The Hunt for Life (Fem Percy Guardian of the Hunt)

Chapter Five

"Don't touch anything," said Artemis as I joined the rest of the Hunters. Her chariot disappeared behind me, the entire ride having been spent with a bag over my head. Apparently, I was too untrustworthy and too far below them to be graced with a look at the interior of the chariot. She continued, "Do not look at anyone, and you are not to speak to anyone. As far as anyone outside the Hunt is concerned, you do not exist. Chiron and my brother are the only ones who know of your presence, and we are keeping it that way."

"Are you trying to make the kids think they're crazy? Or are you shoving me in a box with air holes poked in it?" I asked, drawing my thumb along the rough edge of my scabbard belt.

"Bold of you to assume I would bother with holes. But truth be stated, I didn't think about using a box. Next time perhaps. But for the moment, we are ignoring all questions about your presence. We cannot risk tarnishing our image because of a long forgotten clause."

I sighed through my nose and nodded. I waited a moment more, thinking Artemis would continue, that we would move into Camp. But Artemis turned to the girls and ignored me. Seeing my presence was no longer needed, and it wasn't like it was ever wanted, I pulled my knife out. The silver gleamed. Something in me, some part of my instincts yelled at me, told me it wasn't safe. There were monsters, or something, nearby. If there were, then I could kill them and get the never ending buzzing to go away. If there weren't, well, it got me away from the others. Away from them, I had no supervision. I was free to do what I wanted.

The irony of that didn't escape me.

Paper weighed heavily in my pocket, a much greater burden than it had any right to be. I hunched forward. Leaves that should've crunched were silent under my boots. Enchanted. Just like the cloak. Shadows darted behind trees, but that's all they were. Dryads possibly, or just as possibly birds and optical illusions. There were some enchantments to make mortals see things, creepy things that would make anyone in their right mind turn around. I wasn't sure why I was seeing them now, but there were so many explanations it wasn't worth thinking about.

"Guardian," called Artemis. I paused and turned to look back, quickly spotting the silver between the dark tree trunks. "We're going in, so unless you would rather be left out, get over here."

Gritting my teeth to bite down my response, I walked and mingled with the group. As one, we passed through the barrier, so Artemis's influence would spread over any mortal hunters. It was the only way for them to pass through. Which personally, I thought was dumb, but I guess it could be a way to ensure any rogue girls didn't sneak in.

Once was too many times, Chiron had said.

On the other side of the barrier, it was quiet. That soft hush of night where the bugs and birds have fallen silent for a time. No campers wandered around, only the silhouettes of harpies among the fire-lit paths.

"Go to the cabin and prepare for bed. I have things to discuss with Chiron." Artemis waved her hand. I didn't plan to argue. Fatigue dragged on my bones. Laying down and staring at the ceiling for a few hours seemed appealing, even if the potential consequences weren't. I could do worse things, at least I would be getting some semblance of rest. I followed the Hunters to the cabin, and I took the loft bed Thalia pointed me towards. Girl after girl piled their stuff under it.

"Try not to fall on any arrows," said Thalia. "Uh, are you- are you not going to change?"

"And how would I do that when I am forbidden to show my face?" I slipped my boots and socks off, along with my belts. I climbed up the ladder. If I got up early enough, I could slip into the showers and wash out my clothes. The gray blankets were soft on my hands as I pulled them over me. Whispers started around me. My gaze stayed on the wall. They were talking about me.

The door opened. "Get to sleep. Our schedule is packed tomorrow." A chorus of goodnights went around the cabin. Artemis's bed creaked, and then the only sounds were breathing. Breathing and the shuffle of blankets. I sighed and closed my eyes, swallowing back my fear.

Please let this night be easy.

It wouldn't be. Deep down, I knew that. So when my dreams unfolded and I found myself staring at the same marble wall as always, I wasn't surprised. I didn't jump when the voice came from behind me.

"You knew this would happen. That's why you went to the gods."

"You're the one who's concerned about me getting the others hurt," I said, not looking at the source of the voice. "I tried, and it didn't work."

"No. No you didn't. Because if you really did try, then we wouldn't be having this conversation, now would we?" Rubber soles squeaked against the floor. A hand grazed my arm, and I looked away, fighting back against the growing nausea. "But you're just a failure, as always." The long fingers, calloused and strong, dug into my arm. "It's not even a matter of if you deserve it or not. You know you do. I mean, what kind of hero are you when you let this happen."

"I didn't let anything happen."

"We both know you did, Seaweed Brain. You could have saved us, saved me. But you didn't. You choose to let this happen. All of this is your fault, and you refuse to take punishment for your actions. We both know the gods won't kill you, which is why you went to them in the first place. You're a weapon, not a human, certainly not a demigod. Because let's be honest here, Percy. You lost your right to call yourself a hero, and you definitely lost the right to be considered a demigod back in that gods-forsaken Pit."

My teeth ground into my lip. Copper spilled into my mouth, and blood ran down my arm. She's right. I squeezed my eyes shut. Don't look. Don't look at her.

"A fatal flaw of loyalty, a flaw about caring for others." She hummed. "A weird thing to have when you sacrificed so many people. You keep putting so many people in danger, and you refuse to help them. I wonder if Thalia and Nico will end up like me." Jagged nails dug deeper into my flesh. "Someone who you could have saved, but refused to."

"Shut up," I gritted out.

"Oh, finally standing up for yourself? Tell me this then, did you know fatal flaws can change? That they're not set?" A hand tangled in my hair and yanked my head back. "So can you really say that your flaw is still loyalty? Because it isn't. It's power. You'll betray everyone the instant you're offered more, and is that really what you want? To get everyone hurt? To stand there while you let what happened happen again? You'd be better off with us, but even then, I'm not sure they let cowards into Elysium."

"I'm not a coward."

"Then how come you ran away instead of helping? How come you're alive while the rest of us are dead? Does abandoning your friends to their demise sound very heroic to you?" I hissed as pain burned across my arm. "There's one way for you to get into Elysium, and that's to make up for what you did. I'd say a monster in the woods, but that wouldn't be justice. Monsters act on their instincts. You need to do this yourself. Paint the marble red. Show everyone it was your fault. That you're not the perfect, brave demigod you pretend to be.

I swallowed. "That's not going to happen now."

"Oh, you'll do it. We both know you will. Because if you don't, then everyone around you will die. The same thing that happens time after time. You're the commonality, the thing linking them all together. Maybe things will change, maybe you'll try to save them. But if you do, what makes them worth saving, when you didn't bother with me? And if I wasn't worth saving--" Fingers tapped against my face, and my eyes flickered open. Just that small glimpse was enough to etch the mutilated face in my mind. The nausea surged. Blood streamed down from empty eye sockets. The same jagged slashes that tore out her eyes, exposed glistening bone and sinew. Blood-matted, unkempt hair hung limp. "--why would you be?

A chapter!

I hope you enjoyed it (also comments are welcome and are my life blood, just please don't ask me to update)

See yah