Chapter 21

Percy was falling.

Where? Up of course!

Or was it down?

Look, point is Percy was falling and he had no sense of direction whatsoever.

Kronos' hold on him had vanished and now Percy was left falling as his worst memories came back to haunt him.

He couldn't be falling into.. there. Could he?

No, no that can't be right.

It's another dream!

Oh who was he kidding? The fates were probably laughing as him now, enjoing their favorite t.v. show called 'The Terrible Life of Percy Jackson.'

Better have my own gift shop.. he thoguht bitterly.

Suddenly the darkness turned to a hazy red as the crevice he was falling through opened up. The oh-so familiar air stung his skin as he plummeted into Tartarus.

He choked for air as he quickly tried to feel for water somewhere to soften his landing.

He could feel the water below, except he could also feel which river it was. As he felt around for the water molecules he slowly started to forget what he was doing. The River Lethe was not a river he wanted to land in.

He focused on the little molecules around him, drawing them near, hoping to make some sort of cast to hold him together when he hit the ground.

Any second now. He thought.

Suddenly Percy found himself surrounded by some slimey material that burned his skin, before he bounced back up into the air, only to fall back onto the stretchy surface. He felt a sharp pain in his side as he took a sharp intake of breath. He bounced up and down, slowly loosing momentum with each fall, before laying there on the jiggly ground and waiting for his pain to ebb away.

Percy gagged slightly as he stood up, taking a look around. The River Phlegethon nowhere to be seen. The stretchy surface seemed to go on for miles, nothing to hide behind, yet nothing to hide from.

Percy spun in a slow cirlce, looking for something; anything. The only thing in site was the River Lethe.

Percy sighed in defeat as he took of his shirt, ripping the bottom off before tieing it around his waist, making a makeshift bandage. He then slowly started to follow the river's currents.

He walked silently as he tried to stay positive.

At least he still has RipTide. He also has a small piece of- oh. Never mind he used the ambrosia. Well he had his cloak for warmth, you know, if this hot, acidic air ever became cold. And not to mention he was completely alone!

Maybe he wanted some more time to himself to just think, but this was not what he had in mind.

Nevertheless think he did.

He thought about how he tormented the innocent mortals. How he attacked the big three. How Kronos betrayed whatever small amount of trust they had and possessed him. How Gaea broke through Kronos' possession just to drop him into Tartarus. How he really wished he could have had another cheeseburger. But most importantly how even if he wasn't in Tartarus, he'd be a prisoner to his own mind anyways.

Percy shook his head slightly. There was no time to mope around about his weaknesses. Only time to become stronger.

And what better way then to become stronger in the one place that was ment to make you weak?

Up On Olympus in The Throne Room

Poseidon sat in his throne staring off into space as Zeus grumbled to himself. Hades sat in a guest throne silently, despair and worry in his eyes.

Suddenly the rest of the Olympian Council flashed in. The big three looked up at their arrival, sitting up straighter and masking their emotions.

Apollo glanced between the big three silently. He was the only one who knew of the earlier events.

"Why have you called us here father?" asked Athena.

Zeus sighed. "Percy had been compromised as we found out at camp half-blood. While you all were helping the injured campers and having a war meeting, Hades, Poseidon and I followed Percy where we found him tormenting the mortals."

There was a collective gasp around the room.

"Percy would never do that!" exclaimed Hermes, worried for his favorite demigod.

Poseidon shook his head sadly, refusing to speak.

Hades growled. "Our father has tooken over him. I thought Percy would be strong enough. It seems Kronos has gotten stronger."

"Or he has help." Athena suggested.

All the gods looked to her confused. "Perseus is strong, I admit." she said nodding. "Perhaps Kronos had some help with power."

"Gaea? They are working together after all." said Hephaestus thoughtfully.

"No, I don't think so." said Hades.

Zeus nodded. "It looked like Gaea took over Percy when he suddenly realised what he had done. He had looked on the edge of sanity." Zeus said worried.

"Sanity?" asked Dionysus with a spark of interest.

"Yes..." Zeus started uncompfortably. "Percy- ah Kronos, was about to.. immobilize, Hades." he said carefully, glancing towards the new expressionless Hades. "When he suddenly gained control and stopped himself."

The gods gasped.

"So he was strong enough." Aphrodite said.

"Yes.." said Zeus. "Yet no."

"I believe it was his fatal flaw that gave him the power to fight back." Hades said. "We don't know what will happen if this ever happens again."

"So where's the punk now?" asked Ares.

"Well..." started Zeus before he was cut off by a horrible noise from Poseidon.

Poseidon chocked on a sob as his expressionless facade broke. He burried his head in his hands before flashing out leaving behind a stunned throne room.

"What..?" asked Athena as she stared at Poseidon's now empty throne wide eyed.

She did not recieve an answer as everyone stared at Poseidon's throne for a few moments longer.

Zeus sighed before saying, "We do not know where he is."

This was met with outrage.

"How can you loose him?!"

"He needs to be watched!"

"Silance!" Zeus thundered.

The throne room went silent. Zeus pinched the bridge of his nose before exhalling. "He backed into a crevice in the ground before it closed up."

Hades glowered. "It lead to Tartarus."

"Excuse me?" Asked Apollo.

"The hole. It was straight down into Tartarus." Hades said.

The gods went silent again as they tried to comprehend this.

"Poor Boy." Hera said.

"This day just gets weirder." muttered Athena.