Chapter Text
Nico was exhausted beyond anything he’d ever imagined. He’d never even thought anyone could be as exhausted as he was right now. Even the nectar and ambrosia Hazel had fed him on their way to find Annabeth, had been exhausting to eat.
So when the floor of the cavern started to crumble, he knew something bad was going to happen to him.
“This floor won’t last,” Hazel warned. “The rest of us should get to the ladder.”
The chamber groaned again, and the cobwebs under their feet began to snap. Hazel lunged for the bottom of the rope ladder and gestured for Nico to follow, but Nico was in no condition to sprint. He slowly made his way over the smouldering ground, Percy and Annabeth right behind him.
Above them, Frank and Jason were flying around the Athena Parthenos, securing the statue with ropes. Slowly the giant Athena was pulled inside the Argo II.
Nico had just reached the rope ladder when he heard Percy asked Annabeth, “What is it?”
Suddenly Hazel shouted, “Her ankle! Cut it! Cut it!”
Nico’s mind was still fuzzy from exhaustion. Cut her ankle?
He turned to see Annabeth be dragged to the edge of the pit by her ankle. Cobwebs covered her foot. Percy lunged for her and caught her arm, but the momentum only got him dragged with.
“Help them!” Hazel shouted from above him, but he wasn’t sure if it was meant for him or the flying boys above them. His only thoughts were, no! They can’t fall! I have to help him!
Slowly, much too slow, he humbled after them. He wouldn’t reach them in time. They reached the edge.
But when Nico saw Annabeth and Percy falling over the edge of the cliff, a surge of adrenalin filled him and gave him just enough energy to leap forward and catch Annabeth’s other hand.
It was not enough.
Instead of only the golden couple of Camp Half-Blood plunging down into the pit, the son of Hades fell with them.
He heard Hazel scream above him, calling for Frank, Jason, anyone to help. Nico tightened his grip in Annabeth’s hand and reached out with the other in a silly attempt to hold on to something, anything, though even if he’d catch anything, he wouldn’t be able to hold on. He was too weak. Another idea came to him instead. He reached for his sword and managed to get it out, just as his other hand was ripped upwards. A loud crack sounded from his shoulder and he groaned in pain. He looked up and saw that Percy had managed to grip onto a tiny ledge above them, holding on only with one hand. He wouldn’t have enough strength to hold on for long, especially not when the cobwebs still was pulling in Annabeth’s ankle.
“No escape,” said a voice in the darkness below. “I go to Tartarus, and you will come too.” Nico didn’t know what it was, but the silk strings on Annabeth’s foot tightened and made the daughter of Athena cry out in pain. Percy’s face was strained from the effort to hold them up.
Nico did the only thing he could do and swung his sword to cut the silk strings over. A hiss sounded from the pit, but Percy’s face relaxed a bit. The green-eyed demigod looked down at him, a silent question in his eyes. Nico knew what he meant.
Do you have enough strength to shadow-travel?
He closed his eyes and focused on the shadows. They refused to obey his commands.
The son of Hades looked up on the older demigod and shook his head. “He’s too strong.”
Percy nodded as if he had expected that and looked up at Hazel, who was leaning over the edge, reaching down, though it was impossible. They were at least twenty feet down.
“Hazel!” Percy called. “The other side! Meet us there!”
Hazel’s eyes widened. Her golden eyes focused at her brother longer down. Nico nodded, trying to make her believe that she could do it.
“I know you can,” he told her, his voice barely a hoarse whisper, but Hazel understood.
“Okay,” she croaked. “I’ll try.”
Annabeth gave her a strained smile, gripping Nico’s hand harder. She looked down and met the exhausted and scared brown irises under her. “We can do it. You have us this time.” Her voice was soft and understanding.
She has no idea what await us, Nico thought grimly, but nodded anyways.
Percy looked down too, his eyes flickering from Nico to Annabeth and back again. An agreement passed between the three of them, and while Hazel screamed for the others to come and help, Percy let go of the ledge.