It almost worked ✸ Apollo ¹

XLIX. Family line

By the end of the morning, Lydia found herself out of breath and barely being able to stand up. Using her powers here was like using her powers to hold down Scylla and Charybdis in the sea of monsters. Which was a terrifying thought, but at the same time it would be worth it in the future. Because it would strengthen every bit of energy in her body.

Kadence explained to her that training in this manner was what Lydia truly needed. Lydia needed to master every inch of her abilities so she wouldn't be stuck without powers for so long, and she'd never need to be a on a cool down for months on end. Especially after doing some like fighting Scylla and Charybdis.

"Yes, Scylla and her sister Charybdis are both very dangerous. But with your blood and power, more dangerous things will be after you soon enough. And you'll need to master it." Kadence told her "It's only a matter of time."

After training with the other magic wielders for about two hours, Lydia and Kadence started walking back to Dawn's manor. She was so tired yet so much more powerful. It was like dinking nectar at camp half blood, she felt like she could pull a thousand Scylla's and Charybdis's to the bottom of the earth. It might've been dangerous.

The thought of it made her think about what happened with Apollo after the sea of monsters.

The feeling of death hit her hard, Lydia thought'd she never wake up again. She dreamed of her friends continuing their adventure to find Grover. But she realized that it couldn't have been just a dream, because she wasn't there with them. Where did she go?

Maybe this meant she was really dead, and her friends had to move on without her. Lydia felt like laughing. She worried so much about prophecies and her future for her just to die in the sea of monsters. But she stopped laughing when she realized what her mom would do. Did she really leave her mom behind?

It wasn't so funny anymore to think about that. She watched as her friends arrived at the island where Grover was hiding as a female Cyclopes. There was big fight against the fleece. And Grover cried when he found out Lydia was dead. She hated herself for using so much of her power.

Lydia should've just found another way to help, a way that wasn't so dangerous. But it was too late now. Her friends saved the fleece and sent Clarisse back to camp with it on a plane. Luke finally came back and fought with Percy on a beach, but they were saved by Chiron and his crazy centaur brothers.

Tantalus was sent back to the underworld, and everything was okay when they put the fleece on Thalia's pine tree. Lydia was happy for them. But she didn't get to see anything more. Because she was waking up.

Lydia opened her eyes to see the familiar god Apollo, with his shoulder length blonde hair, curled just right to make the men and women fall in love with him. She looked around and realized she was in her cabin at camp half blood.

"So..I'm not dead?" Lydia asked slowly.

"No." Apollo sighed "Definitely not, but at least you woke up on your birthday."

Her mind was spinning. She was dead, and it was also her fourteenth birthday. And Apollo was somehow allowed in her cabin at camp. What the hell was going on..

"Wait..what?" Lydia sat up "It's my birthday?"

Apollo laughed "Yeah. Happy birthday, Lydia."

The sun god took her hand. Lydia felt the familiar feeling of warmth and joy, but she was still confused about what happened. So Apollo explained that she used a lot of strength in the sea of monsters. He managed to save her from the wreckage before death ate away at her soul completely.

Lydia has been staying her at camp healing ever since, and a lot of time has passed too. "So what now?"

"My diagnosis is that you should take a break from using your powers for while. Let them cool down." Apollo told her "You almost killed yourself."

He mumbled something after that "Or else Zeus would've killed you instead."

"What? Zeus wants to kill me?" Lydia asked, Apollo was surprised that she even heard him.

He looked like he didn't want to explain what he meant. So he was quiet for a while. Lydia had a bad feeling something was worrying him, and she didn't want to find out. Yet she needed to.

Apollo sighed "About 45 years ago, a child of Dionysus was born. A girl with the same name as you. And I guess, she was also promised by the fates too. With a fate of strong power. More powerful than children of the big three. Like Percy Jackson and Thalia."

Lydia always believed Dionysus rarely had demigod children, but a powerful demigod like her. With the same name but born decades before her. Why has she never heard of this before?

"The original Lydia had a strong personality too, and she was the hero of many previous quests. But during these quests, Zeus saw how dangerous she was. The big three had already taken the oath to no more demigod children. So Zeus saw Lydia living as unfair." Apollo continued, his tone dark "So..he ordered Lydia's death. A brutal one at that."

Nobody said another word for a long time. The truth wrapped around Lydia's mind, and it hurt to think about it. She was going to die because Zeus thought she was dangerous. She was just a kid. How was this even fair?

"Wow..that's-" Lydia couldn't speak.

"I didn't want to tell you, Lydia." Apollo sat closer to her "I'm so sorry."

Lydia's eyes pricked with tears. She wasn't sure what to do, but Apollo welcomed her with open arms. She held onto him as she cried. The sun god rubbed his hand up and down her back. He didn't judge her for crying.

Apollo understood and he calmed her down. Lydia didn't want to let go of him, but eventually she had to. She wiped her eyes as she turned away from him.

"You'll be okay." He whispered.

"How do you know? Did you foresee it?" Lydia asked, her voice still cracky.

"No." Apollo told her "But I can promise it. I won't let anything happen to you. I promise on the River Styx."

"You didn't need to do that." Lydia said, as a rumbled filled the cabin. Apollo's oath was now fatal to him. Even as a god.

"I owe it to you." Apollo said.

And so Apollo was with her ever since, but he's learned not to interfere every-time Lydia faced a challenge. Yet even then it still horrified the both of them that Zeus wanted to kill her. All because Lydia was born with these abilities? Ones that she didn't ask for.

Lydia shook her head, but a smile came upon her face when she walked inside the manor. The sun god wore a yellow flannel, jeans, and his hair was messy. The way he stood reminded Lydia of a golden retriever. But obviously the mood had to be ruined when her great grandmother walked into the room.

"Great, you're back." Dawn sighed, her heels clacking dramatically against the marble floors. "We need to talk."

"Do I wanna know?" Lydia blinked.

"Probably not, but you should." Dawn's eyes flickered "Because Kronos's demigod lieutenants have sent word. Luke Castellan brought Lydia back. The original one."