Lethe - Into Oblivion | SolAngelo

Chapter 01: Strangers

She saw him from afar. The dark-haired boy, whom she came to think of as her brother, strolled up to New Rom in broad daylight his black clothes a stark contrast to the brilliant light of morning. Yet something had unmistakably changed.

He wore a guarded expression as he approached the camp's borders. His eyes searched the buildings and inspected the people wandering the streets carefully.

As if he was seeing them for the first time.

Reyna frowed. She watched as Nico approached and summoned her greyhounds to her side to assist should the Hades child bring bad news. She didn't like the caution in his eyes, exceeding what he usually presented when at one of the camps.

Camp Half-blood and Camp Jupiter were the only safe places for demigods like them and after the past years even Nico seemed to rely on the sense of safety they presented.

"Nico."
Once he was close enough she called out for him. The routine check-ups the Praetor had planned for that morning could wait, particularly when there were more pressing matters to attend to.

His reaction did not make her feel hopeful.

He flinched despite being on guard. Undoubtedly he had noticed her from afar already. His eyes narrowed as he stepped closer and regarded her and her dogs with the same caution he inspected the buildings with.

Reyna raised an eyebrow. She wasn't sure how to categorize his odd behaviour. He acted cautiously but not with urgency. Whatever problem must have arisen must not pose an immediate danger yet or perhaps it wasn't certain what extent it would affect at all.

"Nico, what is the problem? Is it monsters or–"

"How do you know my name?"

...

Reyna froze. She had listed several possible replies in her head but this one wasn't among them. Her eyes narrowed and out of habit, she glanced at her hounds.

It was a question so of course there couldn't be a lie to detect. Quickly she adjusted, remaining as composed as she could in the face of uncertainty.

"You don't know me?" she asked carefully.

Nico took half a step back. He stubbornly reciprocated her gaze but Reyna could see now that the vigilance in his eyes, the distance extended to her as well. He was scared but refused to show it.
"No."

He shook his head and again Reyna glanced at her dogs to confirm. She knew they'd have given her audible confirmation had they detected a lie but it was so unbelievable she had to double-check.

"Should I?" the son of Hades proceeded.
There was a challenge in his voice, an anger Reyna wasn't unfamiliar with.

For a moment she kept her eyes on the greyhound to her left. Although known for her composure this was difficult. A sharp pain echoed in her chest like a dagger being thrust between her ribs repeatedly.

She had very few people she considered close and trustworthy and Nico was the one, who due to their troublesome journey of transporting the Athena Parthenos knew most about her aside from her sister.

Or at least, he used to.

The animosity in his eyes caused an old sense of betrayal to stir up inside her that she knew to be irrational. The Praetor forcefully shoved the painful memories aside to make room for what mattered.

Nico hadn't betrayed her, he had been injured. Hurt in a way that wasn't palpable to her yet.

With a deep breath, she turned to the one she called her brother and scanned him from head to toe for any hints of what could have invoked the change in behaviour.