I'll be here forever

chapter 53

I made it, hm, maybe 50 yards before I heard someone else. I knew it was a someone and not a something, because I heard a shit ton of cursing as they crashed through the underbrush.

I hid immediately, crouching down by a bush, shoving the bronze scale in the mud to hide the shine. I peered thought the leaves.

There were two people running over to the dragon; one boy, one girl. I could only see the back of their heads, but the boy was short, with curly brown hair and a tool belt around his waist that looked a little too big for him. The girl was taller, with long, golden hair, and her posture was rigidly straight. I found that the most strange thing about her.

"Festus!" the boy, cried in grief, falling to his knees beside the dragon's head. The girl lowered herself down beside him as well.

"Who did this to you?" he said in a low, pain-filled voice. I winced.

The dragon didn't reply, obviously. Did he expect one? The boy leaned over his head, and his shoulders began to shake. I felt awful for killing his dragon, but what was I supposed to do? Let it roast me to a crisp?

"Leo... it's okay. You can rebuild him," the girl put her hand on his shoulder comfortingly.

"I- yeah. Yeah, I can," he sniffed, but then his grip hardened on the metal dragon's cold snout.

"We- we have to find them," he said, both angry and upset. I mean, I understood, but it wasn't like I'd had a choice in the matter.

And then he burst into flames.

Seriously? What the actual fuck?

I watched as the girl, she comforted him enough so that the flames died down, but he was still really upset. Understandably. But fire? You've got to be kidding me.

I groaned internally. My job just got a lot harder. Fighting a couple of demigods while mortally wounded? Fine, whatever. But one that could burst into flames? Come on. That's just annoying.

But honestly, could I take them both, easily? Yes. Would I have to do something that I really, really didn't want to do? Also yes.

Even if I still had Riptide with me, I was still weak from, you know, being on the brink of death just the morning before. I could probably take the smaller one in a fight- even though he could light himself on fire, he looked scrawny. I figured that I might be able get an early hit in. But the girl looked muscular, strong, experienced. I didn't want to take my chances with her.

Because if they confronted me, I could be forced into using the same ability I'd used to take down the dragon, whatever it was. And I really, really did not want to know if I could do that to a person.

A dracaena is one thing. They're monsters. They attack us for no reason. They had taken Daisy. The dragon had tried to roast me alive, without giving me any chance to talk. Did dragons even talk, though? I didn't know. Still, there could have been a better way to resolve that, one that didn't include me being burned alive.

But a person, a human being- that's different. A lot different. I didn't even want to know if I could. The very idea scared the shit out of me.

So I couldn't let them catch me. Because if they did, I might be forced to do... that. If I even had the strength to stay alive after.

I don't know how I'd cope with it, but I'd have to. Because however guilty I might feel for murdering two people, with these absolutely fucking terrifying powers that I definitely didn't ask for, I had to get back to her.

I'd do anything to get back to her. Probably die trying.

But still I found myself wondering- would it be different? Would the feeling of killing that dragon, would it be different than a person? The blood of a dracaena, the blood of a human... how would it feel?

I shut those thoughts down quickly, shaking them away. I couldn't think about things like that. The fact that I was even thinking about that- I terrified myself.

But I was thinking about it. However scary it was, I was. And even though I'd thought about it, I really, really didn't want to know.

But in the end, if it came down to it being me, or them, then I'd kill them without hesitation.

Maybe I'd even get an answer to my questions.

So I ran.

I figured I should take advantage of my head start; so I picked up the bronze scale, and I started to run. I heard shouts of alarm behind me, but I didn't dare look back. I just kept running, even as my legs throbbed.

It probably wasn't good that I wasn't letting them heal all the way before I participating in so much physical activity. I can imagine a doctor yelling at me to sit the fuck down. I should've probably listened.

I kept running anyways. 

I pushed through the woods, shoving sticks out of the way, tripping over tree roots. I started to limp, and felt like my legs were going to fall off. They started to gain on me.

Then I heard running water; I silently thanked my father, and ran toward it.

The forest opened up into a large river- I had a running start, and dove in without hesitation, the bronze scale still in my hand.