Lost in Time (Forgotten Daughter part 3)

Duel

Ali struggled against the dracanae's grip as Percy faltered against the strength of the cyclops - Antaeus. The giant, one-eyed monster immediately healed no matter where Percy wounded him. She jerked against the dracanae's hold on her arm, but the woman held her fast, shoving the point of her sword into Ali's back.

The snake woman leaned close to her ear, her hissing raspy voice biting her eardrums. "There'sss nothing I want more than to kill you," She breathed deeply as if smelling her next meal. "But he wantsss to do it himssself."

Ali's chest tightened at the woman's words. Somehow she knew the dracanae wasn't talking about Luke. She managed a smirk. "Wasn't too happy with my refusal, huh?"

The snake woman pressed her sword deeper into her back. "Lord Kronosss will take great pleasure in punishing you for your impertinenccce."

Ali glared over her shoulder. "Since when is loyalty impertinence."

The dracanae smirked. "Sssinccce it putsss you on the losssing ssside."

Ali turned back to the fight and her face broke into a wide grin. "Are you sure about that?"

Percy had tangled Antaeus up in the chains hanging from the ceiling. The cyclops seemed to be retaining his injuries now.

The snake woman blanched, loosening her grip as she growled.

Ali spun, grabbed the monster's arm, and flipped her onto her back. At the same time, she drew her knife and dropped knee-first onto the dracana's chest, knocking the wind out of her. She smirked as she held the blade aloft. "Don't count us out just yet." She drove the poisoned blade deep into the snake woman's chest.

The dracanae let out an ear-shattering shriek before melting into golden dust. The noise drew Antaeus' attention, if only briefly, and Percy finished the cyclops off.

Golden sparkles rippled through the arena like curtains of dust as all Tartarus broke loose. Monsters roared and roused among the stands. Luke stood from his seat and glared down at Ali with his sword gripped in his hands.

Percy was on the ground now, surrounded by monsters. He clutched Riptide with a white-knuckled grip. His green eyes flashed with vicious ferocity, but he was grossly outnumbered.

Ali sheathed her knife and drew the twin blades belted around her waist. She needed to get to Percy. It wouldn't be long before he was overrun. She slashed through a monster, blasting it to glitter.

Suddenly, Luke appeared out of the chaos, his sword - Backbiter - in hand. His hair was peppered with golden dust and his eyes burned with anger. "I should've killed you months ago."

"You missed your chance." Brandishing her swords, she leveled him with a death glare.

He raised his own blade. "You know what they say: when one door closes, another opens."

"Not this time." She tightened her grip on her swords.

The two charged forward and the clang of metal against metal rang through the arena. Luke was quick, but Ali was ready for him. She ducked his blade and sliced him across the stomach. She backed up a step and her heart skipped a beat. Luke's shirt was sliced open, but he was uninjured.

She couldn't tear her gaze from his unscathed stomach. "How?"

He chuckled. "Took a little dip in the River Styx." He darted behind her, grabbing her by the hair and pressing Backbiter to her throat.

"The Curse of Achilles." She held her swords tightly at her sides. "Why? Things like that always come with a price."

He leaned in close to her ear. "I'm willing to pay it."

She let her anger and bitterness saturate her voice. "Then finish it." She tensed, closing her eyes as his blade pressed closer to her throat.

Out of nowhere, his grip loosened.

Without hesitation, she elbowed him in the stomach and whirled around, swords ready. "Who'd have thought? After all this time, all your talk, you can't do it."

Someone grabbed her from behind. She moved to face him, but a sharp pain ripped through her back. Looking down, she found a sword blade stabbing through the right side of her body.

"Ali!!" Percy's voice roared over the tumult.

A giant, furry, black mass collided with Ali and her attacker, wrenching the blade from her wound and sending her sprawling across the floor.

She pressed her hand against the injury, feeling thick warm blood flow. She squeezed her eyes shut as pain surged through her body. Someone picked her up. The noise around her had faded into a muddled mess and her eyes were glued shut. The pain drowned out everything else. All she knew was she was dying.
                                   *   *   *
A cool rush raced through her body - an icy wave that soothed the searing pain. Her breathing evened and she opened her eyes.

She was lying on the floor in a round room. The ceiling was decorated with paintings of the gods and a fountain spurted water in the middle of the room. Her gaze scanned the area until it settled on the hunched form sitting next to her.

"Percy?" Her voice crackled in her dry throat.

He looked up and his eyes widened. "Ali." He wrapped her in a tight hug. "Oh gods, you're okay."

A fresh wave of pain rushed through her torso. "Not completely."

He pulled away and helped her lie back. "Sorry. I just thought you were..."

"Dead?" She finished. "Don't get your hopes up."

He couldn't help but smile. "But... how? You got stabbed through the stomach. How could you survive that?"

She shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. Did you give me nectar? Ambrosia?"

He shook his head. "We're all out. I just..." His voice faltered.

"You just... what?" She urged.

"It can't be." He looked at the fountain as if it held the secrets of the universe. "Could it?"

"Percy," Ali made herself sit up, which was a lot easier than she'd expected given she'd just been stabbed. "What are you talking about?"

He slowly met her gaze. "I took some water from the fountain. I figured the best I could do is wash the wound." He trailed off. "It couldn't have healed you... right?"

Ali thought back to the evenings she spent sitting on the dock with her wounded leg in the water, how the salt water had felt good on her injuries. "I think that's exactly what happened."

A/N
Hi!
Sorry, this is really late in the day, but I was painting all day, so... 😅
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I promise I will explain everything in the next chapter, but for now. Thank you for the reads and the votes and the comments. I really appreciate all the support. Fell free to voice your predictions via comment. I'm interested to see what you all think.
Thanks again.
-Cheshire