The Plea of Apollo || COMPLETED

SOLO QUEST: PT3

Broken chunks of obsidian rock made up the ground Nico was currently walking on. The air was acrid, and his heart hammered in his chest as he went farther and farther down the tunnel. For the love of Will he hated this tunnel. It had been where Gaea had invisibly drug him kicking and screaming all the way until he was thrown over the edge of the pit inside. He couldn't fight the combined power of her and Tartarus aiming for him to be sucked in. A demigod couldn't fight off two primordials at once; it was just impossible.

"Bob?" Nico called out as his steps began to slow. Another bend and it was a straight shot to the cavern, somewhere he did not want to go into if he didn't have to. When he received no answer though, he forged on.

The pit seemed to breathe as he stepped into the cavity of black rock and glass shards. Cautiously, the son of Hades surveyed the area until his eyes landed on someone lying on the ground. It was actually kind of hard to miss due to the sheer size of the being.

With skin a rusty red color and legs of a dragon, Nico recognized the giant from the way Percy and Annabeth spoke of him. It was because of this he felt no fear that he quickly ran over to the injured immortal. This giant, unlike the twins that had trapped him in a jar, would not hurt him. He had saved Percy and Annabeth, and they trusted him; that was good enough reason to help.

"Damasen?" Nico tested as he crouched next to his head. "If you're awake, I want you to know I am a friend of Percy and Annabeth's. My name is Nico di Angelo, son of Hades."

A deep, slightly ragged voice spoke in response, the giant's scarred eyelids fluttering to reveal pale eyes. "I have heard much about you from Bob, young one. He told me you are his greatest friend."

Shaking his head, Nico dismissed the compliment (although it did warm his heart a bit). "Where is he? Actually, before you answer that question, you look hurt. Is there anything I can—"

"Fret not, Nico." The giant cut him off, raising a hand to point in the direction the demigod had come from. "Bob went to get herbs to accelerate my healing. Tartarus shows no mercy to those that anger him, I am afraid. Constant injuries have affected my remarkable healing, reducing it to almost a mortal rate. Fatigue from fighting off the voices from the pit while lying this close to the edge does not help either."

The pit rumbled as if hearing the giant's words.

"Then I need to get you out of here."

"If only it were that easy. I can barely move while my body heals itself, and you cannot hope to get me out of here without Bob."

"Why didn't he get you out of here before now?"

Damasen sighed. "We only arrived shortly ago. Your friend wished to get something to help my sorry state before making my presence known to your father. He cannot sense my presence at the moment since the evil from the pit is overwhelming my own. Anyway, despite meaning no harm there are those that might not be aware of that. This is why Bob left to gather herbs, but time is strange here and I am worried that he might not know how long he has been gone."

Nico nodded in understanding. Hours in one part of the Underworld could mean days in another, and those days could mean weeks above ground.

"I could shadow travel us into my father's palace," Nico offered. "I could introduce you to him and ask if he could help your condition."

"No!" He shouted, causing Nico to freeze at the unexpected outburst. "Sorry for scaring you, but using that power this close to the edge could pull you into it. Tartarus is angry, don't you hear the whispers? He is unhappy Bob and I managed to escape."

Nico cursed under his breath. "We have no idea when he'll return though. Are you sure there's nothing I can do?"

"You can put up a decent fight before I end your puny life, son of Hades."