- 𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐋𝐄𝐒 𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐌𝐁𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 . . . Being a half-blood only caused trouble. Not many lived long and if ithey did, their life was filled with dangerous adventures and tribulations.
Stella had always been beloved by her fellow campers...
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🏹 | CASTLES CRUMBLING ₊˚ପ⊹ .୧ ‧₊˚⋅🗝️ a c t o n e ━━━━━━❛titan's curse❜ chapter seven . . . the land without rain
ESTELLA DIDN'T THINK SHE COULD GET USED TO riding on the back of a giant pig. The six quest members rode on the boar until sunset.
Estella had no idea how many miles they covered, but the mountains faded into the distance and were replaced by miles of flat, dry land. The grass and scrub brush got sparser until they were riding across the desert.
As night fell, the boar came to a stop at a creek bed and snorted. He started drinking the muddy water (gross), then ripped a saguaro cactus out of the ground and chewed it, needles and all.
"This is as far as he'll go," Grover said. "We need to get off while he's eating."
Nobody needed convincing. They slipped off the boar's back while he was busy ripping up cacti. Then the quest members waddled away as best they could with their saddle sores.
After its third saguaro and another drink of muddy water, the boar squealed and belched, then whirled around and galloped back toward the east.
"It likes the mountains better," Percy guessed.
"I can't blame it," Thalia said. "Look."
Ahead of them was a two-lane road half covered with sand. On the other side of the road was a cluster of buildings too small to be a town: a boarded-up house, a taco shop that looked like it hadn't been open since before Zoe Nightshade was born, and a white stucco post office with a sign that said GILA CLAW, ARIZONA hanging crooked above the door. Beyond that was a range of hills... but then Estella noticed they weren't regular hills. The countryside was way too flat for that. The hills were enormous mounds of old cars, appliances, and other scrap metal. It was a junkyard that seemed to go on forever.
"Whoa," Estella said.
"Something tells me we're not going to find a car rental here," Thalia said. She looked at Grover. "I don't suppose you got another wild boar up your sleeve?"
Grover was sniffing the wind, looking nervous. He fished out his acorns and threw them into the sand, then played his pipes. They rearranged themselves in a pattern that made no sense, but Grover looked concerned.
"That's us," he said. "Those six nuts right there."
"Which one is me?" Percy asked.
"The little deformed one," Estella teased. She seemed to have ignored their little mishap with the talk of Luke and her father. The two brushed hands as Estella walked closer to get a better look.
"Oh, shut up." Percy said but he couldn't hide the grin he had on his face from Estella's stupid joke.
"That cluster right there," Grover said, pointing to the left, "that's trouble."
