Summary: When Percy stepped out of the elevator, Hazel wanted to weep.
His clothing was tattered, hair matted with blood, and he was covered head to toe in golden dust. But he was alive.
It took her a few minutes to realize that he was alone.
Before she died, she'd heard reports on the radio about soldiers who came home. Shellshock, they called it, from being in the trenches, the bombs and the bullets and the dead. Hazel had met soldier, once. A man who'd come home to her little town, missing half his leg and most of his mind. The look in his eyes was hauntingly similar to what she saw on her cousin's face.
Percy was different now. Stronger, maybe. He'd made it through Hell, but not without leaving a piece of him behind.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/33564805/chapters/83402143#workskin
Word count:50k(COMPLETE)*This is part 1 of 3*
Chapters:11
Chapter 1: Demigod's Interlude: Part 1
The elevator dinging was probably the best sound Hazel had ever heard. Thanking the Gods for Leo and his well thrown screwdriver hitting the button, she had rushed to the Doors.
Clytius got there first.
When a body had collapsed on the threshold, Hazel almost felt like throwing up. It was Percy, it had to be, but...Gods of Olympus, he looked horrible. His hair was longer than she remembered, matted and streaked with blood. His clothes were torn and coated with golden dust. His skin looked like somebody had sucked the life out of it.
She only remembered yelling. That was Percy, who wrapped her in the best hugs she had ever had, who baked her cookies on the Argo when she was upset, who sparred with her when she couldn't sleep.
The walls of the cavern made a sound like dropping ice in warm water. The next thing she knew, razor-sharp gems were flying through the air at Clytius, shredding his breastplate and punching through him like a buckshot. Ichor streamed down one of his arms.
Hazel felt wobbly on her feet, her strength leaving her. But the chains. She needed to cut the chains.
She roared the Giant's name and charged. He must have not expected her to be so brash, he almost froze while she slid under his legs and stabbed him right in the ass.
(Something Percy had taught her on the Argo. He had slung an arm around her shoulder and gave her a weighted look. "In a fight, there is no such thing as fighting dirty. There's only winning and dying." At the time, she had been horrified. Romans fought with honor, it was ingrained in them from day one. She had wondered what awful things Percy had seen that made him believe that.
But now, looking at his bloodied and battered body, she got it.)
Hazel lunged at the chains and sliced through one of them like it was butter. Before she even had a chance to move, Clytius's blade caught her in the side and she flew across the room, hitting the wall with a dull crack. Her head was swimming; she wasn't quite sure if Leo had screamed her name or if she was just hearing things.
Taking inspiration from her friend and his screwdriver, she threw her sword. It hit the last chain, making it shatter like brittle ice. Clytius roared so loudly it shook the entire cavern. Hazel felt it reverberate deep in her bones, shaking her.
"That was for my brothers." She gasped out. Her eyes caught Percy, who still hadn't moved. "Both of them."
The Giant advanced. Hecate looked worried, her head snapping back towards the wall. The others. They had to be close, they had to be. But Hazel didn't hear anything.
She didn't want to die again. She wanted to stay alive, but her side felt like it had been run through a shredder. Blood from her forehead was falling into her eyes, and she could barely stand without falling.
Clytius got closer. He raised his sword.
Hazel closed her eyes.
Clang.
Hazel's breath was shaky, every intake feeling like she was getting sucker punched right in the lung. But she was still breathing. She opened her eyes.
Percy Jackson stood in between her and the Giant.
He was in a loose stance, knees bent, Riptide in his hands. Hazel felt like crying. Clytius stumbled back, the force of Percy's parry forcing him to take a few steps away.
Percy kept his footing, but turned his head back towards Hazel. "Are you alright?"
His voice was low and raspy, like he had been gargling nails. But it was probably still one of the best things she had ever heard. "Fine." She whispered.
Percy nodded once. It was dark in the cavern, but Hecate's torches lit enough up that she could see some of his face. His cheekbones stuck out and his eyes were sunken in, dark circles swooping under them. He looked almost sickly. She could count almost a dozen bruises and scrapes just on his face, which was streaked with grime.
There were two dark smudges of what almost looked like paint, starting above each brow and going down, across his eyes, stopping an inch or two above his jaw. Riptide shone dully in the darkness, illuminating his hands. His knuckles were raw and bloody, and there was so much dirt under his nails she could barely make them out.
But mostly...he looked angry. His jaw was set, his mouth in a grim line. His eyes were narrowed at the Giant, and the sea green color almost seemed to glow.
Clytius righted himself. "You," He boomed. His voice echoed across the cavern, making her head hurt. It sounded as if he were speaking through a chorus of the dead, using all the unfortunate souls who'd been buried behind the dome's stelae. "The Pit might not have k---"
Percy didn't even give him the chance to monologue. He lurched forward and jumped, impossibly high, and punched him right in the mouth.
Gods, Hazel had missed him.
Percy hit the floor in a smooth roll, landing on his feet in a crouch.
The Giant whipped around to face the son of Poseidon. Behind him, the air rippled. The mist thickened and formed a door. Four people stepped out. Hazel almost wept with relief. Frank's arm was bleeding and bandaged, but still alive. Next to him stood Nico, Piper, and Jason---all with their weapons drawn.
Percy grinned. His teeth looked oddly sharp in the dim lighting; even Clytius looked a tad unnerved.
Jason smiled. "Sorry we're late. Is this the guy who needs killing?"
Hazel almost felt sorry for Clytius. They attacked him from every direction---Leo shooting fire at his legs, Frank and Piper jabbing at his chest, Jason flying into the air and kicking him in the face. Hazel was proud at how well Piper had remembered her sword fighting lessons.
Every time the Giant's smokey veil started creeping around one of them, Nico was there, slashing through it, drinking in the darkness with his Stygian Iron blade. Percy was on his feet, but hanging back against a wall, breathing labored. He looked dead tired, but stood ready. But there was no help needed, the Giant was surrounded.
Clytius snarled, turning back and forth as if he couldn't decide which one of them to kill first.
(Again, Hazel flashed back to Percy's words. "Indecision will cost you your life." He warned. If there was anything that proved Percy was ten times the warrior the Giant was, it was that.)
The darkness around him dispelled completely, leaving nothing to protect him but his battered armor. Ichor oozed from a dozen wounds. The damage healed almost as fast as it was inflicted, but Hazel could tell the Giant was tiring.
One last time Jason flew at him, kicking him in the chest, and the Giant's breastplate shattered. For the second time, Clytius staggered backwards. His sword dropped to the floor. He fell to his knees, and the demigods encircled him. Percy loomed behind them like an intimidating shadow.
Only then did Hecate step forward, her torches raised. Mist curled around the Giant, hissing and bubbling as it touched his skin.
"And so it ends." Hecate said.
She turned her torches upside down and thrust them like daggers at Clytius's head. The Giant's hair went up faster than dry tinder, spreading down his head and across his body until the heat of the bonfire made Hazel wince. Clytius fell without a sound, face-first into the rubble of Hades's altar. His body crumbled to ashes.
For a moment, no one spoke. Hazel heard a ragged, painful noise and realized it was her own breathing. Her side felt like it had been kicked in with a battering ram.
The goddess Hecate faced her. "You should go now, Hazel Leveque. Lead your friends out of this place."
Hazel gritted her teeth, trying to hold in her anger. "Just like that? No 'thank you'? No 'good work'?" She was too tired to be surprised at the lack of respect in her words. Yet another thing she had picked up from the son of Poseidon.
The goddess tilted her head. Gale the weasel chittered---maybe a good-bye, maybe a warning---and disappeared in the folds of her mistress's skirts.
"You look in the wrong place for gratitude." Hecate said. "As for 'good work', that remains to be seen. Speed your way to Athens. Clytius was not wrong. The Giants have risen--- all of them, stronger than ever. Gaea is on the very edge of waking. The Feast of Hope will be poorly named unless you arrive to stop her."
The chamber rumbled. Another stela crashed to the floor and shattered. "The House of Hades is unstable," Hecate said. "Leave now. We shall meet again." The goddess dissolved. The Mist evaporated.
Another bout of silence filled the room. Then suddenly, Nico reared back like he had been shot. "No," He whispered, staring directly at Percy. Piper, Jason, Leo, and Frank, all turned towards Percy, eyes wide.
"What? What's wrong?" Piper said hurriedly, eyes flicking up and down Percy's body. It was hard to tell if he was injured or not; everything he wore was tattered and bloodsoaked. Then suddenly, all at once, they all realized the problem.
Percy was fine.
Fine,
and alone.
Hazel covered her mouth with a hand. "No," she echoed. "Percy," her voice cracked.
Jason was shaking his head. "Where is she?" He asked, frantic. "Dude, whe-where's Annabeth?"
Percy just shook his head.
Leo let out a choked sob. Frank wrapped his arms around Hazel, tears making streaks in the dust and grime on his face. Piper just stood there, face blank. Nico kept his gaze steady on Percy. "I, I didn't know. Why didn't I feel it?" He whispered. He sounded like he was about to cry. Instead, he just barreled forward, in a very un-Nico-like gesture, and wrapped his arms around Percy.
Percy just stood there for a second, blinking, almost like he forgot what a hug was. After a small hesitation, he returned the gesture. Hazel swore she heard Nico give a few wet-sounding sniffs. Gods, of course he would be crying. He had known the two of them since he was like 10.
For the first time, Percy spoke to the group. "Hecate was right. We aren't safe here. We need to go." His words snapped everyone out of their grief.
"Shadow travel. Nico, I'll help you." Hazel almost didn't recognize her own voice. She sounded just...blank, void of emotion. Nico nodded mutely, staring at the ground. He was shaking. Hazel took in a deep breath, envisioning the countryside above them. She reached out to Percy, who took her hand, taking Nico's in his other. His hands were rough and more calloused than she remembered.
They appeared on the hillside overlooking the River Acheron. The sun was just rising, making the water glitter and the clouds glow orange. The cool morning air smelled like honeysuckle. But Hazel couldn't find it in herself to enjoy it.
Percy stood frozen on the grass, taking in deep breaths. It was probably the first time he'd had actual fresh air in weeks. The son of Poseidon tilted his head up towards the sky, the sun shining onto his weary face.
Jason was pretty sure his heart stopped. Running into the cavern, seeing Percy there...Jupiter above, he broke out into a smile so wide it hurt. Once they dealt with Clytius, Jason barely stopped himself from tackling his cousin into a hug; Gods know what injuries he had received in the Pit.
But then they noticed that somebody was missing.
Normally, Jason loved the outside; he had spent most of his childhood under the stars. First with Lupa in the wolf den and the surrounding forest, and then New Rome, with the open city and perfectly green fields. He remembered him and Reyna used to run around Temple Hill together as kids, making sure to avoid Neptune's temple. It had always made Jason uneasy, not to mention the sorry state it was in. Romans didn't like Neptune. They had a healthy fear and respect for him, but there was no love lost.
When Jason had first met Percy; the first son of Neptune in almost a century, he had been similarly wary. Neptune was always said to have an uncontrollable temper, he would go from fine to city-destroying storms in less than a minute. The way Annabeth talks talked about him showed for certain she trusted him, though, and Jason trusted her. When they had fought off Otis and Ephilates together, Jason knew he had found a friend. Percy fought like a whirlwind, his strikes wild yet precise at the same time. At camp, kids had described Percy as the best swordsman in a century. And Jason really believed it, too.
The weather was perfect; a cool breeze swept across the grass and everything smelled like fresh wildflowers. His focus was on Percy, who, well, who looked like he had been to Hell and back. Now that Jason could really see him, though...
He was covered in bruises and cuts, and his entire face was coated in a thick layer of grime and monster dust. He had what looked like war paint on, stripes going down from each brow to his jaw. But the more Jason looked, the worse it got. His left arm was bandaged with Gods know what. His ribs were wrapped tightly, and he was limping. His knuckles were raw, and burns scattered across his entire body. His clothes were practically unrecognizable. His shirt was barely even whole anymore, reduced to tatters he used as bandages. He was also wearing a strange piece of armor around his torso; it almost looked like leather. The normally pale gray streak in his hair wasn't even noticeable; everything was covered in blood and dirt.
Jason gave him a hug.
The somber mood followed them all the way to the hilltop, where Reyna was waiting for them. At the news of Annabeth's death, she swallowed thickly. Jason knew that the two didn't know each other that well, but there had been a certain respect between them. Deciding Nico would be the one to take them back was difficult. Nico had stayed silently by Percy's side since they had gotten to the surface, and didn't look too happy at the thought of separating.
Truthfully, Jason had been worried about Nico, even before Percy came out of the Doors. From his understanding, Percy and Annabeth had been his introduction to the Godly world, and he had known them for years. He had asked, once, and Percy had grinned and ruffled Nico's hair---something the son of Hades seemed vehemently against. He looked more like a particularly angered cat, but Jason was going to keep that observation to himself. Percy had been purposefully vague about how they met, but Jason could see the pain in both of their eyes beneath, so he stopped asking.
The journey back to the Argo 2 had been silent. Piper had spent most of the time staring at her feet as she walked back towards the ship. At some point, Percy and Nico had separated from the group, but rejoined a few minutes later. Piper wasn't the best at reading people, but if she had to bet, it was probably about what Nico had said down below. It was a little odd, how he didn't feel Annabeth die until Percy got to the surface. Based off the haunted look in Percy's eyes, it hadn't just happened. But when had it happened?
None of the Seven had gathered up the courage to ask what went down in Tartarus. None of them really wanted to know. Based off the few words Percy had said, the Pit was unlike anything he could've imagined. For all Piper knew, he could've been down there for a lot longer than she thought. Magical places were like that, time was funny. What could have been a few weeks to them might've been months to Percy.
The thought alone made her sick.
After saying goodbyes to Nico, Reyna, and Hedge, Percy had disappeared into his room---they all let him have some privacy.
They all wanted some privacy, really. Leo had went down to the engines to start up the ship, and had stayed down there since. Jason was up on deck, Hazel was down in the stables, and Frank was in his room. Piper had found herself wandering to the dining room, staring at the chairs, one which would now be forever empty. She roughly pulled one out and dropped herself into it. Only then did she start crying.
She barely head the footsteps come up behind her---maybe she was too lost in her own head to notice, or maybe the Pit had trained all the noise out of him. Percy wordlessly pulled out the chair across from her, carefully sitting down.
He was wearing fresh clothes and was scrubbed free of all the bloody grime and monster dust. His hair damp---something Piper had never seen on him before. Annabeth had told her Percy could will himself to dry instantly. She had been jealous at the time, really. Percy had a wide range of abilities, when Piper just had magic words. But...she looked at him now, and wondered if there was water in Tartarus. He probably really could've used some charmspeak down there.
It was then that her eyes wandered up to his face.
There were what looked like burn marks smattered across his eyes and temples, stark red and shiny. Some of his eyelashes were missing, as well as a bit of his eyebrow. All of it had been hidden, before, by the thick layer of dirt and dust, but now, Piper was painfully aware of it.
"Oh, Percy ."
He ducked his head, unfamiliarly long hair falling over the marks.
Piper leaned forward and took his hand. "How did...When…" She, for the first time, was at a complete loss of words. Instead, she just gave his hand a squeeze. He gingerly returned it, but lighter, almost like he was scared he'd hurt her.
He tilted his head up towards her and gave her a weak smile. "It barely even hurts now. It's fine."
It was then, Piper noticed something. He wasn't looking at her.
His eyes were unfocused, staring over her shoulder, towards a blank wall. Expiramenetaly, she moved a little to the left. His gaze stayed blank and ahead.
"You can't see." She whispered, her free hand coming up to cover her mouth in horror.
Percy's mouth twitched. "Really? Hadn't noticed."
Normally, Piper would have been aghast at how flippantly he said it. Percy was blind, he had been blinded in Hell, where he lost his girlfriend and probably a bit of his sanity.
It was a testament to how much had changed, how different Piper was now, when she just laughed. Because for the first time since he had emerged from the doors, he seemed a little bit like himself.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/33564805/chapters/83402143#workskin