𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋 || 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙘𝙮 𝙟𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙨𝙤𝙣¹

038

(chapter xxxviii — follow the yellow-brick road)

THEY RAN UNTIL they physically couldn't anymore.

Rachel guided them away from traps, but they had no set destination — only away. Far away from Kronos and that dark mountain.

Selene wanted to think things over — she wanted to come up with a plan, or — at least figure out what she was going to say to Percy and Annabeth. How she was going to explain everything that had happened — how she was going to explain that her death is coming, and she can't do anything to stop it.

But she just couldn't process it all — any of it. Whenever she tried to, her stomach dropped with unease — as if she was on a rollercoaster. She hates rollercoasters. Especially ones like these — where you're on a quest, and you think you're safe, and boom — someone is stripped away from you, never to be seen again.

Selene felt her mind stray back to Bianca. How the Hunter had selflessly sacrificed herself to project them back in the junkyard.

She wondered if Bianca knew that her fate was sealed as soon as she ran up to that robot. She wondered if the Hunter had accepted it in her final moments — if she was finally at peace.

Selene had always felt Death looming over her shoulder ever since she found out she was a demigod. She used to view it as a threat, but now — now that she knows when she's going to pass on...it felt strangely comforting. Like she was about to see an old friend.

"Stop here," Rachel suddenly wheezed — snapping her out of her thoughts. "We can stop here. It's safe."

Annabeth hummed thoughtfully. For once, she didn't argue with the redhead. She sheathed her dagger and looked around skeptically.

They had stopped in a tunnel of wet white rock, like part of a natural cave. Selene luckily didn't hear anything following behind them, but somehow — that made her even more nervous.

She stumbled — collapsing onto the ground, her back against the wall. She held her legs against her chest and hid her face in her hands — her lip quivering as she tried not to cry.

Percy wasted no time as he sat next to her — Riptide turning into a pen as he did so. She felt him slowly and cautiously grab her wrist before squeezing it. "Hey. You okay?"

Whenever someone asked her that — it just made her want to cry more. She didn't resist as he slowly pulled her arm away from her face — instead, she sighed and rested her head on his shoulder — trying to blink away tears before they could flow down her cheeks.

Annabeth noticed and pursed her lips. Without another word, she grabbed Nico and Rachel's arms and pulled them away — it was clear she noticed they needed some space.

Ever since what happened with Mal — Selene tried to convince herself that it wasn't her fault. But right now, all she felt was guilt. Guilt for letting him go so easily — guilt for not convincing him to stay when she had the chance.

This feeling kept coming back to her. This guilt — weighing her down as if she was tangled in chains. She hated this.

"I didn't know...." She felt herself whisper as she shut her eyes tightly. "I didn't — I didn't know he would —"