The Broken and the Hunted (Percy Jackson Fanfic)

chapter 25

(Warning this chapter will contain gruesome content including cutting self mutilation and disturbing graphic description reader discretion  is advised)

Percy P.O.V.
Tartarus XXXX years ago

The pain racking my body was the only thing I could feel. The air was ripping apart my lungs the broken glass like grounds shredding my feet. Luckily the monsters keep a wide berth from me now, they fear me I can smell it wafting off of them in waves. However the worst pain I can feel was from my stomach. I haven't eaten in so long i cant keep track of time down here but i know it must have been at least a couple weeks since my encounter with that old dragon god and another week before that since i had anything to eat.

I keep walking to try and distract myself from the pain from my gut. I've tried killing myself and it fixed all my wounds but the hunger still ate at me. It started to get to much I had taken riptide from my pocket, i found it started to return to me again a while ago. I had ran that blade that is so sharp  across my and watched with a sick fascination as the blood seeped out of my skin and beaded around the cut in my skin and slowly started to run down my arm in little rivers of red. Suddely liquid and the taste of iron fill my mouth as I find my mouth on my arm. I want to gag at the taste but after not tasting anything for so long my eyes nearly roll back in ecstasy. "If your that hungry you have plenty of options for food you know, so many options to choose from hahaha." A voice said from the deepest darkest recesses of my mind.

I finally realised what I was doing and I jerked my arm away in horror and curled up on the ground rocking back and forth. As I lay there a dark shadowy figure rose up for the ground and stood there looking down on me. It crouched down and its blank shadow face stared at me. "The mighty Percy Jackson, the one being that so many thing fear. The monsters, gods, even the mighty titans and giants can not think of your name without flinching you know. You represent the impossibility of impossible. The greatest demigod of your age and possibly of all time.... reduced to a sniveling ball on the ground... can you see what you have become. Look at what you have made us into. I made the very primordials themselves fear us, but now here you are a pile of pathetic shit curled up on the floor because your a little hungry."

"The answer is right in front of you, I know you see it. I know that you know what to do. I k ow that your to much of a coward to do it too. I am in your head I know what you think. I am you Jackson!" It yelled at me, making me flinch.

"No no no, your not, you cant be me. Your a demon." I muttered.

"I can see that words wont do anything for you so i will just do it myself, I am not a coward like you I am willing to do what needs to be done" with that shadows that made him rushed into me and I watched in horror as my arms started to move against my will.

Against my will I watched as my arms picked up my called sword and gently cut the skin on my arm. The sword didn't cut deep but I could still feel the sting. My hands maneuvered my sword expertly making a shallow box like cut in my skin. Then I screamed as I started to flay part of my own skin off. Blood started to pour onto the ground as i flayed most of the skin off of my for arm until i could see the muscle underneath.

Riptide sliced through my exposed muscle like butter. A pool of blood surrounded me I cleanly sliced the muscle off of my arm. It plopped onto the ground as my body shook with pain, with a quick flourish I turned riptide to my chest and stabbed my heart. As I regained consciousness I saw my now healed arm catch fire and my other arm balancing the chunk of flesh on the flat of my blade. With that sight I shook my head knowing what the demon was going to do. "No no no no no no no no I will not do that you cant make me do that no no no!" I screamed.

I faught as hard as I could but my arms wouldn't budge as my flaming arm rose underneath riptide. After a few seconds the smell of cooking meat entered my nose. My mind rebelled at the ideas of eating my own flesh but my body betrayed my as my mouth started to water at the most delicious smell I had ever encountered. My stomach grumble  and growled and the promise of a meal after so long.

Finnaly after it was fully cooked I regained control of my body as the dark evil voice spoke through my mind. "Now eat it. I wont force you to do this part. You will do this yourself, you will prove you are strong enough to survive against all odds. Prove to me and to everyone that you are not a coward!" He yelled at me

I screamed in my mind as I slowly picked up the cook piece of flesh from the ground. I went to throw it away from me but as I brought it behind my head to throw it far away from me I caught the smell again. I slowly brought in front of my face and held it to my nose breathing in deeply. My vision shook as my mind rebelled against itself as I tried to get it away from me. The gentle warmth of the cooked meat in my hands lulled me into comfort and the succulent taste of meat after so lo- i froze and looked down to see a perfect bite out of the flesh in hands. I slowly closed my eyes as tears poured down my cheeks as I slowly took another bite. "Good." The voice said gently.