Fear of Erebus

A Room Of Doors

It tasted like warm honey. "Artemis? Artemis, can you hear me?" I could faintly hear an annoying voice in the distance, one I elected to ignore. Although it was dark; it was warm, and cozy, and safe. I felt safe. "Artemis? Lady Artemis? Come on!" The voice got a bit louder but I didn't listen to it, at least not until I felt a hard pinch on my arm. Reluctantly, I opened my eyes, only to be met with pools of sea green...

"Poseidon?" I asked, my voice was very groggy. The man stepped back a bit and gave me a calculating look—he looked like Uncle Poseidon; green eyes, black hair...

"No... Try Percy? Perseus Jackson, remember?" At the name, all my memories flooded back so quickly, it just about gave me a headache.

"Son of a bastard!" I murmured, bringing a hand to my forehead, trying to stop it from toppling off my shoulders. Perseus only smirked and set the goblet, of what I assumed contained nector (explains the honey taste), upon the coffee table.

"Well, you're not wrong—my parents technically weren't married when they had me." Oh, gods! At least he appeared to be in a more jovial mood. "How are you feeling?" And he seemed genuinely concerned.

"Like my head is going to explode..." I slumped back in the velvet armchair. It seriously felt like I had just single handedly fought an entire army of giants. "You hit me!"

"Technically, I nearly—nearly—strangled you into... fading..." Jackson nervously rubbed the back of his head, and made a good example at looking anywhere but me.

I just sat there. What the Hades! "YOU DID WHAT?!" Holy mother of Styx! I just had a near death experience! "How the Hades is that even possible?! Your a demigod, for Zeus' sake!" He shrugged hopelessly.

"Honestly, I'm not to sure myself! It was like... I wasn't even in control of my body..."

"Creating lies isn't going to save you from the suffering I'll bring upon you after the war!" I threatened. Silly mortal demigod.

"I'm NOT lying!" He abruptly stood up just to prove his point. "You think I'd just kill you because I feel like it?" He pointed his finger at me, his faces fading into a warm red colour. "Well, your wrong!" He literally growled the last part, and just from his body stance and my natural instinct; I could tell he was feeling very hostile. Best not to push my luck...

"Fine, whatever," I put my hands up to show that I wasn't a threat. "But you could at least tell me how long I was out for!"

He began pacing. "Ah, three hours, twenty-seven minutes and fourteen seconds-" he stopped immediately when he processed what he just said. I stared. How the bloody Tartarus did he know the exact time? Jackson must have thought the same thing because he only shrugged at the sight of my quizzed eyes.

"Oooookay..." I said, finally standing from my chair and surveying the room. There was no sign of a timer, nor clock or a security camera, and I'm pretty sure he didn't count how long I was out for... I also noticed that there was no longer any glass on the floor, the broken window was anew and the fire had been relit. Strange...

"Listen, Lady Artemis, I know you came a long way and I know I promised that I would help but things have change and I just don't feel like fighting anymore."

My head snapped back to his direction, he just looked so worn out—the years of battles and surviving finally taking their toll. I knew that there was only so much a mortal can go through before they reach their breaking point, and to be honest, I think Perseus may have already pushed far beyond his. Despite how much I wished otherwise, I knew he was right. "I understand." I got a small glimmer of relief dance across his eyes and a ghost of a smile creeped upon his face. "I understand that you are still fresh from your... ordeals, and regardless of the fact that you may be slightly mentally unhinged, I still think you presence would make a drastic difference in this war."