Meeting You || Ethan Nakamura/ OMC

Chapter 17

|| Can I Be Him by James Arthur ||

Ethan's eyes slowly opened, the light slowly hurting his eyes for a moment. It took a few moments, but Ethan eventually could tell that he was inside of a room.

He let out some soft groans before speaking out loud.

"Aleks... is that you?..." Ethan asked. "Where am I...?"

Aleks opened the door. He had his Greek armor on, and had multiple bruises and cuts around his body. He looked like he'd been fighting.

"Hi."

"Oh gods..." Ethan said as he saw the boy.

Ethan could see the boy's cuts and bruises clearly now, making his heart feel so heavy, so worried, so nervous about him.

"What happened to you!?" Ethan said, raising his voice a little when he saw how bad the boy's injuries were. "Are you okay!?"

"We are in the middle of a fight, Ethan." Aleks explained. "The fight we've been getting ready for, it's time, and is happening right now."

"What fight?..." Ethan said, feeling confused now. "What's going on?"

Ethan's mind was a mess right now as he tried to understand what was happening now. He still felt hazy and foggy from just waking up, but he did see the boy's condition and felt so worried for him now.

"The fight against the Gods." Aleks explained. "Us and the Camp Half-Blood kids are fighting."

Ethan felt a jolt as the boy's words hit him like a sledgehammer.

"What!?" Ethan exclaimed, now confused as hell. "How long was I unconscious for?" He was still so dazed right now. "You're telling me the fight has started already?!"

"It has, and Kronos wants you to fight in his battalion." The boy said. "Do you feel ready to fight? I can buy you some time to get yourself together..."

Ethan felt himself tensing up as the boy said this. All the memories of the explosion came back now and Ethan still felt scared and anxious. Even looking at the boy made him wonder how badly injured everyone else was right now.

"Do I feel ready to fight?" Ethan inquired. "No... I don't feel ready at all... I feel tired... I feel scared... I'm not sure how I'll be able to be useful right now.... Especially in... in a fight..."

"I'm sorry... but you don't have much of a choice..." Aleks said. "I'll be there too, you tell me if you don't feel good..."

"But..." Ethan tried to say as the boy explained that he would have to fight. "Aren't you injured right now too? Why do both of us have to fight now? I could be useful doing some other stuff too, you know..."

Ethan didn't want any more injuries to happen to them, and he didn't want to feel like he was useless to them too in the upcoming battle.

"Martinez! Hurry up, they're almost here." Someone called.

Aleks turned to look at Ethan again, waiting for his answer, even if he had not much of a choice.

"Ugh... fine, I'll fight." Ethan mumbled. "Are you sure you're alright though? I mean, you're injured too and still need to get yourself healed..."

Ethan was now worried about both of them now, feeling afraid if something bad might end up happening to both Ethan and the boy in the fight soon.

But if they had to fight, they both had too. They had to do it. They had to keep fighting, if it meant giving them both a better future.

They were a small group, maybe thirty or forty demigods in battle armor, some even mounted on skeletal horses. At the lead, Kronos himself.

Kronos's battalion drew their swords and charged towards the campers in orange shirts.

The orange shirt archers shot a volley, bringing down several of the demigods riding a horse, but they just kept going.

"Retreat!" Percy's voice could be heard. "I'll hold them."

Their archers retreated.

Percy stayed with a blonde girl beside him– Annabeth, daughter of Athena, fighting with her knife and mirrored shield as they slowly backed up.

Kronos's cavalry swirled around them, slashing and yelling insults.

The Titan himself advanced leisurely towards them.

Percy tried to wound the demigods. He also slashed the legs off their horses, causing them to disintegrate.

They figured out they should fight him on foot.

Ethan didn't even notice when the girl beside Percy cried out in pain.

"Annabeth!" Percy turned to see her fall, clutching her arm. A demigod with a bloody knife stood over her.

Ethan had been trying to stab Percy, and Annabeth had intercepted the knife with her own body.

Ethan had stabbed Annabeth.

Ethan locked eyes with Percy. And he quickly slammed Ethan in the face with his sword hilt so hard he dented his helm.

As Ethan fell, he thought about what was happening.

This was all wrong... This was never how they had to fight each other. This was never how this was all supposed to go...

The battle was brutal. Ethan did stab Annabeth, he just couldn't get himself to fight against Percy anymore.

"Ethan!" He saw a shadow approach and kneel beside him.

He knew who it was. Aleks.

Ethan was still dazed as he slowly got carried away from the battlefield, his mind still in a daze and trying to figure out what just happened.

"Ethan! Don't faint. C'mon."

"I... I failed..." Ethan murmured. "I... I don't think I can handle this now... I don't feel okay... I don't think this is right... We shouldn't be fighting each other..."

Ethan continued to stay weak on the boy's shoulder as he felt dizzy and tired still.

"You can't back down now, you have already gained your place. It will be treason."

Ethan stayed silent for a moment, feeling a bit overwhelmed with everything that just happened right now.

"I'm sorry..." Ethan spoke up. "I... I don't want to fight anymore..."

They arrived at one of the streets and Aleks sat Ethan down on the pavement.

"Ethan." Aleks said. "We've fought so many times to get what we deserve, you can't back down now. You promised me."

"But you don't understand, this is too much for me right now... I can't fight anymore..." Ethan muttered, sounding defeated. "Please... Aleks, I just want to go home now, okay?"

Aleks did not answer. He just kneeled, standing face to face with Ethan. He reached and grabbed his face, taking out Ethan's helmet and then his.

Ethan's eyes widened as his helmet got taken off, his face still feeling a bit bloody right now. He hadn't noticed how much his nose hurt.

Aleks grabbed from his pocket a piece of cloth and cleaned Ethans smashed nose.

"Ow... it still hurts..." Ethan murmured as Aleks tried cleaning it up a bit, feeling embarrassed now as he felt himself getting vulnerable right in the middle of the street here like this.

"I can clean it up myself later too..." Ethan mumbled again, his tone sounding weak and still disoriented now.

Aleks was about to say something when they heard the bridge shaked and began crumbling. And Kronos's army walked towards them.

"You. Get up." Kronos ordered, and they both stood up.