Epsilon (A Percy Jackson/Chaos fanfic)

~16~

~16~

϶ Beta ϵ

"You can never run away from me," a small, smooth voice said. Around me, the metal of her armor clinked together, making it echo around me as the fog became thicker. "You can never run away. You raised me, you fought with me and yet your scared. Your pathetic."

"Stop it!" I yelled. "This isn't you, I know it isn't. Stop playing games and show yourself, coward!" With the blink of an eyes, all the fog was gone and there stood a slim girl. She was shorter than me and her face was young and kind, but her eyes looked mad. No, this isn't her, I told myself. "Show the real you, not this figment of your imagination!" I readied my sword and so did my ward.

"Oh, but I'm not a figment of my imagination, I'm a figment of yours," She said with a venomous tone that I knew she would never use on me. "One of your greatest fears is the person you see as a daughter, hating you. I didn't know she looked so beautiful, but that's the power of reading a mind, isn't it. You can pick and choose what to show people. Unfortunately, if I were strong enough I could've also scanned your brain, but alas, I'll have to do that when your dying!" She charged me and slashed downwards at the ground where I was standing before jumping away.

I raised my sword and clashed against her's as she swung again. "At least I'm not hiding behind a face that isn't mine." Growling, I stepped back and heard the sound of rocks falling. "But I won't let this defeat me, I won't!" I said as I stabbed her in the stomach. She let out a horrible sound before the scenery around me disappeared and was replaced by a haunting one.

Her image shimmered before turning to dust. I sighed and put my hand on my knees, trying to regain my breath before looking around. From where I was, I couldn't see any monster near by, but that didn't mean that there wasn't one. I gasped when I turned to see a ravine right behind me.

I didn't know how to describe this place, but one word I could put to it was disorientating. The land seemed to keep going on with the same rocky terrain and I didn't know how I was going to find the people Epsilon wanted me to. I knew though, that if I stayed in one place for too long then something would find me more quickly.

I quickly tended to my scratches and then started on my journey, bow in hand and sword ready at my side. In the ceiling of Tartarus, there were stalactites made of what looked like cooled lava. The place itself was mostly red and black and the heat was almost unbearable. I now had a new reason to appreciate Epsilon and Annabeth and be prouder of Nico. I knew that I was also stronger than they were when they went down here, but I knew that it would have a slight effect on me.

I trudged on and followed the instructions that Nico had given me. I couldn't help but think about him being down here, alone and not knowing that he was going to be put in a jar when he got out. Thinking about what he went through after my death made me sad and mad. All those times that he needed me and I wasn't there to help him, but I knew that if I had stayed, then the prophecy would've made more people worry than before. I was just glad that he didn't have that added pressure of being the one to defeat Kronos.

I sat in the shrine, holding a drachma and throwing it into the fire, praying that I would be able to patch into a wave length to Zeta. A small scene then formed and her face showed up. "Zeta," I called and she turned around, looking at me in surprise.

"Beta, what are you doing? Are you okay? Do you need help or backup?" She fired question after question and I held up my hand.

"No, I'm okay and I don't need backup. What I do need is for you to send a message to Epsilon for me," I told her and she nodded. "I need you to tell him..."

In the distance, I could see something that looked like a cave. I went at a faster pace and grabbed an arrow from my quiver, noched it and then headed in. The sounds around me sent shivers down my back and it was dark, damp and stuffy.

In the middle of the cave, there was a fire pit without fire. Some torn bedding was spread across the floor and items were either cracked or smashed. It seemed like there hadn't been anyone in here for a while and that made me nervous as another sound came from further within the cave. There was another hiss and then shuffling.

I raised my bow and drew back, my eyes searching the dark before someone came out of the darkness and I shot at it, only for it to be a web. My eyes widened as something jumped towards me and pushed me to the ground.

Above me there was a creature that I would never forget. Her face was morphed into half spider, half human. Her mouth was made of the small pincers that spider's had, but her eyes were human and her hair was wild like the look in her eyes. Her hands smashed against the floor beside my hand, her fingers long and pointed like claws. Her legs all landed on the ground and I could see that the back half of her was made of a spider.

"Arachne," I whispered and she smiled the best should could.

"A child of Hades, a rare treat," she hissed and cackled.

Slowly, I grabbed my dagger from it's sheath. "Sorry, but I won't be on the menu tonight," I stabbed her in the stomach before pushing her away while still holding onto the handle of the dagger, making it rip out of her and then ran for it. I called my bow to me and sheathed my dagger, nocking another arrow as I made my way down the path and towards what looked like a mansion.

I panted and grew worried. Tartarus was affecting me now, I had to move faster.

Until Next Time