When Percy awoke, he was once again plagued with the task of coming around to immense pain. He had lost absolutely all track of time, and he had no idea how much longer he was going to be able to survive in this hell pit. He was still bound, gagged and blindfolded, but he doubted he needed any of the restraints anymore. His voice was too hoarse from screaming for it to be of much use, he was far too weak to run away, and he was so tired that he could barely even open his eyes. He knew that the end was drawing near, and he had given up. His father had not come for him, no one had come for him. For so long, he had held faith that someone would come for him, but he had been wrong, no one had come to his rescue, and now he was dying, he could feel it.
The strength was draining from him, as was the fight that he was so famous for. His friends always commended his spirit, and his determination to never give up, but what would they say if they could see him now? out of strength, lying on the ground a complete mess with nothing going for him but the potential of death. That was something that he had never thought he would wish for – death. His will to live had always been so strong, but now he was in so much pain, there was so much suffering, and no silver lining. Percy couldn't help but wonder if all of that would be gone if Stehno and Euryale would just let him die, but he knew they wanted to torture him until the very moment that he died.
This wasn't the way that things were supposed to end for him. He hadn't wanted to die alone in some dungeon set up by the sisters of a woman who's life he had ended. He hadn't wanted to die without letting people know where he was, but now he didn't have a choice. The time for his strength to help him had come and gone, and now he was sure that there was nothing left to do but hope that things would be easier in death.
There were so many things he never got to say, so many things that he never got to do, so many people he never got to help and so many places that he never got to see. He had wanted to tell Annabeth how amazing she was. She was the bravest person he knew, and the best warrior by far. He had wanted to tell her that he admired her courage and skills, but his pride had gotten in the way. He had been so eager to push her buttons that he had neglected to tell her how proud he was to be her friend, and now he was never going to get the chance. When it came go Grover, he had wanted to tell Grover that he was the best friend Percy had ever had. He was loyal, and sure, he had to be to a certain extent, but he had been there for Percy during his darkest hours…save for this one, and that kind of loyalty should have been recognized. Then there was Luke, possibly the most complicated of Percy's regrets.
Luke had betrayed him, he had betrayed the gods and the demigods, but there was something about him that had struck Percy, something about him inside that was so very different from the hard, stony exterior that he projected. Percy had wanted to get to the heart of it, to see what it was that made Luke betray everyone the way that he had, but he had been kidnapped before he ever had the chance to go talk to the boy. He knew that Luke's family life was bad, that his parents didn't love him the way that they should, the way that Percy's mother had loved him, and that he had been all but cast aside as unwanted, leading to anger and darkness that Percy could not have imagined himself until he had been taken by the Gorgons.
Percy was ripped from his thoughts, however, by the sound of the door opening. No, not them… he gulped, wishing now, more than before, that he were truly dead. Please not again, I can't take this anymore…please, just let me die, don't touch me, don't hurt me anymore! I can't take it! The worlds were screaming again and again in his head, but he couldn't say them – he didn't have the strength nor was he willing to let them have the satisfaction. He may be begging for death on the inside, but he was never going to let them hear it.
"Percy, my, my." Stheno snickered as she looked at the boy. "How…down trodden you look today."
"It really is too bad." Euryale joined in, kneeling besides Percy. "We were hoping to play with you some more, but you're so weak…however could that have happened?" The sarcasm dripping from her voice was so condescending that Percy nearly threw up, but he managed to keep back the bile rising in his throat as he felt a snake slithering across his back.
"Do you want to die today, Percy?" Stheno asked, removing the gag from his lips. YES! Percy's mind screamed. YES! JUST SAY YES AND END ALL OF THIS!
"No." The word exited Percy's mouth barely a gasp, a shell of a whisper, but it was as strong as he could make it.
"No?" She tilted her head to the side, and only seconds later, fangs sank into his back. "Then we shall continue to play with you."
Percy began to breathe as heavily as he could while the snakes bit him, some lightly nipping at his skin, some sinking their fangs in deeper. It hurt so badly, but his throat was too raw to scream anymore. He was losing all hope, and he didn't think that he could take much more of this pain. It wouldn't be long now before they opened the door to find him dead, and as determined as he had been to survive, he was now almost just as determined to die, to end this suffering. He had no idea that help was on the way, no idea that his friends coming for him, no idea that anyone out there still cared about him, and he had no idea, as he fell unconscious once again, that Luke was with them, the very boy he found so confusing, yet so alluring.
A/N Sorry that the posting of this story is so sporadic. I'm trying to finish it, but until that happens...it's probably gonna stay pretty sporadic. I'm sorry! But at least I got this chapter up!