How Did I Fall for Nico di Angelo

CHAPTER 16: NICO

"Amber?!" I shouted at the vast darkness. She had only touched the torch in front of us and collapsed. The torch had gotten brighter, revealing the spot she was in was empty. She had been kidnapped in Tartarus, to say the least.

Just perfect.

"Holy crap, dude," Josh said, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Calm down. We'll find her, okay? We have to." I nodded my head and directed my attention to the torch. It seemed to be the only thing out here in this extra layer of darkness that was thrown into Tartarus. But why was it here?

"This looks like one of Hecate's sacred torches," I said, examining it closely. "One that she used to guide Demeter to Persephone. But why is it down here?" As if to answer my question, a figure appeared from the darkness, with a shield in hand. Her features became clearer as she came closer to the torch. And may I just say, she was beyond hideous.

Akhlys.

She had sunken eyes, rags for clothes, and blood mixed with tears on her face. She had fingernail-sized cuts on her cheeks and long, strewn hair. Her skin was deathly pale and her eyes were like broken black stained glasses. She was holding a shield the size of a tire that had a picture of medusa on it. It was the most accurate picture I've seen in my life.

"Why must every demigod who travels to Tartarus bother me?!" Akhlys ranted in a raspy voice. It hurt my throat just listening to it.

"And you come near my torch!" she shrieked. "That was a gift from Hecate! A replica of one of the torches used to guide-"

"Yeah we know," Josh cut her off an drew his weapons. "Now, where's Amber?" Akhlys grinned evily.

"Who?" she asked innocently. Josh tackled her and pinned her to the ground, sword at her throat.

"Where. Is. She!" The goddess's smile left her face and was replaced by a shocked expression. She snapped her fingers and disappeared. Josh screamed in frustration and stood up. The goddess reappear next to what looled like a corpse. The body was lying on the ground at the goddess's feet, back facing us. I could feel their life aura slowly fading.

"Here is the girl," Akhlys said, kicking the body so that their face was showing. I held my breath when I saw Amber, unconscious and dying. I drew my sword and, withoit thinking, charged the goddess. She disappeared once again and I, like Josh, screamed in frustration. I then rushed to Amber's aid.

"Amber?" I said to her. She didn't move. Her life aura was almost gone, and I wondered what Akhlys did to her. I remembered Percy telling me about their incounter with the goddess, how she used her death mist to shroud them making them look like- WAIT.

"She's been shrouded by death mist," I said to Josh and Thetis. "She might not live through this." I clutched her hand tightly and basically watched her as she laid there, dying. Thetis put a hand on my shoulder and crouched down next to me.

"You see it too, right?" she asked. "That aura around her dimming?" I nodded my head. She just stayed next to me.

As the last bit of Amber's aura was about to fade, it began to rebuild itself. As it became brighter, her eyes fluttered open and she looked directly at me. She squeezed my hand back and sat up. Josh and Thetis sighed in relief and I just looked at her with concern.

"What?" Amber asked. "Why are you staring at me like that?" I shook my head.

"Akhlys used her death mist powers on you," I told her. He facial expression turned from confusion to fear.

"What?!" she shouted. She stood up and began to walk forward, in no particular direction. We all had to run to catch up with her. I grabbed her hand and spun her around, pulling her into a hug. She hugged me back.