Back To Black | Luke Castellan

16

They got to a dark and gloomy forest. "We can't ignore this." Grover said and Percy shook his head. "Stop."

"It's just math. The four of us, plus your mom is five people, and only four pearls. Someone is staying behind and it should really be me." Grover said.

Nadia shook her head. "No, it should be me. Hades is my father, I won't be harmed." She said.

Percy looked back. "It wasn't your fault. And even if it were, you're not getting left behind. Neither of you." He said putting a pearl in Grover's hand.

"Period. After we get the bolt and stop this war, you guys are leaving. With my mom." He said.

"What about you?" Nadia asked him and he turned around and starting walking away. "Wait, Percy. What about you?" She said walking after him.

"Quests aren't linear, right? I'll figure something out." Percy said and they stopped in front of a person. "Sorry." He said to them.

"They can't hear you." Annabeth said. "They?" Grover asked and they looked around them to see many more of them.

"This must be Asphodel. I read a book about this place." Annabeth said walking forward and Grover tried to stop her. "Wait. No, no. No, no, no, no, no. What are you..."

She leaned down and moved the fabric and they saw roots. "Are those...roots?" Grover asked and she stood back up.

"Souls here are abound by regret. Haunted by choices they made in life... or never made." Annabeth said.

They heard Cerberus and they jumped and turned around and then they started to run. Percy, Nadia, and Grover stooped when they didn't see Annabeth.

"Annabeth! Annabeth!" Percy shouted. They heard her yelling in the distance and followed her voice and saw that she was stuck and they ran to her. "We've got a problem here." She said and they looked down to see roots stuck to her legs.

Percy leaned down and tried to pry them off. "I already tried. It's too strong." She told him.

"How did this happen?" Percy asked. Grover stood up and looked at her. "It's some kind of regret, right? But what would you have to regret?" He asked her but she shook her head.

"It's okay. Go. I'll distract the dog and buy you guys some time." She said but Percy didn't listen and tried to get the roots off her again. "Percy!"

She took out her hand and showed him the pearl. "This will work. I'll be okay." Annabeth said and Percy stood up and looked at her. "I trust your dad. You can do this. I know you can."

They heard the dog growl in the distance.

"Run. Now!" She said and they started running. They got out of the woods and looked back and stopped to see a flash of light. "She made it. Let's go." Nadia said as they ran.

After a while they made it to the desert and continued walking through it. "Weird. Haven't heard the dog in a while." Grover said as they looked around.

"He chased us all the way and then just... stopped? I wonder why." Percy said. "That's what I'm saying. It's weird." He said.

"There's something dark right here." Nadia said and the two looked at her and she noticed and shook her head. "It's not the fact that we're in the underworld. It's deeper than that." She said.

Grover started walking off. "Grover?" Percy asked. Percy and Nadia looked at each other and followed him. "Grover, where are you going?"

"I don't—I don't know. I—I can't stop!" Grover said and he started to get dragged. "It's the shoes!" He said as he went us the sand.

"Grover!" Nadia shouted as they followed him up. "Percy!" He shouted as he started to get dragged down and they stopped, looking at the pit.

"Shit!" Nadia yelled.

"Percy, Nadia!" Grover shouted and Percy yelled back. He grabbed her and they slid down the sand to get to him and they grabbed on.

Percy reached in his pocket and pulled out his sword stabbing it into the sand as the three of them came to a stop. The shoes flew off of him and went down into the pit.

Grove and Nadia sat down and Percy fell back and a big clanking sound was heard. The two looked at him. "What was that?" Grover asked.

Percy took off the back pack and unzipped it. He pulled out the bolt. "Is this?" Percy asked. "No." Grover said in disbelief.

"I mean, it looks like—"

"It absolutely is not." Grover said and Nadia rolled her eyes. "Okay, so what is it then?"

"For fucks sake. It's the master bolt." Nadia yelled. "How is it in your bag?" Grover asked him. "This isn't my bag." Percy said, and he looked at Nadia and him.

"This is the bag Ares gave me. Ares had the master bolt this entire time and tricked us." He said. "I'm gonna kill him." Nadia whispered.

"He was working with Hades?"

"I guess so." Percy said.

Grover looked from the bolt to Percy. "I mean. That was it, right? That's the quest. Zeus is expecting us to return this." He said and Percy stared at Hades's palace.

Grover looked back at it too and then stood up. "Zeus is just gonna have to wait. Let's go get your mom." He said.

He helped Nadia stand and she whipped the sand from herself and then helped Percy up. The two boys looked at her. "Are you ready to meet your dad?" Percy asked her. 

She laughed and shook her head. "Hardly a father. He didn't raise me, he doesn't know me. That's just his title." Nadia said.

"Let's just do this. I don't want to be here anymore." Nadia said walking off without them.

______________________________

Authors note:

Close to the end:(

I'm writing the last episode.
Still don't know Nadia's fate.

But I'm going to see Dune 2 in
an hour. I'm so freaking excited!!!

But I hope you guys have been enjoying
the story. ❤️