Book 3 - The Titans Curse
It had been three days.
Ayden didn't know that. She had been using all of her strength and concentration to tell herself to breathe. The feeling of claustrophobia was starting to set in. She tried to take each moment slowly. She didn't want to know how long she'd been there. She just wanted to survive. She didn't want to die by being crushed between the earth and the sky.
She wanted to go back to the cabin with the primes, she wanted to go home to Camp Half-Blood, and more than anything she just wanted to go home to Percy. It was selfish and she knew that. She had to worry about many other things, but somehow when she needed a little sliver of hope her mind was going to Percy.
"You're alive," Ki chuckled. Ayden adjusted her stance forcing her down to a knee once more. "Oh sorry, didn't mean to startle you."
"Give Ki his body back."
"This is Ki." He leaned forward giving her a cheeky grin. "How have you not realized that yet? I've given you three days to think." Ayden groaned as she looked up at him.
"No," She grimaced. "You're not."
"Ayden, I know this is hard to believe, but it's true. Kronos is still sleeping in the sarcophagus, this is me Malaki." Ki put a hand to his chest. "Just like that is Cameron and Luke." He gestured over his shoulder.
"No," Ayden shook her head. "I refuse to believe that. Where is Annabeth?"
"This isn't the way to go about this, you said that, I said that, and even Cameron said that."
"At some point, yeah, but it's not the same anymore. Things have changed, things have to change," Ki took a few steps closer. "How heavy is the sky?"
"I don't know, you come here and tell me?" Ayden asked as Ki laughed at her. She tried not to let the situation get ot her head. She was barely holding herself up. If she lost focus she would drop it.
"I bet it's really heavy," Ki knelt down a few feet in front of her. "So heavy it feels like it's breaking your spine, that your bones are melting, maybe your vision blurs here and there. You can't focus on anything else but the weight."
"Ki, we don't have to do this," Ayden's voice wavered as she struggled to take a deep breath.
"I do," He nodded. "I need you with me."
"Why?"
"I need you to see that the gods don't care for you," Ki pushed himself up. "They've tried to kill you on more than one occasion."
"Yes, the Olympians are like that."
"Your new friends too," Ki crossed his arms. "You have strong connections Ayden, but they are still gods. They will not save you."
"So that's what this is," Ayden stifled a laugh. "It's not their job to constantly save me." The rocks shifted on Ayden's back making her grimace.
"Call your family, Ayden. Have them save you because no one else is coming. Not Percy, not Annabeth, not your father, Cameron nor I will help you, no one." Ayden closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. She just kept repeating that she was fine and this was just like hard training. She was fine and this was training. She had to hold out a little longer.
***
Another day had passed.
"Here we are," Ki clapped his hands together as she showed his prize. Ayden didn't open her eyes she didn't move. If she moved this sky would crush her and she couldn't risk that. She had to stay still.
"I refuse." Ayden knew the voice, but she still didn't open her eyes.
"Are you saying that you won't save a Maiden? Artemis?" Ki asked. He almost sounded surprised by Artemis's refusal.
"You said it yourself, no one is coming to save me." Hayden wanted to laugh. They had to pick the one person who had actually shot her in the back. She was going to die under the sky. The one thing she wanted was to be able to see a few stars if she did. To her the sky looked like a boulder, if it was going to crush her she needed to see a few constellations first.
"Let them sit in each other's company," Atlas came forward. She couldn't see him since she was too far under the sky to move her head. Ki and he left Artemis with Ayden as she struggled.
"Do you understand what you're doing?" Artemis glared at the other girl. She could see the blood running from her nose and ears. She could see how pale her skin had become.
"Yes."
"And you took it?" Artemis looked over her shoulder at the others as they talked near the golden sarcophagus.
"Annabeth took it," Ayden grimaced as she looked up. She saw the chains around the goddess' ankles and wrists. "I would say go save her, but you clearly aren't good at being a goddess."
"If you were nicer maybe I would help you." Both of them were silent. "The blood from your eyes, do you know where that's from?"
"I'm dying."
"Misery." Artemis studied the girl. She could see the symbols peaking out under her sleeves as she fought for her life. Ayden barely shifted as she stared at the goddess. "It's from Achlys. She healed you from my arrow."
"She did."
"That's taken part of your life. You do understand that right?"
"I didn't have much choice." Ayden grimaced as the rock shifted. She let out a long grumble as her bones ached.
"I gave you that choice. Die by my hand and be free. you are the one that doomed yourself to this life, to this situation." Ayden wanted to flip her off and if she had a free hand she would, but she settled for glaring at the goddess instead. "You have no idea what you are doing. You don't understand what the primordial gods are like."
"If they help me save my friends I could care less," Ayden closed her eyes once more pushing out another stream of blood from her tear ducts.
"You should care more for your future." Artemis's chains dug across the ground as she moved closer.
"I won't have one," She breathed. "Not with all of you out for my head." It was silent again.
"Your friend wouldn't shut up about me shooting you," Artemis admitted. "I started to regret it."
"Who? Which one I mean, which friend?" Ayden shifted under the rock. She moved an inch wrong making the sky crush her spine and she let out a horrid cry.
"Percy Jackson, I thought the kid was going to attack me for a few minutes," Artemis moved again making the chains scrape against the floor. Ayden smirked a little, the pain was worth it just to hear that from her mouth. Percy Jackson. "I won't take the sky from you."
"Never asked you to."
"Surprised your protectors aren't here?" Artemis looked around the mountain again. Ayden was annoyed by the fact that the goddess was trying to talk to her when she'd been holding up the sky for days. Ayden can't do too many things at once. It would pull her focus and she could die, but at the same time, she was thankful for a slight break.
"Who?"
"Chaos and Aion, didn't they attack Zeus for you?" Artemis asked. Ayden wanted to laugh at her. They were both sitting together. One was chained up and the other was trapped under the sky and they were making conversation. It hit Ayden that Zeus told lies about the encounter because no one attacked Zeus. He attacked her. Chaos and Aion only appeared to protect her from his wrath.
"No, they protected me from him." Silence again. "A child born from a broken mother and an angry father. A creature of chaos and vengeance. A demigod child born to change the path of Olympus, to keep fear in the hearts of the gods. That's why you hate me, isn't it?" Ayden asked. She recited what Delphi had spoken to her all those months ago when she left to find the primordial gods.
"God killer." Artemis spat.
"I have no claim to that title."
"You could," Artemis looked around. "We've given you every reason to."
"Yes, and I haven't," Ayden spit out the blood that had flooded her mouth. A small pile was at the goddess's feet. "Give me more credit."
"A conduit."
"No."
"You are one but not the other, but you will be, it's already been foretold," Artemis turned her head seeing Cameron walk toward them. "You are a disgrace young maiden."
"I'm not the one in chains," Cameron smirked at the goddess. "Ayden, don't you see that they will not stop until you're dead." Ayden didn't respond, she was busy trying to keep herself from passing out.
"You killed your mother, you threatened your father, you threatened the gods. Just come back to us, Ki and I are waiting for you to see that this is right. It seems crazy, but it's the right thing to do. The gods have to learn that they aren't allowed to use us like pawns, we are people, we are their children and they are responsible for us."
"Demeter was a wonderful mother to you," Artemis added.
"No, she wasn't," Cameron denied. "She did not save me from him. She did nothing to help me."
"So you killed him? That was your solution, I admired that about you, but this is insanity."
"Wait killed who?" Ayden asked. She looked at Cameron seeing her friend's face change. Ayden didn't know what to believe anymore, she didn't know who to trust anymore. Her world was crushing her.
"My uncle," Cameron told her. She took a few steps forward. "I killed him, it wasn't my father. I killed my uncle when I finally realized no one was going to help me, I framed my father and he went to jail for turning a blind eye to what he did to me. They got everything that was coming for them." Ayden wanted to shake her head. She tried to keep the confusion off her face, but she couldn't control her body anymore. She was too tired. "Yes, I lied, Ayden. Everyone lies. We all lie. They lie." She pointed at Artemis. "They lie more than anyone."
"Cameron, what?" Ayden collapsed onto her knees once more. "But you—there's no way. You couldn't have—."
"I did." Cameron crossed her arms. "You can judge me if you want, but you have no idea what it was like growing up. How often I prayed that something would take me out of this world. That someone would save me from him. That something would happen to him."
"The gods can't intervene with mortal affairs," Artemis reasoned. Cameron glared at her.
"You could have come offered me a spot on your cheer squad, but no. My mother never showed her face. No one helped me. So I did it myself." Cameron looked back down at Ayden. "I didn't tell you the truth 'cause I knew you wouldn't understand."
"I do," Ayden struggled. "I do, but if you would have just—."
"I'm a monster in your eyes, just admit it!"
"No!" Ayden's voice echoed around the mountain. "Stop." The bloody tears left Ayden's eyes. "Cameron please, please. Just work with me. You're my—we're friends. Please, you helped me through my toughest time. I thought we were like family."
"Let's be honest none of us really knows what that means anymore. We just throw the word around because we're all forced to be happy with one another trauma, but we've had enough. You've had enough Ayden," Cameron knelt down in front of her. "Just admit it."
"Cameron," Ayden looked at her. The two of them see themselves in a mirror. Cameron was Ayden's breaking point, while Ayden still held onto the hope that things could get better. Similar to a young Cameron. She reached forward wiping some of the blood off Ayden's cheek as her entire body shook from the pressure of the sky. "I—I love you." She sobbed.
"Let me help you," Cameron whispered to her. "Family?" Ayden had a few seconds to find her decision.
"I'm sorry." Ayden reached out with one hand and teleported into Cameron's place as Cameron took the weight of the sky on her shoulders.
"No," She struggled. "This isn't possible. You have to be willing to take the weight." Ayden fell onto her back as she struggled to take a full breath.
"You wanted to help her. Shouldn't get too close," Artemis chuckled. "Stupid girl." Ayden pushed herself up looking at the celestial chains. Artemis was chained to the ground a few feet from the sky. She struggled to move closer. The goddess flinched away thinking Ayden was going after her, but she realized she was trying to break the chains. "You are too weak."
"It's fine," Ayden muttered as she yanked at the celestial steel. She pulled the knife from her pocket and rolled up her sleeve ready to cut Chaos's mark.
"You've branded yourself," Artemis stared at her markings. "With all their markings?" Ayden cut Chaos's mark and Achlys's once more.
"Achlys, Chaos, please." She muttered. Ayden held the chain in her hands feeling it dissolve. Artemis was astonished by her ability to dissolve the chain that easily, but it went away when someone appeared from the darkness.
"Can't have that!" Ayden's body was yanked back into the darkness as she threw her hands out sending a black wave at Ki sending his body flying. Ayden's vision blurred as she saw someone come up beside her. A dark-skinned man with a giant grin. Atlas. She tried to force herself to stay awake, but she couldn't. She could hear yelling, but it muffled out into a constant ring as she blacked out.