Percy's POV:
I wish I hadn't cried so much.
Yes, I'll admit, I cried when Max left. A lot. She's my little sister, my only sister, and she's just gone. She's only fifteen. I remember when I was fifteen; the labyrinth, Kampê, Daedalus. I wasn't worrying about being adopted by a deadly alien leader, or going out to live in space for the rest of my life, or leaving everyone I know and love to save everyone else.
I rest my back on the wall behind me. Annabeth's arms are wrapped around my waist protectively. At least I still have her. If I lost Annabeth...I can't live without my Wise Girl. I shouldn't even be thinking about that.
But I'm going to get my little sister back. I know I am.
Jason's POV:
If I have one more 'this could happen' vision I'm going to stab myself.
I'm standing on the Mariot again, but this time it's...different. Definitely different.
I'm in a huge room, bigger than any room I've seen, and there's a gigantic hole in the middle. It seems to go on and on forever, and there are three other people here with me; Setràkus Ra, Max, and a goddess, and I recognize her almost immediately as the one who helped us defeat the giant Clytius, the one who helped Hazel with control over the Mist itself.
"You're sure you've done this right?" Setràkus Ra asks Hecate. I wouldn't have been able to recognize him if it wasn't for the Eye of Taloc and the two pendants he's wearing around his neck. He somehow has his shape-shifting staff back for some stupid reason.
"Positive." Hecate replies, looking down at the huge hole in front of her. She wears a dark sleeveless gown, her blonde hair in a Greek-style high set ponytail, and her ink black eyes stare down at whatever the Pluto that hole is exactly. Besides a hole, of course.
"If you do this correctly, you'll easily be the most powerful being in the universe. Once you get this weapon, you can defeat the gods themselves." Hecate explains, her eyes flickering towards Max constantly. Max's appearance slightly startles me. She cut her hair back to just under her shoulders and dyed it black again. Her emerald green eyes seem to glow like headlights as she stares down at the deep void, yet they look almost darker.
"What do I need to do?" Setràkus Ra asks Hecate, a hungry look in his now dark brown eyes. Max glances up at him and scowls.
"This is the most powerful weapon in the universe. It's going to cost a lot." Hecate replies and she catches Max's eyes. Max's eyes flash with something like realization and she stares down at the void with a dark look on her face with a mix of shock and anger.
"What do I need to give up? The ship? My army?" Setràkus Ra questions and Hecate chuckles darkly.
"Your ship and your army mean nothing to you. You have to give up the thing that matters to you the most."
Hecate's words echo throughout the large room. Setràkus Ra looks confused for a moment, staring at Hecate for seconds before he finally seems to get what's going on. He slowly turns around and faces Max. She looks back up at him and tenses up.
Hecate nods her head. "You don't care about much, Ra. But the only thing you do care about has to go in order for you to get what you want."
Setràkus Ra stares down at Max for seconds, and that's when it hits me. He actually cares for Max. He isn't pretending, or faking it to get Max's trust. He actually sees her as his daughter, and it absolutely sickens me that he sees her like that after all he's put her through. He doesn't deserve her.
"I always give choices, though." Hecate speaks up and waves her hand towards the back of the room. Three foggy white images appear and they slowly turn into three separate doorways. A different image appear in each one. The third one is still too foggy to see inside, though.
"You can either give up the thing you love most, refuse to give it up, or sacrifice yourself." Hecate explains, gesturing to each doorway. In the first one, there's a white light too bright to see exactly what's going on. In the second, it's just Max and Setràkus Ra standing next to each other in a different room in the Mariot, and the third is still too blurry and foggy to see.
"Sacrifice myself?" Setràkus Ra repeats and Hecate simply nods her head. "What would happen then?"
"It's...unclear." Hecate replies, glancing warily at the third foggy image. Setràkus Ra nods his head, staring at the other two doorways. I look back down at Max, who has a stone-cold face too hard for me to read. One thing I'm certain of is that she's scared. If Setràkus Ra decides to give her up to whatever for whatever powerful weapon, she'll never be able to see any of us again, and I know that she hates the thought of that- never seeing Leo or Percy ever again.
"Make your choice." Hecate tells Setràkus Ra and he looks down at the deep, large hole a few feet away from them for what seems like minutes before taking a deep breath and looking down at Max. He actually looks kind of scared and upset.
"F-Father?" Max stutters quietly, taking a small step away from him. A few tears roll down Setràkus Ra's cheeks- real, genuine tears of guilt and sadness.
"I'm sorry, Daughter."
The next moments seem to go by in slow motion. Setràkus Ra grabs Max's wrist and pulls her along behind him, towards the large void in the middle of the room. Max tries to pull back, screaming at him and begging him to stop. I try to race towards them, but it's like an invisible wall is right in front of me, cutting me off from them. I try to shout to them, but my voice is completely drowned out by the deafening silence itself.
Setràkus Ra shuts his eyes tightly, then swings his arm holding Max towards the void. Max shouts to him one last time as she falls back and I can make out her last word; 'Dad'.
More tears slip down Setràkus Ra's cheeks and I can feel my eyes stinging. Before I know it, my vision is blurry with my own tears. I fall to my knees, looking down at the deep void in front of me. I can barely control my heavy breathing. I'm nearly screaming in rage at Setràkus Ra, even though I know that he can't hear me. I feel someone's hand on my bare shoulder, but I just shake it off. Max. I can still get her back. I can still save her. If I can just jump in and fly her out...
A bright white light engulfs the entire large room, completely blinding me. It circles Setràkus Ra and I can just barely make out the hilt of a large silver sword embedded in blue Loralite, celestial bronze and Imperial gold, crackling with electricity and floating right above Setràkus Ra's head.
I'm pulled right out from my horrible vision.
yEs I rEfErEnCeD iNfInItY wAr PlEaSe DoN't KiLl Me
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Once and for All- Part Three Of The Conclusion To The United Series
Fanfiction*Part Three of the Conclusion to the United Series* The finale is here. This is our last chance to save earth. The Mogadorians lied to me. They're not going to spare earth like they said they would. This is our final stand to save the world. They'...
