Pertemis A Moon's Tale

Chapter XXXIII: Tale of Discovery

Lunar's POV

I didn't know how long I stood in that shadow, the girdle of his magic. I wept there, for hours perhaps. Despite how my body screamed to run after him, to beg those men to release Percy, I couldn't. The shadow was like a chain that tied me there.

And when the morning came, its magic slowly faded as I dropped on the ground, gasping for air. It wasn't the shadow that suffocated me, it was the concern, the intense speculation for the worst that nearly stopped my heart from beating. I crawled across the stone floor, where his blood was still imprinted there.

"Percy..." I moaned his name, looking into the distance, hoping to find him.

But, when I came out of that cave, to bask in sunlight again, before me was just a flatland of grass. Nothing, just the monotony of it that sucked the life out of me.

"Percy!" I screamed across the field. I cried his name into the sky, and hoping the it would answer. But it was just a canvas of blue.

Where were the spirits when I needed them most?

I wandered around that place for what might have been forever, going aimlessly, calling his name. I knew it was stupid. It has been a day and they were long gone.

I finally found the forest, a place that I could hide from all the coldness of the world right now. Why does this have to happen to me? I only confessed to him yesterday. I have only been able to love him, and now we got separated. Gosh, what if I cannot see him again? The thought terrified me. So far, I have only imagined my life from now on with him, the life we would create, the fun we would have. But yesterday destroyed all of that. I wasn't sure if I wanted to return to the valley, where I have spent the last 18 years of my life alone. I couldn't. It has too many of our memories there. The fear of it kept me going, as it gave me the strength to cry out his name.

When the sun was high in the sky, when my throat felt like it was destroyed from the constant screaming, I stopped and breathed by the tree. There wasn't any streams around, just a dense forests covered by mosses.

Right when I was about to get going, an arrow flew from behind me and stuck to the trunk in front of me. I froze. Did I finally find them?

"Be careful girl," a female voice, young but full of authority. "You are not supposed to wander in this forest"

"I-I need to find someone" I held my arms high to show peace. My back still faced towards her.

"This land is off limit to mortal. So, unless you are a spy or works for the gods, then it is impossible for you to be here" she said. "Slowly turn around so I can see your face. Don't attempt to do anything stupid or you will have an arrow to your head"

I didn't understand what she said just now. Gods and the land. Wasn't this the flat land near our village? No, Perseus must have brought me to somewhere else when I got shot by the arrow. By the look of it, I had no choice but to obey her.

I slowly turn, and the look on that girl face changed dramatically.

The black hair, dapped with silver tiara. She looked no more than fourteen of age and already held the bow, ready to kill. The moment I turned around, her mouth slowly open in shock as the arms held her bow dropped. She stood there, staring at me as if her soul has been sucked away. And from the shocked mouth, she muttered.

"Milady..."