Hello and welcome back to Under the Silver Moon.

As always please review

I know lately these chapters have been short but I have been busy so here is one on the longer side.

Fanfiction I'm reading right now: Daylily by daz171. I recommend going and reading this story it is really good and it is still on-going, Daz has an amazing writing style. So I encourage you to go read this.

This is going to be a brutal and intense chapter

Chapter 44: Unbroken

Pain. That was all Percy knew.

It had become his world, his reality, his existence.

Time had lost meaning in Tartarus. There was no day, no night—just endless suffering. He hung in chains, arms stretched above him, body battered and broken. His shirt, once breathable and sturdy, now hung in tattered shreds against his bruised and bloodied torso. Every breath was a labor, every heartbeat a dull echo against the stone walls of his prison.

The Titans had been relentless.

Hyperion had seared his skin with golden flames, burning away every ounce of strength he had left. Krios had summoned shadows that wrapped around him like living chains, suffocating him, drowning him in an abyss of nightmares. Iapetus had reached into his mind, twisting his memories, forcing him to relive his worst moments over and over again.

But worst of all were the whispers.

They slithered through the air, unseen, but always there—hissing poison into his ears.

"She doesn't care for you."

"The gods have abandoned you."

"You are alone."

"Artemis has already moved on."

Percy gritted his teeth, trying to shut them out. But after so long in the darkness, after so much pain, they were starting to sink in. He had no way of knowing how long he had been down here. Days? Weeks? Did it even matter?

He closed his eyes, trying to block it all out. But the memories came anyway.

The last thing he had seen before Tartarus swallowed him was Artemis's face. Her silver eyes had been filled with determination, with something deeper that words couldn't capture. And now… he wasn't sure if he'd ever see those eyes again.

The clanking of footsteps echoed through the cavern.

Percy forced his head up, blinking past the haze of exhaustion. A figure emerged from the shadows—tall, imposing, golden eyes gleaming like fire.

Kronos.

The Titan King smirked as he approached. "Still breathing, I see. You always were more stubborn than most."

Percy mustered what little energy he had and shot him a glare. "Disappointed?" His voice was hoarse, barely more than a whisper.

Kronos chuckled, the sound sharp as a blade. "Not at all. It means we can continue our little game."

With a flick of his wrist, the chains flared with divine energy. Agony surged through Percy's body, burning through his veins like liquid fire. His muscles seized, his vision blurred—but he clenched his jaw, refusing to scream.

Kronos watched with cruel amusement. "You could have been so much more, Perseus. If only you had chosen differently."

Percy forced a smirk, though it cost him. "Yeah? And I bet if I joined you, I'd get a great dental plan, too."

The Titan's expression darkened. He stepped closer, gripping Percy's chin in an iron grasp, forcing him to meet his gaze. "Still defiant. But tell me, how long can you hold onto that foolish hope?" His voice dropped lower, a whisper filled with malice.

"No one is coming for you."

Percy's stomach twisted, but he didn't let it show.

He wanted to believe Kronos was lying. That Artemis was still fighting for him. That the gods wouldn't abandon him down here.

But doubt was a powerful thing.

What if Olympus had decided he wasn't worth the risk?

What if Artemis—

No.

Percy shoved the thought away. He couldn't afford to think like that.

He had survived Tartarus before. He would do it again.

Because no matter what Kronos said, no matter how much pain they inflicted on him—he would escape.

And when he did, when he saw Artemis again, he would make the Titans pay for every second of this.

The Second Round of Torment

When Kronos left, the others came.

Hyperion arrived first, his golden armor gleaming even in the murky depths of Tartarus. He walked in slow, deliberate strides, savoring the moment.

"Percy Jackson," he mused, tilting his head. "You are as stubborn as ever. But I wonder—how much more can you take?"

Percy didn't respond. His lips were cracked, his throat raw. He had nothing to say that he hadn't already said.

Hyperion smirked and extended a hand. Fire erupted from his palm, white-hot and unforgiving. It danced toward Percy's chest, licking at his already burned skin. Percy clenched his fists, refusing to give the Titan the satisfaction of a scream.

The pain was unbearable. His skin blistered, cracked. His body convulsed, but the chains held him firm.

"You are already broken," Hyperion taunted, withdrawing the fire for a brief moment. "Even if you don't know it yet."

Percy lifted his head, meeting Hyperion's gaze with a fierce determination that hadn't yet been extinguished. "If you think this is enough to break me, you clearly weren't paying attention last time we fought."

Hyperion's smile faltered. His expression darkened. "Then let's fix that."

The fire returned, and this time, it didn't stop.

Mind Games

After Hyperion left, Krios took his turn.

He didn't use fire. He didn't even touch Percy.

Instead, he whispered.

"Your father abandoned you."

Percy clenched his jaw.

"You were never meant to be with Artemis. It was a mistake. A game for her, nothing more."

A flicker of doubt wormed its way into his mind. He shoved it away.

Krios leaned closer, his voice softer now, more insidious. "Even now, she hesitates. She has already chosen Olympus over you."

Percy's heart pounded. No. No, that's not true.

"Why else do you think she has not come?" Krios continued. "The gods do not risk themselves for mortals. Even ones they pretend to care about."

Percy felt something inside him crack, just a little.

But he didn't answer.

He wouldn't give them that.

He wouldn't let them win.

The Dream

That night—or what passed for night in this place—Percy dreamed.

He saw Artemis, standing before the Olympian council.

She was arguing. She was furious.

She was fighting for him.

"I will not abandon him!" she shouted.

Zeus's face was carved from stone. "You will not enter Tartarus. That is final."

Artemis's hands curled into fists.

"You cannot keep me from him."

Zeus narrowed his eyes. "I can. And I will."

The dream shifted.

He saw Thalia, her face tight with frustration as she stood beside Artemis.

"I don't like this," she muttered. "But we'll find another way."

Artemis's face was unreadable, but Percy could feel the storm raging within her.

The dream faded, and he was back in the dark.

But something had changed.

For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Percy felt a spark of something deep inside him.

Hope.

They hadn't abandoned him.

They were still fighting.

And so would he.

The Escape Plan

Percy didn't know how long he had been in Tartarus.

But he knew this: he wouldn't die here.

He wouldn't let them break him.

So he did what he did best.

He started thinking.

Planning.

Waiting.

The Titans thought he was beaten. That he had given up.

But they had made one mistake.

They had left him alive.

And Percy Jackson was never more dangerous than when he was still breathing.

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Until next time