A/N: wassup? I must formally apologize for the extremely long wait. I was moving, new school, unpacking, all that jazz. I almost lost inspiration for this story so if you guys could give me ideas in your reviews that would be amazing. *holds plate of cookies* free cookies!!!!
Disclaimer: not mine. All is ricks accept the plot.
Chapter 6:
Percy wasn't for sure how long he had been asleep, but he wished he could wake up. Normally, demigod dreams are visions of the future or things that happened in the past. And not to mention they are normally nightmares.
Tartarus made those dreams a thousand times worse. He would relieve the worst moments in his demigod life. Fighting in the war, watching his friends die, watching Annabeth fall off the cliff. But he would also have dreams about his life before he learned he was a demigod. He would watch as bullies beat him up in school, teachers whispered that he was too dumb to understand, getting insulted in the hallways. Then he would come home and watch as Gabe beat him with a belt. Sometimes he would use just his fists, but other times he would get more creative. He would use lighters, small pocket knives, or broken beer bottles. Gabe always made sure that whatever damage he caused could be concealed with makeup or clothing. After the beatings, Percy would climb into the bathtub and soak in the water. It somehow always seemed to heal him.
Percy was forced to relive the moments over and over again, until he wished he could wake up and suffer through whatever Kronos had in mind for him. Anything was better than this.
time skip 1 week*
Percy was in the middle of reliving the first time Gabe had ever beat him. He was only five years old and he had just come home after playing with some friends outside. Percy had quietly opened the door and peeked inside to make sure Gabe wasn't in sight. When he couldn't see him, Percy made a quick dash to his room. Just as he was about to open the bedroom door, a hand grabbed the back of his shirt and threw him backwards. Percy tumbled to the floor and smashed his head on the side table next to the couch.
Percy lifted his aching head and watched in fear as Gabe lumbered towards him. He was holding a half empty beer bottle and his eyes were filled with a crazy madness. He was obviously drunk. Gabe smiled cruelly and raised the bottle. Just as he was about to bring it down on Percy's head, the dream faded to blackness, Gabe's evil laughter echoing in his ears.
Percy slowly opened his eyes. The harsh red glow illuminating his cell penetrated into his head and pierced his brain.
"How was your nap?" Asked a vioce in a mocking tone.
Percy glanced up and saw Kronos leaning against the wall, watching him. Percy stared straight into those piercing golden eyes and decided it best if he remained silent.
"Before you decided it was nap time I found out something important about you. You give me energy. More specifically, when you are feeling a strong emotion such as pain, you give me power."
Percy was beginning to panic slightly. Kronos could regain his strength and rise. Kronos was going to use Percy's pain. He could escape Tartarus and hurt his friends. Despite what they have done to him, he still cared about them, even with all of the voices in his head. He heard them in the back of his mind whispering words of hate and despair.
Percy's attention was drawn back to Kronos when he heard a sizzling sound. "To find out what kind of pain gives me the most energy, I will have to experiment on you. I think I will start with something simple." Kronos pulled out a long black whip. Percy stared at it. It was both beautiful and terrifying. It had small jagged points covering every inch of the whip. It was pitch black with golden designs snaking around the weapon. Beautiful, but deadly.
Kronos snapped the whip and stalked closer to Percy, who was still chained spread eagled on the wall. Kronos flicked his hand and Percy suddenly found himself on the ground, chains pinning him to the floor. He was on his stomach with no shirt on so that his back was exposed.
Percy braced himself, waiting for the sting of the whip. Crack! The whip sliced into his back and left one bloody line vertical on his back. Percy bit back his scream, refusing to give Kronos the satisfaction of heard his pain.
"Yes, yes. I feel some power but not enough. It is very little in fact, almost a trickle. I need more." Kronos snapped the whip again and left another bloody line on Percy's back. He repeated this over and over, once even lighting the whip on fire, until Percy's back was ripped to shreds. Throughout the entire session, Percy never screamed. He was grunt and moan, but never scream. He wouldn't let Kronos have that satisfaction.
The voices in Percy's head had faded into the background, barely higher than a whisper. They told him things he knew wasn't true, but it was getting harder to believe.
When Kronos finally stopped, he yelled in frustration. "It's not enough! I need more!" Percy lifted his head and stared at him, defiance filling his sea green eyes. Kronos seemed to think for a moment. He suddenly started to smile, an idea forming in his head. He turned to Percy. "I had told you that strong emotions give me power. Percy, that emotion doesn't have to be pain. Join me. You can get your revenge on the gods, on the demigods that betrayed you. You will never feel any pain again. Just swear your loyalty to me on the River Styx and you will get all your hearts desires."
Percy stared at him for a moment and then looked down at his chained wrists, rubbed raw and bloody from straining against them. He lifted his head high and stared at Kronos, determination reflecting in his eyes. "I swear on the River Styx..." Kronos smiled widely. "...that I will never join you!" Kronos's face turned from smug to shocked. "My fatal flaw in loyalty! I would never, never, betray my family."
Kronos's eyes darkened. "You will regret that. I will make your life a living hell! You will receive the worst tortures you could possibly imagine. Tomorrow, you will wish that you had accepted my offer."
Kronos left, leaving me on the floor in my chains. Now that it was calm, the voices were growing louder by the second. Horrible, rotten, disgusting. They penetrated his thoughts and wormed there way into his mind. Loser, weak, stupid. Percy clamped his hands over his ears and curled into a ball, trying to block out the voices. MURDERER. Tears rolled down Percy's cheeks as he lay there all alone in the middle of hell.