Prodigiosum | PJO Genderbend - ✓

XV - νιξο

I didn't die.

The boulder was some sort of Key to another place, and I was moved to a separate chamber, standing solo in a poorly-carved part of the cave. I looked around. Circe was nowhere to be found.

I yelled into the chamber, baring my teeth and clenching my fists. My sword had probably been crushed by the boulder - guess I had to ask Hades for a new one if I ever even survived. Before long I was humming to myself.

It started off as a random tune - a tampered memory of a once lovely song that I remembered my mother used to sing to me and Bianca. It sounded a bit off-key, something that reminded me of nuts. Why nuts?

Oh, maybe because, at the end of the day, I was nuts. Mad. Crazy. Psycho. Gone. Wrong.

It was as if I could actually thread a song together using those words - and I could. Mad Matter by Melanie Martinez did the trick. It didn't make any sense for my situation, but that time I took it as if I was already dead and milling around trying to look like I was alive. That was mad.

A raspy giggle escaped my lips and I felt like I was really losing it. Besides, we were already at the end of everything. If I died it would be over. If I lived I'd have to live with pain.

Both emotional and physical.

Because, dear person, another thing that made me mad was the whole Prophecy thing. You actually thought that whatever I told them was the whole thing? No. You've got it all wrong.

Why was I talking to myself? I had to sing something in order not to slide off my only anchor to sanity.

"I'm nuts,

Baby, I'm mad.

The craziest friend

That you've ever had.

You think I'm psycho,

You think I'm gone,

Tell the psychiatrist

Something is wrong."

I found myself singing, not giving a care about anything. I crouched low against the wall, closing my eyes and, even though I was sure I had lost my common sense, tried expanding the walls of my power and getting out of the situation.

It didn't help.

The side of the chamber flickered black and white and a figure materialized. Circe had come.

She knew how to play fair - no sign of weapons on her, but I knew she was a goddess and extremely skilled in magic. She wore the same grin from the bigger arena and walked towards me.

"What's going on out there?" I demanded, standing up from my crouch. I reached for my sword then remembered I had no sword.

"Oh, Percia's having fun fighting off Dionysus," Circe replied with no hesitation. "Andrew and Henry are trying to get past Talia and Chrysanne, and the rest aren't faring well with the front of the battle." Then she focused on me intently, her eyes big as marbles, and mad as the hatter.

"And I'm going against you." She smiled, bringing her index finger up and tracing the edge of my jawline, tilting her head as she studied me.

"Small, useless child of Hades..." She trailed off, still looking at me. "Done so many things and your friends are the only ones remembered. You're only special now because of that boyfriend of yours. Nobody recognizes how much you really are...

"Your big, overrated idol is known around the camp from the start. The so-called 'Seven' only usually include that Reyna girl in their meet-ups. They're hailed as the main heroes of Olympus," then she paused her movements and stared into my dark eyes with such interest that I nearly flinched at the sight.