Fearless¹ Percy Jackson

-𝕿𝖍𝖎𝖗𝖙𝖞 𝖋𝖔𝖚𝖗

༉‧₊˚♰🕯❀༉‧₊˚

"I'm worried for you, Lyric," Annabeth confessed, her voice barely breaking the suffocating silence. As she flipped the switch, the dark shadow cast on the wall flickered, revealing Lyric sprawled on the floor, poring over a book filled with frantic scribbles and chaotic thoughts.

"What for? I'm out of Tartarus and I feel better than ever!" Lyric sprang up, a wide grin plastered across her face. But the grin didn't reach her eyes, which shimmered with an unsettling brightness. The entire camp was buzzing with concern, especially now that her stark blonde hair had morphed into a skunk-like pattern, dark black bleeding into the white like ink in water.

"Well, you lock yourself in here for four hours every day, and your hair's changing. Plus, you stay in darker rooms now, and that," Annabeth pointed to the shadow on the wall, which dissipated like smoke, "is not normal."

Lyric let out a heavy sigh, her mood shifting. "I've been doing a bit of research. I'm trying to understand these shadows and why Tartarus was so drawn to me. I borrowed some of Alabaster's—"

"I'm sorry, you did what?!"

"It's cool; he didn't ask for anything serious," Lyric assured her, brushing off Annabeth's concern. It wasn't like he was using her for experiments to gauge her shadow powers or testing how far her abilities could stretch. They were just hanging out, and honestly, Alabaster was pretty chill once you got to know him.

"Lyric, your—" Annabeth hesitated, pointing to the shimmering darkness that coiled around the corners of the room. Lyric barely acknowledged it. "It does that sometimes. But that's not the point. Aphrodite had children who would go overjoyed at the thought of love. They were called skoteiní kardiá—dark heart. But the thing is, they are born with darkness. This just started recently."

"Maybe ask Alabaster or Chiron?" Annabeth suggested cautiously. Lyric shook her head, her expression resolute. "I don't want to worry Chiron or bother Al. I'll try to ask 'Dite."

"Okay, also you have another letter from you-know-who." Lyric scowled and tore the letter to pieces, frustration flaring. "I want nothing to do with her." But Annabeth wasn't listening; her eyes were transfixed on the wall opposite them, where shadows began to converge from every corner of the room, swirling and contorting.

Then it happened. A tall, featureless figure emerged, looming over the girls and consuming the light around them. It grinned, sharp teeth glinting in the dimness, excitement radiating from its form. Lyric and Annabeth shared a glance, horror etched across their faces. Lyric's expression twisted in terror, while Annabeth's curiosity bubbled beneath the surface, the daughter of Athena's analytical mind racing.

"Annie—" Lyric's voice trembled as she instinctively backed away. The shadow glided toward her, its head tilting with a predatory curiosity as she struggled to breathe. Annabeth rushed to her side, alarmed, as Lyric fell to her hands and knees, her sobs escaping like whispers of despair.

"What's wrong with me?" she cried, feeling the weight of the shadow pressing down on her, as if it were siphoning her very essence. The shadow, sensing her distress, receded into the corners, leaving behind a wide, sinister grin before it completely vanished.

"We'll talk to Chiron—or my mother. We'll figure this out," Annabeth consoled, but Lyric barely registered her words. Turning to meet Annabeth's gaze, Lyric's expression faltered as her friend's breath hitched. The whites of her eyes bled into an abyss of black, void of pupil or iris, just pure darkness.

"What?" Lyric asked, startled as she caught a glimpse of herself in a nearby mirror. Her once warm brown eyes had morphed into something alien, something chilling. "N-nothing, just thought I saw a spider," Annabeth replied, her voice shaky.