Down in Flames [OC Demigod Fic]

Chapter Sixteen: "The Truth"

The landing is softer than expected. Gravity seems to defy itself, acting as a parachute as I my plummet into the darkness.

I land on my feet, but immediately collapse to my knees, my balance having been thrown off. A slim ray of sunlight from the hole I fell down, now hundreds of feet above me, is my only source of light. My eyes slowly adjust, but there's nothing to see; rocks and dirt are the only habitants of this underground cave.

My phobia of underground places soon kicks in, and though I want to look for an escape, I feel paralyzed. Curling up into a ball, I squeeze my eyes shut and try to slow my breaths.

Focusing on something— anything— other than my current situation, I replay what just happened.

A skeleton army rising.

Fighting.

Falling.

The only one responsible has to be Hades, lord of the Underworld.

"Rome in chaos, Pluto will rise..." I repeat July's harbinger. Both my father and Dennis mentioned that there was trouble coming. More specifically, the ghost had spoken of a potential war. Being a resident of the Underworld, he would know more than anyone. I wonder if he's still been stalking me; the kid will probably try to blame this whole skeleton fiasco on Rhodes.

"I tried to warn you, but no. What do you do? The exact opposite of what I told you to. See, this is why I hate getting involved in topside affairs," the familiar, sass-filled voice echoes through the cave. With shaking legs, I stand up and turn around to see Dennis staring at me, arms crossed.

"Hello again," I answer, brushing dirt off my jeans. The guy's quick, I'll give him that.

"Looks like you're stuck in the Catacombs of Lost Souls," Dennis shakes his head at me in pity.

"What an encouraging name."

"This cave is like the Labyrinth— the catacombs connect all across the world by magic. And no one falls down here without a reason."

Thanks, Fates, for reminding me once again that I'm a lost soul.

"You want to know why you're down here?" Dennis questions surreptitiously. In all honesty, I don't. I don't care. I just want this nightmare to end, though I have a feeling it's only just begun. Still in a static state of being, I simply shrug my shoulders.

"Because of Rhodes," the ghost demigod whispers, despite us being the only two down here. I roll my eyes, annoyed that I even have to defend Rhodes against this boy; he's a drama queen, and if he wasn't already dead, I would seriously kill him.

"It can't be his fault," I take a step closer to Dennis. "Did you see those skeletons? It has to be the work of Hades—"

"Speak of the devil," he announces, looking past me with a knowing smile.

I turn around to see Rhodes standing at a close distance from me. He no longer wore his purple Camp Jupiter shirt, nor his original preppy clothing; instead, he is wearing an all black outfit, almost blending himself into the darkness of the cavern.

"Rhodes, how did you get here?" I wonder breathlessly, taken aback by his ghastly appearance.

"Sabine..." He reluctantly steps forward. There's something missing from his eyes. Rather, something is there that I have never seen before. I always notice his eyes first— their stunning crystal blue hue— yet now, they send me a dreadful warning that something is the matter. "I really wish you hadn't fallen down here."

"What?" Yet again, I'm caught off guard.

Dennis lets out a choppy laugh. "Rhodes here means that he didn't want you to find out—"

"I can explain myself, thank you," Rhodes interjects, giving him a pointed look. His gaze returning to me, he continues, "Listen, I know this is going to hurt you, and I truly am sorry. But I'm not who you think I am."

"I don't understand..." My wits fail me as I let the sentence trail off. Rhodes never appeared to be a mystery to me. He came unexpectedly, yes, and strange events did occur whenever he was near. But for some reason unbeknownst to me, I thought I had this boy figured out.

Rhodes outstretches his arm to show me his metal bracelet; with a wave of his hand, the Greek letters change shape and the new inscription reads Μακάριος.

"Makarios, that's my real name," Rhodes pulls his arm away. "In Greek, it means 'blessed'. Apparently, I was a blessing to my parents."

Too stunned to speak, I dare not interrupt Rhodes during his revelation.

"The truth is this— Hades is my father, and Persephone is my mother. I am a Greek god."