You always hear about people having grand epiphanies in their final moments but no one ever thinks that those will happen to them.
Well, as Percy Jackson, the mighty Hero of Olympus hurtled down into unknown depths, he had one such epiphany.
It wasn't as spectacular as most as he was a seaweed brain after all, but it was still fairly interesting: He was going to die.
It hit him like a train and yet gently at the same time, leaving him all mixed up inside. He knew he should probably be scared but he felt completely calm. To be fair though he was a demigod and death was an extremely common occurrence especially when they got older. He'd made his peace with Thanatos long before now. And honestly he considered himself lucky to have made it this long.
Closing his eyes as he fell, he tried to remember how this had all started, it was difficult to remember. So much had happened in such a short time.
They'd been on the Argo II, making a rescue attempt for Annabeth. Leo had punched a hole in the middle of some parking lot (he wasn't sure how the mist would manage to cover that up) and they'd managed to get down to where Annabeth was.
They'd briefly managed to discuss options for retrieving the Parthenos before the chamber had begun to collapse into the darkness below.
He had been helping Annabeth limp to the ladder when she'd nearly been ripped from his grasp. He thought she'd tripped at first but then something kept pulling.
Hazel had been the first to point out the strand of webbing pulling her down. Percy had pulled at it a few times before it finally broke free, with the end of the strand becoming caught on his hand instead.
Annabeth cried out as he was yanked from her side, the result being a nasty fall onto her already injured ankle. He'd slid across the floor, scrambling desperately for something to hold onto but everything he grabbed pulled away in his hands.
Just as his legs slid over the edge he managed to jam his free hand into a crack in the floor. The joints in his hand and arm popped and shifted with the sudden stress but held under the strain.
Annabeth crawled towards him slowly, and over her shoulder he could see Nico hobbling towards him. Neither was fast enough.
A piece of rubble from the pavement above them slammed into the floor, shaking what little remained of the chamber. The crack he had his hand in suddenly widened as the stone finished breaking free.
His last view before he fell was of Annabeth's tear covered face as she reached out to him, her scream just barely rising above the sound of the cavern's collapse.
'I'm sorry' he thought as he plunged into the darkness.
That led to where he was now, Hades only knows how many miles beneath the Earth. Or was he still technically on Earth? He didn't know for sure. Annabeth probably would now.
He briefly wondered if he'd see her again before discarding the thought. He wouldn't survive this fall, he knew that for sure. He'd been falling for a long time and he knew from basic physics that the longer you fell the faster you went, until you hit the ground that is.
Glancing around he came to the conclusion that he must be nearing whatever was below. The darkness was slowly giving way to an ever growing red glow.
Twisting around so he was facing what he assumed was down his jaw dropped at the sight emerging from the darkness.
Barren rock shrouded in smoke and flames slowly came into view. It reminded him of Hell, and perhaps this was what had inspired the whole 'fire and brimstone' thing in the first place.
The rock rapidly rose up to meet Percy as he closed his eyes one final time and sent a final prayer to who ever might be listening. I'm sorry Annabeth.
Nico stiffened suddenly on the Argo, drawing the gaze of the other demigods. Tears began to pour from his eyes as he shook his head. "No, no, no, NO!" he sobbed desperately.
Annabeth was the first to understand what he was upset about but she didn't shed a single tear. She'd already cried them all out, now she was empty and broken.
The others were slower to figure it out but eventually they all joined in Nico's mourning.
A/N: This was just kind of a passing thought I had while enjoying my time off for the holidays. It's based on what I thought would happen if Percy fell into Tartarus alone and didn't survive the fall.
On a happier note for those of you who read my other story: A hero's sins, I might be able to write the sequel sooner than I originally thought. It's still up in the air at this point, especially because I am taking on a lot of extra responsibilities and training but I might be able to at least get it going soon.
Anyways. Thank you for reading this story I hope you enjoyed it in some way. Leave a review if you liked it or if you didn't like it, I read every single one and am more than open to even the harshest of critics.Thanks!