Chapter 45: There is No Preparing For This

Zoë's P.O.V

"Sammy," I exclaimed as her body crumbled once we appeared at camp, "please don't go."

She smiled softly as I saw the pain in her amber eyes, "I guess we were right, Smart Guppy," she breathed as I felt her blood soak my leggings. The blood had already soaked through the shirt that she took from me all those hours ago

"Don't go," I whispered, "I need you," tears started streaming down my cheeks as I held onto her, the end of the arrow poking at my legs. "I need you by my side," I whispered as I sobbed

"I'll always be with you, Zo," she began, "remember what I told you before we went in there."

"That's not the same, Samantha," I shot at her, "you know as much as I do that it will never be the same. I need you physically here, Valdez, not spiritually," I breathed as I felt her breathing slow, "no," I gasped

"I love you, Smart Guppy," she said as I watched the light fade from her eyes

"No," I exclaimed as I shook her body, "you cannot die on me again, Valdez," I began as I took the shaft of the arrow and pulled it out of her chest. I rushed over to the river and placed her in it. I let the water wet her as I pushed my power into it, "please work," I whispered, "please."

I sank onto my knees in the water as I didn't see the cheerful light return to her eyes, "Zoë," Annabeth whispered as I sobbed

"I am going to kill him," I muttered, "he knew his mistake the first time around. Why the Hades did he think that this was a good decision now?"

'I wish I knew Zoë,' Calypso began in my head which made my heart break more, 'but the most that you can do now is carry on. You remember what she said about where she will be going. Don't make this any worse for her, I understand that her heart may be broken in her sister's head, but she would want you to move on.'

"You're right," I began as I turned my gaze to Naomi, who was looking at me sympathetically holding her brother's hand. "She would want me to continue on," I sighed

'You do understand that I was the first person she talked to about this right,' Sammy's mother began again. 'She was afraid to leave you as much as you were, or are as the case may be, afraid to lose you. She is in pain as much as you are right now,' the mother finished as I stood up with Sammy's body in my arms

"Where do you want me to put her," I asked the Apollo cabin counselor, "my apologies Lady Chaos. As you may already know, death is something nobody can prepare for."

At that moment, everyone turned their gaze to the woman dressed in black whose eyes spanned the galaxy. They seemed better suited to her than her dear brother. "There is no need for you to apologize, my dear," she began softly, "I do understand the circumstances of death as I have witnessed it all too often."

"I'll take her into the infirmary to prepare a shroud for her," the counselor said as he gently took Sammy's body from my arms. "You will be able to visit her before we put her in the shroud."

"Thank you," I whispered before pressing a kiss onto her forehead, "take care of her body," I said before he rushed off into the infirmary with a nod. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit, milady?"

The camp had all eyes on the creator as I had just noticed the Olympians had also made themselves present. I blushed as I realized that everyone here saw my breakdown with Sammy's death, "There is no need to feel ashamed, Zoë," Athena began. "This would not be the first time we have seen a hero cry due to the loss of a loved one."

"She is right," Chaos said as I looked at Aphrodite, who sniffed. At that moment, I scanned the crowd to see Bianca's arm around Thalia's shoulders. My youngest sister was burying her face into her hands as I could faintly hear her sobs from here

I nodded, "Thank you," I began, "once again, I apologize that you all had to see that as that is not my usual actions not only when I see the creator but also when I see the Olympians. Now, if I may ask once more," I paused as I looked at Chaos, who stood in the middle of the camp next to Hestia. "What brings the original creator to Camp Half-Blood?"

She muttered something that I didn't catch as she straightened herself, taking in the scene of the camp before she finally answered. "To speak of war with my brother," she answered, and the next thing I saw was a flash of light, and we were standing on Olympus.

Sammy's P.O.V.

To say I was crying in front of the Fates was an understatement

I was sobbing in front of them as I stood faced them in judgment

"You have returned, Valdez," Clotho began as I tried to regain my breathing, pain flaring in my chest from where End shot me. "We shall send you to your destination for the death of those two mortals."

I froze; I had a chance to get myself out of this torture, "Could you at the very least let me explain my actions from then, please?"

"In time," Lachesis began, "Chaos has deemed your punishment as a unique kind of life."

"I don't think if you haven't noticed, but that isn't the right Chaos," I began as a vision caught my eye. I was an I.M. watching the events of Camp Half-Blood, "look who stands in the middle of camp next to the goddess of the hearth. That woman dressed in all black," I paused as my heart broke watching Zoë dip my body into the waters of the river, trying to bring me back to life. Hades and Nico held grim faces as everyone held faces of sorrow as the love of my life tried everything she could to bring me back. "Who is that," I asked, returning my gaze to the woman who fits the title of the creator a lot better than her brother had attempted.

"That is an imposter," one of them said as I didn't look over to see which one did, "the real Chaos had told us your punishment, and it shall start," she froze as I spun to face her, anger fueling my body

"Do you not remember the gender of the person you created this world with," I growled, "the Chaos who took us there to train threatened my life. He showed me the purple eyes that my girlfriend had seen in her dreams. How are you going to look at the visual and tell me that isn't the Chaos that you started this world with?"

"Now," they said together once I finished, and soon I saw Zoë looking at me as my body laid in the lake

I screamed in anger, not giving a care in the world if I gave Naomi a headache. How could they not tell who the real creator was, the man who took us to train whose true eye color is purple? The same man who shot an arrow through my chest, causing my second death, is not the Chaos who cherishes all life. The woman who stood in the middle of the camp was the true creator.

The one who bore the news of the war against her brother is the creator of this world.

The person who stood alongside the three Fates as she gleefully watched her creation flourish.

This is the woman who caused Zeus to teleport everyone in camp to Olympus once she mentioned why she was amongst the Olympians, Legacies, and the demigods.

This is the woman who brought a war council up with everyone with just a single sentence.

"What do you mean a war against your brother," Zeus asked outright. The actions of the King of Olympus are pretty odd when you consider you're speaking to the creator. A being who has more power than your dear father

"I mean exactly what I said, son of Kronos," Chaos said calmly, causing him to grumble. Gods, he is such a Drama King, "My brother had taken the legacies in hopes of training them to get them on his side. Now Samantha's death played into his hands as now the Fates can't get her out of the punishment that they evoked most likely just recently."

I froze, granted there isn't much moving I could do in Naomi's head, I still froze, stiff as a board. Thoughts ran through my mind as Zoë spoke the question that poked at our minds

"Could you bring her back?"

The creator, with a sympathetic sigh, shook her head and said, "Unfortunately, she will have to stay in your sister's head for a few years before she can choose rebirth. I can give you two something so you can see each other in that time."

"That would be greatly appreciated, milady," she said as I smiled

"So, onto this war," Zeus egged on as Naomi's gaze glanced at Zoë's two sisters. Bianca was attentive, while Thaly seemed a little out of place as her gaze jumped from person to person. This wasn't like her, so I hoped Naomi would keep an eye on the two during this meeting.

Thalia's P.O.V

You have got to be kidding me

How did Zeus not know that there was a war brewing underneath his domain?

The supposed Chaos appearing out of nowhere now saying there is a war right after the death of my sisters' girlfriend?

"If I may," I began, "could I use the bathroom? I don't concentrate very well on a full bladder."

Zeus sighed, "Once you get out, it's the seventh door on the right," he said as I stood up from the ball that I was crying in. I bowed before leaving the room, reaching into my pocket the traces the symbols on the coin

I was going to make a call that I didn't plan to make

Bianca's P.O.V

I watched as Thalia stood up, calm and collected. I saw her reach into her pocket as the doors to the throne room closed behind her. Something seemed off about her, and I didn't know what it could be

"Could I follow her," I blurted out, "she's seemed off since I reunited with her in that training area."

"Go follow her," Zoë said as I stood up, "and take my hat while you blend in with the shadows."

"Thanks, Zo," I began as I imagined her hat, "and I'm sorry."

Before putting on the hat, I bowed to the creator and the Olympians before exiting the throne room. Something didn't seem right, and I was going to find out what it was.

"About time you made your decision Jackson," a voice rang out in the bathroom as I appeared in one of the stalls. "So, you intend to be the host of Kronos?"

"As long as you hold up to your end of the bargain," Thalia said as I stole a look and held in a gasp seeing the same man that Zoë described from the video that exploded mom's laptop.

"It seems like you have company," the man said as his golden eyes met mine, "let's take care of them."

"That we shall," she said before turning to face me with golden eyes

Zoë's P.O.V

After Bianca left, I looked toward the Olympians, "So what is our action," I asked just as more people appeared in the throne room

"Where am I," Piper's voice asked as I directed my gaze to the group behind the creator

'Cal, are you in that crowd,' I asked in my head as I scanned the crowd looking for the mother of my dead girlfriend

"Calypso," my mother called out as we seemed to have a similar idea

'Unfortunately, I am not there, Zoë,' the daughter of Atlas answered in my head, causing my heart to drop to the pit of my stomach

"She's not there," I told my mother before she went diving into the group of returned demigods. "Cal just told me," I continued before turning to the creator, "where is she?"

"She is where you thought she is," Chaos began, "something is keeping her there, strong enough to keep my attempts to get her back here."

"Well," Athena began, "I guess we should see to it that she is saved."

"What about our weapons," Zeus shot at my grandmother, "for all we know, it could've been one of these legacies."

I sighed, "Just because I am the eldest daughter of the person whom you assumed stole your lightning bolt does not mean I am the person to steal all of your weapons. Same will go with the Valdez family," I paused as I looked at Naomi and Stephan, who had the misfortune of not knowing their older sister, as well as I did. "Sammy was never a thief, neither are her mother and father, and I trust that the two legacies that Leo had found are the same way."

The two remaining Valdez siblings nodded just as a shadow came over the room, "Who's there," Zeus asked as I saw him spark with energy.

"It's me," Bianca's voice sniffed, and I soon found my eyes widened to see all the cuts along her body and my hat hanging loosely from her grip. "Kronos has a host," she whispered, "it is Thalia Grace Jackson."