Not Alone

Not Alone: Tartarus

Tired. Hungry. Scared. Half-dead.

Ashamed and guilty of leading my friends here. That's all I can feel at the moment.

Thank Artemis for Aria, who was good at persuading. When Persephone found out the five of us were trying to find the Doors of Death, she begged and pleaded us to stop. I wondered why until I found out that she and Aria had talked before about me, and that Aria convinced Persephone to give me a chance, much like Percy to Anna-no. I will not think of them. They shunned us. All of us.

Even Trinket-who did no harm-and Brain Boy-who was born from a lesbian relationship although he was one of the greatest at anything he tried.

Thalia was seething. Aria was sobbing. Me? I had exploded into hellfire. Which caused them to step away from me. But I understood, I mean who would want to catch on fire, besides Leo, of course.

That new kid will always have me puzzled. I mean, he always flirts with all the girls. And now that he has an "in" with the some of the most gorgeous girls in camp because one of his best friends is the head counselor of the Aphrodite cabin, he decides to spend his time slaving away in his cabin, trying to build a flying warship called the Argo II.

Sorry, ADHD. I wonder how I could possibly get off track in Tartarus... Oops.

TK, Thalia, Lou, Aria... They don't deserve this. Thalia's a hero-one of the most looked up to at camp. TK's the third head strategist of the Athena cabin-exceptionally respected by campers. Lou is powerful in magic-kind and funny-also not susceptible to the status quo.

Aria was always outgoing, loud, and reminded me so much of Thalia, I just had to reach to her and try to "make nice" with her. At first she retracted, but she became my friend, even after all she's heard about me. These guys deserve Elysium, or the Isles of Blest. They deserved anything but the Fields of Punishment-definitely not Tartarus.

Gods, we were in the land beyond the gods now-no, not Alaska, even worse. I wonder why that's a land beyond the gods.

"Oh my Dragon-" Dragon? "-What are those?" I looked up and saw what looked like a bunch of Kindly Ones. But there were only three. I paled.

"Oh Dragon, those are arai." Aria got more and more pale with every step we took. Arai. Oh dear gods, we're in trouble. "What are arai?" Lou asked. Thalia nodded in agreement.

"Curses." TK replied. "Every curse ever uttered on us; the arai are the embodiment of them." It was Thalia and Lou's turn to be pale.

Aria suddenly was knocked down to her knees. "N-no. I'm s-sorry. I didn't mean to give you that sickness. Duman. St-stop it!" Aria gave one long wail. We all stared at her in horror while the curses cackled. Aria began to change into shapes, not being able to control any of her forms. She screamed. I couldn't bear it. I-I just couldn't. Another curse cackled. Aria screamed again. "N-no. Don't hurt Ethan, or Benny, or Sarah! I-I'm just helping my friends!" Blood seeped out of her torso. Another curse chuckled evilly. "N-n-no. Darcy, we were friends. I j-just wanted to help you. You were n-never meant to be a witch, you were supposed to go to Alfea. Ah!" Aria's eyes turned black. "I can't see! I'm sorry!"

Another one cackled. Thalia dropped to the ground. "No! Luke! Hal! You don't deserve this. I'm so stupid!" Aria began to weep without her sight and Thalia began to scream out things I couldn't hear. She had no voice.

TK was the next to fall. "Devimon! I-I thought Angemon finished you off! No! Not Kari! I made a promise! Ah!" TK wailed in agony. His seemed to be slit open and he was leaking blood everywhere.

Lou Ellen dropped to the ground. No, I thought frantically. I need help! "Mom! I had to give Douglas Davenport the secret to bionics! It was the Fates' orders! Why did you curse me! Why!" A long gash appeared on her cheek, and scars that looked like bracelets appeared on her wrists and one that looked like a necklace on her collarbone.

My eyes snapped open. Her own mother cursed her? I looked at the rest of my friends. This couldn't be happening. Any minute now, and I will fall.

I put my hand out and focused all my energy. A skeletal army appeared covered in hellfire. The curses hissed and screamed. "We are the arai!" they rasped. "As long as curses exist, we will exist!" I ignored them and commanded a few skeletons to help me carry my friends. We-er, I- ran as far away as we could.

Everything didn't seem safe anymore. Not water, not the sky, not anything! I pulled a pack of ambrosia out of my pocket and fed it to them. It was all I had left but it was worth it.

*******

As the days wore on, I realized we were all going slightly crazy. I laughed at the image of Annabeth dying a slow and painful death after Percy dumps her. The others asked me why and I finally told them my deepest, darkest secret.

I had a crush on Percy. Yup, that's right, I'm gay.

Aria smiled sadistically at an image of Darcy, a witch, being shunned by her sisters and being turned to stone.

Lou grinned wickedly at a picture of Hecate fading along with her siblings who shunned her.

Thalia laughed maniacally at Luke suffering in he Fields of Punishment, and looked disappointed when she realized Luke was really in Elysium.

TK cracked his knuckles while grinning at an image of Mitch from the Ares cabin being murdered brutally as he was the one who bullied TK most.

Eventually, Aria managed to gather enough strength to make a portal for all of them to jump out of Tartarus into. They all jumped in, but before I could, I was snatched up by twin Giants. Great, just great.

The rest is history.