By the time the sun began its lazy descent toward the horizon, the hospital was bathed in the dim glow of early evening. The shadows stretched long across the cracked floors, and the stale air inside felt slightly cooler now that the midday heat had relented.
Leo had suggested splitting up for the supply run—it would double their chances of finding something useful, he reasoned. He volunteered to stay back, muttering something about "optimizing" the hospital's defenses, though it was clear he mostly wanted an excuse to tinker with the broken generator he'd found.
"Just don't blow us up," Percy had said with a smirk as he slung his sword over his shoulder.
"No promises," Leo had replied, though his grin suggested he wasn't entirely joking.
Now, outside in the fading daylight, the air felt fresher but heavy with the scent of damp earth. The city stretched around them, eerily silent, the kind of silence that never felt comforting. Glass crunched underfoot as the four of them stepped into what used to be a bustling urban district, now a graveyard of broken storefronts and abandoned cars.
"Okay, here's the plan," Annabeth said, her voice calm but decisive. She adjusted the straps of her backpack, her knife glinting at her side. "Piper, you're with me. We'll take the south side, see if we can scavenge anything useful from the pharmacy and grocery store down there. Percy, you and Will take the east. Check the convenience stores, see if anything's left in those storage units we passed earlier."
"Got it," Percy said, giving her a mock salute. He nudged Will, who was fiddling with the straps of his med kit. "C'mon, Doctor Sunshine. Let's see if your scavenging skills are as good as your bedside manner."
Will rolled his eyes but followed Percy without complaint.
As the two boys disappeared down the road, Annabeth turned to Piper, who had already unsheathed her dagger. "You ready?"
Piper nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Lead the way."
The streets were quiet, the kind of quiet that pressed against their ears and made every sound feel amplified. Wind rattled through the hollowed-out shells of abandoned buildings, carrying with it the faint smell of damp concrete and decay. Here and there, weeds pushed through cracks in the asphalt, reclaiming the city inch by inch.
Annabeth adjusted the straps of her backpack, her boots crunching softly against broken glass as she led the way. Her boots were worn—once sturdy leather hiking boots, now scuffed and patched so many times they barely resembled their original state. They fit well enough, but each step reminded her that they wouldn't last forever.
Behind her, Piper walked with a looser stride, her dagger gleaming faintly in her hand. She wore sneakers, mismatched and fraying at the seams, but at least they were lightweight. She had found them weeks ago in an abandoned thrift store, and though they pinched her toes, they were better than nothing.
They had been walking for nearly twenty minutes, weaving through the remnants of what used to be a thriving urban neighborhood. The streets were littered with debris—shattered storefronts, rusted-out cars, and the occasional makeshift barricade that had long since been abandoned. The further they went, the more oppressive the silence became. It wasn't just the absence of people; it was the absence of life. No birds, no insects, nothing but the occasional skitter of something small and unseen.
"What exactly are we hoping to find?" Piper asked, breaking the stillness. She kept her voice low, but the curiosity was clear.
"Food," Annabeth replied without turning around. Her tone was brisk, but not unkind. "Medicine, if we're lucky. Anything we can use to patch up the hospital—tools, tarps, duct tape. You know the drill."
