When Things Fall Apart

Chapter Nine

Percy woke up from fainting. His mind immediately went to the dream he had about Artemis, which made him sad. He didn't like seeing that she was upset about him, especially since he'd be stuck in Tartarus forever. Beyond that, he was also upset that he didn't feel satisfied. All he had focused this last month on was destroying Hyperion to avenge the death of Annabeth. To him, that was all that mattered. He did it knowing that he'd spend the rest of his time here. He thought knowing Hyperion was dead would leave him content for the rest of his existence.

But now, Percy wanted out. The only issue was how. From his research, he thought the only way out was through the Doors of Death. So that's what he decided to do.

He got up, and quickly fell down on his face. He drained all of his powers summoning the sword with water to make Hyperion fade. Slowly, but surely, he got back up. He followed the River Phlegethon, drinking the water when he needed.

On occasion he would see a monster or two. However, without a coordinated attack, they stood no match for him.

After walking for what seemed like eternity, Percy decided to rest. He found a little cave inside of a rocky hill, covered the entrance, and laid his head on a rock. It wasn't the best way to fall asleep, but Tartarus wasn't known for its convenience. He drifted into the realms of Hypnos.

Artemis had just made her way to Camp Half Blood, where she had left her hunters. She walked towards the forest, seeing that no one was around the cabins or dining pavilion. When she passed a clearing, she saw the classic campers vs. hunters capture the flag match. And she was only able to witness the end of it, watching Thalia cross the center line with the camper's flag.

Chiron cleared his throat. "And with their 57th win in a row, the hunters maintain their three century winning streak." All of the hunters cheered, while the campers looked defeated. Percy saw Travis and Connor throw their shields against a tree in anger.

Chiron turned around and noticed Artemis. "Ahh, if it isn't Lady Artemis. A pleasure to see you, milady," he welcomed with a bow. Artemis gave Chiron a small smile. "Thank you, Chiron. It is nice to see you as well. I am here to pick up the hunters."

All of the hunters noticed Artemis and ran over to her. "Lady Artemis, did you find Percy?" "Where was he?" "Did you just leave him to die? That's what I would have done." Artemis tried to remain as ambivalent as she could after hearing all of their opinionated responses.

"Sisters, you will all know in due time. For now, let us pack up." All the hunters were left a bit unsatisfied, but at the same time, leaving the campers wasn't the worst thing in the world for them.

Percy looked right at Artemis, who was still in her older form. He could see the emotions she was trying to hide from them. The more he looked at her, the more he wished he could see her in person. She looked like, well, a goddess. And he never really came to see how pretty she was when the possibility of turning into a jackalope was on the table. But now, stuck in Tartarus, he was free to make as many opinions of her as he wished. He thought she looked beautiful. Everything about her screamed 'not trying', and yet, it came so easy for her.

What really got him going was her eyes. They were similar to Annabeth's, but at the same time, different. If Annabeth's were the storm, then Artemis' were the moon after the clouds cleared away. That sense of optimism made him happy. He had to get out of Tartarus. The storm was over.

Percy awoke, and hit his head on the ceiling of the cave he was in. He followed his path for a while, until he saw the Doors of Death. There were a few monsters here and there, but for the most part, a clear path.

So he fought all of the monsters and found himself at the door. He noticed that it was held down with chains and locks to prevent opening. However, Percy already knew how to fix that problem. He willed the water from the river to enter all of the cavities of the locks, froze them, and opened them. He then looked at the mechanism to get out. It was an elevator. He then noticed the problem. It required someone holding the button from the outside for the person (or monster) to go up.

He had an idea. He found a dead tree nearby and wedged it between the button and the ground. Then, he quickly ran over to catch the elevator.

It didn't even move. It must have sensed that there wasn't a person holding it down, so it refused to work. After thinking of different ways to enter (such as using a monster's amputated hand, but then remembering that they turn to gold dust when they die), Percy decided there was only one way out.

Back the way he came.

Percy walked back down the river. Although there was no sun for a reference point, he perceived it as around 3 days worth of walking. When he made it back to the beginning, where he landed, he took a look up. He couldn't even see the top. Not even close.

But he knew it was his only way out. Percy willed some of the river water to turn into frozen picks, and he made sure they were extra sharp. And all that was left to do was climb the ridiculously tall cliff. Which he also didn't know if it was possibly.

When he planted his ice pick into the cliff, much of it crumbled away, although it did stick. He put in the next pick, and the same thing happened. He kept climbing until he was about 100 feet off the ground. He looked at how far he had gone, and then looked up. He didn't know how long this would take him. And then, the cliff gave away, and Percy fell back to where he started.

He continued this for days. One time, he thought he maybe saw the edge of the cliff, but he wasn't sure. What scared him the most was if this was just him reliving the story of Sisyphus- no matter how high he climbed, he would surely fall. But then there was a moment where he took a rest, leaning against the cliff. The image of Artemis popped back into his mind. As stupid as this was, he was starting to really admire the eternal maiden, Goddess of the Hunt. But he just couldn't help it. As of that moment, Percy had an Annabeth-sized whole in his heart. He didn't think it would ever be filled. But when he imagined Artemis, like that night where she danced with him, that moment after where she smacked him, his heart started to feel butterflies.

"I'm going to find you, Artemis. I know that you and I can never be together, but I need to see you. Someone as beautiful as you cannot live being sad because of me." And with that, he stood back up and tried again. His eyes started to glow with sea green light (although he remained unaware of that). Slowly, he made his way higher than he had ever gone before. And then he saw it, the top of the cliff. He remained calm. Any moment of excitement could be the end of it.

And before he knew it, he was only a couple feet away from the top. His muscles burned with each and every movement. And then, his hand reached the ledge, and then his other. With the last bit of his energy, he pulled himself over the edge.

He immediately puked. It wasn't pretty. But weeks after making a Titan fade, Percy Jackson exceeded the impossible and escaped Tartarus.