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While his friend went after the last element to have a victory against the God of the Underworld, their friends, who didn't know about this, were hiding, out of breath, in the rotting trunk of a huge black tree, while the security spirits passed by, rushing and shouting for the help of the Furies.
Grover looked at Percy and murmured asking, "Well, Percy, what did we learn today?"
"That three-headed dogs prefer rubber balls to sticks?" Percy suggested.
"No." Grover shook his head vigorously and said, "We learned that your plans are very, very bad!"
Percy looked very embarrassed. I think it was the result of him and Annabeth planning together. Ikki had also agreed. He thought they had the right idea, even there, in the Underworld, everyone—even monsters—needs a little attention from time to time.
"He's right. Your plans are terrible."
A voice sounded almost in the middle of them. This gave a huge scare to the three of them, so much that they jumped away unconsciously, while they looked in panic at the place where the voice had come from. Their faces turned pale. Their hearts almost jumped out of their mouths. The second after the voice sounded, the three recognized the owner of it and were relieved.
It was obviously their friend. Ikki was standing with a playful gleam in his eyes as he saw their reaction. He had already settled all the details with his accomplice for the Athena-worthy plan he had created, now it was just to put it into practice when they found the God of the Dead.
"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Percy accused, narrowing his eyes as he sighed in relief that it wasn't a new enemy.
"I?" Ikki had an innocent expression in the face of his best friend's accusation. He pointed to himself and asked innocently, "What did I do?"
His innocent expression was so cute that the effect was immediate on Annabeth and Grover. The two felt an imaginary arrow pierce their hearts.
It was too cute!
Percy wasn't affected by Ikki's innocent expression. Maybe a little... It was too convincing, wasn't it? Was it because his best friend was too cute...? Definitely not.
"Just don't appear suddenly, like a ghost." Percy looked intensely at his friend and said, "Like just now, it's not good for the heart!"
Annabeth and Grover nodded vigorously.
Ikki just nodded casually, with a playful expression.
"He'll do it again!" the three thought at the same time. They decided to stay much more alert in the future.
The four talked for a while as they waited for the ghouls to pass, and soon after, they continued their journey through the Underworld.
After a while, they arrived at the Fields of Asphodel.
Ikki's impression of the Fields of Asphodel was that it was a morbid and sad place. Something expected of the Underworld, so it didn't surprise him much. The Fields of Asphodel seemed like a football field that stretched infinitely, or at least a million times bigger.
The place had the largest gathering of people he had ever seen; it was completely packed. There was no light, no noise, just a whispering mass of people wandering aimlessly in the shadows, waiting for something that would never come.
The black grass had been trampled by ages of dead feet. A warm and damp breeze blew like the breath of a swamp. Black trees, which Grover said were poplars, grew in groups here and there. The cave ceiling was so high above the four of them that it could pass for a mass of storm clouds, if not for the stalactites, which glowed a pale gray and seemed maliciously pointed.
By their appearance, these stalactites could fall at any moment on the group, but fortunately, there were several scattered around, having fallen and impaled themselves in the black grass. At least the dead didn't need to worry about small risks like being impaled by rocket-sized stalactites.
Ikki and his friends tried to blend in with the crowd, keeping an eye on the security ghouls. The one titled King of Heroes looked at the spirits of Asphodel, searching for someone familiar. Percy did the same, while Annabeth looked around as if thinking of some plan or strategy to use, and Grover was just fidgeting nervously.
But it was hard to look at the dead. Their faces flickered. They all seemed slightly angry or confused. They even saw them and spoke, but the voice sounded like tremors, like the squeak of bats. After they realized someone couldn't understand them, they frowned and moved away. The dead weren't scary. They were just sad.
The four followed the line of newcomers, which snaked from the main gates toward a large black tent with a sign that read: "Judgments for Elysium and Eternal Damnation."
A little further down was another sign that said: "Welcome, Newly Departed!"
From the back of the tent came two much smaller lines. On the left, spirits flanked by evil security spirits marched along a rocky path toward the Fields of Punishment, which glowed and smoked in the distance, a vast cracked desert with rivers of lava and minefields, and miles of barbed wire separating the different areas of torture.
Ikki, with his supernatural vision, could clearly see people being chased by hellhounds, burned at the stake, forced to run naked through cactus fields, or listen to opera music. He also saw a tiny hill with the size of an ant's silhouette of Sisyphus struggling to push his stone to the top. And not to mention other worse tortures, things that anyone normal would turn pale just by seeing.
Considering he was in the Underworld and what he was seeing were the Fields of Punishment, Ikki wasn't surprised by all the tortures.
The line coming from the right side of the judgment pavilion was much better. It led to a small valley surrounded by walls—a community with gates that seemed to be the only happy part of the Underworld. Beyond the security gate, there were beautiful houses from all periods of history, Roman villas, medieval castles, and Victorian mansions. Silver and gold flowers bloomed in the fields.
The grass rippled in rainbow colors. Laughter could be heard, and the smell of barbecue was in the air.
In an instant, Ikki knew this place was Elysium.
Something that caught Ikki's attention was a particular place. In the middle of that valley was a brilliant blue lake, with three small islands like a leisure hotel in the Bahamas. The Blessed Isles, for people who chose to be reborn three times and three times conquered Elysium.
Percy, who was next to him, also looked at the three Islands. The son of Poseidon immediately knew that this was where he wanted to go when he died.
"That's right." Annabeth, on the other side of Ikki, said to Percy as if she were reading his thoughts. "This is the place for heroes..."
"Heroes, huh..." Ikki thought, looking at the Blessed Isles. He didn't exactly have a favorite hero from Greek mythology. The only one he liked a little was Achilles.
He noticed there were few people in Elysium, as it was tiny compared to the Fields of Asphodel or even the Fields of Punishment. Therefore, only a few people had done well in their lives. It was depressing.
The four left the judgment pavilion and ventured deeper into the Fields of Asphodel. It got darker. The colors faded from their clothes. The crowds of chattering spirits began to thin out.
Ikki could still see clearly. It was as if there was no darkness for him.
Far in the distance loomed a palace of black obsidian, shining. Above the battlements, three dark creatures like bats whirled: the Furies.
Seeing the three, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover became nervous; honestly, they had a terrible experience with the three subordinates of Hades. It would be strange if they didn't have a slight trauma. Essentially, they were kids, though Grover was twice their age, but he was a Satyr, and they age much more slowly than humans.
Ikki just looked at the three Furies as if he were looking at an old friend. With his current level of power, he could turn them into mist of blood just by releasing his energy and focusing on them, or just using his heartbeat to explode them from the inside out through magical enhancement...
They were very weak after all...
"Maybe it's too late to turn back." Grover said sadly.
"It will be fine." Percy said, trying to sound confident.
"Yes." Ikki's eyes glinted as he lightly patted the satyr's back. Before continuing to walk, he said, "Don't worry."
"Maybe we should check some other places first?" Grover asked, without expecting an answer, he suggested, "Like Elysium, for example..."
"Come on, goat-boy." Annabeth rolled her eyes and grabbed the satyr's arm.
Grover suddenly yelped. His shoes sprouted wings, and his legs jumped forward, pulling him away from Annabeth. He landed on his back in the grass.
"Grover." Annabeth scolded with stern eyes. She said, "Stop stalling..."
"But I didn't..."
He yelped again. The shoes were now flapping like crazy. They lifted off the ground and began flying, dragging the satyr away from the group.
"Maia!" Grover shouted, but the magic word didn't seem to have any effect anymore. He panicked and repeated, "Maia, right now! One-nine-zero! Help..."
Here is the continuation of the translation:
By instinct, Ikki quickly grabbed his shirt, but the satyr's shirt was torn apart by the explosive speed of the magical shoes, which dragged Grover further away.
Percy recovered from his shock and tried to grab Grover's hand, but it was too late. He was picking up speed, sliding downhill like a sled.
Ikki released the torn shirt before the three of them ran after the satyr.
Annabeth shouted.
"Untie the shoes!"
It was a smart idea, but I guess it's not that easy when your shoes are dragging you forward at full speed. Grover tried to sit, but couldn't reach the laces.
The three of them kept running after him, trying to keep him in sight as he zipped between the legs of spirits muttering at him, annoyed.
Just as Ikki was about to save his friend in an instant, he saw something through his supernatural senses that caught his attention—a sort of hole? He felt something terrifying inside it, enough to distract him for a moment.
As Grover was about to pass directly into the gates of Hades' palace, the shoes veered right, away from them. The ground became steeper. Grover gained more speed, and Annabeth and Percy had to run at full speed to keep up.
The walls of the cave narrowed on both sides, and the three were entering some sort of side tunnel. There was no more black grass or trees, only stones beneath their feet and the pale light of stalactites above.
"Grover!" Percy shouted as he ran, his voice echoing through the tunnel. He called to the satyr, "Grab onto something!"
"What?" Grover shouted back. He grabbed one of the small rocks, but there was nothing big enough to slow him down.
The tunnel grew darker and colder, so much so that Percy's arm hair stood up, and even Annabeth felt a chill. The smell down there was nauseating. It made someone think of things they normally shouldn't know—blood spilled on an ancient stone altar, the foul breath of a murderer.
When the group saw what lay ahead, Percy stopped, frozen.
The tunnel widened into a massive dark cavern, and in the center, there was an abyss the size of a city block. Grover was sliding straight toward the edge.
"Come on, Percy!" Annabeth shouted, pulling Percy by the wrist.
"But that..."
"I know!" she interrupted, shouting. "The place you described from your dream! But Grover will fall if we don't catch him."
"Actually, you don't have to worry. Leave this to me," Ikki said, snapping out of his thoughts about the place.
Before they could say anything, the new King of Heroes moved.
He disappeared with a bizarre static sound. It was so fast that it seemed like lightning, less than a second, and he grabbed Grover, who was near the edge of the abyss, and brought him back to where he was earlier.
Annabeth and Percy didn't even blink, and the problem was solved. The two stood stunned, a little speechless. Annabeth felt a little stupid for forgetting Ikki's speed again and blamed herself for the events. After all, in that moment, she only thought about saving Grover and dismissed other options automatically.
Percy was relieved. He looked at the satyr. Grover was badly scratched, his hands bleeding. His pupils had turned into slits, like a goat's, as they always did when he was terrified.
At that moment, Ikki released the pair of shoes he had been holding. He had taken them off Grover when he caught him in the air.
The shoes flew at high speed toward the abyss, disappearing into the darkness.
"Thanks, Ikki," Grover said, his eyes full of gratitude. He gasped and said, "I don't know how... I don't..."
"Wait," Percy said. He looked at the huge hole as if he were hearing something and said, "Listen..."
"Tartarus?" Ikki thought, looking at the abyss. He could clearly hear something, like a deep whisper in the darkness.
A few more seconds passed, and Annabeth said, "Percy, this place..."
"Shh," Percy motioned for her to be quiet.
The sound was growing louder, a murmuring, malevolent voice coming from far, far below them. It came from the abyss.
Grover asked, "What... what's that noise?"
"That's the entrance to Tartarus," Ikki said calmly, staring at the bottomless hole a few meters in front of them.
Annabeth nodded, her eyes narrowing toward the entrance to Tartarus. Ikki didn't need to confirm it; she had already guessed...
Surprisingly, Percy had come to the same conclusion. The son of Poseidon unscrewed the cap of his pen and transformed it into his trusty sword, Anaklusmos. The bronze sword expanded, glowing in the dark, and the malevolent voice seemed to falter for just a moment before resuming its chant.
The sound was no longer a whisper; the words could now be clearly distinguished. They were very, very old words, even older than Greek.
Hearing the words, Percy couldn't help but say, "Magic."
"We need to get out of here," Annabeth said. She knew that whatever those words were, they weren't good.
The four of them began to retreat down the tunnel. At that moment, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover felt their legs weren't moving fast enough. Percy felt like his backpack weighed a ton. Ikki gave one last look at the road to Tartarus, his eyes unreadable.
The voice grew louder and angrier behind them, and they started to run.
Just in time. A cold gust of wind sucked them from behind, as if the entire abyss were inhaling. For a terrifying moment, Percy lost control, and his feet started to slip on the gravel. If they had been any closer to the edge, they would have been sucked in.
They continued until they finally reached the top of the tunnel, where the cave opened into the Fields of Asphodel. The wind stopped. A wail of indignation echoed in the distance. Something was unhappy that they had escaped.
"What was that?" Grover gasped when Percy, Annabeth, and he collapsed in the relative safety of a grove of black poplars. The satyr still looked terrified; this would be a hard experience to forget. He suggested, "One of Hades' pets?"
The three demigods exchanged glances. Ikki and Annabeth had an idea of who it might be. Percy realized Annabeth had probably had the same thought as he had during the taxi ride to Los Angeles, but she was too terrified to share it with him. That alone was enough to terrify him.
"No," Ikki looked in the direction of the tunnel and answered the satyr, "That's definitely the entrance to Tartarus, whatever it is, it has nothing to do with Hades and it's not good."
He clenched his fists lightly. If he had been distracted by the entrance to Tartarus any longer, one of his only friends would have been pulled inside. Grover would have ended up in the worst place in Greek mythology because of his carelessness. He felt terribly guilty, both for his distraction and for not taking things more seriously and saving Grover more quickly...
At that moment, his heart felt heavier and more suffocating than before.
"Let's keep going," Percy looked at Grover and asked, "Are you okay? Can you walk?"
"Yeah, for sure," Grover swallowed hard. He tried to look brave and said, "Of course, I can walk fine. And honestly, I never really liked those shoes anyway."
His display of bravery wasn't very convincing. He was trembling just as much as Annabeth and Percy.
One thing was certain, whatever was in that abyss, it wasn't anyone's pet.
It was indescribably old and powerful.
Not even the Hydra or Ares gave Percy that feeling.
The four of them turned their backs on the tunnel and made their way toward Hades' castle. Each lost in their own thoughts, Grover tried to calm his nerves by asking Ikki why it had taken him so long.
Ikki simply said that it had taken him a little longer to find them through his senses.
The four approached Hades' Castle again. The Furies circled the battlements high above, in the darkness. The outer walls of the fortress glowed black, and the two-story bronze gates stood wide open.
Up close, Ikki saw that the carvings on the gates depicted scenes of death. Some from modern times—a nuclear bomb exploding over a city, a trench filled with soldiers wearing gas masks, a line of starving African victims waiting with empty bowls—but all of them seemed to have been engraved in the bronze thousands of years ago.
He had already seen these scenes from afar, thanks to his enhanced vision, and couldn't help but think that he was looking at prophecies that had come true.
Inside the courtyard, there was the strangest garden Ikki had ever seen. Multicolored mushrooms, poisonous bushes, and ghostly glowing plants grew without sunlight. Precious gems replaced the lack of flowers—piles of rubies the size of his fist, clusters of raw diamonds. Here and there, like guests at a party who had been frozen in time, were garden statues of Medusa—children, satyrs, and centaurs petrified—each one grotesquely smiling.
In the center of the garden stood a grove of pomegranate trees, their orange flowers glowing like neon in the dark.
Beside him, Percy was looking strangely at the garden.
"Persephone's garden," Annabeth glanced and said to Percy, warning him, "Keep walking..."
Percy understood why she wanted to keep moving. The acidic smell of those pomegranates was almost irresistible. He suddenly had the urge to eat one, but then remembered the story of Persephone. A bite of food from the Underworld, and you could never leave.
The son of Poseidon pulled Grover away to prevent him from picking one of the big, juicy fruits.
They climbed the steps of the palace, between black columns, passing through a marble archway, into the house of Hades. The foyer had a polished bronze floor that seemed to boil in the reflected torchlight. There was no ceiling, just the cavern ceiling far above.
All the side doors were guarded by skeletons in military attire. Some wore Greek armor, others British uniforms with red coats, and some wore camouflaged clothes with torn American flags on their shoulders.
They carried spears, muskets, or rifles. None of them bothered them, but their hollow eye sockets followed the group as they walked through the foyer toward the large set of doors at the opposite end.
Two skeletons of American Marines guarded the doors. They smiled at them, with grenade launchers strapped across their chests.
"You know something?" Grover nervously looked around, murmuring, "I bet Hades doesn't have problems with door-to-door salesmen..."
Percy felt his backpack now weighed a ton. He couldn't imagine why. He wanted to open it, check if he had accidentally picked up a lost bowling ball, but this wasn't the moment.
"Do you remember what I said before we entered the studio?" Ikki asked, looking at his friends.
The three nodded in agreement.
They tried to calm themselves in their own way, and the figure in front of them helped a lot, as he seemed calm and confident.
But they were about to meet the God of the Dead, and no one could predict how this meeting would unfold.
Hopefully, everything would go well!