Changing the Future

Chapter 88

Despite the head start Damasen had given me, it wasn't long before I sensed more ill-intentioned beings hot on my trail. Thankfully, I'd be bypassing Akhlys, so the likelihood of running into Nyx entirely depended on not getting caught or wandering into her territory. If she was searching for me too, well, that was an issue for future Andy.

The one good thing I had going for me at the moment was my immortality. To reach the Doors of Death, mortals had to cross through the Mansion of Night. Luke and Will were exceptions to the rule thanks to Tartarus's meddling, but I had already fought my way out of that place once before. I wasn't keen on doing that a second time. If I could find somewhere to traverse the Acheron, I'd be one step closer to closing the Doors for good.

Lady Tyche must've been in a good mood today, or maybe she thought it was finally time for things to go my way. I reached the bank of the Acheron with little to report other than a short skirmish with some bloodthirsty harpies. My sole complaint was that they somehow reeked worse than the permanent rotten egg smell that hung in the air, making my eyes water and leaving me wondering if yanking out my olfactory receptors was worth it.

Now came the problem of crossing the river.

Unlike the Cocytus, the voices of the Acheron worked by actively drowning those within its waters. The cursed spirits in the river would take on corporeal forms and drag the poor sod who touched the water to the bottom, condemning their soul to join in the vicious cycle for all eternity.

Murderer! wailed the souls of the Acheron.

Join us, another voice whispered. You are no better than we are.

The river changed course through my mind – showing me Atalanta, who had been slain on Mount Tamalpais because she'd come to rescue me from the Titans.

I saw Cleo, dying in the forests of Camp Half-Blood because she had tried to buy me time during the Battle of the Labyrinth.

James and Lucy...who had died to prevent Kronos from toppling Olympus.

Worst of all, the river revealed Luke, blood staining my hands as I scrambled to keep pressure on his injury. I watched as his grip went slack, lying limply on the ground as he exhaled one last time.

You were supposed to prevent this, the river told me. You should have seen a better way.

You murdered him! Jump in and share his punishment!

Small Bob nipped my ear. The pain was enough to dislodge the river's thoughts from my head. I hadn't realized how close I'd gotten to the riverbank, the water mere inches away.

"Good kitty," I said.

Was it too late to ask Charon for one of his boats?

Reaching out for the river, I attempted to part the waters like the Red Sea.

The souls didn't appreciate the disruption. They spewed their vitriol with renewed vigor and thrashed about, generating a more turbulent stream. I felt Damasen's healing coming undone as I pushed my arms further apart. The water sluggishly separated, taking its sweet time to clear a precariously narrow pathway.

I forced the opening a few inches wider, ignoring how my arms trembled like they once again bore the weight of the sky. Once I felt confident I could get through without touching the caustic waters, I slipped through as quickly as I could.

I unceremoniously dropped to the ground upon my arrival at the other bank. Small Bob took the opportunity to curl into a ball on my stomach.

The river sloshed together as it rejoined, generating another round of nasty commentary. Despite the newfound ache in my arms, I summoned enough strength to flip the bird at the Acheron.