Chapter 74 - Full Circle (1/2)

Theoric woke up the next day alone, the two women seem to have ditched him in the middle of the night.

He felt conflicted, on one hand, he was glad that the cold woman was gone, she really s.u.c.k.e.d the life out of him just being near her. On the other hand, she had that next door girl, fun neighbor/village girl feel if she wasn't filled with such loathing towards men.

He was also saddened he never got to meet the sleeping babe who was his type.

Giving another sigh, he stood up and headed back to look for a waterfall he heard them pass by the other day. He enjoyed watching the flow of the water as it cascaded down, reminding him of simpler times, the noise also had a calming effect that allowed him to relax.

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Meanwhile, Io and Annabeth were still making their way south.

Annabeth at this time was also feeling conflicted- ”It doesn't feel right to just leave the man who saved us.”

Io snorted- ”Never trust men Anna, of all the things you know and learn this is by far the most important, I don't want to see you end up like me. Only thanks to your mother's help, was I able to escape from Zeus's grasp and find my way to you. I promised to help protect and guide you and I intend to do that the best way I know how.”

When Io first found her all those years ago, it was some of the best times of Annabeth's young life, finding a mother figure, and then sister after she grew up to be the same age that Io was stuck at. It was nice also for Io that Annabeth wouldn't grow older anytime soon due to her demigod body, she fears to interact with people that will eventually grow old and leave her behind.

The good times didn't last though as they had to rush to escape after having their location compromised after a monster passed by and picked up Annabeth's scent.

Leaving with nothing but some rags and a dagger, they left ill-prepared and under-geared, traveling as fast as they could south towards Athens after much arguing with each other. Annabeth won the argument and choose to visit the city that was built for her mother goddess, in hopes of finally meeting her.

Traveling was risky though, due to her scent being spread over a wider distance, allowing magical monsters to more easily track her down.

Annabeth could only give up the conversation when Io started talking about her promise- ”I know, I know, okay, I trust you, all I'm saying is it feels wrong, he did save us according to your own words.”

Io felt like she should have left that part out, now it was likely she would never hear the end of it.

They continued to move in the unusually quiet forest, Io and Annabeth were on high alert having experienced this more than once as they came to a stop to listen.

Io whispered- ”Get your daggers ready just in case, I don't think it's a cyclops this time.”

Annabeth at any other time would retort how obvious that was but knew the seriousness of the situation. All sorts of magical beasts were attracted to the Olympian blood in her whether for revenge or for a source of substance to help empower themselves or both.

It was to bad for her that she didn't develop any powers besides a better physique and intellect compared to a regular mortal.