Nico POV
We ran past nobles' gardens and mansions and sprawling land one by one, forming a short line of rebels. We kept our hands on our swords or knives or bows as we went. A few nobles watched us with wide eyes from distant windows, but they didn't move and they didn't seem to warn anyone that we were coming. I was hardly surprised—nobles weren't loyal to anything except the source of their income, which they probably assumed was less important than keeping their lives. Good.
We arrived at the soldiers' barracks, and I quickly led the group to a laundry room, which wasn't attached to the actual housing and which would be relatively low-risk to enter. There was no one inside. We took suits from laundry baskets and quickly changed into them. In a few moments we were out the door again and knocking on the door of one of the soldiers' quarters. The general would start at the end closest to the attack, so the barracks on the west side wouldn't be called for duty for at least a couple of minutes.
We heard screaming and swords clanging faintly, from the other side of the castle. It had begun.
Someone opened the door, probably expected us to be the general already. Their eyes narrowed in confusion, and I pushed them aside.
Confused and seeing that my rank card was higher than theirs, they each fell into form, lining up at the ends of their bunks and saluting. What rank card did I have? How high up did they think I was?
I looked down and read it. 642?
Wait.
Oh God.
I heard his surprised laugh from across the barrack. He walked quickly, apparently knowing already that we were about to be in a very desperate situation. The other soldiers frowned at me as they realized I must have stolen the rank card from the legend in front of them.
And after all, what kind of idiot would steal from Percy Jackson?
~~~
Will POV
I had a guard.
Watching me.
Doing nothing but watching me and my fellow prisoner, Hazel. Well, maybe we weren't prisoners, but it felt like it.
He wasn't even doing his job very well. In fact, sometimes he would stare at the battlefield longingly for minutes at a time without even a glance in my direction. Actually, I could probably try to...
~~~
Thalia POV
Running away. That's what I saw William doing when I glance up for only a moment in order to check on him. He was already running towards the castle, moving through the training ground to get there. Soon he was at the front gate.
I hit someone with the flat side of my sword, which I didn't care for as much as my arrows. The guy fell over.
That idiot prince was going to get us all killed. He better know what he's doing.
"To the stars!" I screamed as I charged further into battle. Rebels around me echoed the cry and soon the battlefield was filled with our fear-filled song.
~~~
Nico POV
He was looking at me with guilty eyes. "Ten-Seventeen, I'm sorry for what happened to your sister. For what I let happen to your sister."
"We can talk, later, but—"
"Percy?" It was Annabeth, who stood there looking like she'd seen a ghost. Percy froze when he saw her, and then his lips turned into a happy grin.
"Annabeth, oh my God, I didn't know how to find you—"
Reyna snapped her fingers. "Hey, can we do this later? God, none of you have any time management skills. We have a king to arrest, Percy."
He grinned at her now. "I know, I know. I just never expected to see Ten-Seventeen to be leading a rebellion with my girlfriend. Or, for Ten-Seventeen at least, leading a rebellion at all. You were kind of a stickler about the rules, if I remember correctly." He saw Reyna's face and groaned. "It's fine, Reyna. The rebellion works best under pressure anyway. What do you need?"
"We need any troops that are willing to fight for the rebellion to head to the east side of the barracks and do all that they can. Percy, you'll probably want to join us and we can send you undercover somewhere in the castle."
"Sounds good. I'll be there in a minute after I rally the allies. Meet you in the castle?"
"See you there," I said.
"Great. And hey, Ten-Seventeen? I'm really proud of you."
I brushed him off and left the quarters on the opposite side that we entered, the side closer to the castle. And we were there, standing before the gates of the castle, with its sprawling—
"Um, is that my boyfriend?" I interrupted my own thoughts when I spotted him, sprinting to the front door to the castle.
Reyna swore. "I had him stay behind but—oh, God, I hope he's not the spy. We don't have time for this. Luke, can you—" As she said it, she realized Luke was not with us. She swore again. "Okay, fine. Nico, can you follow him please? The rest of us will do our best to stick to the plan."
"Sounds good. See you later," I said as I climbed the gate and dropped to the other side.
"To the stars, Nico."
"To the stars, Reyna." And to the sun, and to the sky.
I pulled open the large front door without much trouble; someone had broken the lock. Maybe Luke, wherever he was. I stepped inside and checked for guards. There weren't any. I turned the corner, no one was there. I looked the other way, to my right, and noticed a tapestry moving, like someone had just ran by it.
Found him.
I ran through the halls, following his tracks or going on instinct when he didn't leave any. Will was fast, but he was no soldier, and he was no spy; when he walked, you knew he was there. When he ran, the castle let me know. I followed until I heard voices, and then I paused outside a door.
"Father, call off your troops, I promise it'll be worth it. The amount of people who are losing their lives right now—"
I heard the king snort. "If they're being killed, they deserve it. They were either on the side of the rebellion, or they hadn't learned enough in the training. My soldiers should be strong enough to survive, and if they aren't, that's their fault."
I winced as he said it.
Will sputtered, "That's a horrible accu—Luke?"
My eyebrows shot up as I listened. Okay, Luke was here too, now. That's cool. Whatever. Definitely no heavy lump of dread in my stomach as it crossed my mind that he might be—
"Ah, yes, I'm glad you arrived, Soldier," the king greeted. "Where is Hazel? Speak."
I swallowed my fear. What were they planning on doing with Hazel? She was only a little girl—she was never supposed to be a part of this.
"She's on her way, your majesty." Luke's voice came out monotonous and apathetic. Not the teasing or serious guy I knew—a robot. A soldier.
"Good. You'll have your reward shortly, 1312." King Apollo addressed Luke by what I assumed to be his soldier number. "And Hazel.... Well, I'll have to break the news to Hazel, I suppose. Maybe I'll have a guard do it. Or, would you mind?"
"I do whatever your royal highness asks me, your majesty."
I heard Will's voice again, a relief from the other two's dark conversations. "Luke, you're...you're the spy?" There was no answer. Luke probably was still kneeling in front of the king, and Will hadn't told him to speak. I guess it didn't matter. We knew.
"Magnificent. Go get Hazel then," the King ordered of Luke, ignoring Will, "and tell her that despite her noble work with espionage, her mother will not be returned to her, considering she is utterly dead." He said it almost cheerily. I leaned against the wall, dizzy. We'd known Hazel was spying on us that first night, but we hadn't known for who, and we'd figured she had abandoned the idea when we had taken care of her. Apparently, we were wrong.
Little Hazel, who the rebellion had loved so much. I wondered in the back of my mind which had tried to kill Reyna, Luke or Hazel? Did it matter?
I heard Luke's footsteps leave and another door open and close. Okay, now's my chance.
I threw open the door. My only goal was to get Will out of here. That's what Reyna had said; I get Will and they carry out the plan.
Apollo looked sickly, which was off putting. His eyes were wild and his skin looked almost grey. His cheeks were beginning to sink into his face, and his hair appeared to be finishing up the process of falling out.
"A soldier," he observed with amused eyes. "I assume you're one of the ones who decided to rebel? Decided to jump the gun on all this, huh? Let me tell you something. There are no guards in this room, but three levels up, you'll see a balcony. Two guards are on the balcony, standing at the window and waiting for me to give orders. So, unless you drop into form in three seconds, I'll give the order for them to detonate a trap filled with highly dangerous chemicals and compressed gases right where your rebel forces are fighting—it's your decision."
I froze, eyes locked in front me before quickly falling to my knees with my fist to my forehead this time—the prince was no longer the most highly respected person in the room right now so I had to switch my stance. And Will couldn't order me out of form anymore—it had to be the king.
I also had to be extra careful not to look at the king; the rule about not looking at superiors had been invented by him to avoid people seeing his face. The rumor is that he's lost his sanity a little since his wife died, and he can't even look in a mirror anymore. If I even glance briefly at him, he'll kill me in an instant. Momentarily, I am glad that I'd relapsed into being a perfect warrior these past few days; I couldn't survive this without perfect obedience.
He knelt near me, checking my form. My back. My wrist and elbow. The tilt of my head, and position of my feet. He found no issues. He stood up again. "So you're an actual soldier then. I was wondering if you were a soldier or a spy dressed as one. What's your rank, soldier? Speak."
I remembered my tag was not my own at the last second. "642, your majesty."
His eyebrows shot up. "It's unfortunate that a good soldier such as yourself would have doubts about your loyalty. Your execution will be after the battles. For now, stay in form."
Will's jaw tensed in my peripheral vision. "You don't have to listen to him, N—uh, 642. You can break form and—"
The king cut him off. "You always have wanted to overrule all my decisions, William. I suppose this rebellion was the perfect place for a demon like you. I'm not even surprised." Will tried to speak but he was cut off again. "And you've always wanted my crown, too, you've always been so jealous of it. Of me. So what? Did you come here to kill me? My son, my murderer. You always did hate me."
"I don't want your crown—I don't think anyone should be able to have your crown like you have it," Will reasoned. "Surrender, and you might be pardoned of some of your crimes."
Movement caught my eye, movement on the third floor balcony overlooking this throne room. One of the guards was replaced; the other might have been, too, but they were behind me so I couldn't see them. But the one I could see....
I guess it makes sense that Percy Jackson would save the day again. No story would ever be complete without him in it, would it?
Apollo ignored him. "You've gone insane and you're lying. You've come to kill me. Your poor father, who you know would not win in a fight against you. Look at me, WIlliam! I'm old, I could not win. But you come to fight anyway, to kill me," he hissed. His eyes fell on me. "You—soldier, you kill him. Kill him or hear the screams of your friends as they suffocate in poisonous gases." When I don't immediately move, his demand turns into a scream: "Break form, and kill him!"
I slowly rose. Will took a step back, terrified. He would not win in a fight against me and he knew it. I'd been training for this my whole life, I'd been graceful and still and perfect in the army so that when a battle comes, I would win. He probably had never trained much, and he didn't even have a sword. Probably he'd donated his weapons to a rebel in need, if he even ever had one in the first place. Did he remember my duel with Octavian? If I was able to get him my sword, would he remember my fighting style and be able to beat me?
If he did beat me, he would have to kill me. In my heart, I knew he couldn't kill anyone. Will couldn't hurt a souI, no matter the situation.
God, why had I not taught him to fight when he had asked, after my duel with Octavian? Why had I assumed he would never need to know how to kill, never need to know it's okay to kill for survival. Will was practically a child in his innocence.
I raised my eyes to his.
What else could I do?
What other options were there?
I pulled my sword out of its sheath. "Will, I'm so sorry. To the sun, to the stars, and to the sky, okay? I wish there was another way," I whispered to him, knowing full well that the king had not told me to speak.
King Apollo narrowed his eyes in annoyance. "No talking—just kill him."
I looked straight at him, breaking the most fundamental rule as I spoke again without consent. "Yes, your majesty."
As I'd expected, the king shriveled back as I stared at him. Anger filled his old eyes. "Heathen! Do not look at me." He worked himself into a rage as I refused to avert my gaze. He took a couple of steps closer to me, closing the distance, and he slapped me across the face. "Do not look at me. You're only a soldier; do not look at—"
The king cried out, and he stumbled back with my sword in his chest. There was blood on my hands, and my eyes stung with tears. Will cried out, too. The king fell back over in my direction, bringing his knife down onto my heart, but I twisted. It tore through my side instead. I gasped. I reached for my sword instinctively, but it wasn't there. Right.
I fell. Will was by my side—not by his father's?—in an instant, trying to get me into his arms. I groaned in pain. The knife was still in my side—the pressure was unbearable—can someone take this knife out? When I tried, Will swore at me and put his hand on mine, pulling it away. Forcing me to keep the knife there. Why? It hurt, and I was going to die anyway. He picked me up again. He started running.
The king was screaming to the guards on the balcony to detonate the traps, but nothing happened. When I blearily opened my eyes, no one was standing on the balcony.
I blacked out for a couple of minutes, and when I woke up, Will was handing me over to Percy. They were talking, but it felt like a long way away. Could they talk a little louder? It felt like I was underwater. My fingers felt strange. Tingly. So did my toes. It occured to me that they might go numb soon.
Then Percy was running, leaving Will behind.
"This is it," I mumbled.
Percy made a disgruntled sound, panting as his feet pound against the earth. "What, Ten-Seventeen? This is what?"
"The poison. It finally caught up to me."
I passed out.
(A/N: What a dramatic exit, you guys)
(A/N: Also, please keep reading. I swear it's going to be okay lol)
Word count: 2704