𝓓𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓬𝓪𝓽𝓮

𝑳𝑽𝑰...𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕 𝑾𝒆 𝑲𝒆𝒆𝒑

"ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴʟʏ ᴡᴀʏ ᴛᴏ ᴋᴇᴇᴘ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴘᴇᴏᴘʟᴇ ʟᴏʏᴀʟ ɪꜱ ᴛᴏ ᴍᴀᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ꜰᴇᴀʀ ʏᴏᴜ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴇɴᴇᴍʏ ᴅᴏᴇꜱ"
—ᴊᴏꜱᴇᴘʜ ꜱᴛᴀʟɪɴ

𖥔 ݁ ˖    ⭑
       ‧₊˚ ⋅   જ⁀➴๋࣭ ⭑๋࣭

Elara had finally passed out, and Adrien exhaled in shaky relief. The weight of her pain still burned in his chest from where he'd taken it on himself, but at least she was breathing.
Annabeth closed her eyes and let out a long, tired sigh. Percy, however, kept his gaze fixed on Adrien — suspicious, maybe even concerned, as if he'd seen the flicker of unnatural light behind Adrien's eyes when he used his power.

Too drained to keep moving, they decided to make camp right there in the massive marble room. Percy gathered scraps of wood, and soon a small fire crackled to life. Shadows danced across the ancient columns, stretching high like trees in a forest of stone.

"Something was wrong with Luke," Annabeth murmured, poking at the fire with her knife. "Did you see how he was acting?"

"He looked pretty pleased to me," Percy said dryly. "Like he'd had a great day torturing heroes."

"That's not true! There was something off about him. He looked... nervous. He told his monsters to spare me. He wanted to say something."

"Probably, 'Hi Annabeth! Sit here and watch while I tear your friends apart—it'll be fun!'" Percy quipped.

Adrien coughed to hide a laugh, though his chest still ached — not from pain he'd taken, but from the swirl of emotions still radiating in the room. Guilt, exhaustion, jealousy... it all pressed against his mind like static.

"You're impossible," Annabeth muttered. She sheathed her dagger and turned toward Rachel. "So which way now, Sacagawea?"

Rachel didn't answer at first. She'd gone quiet since the arena, her usual spark dimmed. Using a burnt stick, she drew in the ash — shapes of the monsters they'd faced. Her strokes were quick, sure, almost artistic.

"We'll follow the path," she said finally. "The brightness on the floor."

"The same brightness that led us straight into a trap?" Annabeth shot back.

"Lay off her, smarty," Adrien sighed, rubbing his temple. "She's doing the best she can." His voice softened — a hint of empathy bleeding through his exhaustion.

Annabeth stood, jaw tight. "The fire's dying. I'll look for more scraps while you guys talk strategy." She disappeared into the shadows.

Rachel kept drawing, this time sketching Antaeus dangling from his chains. Percy broke the silence.

"Annabeth's not usually like this," he said quietly. "I don't know what her problem is."

Adrien could feel Annabeth's emotions still lingering — envy, worry, a deep confusion she'd never admit. He almost said it out loud but bit his tongue.