moonlight || heroes of olympus (discontinued)

|| chapter twenty-four ||

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[24|| chapter twenty-four]
Hera's confession

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         FLASHES OF MEMORIES PLAYED THROUGHOUT LUNA'S HEAD AT A DIZZYING SPEED.

There was a woman who looked exactly like her dying in a hospital bed, then the same woman killing monsters expertly with a bow, followed by glimpses of her and another woman— one that looked exactly like the one she'd been seeing in her dreams— sharing smiles and touches, and then an entire memory played out before her. One that was filled with pain, loss, and love.

One where a baby was born, then sent off on the back of a familiar pegasus named Archer.

Luna gasped, scrambling back across the pool floor. Horror was written across her face, tears sliding down her cheeks. Hera looked down at her coldly.

"Isabella Estrella." Luna whispered. "My... other mother?"

"Yes, girl, your other mother. Don't think about the science of it all too much." Hera answered. The tension that slithered in between their words was practically suffocating them. "It takes two to create a mortal child, and only one to make a demigod, but she would have been your mortal mother, I suppose, had she lived."

"You..." Luna choked on her own tears. "You killed her."

"Not technically." Hera said. "A fury took her life, I simply gave them the coordinates of the target."

Luna was glowing again, just as powerfully as she had back in Chicago. The remaining ruins began to tremble, dust falling from the chimney.

"I told you this before, Luna Estrella. It had to be done. Their coupling would've been chaos. Artemis was breaking her vow!" Hera huffed as if she wasn't trying to justify her mother's death.

"She swore to never lay with a man!" Luna yelled furiously.

"And she did the next worst thing!" Hera howled. "She fell in love with a woman! I was trying to prevent your birth, girl, but I was too late. A daughter of Artemis would've been lethal— too powerful— and look at you now."

It was only then that Luna realized they were both hovering in the air, the goddess glowing in a champagne aura and Luna silver.

"And your blood—" This time Hera looked slightly confused. "I'll admit I don't know how it is, but I know one thing: it was my Roman counterpart that brought you here, Luna Estrella. I did not. I have to admit it is convenient; now I can kill you before you make the decision that'll bring us to our knees."

"Hey!" A voice boomed from below. Jason didn't look like he was up for a fight— hell, he couldn't even get off the floor, but his face was hard as stone. "Leave her alone. You're not killing her."