The Snake's Identity
Seria
Upon seeing everyone, Seria was torn between feeling relieved and panicked. Yes, they were here to save Artemis and get the quest done and over with, but they were also putting themselves in grave danger. With Atlas and his forces so near by, along with the presence of Kronos's sarcophagus, Percy and Thalia were going to be the prime targets for the titan. She had to warn them, tell them all to get away from here, but with Luke's sword so close to her throat, she was forced to remain silent.
Luke chuckled. He pulled Seria to his side, gripping her hands tightly behind her back as he held Backbiter closer to her neck, positioning himself so that it would be all the more easier for him to slit Seria's throat at any time.
"You want her?" Luke teased. "Why don't you come and take her from me."
"Just let her go, Luke." Thalia said, her eyes were practically glowing with anger.
The son of Hermes tilted his head as if he were considering letting Seria go for real. Then he laughed. "Nah," he chuckled. "I think I'll keep her. Maybe the General will let her have a go in carrying the sky. Y'know, give Artemis a short break from her duties."
He jerked his head in the direction of the moon goddess, who was beginning to tremble under the weight of her burden as she slowly inched closer to the ground. Artemis was drenched in sweat, her arms were beginning to shake, and she was now down on her knees as she used all of her power to keep herself upright. Seeing the proud goddess in so much pain, the reaction was almost instantaneous.
"My lady!" Zoë rushed forward, but Artemis snapped her head toward her and screamed, "Stop! It is a trap. You must leave now!"
Cleo held Zoë back, keeping the huntress from going any closer to her goddess at the risk of paying with Seria's life. Zoë was crying, a sight that was foreign to everyone. Usually, she'd be level-headed and her expression poker faced, but now, seeing her in such desperation was almost too painful to watch.
A booming voice spoke from behind Luke and Seria: "Ah, how touching."
The group of demigods turned. Standing behind them, standing tall and proud in his brown silk suit, was Atlas. At his side were at least half a dozen dracaenae bearing Kronos's golden sarcophagus – a lot more than the number Seria had fought off in her attempt to escape from the mountain. Annabeth was held in Atlas's grasp, dragged behind him like a rag-doll. Her hands were still cuffed and she had been regagged, but she had more bruises than before peppered across her arms and face. When she caught sight of Percy and the others, her stormy grey eyes went wide with panic as she struggled against the titan's grip and her panicked words muffled.
"Annabeth!" Thalia glared daggers at the titan. "Let her go!"
Atlas didn't move a finger and Luke let out a low chuckle, one that didn't sound as cocky or condescending as the one before. "Whether or not Annabeth goes free is solely up to him, Thalia. But it is good to see you again."
Thalia spat at him.
A deep and amused chuckle rumbled from Atlas's chest. "So much for old friends. And you, Zoë. It's been a long time. How is my little traitor? I will enjoy killing you."
"Do not respond," Artemis groaned. "Do not challenge him."
Percy looked at the smartly-dressed titan with an expression of honest-to-gods surprise. "Wait a second," he said. "You're Atlas?"
If the situation wasn't so serious, Seria was sure everyone would've smacked the son of the sea god then and there. His "Aha!" moments were known to have the worst timing, and for once, Seria had to agree. Atlas, himself, didn't look very amused as well as he glanced down at Percy. "So, even the stupidest of heroes can finally figure something out. Yes, I am Atlas, the general of the Titans and terror of the gods. Something your little friend of yours already knows quite well." The grin he sent Seria's way made her skin crawl. "Congratulation. I will kill you presently, as soon as I deal with this wretched girl."
His eyes pitch black eyes locked onto Zoë, who returned the look with enough burning hatred to send any monster running.
"You're not going to hurt, Zoë," said Percy. "I won't let you."
Atlas sneered. "You have no right to interfere, little hero. This is a family matter."
The temperature felt like it had gone down a few degrees as everyone's eyes locked onto the lone huntress.
"A family matter?" Cleo mumbled.
"Yes," Zoë said bleakly. "Atlas is my father."
Usually, when someone you knew for countless years and mildly trusted reveals that their father just so happens to be a titan bent on defeating the gods and place his crazy leader in charge of the entire universe, you'd be paralyzed with shock. But for Seria, she was almost expecting it – which was worse. She could see the resemblance; the same regal expression, the same proud look in the titan's eyes that would only show up when Zoë got mad – minus the evil intentions, she could tell they were family. But, Atlas was everything bad about Zoë put together, while Zoë had proven to have many good traits that Seria, and the others, have come to know and appreciate – traits like loyalty, kindness, and mercy; everything that Atlas lacked.
"Let Artemis go," Zoë demanded.
Atlas walked closer to the chained goddess. "Perhaps you'd like to take the sky for her, then? Be my guest."
"No! Zoë don't!" Seria winced when she felt the edge of Backbiter's blade creepy closer to her skin.
"Quiet," Luke hissed, and Seria's heart plummeted. This wasn't the Luke she had spoken with over the past few months, and though she knew she shouldn't, she couldn't help but feel hurt.
Zoë didn't listen to Seria, in fact, she acted like she hadn't heard the demigod's pleas at all. Instead, she trained her eyes onto her goddess and opened her mouth to speak, but Artemis quickly cut her off. "No! Do not offer, Zoë! I forbid you."
Atlas smirked. He knelt next to Artemis and tried to touch her face, but the goddess bit at him, almost taking off his fingers.
"Hoo-hoo," he chuckled. "You see, daughter? Lady Artemis likes her new job. I think I will have all of the Olympians take turns carrying my burden, once Lord Kronos rules again, and this is the center of our palace. It will teach those weaklings some humility."
His words angered Seria to no end. The image of the gods being forced to carry the sky day in and day out, tortured and weak, it made her blood boil.
She struggled against Luke's hold, a rage filled scream letting itself loose from her throat before she bit down on her captor's hand, easily breaking skin. Luke howled in pain, but the grip he had on his sword didn't loosen. Instead, he slammed his wounded hand against Seria's forehead, sending her vision spinning, and held her steadfast, but the girl was relentless. She stomped on his foot and slammed her head backwards against Luke's, which sent him stumbling, giving her the chance to escape his hold and head straight for Atlas.
She ran forward, her hands curled as she summoned everyone's shadows to her side and manifest them into a giant fist. She threw her right hand forward, the shadow mimicking the movement, and just when her attack was about to make contact, Atlas evaded at the last second, catching Seria off guard. With incredible speed that she didn't know that he was capable of, he moved behind her and slammed his hand against her face, sending her sprawling to the ground.
Her vision was blinking back and forth between darkness and a nauseating slow spin of her surroundings. Slowly, Seria tried to push herself back up onto her feet, but Atlas pinned her down with his foot, pushing down on her right leg and sending arcs of pain throughout the demigod's body. Even if she had tried to hold it in, Seria couldn't stop herself from screaming in absolute agony.
"Seria!" Freya moved forward to aid her friend, but Atlas pushed harder, increasing Seria's screams and halting the fiery haired demigod in her steps.
Atlas grinned wickedly. "I commend your bravery, but that was a foolish move." He didn't move his foot from her leg, but applied enough force to keep Seria in place. He glanced over at Luke, who was barely keeping himself upright, and scowled. "And you," he snarled, "if you can't keep an unarmed girl in check, what good are you?" He threw Annabeth into Luke's arms and barked, "Make sure this one stays still, or I'll throw you off the edge of the mountain! Maybe that one will be easier for you, seeing as how she's bound and weakened from carrying my burden."
Luke scowled, but kept his mouth shut as he kept his grip on Annabeth's cuffs and placing Backbiter's blade against her neck.
"I don't get it," Percy mumbled. "Why can't Artemis just let go of the sky?"
Atlas laughed. "How little you understand, young one. This is the point where the sky and the earth first met, where Ouranos and Gaia first brought forth their mighty children, the Titans. The sky still years to embrace the earth. Someone must hold it at bay, or else it would crush down upon this place, instantly flattening the mountain and everything within a hundred leagues. Once you have taken the burden, there is no escape." Atlas smiled. "Unless someone else takes it from you."
The titan studied Thalia and Percy, even glancing down to look at Seria, who writhed in pain. "So these are the best heroes of the age, eh?" He tsked, clearly unimpressed. "Not much of a challenge."
Cleo, who had forced herself to remain silent even through the titan's irritating monologues, couldn't take it anymore; her eyes quickly shifted from her usual turquoise to an angry red. She pointed her rapier at the titan and scowled, "Why don't you shut your mouth and just fight us! And let's see if we're a challenge or not!"
"Have the gods taught you nothing? An immortal does not fight a mere mortal directly. It is beneath our dignity. I will have Luke and my monsters crush you instead."
"So you're just another coward," Freya taunted. "Just another immortal who's too scared to face off against a group of teenagers half his size! What – are you scared that we might just beat you?"
Atlas's eyes glowed with hatred. "You would do best not to test my patience, girl. Or there may be dire consequences."
Without warning, he pressed down against Seria's leg, putting in all of his weight. Seria clenched her teeth, but the pain was too much for her to bear – the weight was too much, and she was sure her leg was at the brink of breaking if it continued. She bit the inside of her teeth, fighting to keep herself from screaming, but eventually, she couldn't hold it in any more. A scream of agony erupted from her lips as she clawed at Atlas's foot in a futile attempt to push it off of her leg.
"Stop it!" yelled Percy.
Luke, who had watched this all transpire, lowered Backbiter and screamed at Atlas, "Stop! Stop it! Leave her be! She's had enough! You've already set your example, now stop!"
Much to everyone's surprise, Atlas did. He relinquished the pressure that he'd put on Seria's leg and glanced over to the suddenly so vocal son of Hermes. From the look that the titan was giving him, one would fear that Luke had signed his fate to a painful death via toss off of the summit of Mt. Tamalpais; but there was a hint of amusement in Atlas's eyes – like he was expecting Luke to speak out like that. "Don't tell me you actually care for this foolish child."
He watched Luke's expression crumple from the proud, cocky facade that he had played to something more hesitant, something more…guilty. Cruel laughter erupted from the titan; he gripped Seria's face and forced her to look between her friends and Luke, who now stood a little more deflated than before. "I don't understand why you mortals continue to feel such weak emotions. Look at her, boy," he forced Seria to face Luke, "she already rejected our offer. She's useless! She was a good source of information, yes – you're skills in deception are unparalleled, boy. But there's nothing more for us to gain from her, now that all of our necessary pieces are finally here."
Seria tensed under the titan's grip, and despite her fading consciousness, she could already feel the burning stares of her friends boring through her.
"What are you talking about?" Percy asked hesitantly.
The cruel smile on the titan's face only widened. "You didn't know? I'm not surprised. She's such a sly little snake isn't she?" He mockingly stroked Seria's hair as if she were a pet. "For the past few months, your little friend here, has been leaking information on you lot. She and Luke kept very close contact – often contacting one another three to four times a week. It's quite cute, isn't it? They were practically inseparable."
The titan painstakingly moved Seria's head to face Luke's who looked on with an unreadable expression and whispered into her ear. "Luke made quite the actor, didn't he? Tricking you into thinking he was your "friend", when it was a ruse the entire time."
"I knew it!" snarled Cleo. The daughter of Aphrodite sent a glare so furious Seria's way, the girl feared she'd be set aflame with a single look. "You traitor! The prophecy was right; the snake at the mountain's summit – it was you!"
Seria felt numb. She didn't know if it was just the pain of having Atlas stomp his foot on her right leg, or if it was just the guilt finally coming down on her in one big load; she just knew that she felt like a puppet cut from its strings, and judging from Atlas's words, she was exactly that. When Atlas relinquished his hold on her head, she didn't even register the pain of having her head drop down against the cold hard ground. She just stared at Luke, not exactly sure on what she should feel. Despite all the odds, she still clung onto the tiniest glimmer of hope that Atlas was lying, and that Luke hadn't been playing her for a fool the entire time. But when he turned his head away, it just confirmed everything.
He lied. He tricked her. He never cared.
And Seria felt only one pure, solid emotion bubbling through her: rage.
NOTE: If you liked reading this chapter, leave me a review and tell me what you think, or maybe some critique. I'd highly appreciate any feedback. :)