Chapter 35: Thalia Grace Daughter of the Prophecy
Severance Arc III
The elevator doors slid open, and they ran.
Thalia didn't hesitate. None of them did. The moment the path was clear, they surged forward, chasing the sound of destruction echoing through Olympus.
The streets beneath them were cracked and broken, lined with fires and wreckage. The once-pristine temples of the gods were shattered, crumbling, burning. Statues lay in ruins. A golden fountain spewed water from its fractured base, the liquid pooling at their feet, mixing with something darker.
Annabeth was right beside Thalia, sprinting full speed. Percy was slightly behind, dodging around fallen debris. Thalia jumped over a jagged crack in the pavement. Her breathing was steady, her focus locked on the destruction up ahead.
Another boom shook the mountain. A palace wall higher on the mountain exploded to their left, sending chunks of marble flying down across the pathway. Thalia barely ducked in time as a massive slab of stone crashed where she'd been a second before.
The throne room was at the peak of Olympus, past the wreckage of temples and halls that had already fallen to Kronos's wrath. The road ahead twisted and cracked, lined with broken columns and flickering torches that had somehow survived the destruction. Golden ichor stained the ground—proof that many had tried to fight back. That many had lost.
"Time," Annabeth said between breaths, "He must have stalled us coming up the elevator."
Another tremor rocked the entire mountaintop. Up ahead, past the destruction, the entrance to the Olympian throne room loomed—gargantuan celestial bronze doors, broken and warped, torn open like paper. They sprinted to reach it.
And in the Throne Room—Kronos. They skidded to a stop at the threshold, hearts hammering, breathless from the chase.
Kronos stood at the center of the destruction, scythe in hand. He turned slowly, and when his golden eyes settled on Thalia, his lips curled into something that might have been amusement.
"Ah," he mused, his voice a deep, layered echo of something both ancient and familiar. "The daughter of the prophecy. Shall I destroy you first, Grace? Is that the choice you will make—to fight me and die instead of bowing down? Prophecies never end well, you know."
"I don't bow," she said coldly. "Not to you."
"You will. Or die in the process." Kronos mused, tilting his head. You've come all this way, struggled so desperately… and for what? To defy what was always meant to be?"
Thalia forced herself to stand taller. "I don't care what you think was meant to be. You're not fate. You're just another tyrant who thinks he gets to decide how the world ends."
Kronos chuckled, low and cold. "Oh, Thalia Grace. You still believe you have a choice in this?" He lifted his scythe slightly, letting the blade shimmer in the broken firelight. "You stand at the edge of a war you cannot win, bound by a prophecy that will never let you escape. It will break you. Like it breaks all heroes."
"You're wrong," she said, her voice steady, "I'm still standing."
Kronos's expression darkened. "Not for long." He lifted his scythe higher, the golden blade pulsing with energy. "All heroes fall by the blade in the end."
Thalia barely had time to register the words before Annabeth sucked in a sharp breath.
"The blade," Annabeth whispered. She turned towards Thalia, "the hero's soul cursed blade shall reap." Her grip tightened around her dagger, but she didn't raise it. Instead, she began walking towards Kronos.
She looked at him, eyes bright yet weary with realization. "Luke, I understand now. You have to trust me."
"Annabeth, stop!" Thalia's voice came out sharper than she intended, laced with panic. She stepped forward, reaching out trying to pull Annabeth back. "What are you doing?
Annabeth didn't stop. She shrugged off Thalia's hand. Her focus was locked onto Kronos—onto Luke.
Thalia's stomach twisted. Annabeth wasn't stupid. She wasn't reckless. But the way she walked—deliberate, unarmed—sent a spike of dread through Thalia's chest.
Percy must've felt it too, because he moved beside her, urgency tightening his voice. "Annabeth, get back!" He surged forward—
And then everything stopped. An invisible pulse rippled through the air, and suddenly, Thalia couldn't move.
She tried to lunge, to throw herself at Annabeth, to do something, but her body refused to respond. Her legs felt locked in place, her arms frozen mid-motion. It wasn't like being paralyzed—it was like time itself had grabbed hold of her and refused to let go.
Percy was just as trapped, his expression twisted in frustration, his entire form locked in place like a statue. His fingers curled tight around Riptide, but he couldn't lift it, couldn't swing, couldn't do anything.
Only their eyes could move. Only their minds could scream. Annabeth kept walking.
Kronos watched, amused. As if it would present him some form of entertainment. He made no move to stop her. His grip on the scythe remained loose, his expression calm as Annabeth closed the distance.
"Luke…" Annabeth started.
"Luke Castellan is dead." Kronos responded with a wicked grin.
Annabeth didn't falter. "No," she said firmly. "You're still in there. I know you are."
Thalia wanted to scream. To tell Annabeth that Luke was gone. But she couldn't. No matter how hard she tried, the words wouldn't come out. Whatever it was that was freezing her in place, it was too powerful.
Kronos looked down on the defenseless demigod. "You delude yourself."
Annabeth took another step forward. "You don't have to do this," she said. "This isn't the end."
"It is for you." He said as he brought his scythe down with full force. Annabeth barely had time to react. She threw up her dagger, the celestial bronze meeting the godly blade with a deafening clash. Sparks flew as the two weapons collided. The force of the impact nearly sent Annabeth to her knees.
Kronos pushed against her, forcing the scythe down, inch by inch. Annabeth gritted her teeth, her arms trembling, the weight of his strength crushing against her like the sky itself.
Thalia fought against the invisible barrier that was restraining her, but it was no use. She was completely helpless.
"Your fate," Annabeth grunted, struggling to keep her footing. "It's not supposed to be like this."
"Service to Kronos," he said coolly, pressing down harder. "This is his fate."
Annabeth let out a ragged breath, her hands burning from the effort of keeping his blade away. "No!" she gasped, her voice breaking from the strain. "That's not the end, Luke. The prophecy. It applies to you! The blade, Luke. It—"
Kronos's grip tightened. "I will crush you," he said, anger seeping out of his being.
"You won't." Annabeth's voice was shaking, but her conviction didn't waver. "You promised. You're holding Kronos back even now. Family, Luke."
Kronos's golden eyes flickered. "Not anymore."
With a sharp twist of his scythe, he knocked Annabeth's dagger from her hands. The blade clattered across the marble, spinning out of reach. Annabeth staggered, her strength finally giving out.
And then—Kronos struck. The scythe plunged straight through her. Annabeth let out a sharp, broken gasp. For a single, frozen second, the world stood still. Then Kronos ripped the blade free, and Annabeth crumpled. For a split second, there was nothing. No sound, no movement, just the image of her falling, her body hitting the marble floor with a sickening finality.
Thalia couldn't breathe. The sight hit her like a blow to the chest, leaving her gasping, disoriented, desperate to deny what her eyes were seeing. This couldn't be real—couldn't be happening—yet the stillness of Annabeth's body anchored her in the cruel truth. A hollow ache twisted in her chest, quickly swallowed by something sharper, fiercer.
A deep, primal force surged through her veins, hot and electric, like a live wire had been ripped open inside her chest. The invisible energy binding her shattered like glass. The weight was gone.
She lifted her gaze from Annabeth to Kronos. "I'm going to kill you." Her voice was low, steady, but beneath it simmered something volatile, something ready to break loose.
Kronos regarded her with a cold, detached amusement. "Brave words," he said softly. "But bravery won't change what's already done."
Thalia's fists clenched at her sides, electricity sparking at her fingertips. "Shut up." As she started aggressively walking towards Kronos.
He tilted his head, unbothered. "She was a fool to believe she could save Luke. Just as you are a fool to believe you can stop me."
Thalia's breathing grew sharper, shallower. Sparks crackled up her arms, the air around her humming with tension. "I said shut up!"
Thalia thrust her hand forward, a blinding bolt of lightning ripping through the air and slamming into Kronos with a deafening crack. The shockwave rattled the throne room, and in that instant the invisible force holding Percy shattered. Percy staggered forward, as the weight lifted from around him. He was free.
Thalia summoned her spear and shield, the crackle of electricity filling the air as she launched herself at Kronos with a furious cry. Their weapons collided with a deafening clang, spear against scythe, sparks and golden light bursting from every clash. She struck fast, relentless, but Kronos met every blow with an unsettling ease. His movements were fluid and precise, as if he could see each attack before she made it.
With a sharp twist, Kronos hooked his scythe under her shield and wrenched it aside, throwing her off balance. Thalia stumbled back, her footing faltering for just a moment—too long. Kronos raised his scythe, the golden blade arcing toward her exposed side—
But Percy was there.
Riptide met Kronos's weapon with a sharp ring. Percy pushed back hard, forcing Kronos to step away, and in a flash, he countered with a swift slash aimed at the Titan's chest. Kronos barely deflected it, but Percy pressed on, refusing to give him time to recover.
Kronos's golden eyes flickered with amusement even as he deflected their relentless attacks. "Two against one, and still you struggle. How disappointing."
Thalia's eyes flashed in anger. She thrust her spear forward, sending a blinding bolt of lightning crackling straight at Kronos. He swung his scythe, the curved blade slicing through the air, and the lightning reflected off it, arcing wildly across the chamber. The bolt struck a marble pillar, shattering it into dust.
Undeterred, Thalia attacked again, spear crackling with energy, as she flung powerful bolts of lightning at Kronos. But his scythe caught every blow, sending bursts of lightning ricocheting off the blade. The bolts scorched the walls, shattered the Olympian thrones, and blew apart the pillars one by one.
The roof above them groaned as cracks spread through it, pieces of marble and celestial bronze raining down with every clash of weapons. Chunks of the ceiling collapsed, crashing into the floor, and the walls began to crumble under the strain. The entire throne room trembled, caught in the crossfire of Thalia's lightning and Kronos's unrelenting power. Cracks splintered through the marble roof and chunks of stone began falling down around them.
Thalia barely had time to react as a massive slab of the ceiling hurtled straight toward her. She darted to the side, narrowly avoiding the impact as it shattered the floor where she had just stood.
"Percy, move!" she shouted.
Percy barely dodged another massive piece of debris, rolling out of the way as a column toppled over, sending shards of stone flying. They scrambled backward, weaving through the chaos as the throne room crumbled around them, each step a desperate attempt to avoid being crushed.
"Is this all your storm can muster, Thalia Grace?" Kronos called out as the destruction continued. "Destruction without control? Power without purpose? You rage like a child throwing a tantrum."
She glanced up, and through the gaping holes in the crumbling ceiling, she saw the sky above Olympus. The sky was churning. Dark clouds twisted overhead, swirling like a vortex. Lightning split the sky in blinding flashes. Rain poured through the destroyed ceiling. And in the middle of it all—her.
Thalia clenched her jaw as the storm's weight pressed against her chest, a heartbeat that wasn't hers—but somehow was. She met Percy's eyes, and without a word, they lunged forward through the debris-strewn throne room. Thalia struck first, her spear crackling with lightning, while Percy followed with Riptide flashing at Kronos's flank.
But Kronos shifted. With a twist, he parried Thalia's spear and swept his scythe through the air, sending a wave of golden energy that shattered the marble beneath their feet. Thalia staggered as Percy lunged, but Kronos sidestepped and swung at Percy, who barely had time to block. Thalia charged again, lightning crackling around her, but Kronos met each blow, driving them back into the open courtyard.
The moment they crossed the threshold, the full force of Thalia's storm hit them.
The wind roared around them, whipping through the courtyard with violent intensity. Rain pelted down in torrents, soaking them instantly, and above, the storm churned darker, angrier.
Percy staggered slightly, blinking through the downpour—and then his expression shifted. The rain. So much rain.
With a sharp flick of his wrist, water from the soaked ground and rain in the air swirled around him like serpents. Percy harnessed the storm's fury, sending blades of water slicing through the air at Kronos, while waves surged from the pooling rain, crashing toward the Titan.
Thalia thrust her spear forward, lightning crackling along its length as she lunged at Kronos once more. Percy flanked her, sending waves of water crashing toward the Titan with every strike. The storm raged around them, rain pounding down, but Kronos stood firm, each swing of his scythe slicing through their attacks with terrifying precision. Thalia lunged to jab once more, but with a single, precise movement, he caught her spear mid-strike.
Before she could recover, his scythe struck again—this time, slamming into her shield. The force struck like a tidal wave, slamming into her with the weight of an eternity compressed into a single moment. The sheer impact ripped the air from her lungs, sent her hurtling backward.
Thalia felt herself crash through what remained of a broken pillar, shards of marble exploding around her. The world spun violently before her back hit the ground with a brutal force. Her shield clattered away, her fingers slack as the pain registered all at once.
The storm roared above, lightning splitting the sky in jagged streaks, illuminating the churning dark clouds that mirrored the chaos below. The ground trembled with every rumble of thunder as the rain continued to fall in relentless sheets.
This is it.
Thalia's body screamed in protest, every muscle aching as she tried to move. The cold marble beneath her bit into her skin, draining what little warmth remained, but she could barely feel it over the weight pressing down on her.
The prophecy thrummed in her head, its weight pressing into her chest like the lingering ache of a wound that would never fully heal. Every battle, every choice had led here—to the one moment she could not escape.
Thalia's muscles screamed for her to move, but her body felt leaden, heavy with exhaustion and the crushing weight of defeat. For a single moment, she lay there, feeling the whisper of despair creep into her thoughts, telling her to stay down, to stop fighting, to just let go. Annabeth was gone. Nico had probably gotten overrun. The prophecy hung over them like a death sentence.
Kronos was coming.
Percy landed beside her, having been thrown back as well, his chest heaving with every breath. Their eyes met and for a brief moment, she saw the same exhaustion, same despair trying to creep into him, threatening to pull them both under. She had fought so hard, but now—now it felt like they had already lost.
Thalia's breathing faltered. Her voice cracked as she whispered, "Percy… I… I don't want this to be then end… of us."
Percy's hand found hers, trembling but firm. His voice was hoarse but stead "Then we fight. Do whatever we can."
"His weak spot," Thalia got out as her fingers tightened around his. "What Nico said... He has a weak spot. It's the only way."
Percy nodded, determination flickering in his tired eyes. "Then let's find it."
Thalia's voice broke, but her resolve didn't. "For us, I don't want to lose us."
"For us," he echoed.
Percy's words cut through the pain, through the crushing weight of defeat. For us.
That was all she needed. She couldn't lose him. She wouldn't.
Thalia's trembling legs steadied, the pain in her body fading into something distant and unimportant. She gritted her teeth, pushed against the weight holding her down, and with a sharp inhale, she stood.
Her fingers curled around her spear, and the weapon responded, thrumming with the same resolute force surging through her.
Thalia surged forward, her spear crackling with electricity as she struck at Kronos with a fury that matched the storm itself. Percy was right behind her, water swirling at his command, striking in tandem with precise, fluid motions. Together, they became a force of nature—lightning and water, chaos and precision. Thalia's strikes came fast and furious, each burst of lightning forcing Kronos to give ground. Percy moved with her in perfect sync, waves crashing at Kronos's feet, making each step unsteady. They circled him, unrelenting, their attacks weaving together like a relentless storm. For a moment, just a moment, it felt like they were winning.
Percy circled around, eyes sharp, searching for any weakness. He feinted high, then dropped low, rolling beneath Kronos's guard. His sword sliced upward, just barely missing under Kronos's left arm
The reaction was immediate. Kronos jerked back, almost involuntarily, a flicker of something sharp flashing through his eyes—fear.
"Thalia!" he called, but she had already noticed. Under his left arm. The Achilles curse. For a heartbeat, hope surged through them. Percy impulsively lunged, aiming for the weak spot—But Kronos was faster.
With terrifying speed, Kronos turned, feinting left before driving his scythe forward in a brutal arc. Percy barely had time to react. The blade carved through the rain and struck him full across the chest.
Percy's eyes widened in shock, a choked gasp escaping his lips as the scythe left a deep, jagged gash across his torso. Blood soaked through his shirt almost instantly, the crimson stark against his pale skin. His knees buckled, and he staggered back, breath shallow and ragged. For one agonizing moment, it was impossible to tell if he would even draw another breath.
"No!" Thalia screamed, lunging toward him, but Kronos kicked Percy aside like discarded rubble. Percy hit the ground hard, blood staining the rain-slick marble beneath him. Thalia's breath caught in her throat, her entire body frozen in disbelief. Percy lay motionless, his chest rising and falling in shallow, labored gasps.
A low, cruel chuckle echoed through the courtyard.
"How poetic," Kronos mused, as he placed himself between her and Percy, his voice dripping with disdain. "The mighty Thalia Grace, daughter of the Prophecy, bearer of storms—reduced to this."
"You couldn't save Camp Half-Blood," Kronos continued, each word like a knife twisting deeper. "You couldn't save Luke. You couldn't save Annabeth. And now," his golden eyes gleamed with cruel satisfaction, "you couldn't even save him."
Her gaze flickered to Percy—pale, bleeding, barely holding on.
"I wonder," Kronos sneered softly, "how many more will die because of you?"
No.
Something inside her snapped.
The weight of her grief, her guilt, and her love surged through her, raw and unstoppable. The storm around them didn't just intensify—it detonated, surging with a power that dwarfed what she'd unleashed in the Labyrinth.
A blinding flash of lightning split the sky, the deafening crack of thunder shaking the very foundations of Olympus. The winds screamed louder than ever, howling like a thousand lost souls, ripping through the courtyard with merciless force. Marble shattered beneath her feet, cracks spiderwebbing across the ground as the air itself crackled with unbearable energy.
Thalia's eyes glowed an electric blue so intense they seemed almost inhuman, radiant and searing. Lightning surged through her veins, dancing across her skin in jagged, uncontrollable bursts. Her hair whipped wildly around her, each strand alive with electricity.
The storm was no longer just Thalia's—it was her.
Kronos staggered, momentarily thrown off balance by the sheer force of it. His golden eyes narrowed, lips pressing into a thin line, but even he couldn't mask the flicker of surprise that crossed his face.
And then—the bracelet.
The simple band around Thalia's wrist began to glow. Softly at first, then brighter, brighter still, until it was almost blinding. A light pulsed from it in time with her heartbeat, growing warmer, hotter, searing against her skin. The thread of fate thrummed with ancient power.
Thalia didn't notice at first. All she saw was Percy—bleeding out, slipping away. Her voice, when it came, wasn't a scream. It was low, trembling with fury, grief, and love so intense it hurt.
"I won't lose him!"
And the storm answered. Sparks danced across Thalia's fingertips as she raised her spear once more, every fiber of her being crackling with uncontrollable energy. She lunged, engaging Kronos in combat. Lightning surged from her with catastrophic force, the storm's howl melded with the screech of fractured time as they clashed, each blow shaking the very foundations of Olympus. She tried to hit his weak spot, but he knew better than to leave it exposed. They fought around the courtyard exchanging blows and parries.
Kronos rose to meet her power, summoning golden energy that pulsed from him in waves, distorting the very air around him. The rain around him slowed mid-fall, droplets hanging suspended before shivering back into motion. Cracks of lightning stretched endlessly across the sky, flickering in and out of existence like fractured moments in time. The marble beneath their feet rippled as if caught between now and what was centuries before.
One path ahead, one lost behind…
The words whispered through her mind, faint but unrelenting. She gritted her teeth, focusing on Kronos as she deflected his scythe with her spear, the shockwave sending them both skidding back.
"You think your storm can outlast time itself?" Kronos sneered, his form flickering in and out of existence as time distorted around him. "You will shatter long before I do!"
Thalia pressed forward, her spear a blur of electric fury, but Kronos twisted time around her, sidestepping her in an instant. She spun, barely deflecting his strike, the clash of weapons creating a crack in the air that rippled outward, freezing the rain around them before it shattered like glass.
Time will bend…
The bracelet on her wrist pulsed hotter now, glowing even brighter with every moment. It burned against her skin, but Thalia ignored it, too focused on the Titan before her. He laughed at her, as if challenging her to continue fighting.
Thalia snarled, hurling a bolt of lightning that crackled through the air, but Kronos stretched out his hand, slowing it mid-flight until the energy snapped under the pressure and exploded outward in a blinding burst.
She shielded her eyes as her mind raced as she fought. The Fates' warning. The Sphinx's riddle. Artemis's quiet words. Annabeth's theory.
It's tied to time…
Kronos lashed out with a burst of golden energy, and time itself fractured. Thalia staggered as visions flickered before her eyes—moments past and moments that could be. Camp Half-Blood burning. Luke's empty gaze. Annabeth as a child.
Her breath hitched, but she surged forward again, spear clashing against scythe in a burst of crackling energy.
The past you seek, the future mourns…
Another flicker. Artemis's voice, steady and sure: "They said it was a reminder… of what endures even when time changes everything else."
The ground beneath them shifted violently, fragments of time swirling like dust around them. Thalia thrust her spear, lightning surging with unrelenting ferocity, but Kronos bent the moment, sidestepping her attack again before time snapped back into place. He swung his scythe, Thalia stepping out of the way, barely dodging the attack in time as the scythe impounded the marble floor and sent time rippling outward.
"Your power means nothing," Kronos hissed. "My blade cuts through all."
Thalia's vision blurred. Her mind sharpened. The bracelet—the blade that cuts…
The heroes soul, cursed blade shall reap.
No.
It was her.
It was his scythe.
Thalia stumbled back, chest heaving, eyes wild with panic. She blinked through the rain, searching—begging—for any sign of movement from Percy's crumpled form on the marble floor. Gods, please… Her breath hitched violently, panic clawing at her throat. Please, just breathe… But there was no rise and fall of his chest. Nothing. His body lay still.
In saving life, a love is torn.
The realization crashed down on her like a bolt of her own lightning. Her entire body went numb.
The burning on her wrist finally broke through—a relentless heat she'd ignored during her battle this time. She glanced down, eyes snagging on the bracelet's blinding glow, pulsing like a heartbeat. And then it hit her—after all this, she knew. It clicked. The clues crashed together. The bracelet wasn't a gift—it was a tether. Linking past to future. If Kronos's scythe severed it, time would break.
She'd be torn free. Lost in time's currents. Past, future—days or centuries away? She couldn't know.
But Percy would live. None of this would happen to him. Time here would break.
Her chest tightened, tears burning in her eyes even as the storm surged violently around her. She felt as though she were being split in two. The weight of the choice crushed her, pressing down on her ribs until it hurt to breathe.
Was this what fate had always intended? Was this her fate as the daughter of the Prophecy? Had she been running toward this moment without realizing it, every step leading her to this one impossible choice?
She knew where Kronos's weak spot was now—she could strike, end this, win. But at what cost? A part of her wanted to hesitate, to find another way, to believe she could fight harder and make this unnecessary.
But deep down, she knew. There was no other way to save Percy.
Her fingers hovered over the bracelet, trembling, the heat of it unbearable now. Time itself seemed to pause, holding its breath with her.
Her body shook with a sob she didn't have time to release.
For Percy.
Her tears mixed with the rain as she surged forward one last time, lightning screaming around her, spear clashing against Kronos's scythe in a final, desperate burst of power. She didn't care if she won. She didn't care if she lost.
All she cared about was saving him.
Kronos's laughter echoed as he raised his scythe high above his head. The blade shimmered with timeless power. "You have lost."
This is it, Thalia thought, a strangled sob catching in her throat. This is my fate. She lifted her trembling arms, crossing them in front of her, exposing the thread to Kronos's blade.
The scythe came down.
And the bracelet—the fragile thread of fate wrapped around her wrist—
Snapped.
A blinding light exploded from Thalia's wrist, so intense it burned through her closed eyelids. She gasped, instinctively keeping her arms crossed over her face as the force of it roared through the courtyard. It was a surge of energy that rattled her bones and left her ears ringing.
Everything disappeared—the storm, the rain, the sound of Kronos's evil laughter.
There was only the light.
Then, as suddenly as it appeared, the light vanished.
Thalia remained frozen, arms still crossed over her face. Her heart pounded in the silence that followed. Slowly, cautiously, she lowered her arms and opened her eyes. The bracelet the fates had given to her was no longer on her wrist. She looked around, expecting to see it on the floor, but it was nowhere to be found.
She stood in the same courtyard—but it wasn't the same.
The sky above was a soft, muted gray, like the fragile stillness just before sunrise. The air was perfectly still, no wind, no storm, no chaos. The debris, the broken marble, the shattered pillars—all gone.
The courtyard was whole. Pristine. The marble beneath her feet smooth and unscarred. The columns that had collapsed in the battle now stood tall and unblemished.
Her pulse quickened. "Percy?" she called, voice cracking on the name. She spun around, searching for him—for his crumpled figure. "Percy!"
The silence swallowed her words. There was no answer.
The fear that had been simmering beneath her skin erupted. Her breathing quickened, shallow and sharp. She sprinted toward the spot where he had fallen, where blood had mixed with the rain-soaked marble as his chest rose and fell in agonized breaths. But the ground beneath her feet was smooth and spotless. No blood. No Percy.
"Where is he?" she whispered frantically, chest heaving. Her hands trembled at her sides as she backed away. This wasn't right. None of this was right.
Thalia's legs wobbled, and she staggered, her back hitting one of the unbroken marble columns. She squeezed her eyes shut, gripping the cold stone behind her like it might tether her to reality. Think. Breathe. Don't panic. But her thoughts spiraled.
Kronos was gone. The battle was gone. Percy was gone. And she was here. Alone. Her breath shuddered in her chest. "Gods," she whispered. "What did I do?"
A faint glow pierced through her closed eyelids, a soft, persistent light that painted the darkness behind her eyes with silver.
Thalia opened her eyes. From across the courtyard, through the open archway that led into the throne room, a silver light pulsed. Soft but steady. It didn't belong here—it didn't fit the colorless stillness surrounding her.
She pushed off the column and forced herself forward. Her footsteps echoed on the marble with unnatural clarity. The silver glow brightened with every step. Her mind screamed at her to be cautious, but the fear of standing still—of doing nothing—was worse. The light led her to the throne room. She crossed the threshold and froze.
Artemis stood at the center of the room, bathed in soft silver light. Her hunting cloak draped across her shoulders, her bow slung across her back. She didn't move, didn't speak. Just stood there, gazing at Thalia with ancient, knowing eyes.
Thalia's throat went dry. "Artemis?"
The goddess gave a faint nod. "Hello, Thalia."
The normal rush of relief she might've felt at seeing Artemis never came. The goddess's expression was calm, but her eyes were heavy with something deeper—something like regret.
Thalia's throat tightened. "What…what is this?" she asked, voice brittle. "Where am I? Where's Percy?"
The goddess's expression shifted, just slightly. Sadness. Resignation. Acceptance. Thalia followed Artemis' hand to her bracelet that the fates had given her. Her thumb brushed across it, a small, almost unconscious gesture. The movement was familiar—like Thalia had done a hundred times with her own bracelet.
Thalia's chest constricted. Her gaze locked on the bracelet as realization surged through her. The memory of that long-ago conversation on Ogygia hit with sudden, dizzying clarity.
"You know what's happening, don't you?" Thalia whispered. The words were fragile, teetering on the edge of hope and dread. Her voice cracked as she added, "Where's Percy? Is he okay?"
"He's alive," Artemis said softly. "You saved him."
Relief crashed into Thalia like a wave. Her knees wobbled, and she staggered, her breath leaving her in a shaky exhale. She pressed a hand to her chest, clinging to the weight of those words. Percy was alive. She hadn't failed him.
But the relief was fleeting. Her heart twisted as the truth slotted into place.
"Then why isn't he here?" Her voice splintered with the question. The ground beneath her feet suddenly felt less solid.
"Because you're not where he is anymore," Artemis said softly. "And he's no longer where you are."
Thalia's breath caught. "What does that mean? What happened to him? To...everything?"
Artemis didn't respond right away. Her fingers hovered over the bracelet, eyes distant. When she finally spoke, her voice was quieter, almost reverent. "Long ago, the Fates gave me this bracelet. They said it was a reminder—of what endures even when time changes everything else. You already know this, of course. But I didn't understand what they meant. Not then. I thought it was some cryptic lesson about immortality." She exhaled softly. "But I see it now. It was always meant for this moment."
Thalia's heart slammed against her ribs. "What moment?"
Artemis met her gaze, silver eyes steady. "To bring us back to the moment I made the wrong choice."
Thalia blinked, struggling to comprehend. "Wrong choice?" she repeated, disbelieving. "You mean about—"
Artemis nodded. "The day I chose Anabeth to be my Lieutenant."
Thalia's voice cracked, her expression twisted with confusion and disbelief. "But you told me fate guided you to choose Annabeth. You said…"
Artemis's expression remained unreadable, but her voice held a rare tremor. "I believed fate guided me to her. I thought the pull I felt that day was certainty. That I was fulfilling my duty." She exhaled slowly, eyes darkening. "But I was wrong. Fate wasn't guiding me to choose Annabeth—it was guiding me to realize that I couldn't force the outcome. And what I thought was guidance was something else entirely."
Thalia's jaw tightened. "Like what?"
Artemis met her gaze. "A test."
"A test of what?"
"Of whether I would dare to defy what I thought was inevitable," Artemis said softly. "Of whether I would trust my instincts—or try to outthink fate." Her thumb brushed over her bracelet. "I thought I was making the right decision, Thalia. I believed that by choosing Annabeth, I was leaving you to become the daughter of the prophecy. I thought you were the one destined to stop Kronos."
Thalia's electric blue eyes bore into Artemis's. "So that's it," she said quietly. "It wasn't fate. It was just you thinking you knew better."
Artemis didn't answer right away.
Thalia let out a breath, somewhere between a laugh and a sigh. "And because of that, everything happened the way it did." She swallowed, the weight of it settling over her. "Annabeth. Percy. The war. All of it. Why are we even here then, Artemis?"
"Because fate doesn't leave mistakes uncorrected," Artemis said. Her voice was sharp now. "Your bracelet was never meant to save you. It was meant to bring you here. To this moment." Her expression turned grave. "When I cut my bracelet, we'll be sent back. To the moment I choose my lieutenant."
The implication hit Thalia like a physical impact. "No," she whispered. "No, no, you're not saying—"
"You must accept the position, Thalia," Artemis said, stepping closer. "You must join the Hunt."
The words seemed to echo in the vast stillness. Thalia backed away, her breath hitching. "Why? Why can't I just go back and fight Kronos again? I know his weak spot. I know everything that happens. I can stop him."
Artemis's gaze softened with a sadness too deep for words. "You can't," she said gently. "Because the prophecy was never yours to fulfill. It was never meant to be you. And if you go back as you are, you'll turn sixteen again. Kronos will win. You'll lose everything all over again—without the bracelet to save you this time."
The ground swayed beneath Thalia's feet. Her mind scrambled for a way around it, a loophole, a mistake. "No. No, that's not right. I—I can figure it out. We can figure it out."
"Fate does not offer loopholes," Artemis said. "Only choices. And you've reached yours."
Thalia shook her head violently. Tears blurred her vision. "You told me fate guided you! You said you were sure!"
"And I was," Artemis said softly. "Until I realized that fate was guiding me not to Annabeth—but to this moment. To give you the chance I should have given you before. To give you a way to save him. For him to save the world."
The words shattered something inside her. Thalia's knees wobbled, and she nearly collapsed. "Percy."
Artemis's expression remained calm, though her eyes softened. "If you join the Hunt, Percy will live. Camp won't be destroyed. Everything you've experienced after Annabeth joined the Hunt will have never happened. Kronos will be defeated when the time is right. The prophecy will find its true path in Percy."
"But I'll lose him." The words barely escaped Thalia's lips. Her voice cracked as tears spilled down her cheeks. "I'll lose everything. I can't—I love him."
Artemis closed her eyes for a moment, as if the admission pained her. "I know."
Thalia's breaths came fast and shallow. "No you don't!" she screamed. "Why did I have to love him if I was never supposed to!?"
"Because love is not something fate controls," she said softly. "Only what we choose to do with it. You loved him, and that love saved him. It saved the world from my mistake. But fate requires something more of you."
Thalia sobbed, the truth too unbearable to hold. "It's not fair," she whispered.
"No," Artemis agreed. "It isn't. Fate rarely is."
Thalia crumpled, her body shaking with grief. Artemis knelt beside her, wrapping a steady arm around her, holding her through the tremors of loss. The goddess's voice, when it came, was low and careful.
"There is more you must understand," Artemis said softly. "If you take the oath, your heart must follow it. The moment you break it—if you ever act on the love you feel for Percy, if you try to reclaim what you had—you will age. You will turn sixteen. And fate will shift again." She exhaled. "The prophecy will become yours. And Kronos will win."
Thalia's breathing faltered. She clutched Artemis's cloak with trembling fingers. "So I can't ever… I can't ever love him again?"
"Not as you wish to," Artemis said. "Not as you do now."
Thalia's breaths turned sharp and ragged. Her mind scrambled for a foothold, for some way to escape the weight of it. "No, but I can love him again," she gasped, voice hardening with determination. "I'll wait. I'll stay in the Hunt. I'll do what you said—follow the oath, everything. And after the prophecy ends, when Kronos is gone… Percy and I will have our chance. We'll be together. I'll make it work."
Artemis didn't speak. She didn't move. The silence stretched long enough for the hope to curdle in Thalia's chest.
Then Thalia's gaze drifted downward, the realization creeping in before she could stop it. Like a sharp crack in the stillness—she remembered the vision on the Princess Andromeda.
The sunlight too bright. The crowd cheering. Percy and Annabeth's hands, intertwined as they were carried to the canoe lake. Their laughter, effortless and real, as they hit the water together and vanished beneath the surface.
It wasn't just a vision.
Thalia's stomach dropped. Her breathing quickened, heart hammering against her ribs. The warmth of that false summer day, the icy chill that followed—it had been a glimpse of the future. A future she was never meant to be part of.
Her lips parted in a silent gasp. "No."
Artemis's grip tightened on her shoulder—just enough to steady her, nothing more. Thalia's mind spiraled through the truth like a knife through her ribs. "By the time the prophecy ends…"
The words died on her tongue, but the thought finished itself anyway.
Percy will already love Annabeth.
Thalia squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block out the image that surfaced with the realization: Percy looking at Annabeth the way he'd once looked at her. Percy choosing her. Percy leaving her behind—not out of betrayal, but because she'd already been gone.
Her chest heaved with silent sobs. "He'll love her, won't he?" she whispered.
She didn't answer. She didn't need to. Thalia sat there, her body shaking with grief. Artemis held her, offering no false comfort. Minutes passed. Or hours. Time didn't matter here.
Finally, Thalia's sobs lessened. She wiped her face with trembling hands. "But he'll live."
"Yes," Artemis whispered. "He'll live. And he'll be happy."
She tried to imagine a life without it. Without him. The ache was sharp, hollow, like someone had carved out a piece of her chest and left only a gaping void behind. No more stolen glances. No more whispered I love yous. No chance to know what it would've been like to have a future together.
Her heart cracked down the middle. It wasn't fair. It never would be.
But Percy would live. And if he lived—if he got to save the world, if he got to survive, to laugh, to love, even if it wasn't with her—that was worth it.
Her breath shook as she opened her eyes and met Artemis's gaze.
"I'll do it," she whispered. "I'll be your lieutenant."
Her voice cracked on the last word. But she didn't look away.
Artemis's expression softened, the ancient weight of millennia etched into her features. She reached out, gently brushing a tear from Thalia's cheek. "Perhaps fate chose you, Thalia, because it knew your love for him would be strong enough to endure this pain. Not just for him—but for the world. Because without that love, without this sacrifice, the world falls."
Thalia didn't move. Didn't breathe. She let the silence press in around her.
Artemis's hand lingered on the bracelet, her fingers tracing the ancient threads one last time. The soft glow pulsed beneath her touch, fragile yet enduring. She drew a breath, her expression unreadable, then reached for the knife at her belt.
The blade caught the dim light as she unsheathed it. The faint scrape of metal against leather echoed in the stillness.
The goddess tightened her grip on the blade, positioned it just above the bracelet, and with a single, swift motion, sliced through the threads.
The bracelet snapped.
White light exploded outward, blinding in its intensity. Thalia's eyes slammed shut, but the brilliance pierced through her eyelids, burning into her mind. The air grew thick and electric, pressing against her skin until it felt like she was being pulled apart, thread by thread.
Her breath caught. Her body locked.
And then came the sound: a sharp, resonant crack that split the silence like a breaking sky.