Page 91 of Crown of Olympus
Two champions remained. Two heavy, impossible decisions left to make.
I had toyed with the possibilities of each option before me. Every time I thought I had finally chosen, doubt sprang to the surface of my mind with a ravenous claim.
Caelus and I exchanged a loaded look thick with unspoken words.
He smiled softly. A gift, meant for my eyes only.
“Choose, Nightshade,” he murmured.
I didn’t know why his opinion seemed to matter so much. I only hoped he would understand my decision — eventually. I knew it would affect more than just me. Zeus’ prophecy loomed like a shadow, the fate of the realms tangled in the thread between my fingers.
For just a moment, I allowed myself to imagine a realm where I truly had the freedom to choose.
Would I still yearn for him if I severed the cord? Would he for me?
Would I fade to nothingness like the threads had done? Or wander untethered and lost, like the souls I sentenced to the Asphodel Meadows?
I walked forwards, curious to know what my fate sounded like — what tenor it would possess. Caelus watched with intense fascination, as though he knew my decision tonight would affect us both in some way.
A single, lonely note filled the chamber. A strong, mid-range tone, neither high nor low. Steady. Clear. But the longer it played, the sadder I grew. The thread pulled taut between my pale fingers, shimmering in the dim light.
Icoulddo it. One slash of a midnight blade, and I could end my part in the fracturing of realms. I could end a war before itever began. No more trials, no more loss, no more being tethered to a destiny I didn’t choose.
But my fingers made no move. No dagger formed. No shadows came.
I had never feared death. I had walked beside it my entire life, from the moment I was born. We were kin, death and me. We played the same melancholy song at our core.
No, it wasn’t death I feared. It was what my choice might cost. If I chose to do anything other than walk away, I would be riskingeverything. Every realm and every soul would paymyprice.
But if I walked away, I would be choosing, instead, to endure. I would be choosing to face whatever came next — regardless of how it might break me.
A heartbeat passed. Then two.
I exhaled, slow and shaky, and let go of my thread.
Surrendering to fate.
Silence reclaimed the chamber.
I turned — and met a sharp, silver glare.
Did he know? About the prophecy his father had ruled by? Died for? Was he now judging me for choosing to let it play out?
I fled before I could find the answer in his storm-filled eyes.
Minutes later, as I hastily climbed the dusty stairwell, a strange sense of peace washed over me.
Whatever fate had woven for me, I would face it. Even if it shattered my cold, black heart. Even if it killed me.
CHAPTER 28
Caelus
I wasthe last champion to leave the chamber — just as I’d intended. I sought secrecy and silence to complete my part in this trial, knowing instantly what my choice would be.
The Fates remained plastered against the wall, imposing and judging. I wondered what they would make of what I was about to do — if they already knew.
Are you sure you want to do this, godling?Lykos rumbled in my mind.
