Confused by Time (Percy Jackson fanfic) (currently being rewritten)

Chapter 57 - Sting

Kronos eyed the scorpion climbing up his leg, not daring to move in case it caused the scorpion to sting him. Usually, he'd not care if a scorpion was going to sting him, but the type of scorpion - a Pit Scorpion from Tartarus - could cause severe pain to even an immortal. Kronos was no stranger to pain, but that didn't mean he liked it.

Ares had apparently grown very irritated over the past month, so irritated that he'd shoved the scorpion through the bottom of the cell before leaving. Kronos didn't know who knew it was in there with him, and he wasn't looking forward to the moment when it would sting him.

As soon as it had entered the cell, it had fixed those beady black eyes on him, scuttling closer to him even as he tried to keep moving around the cell to avoid it. But being in an enclosed space with a Pit scorpion was never a good idea.

It was about the size of a mortal hand, the body glistening black and reflecting the torchlight from outside in the corridor. And it was the same type of scorpion he'd instructed Luke to use on Percy over three centuries ago.

Kronos tried to slowly move until he had his knee against the floor, the scorpion sitting in obvious view on the top of his knee. Its stinger hovered in the air, the point tinged green from the poison on it.

As long as the scorpion didn't get bored, he could sit there however long was necessary.

His hand started tapping on the floor, drumming out a random rhythm. He supposed he was almost as bad as a demigod with his inability to sit still without having something to do. And with a poisonous scorpion on his leg, it was dangerous.

The scorpion shifted, its legs moving as it scuttled further up his leg to the inside of his thigh.

"Please no further," Kronos breathed, not wanting to know how much it would hurt to have the scorpion sting him there. "Look, you don't have to sting me. Can you go and sting Ares instead for me?" he asked hopefully. The scorpion lowered its tail. "No? Okay."

His brothers would be laughing at him if they knew what was happening, he thought fondly. If they knew he was speaking to a Pit Scorpion they'd laugh, then realise that it could sting him. Then they'd rush to get it off him.

Kronos stiffened, feeling it start to climb up his thigh to his hip, then to his chest. He could feel the little thing's legs through the fabric of his shirt and it made him uneasy. It reached the centre of his chest and settled down, beady eyes locked onto Kronos' own.

Kronos slowly started to move back, only to freeze when the scorpion scuttled to the left - it was just below his heart.

His hand fisted, before he swung at it when he saw the tail twitch. His punch sent it flying away to smash into the wall with a horrid screech which had Kronos shuddering. Kronos then pressed his hand to his chest, feeling a burning.

His hand came away covered in golden ichor.

Kronos pulled up his shirt, twisting his torso to see the thin line where the scorpion's stinger had pierced his skin. Yellow pus was already starting to seep out of the wound. Kronos cursed under his breath. What was the chance that a god would visit in the next sixty seconds? Not very good, by Kronos' estimate.

He knew the symptoms of a Pit Scorpion sting off by heart - every immortal did.

His vision blurred, the bars of his cell fading into a complete wall of bronze as he stumbled as close as he dared to the barrier of electricity.

For several seconds he stood there, his hand resting against the bars and a mere half inch away from the electricity, and then his vision faded. He could still feel the metal beneath his fingers - which were getter harder to move - so he knew the poison was just making him lose his vision.