War Mantle (Dancing with Death part 3)

Kindred Spirits

Ali felt the small flames still smoldering across her hands as she stalked away from Clarisse.

"Hey!" Tyler was running to catch up.

She paused to let him reach her.

He stopped beside her, panting. "That... was..."

"Freaky. Weird. Unnatural." Ali tried.

"Yeah... weird works." He agreed.

Ali sighed and turned to leave.

"Wait!" He grabbed her arm, pulling away when the ghostly flames licked his fingers. "That's not what I meant."

"Yeah, right." She stalked away, hoping he wouldn't follow her, but knowing he would.

"Ali, Please!" He pleaded. "Just look at me."

Sighing in exasperation, she turned to face him and froze.

Tyler stood with his eyes closed, taking deep breaths. Ghostly golden flames crept across his fingers. He opened his eyes and they glowed gold.

Ali walked slowly towards him, the dying flames on her hands reigniting. She stopped directly before him, staring at his flaming hands. She didn't know why, but she wanted to grab his blazing hand.

Tyler raised his hand to draw her gaze back to his face.

Ali stared into his golden eyes. Without thinking, she lifted her own hand and pressed it against his.

The flames blazed higher, twirling and licking around each other.

Ali felt a surge of power rush down her arm and through her body. She pulled away, jumping back in surprise. She stared at her hand. The ghostly flames had died out.

She looked at Tyler, who was transfixed on his own hand. "What in Hades?"

He met her gaze, fear and curiosity clashing in his eyes. "I have no clue. I thought I was the only one."

Ali glanced down at her hands. "So did I."

"I guess we're more alike than we thought." Tyler's voice drew her attention. He smiled awkwardly at her.

"I guess so." She agreed.
* * *
Ali sat with her back against a tree trunk. She ran her fingers through her hair, resting her head in her hands. She sighed and stared at the sky. "I don't know what to do." Her chest shook as she breathed. "I could really use some help mom."

As usual, nothing happened. Somehow that made her feel even more alone. What was she supposed to do now? There was no way the campers would follow her into battle. She was surprised they'd gone with it for this long. No doubt they'd turn on her tomorrow.

"You shouldn't be out here."

She looked up to find Owen standing over her. "Grover says it's not safe."

"I don't care." She took a deep breath of fresh air. "These woods have been more of a home to me than anywhere else. It's the only place I ever felt like I belonged."

"Alone?" Owen sat down beside her.

She scoffed. "Yeah. I've just... never connected with other people."

"Even Percy?" He teased.

Ali hung her head. "That's the closest I've ever come, but, looking back... it was never real, not like it is for him and Annabeth. I'll never have that."

Owen met her gaze. "Never is a long time."

She sighed. "Not for me."

He gave her a concerned look. "You never know what'll happen."

"My life has been pretty predictable so far." Ali countered.

He shrugged. "There's a first time for everything."

She rolled her eyes. "If I had a dollar for every time someone had told me that, I'd be a millionaire."

A grin spread across his face. "See. You can look on the bright side."

Ali chuckled and shoved him.

He laughed as he pushed himself off the ground. "There's that smile."

Suddenly, she remembered the impending war. Her grin fell. "What if I can't do this?"

"You can." Owen assured her. "We wouldn't have followed you if we didn't believe in you."

She took a shaky breath. "Last time I was in a war I just screwed things up."

"You took on Kronos single-handedly to try and keep him from reaching Olympus." Owen reminded her. "If you can't do this, no one can."

She felt another smile tugging at her lips.

"You belong here, Ali." He met her gaze and smiled. "Never forget that."

Tears sprang to her eyes and she threw her arms around him. "Thank you, Owen."

He returned the embrace. "What are friends for?"
* * *
The moon glittered above, reflecting off the calm water as Ali sat on the dock in the dark. She couldn't sleep. Every time she tried she was met with nightmarish images of the Seven being slaughtered in an ancient temple.

She stared at the horizon. At sunrise, the Romans would attack. At sunrise, halfway around the world, the giants would try to wake Gaea. At sunrise, it all ended... one way or another.

"You should be asleep." Tyler spoke behind her.

She scoffed. "What's sleep?" She looked back at him. "Why are you up?"

He sighed and sat down next to her. "Probably same reason you are." He met her gaze. "We're about to go to war."

Ali held his intense stare. She hadn't been able to look at him without imagining golden flames in his eyes since that afternoon. They were the same, but so much different. Opposites really.

She tore her gaze away from his and stared across the Long Island Sound. "And we'll probably lose."

"Wow." Tyler chuckled. "You really don't believe in your camp."

"It's not that I don't believe in them." Ali sighed heavily. "But I'm a realist and we're outnumbered... and I'm not just talking about the Greeks." She faced him. "There are more monsters than half-bloods. If something goes wrong, we're all dead."

"And you're in charge." He finished.

She looked away. "I'm not a leader, not like Annabeth or Percy... or Clarisse. I've never felt at home anywhere. I'm an outcast, a loner," she sighed. "a hunter. That's my fate. Friends are a privilege I can't indulge, because I know I'll lose them." She squeezed her eyes shut, fighting her tears.

"You seem to have a lot of exceptions to that rule." He noted.

Ali took a deep breath. "Which is exactly why I'm so scared. Because it's only a matter of time." She felt a tear escape her eye and roll down her cheek and she was grateful for the darkness. "That's why I don't stick around for long. The closer I get, the worse it'll hurt."

Tyler opened his mouth to respond, but paused. "What is that?"

Ali followed his gaze out into the Sound where a flock of Pegasi flew towards a cruise ship, carrying a huge mass. She sucked in a breath as she recognized it. "It's the Parthenos."

A/N
Hey guys!
Sorry I skipped yesterday. 😐
I caught up with my prewritten chapters and I'm currently working ten hour shifts three days a week at one of my jobs, so... I don't have a whole lot of time to write. 😬
Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter. Thanks for the support. I'll try to get the next chapter out soon.
-Cheshire