I don't own anything. No, really, I don't. Not even the books, since I read them all in Barnes and Noble without buying any of them.
Chapter Eleven: Fate
When he woke up, Percy stood next to a familiar tree on the shore of a lake. Looking around, he gasped when he realized that he was back at Camp Half-Blood, in the same place where he trained with Katie every day. He could see the cabins a few dozen yards away, and the Dinning Pavilion on the other side of the lake just like he remembered.
"What the hell..."
Suddenly, Percy heard something drop into the lake. He turned to it and saw ripples forming its surface. The demigod walked over to the edge and looked down, but he couldn't see the bottom. It was like the water turned into a mirror, and all he could make out was his crystal clear reflection, which strangely had its eyes closed.
Without warning, his reflection smirked, and Percy yelped, taking a step back in surprise. Slowly, he edged his way forward and peered into the lake, once again seeing his reflection smirk at him. He gulped, but narrowed his eyes.
"Hey, stop that."
The reflection chuckled, and to Percy's shock it actually produced a sound. His reflection sounded nothing like him though. It was heavy, and filled with an overwhelming force that Percy hadn't felt since...
"Wha? Are you that voice from my other dream? Am I in a dream right now?" The reflection kept chuckling, it's eyes still closed. Annoyed, Percy crossed his arms. "Hey, I'm talking to you!"
The reflection finally stopped, but its evil smile was still in place. It opened its eyes, and Percy froze in a strange combination of intrigue and fear. They were golden, glowing with power.
"You came this far... It is really too bad that you got yourself locked in a cell. At least your body is close enough for me to manifest myself here."
"So it is a dream..." Percy muttered, deciding not to comment on how weird it was to have such a voice come out of what seemed to be his mouth. He looked down at his reflection, making sure to avoid the golden eyes, least he be trapped in some kind of emotional curse like the other two gods he had met so far. "Now what? Are you gonna tell me some crap about how I am you and you are me? You want me to join the dark side?"
The reflection shook its head. "Oh no, demigod. Not only would you never accept such a proposal, but I could never have you work under me. I hate you."
Percy raised an eyebrow. "Uh, what? I haven't met you before in my life."
"You did not need to. I hate you because that is just the way things are. Not only are you a demigod, but a special one at that. Very special."
The psychokinetic frowned. For an instant, Kronos had paused before saying 'demigod'. "I've been told. What does that have to do with anything, though?"
The reflection shook its head, more to mock him than to express any real disappointment. "Your kind is not very intelligent. It seems that nothing has changed in the thousands of years that I have been imprisoned."
"Who are you?"
The reflection chuckled again, a grating chuckle of what could only be amusement, though the dark voice didn't make that easy to hear. "I am Kronos, the Titan of Time."
Percy's eyes widened. "Kronos?" he asked, his voice shaking. "Supreme-evil-dictator-of-the-world Kronos? Guy-who-ate-his-children Kronos?"
Kronos nodded. "The very same."
Getting himself under control, Percy glared down at the titan in control of his reflection. He was still scared, but he couldn't be hurt in a dream... at least, he guessed so.
"What's this all about, then? I don't think you came into my head for some chit-chat."
"Do you not see? You and I..." The titan lord paused, and Percy wondered if Kronos just did it to add dramatic effect. "We are not one. On the contrary, we are opposites."
Percy snorted. "Yeah, opposites." He shook his head. "I don't think it's fair that we're opposites and you can kill me with one move."
Kronos chuckled again, and Percy was starting to become annoyed with the grating sound. "For you, perhaps. Maybe the Fates made it this way, but for better or worse, we are opposites. Two sides of the same coin. Black and white, with no gray in between. Can you not feel it like I do?"
Percy was about to deny the stupid thought, but then he felt it. Something inside him broke, and a rush of hate flowed into him, ripping its way through his soul. He almost dropped to the ground, but caught himself, instead leaning on his knees.
"Wh-What?"
Kronos laughed, a booming laugh just like the one he remembered in his dream. "Do you hate me now, demigod? Have you finally come close enough to my essence that your true nature has been revealed?"
'True nature?' Percy looked up, his face sweating, and couldn't help but glare at the titan. "You... You bastard... Tell me what's going on!"
Kronos grinned maliciously, the strange expression looking out of place on Percy's reflection. "Is it not obvious? Space and Time, the two primordial forces, finally together. I do not know how you got your powers, though I have a good theory. Whatever it was, it surely propelled you to this fate."
'Space and Time?' Percy thought. "That doesn't make any sense. Why do I hate you? You're an evil monster, but I've never met you once in my life!"
"It is the way of the world, young demigod," Kronos said. "You are not dealing with petty humans or gods anymore. This is the fight between two forces of existence, we do not need a reason!"
"But we aren't fighting..." Percy murmured. Suddenly, he had a thought. "Wait, you're the one who stole Zeus' Bolt?"
Kronos smirked. "Perceptive, aren't you? I had one of my subordinates do the deed. Of course, that would not have been enough to initiate conflict between my two sons, so I made sure that Hades' little helmet was stolen as well."
Percy grit his teeth. "Why? What's the point of starting a war?"
"Is it not obvious?" asked Kronos, his face twisting in rage. "To be free of this wretched prison! When they destroy the land and weaken each other, I will rise up and take my rightful place on the throne of the world once more!"
'Ares couldn't of done it, since gods can't take each other's symbols of power, so it must've been a demigod,' thought Percy. He glared down at his reflection. "What demigod would work under you? Who'd be that stupid?"
Kronos looked at him, and then laughed, all traces of anger leaving eyes golden eyes. The titan laughed and laughed, annoying Percy to no end.
"What's so funny!?"
Kronos stopped laughing, though an odd form of enjoyment could still be made out in his expression. "Oh, if only you knew. I could tell you, of course, but I do not want your hope dashed. Not just yet." The titan looked up at Percy. "Go, demigod. Break out of your own prison and escape the Underworld. It will be enthralling to see you die at the hands of the one waiting for you on the surface."
The world started to disappear, but Percy kept looking at his reflection, Kronos' essence now gone.
Two sides of the same coin. Black and white, with no gray in between. Opposites.
Percy woke up with a start. He looked around, and in place of green grass and blue skies, he found himself in a small, black-bricked room. The only way out was a door made from a red metal of some sort. He quickly came to the conclusion that he was trapped in a cell in the Underworld.
'Okay,' he thought, pushing thoughts of Kronos out of his mind to deal with the current situation. 'Alright, I've gotta break out of jail, find Annabeth, take back the Bolt, get out of the Underworld, survive whoever's up in the surface waiting to kill me, and get all the way back to New York, all in,' he looked down at his wristwatch, and fought down the despair that threatened to take over him, 'twenty hours. Easy.'
Percy patted his pocket and was glad to find Riptide still there. 'I guess not even Hades knows about my sword,' he thought. Unfortunately, his shield was nowhere to be found, and Percy cursed himself for letting them take away Beckendorf's gift. He stood, searching the small cell for anything that might help him break out. However, the room was completely bare, no furnishing in sight.
Percy huffed. 'There isn't even a toilet. How do they expect me to go to the bathroom? Unless...' He shivered. 'Never mind.'
The young demigod looked at the metallic red door and sighed. 'Looks like I'll have to do this myself.'
He cracked his knuckles and held them out towards he door, trying to force it open. It didn't take long for him to see that it wasn't even budging an inch.
He cursed again. 'It's too heavy,' he realized, stomping his foot in frustration. Of course Hades would make the door out of the heaviest substance he could find, the guy was the lord of the Underworld, after all. Whatever the door was made of, it was definitely out of Percy's league. 'Now what?'
He couldn't think of anything. Percy didn't think that even Annabeth, wherever she was, could've come up with a plan for such a situation. The psychokinetic tried forging a hole in the wall, but the black bricks felt even heavier than the door. He growled, forcing back the urge to throw a tantrum. Instead, Percy released all his frustration and hopelessness with a punch to the wall, which he immediately regretted.
"Agh, damn it!" he shouted, holding his now bleeding knuckles. His hand wasn't broken, he would've felt that for sure, but it hurt.
Percy growled again, but sat back on the ground, holding his head in between his hands. 'There's no way out of this,' he thought. 'Is this it? Coming all this way to get stopped by a wall...' He grit his teeth. 'Pathetic...'
He suddenly felt a burning hatred for the gods, almost as great as the one he had felt for Kronos. Those good-for-nothing immortals used him, sending him and his friends on some suicide quest that didn't even accomplish anything.
If it wasn't for them, then he wouldn't be in some stupid jail cell miles underground, Annabeth would be safe in her cabin, and Grover wouldn't have to distract a deadly three-headed monster for hours.
If it wasn't for them, he wouldn't need to know who his parents were, because he would just know. He would've been raised by parents that took care of him, not in some orphanage where everyone was too scared to be his friend, or treated him like some kind of extraterrestrial. Luke's speech suddenly made much more sense.
Luke...
I believe in you alright? You're the muscle here, so you take care of them, okay?
What would he think? He wouldn't want Percy to give up, but what was there to do?
How about this, I can just make you the shield and you pick it up on Thursday. I'll teach you all about forging later.
Beckendorf... Even if Percy lost the beautiful shield his Hephaestus friend made for him, he knew that Beckendorf would just laugh and say that it was probably put to good use for as long as it lasted.
He remembered what Chiron had told him after he beat the Minotaur with Riptide. He'd tried to give the sword back, but the old centaur had insisted that Percy keep it.
I can't think of anyone better to wield this sword.
Even before he knew about the Greek gods or Camp Half-Blood, Chiron had believed in him. He trusted Percy with Anaklusmos, a magic blade that many campers would've killed for.
It's simple, this guy beat me in a fight, and if he can do that, there's no one here who stands a better chance than Jackson.
Clarisse had said that. The meanest, toughest, most stubborn girl he'd ever met in his life respected his strength. They weren't even friends...
You better come back in one piece, Percy.
Katie... She knew him more than anyone else. There was never any question as to whether or not he would make it back to Camp Half-Blood.
Annabeth and Grover, his two companions, how could he let them down? This quest was his chance to prove himself, but it was their chance too. Annabeth wanted to show everyone at camp how good of a leader she was, and Grover needed to finish the quest so that he could follow his dream to find Pan.
Percy realized what he'd been missing all this time. He didn't take the quest for his own growing glory, or for the gods. He didn't even come all this way for the good of the world. The reason he fought a giant crab, made a deal with the war god, climbed a mountain and sought out the god of wind's help, discovered the true ending to an Ancient Greek legend, went into the Underworld and got stuck in some cage...
He stood back up, a new determination blazing in his eyes. There were people that believed in him, trusted him. Too many for him to let down. He promised Luke that he'd make sure everyone was safe, promised Katie that he'd come back. Beckendorf and Chiron had put their faith in him right from the start. He'd finally gained Annabeth's respect, or at least he thought so, and he found himself doing the same for her. He couldn't leave things with Grover as they were, and next time he saw the satyr, because there sure as hell was going to be a next time, he would apologize.
Percy held both hands out, arms outstretched, facing the metal red door, and pushed. He stood for hours, pushing and pushing with his powers, making a small dent that continued to grow into an expanding hole. His forehead was slick with sweat, his eyes felt as heavy as the substance he was molding, and his whole body was trembling uncontrollably, but the psychokinetic kept pushing. He felt like he could pass out any second, but whenever he was about to give up, Percy remembered Katie's cheeky smile, or Chiron's pats on the back, or Grover's terrible music, or Luke's proud gaze, or Annabeth's exasperated eye-rolls.
And finally, after hours of exhausting effort and constant pressure, Percy created a hole in the door large enough for him to slip through.
Percy stood there, his arms still outstretched, with a slightly astonished expression that immediately turned into one of happiness.
"YEAH!" he shouted, hopping up and down while raising both hands in the air.
He went through the opening and hastily moved his head side to side, trying to decide which way to go. The place was just a hallway full cells, many of which were occupied.
Percy went left, peering into all the cells he passed through, trying to find Annabeth in the darkness of Hades' dungeon. He went as fast as he could in his tired state, and was glad that his energy would replenish in an hour or so, as he had only exerted his mind, not his body.
He ignored all the pleading prisoners on the way, be it a monster or a person, and kept going. There was only one person he needed to see.
After enough time had passed, Percy decided he could afford to be a bit risky and call out her name.
"ANNABETH!"
He waited, listening as his voice echoed down the corridor. Just before he could call her name again, he heard her response.
"PERCY! HERE!"
'Just a bit more!' he thought, now running down the hall.
Finally, he reached her cell, which was right next to the dungeon exit. Looking inside through the small barred window in the door, Percy saw Annabeth, standing and looking back at him with a relieved smile.
"Percy, oh thank the gods! I thought..."
The psychokinetic smirked tiredly. "What's wrong, Jasmine? Don't tell me you were actually worried about me?"
Annabeth sighed, though her lips were still quirked up. "As if. You look terrible by the way."
He probably did. Percy waved his hand though, dismissing her comment. "Yeah, yeah. Now, sit tight and let me break you outta here."
Right after he said that, he realized the problem. Looking down at his watch, he was horrified to see that there were only eleven hours left until the summer solstice. 'It took me that long to break out?' Gulping, he decided to just get started on the door, and no matter what, not tell Annabeth.
Holding his hands out in the position he had become so familiar with, Percy began pushing the metal of the door and immediately felt his exhaustion returning. It felt easier however, so he could maybe get it done in seven hours instead of nine, but he knew that it still wouldn't be enough.
After a few minutes, Annabeth's voice broke through his focus.
"So, how long did this take you the first time?"
He looked up at her, his arms still outstretched. "An hour or so. No big deal."
Annabeth narrowed her eyes. "Percy, I was trained on how to tell whether or not someone's lying. Tell me, how long did it take you?"
Percy knew when he was beaten. "Fine. It took me... about nine."
Annabeth looked down at her own wristwatch, and she gasped in both surprise and despair. "Percy, listen to me-"
"Nope."
"Percy, ple-"
"No!" he exclaimed. His closed his eyes shut. "I'm not listening! La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-"
"I know, Percy, I know! But please, you can't sacrifice the world for me!"
Percy shook his head, still working through the cursed red metal. "I-" his voice cracked. He couldn't leave her there. He wouldn't. "I know, but... What do you want me to do!?" He growled, putting as much pressure on the door as he could. 'Just go faster! Please!' "I promised Luke that I'd take care of you guys, and I can't just show up without you! Plus..." He paused. "I..."
"Percy-"
"You're my friend!" he shouted, and the metallic surface of the door budged a bit more harshly than it had been doing. "I'm not... I can't-"
"Listen to me!" Annabeth said. Percy looked up at her and was shocked to see her crying.
Out of everyone he knew, he had never expected her of all people to cry. She aways tried to stay strong, whether it be for the group or for her pride. 'Don't cry too! Isn't this already bad enough!?'
"Listen to me..." She tried to wipe away the tears, but they were already falling down her cheeks. "You... You n-need to leave n-now-"
"But-"
"No, listen!" she shouted, and Percy reluctantly shut his mouth. "If you d-do this, I won't be able to live with m-myself, got it? If you b-break me out of this cell right now, I'll kill myself! I swear on the River Styx!"
Percy immediately stopped. It had already been said. An oath like that would always be completed one way or another. "Annabeth..." As much as he hated it, his respect for the daughter of Athena shot up. And what had he been doing? Had he been wrong to try and save her, even if it meant the end of the world? "You..." What could he tell her?
Orion had told him that Camp Half-Blood was turning them all into slaves, but then what was Annabeth? What was someone who sacrificed themselves for the greater good? Not the fake one that so many people had preached to him, but a true, selfless good that took everyone into consideration?
At that moment, it hit him. He knew a word for people like that. It was so obvious, so ingrained into his life and his future that he almost slapped himself for forgetting it. "You really are a hero, Annabeth..."
"Go!" she shouted, now crying without restraint. "Just g-go, Percy. This is your quest now."
He could feel himself about to join her in her sorrow, but before a tear could slip through his eyelid, Annabeth reached a hand out through the bars and wiped it dry. "Look at that," she murmured, a small smile on her wet face. "Percy Jackson, c-crying," she chuckled, though it was broken by a sob, "who would've th-thought?" She shook her head, pulling back her arm. "If it makes you feel any b-better, you're n-not so bad either."
There was nothing more to say.
Percy turned around, ready to continue his quest. He opened the bronze door, but before he took another step, he turned to face the daughter of Athena, looking her right in the eyes.
"I'll come back for you. I promise."
She nodded, and Percy left the dungeon, closing the door with a great thud.
Percy sneaked his way through Hades' palace, making sure to stay out of the shadows, least the lord of the Underworld himself come to finish him off. As he creeped, he did his best to keep Annabeth out of his mind, but it was a difficult task. He could just imagine her, down in those terrible dungeons, having to-
He shook his head. 'Not now.'
The psychokinetic considered himself lucky that the undead patrolling the halls didn't seem to have very good senses. Many were missing their eyes, and those who could see were missing their ears. Stealth had never been his forté, but with guards like these the young demigod didn't even have to try.
The real problem was the palace itself. The place was a maze, with twisting corridors and winding staircases, some of which led to dead ends, or at least that's what Percy thought they were. Maybe only ghosts had unrestricted access to the entirety of the palace, because he was sure that at least one of the bronze walls hid a room behind it. Regardless, he didn't have much time left, and wasting all of it trying to find his way out of a labyrinth didn't sound very noble.
The psychokinetic was going as fast as he could without making too much sound, but when he turned a corner, he crashed right into one of the patrolling zombies. The two bounced off each other and landed on their rears.
Percy looked up at the undead guard, and the undead guard looked up at Percy. They both sat there, dumbfounded, until the guard reached for its sub-machine gun, and suddenly found its head removed.
Percy, now standing with his sword raised, looked down at the headless corpse. He noticed the mangled and ripped German World War II uniform and smirked, having found the perfect solution to his dilemma.
He put the uniform on over his clothes, making sure to place the helmet low over his face so that it would be harder to tell that he was alive. It was all way too big on him, but he hoped it would be enough to trick the idiot zombie guards.
Now equipped with a plan, Percy roamed around in his new disguise until he came across more undead.
"Hey! Uh, guys!"
The two zombies dragging their way down the hall twisted their heads at an 180 degree angle to see him walking towards them, stepping carefully so he wouldnt trip on his oversized disguise.
"Uuuuugh," they moaned in unison.
Percy felt his face shift into a deadpan stare. 'Of course they can't talk,' he thought bitterly, 'just my luck.'
Controlling his frustration, he raised a finger. "Can you tell me where I can find the Master Bolt?"
The two undead guards stared at him with their soulless eyes, and the psychokinetic fidgeted uncomfortably in place. Suddenly, he realized his mistake. Zombies couldn't understand what he was saying either.
"Oh, I mean... Um... Uuuugh, ugh ugh, braaaaaaiiinsss?" he asked, making all sorts of hand motions and finger pointing. The young demigod felt ridiculous having to talk like he was mentally deficient, and even worse was that they might not understand him at all. Just because zombies groaned didn't mean that they could actually communicate with each other, and even if they did, he didn't speak zombie.
To his shock, one of the undead nodded in what seemed like understanding. "Ugh, uuuuugh ugh ugh ugh," it told him, pointing a broken finger at an empty hallway.
Holding back his relieved sigh, Percy gave the zombie guard a thumbs up. "Ugh ugh," he groaned, trying to thank it for its help. Not a moment later, he was racing down the new path, intent on reaching his destination.
Luckily for Percy, the zombie guard gave him some good advice. After just a few minutes, he found himself in the main hallway that led to Hades' throne room, just like he remembered. Seeing no guards in sight, the young demigod headed to the large bronze doors, crossing his fingers in the hope that the god of the Underworld was sleeping in his bedroom.
Placing his hands on the cold metal of the door, Percy used all his strength to push it open, sending out an echoing creak. Wincing, the psychokinetic hastily slipped inside the room, knowing that he didn't have long before someone went to investigate the loud sound.
Inside the throne room, everything was just as he remembered, except that instead of Hades, the Master Bolt itself was sitting on the throne of skulls. Even better, all of their things were at the foot of the throne, including his shield, Annabeth's dagger, and more importantly, Ares' green bag where he could keep the Bolt.
He quickly gathered everything up, stuffinghis things inside the backpack, and began climbing his way up the mound of bones to the seat of the throne. Reaching the top, Percy took ahold of the Master Bolt's electric surface and grit his teeth, resisting the constant shock. He hurriedly put it inside the bag, and with a nod of satisfaction, began to leave the room. Just as he was about to slip through the opening in the door, someone stopped him in his tracks.
"My, my, my. What do we have here?"
'Crapcrapcrapcrapcrap...' Percy thought, recognizing the chilling voice of Hades himself. He turned around to find the dark god sitting leisurely on his throne, coal eyes half closed as if Percy was the most boring thing imaginable.
"H-Hey, Lord Hades," Percy greeted, starting to hyperventilate. "Didn't expect to see y-you here."
"Didn't you?" Hades asked, his cold voice strangely amiable. "Why, I thought it would be obvious that I would create some way to know when my prisoners escaped from their cells, wouldn't you agree?"
"Of c-course." Percy's panicked eyes looked around, trying to find any way for him to escape his now inevitable demise. "It'd be stupid not to, and you certainly aren't stupid."
"I'm not?" Hades asked, now leaning on his knees and looking at Percy as if he was the most interesting thing in the world. "Thank heavens you do not think so. And here I thought you figured me to be some kind of idiotic fool."
"Wh-What? Pfffft, noooo..."
"Forgive me, then. I just assumed you did, since you actually thought that a pathetic little demigod such as yourself could actually escape my notice."
"Well, clearly I can't! You sure g-got me! Hehehe..."
"It appears I did," Hades said, leaning his head against his intertwined hands. "Now, what do I do with you? Perseus Jackson, wasn't it?"
"Uh..." Percy gulped, then smiled uncertainly. "Yeah, that's my name, don't wear it out." Hades didn't laugh. The demigod gulped. "You could j-just, y'know... let me go?"
Hades mulled it over. "Yes. I very well could," he said, and Percy couldn't believe his ears. "Unfortunately, I do not particularly want to. Oh well, I'll just have to kill you then." Percy's hopes were immediately crushed.
Hades stood from his throne, producing a black scythe out of shadows. He looked at his weapon of choice with a critical eye, then shrugged. "A bit clichéd, but I suppose it is enough to serve its purpose."
Percy tried to run, but the young demigod found himself ensnared in pitch black shadows. "Oh, c'mon! Really!?" he shouted.
Hades chuckled evilly. "Forgive me, mortal, but I have never been a big fan of hunting. The only good prey is dead pray, as I always say."
Hades then let out an unimaginable amount of power. It was so intense that it blasted Percy's disguise right off him, leaving the young demigod shaking in its wake. The god lunged, and Percy closed his eyes.
Suddenly, the doors to the throne room blasted open, and a huge black blur crashed into Hades mid-air, tackling the pale god to the ground. The psychokinetic opened his eyes, and to his immense surprise, saw that his rescuer was Grover riding atop the hulking form of Cerberus.
"G-Grover?" he asked, dumbfounded at the sight of his friend sitting on the neck of Cerberus' middle head.
"No time!" Grover shouted. The satyr reached down. "Jump!"
Percy jumped several feet, closing his hand around Grover's arm. The satyr pulled him up, called out, "Go, Cerberus!" and they were soon bounding through the halls of Hades' palace. Behind them, Percy felt Hades release his power once more, but decided not to worry about it for now.
"Grover!" Percy called out. "What the hell!?"
The satyr laughed. "Yeah, well you guys were gone for a while, so me and Cerberus became pretty good friends. Isn't that right, boy?" The beast barked in what Percy figured was agreement. The giant three-headed dog then made a sharp turn, and the young demigod had to tightly grip it's fur so he wouldn't fall over.
"You became friends with the guard of the Underworld?" Percy asked incredulously. 'Though now that I think about it, I can apparently speak zombie, so I guess anything goes down here.'
Grover nodded. "It turns out that the big guy hasn't even been scratched behind the ears for a few hundred years. Can you believe that?" he scoffed, apparently displeased with the terrible treatment Cerberus recieved. "He was so grateful when I did it that he agreed to help me find you guys. Speaking of which," he cast Percy a confused look, "where's Annabeth?"
Percy felt his stomach drop, and Grover must've sensed his sorrow, because the satyr quickly turned away. "Oh," he muttered, voice devoid of its previous exhilaration, "something bad, then."
The entrance to the palace, or exit, was right in front of them. Dozens of undead guards were waiting, guns raised. Grover yelled in fright, but Percy glared. He lifted both his hands up and yanked all the guns from the guards' hands, even ripping some rotting arms off. The guns clattered on the floor behind them, and Cerberus jumped over all the zombies, going through the large doors and dashing out of the palace.
"Wh-What happened!?" Grover asked him.
The psychokinetic grimaced, just remembering that he hadn't told his satyr friend about his powers yet. Shaking his head, Percy called out to him over the howling of the wind. "Not now!"
Grover frowned, but accepted with a nod of his head.
"JACKSOOOOOON!"
"Oh, crap," Percy stated, not willing to glance behind them at the angry god. Grover patted hard on Cerberus' pelt, and the giant monster began running faster.
The two quest-mates went through the Fields of Asphodel, dispersing many shades in the process. Percy hoped that they weren't inadvertently destroying people's souls in their escape, but the situation was dire enough that he didn't put much thought into it. He could feel Hades chasing them down, and gaining on them fast. Cerberus might've been quick, but not many things could compare to a god.
Hearing a shrieking roar, Percy and Grover looked up to see the three Furies right above them. The satyr shuddered.
"All three furies..." he said, terrified. "Oh, this is bad."
Percy's senses were exploding from all the monsters and undead chasing them down. He quickly glanced to the side and saw a veritable army of nightmares right on their heels. Ghosts, zombie warriors on chariots, hell hounds, demons, and who knew what else.
"I think it's worse than bad, G-man," he muttered, noticing one of the undead warriors about to throw what he recognized as Greek Fire at them. 'They'd kill their own guard dog just to get to us?' he thought, disgusted at the Underworld's disregard for life, thoug. It did make some twisted sense. 'Even if Cerberus'll eventually reform, not cool.'
The warrior threw the bottle of green flames at them, but Percy waved his hand in its direction, sending the explosive right back at its thrower.
"Return to sender, asshole!" he shouted, watching as the powerful fire consumed the chariot and made it crash into several of their chasers, engulfing them in unquenchable flames as well.
One of the Furies dived at them, but Percy unsheathed his sword and sliced one of its wings off. It fell to the ground, screeching in pain, before it got stomped to death by the stampede of Underworld forces. Its two sisters cried for vengeance.
"Death to the foolish mortals!"
"I hated her, but I hate you more! Die!"
They both attacked at the same time, forcing Percy to crouch into Cerberus' fur so as to not get his head chopped off by their sharp claws. The demigod sat up and threw his sword at one of them, but the demon dodged it.
"Ha ha!" it laughed, pointing a mocking finger at him. The other Fury joined its sister, and they both cackled at his terrible aim. Unfortunately for them, they missed Percy's dangerous smirk, and before they knew it, both Furies were sliced in half by the returning blade, turning into golden dust in midair.
The psychokinetic closed his hand around the handle of his weapon when it flew back to him, chuckling. "Oh man, did you see their faces?" he asked Grover, but the satyr didn't respond.
"Uh, Grover?" he asked again, and his friend merely pointed ahead. He followed Grover's horrified gaze, and his face slackened. In front of them lied the Walls of Erebos, except that they weren't walls anymore. The dark barrier of the Underworld had turned into a gargantuan face, one that Percy recognized as Hades', and was holding a mass of swirling black energy in its mouth.
Percy cursed himself. 'Damn it! How could I forget that this guy had full control of those walls!?' The dark face smiled slightly, as if amused by his thoughts, before taking a long breath and launching the black energy ball at them.
The attack boomed, creating a massive ravine as it charged at them, completely eradicating the underground landscape. Grover covered his eyes, and Percy was ready to do the same until he remembered one crucial fact. 'Wait a minute... I have the world's strongest nuke in my backpack!'
Hastily, he took the Master Bolt out of its 'sheath', shaking a bit from the continuous electric shock, and held it out towards the dark ball of destruction.
'C'mon, Zeus, if you want your stupid bolt back, help me out here!' he prayed, closing his eyes and trusting the rod of electricity to do its job. Less than a second later, a great blast of lightning launched out of the Bolt.
What happened next would be talked about for ages amongst the residents of the Underworld. For a few short moments, it was like Apollo had driven his sun chariot straight down into the land of Hades, lighting up every corner and momentarily blinding all those who had grown used to the constant darkness. Those in Elysium witnessed it first hand, as the point of impact happened several miles outside their front door. The souls in the Fields of Punishment felt their hopes rise for those few precious seconds, it being the closest thing to the surface some had felt in centuries. Even the evil pit of Tartarus was brightened up, it's perpetual black becoming a slightly lighter shade of gray.
Percy held Grover in an iron-tight grip and used all his mental strength to stick himself to Cerberus, who was big and heavy enough to only slide back a few dozen meters from the force of the blast. Their chasers, however, were thrown back miles away, their light and sometimes inexistent bodies not being able to handle the strength of the explosion. When it was over, Percy and Grover looked on in shock.
There was a humongous crater in front of them, at least a mile across and almost half as deep. The Walls of Erebos were crumbled to pieces, showing the River Styx on the other side.
Grover finally snapped out of his trance and patted Cerberus on the head. "Just a little more, boy. Let's go!"
Percy put the Master Bolt back in his bag before the great beast rushed forward, sliding down the slope of the newly formed crater and running across its smoking bottom. They reached its other end, and before they knew it, the two remaining quest members had reached the very walls that had just tried to kill them.
Cerberus stopped, sitting down on the ground. Getting the hint, both Grover and Percy slid off its back, roughly landing next to their temporary transport. The young demigod spotted the ferry on the river about to take off, and nudged Grover on the shoulder.
"Hey, we need to leave, like, now." With that, he waved a quick goodbye to the towering three-headed dog and ran off to the boat. "See ya, Cerberus! It's been real!"
Grover looked up to Cerberus and patted its hulking paw. "It has been real," the satyr said. "Maybe I can come back sometime and play you something, eh?" The large monster reached down with one of its heads and licked Grover, drenching the satyr in giant dog saliva. "Uh." Grover stared down at his wet clothes, suppressing a groan of disgust, and grinned at Cerberus. "Yeah, uh, see you later then."
The satyr followed after Percy, and they both reached the ferry just in time to escape Hades, who reached the edge of the river in a blur of shadows and glared at them with absolute hatred.
"I will destroy you, Perseus Jackson!"
Percy, not afraid of the god anymore now that he couldn't get to him, gave the lord of the Underworld the middle finger. "Bite me, Hades! Oh, and keep the place clean, 'cause you can bet your pale ass that I'm coming back!"
Grover grunted in incredulity, and Charon, who was ferrying them back to the surface, raised an eyebrow at the demigod's attitude before shrugging.
Before they knew it, both quest-mates were back in the DOA Recording Studios, going up the elevator. When it opened, the two quickly got out and headed to the front doors before anyone recognized Percy.
Just as Grover was about to open the door, Percy stopped him.
"Wait, Grover." The satyr stopped, turning to face his friend, and the young demigod took a deep breath. "Okay, look. There's gonna be someone waiting outside for us, a powerful someone," he said. "I heard it in a dream," he added, seeing Grover's confused face.
The satyr groaned. "Great, first the Underworld, then Annabeth... Oh, Annabeth," his voice cracked, like he just remembered about his missing friend. "I... I can't believe she's gone."
Percy flinched. "About that," he began, "She's not dead."
Grover sighed in relief, his fears assuaged. He looked at Percy questioningly. "What happened, then?"
Percy looked down, his sadness returning now that they didn't have to run for their lives. "Annabeth... She's trapped in a cell in Hades' palace. It took me a while to break out of mine, and when I reached her, I... There wasn't enough time." He bit back a sob, remembering how helpless he had felt, how badly Annabeth must be suffering because of his failure. "She wanted me to leave without her... She promised that she'd end it if I sacrificed the world for her, one way or the other."
Grover nodded in understanding and sighed. "That definitely sounds like Annabeth. She's smart enough to know where her priorities should be."
Percy shook his head. "I... I'm sorry... I should've been faster, I should've been stronger, I should've-"
The satyr slapped him, soft enough to not be heard but strong enough to make a point. Percy rubbed his cheek, looking at his friend in surprise. "What was that for?"
Grover grinned sheepishly. "You told me not to blame myself for everything, remember? The way it sounds, there wasn't anything you could've done."
The psychokinetic remembered their conversation on the bus at the start of their quest, and smiled despite himself. "I guess you're right," he said.
Percy looked at his friend, the one who'd faced his fears and rescued him from Hades' clutches. "I'm sorry Grover," he apologized, and Grover cocked his head in confusion. "Y'know, for making fun of your music and stuff."
The satyr smiled and placed a hand on Percy's shoulder. "It's okay, Percy. I'm sorry for acting like a tool when you did. Apology accepted?"
Percy smiled back. "Yeah, apology accepted."
With nothing else to say, both quest members each placed a hand on one of the double doors, ready to face the last challenge in their adventure.
AN:
Yeah, all of that did just happen. So to anyone who was starting to think that this story was predictable... there you go.
By the way, sorry about the slow down in updates, but I've got other stuff to do, and continuously working on something like this takes creative effort.
The conclusion to part one is right there, you can almost feel it. It's not next chapter, obviously, since next chapter is the big fight. Like, BIG fight. So big that it might be bigger than this chapter, which I consider the biggest so far.
Who is waiting for our remaining heroes? Will the Master Bolt be safely brought back to Zeus, or will this mysterious (ha, yeah right) opponent be too much them to handle? Find out next time!
