#nlplot001

9:51 P.M.

Ginny Daniels isn’t always one for conformity. Sure, she’ll soak up the fun and eat up a party like this any day of the week, but after a while, she’ll start to get restless. Her hands will fidget, wanting something more than what makes everybody else happy. And if she’s honest with herself, maybe she wants a little distance from some unknown feeling arriving after spending time around Grey Hyun. But, she’s not honest, and instead finds herself slipping away from the ball and out into the cold air outside, running into another friend.

Minzhe Wu mostly doesn’t like large crowds. They bother him, make him feel a little antsy and unnerved. Sure, ze can enjoy a party every once in a while, but if he can find a reason to head back to his room earlier, he’ll do it. Only, out here in Colorado, he’d much prefer to step into the snow and look up at the stars, something one can’t get too much of back on NL’s campus. When Ginny finds Minzhe and suggests they go exploring in the woods, it seems like the perfect excursion to add a little fun to their nights.

It’s stupid, youthful fun, that’s all it’s supposed to be. And for two demigods who have never really seen much danger firsthand, who have been protected by the haven they live in, they don’t really know where to look for it in the real world. But the real world finds them, when their laughter dies down for a beat, and in the silence they hear rustling nearby. It must be some type of instinct that causes them to stay deadly silent as they look at each other, then scan the woods around them, looking for the source. And in the dim moonlight, yards away, prowling on paws and talons, they see it. A monster with the head, claws, and wings of an eagle, and ferocious body of a lion; the giant griffin.

Ginny and Minzhe’s bodies still, realizing only then just how much danger they’re in. They’re not heroes, not in advanced training, they have no means of getting out of this by themselves, and if they make any move to run for it, this griffin will find them and catch them. They’re stuck.

Their eyes lock, fear clear as the night sky above them in their gazes. In the quietest whispers they can possibly manage, they make a plan to do the only thing they can: call for help. Hidden in the brush of the trees around them, Minzhe sends a message to Marina Ren. They need help, now.

IN THE BALLROOM…

Marina Ren feels fulfilled tonight as she’s looking out into the masquerade, seeing the fruits of her labor come to life in the smiling faces of the demigods in her care. This is what she’s meant to do, give them joy and protection. But even as much as she lets herself enjoy the night, she’s still constantly on duty. So she’s quick to respond like muscle memory, reaching into her pocket as soon as she hears a message on her phone. What she reads in her inbox quickly replaces all that joy, and distills it into controlled panic.

Quickly, quietly, she finds her second in command, grabbing Peter Muñoz by his coat sleeve and instructing him to follow her to a secluded hallway while she explains the peril Ginny and Minzhe have found themselves in. Heavy worry starts to color his features as he calls for Daphne Saengmai to join them, and they put together a plan, debriefing Dia Paik and asking her to give a minimal announcement.

As Dia retreats from the stage— whispers and concerned looks littering the crowd under the music still playing— she watches NL’s top staff put their plan in action.

They don’t want panic and commotion, they know it’ll cause more harm if things start to spiral out of their control, so their plan is to act as quickly and discreetly as possible. They grab the attention of two nearby heroes, Theo Choi and Dahlia Shin, graduated experts who they can trust are more than capable to handle this monster. Lastly, they enlist Trevor Ahn, the head medic of the infirmary, covertly explain the situation, and send them on their way to Ginny and Minzhe’s location in the nearby woods. Marina, Peter, and Daphne exchange a look, promising each other to keep calm and optimistic. This is a good team, they can handle this, and everything should be fine.

Right outside the doors in the cold air, as heroes and healer go over the situation and the plan again, they run into two other demigods who had been having a moment outside of the ballroom. Cece Bae and Jake Garity have no idea anything’s going on at all, but overhear everything the other demigods are saying. Either through a strong duty to help and do the right thing, or a desire to be anywhere but here right now, Cece volunteers herself to aid them, pleading with the others to allow her to help despite still being in training. There’s not a lot of time to argue, and she’s already heard everything that’s going on, so as leader of this mission, Trevor tells her to hurry up and follow.

The four demigods race through the woods, Theo brandishing her favored great ax that she’d already had on hand with her at the ball. Maybe it had looked foolish before, but clearly one can never be too safe, and she uses her telumkinesis to summon the rest of the team’s weapons. Daggers get tossed into Dahlia and Trevor’s hands— Trevor hoping he won't need it and will only have to run defense or, Zeus forbid, tend to any injuries, meanwhile Dahlia’s dagger has always been her weapon of choice. Knowing what they’re up against, Cece chooses her long-range weapon, a bow in her hand and a quiver of arrows on her back which will help her to stay on the outside and let the graduated heroes be the first line of defense.

Cece and Dahlia regard each other for a moment, usually in rivalry, but tonight instead share a knowing look as they both rip at the hems of the dresses, tearing off the excess that would have made it harder to fight. The cold bites at Dahlia’s shoulders, but she’s handled worse, and Cece stays a little warmer thanks to the jacket her best friend had insisted she take. Theo and Trevor were smart to wear suits tonight.

They’re swift and diligent as they run into the woods, trudging through the snow, closing in on the section of the forest where they know Ginny and Minzhe are. Their pace slows, quietly surveying the landscape before them, and they can hear the low, caw-like growl of the griffin nearby.

But as the team of heroes come into view, it’s only natural to feel relief, to panic and call for help, but as Ginny and Minzhe do so, the griffin’s head whirls in their direction and leaps. Minzhe uses the last moment ze can to push Ginny out of the way, which earns him a deep, painful gash in his side, bleeding fast as he stumbles to the floor and Ginny screams.

Theo acts first, striking fast and hard as she runs headfirst, grabbing the monster’s attention and sprinting to the right, succeeding in guiding it away from Ginny and Minzhe. It runs after her, and Theo fakes one way only to spin back around and duck down, raising her ax to strike against the tough hide of the monster’s shoulder. It screeches, and she continues her momentum, sliding out of the way as it swings a huge talon in her direction.

With the griffin out of the way, Trevor is running towards his younger brother, instructing Ginny to stay back in the brush of trees as he quickly kneels down at Minzhe’s side, his hands moving expertly to the nasty wound, feeling the power of his healing begin. It’s doable, well within his capacity to heal Minzhe enough to get him mobile and out of here, but he’ll need time. He can’t focus on anything other than his powers now, but he prays the heroes behind him can give that to him.

Dahlia slides in from the opposite side Theo had exited, catching the griffin by surprise as she hurls a dagger in its direction, watching with satisfaction as it sinks into the monster’s side. That satisfaction fades just a touch when she catches the monster’s reaction— barely an annoyance— and concludes that she must have hit a tough spot with less pain reception. It happens, and next time she’ll target a better area, she decides, calling for Theo to summon her dagger back to her.

The daughter of Ares doesn’t even break focus as she wills the weapon to her command and tosses it back to Dahlia. Theo strides forward again, running straight for the griffin, and as it rears its beak back to strike down to her, she slides under it, letting her ax slice against its underbelly as she comes out the other side. The griffin roars, clearly in pain, but it should be nearly incapacitated by now, and yet still it stands.

Dahlia sheathes her dagger for now, opting instead to use her godly powers this time, though it’ll be tricky getting in close enough contact. She signals for Theo, who strides in again to catch the griffin’s attention, faking left before ducking out of the way, and Dahlia finds her opening. She rushes in, only needing a second, letting her palm find purchase against the monster’s fur. She knows to be quick, putting all her energy and focus into that one moment, sending her poison generation ability through her palm and into the beast, as much of it as she can muster. This should be over soon, she thinks, watching as the griffin howls in agony, its body succumbing to the poison in its system. But even as it rears and twists, moments later, it overcomes.

Something feels off. She looks to Theo for confirmation that she feels the same, that something doesn’t seem quite right, but doesn’t get any reassurance from Theo. The Ares girl seems as brazen and confident as ever and Dahlia has to wonder for a moment if she’s making it up in her head, or if she just doesn’t know what fighting a griffin should be like.

That moment's hesitation of wonder nearly costs her dearly, lost in frustrating thought for even just a second. It’s enough for the monster to see an opening and start rushing for Dahlia. But Cece lets loose an arrow, burying it straight in the monster’s neck. It doesn’t stop in its pursuit, so she unfurls one more, then two, three, four, until finally the cluster of arrows in its neck is enough to make it pause, rearing back in pain and anger. Dahlia looks to Cece, silently thanking her, surprised she’d ever be in a position where she’d have to extend gratitude to the daughter of Circe.

The monster is furious now, having to endure large, bleeding gashes from Theo’s ax, Dahlia’s poison coursing in its veins, and five of Cece’s arrows buried in its neck. Not only is it still not down, but now it's starting to go berserk, kicking and rearing in every direction, making it impossible for the heroes to take a proper stance or guess where it will head next. They’re realizing now that they’re all veering dangerously close to Ginny, Minzhe and Trevor, and in a couple more steps, they’ve lost control of the battle.

Minzhe can feel his body being healed, feels the soft warmth of his brother’s power. Ze blinks weakly, sees Trevor’s face focused and concerned, doing what he’s done a million times before, healing the people he cares about. Trevor shifts his gaze for a moment, catches his younger brother looking at him, and offers a sympathetic smile.

“You’re going to be okay,” he tells him, and Minzhe believes him.

Minzhe smiles back. In one instant, he’s looking up at his brother’s face, watching him do what he does best. In the next, it all falls away, and what Minzhe sees is Trevor’s features contort. Terrifying, monstrous talons appear through Trevor’s abdomen, pools of red spreading across the white shirt he still wears under his suit jacket.

It’s painfully swift, with absolutely no time to act, and no choice but to watch in horror as the griffin continues its swing, with Trevor impaled in its grasp, and is stopped only by nature— a tree in its path. It slams Trevor against the trunk, pinning him there, its talon sinking past him into the bark. Then, like a cat with its claws stuck, it rears back annoyed until it frees its talons, and Trevor Ahn sinks to the ground. Someone, anyone, screams— maybe all of them. It’s only one terrifying second, but they see the way the body of their only healer here falls. Lifeless. Trevor Ahn, the head of the infirmary, a pillar of Nemean Lion’s community, friend and mentor, lies dead.

Ginny Daniels stands horrified, witnessing a scene unlike anything she’s ever known to be prepared for. Minzhe barely conscious on the ground, stable yet badly hurt. And Trevor… She’s not a hero, not a fighter, and this is far too much violence and tragedy than she’s equipped to handle. Sound seems to fade from her ears, unable to hear the shouts of Dahlia, screaming for her fallen teammate, rushing to his aid in vain. She doesn’t hear the guttural cry from Theo, who swings back with her ax and lands the killing blow, decapitating the creature moments too late. She doesn’t hear Cece calling to her, pleading her to turn away, unable to snap out of it until the daughter of Circe grabs onto her arm, jostling her. Ginny grips onto her in return, her hands quivering, but the death grip on her friend is insanely strong, Cece wincing under the pressure. 

Ginny begins to panic, breath catching in her chest, dangerously close to a sob, trauma and shock settling fast. Something tells her this isn’t real, that she shouldn’t believe it, that if it is real, she should just change it. Her breathing quickens, not processing Cece’s questions and concerns, not processing the odd pain she can see on the other girl’s features. Instead, all the daughter of Chronos can really feel is a tingling sensation growing in her chest, a strange warmth emanating from the place where she and Cece’s touches meet, and fear.

It’s that fear that drives her, propels her to chase that tingling feeling, tears beginning to well in her eyes, and when she shuts them hard, that feeling in her chest explodes, she sees a blinding white behind her eyelids, and then it’s all just… gone.

When Ginny opens her eyes, she sees the cozy, quaint interior of her room at the Hallowed Woods Resort. Sunlight pours in from the window, and other than a blossoming headache, she feels completely fine. Something seems to nag at the back of her mind, but she can’t place it. Was it something she did last night? She can’t quite remember, and thinks to herself it must just be some weird dream. It’s morning, after all, she’s just woken up for a big day, and she better check the clock and get to it.

9:52 A.M.

Shit, she’s late for breakfast. She’d promised Jae they would meet up this morning to discuss their outfits for tonight’s Masquerade Ball— she can’t wait.

LOOP ONE…

Time travel is strange in different ways. For someone who’s rarely used a power like this, and certainly not over this large of a stretch of time, it’s unexpected. It evades her, the effects of using it so powerfully this way. And for that reason, Ginny goes about her day not having realized what she’s done. Mostly, all she feels is a weird sense of déjà vu, and for some odd reason, she’s so tired.

Little things change here and there— she orders something different for breakfast, she leaves the ball out of anxiety instead of restlessness. But all those little factors do nothing to change her bigger choices, and she still finds herself in the Hallowed Woods, deathly quiet as she and Minzhe spot the griffin once again.

It’s only then that things start to slowly come back to her, though she can’t comprehend how she could have done it, won’t believe that she did. Not until the team of heroes arrives to their rescue again, and she sees Trevor’s face.

But in that instant, Minzhe calls for help again, and suddenly she remembers how this all ends. 

She doesn’t have time to plan, only does the first thing she can think of to get Trevor out of harm’s way, which starts with saving Minzhe first. Instead of him pushing Ginny to safety, she pushes him, hoping to protect them both. But she’s too slow, not used to fighting amid danger, and she gasps in pain as the griffin’s strike hits her side instead, tumbling to the floor in shock and agony.

Ginny can barely put words together in her head, much less speak them aloud through all the pain, so she’s helpless to stop Trevor from rushing to her side as he turns his back on the battle. Weak hands try to push him off of her, try to will him to turn around or run, but he doesn’t understand, and Trevor would never leave her like this.

All she can do is watch in horror as the fight goes on behind Trevor— Theo using different moves this time to the same effect, Dahlia starting with poison then her dagger, Cece letting loose arrows to give the Ares girl cover this time. But it all yields the same result when the griffin still goes crazy, panicking and screeching as it pounces their way. She hears Minzhe scream a warning, but it’s still too late.

Ginny watches from a new, horrifying perspective this time as Trevor still gets caught up in the crossfire just as he stabilizes her. She has the energy now to scream again, finally letting sound escape her, as he gets wrenched away, and dies all the same. In the next moment, Dahlia’s throwing dagger finds its way right between the griffin’s eyes, deep and final, and it collapses next to Trevor, too late once more.

All the other demigods are frozen in shock and terror, and while Ginny feels both those things, she also feels a twisted determination as she stumbles to her feet and grips onto Cece, realizing now exactly how she’d been able to rewind time so far last time.

“I need to try again,” she mutters, clutching her newly healed side with one hand and Cece’s wrist with the other.

It takes Cece and the rest of them a moment to react to her, unable to tear their eyes away from the tragic scene before them.

“...What?” Cece offers weakly. “What are you talking about?”

“I need to try again. I-I did it before, you helped me. I need your help again, Cece, please, I can fix it,” she pleads, the sting of tears starting to burn.

Theo and Dahlia turn with grave looks to the daughter of Chronos, starting to catch on.

Minzhe still isn’t fazed, still can’t look away from his brother’s body.

“You did what?” Theo asks, voice hoarse, as Dahlia fixes her with a dire stare.

“Help me do it again!” she begs, both hands gripping Cece now, her own body and mind tired, steadfast in her mission.

Cece understands now why she’s also been so exhausted today, realizing with fearful awe that Ginny must be telling the truth. She’s never had a good handle on her amplification specialty anyway, she’s never known she could boost someone’s powers so greatly. But is this the right choice, now that she knows? She looks to Theo and Dahlia for help, like they might know the correct answer better than she would, but she can’t deny that her heart is bleeding for her friend, that it’s so easy to give in to what she wants.

She can’t read Theo’s expression, doesn’t know if the daughter of Ares also can’t bring herself to call the shot on right or wrong.

“Do it,” Dahlia instructs, wiping at her eyes. “Do it, try again.”

She’d been looking for an answer, and she’s got it now, yet she still feels so torn, scared and unsure.

“Help her,” Minzhe mutters from the sidelines, finally bringing his attention to them. They stare at him back for a moment, unsure what to do as they watch tears fall down his face. “Help her!” ze cries again.

Cece flinches and her heart breaks, and that small push amidst the horror of it all is enough to trigger her power. Warmth radiates from her skin and into Ginny’s palms. They’ve both already depleted so much of their godly powers, with only half a day of little rest. Neither are sure what they’ll be able to do, or if they even have a plan to fix it, but pure panic and tragedy drives them.

Ginny feels that tingling sensation again, though it’s harder now to latch onto it, but she prays and begs her father, wherever he is, to let her do this. Tears fall as she squeezes her eyes shut, met with that blinding white light again.

When she opens them, she’s met with the dark environment of the forest around her. Her head is killing her, some sort of migraine, though she can’t remember having it before she got here. In fact, where is she again?

Her attention gets caught by Minzhe’s laughter, near her, posing for a stupid photo in the camera of her phone as they explore the woods around them. She glances towards the top of her phone, checking the time.

7:53 P.M.

A strange anxiety hums through her hands, and she feels like she must have run a mile in these damn heels, but she tries to shake it off. They’ve got a couple hours before anyone knows they’re gone.

LOOP 2…

This is a fool’s game, really. There was no real plan, no definite way to make sure anything could end up differently than it had before, or even guarantee that Ginny would have enough control of her power to remember what she’s done and see a different outcome.

She and Minzhe continue to move deeper into the woods, blissfully unaware again of the danger they’re walking into. Some gut feeling tells Ginny they should stop, that they should head back, but she’s never been one for instinct, never really needed it. It bubbles and blossoms further until something tells her to grab Minzhe’s arm, stopping him from walking any further. She puts a finger up to her lips and then points through the trees, where a beast looms before them, a beast she swears she’s seen before.

When Minzhe gets word back to Marina for help, that anxiety starts to grow through Ginny’s limbs and chest, convinced she’s seen this all play out before. But it doesn’t make sense, she doesn’t know how she could have seen this before, until she realizes who she is.

Memories start flooding back to her— the first night, Theo and Dahlia’s heroics, Trevor’s death, her unexpected use of powers through Cece’s amplification, rewinding time once, then watching it all play out again, forcing herself to do it again.

Her breath quickens as she latches onto Minzhe, panicked whispers detailing all she can remember to him. Minzhe’s eyes widen in horror, but ze believes her. There’s not a lot of time to act, and they’re not trained, but they’re convinced they can change the ending and save Trevor.

And just as they get on the same page, the heroes come into view. Ginny warns Minzhe to stay quiet, lets the team get the jump on the griffin this time instead, but the two demigods’ full focus is on Trevor.

They hide between the trees, watch as Theo lunges from the shadows, racing at the griffin and landing the first blow, and the battle begins. Now that the monster is distracted, they rush to Trevor, pulling him into the brush with them, 

“Where are they?” Cece calls as she notches an arrow and lets it fly, referring to Ginny and Minzhe.

“Where’s Trevor?” Theo shouts in return, taking only a second to scan the area, worry clear in her voice when she can’t find him.

Minzhe throws a hand up, waving furiously, catching the heroes’ attention. “Over here! We have him!”

“We have to protect him!” Ginny shouts. “We can’t let him die!”

“What?” Dahlia shouts back, but even as she questions it, the remaining heroes start to put it together, jumbled memories coming back to them too.

Confusion and panic flood their expressions, and they realize this isn’t the first time they’ve fought this beast, it isn’t even the second. It’s too much to process and stick to their plan, and Ginny doesn’t even know how strong this monster is, doesn’t realize Dahlia and Theo are barely holding it together, despite what they should be able to do.

“Shit, shit—” Theo curses, trying to see straight amid the chaos and the familiar fury starting to settle in her bones. They’re losing focus and stamina fast, and she can’t keep pretending she’s got it under control. Her muscles strain even as she lifts her ax, and doesn’t complete the backswing properly, bringing it down haphazardly and missing the arm of the griffin. She’s open now, and the monster takes that opportunity to whirl around, kicking her with a strong back paw and sending her crashing into a tree behind her. Theo’s head hits the trunk hard, knocking her unconscious, but still alive.

Dahlia shouts for her, sprinting in her direction to get the monster’s focus away from her. She only has one chance to throw her dagger now with Theo incapacitated. She remembers the way her poison hadn’t worked well enough before, but she has no other choice, she has to try.

From the treeline, Cece sees her running in alone, and knows she needs backup. But it seems the daughter of Achlys can sense her desire to help, and calls behind her. “Stay back, Cece! You don’t have the training, stay on the perimeter!” She doesn’t mean it as an insult, only fact, only as a means to protect the trainee. Cece doesn’t want to listen, never has when it comes to Dahlia, but she can’t get in the way. She hates it more than she can say, but she does as she’s told.

But someone else isn’t listening. Trevor, for one, tries to wrench himself from Ginny and Minzhe’s grasp, knowing what they’re trying to do for him, but knowing even more that he’s signed up for this life, that he’d do anything to help others, and his team needs him. However, Minzhe and Ginny, through their blind panic, are surprisingly strong, especially together.

Trevor begs them to let him go, but Ginny pleads in return, keeping her grip on him strong. She’s done so much to fix this, she has to succeed this time. But Minzhe sees the way Dahlia runs in alone, sees how they’ve lost Theo’s ability to help, and they aren’t enough anymore.

Ze’s not sure what drives him, maybe the memory of Trevor doing all he can to try to save him before, maybe a strange, innate desire in his godly blood to act, but he lets go of Trevor only to dash into the fray.

“Minzhe!” Trevor screams, still held up in Ginny’s arms, at the same time that Cece calls after him too. She’s too far, she can’t stop him, but what in Hades is ze thinking?

They’re calling his name in vain, ze won’t listen. He’s closer than Cece anyway, but he can’t know he’s still too far. Dahlia’s trying in one last-ditch effort, closing in on the griffin with both her palms outstretched, leaping over it. She lets her hands catch its neck, sends every bit of her poison through, and follows through with the jump, landing hard on her side on the opposite end of the monster as Minzhe.

The griffin roars, pained by the poison, and sets its attention on the one who delivered it. Dahlia, still on the ground, throws her dagger and misses, losing her last weapon. The monster swings back with its talon, and comes down hard, raking them against Dahlia’s arm and torso as she cries out in pain and the others scream her name.

That’s exactly when Minzhe gets there, as the griffin whirls around from Dahlia writhing on the ground, and sets its sights on the younger child of Apollo.

Cece’s too far away, she’s screaming at Minzhe to run, sending a slew of arrows for cover that land in the beast’s hide. But Minzhe is frozen in place, face to face with a real monster for the first time in his life. Terror takes hold, and ze cannot move. Not even as the griffin screeches and rears back, then digs its beak deep into Minzhe’s chest with a sickening crack.

Trevor screams, finally freeing himself from Ginny as Cece shouts in turn. But now Ginny stays frozen, dread seeping into her features, looking at the scene before her like she’d doomed them all herself. Hadn’t I? she thinks.

As Trevor runs towards his brother’s body, the griffin kicks up onto its hind legs, letting a blood-curdling roar rip from its throat. It starts flapping its wings, ascending into the sky, almost pushing them all back with the force of its strokes. They’re powerless to stop it as it flies further into the sky, then soars with impossible speed away from them. In the direction of the resort and ballroom.

Trevor makes it to Minzhe’s body, kneeling quickly, ready to heal him. There’s so much he’s capable of, so much his powers let him do. But he can’t do anything now, not when death has already taken Minzhe from him.

IN THE BALLROOM…

Minutes earlier, Marina Ren’s mind is working on overdrive. Around the ballroom, after Dia has delivered her announcement for the third time, the young minds of these demigods start to get clouded with more confusion than concern. They’ve heard it before, they can almost be certain. Some get clearer more than others, realizing with certainty that this isn’t the first time they’re living this night. But they can’t make sense of why.

Marina can. Not only does she have more knowledge of what’s actually going on tonight, she can sense when something close to her power is occurring. With the ability to warp reality, she knows someone is trying to change what’s real. Marina puts the pieces together, she knows exactly what Ginny’s done, only she never knew the daughter of Chronos was capable of it.

She finds Peter again, and while she can’t be sure of the exact nature of the situation, or just how much danger they’re in, she has to do what she thinks will best protect the demigods in her care.

“Lock the doors. Do not let a single soul out or in until you hear from me again,” she instructs.

“Where are you going?” Peter asks in return, deep concern creasing his brow.

“I have to find Ginny.”

She leaves then, racing on her own two feet through the woods, praying to every god she’s ever met before that she’ll know what to do when she gets there, that she can stop Ginny before she keeps repeating the cycle.

Sprinting through the woods, she hears the sound of something overhead. Her gaze snaps up, just in time to catch the silhouette of a giant griffin flying above her, back towards where she came.

No, no, no…

Agonizing seconds later, she hears the thunderous crashing of wood, the screams and the chaos erupting from the ballroom, and every bone in her body turns to ice. She could run back, she could help. But she knows in her soul the best way to remedy it all is to keep running forward, to find Ginny and make her set things right. So against every best wish, hating every step she takes farther from the resort, Marina races on through the woods.

The demigods locked in the ballroom aren’t prepared in the slightest for what arrives to attack them. No warning, little weapons, absolute panic. It’s all a recipe for complete disaster.

The griffin tears through the roof, sending everything into an immediate frenzy. Screams and shouts. Destruction. Hysteria. Fatalities. Demigods fight and fall all the same. On this night, these young half-bloods, despite power and heroism and every action to save each other, they’re doomed.

IN THE WOODS…

Trevor still kneels over Minzhe’s body, stoic and still, though silent tears fall. Theo comes to, struggling to get to her feet. Dahlia can’t get up with her injury, and Cece quietly and somberly walks into the clearing.

Ginny stays frozen where she is, wondering in horror how she could have let this happen, how she could have let things end so terribly when all she wanted to do was fix it.

“Where’s the griffin?” Theo asks as she nears them, but her body stills as she sees just what she’s missed, sees Trevor over Minzhe’s body.

Dahlia can’t bring herself to speak, so Cece clears her throat, tight with tears, but even she can’t bear to say Minzhe’s name. “We need to get back, everyone else is in danger right now,” Cece starts, her voice fragile, but attempting to hold it together.

“What are we supposed to do now?” Dahlia asks, wincing as she tries to get up from the ground, tears rolling down her cheeks, exhausted and in pain.

Ginny takes hesitant steps forward. Her hands shake but she can’t feel it. She can’t feel anything, none of it seems real. Time doesn’t feel real.

“I can fix it,” she whispers, unable to stop staring at Minzhe. “I-I can try one more time. Let me go back, I-I’ll save everyone this time. I can do it.”

The heroes all look to her with a mix of sympathy and concern. Once, they’d agreed with her, they’d thought second and third chances were what they needed to save Trevor. But it’s become clear to them now that they can’t change this, can’t keep messing with what’s already happened. Ginny still can’t bear it, though.

“I can do it!” she shouts, looking between all of them now. “We just need one more shot, I’ll make sure we can do it! Please!”

“Ginny, stop,” Marina calls, emerging from the trees, and all eyes whirl around to her. The atmosphere changes, now in the presence of someone they all regard with absolute decision, with revered power.

Ginny’s lip quivers as she looks at Marina, understanding that she knows now what Ginny’s trying to do— what she’s done already multiple times over.

“I… I have to save him, Marina,” she starts weakly, tears beginning to fall. “Trevor, he… He died, he died and I’m trying to save him.”

“You can’t change the past or the future this way, Ginny,” Trevor finally speaks, squeezing his brother’s hand before rising and turning to regard the others. “You have to let it happen.”

“No— No! I don’t, I can change it, I have this power, I can— Cece, please,” she pleads, turning her eyes to her friend, who can’t help but cry in return.

“Ginny, our powers are not meant to be used this way,” Marina starts, stepping closer to her, a gentle hand on her shoulder. It’s apparent to everyone in the clearing that she means to include every demigod, but hers and Ginny’s powers especially. The power to rewind time. The power to warp reality. Entirely too powerful, near destructive, if left unchecked. “We’re not gods,” she says softly. “We can’t do as we please to change the world as we want it.”

“But if I… If I have the power to do something, to help someone, shouldn’t I?” she asks weakly.

Marina nods in understanding. “Not like this, not in this way. It’s too much, changing time this way, causing butterfly effects, willing what you want to happen. The harder you try, the more chaos can ensue.”

Ginny looks for a tragic moment at her friend’s body on the ground, and in the next instant, they can all hear the distant cries from the destruction of the ballroom.

“Ohmygods…” Dahlia whispers in horror.

Theo struggles to stand upright, “We have to go, we have to do something.”

“There’s nothing we can do from here,” Marina starts, then turns her attention back to Ginny. “You have to set things right.”

“What?” Ginny breathes.

“You have to go back again,” Trevor concludes. “And you have to let me go.”

Ginny looks to him, wide eyes brimming with tears, her head shaking slightly.

“It won’t be your fault. What happens to me isn’t your fault, Ginny,” Trevor insists, with all the care in his voice that he’s held for his peers and friends for years. He echoes the sentiment he felt minutes before. “I chose this life. I wanted to help people, I wanted to go into the field, I knew what could happen. This isn’t your fault. This isn’t any of your faults,” he finishes, glancing to the other heroes around. “Tell… Tell Minzhe that too.” He then fixes Ginny with a considerate gaze, believing every word he says, hoping she believes them too.

She can’t stop the tears from falling, can barely begin to process what’s happened and what’s she’s being asked to do, but she can begin to just start to accept it. 

Trevor turns to Marina, solemn and somber. “Would you please tell Miri I love her?”

Marina’s heart breaks, knowing what’s going to happen, knowing she’s saying goodbye now too to a dear friend. She’s worked alongside Trevor for a decade now, has seen him build the infirmary into what it is today, has watched him grow and become the compassionate man the community of Nemean Lion has come to rely on. And she knows now will be the last time she sees him alive. But Marina can’t break here, she can’t falter or wilt, not when she’s meant to be the steadfast leader to them all. She chokes back her tears, looks at Trevor with the kind eyes of a friend, and nods, intent on fulfilling this promise.

Marina beckons over Cece, who’s stood watching this all in deep sorrow. “Do you think you can help her again? Can you amplify like you’ve done the last times?” she asks.

Cece wipes at her eyes, nods once. “I can try… Both of us… I think we’re nearly at our limit, I… I don’t know how much we can do.”

“You have to channel it, you have to try,” she instructs, wishing it were under better circumstances that she could guide them into developing their powers.

The daughter of Circe nods, drained, but willing to give it the last ounce of strength she has. Even more exhausted is Ginny, but she won’t say it. She’s set them onto the course for this mess, so it doesn’t matter how much stamina or power she has left. She’ll dig deep into the well, she’ll set it all back. She has to. She just wishes it wasn’t the hardest thing she’s ever had to do.

“You’re doing the right thing,” Trevor whispers, sensing Ginny’s hesitance, her fear and her trembling heart. “Thank you,” he says, “for letting me say goodbye.”

Theo kneels by Minzhe, holding his torso in her lap. Dahlia looks at Cece, watches with something she can’t quite name as the other girl musters all her determination. Trevor and Marina share one last glance as Ginny stops holding it in, letting the tears fall in breathy sobs as she holds onto Cece’s hands and focuses with all her heartache to make things right.

That tingling sensation only barely hums beneath her ribs, barely tangible, but she fights for it. She concentrates on the warmth in her hand from her friend’s touch, and squeezes even harder. The feeling blossoms slightly, and at the first chance she has, before she can let herself change her mind, she latches on to it, letting it grow just enough to do what she needs. Maybe this is what heroes feel. Maybe she never wants to feel it again.

Blinding white light bursts in her eyesight, past the tears and the worst night of her life. She turns back time.

LOOP THREE…

9:51 P.M.

There’s no time to check the clock. But there’s no need either.

When Ginny opens her eyes, she’s met with that same fateful scene. No time to act. No time to change the ending.

There’s only a handful of seconds where her mind is hazy on what she’s done again, the exhaustion in her body winning out over her confusion. By the time she’s aware, Minzhe has called out to the heroes arriving at the clearing, the griffin leaps towards her and Minzhe, and it’s too late to make any new choices. Even if she could.

Just like the first time, Minzhe pushes her out of the way, and she has no energy left now to even fight it. Minzhe falls to the ground injured, the first in the chain of events that leads to the tragedy they know will happen.

The three heroes hesitate for just a moment, fearfully unwilling to go through with what they’re here to do now that they remember. But Trevor doesn’t hesitate. He runs towards his brother, same as the first time, same as he would have done countless times if given the chance.

The griffin roars, the sound piercing the night sky, and the heroes have no choice but to leap into action now. Tears are already threatening, blossoming, falling as they fight, their bodies going through the motions as if on muscle memory, as if on instinct. Nothing they can do will stop what has to happen, and as the griffin starts to go berserk, they almost can’t bring themselves to look.

Someone’s grief-stricken sob sounds through the forest as Trevor Ahn dies again.

It doesn’t belong to Ginny. Ginny’s voice is gone, too exhausted to produce a sound or even move. Every muscle in her body aches, her heart most of all. Her vision blurs, and the last thing she sees is the night sky full of glittering stars as she dips backwards onto the plush snow, and falls unconscious.

IN THE BALLROOM…

The masquerade remains safe, everyone there untouched by the harm and mayhem. But that doesn’t spare some the chaos of remembering what’s happened, some still foggy, but all demanding answers as to what’s going on, answers they deserve.

Marina has promised answers, but first they need to help their fellow demigods return from the woods.

“Gather the Apollo kids, meet with them first,” she instructs to Peter, having relayed the devastating horror she witnessed in the woods before. She grabs his arm as he starts to turn away. “And Miri Johnson,” she adds somberly. “Ask any remaining and willing healers to follow me.”

He nods solemnly, a horrible guilt weighing on his shoulders that he knows Marina shares, desperate and helpless to understand how they could have failed them this way.

The party ends, the announcements needed are made, and Peter instructs the rest of the demigods to quickly pack their things and return through the portal back to campus. He promises they’ll explain all they can when they return to campus, but he can’t help but feel like a fraud to even make them a promise at all.

Besides, they can sense the air of tragedy around them all now. No reassurance or promise can make them believe things are okay.

Ginny’s set things right again, let time play out its original course, but so much has changed now.

END.