Lunar's Plight

Eternal Torment

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Percy Jackson, nor Heroes of Olympus, Rick Riordan does

Percy's POV:

I looked down and saw the terrified face of Ephialtes and I growled. I swung Lunar's Light through his neck, severing his head from his body, then I pushed past him and used his torso as a platform to launch downwards towards Otis.

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF ME!" I heard Artemis scream and I placed my arms at my side and went rigid

I rocketed down until I saw the two flailing forms. One was dressed in silver while the other was not. I willed Lunar's light away before I pulled my bow off and notched an arrow.

"GET AWAY FROM HER!" I snarled as I willed energy to flow into my arrow before releasing it

It flew straight into Otis' neck as Artemis' hunting knife was jammed into his eye causing him to burst into a fine gold dust. I quickly shouldered my bow and tucked my arms in and fell toward Artemis who had started flailing again.

"Hold still!" I said as I tackled her waist just as the ground came into view and the long tunnel opened up into a large cavern

I wrapped my arms around her waist and twisted so I was below her just as we crashed into the hard ground.

"Percy, are you okay?" Artemis said as she scrambled to get off of me and I looked at her and nodded

"Yeah, a bit sore but I'll be good" I said as another object crashed into the ground

I stood up and saw that Ephialtes had landed nearby, still headless but very much alive. Artemis saw this and notched an arrow and quickly shot it into his forehead causing his head and body to burst into dust.

"Well, Welcome to Tartarus..." I said and Artemis looked around and her eyes widened

"We need to get out of here fast... Tartarus, he can sense other immortals..." She said worriedly

I sighed and pulled Riptide out of my pocket and summoned my shield.

"Come on, let's go" I said as I mentally recalled the landscape of Shadow's Place "I have an idea on where we need to go" I finished as I started walking with Artemis following

In moments, I felt Artemis right next to me as we walked over the jagged terrain.

"How do you know where to go?" Artemis asked quietly and I smiled at her

"A friend told me his theory about the location of things in Tartarus" I said

'We need to head to the Phlegethon and drink the water there' Iota said weakly and I frowned mentally but nodded

'Alright' I said as I shifted course slightly "Hey Arty, were going to the Phlegethon river"

"Why?" She asked and I smiled at her

"Iota said we needed to go. He hasn't steered me wrong yet so I trust him" I said and she rolled her eyes but smiled as we traveled over the jagged terrain

We walked for around an hour when we reached a cliff and I heard a thump as Artemis collapsed. I kneeled next to her and propped her up.

"Artemis, are you okay?" I asked worriedly but she only groaned and I saw her skin turn paler than normal "Damn it" I said to myself as I scrambled to pick her up and gently put her on my shoulder as I climbed over the edge of the cliff and started dropping down

'I... I'm sure glad we have the... Achilles curse' Instinct said tiredly and I sent a concerned thought to him 'I'm fine man, d-don't worry about me' he said and I nodded as my hand slipped and I slid down the cliff face before grabbing onto a ledge and bit my lip in pain as my shoulder felt like it was dislocated