Divine interference
"No… Grandpa Vincent, please, no," Percy shouted instantly, rushing in front of him, trying to do something, anything, even looking back at Harry for help, because he knew more about healing than Percy did.
But Harry, when he came up behind him, froze in shock, staring at Vincent's body… his mouth trembling. Then he snapped out of it and started digging through his things, pulling out potions in a rush, his hands shaking, and began pouring them over Vincent's wounds without stopping. But every drop that touched Vincent's broken body did nothing… and that only made him panic more, his face already soaked in tears.
"No… no, please," Harry said, his hands slipping for a moment, dropping the bottles. Percy grabbed the ones that fell and helped him pour them over Vincent… but nothing worked.
"Harry… it's not working," Percy said, his face pale.
Grover and Annabeth, still stunned that a man had stood against a god, covered their mouths, staring at what Vincent had become.
And his chest… it wasn't even moving.
Annabeth trembled slightly, watching Percy and Harry fall apart in front of her.
Grover opened his mouth… then closed it.
"Guys… he's not…," he managed to say, his eyes filling with tears.
But Harry and Percy didn't seem to hear him, lost in desperation.
They kept pouring everything they had over Vincent.
"Stop… he's already—," Grover tried again.
"Shut up!" Percy snapped for a moment, like he refused to hear it, while Harry's hands shook so badly he couldn't even pull out more potions anymore.
"Harry, hurry!" Percy shouted, turning to him.
But Harry was frozen, staring at Vincent with wide eyes, his face covered in tears.
"Harry!" Percy yelled again, trying to snap him out of it.
But then Percy's own gaze fell back on Vincent… and he froze too.
Looking at his face… Vincent still had that soft smile he always gave them. But everything else… completely pale… like they were watching the last trace of life leave him, and there was nothing they could do. Though somewhere deep inside, a tiny… almost invisible spark of life was still holding on.
"No, no, no… please, Grandpa," Percy whispered, feeling that same pain again… the one from last year… when he had watched a life slip away for the first time, unable to stop it.
"Harry…" Percy turned to him, his voice breaking, like always when he needed his brother to do what he couldn't.
"No… no, no," Harry muttered, starting to break.
His gaze dropped to the sand… and suddenly, among the bottles he had dropped, he saw one glowing faintly. Inside it, a golden liquid shimmered. The stopper had two intertwined snakes… whispering something only he could understand.
"Huh…? Elixir of life…," Harry murmured. "Asclepius…"
And he remembered seeing that bottle beyond the Veil before. But… why was it here, among his things?
"What did you say?" Annabeth shouted instantly, catching his whisper, her eyes locking onto the elixir lying on the ground.
Harry, as if pulled into a trance, guided by the snakes on the stopper, suddenly uncorked the elixir and moved toward Vincent.
"Harry?" Percy asked, confused, watching him bring the vial closer to Vincent's wound.
Then, without hesitation, Harry poured it over the injury… and what had looked like a full vial of golden liquid suddenly became only a single drop as it fell… a tiny drop, shining like a miniature sun… landing directly onto the exposed wound, onto the burned organs.
Everyone watched in complete silence.
And then… the scorched flesh pulsed.
Right before their eyes, the tissue began to move at incredible speed, knitting itself together, breaking through the charred blood as the wound sealed… closing completely in a matter of seconds, leaving nothing behind.
Harry came out of the trance, his face confused, staring at the healed wound… then he looked at Percy. Percy looked back, and both of them turned to Vincent, a small spark of hope rising in their eyes.
Suddenly, Vincent's ashen skin regained its color, like his body had been flooded with life in an instant.
The eye that had been burned away when Ares revealed his true form to escape began to reform, filling in as the eyelid restored itself. Even the burns left by Ares's flames began to heal rapidly… even the old scars.
Vincent's body suddenly released a surge of vitality. His presence came back like a flood.
A heartbeat echoed.
Then another.
And then his chest moved… as he drew in a breath again, a rough, broken sound escaping him.
Vincent's eyes snapped open instantly, his expression a bit confused. His gaze landed on the tearful, messy faces of Harry and Percy… then shifted to Annabeth for a moment… and Grover.
"Looks like I didn't die yet," he said before closing his eyes again, as if he was simply waiting for it to happen. After all, he had just felt his life slipping away moments ago. He could even hear the brats crying over him… maybe it would just take a little longer.
"Grandpa!" Percy and Harry shouted, throwing themselves onto him, their faces full of joy as they saw him basically come back from death.
Vincent opened his eyes again, confused as he realized he wasn't dying… and he could feel his body perfectly fine.
Something he had mistaken for death… like the end of a tunnel.
But it was the complete opposite.
Even the old man couldn't help but feel completely confused…
As he looked at Harry and Percy's happy faces.
…
Meanwhile, not too far from there, three figures sat as if having a quiet tea time on the rooftop of one of the nearby buildings. A man and two women, all of them watching in the direction where the two boys were still hugging the old man who should have died, smiling in relief.
"A remarkable man, honestly. For a mortal… he could outmatch quite a few demigods from the past," the man said calmly, holding a cane in one hand, just as calmly, while slipping what looked like a golden wrench into the pocket of his mechanic's overalls.
"Not all heroes from the past were demigods. If he had lived in those times, he would have surely carved his name into history," added the black-haired woman, truly beautiful. She wore a black robe from head to toe that seemed to be made of shadows themselves, while her eyes glowed with an intense green, and a soft smile rested on her face as she watched the two boys, happy over their grandfather's recovery. "Are you sure your husband won't get upset?" she asked, turning to the last woman with a gentle smile.
That last woman sat with a serious expression, an aura of royalty surrounding her at all times. Her dress was a blend of life and death, black tones at the lower half and vibrant colors above. Her hair carried a dark reddish hue, which seemed to soften little by little.
"Let him try," the other woman said, crossing her legs. "He sent children to fetch your foolish toy. He's lucky I'm on this side right now," she added, her face showing a trace of irritation.
"Hehe…," the black-haired woman laughed softly, her fingers moving slightly as a completely black aura flowed between them, like she was kneading it gently.
The man stared at that mass of dark energy for a moment and couldn't help but swallow, looking slightly uneasy… as if he wanted to protect something very precious.
"Don't worry… this will even be fun for you. After all, he deserves a harsher punishment than just a few wounds," the black-haired woman said, her voice turning cold for a brief moment. "We can't interfere when humans choose to hurt our children… but when it's gods…" she said, snapping her fingers as the mass of pure energy vanished instantly. "You might want to let Chiron know that, at least for a while, Ares's cabin won't be receiving new members," she added with a smile. "Ah, and your dear wife will have to find another lover for a while," she finished.
"I'm sure she already has plenty to choose from," the man said calmly, though he couldn't help a faint smile at that first remark, as he stood up. Before leaving, he glanced at both women one last time. "Aren't you afraid Ares will tell Zeus? After all, he has plenty… against both of you. He could use that as an excuse to act," he asked.
"That would mean revealing his own plans and turning the three Great Ones against him all at once. He may be foolish, but not even he would repeat what happened when Diomedes wounded him. His pride wouldn't allow him to admit he ran from a mortal again," the woman said calmly.
"Thousands of years have passed and he still can't endure a little pain before losing his mind… it's a disappointment that someone like him is called the god of war," the other woman added with clear disdain.
The man couldn't help but agree with a look before turning away, and suddenly his body glowed, just like Ares's had earlier, disappearing as he left without another word.
The two women remained there for a moment longer, both casting one last glance toward Harry and Percy. Neither of them could help but smile faintly… something almost maternal.
"They're growing so fast…," the black-haired woman said, before her expression shifted into something slightly worried, as if she could already see what lay ahead for them.
"We can't interfere any further," the other woman said, her tone more serious, though it carried the same concern.
"I know," the black-haired woman replied, her expression calming. Then suddenly, her body turned into a sphere of violet light… and vanished.
The last woman left behind picked up her teacup, looking toward the boys calmly… before something crossed her mind.
"Maybe… it's time I meet them," she said, her gaze drifting elsewhere.
And for a brief moment, reflected in her eyes… was the Lotus Casino… far, far away from where they were.