Caliginosity [ Leo Valdez ]

Here Tonight then Gone Forever

Leo sat on the curb of some random street, tinkering away at an idea he had while Nyx bought them food at a restaurant since they'd run out of McDonalds after all their traveling and gifting to their friends.

Leo cranked his wrench and grunted. He couldn't get this one nut down the screw and it was ticking him off. He took off the pieces and threw them into the street. Since he spent all night dreaming of Apate, he woke up cranky. While Livana was sent out to do Apate's missions, that beast was growing stronger. Leo had watched her peel herself out of the mirrors halfway. She was almost free.

But it was worse than that; Apate knew Livana was rejecting her. She pushed her harder, tormented her mind, reminded her of horrible things that Leo wasn't sure actually happened anymore. She relished in Livana's horror and sadness. She thrived off her pain and Leo couldn't stand it, he wouldn't just wait on the sidelines anymore. Apate had egged him on too much. Once he was done with his project, he'd knock Apate back down to Tartarus.

Since it was only Leo watching her, Apate dragged out their conversations. She toyed with him, told him things that could have been lies or truth- but mostly, the way she acted reminded Leo of how a snake plays with a mouse before squeezing it to death and eating it in one big bite. That was how Apate did her work. Leo felt sick thinking about it.

He snuffed out the flames starting on his fingers and finished building the first part of his idea. He shoved it back in his toolbelt and stood up, stretching out his limbs. He looked back down and kicked a rock into the street, watching it roll under Nyx's car. He sighed and figured they'd be on the road again soon, so he decided to take a Dramamine tablet. He reached in the car and grabbed the box of medicine.

"I wouldn't have to take this if we could have taken Festus," Leo said to himself, swallowing down a tablet. "I miss that big guy. I hope Nyx is taking good care of him."

Leo leaned into the car and put the box of medicine back into the glove compartment, but stopped when something caught his eyes. He swapped the box with a notebook he recognized as Livana's. He smiled melancholically and flipped through the pages. The best thing to do when you're sad is to reminisce on better times. It makes you even more sad, and then you can drown in self pity.

Leo sighed to himself and read the old entries. He flipped to the last one Livana wrote and re-read it, remembering how upset she was at camp before she left. He traced his finger along the edge of the page, thinking about her own touch once being there. When he pressed the page down, Leo blinked. Were his eyes playing tricks on him, or...?

He turned the page, and sure enough, there was new writing. Leo felt his heart stop. Who did this? Livana didn't have any access to the book since she left, but the writing was hers. Was this some sort of trick?

Leo scanned the familiar poetic writing and caught his breath. This writing was hers, and it was from current times. Leo could tell her confusion and sadness from the words, and immediately knew she was writing all of this behind Apate's back.

It starts with the unexpected loss of something dear.

The warmth that comforted and cradled just disappears.

And in its place there's nothing, just an endless empty hole.

The light that showed the way is gone, and darkness takes control.

Bitterness and anger are quick to fill the void.

The path to isolation is littered with the dreams that lay destroyed.

Leo tagged the page and closed the book, deciding to wait for Nyx to read the rest. He hopped in the car and sat down, shifting around uneasily. He chewed his lip as he watched Nyx exit the restaurant with two large bags of food. She handed them to Leo and sat in the driver's seat. "So, why are you so anxious? Are you finally ready to talk to me?"