Hello everyone and welcome back to Under the Silver Moon.
I bet you did not expect a third chapter this week but I was feeling generous.
AS ALWAYS I DO NOT OWN PJO or HoO
Enjoy the Chapter and make sure to Review
Chapter 38: Shackles of the Past
Percy had fought his way through Tartarus for what felt like days. Each step was a battle against the oppressive air, the jagged terrain, and the suffocating sense of dread that hung in the atmosphere. But despite the torment, he pressed on, knowing there was no turning back.
The next stretch of the path was a narrow bridge of black stone suspended over a chasm that seemed to stretch into infinity. The roar of what sounded like an endless waterfall of lava echoed below, and a red glow illuminated the walls of the abyss. Percy moved cautiously, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. Something about this place felt wrong.
The shadows around him thickened, growing heavier with each step. Then, the bridge trembled beneath his feet, and before he could react, chains of molten iron shot up from the abyss, wrapping around his ankles and yanking him off his feet.
"What the—" Percy shouted, thrashing against the chains, but they were impossibly strong. More chains surged up, binding his wrists and pulling him into the air. His sword, Riptide, clattered to the ground and rolled off the edge of the bridge, disappearing into the fiery depths below.
"Well, well," a cold, mocking voice echoed from the darkness. "Look who's returned to the pit."
Percy's heart sank as he recognized the voice. From the shadows emerged a towering figure with glowing eyes and a cruel smile. Hyperion, the Titan of the Sun.
"You," Percy growled, struggling against the chains.
Hyperion sneered, his golden armor glowing faintly in the red light. "You thought you could waltz through Tartarus unnoticed? Did you really think we wouldn't know you were here, Jackson?"
Another voice joined in, low and rumbling like an earthquake. "You humiliated us, boy." From the opposite side of the bridge, Krios, the Titan of the Stars, stepped into view, his constellation-covered cloak billowing around him.
Percy's breath quickened as more figures materialized out of the shadows—Titans he had fought and defeated. Iapetus and Prometheus emerged from the darkness, their faces twisted with anger and malice.
"You will pay for what you did to us," Iapetus snarled, his voice filled with venom.
Percy tried to summon any shred of his usual defiance, but the chains sapped his strength, burning his skin with an intense, fiery heat. He gritted his teeth, refusing to show weakness even as his arms and legs trembled.
"I don't regret anything," Percy spat, his voice hoarse. "You deserved what you got."
Hyperion's laughter echoed through the chasm, sharp and cruel. "Brave words for someone who's completely at our mercy."
The Titans closed in, their eyes gleaming with the promise of revenge. The air around Percy seemed to grow colder, the oppressive energy of Tartarus pressing harder against him.
"Let's start with a little reminder of your failures," Prometheus said, his voice deceptively calm as he waved a hand. Shadows coalesced in the air, forming twisted visions of Percy's battles—moments where he'd fought the Titans and their armies, where friends had fallen because of him, and where he'd made decisions that haunted him.
"You think you're a hero," Krios sneered. "But you're nothing more than a reckless child who's doomed more lives than he's saved."
The visions shifted, showing flashes of the Second Titan War, of countless demigods falling in battle. Percy clenched his jaw, trying to block out the images, but the shadows seemed to seep into his mind, dredging up every regret, every doubt.
"You let them die," Iapetus whispered, his voice like poison in Percy's ears. "You could have saved them, but you didn't."
"I did everything I could!" Percy shouted, his voice cracking.
"Not enough," Hyperion growled, stepping forward. His hand began to glow with golden flames as he reached for Percy, the heat radiating off him in waves. "You think you're special? That you can meddle in the affairs of the gods and Titans without consequence? You're nothing but a mortal. A speck."
Percy glared at him, even as the chains burned deeper into his skin. "Maybe I'm just a mortal," he said through gritted teeth. "But at least I'm not a coward hiding behind chains and illusions."
Hyperion's eyes flared with rage, and he struck Percy across the face with the back of his fiery hand. The force sent Percy swinging in the chains, the burning pain radiating through his cheek.
"Enough," a voice boomed, and the Titans immediately stepped back. From the shadows emerged a figure Percy wished he'd never see again. Tartarus itself.
The physical manifestation of the primordial being was a monstrous, ever-changing form of shadows and writhing tendrils. Its voice was a guttural growl that resonated through Percy's very bones.
"This one does not die yet," Tartarus said, its many eyes gleaming as it stared at Percy. "He has a purpose still. But that does not mean he cannot suffer."
The Titans grinned, eager to continue their torment. Percy's heart sank as he realized there would be no rescue, no escape—only pain and survival, if he was strong enough.
Hyperion stepped forward, his hand glowing brighter with golden flames. "Then let's make sure he remembers this day for the rest of his pathetic existence."
The Titans closed in, their laughter echoing through the chasm as Percy braced himself for the worst. Even as his vision dimmed and pain consumed him, one thought kept him going:
I have to get out of here. I have to make it back to her.
Did you really think I would let him out of Tartarus without him meeting a few old "friends" first?
Well anyways leave a Review.
Until next time