Trapped | ✓

Chapter 16

To think back on it, it was funny when I thought we were winning.

I mean, at first, we kinda were. My sword shot out into my hand so fast it hit Phobos in the face as he shook off his daze and lunged towards me. I seized the opportunity and advanced, sending him closer to the wall of the café shop.

I brought my sword to his throat.
"Go ahead," I hissed, my teeth bared. "Cover the globe in spiders for all I care. It's. Not. Real. You're a joke." I spat.

"That's all you got?" He snickered.

"Is that all you got? Trying to make me scared?" I chuckled. "How are good are you at swordplay, Phobos?"

Pure hatred glowed in his eyes. "Hallucinations are a powerful thing, Emily Jackson. I can show you the thing you fear most, and make it so vividly real you won't be able to tell the difference."

"What if I kill you before you can try?" I threatened, poking my sword forward, causing another step backwards from my foe.

"You don't want to lose this, do you? You can't afford to." He taunted. "Everyone has fears. And I am fear itself. What can you do to stop me?" His face contorted in a gruesome, twisted smile, and he suddenly disappeared.

A hand clamped around my mouth, and a sword snaked its way across my neck. I lost my footing, and fell backwards. Phobos pulled me towards him and whispered into my ear, "You see the sword? Swordplay. I think I'm winning," he chuckled. I attempted to shout, but I couldn't see any of my friends anywhere near close enough to hear. Had they all gone to find Deimos? Wouldn't they know better not to leave me on my own, what with all the trouble I had gotten myself into today already?

Then a figure materialised from the shadow of a building. Another hellhound? Now? Come on.

But it wasn't a hellhound, I soon discovered.
"That's my cousin," seethed Nico Di Angelo, his Stygian Iron sword drawn.

I sighed with relief. Nico glared daggers at Phobos, and suddenly disappeared. Phobos, turned, confused, dragging me around with him. I struggled, but he was too strong. He was a god, after all.

And then there was a lot of scuffling behind me, and so I struggled again to get free. No luck. Holy Hephaestus, how weak am I?
I continued to writhe around, and Phobos was struggling to shake off Nico and not let me escape.

Alright, where on earth could seven demigods roaming the street in the mortal world have gone to? Quite frankly, I was pretty annoyed with them. I mean, seriously, Nico and I could use a little back-up right now!

Phobos decided it was a good time to use his cowardly teleporting trick. However, I had to experience it. The world spiralled into blackness, and I felt like I was drowning, choking without any air. Just when I felt my lungs giving up, we materialised on a roof, and I attempted to suck in a big breath of fresh air. Well, as much as I could with Phobos' grimy hand covering my mouth.

Nico, down on the ground below us, raised his sword once more to find his opponent had chickened out and ran away yet again. He turned a quick circle, then looked up and spotted us immediately. Phobos strolled over to roof's edge, and took his hand away from my mouth. I sighed heavily, coughed and spluttered, and went to take a step away, before I remembered the sword still against my throat.

Phobos shouted down to Nico. "You're doing a great job of beating me down there, all of you. Oh hang on, weren't there more of you before? Where've your friends gone?" He snickered.

"What've you done with them?" Nico said, his voice deadly quiet.

I thought that would be a good time to kick Phobos in the shins, as a plan formed in my head, but it soon evaporated as Phobos took another leisurely step towards the edge. A squeal escaped my lips as my feet slipped off the end. As they did so, Phobos wrapped his arm around my waist, thank the gods, to stop me falling. He was just teasing, trying to anger Nico, or the others, if they were to come back. I was the bait now, the hostage. Still, I suddenly didn't want Phobos to let go of me anymore. I wouldn't be prepared to land this drop immediately, and I couldn't afford to break my leg twice in one day.

I noticed something then that lifted my spirits, then crushed them further. It was my friends, all of them, striding out of an alleyway onto the street.

Except they weren't striding.

Leo Valdez lay unconscious, dragged along with his arm tossed around Jason, who held Piper in his arms, shivering and shaking, her head buried in his chest. Jason didn't look so good either. He was muttering deliriously to himself.
Frank and Hazel walked along, eyes fixed on the ground, holding hands, not paying any attention to anything, as though they were affected by mind control.

But when I saw Percy and Annabeth, I bit back a sob. It wasn't my brother and his girlfriend I saw down there on the street.

Percy was in a clear state of what was like shell shock. Percy Jackson, my brother, the greatest demigod of our generation, looked positively insane. His breathing was shallow, his eyes sunken and lifeless, but afraid. He was violently shaking, and walked in tiny, slow steps. Annabeth was much the same, using Percy to support herself while she staggered along.

Following them was a huge, bulked monster, laughing and striding purposefully amongst my damaged friends.

"Ah Deimos, for once you've done your job well."

Jason looked up and saw me. I saw him nudge Annabeth slightly, and she followed his gaze. They began muttering something I certainly couldn't hear. The two of them seemed to be the only two in their right minds, just about.

I was done waiting. I wanted out. I kicked and screamed and flailed around in Phobos' grip.
"Get off me!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. "Let me down!"

"You're the dumbest demigod I've come across, Emily Jackson. I mean, I'd love to see you break a bone or two, but that would mean you're out of my grasp. And I want you to suffer. I want you to die with your worst nightmares fresh in your mind, playing over on repeat, the last thought in your head."

Whilst he spoke, I attempted to wriggle my arms free. He didn't seem to notice.

"I want you die, Emily. In the worst possible way. I'll tell you a secret. I really. Hate. Demigods."

I managed to get my hands free. I tapped the gem on my ring, and my sword fell into my palm. I smacked away the sword at my neck, and used my sword to keep it back.

"Guess what, bitch? I'm mortal." And with that, I quickly jabbed it into the god's other arm, the one around my waist. A couple of drops of golden ichor ran from the wound, and he yelled out and let go.

My hair whipped around my face, and the wind whistled in my ears as I descended the short but surely painful fall to the ground.