Curse of the Triblood

Chapter 10

Percy POV

We walked through the Fields of Asphodel and it was like the feeling we got when entering the building but now a million times worse. There were countless people walking through the fields and we could hear our own breaths.

When we were walking around the people, they tried to speak to us, but they couldn't. It sounded like tv static or the sound of a million chirping bats all at once. They tried to speak but noticed we did not understand them. While we were walking, the shoes Grover was wearing, which was given to me by Luke, sprouted wings and began flying away, dragging Grover with them.

Annabeth and I did a double-take then started running after the flying goat boy. Annabeth screamed to him, saying he should untie the shoes. It proved difficult considering Grover was being dragged at full speed. I thought Grover was going straight into Hades' palace, but his shoes made a sharp right turn in the opposite direction.

The walls of the Underworld narrowed, and I realized we were going into a tunnel. There were no trees or the tall grass of the fields from before but just dirt and gravel. The tunnel slowly turned colder and darker. It smelled of rotting corpses and sulfur. I could imagine the deaths of millions at war and the splatter of innocent blood.

"Grover grab something!" I screamed.

"What is he going to grab, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth screamed at me.

"I don't know. You think of something!" I retaliated.

"Guys! I like that you are trying to help but screaming is not helping!" Grover screamed with worry.

Grover's shoes were flying and going straight towards a large dark abyss of a pit. I could feel everything evil just radiate from there and it was not pleasant. Grover's right foot hit a rock and it caused his fake foot to come flying off.

The foot flew right into the pit to never be seen again. Due to him only being tugged by one shoe, Grover slowed down. At that moment I was finally fast enough to catch up to him leaving Annabeth in the dust. I grabbed his hand and slammed my feet into the ground to turn myself into an anchor. While I was holding on to Grover, Annabeth took off his other fake foot and the other shoe flew into the pit to join its twin. Once the shoe went flying Grover fell face-first into the ground and I sat down next to him.

"What the actual Underworld, was that?" I asked. Nobody answered me and I got up while the other two were still getting their breath. I walked to the pit and investigated the pit. "Is that-"

"Tartarus. That would be the entrance to Tartarus," Annabeth told me.

"Do you hear that?" I asked. I could hear words coming from the pit. It was old and ancient, older than Greek. I felt as though I knew it.

"Magic!" Annabeth screamed. "Run! We must go! Now!"

I helped Grover up and made sure he was running ahead. Annabeth joined him not that long after. While I was running, I felt the bag Ares gave weighing me down. Thanks to being more god than mortal I was far faster and stronger than other demigods but that was of no help with the bag now.

We were running and were nearly out of the tunnel when a gust of air pulled us back towards the pit. I could feel it sucking us in like a vacuum cleaner and I could feel the breath leave my body. I definitely didn't want to get sucked into the place where gods send in their immortal enemies to live for eternity.

For a terrifying millisecond, my feet were no longer touching the ground. I was pulled back and flew hundreds of feet back towards the pit. When I was five feet away from the pit, I slammed my arm into the ground embedding it into the ground and anchoring myself. Annabeth flew right towards me and grabbed her with my free hand. Grover was already far enough away where the winds could not catch him and bring him towards us which was good because if Grover slammed into me it was down the rabbit hole we went. I was holding on to Annabeth for dear life and I could see the desperation in her eyes.