Child of Zeus {Interactive Story} (PJO/HOO/TOA)

NINETEEN: I'm Not a Penguin

Our Underworld journey only got worse when we saw another familiar face on our way out of the Fields of Punishment.

Diana didn't understand why Johnny and I had turned a shade of green, or why our breaths caught in our chest when the prisoner turned and saw us leaping over a lava stream into his domain.

Aethalides was looking scary as ever, copper skin no longer see-through but glowing faintly. His curly black hair was matted against his head from cold sweat, his large hands covering his ears as his ice-coloured eyes looked us up and down. His chiton looked like it'd been soiled several times over, and his crocodile teeth were bared at us in a resemblance to pain. His height was masked by him sitting on a small Dora the Explorer plastic chair that his butt didn't fit into properly.

He was positioned in front of a TV set, watching muted commercials and songs, each with an annoyingly catchy tune. There was old nyan cat, annoying orange laughing for fifteen seconds straight, a toothpaste commercial jingle, and Justin Bieber's Baby (What? My Mom used to like him as a kid; she made me watch all the music videos), to name a few.

"Oh my gods," Johnny exclaimed. "His punishment is to listen to every annoying thing in the world, because he won't ever be able to forget it!"

"There's no sound, though." Diana pointed out.

I met Aethalides' eyes again, and realized they weren't focused on me, but clouded over like he was looking right through me. The onslaught of an insane man.

I forced my eyes away, looking at the ground separating us, when I noticed a small but acknowledgeable line in the dirt, dividing us. Following it, I saw that the line connected to two others on either end, connecting to one opposite it. It was a square.

"He's in an invisible box. A barrier so he can't escape." I said. "That's why it's silent and we can't hear."

"Come on, we need to keep moving." Diana insisted. Mesmerized, I took a step towards the barrier.

"Hang on, what happens if I..." I reached out my hand, and as soon as it collided with the invisible wall separating us my ears erupted into pain. It was like a bomb had gone off. There was ringing, static, the underplaying of the toothpaste commercial.

Before I realized what was happening, I was on my butt several feet away, twelve centimetres from burning in a lava divider, clutching my still-ringing ears the same way Aethalides had been.

Johnny rushed to my side, helping me up in a valiant tug. I pried my hands off my ears, gritting my teeth.

"Are you okay?" Johnny asked.

"What happened?" Diana questioned. "What happened when you touched the barrier? Did you get electrocuted? Did you heard the annoying things on the TV?"

"Static." I muttered, pushing past. I had decidedly had enough of the Fields of Punishment, having been punished twice within it's confines already. "Ringing. Toothpaste. Nyan. Come on. Like you said. Let's go."

~

We made our way past a large tent where trials were being held. Security detail gave us odd looks as we passed, but otherwise ignored us. New hope stirred within me; maybe they hadn't stopped us because Hades was giving us free rein. Maybe we wouldn't have to worry about getting past Cerberus because Hades would take care of it.

Like many, many, many times before, I was very wrong. We got within a mile radius behind him, and he turned and started angrily barking. I guess he could smell the living? Or perhaps he just knew our intentions were to leave, and that wasn't cool with him. Either way, we weren't getting past that dog any time soon.