ACHILLES ( annabeth chase )

ten | THE GROUND EATS VAL

ALL VAL COULD SEE WAS DARK, dark and dark. She stood closer to Annabeth. She could hear their breathing echoing against something like stone. It was wet and cold. Val crouched down quickly and felt the ground to get an idea of where they were, or at least what their surroundings were. One of her lessons in Camp Jupiter had taught her that. Maybe that camp hadn't been so useless after all. She was standing on a bumpy floor that seemed to be made of bricks.

"Annabeth," Val said, trying to calm herself. "Hold up your knife." Val didn't even know if Annabeth had heard her as she made no sound of response. But Val couldn't use the glow of her own sword for light. Her gladius wasn't made of celestial bronze. But Annabeth complied. This was a rare occasion where Annabeth did what Val said.

Annabeth raised her knife. The faint glow of the blade was just enough to illuminate both Annabeth's and Val's frightened face and the mossy stone walls on either side of them.

"Wh-where are we?" Annabeth said.

"I thought you were the one with all the answers," Val said, masking her fear with calm.

The crack between the boulders couldn't have led into a cave. It was way too small, and she would have seen it. It was like the ground had opened its mouth and eaten them. Val was sure she didn't taste good so she didn't know why the ground would eat them.

Annabeth surveyed the scene with the light of her knife. The mossy walls went on as far as they could see.

"This must be its throat," Val muttered.

Annabeth gripped her arm. "It's not a - what did you call it?"

"A throat?"

Annabeth stopped what she was doing. "Why?"

"Because the ground ate us and now we're in it's throat."

Annabeth looked at Val in amazement. "Your thought process scares me." Val just smiled. Annabeth probably couldn't see that in the light, which Val was glad about. "Anyways," Annabeth continued, "it's not a throat, it's a corridor."

Val listened for a moment. She felt a soft, warm breeze. Annabeth was right. And this breeze felt dangerous. Val wanted to find out what it was, so she stepped forwards, but Annabeth stopped her. "Don't take another step," she warned. "We need to find the exit." She sounded really scared now.

"Why do you sound so scared? You're Annabeth, you don't get scared," Val said. "And the exit is right ..." Val looked up and realized she couldn't see where they'd fallen in. The ceiling was solid stone.

The corridor seemed to stretch endlessly in both directions. Val went silent, now admitting to herself she was afraid.

Annabeth slipped her hand into Val's. Under different circumstances, Val would've made fun of her to her wits end, but here in the dark Val was grateful. It was about the only thing she could be sure of.

"Two steps back," Annabeth advised.

They stepped backward together like they were in a minefield.

"Okay," she said. "Help me examine the walls."

"What are we looking for?"

"The mark of Daedalus," she said, as if that was supposed to make sense.

"Oh no did he get eaten too?"

"Got it!" she said with relief. She set her hand on the wall and pressed against a tiny marking, which began to glow blue. A Greek symbol appeared; Δ, the Ancient Greek Delta.

The roof slid open and we saw night sky, stars blazing. Val watched in frozen wonder. It was a lot darker than it should've been. Metal ladder rungs appeared in the side of the wall, leading up, and Val could hear people yelling their names.