Silva walked after Thalia toward the Fist of Zeus. The landmark did not have any people nearby, as the campers only came near these woods during Capture the Flag or when monsters infiltrated after the barrier had gone down. Right now, the entire camp was safe.
After reaching the Fist of Zeus, Thalia turned around and fixed her gaze sharply on Silva. Silva did not shy away and looked straight at her as well.
"Why…" she spoke but paused. She seemed to be struggling with the decision of whether to continue this conversation or not. But in the end, she clenched her fist and decided to go through with it.
"Why did you let me die all those years ago?" she finally asked, looking straight at Silva. One hand held her spear tightly, as if she had decided whether or not to attack depending on Silva's answer.
Silva calmly listened to the question. He knew this day would come, as Hestia had warned him about it. It did not take long for people to realise that Silva had the power to see all around the camp very easily. The only reason people didn't suspect him back then was because he was too young and no one thought that Thalia could have been saved by him.
"Because I saw the future and knew it was necessary," Silva decided to speak the truth.
Thalia's eyes widened at Silva's confession. She had only questioned him because she had doubts, but she had expected him to deny it or say that he was not present when it happened. She never imagined he would confess so straightforwardly and without any kind of shame or uncertainty.
"Future… future, you say. How far did you see this future of yours?" she said as her grip on the spear tightened.
"I knew you would be injured and turned into a tree that would protect the camp for years. And I also knew about your resurrection years later. That's why I let you get attacked that day, even though I could have saved you from the monsters."
"Then what would have happened if the quest for the Fleece had not come around?" she asked angrily.
"I would have gone on my own to find it if it had come to that. I saw Luke poisoning you to destroy the camp, and I knew that the return of the Fleece would save you while the Fleece took your place to nurture the tree and the barrier," Silva replied. Thalia flinched at the mention of Luke poisoning her, but she then asked another question.
"Then what if they were late in bringing the Fleece?"
"I would have used my own power to supply you with enough life force to survive. It would not have cured you, but it would have strengthened you enough to fight off the symptoms of the poison for weeks to months."
Thalia's arms were shaking at the way Silva had an answer for everything. She raised her spear as if she wanted to use it on him to vent her anger. As she looked at him with determination, she saw that he was not taking any measures to avoid her attack.
For a moment, there was silence, and Thalia lowered her spear.
"I know you did the right thing. But I can't forgive you for playing all of us like chess pieces," she finally said, airing her frustration.
"I know. That's why I am not resisting. And I don't mind whether you talk about it to anyone else or not."
"And why is that?"
"Because I changed the timeline. By saving a few more people than there were supposed to be, I changed the timeline in ways that will have consequences. So even if you reveal it right now, it won't make any difference."
There was a pause for a few more seconds as Thalia took everything in.
"You said there were changes. What about the Great Prophecy surrounding the Big Three? What about Percy and me?" she asked, a bit of trembling present when she mentioned herself.
Silva paused and spoke in a measured tone.
"The prophecy of the Big Three spoke about a child of the three making the choice to save Olympus or destroy it when they reach the age of sixteen." Thalia didn't flinch when she heard it. Silva realised that, unlike Percy, Thalia had a better grasp of the prophecy. "And no — unlike the changes I made by saving people — I cannot go against prophecies. It will result in unimaginable consequences," Silva warned.
Silva was not kidding when he said this. Chiron had once told Percy that prophecies are like seeds nurtured by people's lives after the prophecy is revealed. Silva would say that's the best explanation for it. The prophecies were like seeds of fate that acted as the foundations for the future, we can bent the plants that grows up but going directly against it will break them and will leave unimaginable consequences in the world.
"So there is no escape for me, huh?" Thalia said in a defeated tone.
"Well, not necessarily," Silva interrupted.
"What!" Thalia exclaimed in surprise.
"The prophecy talks about a child who reaches the age of sixteen. But whether or not they reach it is still dependent upon the child."
"Are you telling me to kill myself or something?" she asked in shock.
"No! Not at all. All I'm saying is that there are ways to avoid prophecy — you only need to choose them when the moment comes. I can't say anything more than that. It's up to you to live your life," Silva replied with a small chuckle at the end.
"But how can I trust you after you let me almost die last time? How am I sure that this is not some kind of manipulation so that I make the choice for the greater good later?" Thalia questioned, as she had trouble believing anything that came out of Silva after everything he had just said.
Silva sighed.
"Alright, since I made the decision to let you get harmed all those years ago, I think it's fair that I give you information that can get me into trouble," Silva decided to compromise.
"What kind of info?" Thalia became curious.
"My parent's identity."
A/N — Hope you liked it.