𝐅𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒 - jason grace

01. CHIVALRY IS DEAD. VERY DEAD.

WHEN MAIA SAID she was falling in love with Jason, this wasn't at all what she meant.

It was like the universe wanted to play a trick on her— let's make the girl who's literally afraid of falling from heights fall into hell! that'll be so much fun!

Maia didn't even know how long she and Jason had been falling for, not concretely, at least. Allegedly, though, it would take them a little over a week to get to their final destination on their one way trip to the Underworld.

Nine days.

Maia remembered the times Jason and Reyna had tried to teach her about Hesiod, the Greek poet who'd speculated it would take nine days to fall from earth to Tartarus. She didn't pay too much attention to their lessons on mythology– she'd read enough about them on her own. But that small fact had always stuck with her.

Okay, no. That was a lie. She had completely forgotten about it, but Jason had reminded her what Maia could only believe was a couple minutes ago.

If it was true, then she and Jason had been falling for days instead of hours, and that genuinely scared her. She couldn't help but wonder what her friends were up to, if they were alright. She hoped they were safe.

Every so often, Jason would squeeze Maia's hands, sort of as a reminder that he was there with her. Even in the darkness, Jason Grace shone brightly in her eyes.

Wind whistled in Maia's ears. The air grew hotter and damper, as if they were plummeting into the throat of a massive dragon.

Maia couldn't even make herself think about what had happened. She had saved Annabeth, and she was so close to being free. But, as if Gaea was punishing her, Maia was pulled into the void, dragging Jason with her.

Okay, that wasn't exactly how it played out–Jason had jumped in after her out of his own will, but Maia felt guilty. Maia knew she couldn't have prevented this, Gaea would've managed to mess their quest up one way or another, but the thing she held the most regret for was the fact that Jason was pulled into it with her.

It wasn't fair, but, then again, nothing ever was for her. Forget the fact that she was a demigod, she was Maia– everything about her screamed unlucky. And that was fine when it was just her, but now that it wasn't, everything seemed ten times more real.

Maia couldn't help but feel bitter– the gods hadn't done anything to help them, and Gaea was probably laughing as they fell into the depths.

If they got out of there, Maia would personally make sure to beat the shit out of Queen Dirtface.

Maia didn't want to think about the things she couldn't control, so she chose to focus on what she could. She squeezed Jason's hand tighter and pressed her lips to his ear.

"I love you."

She wasn't sure he could hear her—but if they were going to die she wanted those to be her last words.

Jason pulled her closer, almost like he was scared to let go. The heat around them seemed to grow as they fell, and Maia couldn't tell if it was because of the fact that she was pressed up against Jason, or if it meant they were getting closer to the deepest parts of the Underworld.

Something about their surroundings changed. The darkness took on a gray-red tinge. It was with a start that she realized she could almost see Jason's face clearly. The whistling in her ears turned into more of a roar. The air became intolerably hot, permeated with a smell like rotten eggs.

It was disgusting, but it gave her hope.

Suddenly, the chute they'd been falling through opened into a vast cavern. Maybe half a mile below them, Maia could see the bottom. For a moment she was too stunned to think properly.