This Dark Night ― Percy Jackson & Annabeth Chase¹

―xx. all is said and done

THE THREE FATES THEMSELVES took Luke's body.

Naomi hadn't seen the old ladies in years, since she and Percy had witnessed them snip a life thread at a roadside fruit stand when they were thirteen. They'd scared her then, and they scared her now—three ghoulish grandmothers with bags of knitting needles and yarn.

One of the Fates held up the snippet of blue yarn, and Naomi knew it was the same one she'd seen four years ago—the lifeline she'd watched them snip. Naomi had feared it was Percy's, but now she realized it was Luke's. The life that would have to be sacrificed to set things right.

They gathered up Luke's body, now wrapped in a white-and-green shroud, and began carrying it out of the throne room.

"Wait," Hermes said.

The messenger god was dressed in his classic outfit of white Greek robes, sandals, and helmet. The wings of his helm fluttered as he walked. The snakes George and Martha curled around his caduceus, murmuring, Luke, poor Luke.

Naomi thought about May Castellan, alone in her kitchen, baking cookies and making sandwiches for a son who would never come home. She wondered if losing her mind was a blessing—at least then, she might not realize why her son could never return.

Hermes unwrapped Luke's face and kissed his forehead. He murmured some words in Ancient Greek—a final blessing.

"Farewell," he whispered. Then he nodded and allowed the Fates to carry away his son's body.

Annabeth's knees buckled. Percy caught her but she cried out in pain. He'd accidentally grabbed her broken arm.

"Oh, gods," Percy said. "Annabeth, I'm sorry."

"It's all right," she said, as she passed out in his arms.

"She needs help!" Naomi yelled.

"I've got this." Apollo stepped forward. His fiery armor was so bright it was hard to look at, and his matching Ray-Bans and perfect smile made him look like a male model for battle gear. "God of medicine, at your service."

He passed his hand over Annabeth's face and spoke an incantation. Immediately the bruises faded. Her cuts and scars disappeared. Her arm straightened, and she sighed in her sleep.

Apollo grinned. "She'll be fine in a few minutes. Just enough time for me to compose a poem about our victory: 'Apollo and his friends save Olympus.' Good, eh?"

"Thanks, Apollo," Percy said. "I'll, um, let you handle the poetry."

The next few hours were a blur. The gods set about repairing the throne room, which went surprisingly fast with twelve super-powerful beings at work. Naomi, Grover, and Percy cared for the wounded, and once the sky bridge re-formed, greeted their friends who'd survived. 

The Cyclopes had saved Thalia from the fallen statue. She was on crutches, but otherwise she was okay. Connor and Travis Stoll had made it through with only minor injuries.

As soon as she spotted her, Naomi all but fell into Drew's arms. They clung to each other for a few heartbeats, thanking the gods that their hearts could still beat at all.

Mrs. O'Leary had dug Chiron out of the rubble and rushed him off to camp. Katie reported she'd seen Rachel Elizabeth Dare run out of the Empire State Building at the end of the battle. Rachel had looked unharmed, but nobody knew where she'd gone.

Nico came into Olympus to a hero's welcome, his father right behind, despite the fact that Hades was only supposed to visit Olympus on the winter solstice. The god of the dead looked stunned when his relatives clapped him on the back.