The Queens of Gotham

The last olympian [edited]

"Ashley, what are you doing? We've got to go! Ash?" Ashley set down the beer bottle with a sigh before turning around to face her blonde friend. She had grown considerably over the last year, now standing at 5'7 with hair that nearly reached the end of her ribs. At least half of her hair was a fading black and purple. She evidently had not cut it in a while.

Over the last year, a lot had happened. She had seemingly appeared on the League of Assassin's radar and they were pissed. She had at least two different relationships go down in flames. One had been with Kathy McDowell. That relationship sunk before it could even start. The other had been with Drew, who quite liked to use charms speak to bend her lovers to her will. And to add the frosting to the cake, she had started an intricate dance with a cannibal while pretending to be a FBI detective.

And she had began to create a new supersuit, as one may call it. It was mostly black with splashes of red. Maybe this time, she can be more than a thief. Maybe she could make amends for all those she had killed. For all those she had hurt. But first, she was going to spiral down into a pit of despair and rise up.

"What does it matter, Wise girl?" The blonde looked at her friend flabbergasted.

"What does it matter? Kronos is about to storm Manhattan!" The brunette shrugged. The bags under her eyes made it evidently clear that the teen spent most nights sleepless.

"Doesn't answer my question. What's the point of picking sides?" For someone who had clearly drank at least two six packs of beers, Ashley's voice was not slurred for the most part and firm.

"Because Kronus will wipe out the human race as we know it." Ashley scoffed at that.

"So, let me get this straight [oh gods I hate the word straight, it's so...uneventful] I am supposed to choose between genocide and child endangerment/neglect? Pass."

"Ashley, are you off your meds again? It's just that..."

"I'm being hubris? Yeah, I know. But if Kronos does succeed, it won't matter because the gods will be dead! And not everything outrageous I say comes down to me needing new antidepressants and mood regulators. I swear to...wait they're as good as dead. I need to invent a new saying....oh well. My point is, if the gods win, more kids will end up like Luke. Forgotten. Angry. Abandoned. If Kronos wins, everybody dies. No more global warming I guess."

Ashley's tone had darkened considerably. Her green eyes seemed nearly obsidian black with hatred and anger.

"What...you can't really mean that!"

"OoOhHhH I do. I left the League of Assassins to avoid death, not spread it! Plus, who's going to stop me? The gods? They can't even be bothered to show up to their own war! Watch. They won't show. But their 'loyal little soldiers' will. And they'll all die! Now if you'll excuse me, I want one last beer before the world ends."

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Ashley's sword cut through the hordes of monsters as if they were merely butter. She was looking far more sober now, but not completely. She had a black handkerchief wrapped over her mouth and cloth wrapped around her abs and wrists. What? She made a split second decision to come help.

If Ashley had been anybody else, she would have accidentally impaled herself with her sword or died of alcohol poisoning by now. Thankfully for her, she was an Al'Ghul with genetically enhanced DNA and god and demon dna [even though gods and demons don't have any readable dna, but that is a different matter altogether.]

Her fight pattern loosely followed Percy and Blackjack, his pegasus. The town itself was frozen, like a scene from a movie or a tv show. No cars moved. No one even flinched except for the demigods. And perhaps the unlucky monsters to get inconveniently sent back to Tartarus. 

There it was. The entrance to Olympus, home of the gods. But where were the precious gods now? Nowhere to be seen. Their were the hunters of Artemis. A handful of demigods. Several nature spirits. And a hundred centaurs who decided that this was a typical party and monsters were pinatas. 

"You made it!" Annabeth called to her friend who shot her a wry smile. 

"And the gods didn't. How are we looking?"

Without missing a beat, Percy exclaimed:"Sexy, but not like we're trying too hard. Like sure, we're trying, but it's almost effortless."

Within minutes, the army started to fall back. They didn't like the idea of being hit in the face by the centaurs' nerf weapons. 

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A wave of hope rippled across the demigods as a conch shell echoed from everywhere. The call of Poseidon. There he was, the magnificent god of the sea in all his tanned glory.

"STRIKE FOR OLYMPUS!" The demigods didn't need to be told twice. And neither did the the army the god had brought.

"Luke, I understand now. Trust me, please!" Annabeth tried once again to draw Luke out of his mind to the announce to the lord of time.

" Luke is dead! He shall burn away as I assume my true form!" Ashley approached the situation, attempting to put herself between the titan and her first friend. Her first crush. 

"You said you didn't care where are parents were!" Kronus faltered momentarily at the ex assassin's statement.

"Family, you promised!" Annabeth's final plea broke through. Gold eyes faded to blue. 

"A-Annabeth? Oh gods, you're bleeding!" 

Ashley let out an aggravated huff. "And who's fault is that?" She backed up slightly as his body began to glow gold. A look of panic and joy washed over the boy's face.

"He's changing. He won't need my body soon. P-Please...No!" Luke was smoking now, and not in the good way. He collapsed to his knees and crawled towards Percy and Annabeth's knife. "Please."

Hesitantly, Percy handed him the knife. Luke let out a yowl as he jammed the knife in between his own ribs.

Grover and Annabeth limped over to Luke, but Ashley beat them to it. "You two knew. I almost killed you, but you knew." His eyes were back to blue, but they seemed to be the only recognizable feature on the boy. His skin looked like it was covered in burns, severe ones. His hair was covered in ash. He still seemed to be glowing slightly.

"Y-you were a hero in the end Luke. You'll go to Elysium," Annabeth tried to reassure him.

"W-weak. Try for rebirth. Three times. Isle of the blest." 

Ashley nodded.  "I'll make it happen. I promise." 

"I d-don't doubt it." His hand gripped onto Ashley's sleeve. "Ethan. Me. The unclaimed. Don't let it happen again." Ashley muttered 'I promise' one last time as he went limp. Annabeth let out a sob and the green eyed girl caught her. "He's gone." Ashley muttered it on repeat as she held the blonde close to her. Her dull eyes lifted to find Luke's, his eyes still as blue as they were the day she met him. His skin  was just as tan and unmarked. He smiled sadly at her. She nodded softly.

"Percy, w-what is this?" 

Percy turned to face his godly parent, tears streaming down his face. "We need a shroud. A shroud for the son of Hermes."