Where You Go ― Jason Grace

x. do or die

AS OPHELIA GEARED up for the final battle, she tried hard not to think of the horror that would be happening far too soon for comfort. Too soon, one of her best friends would be reduced to a casualty, a life snuffed out in another war the gods forced their children to fight for them.

For the briefest moment, she understood Maren's side of things.

Why are you so loyal to them? the daughter of Neptune had asked her, as they stood on opposite sides of a battlefield, fate coming down upon them like torrents of rainfall. Every quest you've been on, everything you've done in your life—all to please them.

But Ophelia's truth was still the same—she didn't fight for the gods. She fought for her friends, and now those friends included seven other demigods destined to face the Earth Mother and, if the Fates had even a shred of kindness, put her back to sleep forever.

But those seven would be reduced to six, and Ophelia would forever be haunted by the guilt of watching her best friend die and not fighting fate hard enough to stop it.

She tightened the straps of her breastplate, double-checking that it was secure. She ensured her scabbard was fastened securely to her belt, and her flying shoes were fluttering, ready to go.

When there was nothing left to do, Ophelia closed her eyes and prayed.

I know this is how it has to go down, Dad. But, when it happens, if something goes wrong... lead Leo to Elysium. Make sure he gets there in one piece—it's where he deserves to go.

If he heard her prayer, Mercury made no indication.

As she opened her eyes, Jason knocked lightly on her cracked-open door. "You ready?"

He was decked out in armor, the same as her. His gladius was secured to his belt, his new glasses perched on the bridge of his nose.

Ophelia took a deep breath. "As ready as I can be," she murmured. "You?"

Jason sighed. "The same," he said. He came into the room, bending down to kiss her softly. It didn't feel like goodbye—because it wasn't. If there was anything Ophelia knew, it was that Jason wouldn't be the one to fall today.

She hated the twinge of relief in her chest at the knowledge, because it only came from knowing that someone else she loved was destined to die.

"We're going to be okay," Jason whispered. "We have to believe that."

Ophelia closed her eyes tightly. She forced herself to nod, even as her heart weighed her down like a ton of bricks in her chest. "Yeah," she murmured.

The ship was docked at the harbor in Piraeus, on the outskirts of Athens. They were here—this was it.

She took a deep, shaky breath. Please, Dad, she prayed. Make this worth it.

❖

Ophelia was already on edge with the impending battle, and sitting in the mess-hall with a guy with a snake tail for a leg for a 'get to know you' meeting was not helping.

"Please take a seat," Jason offered.

The snake-man, Kekrops, wrinkled his nose. "Snake people do not sit."

"Please remain standing," Leo said. He cut the Bundt cake Kekrops had brought as a peace offering—at least, Ophelia assumed it was a peace offering—and stuffed a piece in his mouth before Ophelia could warn him that it might be poisoned, or inedible for mortals, or just plain bad.

Of course, with what Leo had planned... poisoned Bundt cakes were the least of his worries.

"Dang!" Leo grinned. "Snake people know how to make Bundt cake. Kind of orangey, with a hint of honey. Needs a glass of milk.