipping like a kaleidoscope. They switched back and forth from blue to gold and gold to blue. The Titan's scythe fell from his hands, and Luke tossed a pen in the air—Anaklusmos. Percy reached up and snatched it. He uncapped it and thrust forward. "For Annabeth!"

The sword pierced through her chest and everything went black.

Thalia realized that her eyes were closed and opened them. This time, she was in a different scene, as if that was a transition or something.

For some reason she was underwater. Everything was blurry and all she could see were shadows and silhouettes. She didn't feel like she was watching herself. For a second, she thought she heard something from above her. She swam upward and the dream became sharper and focused.

"Hold on, Seaweed Brain." It was Annabeth's voice, much clearer now. "You're not getting away from me that easily."

There was a sudden pull in her back. The cord strengthened.

With a start, she realized that she was looking at something from Percy's point of view.

She could see Annabeth now—standing barefoot above him on the canoe lake pier. A thought floated through her conscious… Percy's thought: He'd fallen out of his canoe. That was it. She was reaching out her hand to haul him up, and she was trying not to laugh. She was wearing her orange camp T-shirt and jeans. Her hair was tucked up in her Yankees cap, which was strange because that should have made her invisible.

"You are such an idiot sometimes." She smiled. "Come on. Take my hand."

"Is Percy okay?" shouted a distant voice.

"He's fine, Thalia. Just like usual."

Then she—or rather Percy—burst to the surface. Thalia felt her pulling herself up from the current of the water, but there was no Annabeth around. She gasped when she saw where she was. She was standing on the bank of the River Styx in the Underworld. She'd just witnessed the vision he'd had inside the Styx. How?

The dream exploded in a giant white light, and Thalia shot up in her little corner in the Zeus cabin.

Someone was knocking on the door.

Thalia crawled out and shouted, "Come in!"

Silena Beauregard walked in. She was fidgeting with something in her hand. Her beautiful face was marred by the depressed expression she wore. Quietly, she said, "Counselor meeting. Rec room. Now."

And as Silena left, Thalia thought she saw something that resembled a miniature scythe in her palm.

Luke stared at Riptide as he laid it on the table.

It glowed dimly in the dark room, casting shadows on the wall behind him. The sword was too small for Luke's taste, but it definitely suited him. He was only a little taller than Percy, so it didn't make that much of a difference.

This was the last reminder he had of Percy. Because as the days drew closer to the final battle, the less and less optimistic he felt about Percy's chance of survival. Luke just couldn't think of anything that might help save the son of Poseidon. The whole matter with the curse of Achilles was bothersome. If there was a way for him to survive… well, Luke had no idea what that might be.

He'd told Chris that he would save Percy, but now Chris was on the side of the gods. So by definition, he had no one to hold that promise to. But was he really okay with Kronos burning Percy's soul and his body? No, of course not.

Back when he was younger, he was impressionable and thought that killing Percy was a solution. But Percy was a valuable asset. And most importantly, Luke thought of him as an old friend. He couldn't stand to watch Kronos abuse Percy's body. No matter how many times they'd betrayed each other… fought each other… argued… it was immoral.

He'd always been so blinded by his anger and hatred toward the gods and his jealous toward Percy. He was jealous that Percy was the better fighter. He was jealous that Percy caught the attention of both Thalia and Annabeth. In his hatred and jealousy, he'd blindly agreed to work with the Titans, when in truth they were no better than the Olympians. Actually, they were worse. He and Percy should have stuck together. It was a mistake thinking there were only two sides.

But now… all he could do to survive was abide by Kronos' rules and orders. He had no choice.

Just as Luke was about to put the sword away and head off to sleep, he noticed something abnormal on the table. There was a bronze box right in front of him. It sat on the other side of the table, but stood out clearly.

It was engraved with beautiful jewels that he'd never seen before. The designs around the box immediately reminded him of Annabeth, who loved designing stuff, although he knew boxes weren't exactly on her to-build list. It was a beautiful craft, which made Luke wonder where it had come from. Now that he thought about it, he remembered seeing it a couple days ago in that exact same spot. Had he just been ignoring this whole time?

There was a number lock on the box. He frowned and picked it up. He set it down in front of him and saw that a card had been lying underneath of it. When he reached for it, he immediately noticed that it was a birthday card. Luke's frown deepened.

It wasn't his birthday.

Luke stood up and flipped the light switch so he could see well.

The card was one of those Hallmark-designed things anyone could get from mortal stores. The picture on the front was that of a bearded man with a mermaid's tail and a trident in his left hand. Unlike the real Poseidon, the man had long-flowing white hair that tumbled down his back, and a beard that reached his navel. Luke snickered. He could almost imagine what his father would look like, as he remembered the way Hermes was portrayed in that old Disney movie.

His smile faded. He shook the thoughts away and opened the card.

"Happy birthday," Luke read, "your old friend, Percy Jackson."

He knit his eyebrows, thinking about it hard. He turned to the lock. He tried entering his birthday, but the box wouldn't budge.

"Man, since when was Percy so cryptic?" he asked himself.

He sat there for another minute for he realized what it meant and slapped himself across the face for his stupidity. There were only three digits, so it had to be a birthday that involved three digits. That left birthdays in October, November and December after the ninth out of the question. And considering that the only two mentioned were him and Percy, it had to be Percy's birthday.

He put in 818, August 18th.

The lock clicked, and the lid flipped open.

Inside was a folded sheet of paper. It was just regular lined paper. Luke unfolded it and saw handwriting in very imperfect ancient Greek. It was hard to read but flawlessly printed. Guessing from all of the eraser marks, it had taken him a while to get it this neat. There were scribbles in English at the bottom, though.

He read the letter:

Hello Luke Castellan,

You might be wondering why I have written this letter. Sorry about my ancient Hellenic. It's pretty bad. Chiron once told me I translated "The great Achilles took the field" as "My grandfather's hamburger is nasty." I'm not so good at Greek speak. But other than funny part that, I have someone serious to talk about. It's about freedom. Wait, no. I'm too lazy to erase this. Allegiance. Today, I will give my body up to Kronos. I am officially gone. But it is not last. The end has not come. I've realized only one side chosen can be: either Olympus or Othrys. The fate of the world is with you and Bianca. Not me. I only make a choice. My original goal was to have Annabeth kill me to save gods. Now… if gods lose, Titans win. If Titans lose, gods win. I want you to choose wisely. For Annabeth. Everything is for Annabeth. Okay, you know what? I'm just going to write in English because I can write in English with better grammar. I'm sorry if it looks very messy. I just need to say this: I want you to find Bianca di Angelo and talk to her. She will inform you of what I want. And if she doesn't talk, bring her this letter as proof. After all, you get rid of the more powerful enemies first, don't you?

Still alive inside,
Percy Jackson

Luke was holding the sheet of paper so tightly it tore in half. Alarmed, he immediately fetched some tape—what luck he had to find tape in a small bedroom the size of two double beds—and fixed the paper… somewhat.

But when he was finished patching up the sheet of paper, he stared at it again in disbelief.

A mix of emotions swirled inside his gut before he stood up and put on his jacket. He took Riptide and tested his invulnerability by stabbing a knife into his stomach. The blade shattered. As he strode out of the room, he flipped over the piece of paper so that the main part of the letter was facing the ground. He read the address that he'd only caught a glimpse of before, the address of a boarding school in Brooklyn.

"Bianca… di… Angelo…" Luke murmured

Then he took off.

Percy Jackson could sense Luke leaving to find Bianca. A touch of joy spread across his consciousness knowing Luke had finally found his letter. And the son of Poseidon made sure to keep the emotion as subtle as possible. Because there was no way Kronos could know everything.

Destroy the thrones. Kill Thalia Grace. His mind repeated those two phrases over and over again.

If Percy had control of his face, he would've smiled.

Destroy the thrones. Kill Thalia Grace.

"But obliterate Kronos."

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