▬▬▬▬ CHAPTER TWENTY ▬▬▬▬

REMUS STAYED OVER FOR SEVERAL days before having to return back home. Needless to say, Sirius was disappointed.

"You can't stay a little longer?" He begged with wide eyes.

He wouldn't admit it, but he was getting a little lonely. Next week, Esmerelda would be leaving for camp because apparently they were preparing for a war (something that he really, really, really was against her participating in) and she would be needed back. The Stolls have left the previous week too for the same reason (couldn't that camp use adults instead of child soldiers?), and soon it would just be him in the house.

He couldn't even have Harry with him. They had contacted Dumbledore about it, but according to old the headmaster, it was 'imperative that Harry stay with his relatives over the summer', which Sirius said was bullshit because he knew the Dursleys and how awful they were! How could Dumbledore have his godson live with them?!

Nevertheless, Dumbledore insisted on it and that was that. He had been exchanging letters with Harry though, and he seemed to be doing somewhat fine, but the details about his life with the Dursleys were always scarce.

At least I'm not stuck in hiding, Sirius thought, trying to see things in a more positive light. Thanks to Esmerelda's assistance, he was pretty much free to do whatever he wanted. He could go out in public, make friends, etc. etc. But the thing was, what he wanted most was to have Harry and Esmerelda under his care.

But noooo, Esmerelda was getting ready for war and Harry was stuck with the Dursleys. Two situations he would rather they not be in.

"I haven't been home in awhile since I've been staying at Hogwarts for a full school year. I still need to tidy things up. Plus, I'm behind on groceries." Remus explained patiently.

"Do you still have the coin purse I gave you?" Esmerelda asked.

He smiled as he held out a small, flowery, coin purse that looked ridiculous in his hand. "Yes, and again, thank you for this, Esmerelda. It was very useful. I bought myself a new jacket and a suitcase."

"What's so special about it?" Sirius asked curiously, peering down at the thing.

"It gives me unlimited money." Remus explained, tucking it back in his pocket. "Wizarding currency only, of course."

Sirius nearly choked on his spit. He whirled around to face his niece. "You gave him unlimited money?!"

She shrugged. "Yeah, why not?"

He turned back to gawk at Remus, who also shrugged. But there was a grateful look in his eyes. He had really needed that money. And that was when Sirius remembered that werewolves weren't exactly 'for-hire' in wizarding society. Esmerelda had truly helped him out by giving him that coin purse.

He looked over and gave her a thankful smile, which she returned.

"Do you want me to Mist travel you back?" Esmerelda offered.

Remus shook his head. "No thank you, I won't strain you for that. I've got a way to get back home, don't worry. I've contacted the portkey network here and they've supplied me with a portkey that can send me back to England."

She nodded in understanding. "Okay and be sure to visit, alright?" The 'I don't want Sirius to be lonely' was left unsaid, which he appreciated. Remus promised and left soon afterwards.

Once that was dealt with, Esmerelda had to go too. She wanted to go out for an early morning jog at Central Park and even offered to let Sirius tag along with her, but the lazy man abhorred running because in his opinion 'sweating was gross' and opted to stay home with Buckbeak so they could watch Mean Girls together.

"Fine, but just so you know, I won't buy you any cinnamon rolls!" Esmerelda called out as she slipped on her shoes. Sirius was in love with New York street food. His utmost favorite was this one vendor who sold various types of cinnamon rolls. It had cake batter flavor, red velvet, cappucino—he was most fond of the oreo flavored ones.

Sirius let out a squawk of indignation before she laughed and closed the door. She left, and that would be the last he would see of her for a long while.

Esmerelda loved New York and it's towering buildings and bustling streets, but she could appreciate the presence of nature. For Manhattan, the Central Park was one of the fewest places with such an abundance of untouched nature. Plus, it smelled a lot nicer there too. A good place to breathe while running.

Overall, everything was good.

Until someone called the cops on her.

She was doing several rounds around one of the lakes with the other joggers when it happened. One of the joggers was actually a monster in disguise and when it started chasing after her with the threat of death, what was she supposed to do? Not cut it's head off with her labrys?

Unfortunately, a whole bunch of people saw it and started panicking. Police officers were nearby and were on the scene quickly. Esmerelda couldn't exactly use the Mist on forty plus people so she high-tailed it out of there only to fall into a hole.

"Uuuuuurgh..." She pulled herself up from the ground and tensed up when she saw the sunlight bathing on her rapidly disappearing. She got up to her feet and looked up just in time to see the hole she fell through seal itself shut.

"...Uh oh," she said in a small voice. She had no idea where she was. All she knew was that she was underground Central Park, but... how?

She looked around. On either side of her, she saw nothing but mossy stone walls. Ahead, she could see more of it, but it seemed to stretch on and on. Tentatively, she walked forward. The corridor seemed to go on forever, but then she finally reached a forked path.

She glanced to the right, and saw that there was a dead end there. So left it is then, she decided.

Was this some sort of maze? And hold on, hadn't she seen something like this before?

It took a while for to remember it, but she had seen this place before. In Professor Trelawney's crystal ball during her exam. She had seen an underground maze... and Nico's face.

"Nico," she whispered under her breath, feeling her chest constrict at the thought of him. This was no coincidence then. Nico was here, somewhere. She just needed to find him, and fast. While nothing bad had happened so far, there was something oppressive in the air. Something dark, and dangerous. She could also sense the Mist everywhere, which was bound to confuse other people.

This was no ordinary maze then. 

This was the Labyrinth, an underground maze created by Daedalus, who wasn't exactly a pleasant dude. He was a son of Athena and the father of Icarus. He was a good father, but after Icarus flew too close to the son and died, he had changed. From what she could remember from her various history lessons, Daedalus ended up living with his brilliant nephew, Perdix. Perdix was young, but had the potential to be just as great or maybe even greater than his uncle. Daedalus became jealous and angry, and challenged Perdix to a game of catch that ended up with Perdix falling over the edge of a balcony. Athena saw what had been done and transformed Perdix into a partridge and cursed Daedalus.

As for the Labytinth... well, there were so many things wrong with it. Words couldn't describe how awful it was. It was insanely dangerous, with traps and monsters everywhere. It also had the ability to drive people to insanity if they stayed for too long...

Fuck. She needed to find Nico, and quickly.

╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡

Percy's day went like this:

First, he woke up to an Iris Message of Nico planning to use his soul in order to resurrect his sister, Bianca. Then he found out that Luke was planning to attack camp with army of monsters and enemy demigods, which made a really pleasant conversation for breakfast. It got even worse during war games, when he and Annabeth were attacked by giant scorpions and proceeded to fall into an entrance of Daedalus' Labyrinth. That was bad because then that meant Luke actually had the perfect way to sneak his army into camp to kill them all.

And then the Esmerelda's uncle Iris Messaged them. Percy was beginning to grow weary of IMs because so far, all it brought was bad news. He wasn't wrong this time.

He, Annabeth, and the Stolls were discussing some traps to put around the Labyrinth entrance when a shimmery image appeared. It was of a man Percy had never seen before. He was handsome, but not so much that he could be mistaken as a god (which was good because he was getting really sick of those guys). He also looked several seconds away from having a nervous breakdown.

"Sirius?" Travis said with wide eyes.

Percy blinked. This guy was Esmerelda's fugitive uncle? He kind of expected him to look more... dangerous. Right now, Sirius looked like a super model with acute anxiety.

"Travis, Connor... and others," he said with a British accent (hold on, did that mean Esmerelda was technically English too? So cool!).

"This is Percy and Annabeth," Connor introduced. "So what's up?"

"Is... Is Essie at camp, by any chance?" He asked nervously. "She told me she was going there next week, but she hasn't been back so I thought, maybe, she went early without telling me..."

The elder Stoll frowned, looking worried. "No... Essie's not here. Why? Is she...?"

Sirius paled. "She went out on a jog, but that was hours ago in the early morning. She never came back. I tried IM-ing her, but it just tells me that she's 'unavailable' or something. I-I don't know where else she could be...!"

"Essie's missing again?" Connor said in a shaking voice. He glanced over at them. "Y-you don't think Ethan..."

If Ethan kidnapped her again, Percy was seriously going to kill him.

"Sir," Annabeth spoke up, stepping forward to be in front. "Essie probably got attacked by a monster—" he turned even whiter at that part. "—so she's most likely just resting after defeating it. Essie's not the type to lose in a fight, but sometimes she overexerts herself and needs some rest. She'll be back in no time."

It didn't seem to comfort him much, but the others had to give Annabeth some brownie points because none of them would've known what else to say.

"And... and if it's something else?" Sirius asked, a miserable look on his face.

Annabeth's expression didn't waver. "Then we'll find her and get her back home."

Sirius seemed to accept that and nodded slowly. He then turned to the Stolls. "Please tell me if anything happens."

The Stolls gave him their reassurances, surprisingly serious for once, and the shimmery image of Esmerelda's uncle finally dispersed. The four of them looked at each other, grim-faced. Esmerelda was missing, but this time they had no clues of where she could be or what could have happened...

...Until Annabeth went to get her prophecy for the quest.

Everyone was waiting in the arena for her when she appeared, looking terrified and worried, but trying desperately to hide it as everyone turned to her expectantly.

"My dear," Chiron said. "You made it."

She looked over to Percy first, then focused on Quintus. "I got the prophecy. I will lead the quest to find Daedalus's workshop."

Nobody cheered. Not because they had anything against Annabeth going, but because of the quest itself. It was insanely dangerous, and Chris Rodriguez, the enemy half-blood who Clarisse found wandering around Arizona was proof of that. The Labyrinth had turned him mad, and it was only a matter of time before they completely lost him.

Chiron scraped a hoof on the dirt floor. "What did the prophecy say exactly, my dear? The wording is important."

Annabeth took a deep breath. "I, ah... well, it said, you shall delve in the darkness of the endless maze..."

A pause, then she continued. "The dead, the traitor, and the lost one raise."

Grover perked up. "The lost one! That must mean Pan! That's great!"

Percy winced. "With the dead and the traitor? Not so great."

"And?" Chiron asked. "What is the rest?"

Annabeth couldn't seem to face the Stolls at this part. "But the witch and the scarred one are ripe for the picking."

Travis' face fell. "The witch... that's Essie isn't it? Her uncle contacted us... He said Essie never made it back home."

"She must have entered the Labyrinth somehow, then," Connor added, then shuddered. "But what the heck was that last part? 'Ripe for the picking'? Doesn't exactly sound pleasant."

"It gets worse," Annabeth grimaced. "And only one shall be spared from their destined killing."

A tense silence. That was probably one of the most straightforward lines the Oracle ever sprouted up. No 'one shall be lost' or 'one shall fall', it was just straight up 'destined killing'. It was 100% confirmed that someone was going to be killed. Either Esmerelda, who was the witch or... whoever the 'scarred one' was.

Chiron cleared his throat, looking despondent. He had watched countless of heroes die and he was most likely thinking about bracing himself to lose another one. "Anything else?"

"You shall rise or fall by the ghost king's hand," Annabeth continued. "The child of Athena's final stand."

Everyone looked around uncomfortably. Annabeth was a daughter of Athena, and a final stand didn't sound so good.

"Hey...we shouldn't jump to conclusions," Silena said. "Annabeth isn't the only child of Athena, right? And as for that other line, it seems like there's two ways it can go down. Essie might not be the one to die."

If not her, then the 'scarred one', Percy thought. The only face that came to mind was Luke...

"But who's this ghost king?" Beckendorf asked.

No one answered, but another face came to Percy's mind: Nico.

"Are there more lines?" Chiron asked. "The prophecy does not sound complete."

Annabeth hesitated. "I don't remember exactly."

Chiron rose a disbelieving brow.

She shifted on her bench and spoke up, "Something about... Destroy with a hero's final breath."

"And?" He pressed on.

She stood up. "Look, the point is, I have to go in. I'll find the workshop and stop Luke. And...I need help." She turned to Percy. "Will you come?"

He didn't even hesitate. "I'm in."

"Grover, you too? The wild god is waiting." She turned to him.

Grover seemed to forget how much he hated the underground. The line about the 'lost one' had completely energized him. "I'll pack extra recyclables for snacks!"

"And Tyson," she added. "I'll need you too."

"Yay! Blow-things-up time!" Tyson clapped so hard he woke up Mrs. O'Leary, who was dozing in the corner.

Chiron looked worried. "Wait, Annabeth. This goes against the ancient laws. A hero is allowed only two companions."

It was always three people per quest. The last time more than three people came, two people died and only three came back.

"I need them all," she insisted. "Chiron, it's important."

"Annabeth." Chiron flicked his tail nervously. "Consider well. You would be breaking the ancient laws, and there are always consequences. Last winter, five went on a quest to save Artemis. Only three came back. Think on that. Three is a sacred number. There are three fates, three furies, three Olympian sons of Kronos. It is a good, strong number that stands against many dangers. Four... this is risky.*"

Annabeth took a deep breath. "I know. But we have to. Please."

Chiron clearly didn't like it. Beside him, Quintus was studying the four members of the quest, like he was trying to decide which one of them would come back alive. Not a very nice thought, especially since Juniper told Percy she saw him snooping around with Luke near the entrance of the Labyrinth.

Chiron finally let out a defeated sigh. "Very well. Let us adjourn. The members of the quest must prepare themselves. Tomorrow at dawn, we send you into the Labyrinth."

╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡

The Stolls intercepted Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and Tyson just before they could head off to the maze.

"We should tell Sirius about this." Was the first thing Travis said.

But Annabeth looked uncertain. "What? No, we can't. He's mortal and—"

"—But the witch and the scarred one are ripe for the picking, and only one shall be spared from their destined killing." Connor interrupted her with the two most disturbing lines of the prophecy. "He deserves to know what could happen!"

"Prophecies are never what you think." Annabeth stated, but it looked more like she was trying to convince herself. Percy wondered if it was because of that potential last line that she was trying to keep a secret from everyone else.

"I don't know Annabeth..." Grover said nervously.

"He needs to know, you guys," Travis spoke up. "Essie's—Essie's all he has left."

"Plus we promised to tell him if anything came up," Percy added.

"He might try to interfere with the prophecy," she said weakly. "And you know what'll happen if he does that."

They all collectively shuddered.

"We'll just tell him that Essie's down in the Labyrinth. He doesn't have to know about what the prophecy says..." Percy suggested.

She finally relented. "Alright, fine. We'll do that. Does anyone have any drachmas?"

Tyson lit up. "I do! Here!" He reached into his large pocket and pulled out a single gold coin. He handed it over to Percy.

"Thanks, man." He smiled, before using his powers to create a fine mist. "Uh... Where does Sirius live?"

"Icarus Tower," Connor supplied.

He couldn't help but let out an impressed whistle. "Fancy. Oh Iris, goddess of the rainbow, please accept my offering. Show me Sirius Black at Icarus Tower." He tossed the drachma in and waited several seconds for an image to show up.

Sirius looked to be on the roof of Icarus Tower, and he was tending to a creature Percy had never seen before. There was a tense, and worried look on his face and he was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't notice them until Annabeth cleared her throat.

Sirius finally noticed them. He had a brief look of surprise before his face grew hopeful.

"Did you find her?" He asked immediately.

Their faces said it all.

Slowly, his face fell. "Oh..."

"We know where she is, sir," Percy spoke up. "She's, um, down in the Labyrinth."

"The Labyrinth?" He echoed.

Annabeth explained it to him, "It's an underground maze. It was created years ago, by an inventor named Daedalus, a son of Athena." Thankfully she spared the poor man the grisly details of it, like how it was infested with monsters and had the tendency to drive people insane. "We think she somehow managed to find an entrance and couldn't get out."

"S-so she's trapped there?"

"A quest was issued to go down the Labyrinth," Connor said. "Travis and I can't come, but Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and Tyson are going, and they're the best. They'll find Essie in no time."

Something light sparked in his grey eyes.

"You'll find her?" He asked breathlessly.

They all nodded.

"Thank you," he said earnestly. "I don't know much about the Labyrinth, but I know enough about the life of a demigod. I hope you all stay safe down there."

"We'll be fine," Percy assured him. "And Essie too. She's pretty tough."

Sirius' lips quirked up in a fond smile, as if he were thinking about her right now. They bid each other goodbye afterwards, and they finally set off for their quest.

╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡

In the stateroom of the Princess Andromeda, a blonde haired figure could be seen kneeling on a Persian rug in front of a golden sarcophagus. He wore ancient Greek clothes, a white chiton and a himation that flowed down his shoulders. Luke was looking great considering he was last seen falling from Mount Tamalpais.

"Our spies report success, my lord," he said. "Camp Half Blood is sending a quest, as you predicted. Our side of the bargain is almost complete. Esmerelda has also been spotted inside the Labyrinth. Soon she'll be yours."

Excellent, came the cruel voice. For now, one more heart shall join our cause, and that will be sufficient. At last, I shall rise fully from Tartarus. Once we have the means to navigate, I will lead the vanguard through myself. Either with her... or with you. The girl is trapped within the Labyrinth... but you are here already, and you are near completion.

"But, the form, my lord," Luke said shakily.

Show me your sword, Luke Castellan.

He drew out Backbiter, the double edge glowing wickedly—half steel, half celestial bronze. It was an evil weapon, able to kill both mortals and monsters.

You pledged yourself to me, Kronos reminded him. You took this sword as proof of your oath.

"Yes, my lord. It's just—"

—You wanted my power. I gave you that. You are now beyond harm. Soon you will rule the world of gods and mortals. Do you not wish to avenge yourself? To see Olympus destroyed?

A shiver ran through Luke's body. "Yes."

The coffin glowed brightly, filling the room. Then make ready the strike force. As soon as the bargain is done, we shall move forward. First, Camp Half-Blood will be reduced to ashes. Once those bothersome heroes are eliminated, we will march on Olympus.

After his meeting with Kronos, Luke stepped out of the stateroom. He patted his pockets and groaned in annoyance when he realized that the gods damn chiton he was wearing didn't actually have any pockets.

This must be how girls feel with their pants, he lamented. He spotted Alabaster walking by and called out to him.

"You got a drachma I can use?" He asked.

"Sure," a golden coin was tossed in his way.

Luke caught it swiftly. "Thanks."

"What do you need it for?" Alabaster asked curiously before the older man could walk off.

"I need to contact Geryon," he said dismissively.

Alabaster watched him leave. Then, he cloaked himself with the Mist and discreetly followed after him. He followed Luke to one of the secluded areas where a fountain stood, it's mist creating a rainbow.

"Show me Geryon in the Triple G Ranch," Luke ordered before tossing the coin into the rainbow.

The triple-chested man appeared before him, lounging on a couch with his feet propped on a table. 

"Yello," his lazy voice chirped.

"Geryon." Luke said flatly.

"Oh, Luke Castellan? Kid, it's six o'clock in the morning where I'm at and I don't got any demigods to deliver to you yet—"

"—Quiet, Geryon, this is important!" Luke's patience wore out. "There's a demigod in the Labyrinth. Her name is Esmerelda. She'll most likely stumble upon your ranch, and when she does, I want her delivered to me alive."

From far away, Alabaster gulped quietly. What the heck was Esmerelda doing deep into the Labyrinth? Didn't she know how dangerous that maze was especially without Ariadne's string to help her navigate through it?

Geryon's eyes flashed greedily. "And how much are you gonna give me for her?"

"A million."

Geryon nearly fell off the rocking chair he was lounging on. His eyes widened with surprise. "A-a million?" He stammered.

Luke nodded determinedly. "Yes. I'm willing to pay you a million drachmas for her, but she has to be alive and unharmed, got that?"

"You got it, kid!" Geryon exclaimed, his eyes glinting excitedly. This was clearly the best deal he had ever gotten. There was no way he was going to risk failing, not with a million drachmas on the line. "Anything else you want?"

"Yeah, one more thing," Luke pursed his lips.

Alabaster leaned forward a little more to hear better.

"We need one more demigod brought to us. Kronos won't be able to rise without one more demigod to swear allegiance to him. We could've been complete, but," Luke scowled. "One of our own has betrayed us."

Ethan, Alabaster realized.

Geryon hummed playfully. "Oh, I heard about that, kid. Sate my curiosity, why do you still keep him around?"

Luke frowned to himself. Ethan Nakamura was a wild card, unpredictable and mysterious. He knew very well that the boy believed that the gods needed to be taken down (he lost a gods damn eye over it, after all), but he still wasn't fully loyal to them yet. Not with Esmerelda in the way... And now that he knew of what sort of plans they had for her, who knew what he would choose?

Would Ethan fight for them, or fight for her?

Luke believed in the former. He wanted to, at least. Ethan may have freed Esmerelda, but he still stayed. He didn't come back to camp with her and the rest of them. He stayed, despite the many chances he had to leave. It had to count for something.

"Ethan's in a... precarious position," he answered carefully. "He's one of our best fighters, and he's loyal to the cause. He just doesn't agree with certain methods."

Geryon nodded. "Ah, I see, I see. Well, I'll get right to it! I'll contact you once I've got what you want, just make sure that million drachmas are secure for me to retrieve."

Luke grunted in reply and swiped through the Iris Message. Alabaster used that as the chance to leave. He hurried down the hallway and slipped off the Mist.

He went straight to Ethan's room and didn't even bother to knock.

"Ethan, we got a problem," he announced.

"Dude," Ethan said in annoyance as he slipped his shirt on. "Can't you knock?"

Alabaster slammed the door shut. "We got a problem!" He repeated.

Ethan just sighed. "Look, if you've run out of hair conditioner again—"

"—No, not that, this is serious! Essie's in the Labyrinth and Luke knows! He already informed Geryon of it and promised to hand over a million drachmas in exchange for her!"

Esmerelda was so good at making him prematurely grey. If he didn't care about his sister so much, he'd throttle her for always getting stuck in the worst situations ever. He wondered if her being in the Labyrinth had something do with that annoying brat Percy Jackson or his equally as annoying girlfriend Annabeth Chase. 

He pitied Esmerelda a lot since she was surrounded by so many Olympian kids. According to their little spy, Esmerelda had a somewhat close bond with the sea spawn and the know-it-all, and those two were the most loyal to the gods. He had never met someone so determined to save those abusive Olympians—though it was probably because of the elitism they felt for being the children of two important gods. Percy was a son of the Big Three and Annabeth's mother was a favored daughter of Zeus. If their parents were destroyed, they'd be nothing.

But his poor sister. She, like everyone else in that camp, had been brainwashed into thinking they were fighting for the right cause. Her close relationship to the two most obedient soldiers had only worsened her case. 

"She's where?" Ethan demanded, bringing him out of his thoughts. 

"In the Labyrinth," the older boy stressed out. "You know, the ridiculously dangerous maze that Chris was sent to and hasn't been found since?"

"Fuck, what the heck is she doing there?"

"I don't know, but Luke's after her and if you're right, then it's so he could use her for... you know, that." Alabaster started pacing around the room. "Okay look, dude, I got a plan. You need to go and get her out of the maze—"

"—Whoa, me?" Ethan gave him a look of pure bewilderment. "You're kidding, right? She'll kill me if she sees me again!"

"I thought you apologized for kidnapping her and all the other awful things you did!"

"Well, yeah, but I never really had time to hear if she forgave me or not since we were kinda on a time crunch!" He exclaimed. "There's no way she'll listen to me, dude. She'll most likely try to kill me first and her magic's gotten really strong. You go and do it."

He grimaced. "I can't. My last meeting with her wasn't so... pleasant either, and she'll probably try to kill me too. Just listen, okay? I have to stay here. You have to be the one to go because while you're gone, I can make a Mistform** of you so nobody would know you left."

Ethan paused. It was actually a really good plan, he had to admit. Alabaster's Mistforms were ridiculously good and just a few months ago he started using them to make illusions of people, like that fake dad he had.

The only problem was that the 'people' weren't exactly solid. They looked solid, but they were only forms created by the Mist, not like Alabaster's actual sword. If someone were to give that Mistform clone a good hit, it'd go 'poof'.

"You do realize that we have to train and spar everyday? What if someone lands a hit on the fake me and I go poof?" He questioned.

"Er, we can say that you're sick so you could be excused?" Alabaster said lamely.

He gave him a flat look. "Demigods don't get sick. And we can't fake injuries either because we got healers."

Alabaster frowned. Then after a couple seconds, he let out a gasp. "Ahah! I got it! You can be stuck with cleaning duty!"

He gave him a flat stare. "Gods, I really hope you're high or something, because if this is the sorta shit you come up with when you're sober—"

"—It can work!" Alabaster said defensively. "Just do something that gets you in trouble. Something that'll really piss everyone off. That way, you'd be put in cleaning duty for the next few weeks. There's no chance of you getting hit when that's happening."

Ethan glowered. "I don't wanna be stuck cleaning toilets—"

"—It's not really you, just your clone!" Alabaster rolled his eyes. "It's a good plan, okay? The best we got so far. I create a clone of you while you go out to the Labyrinth to find my sister and get her out of Luke's grasps. Then... then Luke would have no choice but to be the one."

Ethan fell quiet at that part. He really didn't want for Luke to have that sort of fate. He would rather that none of them died and that Kronos would just rise up without needing to doom an innocent person.

Unfortunately, that was just a pipe dream of his. Someone had to die, and he'd rather it be Luke than Esmerelda.

"Hey..." Alabaster called out to him quietly. "I also heard Luke talk about you. He needs one more demigod to swear allegiance to Kronos because your oath became null when you helped Essie. Maybe after all this you could be that final soul he needs."

"Yeah," Ethan said softly, but something in his stomach churned with despair.

"So the plan... you gonna do it?"

He balled his fists and came to a decision. "Alright... alright, I'll do it."

After 'accidentally' a dumping a whole box of laxatives into the cafeteria food, Ethan was banished to cleaning duty for a whole month and gods was he glad that he wouldn't actually be the one to clean the bathrooms after that mess.

Now he all he had to do now was find Esmerelda and get her to safety.

Hopefully, she wouldn't try to kill him first (though he had a good feeling she would). 

— author's note —

* I kinda like the ancient rule that only three people can go on quests, and anytime there's more than three, then only three are guaranteed to come back. When I read the Heroes of Olympus series, I actually expected four of the seven to die because, you know, to follow the "3 only rule". I was half-disappointed and half-relieved when no one really died (Leo did, but it wasn't permanent, so thank god).

** For those who haven't read The Son of Magic, a 'Mistform' is a being or object that can be summoned from Mistform Cards. Alabaster is the only child of Hecate who has the ability to do this. He has Mistform cards of his sword and one of a 'fake father'.

Also yes, Alabaster knows about... the thing that Ethan overheard back in the second book. I'm sure most of you have already figured out what I'm talking about.

The Titan Army after Ethan put laxatives in their food: