Percy: Nico and I witness Annabeth's capture by Prometheus and
Gabriel's departure
After creating the fissure, dealing with me, Thalia, and the army, Prometheus grabbed Annabeth and proceeded toward the edge of the fissure. "Follow me into the Heart of Tartarus if you dare do so, Percy Jackson!" he mocked. Then he jumped into the fissure and to my amazement, I heard no scream from Annabeth but I did hear her tell me not to do it. Tell you the truth of it all, I was so confused and my desire to jump in after her was overwhelming all of my rational reason.
Then I broke down and ran for the fissure before Gabriel slammed into me with the momentum of a professional football player. The blow and the push after it were enough to bring me down long enough for him to pin both my arms behind my back. "No Percy, you wouldn't survive a minute (never mind the time it would take you to rescue her) in Tartarus' evil Heart," he told me. "I don't care, just let me have a chance to save Annabeth from that wicked man!" I shouted.
"No, it's too dangerous to have you go after him, I'll go. He's baiting us to see who we'll send and he hopes it's you so he can eliminate both of you. Removing both of you from the picture would be almost as good as removing me," Gabriel told me. I began to cry and I hated myself for it but Gabriel assured me that the tears were perfectly fine with him.
"Real men feel emotion but show restraint in when to show their emotions as well as the quantities they release. You're going to be worse than this so kiss any chance of going to Tartarus goodbye. I'll go, I have less to lose than you do and I've got a score to settle with Prometheus anyway," he added. "What makes you think you'll have a better chance than I would and I know it's not just that?" I asked him.
"I think this is what was meant by the prophecy of my destiny. Would you like to hear it, Percy?" he replied. I nodded and I also asked if he could let go of me. "That I can't do since I know what you'll do but here's the prophecy anyway," he said.
"The son of Cronus, shall bring the destruction of archaic and rebellious gods. He shall be the most powerful being to exist on the face of the Earth. But to be brought closest to the light of Creation, he must first fall into the darkness of Destruction," he recited. "Closest to the light of Creation is Olympus and the Darkness of Destruction is the Heart of Tartarus," I said.
"That's what I think it may be and I've already gotten the rest nailed down. That was the one that always got me though when I was a kid. Now I'm eighteen and I'm about to go fulfill the last part of the prophecy if I'm allowed to fall into Tartarus," he said. "Let me go now, we both know you're the one to go," I demanded.
"I'll let you go but I'll still have Thalia hold you back in case you get any ideas," Gabriel said. Thalia came over and took over for Gabriel while he went to Chiron and whispered for something. "Yes, we have it," Chiron said. He went to the attic of the Big Cabin and came back very quickly with what appeared to be a bit of rope.
"What? That bit of rope isn't going to be nearly enough to get you down there safely," I said. "Shut up Percy, your eyes deceive you to the fact that this is Orion's belt as in the belt that the giant Orion wore. It can stretch for any amount of time and it is easy to make it stretch, which is even more fun about it," Gabriel replied.
"Gabriel, tie one end to your waist and I'll hold on to the rest as you make the jump," Chiron said. Gabriel did as he was told and strapped one end to his waist while Chiron grabbed the other and moved with him towards the edge of the fissure. Just by looking at the fissure, I could tell that it extended hundreds if not thousands if not hundreds of thousands of miles into the earth. I wondered how Gabriel was going to be successful in getting down there without the belt pulling him back up and sending him flying into Olympus.
And that was something I even asked him myself before he jumped. "It doesn't work like that Percy, it just stretches to a length and then stops once it's not being stretched. The cool thing about this is we'll be having Briares help pull us up when I tug on the belt three times, like so," he said before demonstrating. "But how can we be certain that you'll even return?" I asked.
"You can't be," he answered. "Don't you dare leave without giving me a kiss goodbye," someone said to Gabriel. We all turned in the direction of the voice to see that it was Eos who had uttered the words. Gabriel laughed briefly and went over to her with Chiron following, fulfilling her wish being the first thing in mind.
"I almost forgot my beloved Eos, how rude of me forget about thee whose light warms my heart at the mention of thy name," Gabriel said. "Oh stop it Gabriel, you're just flattering me so that you can get more than just a kiss off me," Eos replied. "Nonsense, why would I do such a thing to the goddess of the dawn herself when she can probably see through me?" Gabriel asked. "To try and do what all men do and get more out of woman than a kiss," Eos answered.
"Oh come on, we both know I'm not like that," he said before trapping her in a hug. She giggled and hugged him back, even giving his ass a squeeze for us to see with her hands. He squeezed hers back quickly but Gabriel swiftly and gently brought them to the point before they got too swept away by their love. "Do you really have to go?" Eos asked.
"Yes, I have to. Percy isn't powerful enough to survive the perils of Tartarus and I have a bone to pick with that son of a bitch," Gabriel answered. "You keep cursing around me and I'm going to have to rinse your mouth out," Eos told him. "Too bad no one's done a good job otherwise I'd be talking in perfect verse," Gabriel replied before both of them began laughing.
"Now shut up and kiss me before we waste any more time, you fool! You got niece to save who happens to be your nephew's gal," Eos ordered. Smiling, he slowly and passionately obeyed her as they shared a kiss that told you it was their last but had no rush in it. It was rather savory and I couldn't believe I didn't do that with Annabeth more often but when you're a mortal, you never know when you might die.
Gabriel then whispered something to her, probably goodbye, before returning to the fissure that Prometheus had made and was keeping open somehow. Maybe he hadn't reached Tartarus and Gabriel could get to her before they were even halfway to the entrance point. Gabriel himself took his time getting back to the widest and deepest part of it then slowly extended a foot over the edge. "All of you, before I go, I have only one request should Annabeth and I both die: remember us," he said.
And just like that, he made the plunge down the fissure and out of our lives once more to retrieve Annabeth. But for some strange reason, I felt glad rather than sad that he had departed again but it was probably for my own selfish reasons. Think about it, even though I had done wonderful deeds for the Camp, they paled in comparison to what he had done. When I was still getting used to fighting like a Greek, he was already killing full-fledged gods with a variety of tactics from bare hands to swords.
And though I had Annabeth to consider as my love interest, he had the love of an immortal goddess! Plus, even though the Curse of Achilles increased my speed and stamina in every way, it left me exhausted. He outdid the greatest feats the Curse could allow me to do and he barely broke a sweat accomplishing those feats! Okay, so I sound a bit jealous but I am jealous to tell you the truth.
Now I was watching him go off to save my girlfriend at the insistence that the horrors at the Heart would destroy me. Sad thing is, he probably was right about that since that's where you never knew whether or not a power like the Curse could keep you safe. In fact since a primordial goddess inadvertently invented the curse, there was the possibility that other primordial deities could destroy you in their territory. And that goddess was named Styx, yes like the river of which she is the namesake, who had been very powerful back in her day plus the first goddess to side with Zeus in the war against the Titans until her untimely demise during it.
But I had heard that before she passed on, she embedded the river with her strength and that had been her invincibility save at one point in her body. Then when the Titans discovered she no longer had that power by killing her, they likely scoured the universe for it in the knowledge she hid it somewhere. My guess is they just never looked in the right direction because they certainly didn't find any sign of it until the days of Achilles for whom the curse is named after. All of that is beside the point but I felt like I should just get that out of my system and I'm thankful I actually learned something from all Annabeth's little lectures to me.
Then it hurt even more to know that she was the one taken down to Tartarus and not me. I guess it's just my fatal flaw talking but I would rather have taken her place for Prometheus' little trip to that dark and evil place. Okay, so that definitely sounded like my fatal flaw that I care too much for others talking indeed. But this was a time where it could get the better of me and I had to wonder if Gabriel even had a fatal flaw.
That's when Eos seemed to read my mind and say that he did have a fatal flaw. "What is it?" I asked. "He fears the past and will not confront it lest it be wishing insanity. Hopefully, he can overcome it in the Heart of Tartarus or else either you never see your loved one again or he does not return to me or both," she answered.
"Let's see what happens when he gives us the signal that he has successfully rescued her. Assuming he's even alive to give us that signal when we hope to get it from him," I said to her. "I have faith that he will survive long enough to see to it that Annabeth returns to you at the very least. Be grateful he's done this you know, he could very easily have just let you die," Eos said before disappearing.
That was true, I had to admit that that could very easily have been the case but I still felt somewhat resentful. "True but that doesn't change the fact that I should be down there in his place, rescuing Annabeth as is fitting for my place as her boyfriend," I said. "Perhaps and then, perhaps not but I would advise a prayer to the more powerful gods for luck in case you're wrong?" Eos asked. I knew better than to make her mad and nodded my head before beginning a prayer. Let me put it this way: I simply requested Gabriel and Annabeth's safety during this whole affair with the Heart of Tartarus to Zeus.
