A Game of Promises

Chapter 36: Darkness

This chapter is dedicated to nerd-a-licious101, hoping that she won't want to kill me. I offer blue cookies in advance.

Percy's POV

The darkness surrounds the cornucopia like cupped hands. It's starting to drive me crazy. Annabeth and I are perched on the highest part, a place not many other have ventured to. Claire is shouting at Thalia, but she isn't getting anywhere. This is supposed to be the end, but not many are doing anything about it.

"Alright, listen up you wimps!" Claire shouts. "All of us but one is about to die. Are you going to let it be you? Do you want to die by the hands of your parents? Or do you want to take down some others with you?"

A few shout in response, some supporting and some in protest. I stand up, along with Annabeth.

"Or you can act like humans instead of a bunch of wild animals!" I shout back. "Whatever works best for you."

"Stop acting so high and mighty, Jackson," Clarisse growls. "You've killed some demigods as well."

"But I haven't enjoyed it. That's the difference between you and me. I do what I must to survive and protect others, and you just kill for fun. If that's the kind of person the gods want surviving, then go ahead. Kill all of us," I spread my arms wide, as if waiting for her to kill me. Her eyes narrow, but she doesn't move.

"Don't fight each other," another voice says. It belongs to a small girl with dark skin. I think her name is Hazel. "Enough have died already."

"What's the harm in killing a few more?" Claire asks, holding a knife out in front of her.

"I don't know, maybe because it's morally wrong? Because these people are semi-related to you?" Annabeth says, disgusted. "How are you even talking about murder? That's what it is."

There was a knife in Claire's hand. Now it's gone. At the same time, I hear someone cry with pain. What happened? I turn and see Annabeth standing there, a knife lodged in her gut. The same knife that was just in Claire's hand.

Without knowledge of doing so, I'm inches away from Claire, Riptide raised. I swing down, cutting her side. It's her time to cry with pain. I slash it again and again, not even realizing it. All I want is for her to feel more pain that what she's causing Annabeth.

I look around and see that other demigods have begun to fight, all of them against Clarisse. Next thing I know, Piper is next to me, slashing at Claire as well. We both care for Annabeth.

Claire dies. I know this because a cannon rings the same time Claire stops fighting. She has a small smile on her face, her lips blending with blood.

I've killed a demigod. And it could have been me.

"You idiots!" Someone screams. "Stop fighting unless you want to die."

I look up and see a pale boy with dark hair standing on top of the cornucopia, next to Annabeth. I recognize him. A murky part of my brain knows who he is. Nico di Angelo, son of Hades.

"These games? They're fake. All your memories? They're fake too. All of this is fake. We know each other, but our memories have been erase by Gaea. Percy, Annabeth, Hazel, Frank, Piper, Jason, Leo, Reyna, Thalia, Clarisse, Will, and I, we had a different life before this."

"That explains the flashbacks," Leo pipes up. "And why I can't remember anything since I was like, seven."

"I agree, it does make sense," Frank says gruffly. "But why do it?"

"The demigod games were planned eons ago," Nico says. "We were all just selected because we made Gaea look bad. She wanted revenge."

"How do you know this?" I ask. "Why only you, and not everyone else?"

He swallows hard. "Because she didn't erase my mind, just everyone else's. She thought I was miserable enough."

Everyone starts talking, most in agreement with Nico.

"What about me?" A voice asks. I look and see Bella, who usually looks so strong, appearing vulnerable. The red in her hair looks like blood. "You never said my name in the list. And I haven't had any flashbacks."

We all look at Nico to see his response. He shakes his head, his eyes filled with sadness. "I don't know who you are. I'm sorry, but you never lived with us."

"How do the games end?" Jason asks. "There has to be a way to get through without all of us dying."

"If we manage to eliminate all who weren't real, then the games will be over," Nico says simply.

Such a simple answer. Everyone here lived another life before this. Everyone but Bella. I turn to her, seeing the others do the same.

I notice her bottom lip quiver. Then she swallows and looks up boldly. "Then there's only one thing left to do, isn't there? You all need to get back home, I don't matter."

She picks up a knife from the fallen Claire. We all move at once, rushing towards her. Only Nico stays still. Bella holds up her hand, as if trying to push us back.

"It's the only way, isn't it?" She asks Nico. He nods, sealing her fate. "That settles it. Besides, I was never real anyways."

She stabs the knife into her own heart. Blood pours freely from the wound. Bella collapses onto the ground, her blood mixing with the dirt, pumping out her life. The red in her hair blends in with the blood stains in her mostly black hair.

A canon sounds, officially ending her life. That's when the sky splits open and light fills the dark arena.

A/N
So, um, hope you're still feeling great after that. The one most affected will be nerd-a-licious101 I think. At least she went out with a bang, right? Blue cookie?