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Chapter Text

DEEP DOWN, MAYA knew she didn't want to die, which was the reason why she kept fighting every day.

Day and night blurred together after a while of being down here. She didn't know how long it's been, but what she did know was that she had more experience slaying monsters than she would ever have had she stayed there.

Maya no longer scared easily, already used to the darkness, already used to the sporadic monster reforming in front of her that she stabbed without a second thought.

Maya was tired but she knew she still had fight left on her, her powers always saved her at the last minute.

Unfortunately.

That day - or night, who cares? - wasn't different, having caught off guard by a reformed violent harpy that scratched at her face and arms. The harpy was about to land the definite blow when the monster froze up, tensing.

Maya panted heavily underneath the monster, staring intently at the harpy with blood running down the sides of her cheeks.

The harpy screeched, turning its own claws to its stomach and Maya seized the opportunity to sit up and run her celestial bronze blade cleanly through the harpy’s neck, showering her with a wave of yellow dust.

The demigod coughed for air, doubling over in relief, laying briefly in the stingy sand ground, the prickles of pain in her skin being a welcoming sensation as she rested her aching and sore muscles.

"No more naps" Maya grumbled to herself, rolling over her back to stare up at the red-greyish sky. "At least not until I get there"

With difficulty, Maya struggled to stand up, using her dagger as support, cracking the muscles of her body and limping to the river in front of her, dropping to her knees at the bank, cupping scalding fiery water which no longer made her flinch and she splashed her face with it. Her pale face turned red and she winced briefly, feeling her skin slowly and painfully fix itself. Once done, she poured another handful of water to her lips, drinking it. The cuts she gained from fighting in glassy terrain with the harpy slowly disappeared and so Maya, now feeling a bit better, sat back, placing her hands behind her to lean back as she took a moment to reflect on her fight.

The harpy had been a nice welcoming present, believe it or not.

She was lonely, sue her.

Monsters lately had been absent when they used to crawl over every inch of land, making her survival hard to manage. Because of time running differently, Maya didn't know how long it was but from one day to the other, monsters reforming had a different goal into reaching the heart of the land, her flesh no longer a priority when a bigger goal was in sight.

Maya had seen those doors. She had been tempted on trying to slip through them but she wasn't stupid to go there on her own with just her dagger when it was crawling with monsters. Her dagger was her most precious weapon of destruction, even going as far as to turn monsters against each other but she didn't know if it would work against hundreds of them. Going there was suicidal.

She wanted to die but not like that. 

A sudden crash snapped her out of her thoughts, turning her head to the side, gaze flickering up to see some weird object crashing into a sharp mountain then down towards another riverline.

Maya's lips pursed, pushing her sore body to her feet, her knuckles white around the hilt of her blade. It wasn't thoroughly uncommon to see objects falling into tartarus some days, but something about this caught her attention for some reason.

Her instincts told her to investigate. And so, with a new goal in mind, Maya slowly walked all the way through this river line, keeping her eyes on the horizon where the object landed. So focused she was into reaching her destination that she didn't notice the new objects falling from the sky until suddenly the river below her erupted high into the air into a massive geyser.

Maya no longer felt surprised nor scared about anything but she couldn't deny the way she froze mid step with widening eyes as the water went back down to normalcy.

It took her body a moment to respond but adrenaline suddenly burst through her veins and with newfound energy she didn't know where it came from, Maya found herself running straight to the explosive water.

She wouldn't be surprised if this was another trick from tartarus to crush her spirits.

Chapter Text

MAYA arrived at the site of the water explosion, her skin coated with a thin layer of sweat and dirt that was no longer uncomfortable for her, if anything it felt refreshing against the hot, damp and acidic air that was meant to kill people like her.

Her eyes swiped across the river in search of what caused the water to erupt, dropping to her knees at the shore, pursing her lips at the fact this was another river she was used to seeing.

It made her skin crawl in a way it hadn't done in a long time.

She could hear the wailing from where she stood and with a grimace, she realized that she was standing by Cocytus, the River of Lamentation.

She hated with passion this river.

"Percy!"

Maya lifted her head to hear a girl's voice shrieking from within the river. She searched, finding a swirling whirlpool in the middle of the river. People.

They had fallen.

Just like her.

Maya's heart raced in a way that hadn't in ages. It was not of fear or anger, it was something else. A foreign sensation spreading through every cell on her hot wired body.

Maya could see the figures in the water struggling to stay afloat. She stood, slightly impressed. They were fighting against the misery of the river. She could try and help them.

Unless...

Maya hesitated. It wouldn't have been the first time Tartarus tricked her. She shook her head, turning away. If that were the case, she would run her dagger through their stomachs right before making them turn against each other 'till the border of death. She's done it before, she wouldn't hesitate on doing it again.

The sound of laughter was what startled her to whip around with her dagger poised ready to strike. The sight that met her eyes was alluring.

No one laughed in Tartarus, not that way. The memory of genuine laughter was foggy at best, Maya had forgotten how to even make that sound. She lowered her dagger.

Maya jogged closer in order to help the girl and the boy to lift themselves out of the water, stepping back from them once they did so, watching them gasp for air and collapse in the dark sand, her dagger ready to be used against them if necessary.

They hadn't seen her yet.

As the girl struggled to sit up, Maya noticed her arms were covered in an angry rash. She glanced at her own arms, covered with old cuts and scars, but no rash. She had really gotten used to the hurting atmosphere of Tartarus, unlike them.

The girl tried to sit up, gasping in pain.

"Yeah, everything here is designed to hurt you" Maya said bluntly as the girl examined the sand which wasn't really sand but jagged black-glass chips.

The girl's breathing was ragged and painful and hearing her own, which was partly the same, she knew it was because of the acidic air. Not that it affected Maya anymore.

The girl whipped her head at the sound of Maya's voice, tensing. She supposed she was a sight to behold for the girl. Maya was in ragged and torn clothes, tangled and messy, greasy braids, skin dirty and cut and looking like she crawled under a hellish rock, which most likely happened a couple of days, - weeks? - Ago.

What caught the girl's attention was Maya's celestial bronze dagger which Maya tightened her grip on it once the girl's gray eyes flickered to it.

Next to the tense girls, the boy coughed, "This place smells like my ex-stepfather"

The girl tore her eyes from Maya in order to look at the boy with a weak smile.

"Welcome to Tartarus" Maya said without a glimpse of a smile.

The girl tensed again at her voice, turning to face her but Maya was already walking away from them.

"Wait" the girl called out. Maya stopped walking, glancing at the girl over her shoulder. "You're a half blood"

Maya pursed her lips, the bubbling sensation of her powers underneath her skin, ready to be used if she needed it. She didn't answer, though.

"You know how to survive down here" the girl continued, undeterred about her silence. She struggled to shake the boy awake. Maya looked at him briefly. He looked bad.

"You need to find the River of Fire" Maya told her after a moment into which the boy open his eyes. "Only way to somewhat heal yourselves"

The boy struggled to stand up, finally noticing Maya's presence, tensing.

"You know where it is" the girl sounded desperate, recognition sparkling in her eyes. She knew what river Maya was talking about.

Maya shrugged, resuming her walk away from them.

"Can you help us?" this time the boy spoke, his voice sounded shaky and as she looked back, she saw him shivering, lips turning blue but he looked determined, a will of survival she has felt in herself and looking at the girl, she looked the same.

They both looked weary and fearful but just like her, they still had fight within them. They held tightly into each other as if their lives depended on each other and Maya found herself reluctantly wanting to help them.

"I suppose" Maya said warily, looking between them. She gestured at the cliff ahead, "It's over that cliff"

They followed her gaze, unable to see what was below, the edge flickering with red light as if illuminated by huge fires.

They slowly began to follow the girl once she started walking over there.

However, Maya stopped at the boy's sharp inhale, "Look"

Maya turned slightly, following his finger where he pointed downstream. She blinked in recognition.

It was the object she saw falling earlier, laying a hundred feet away, a baby blue car which had crashed headfirst into the sand.

"I saw it fall" Maya's gruff voice made the couple look her way, seeing the vague interest in her dark eyes.

The three of them made their way to the wreckage - two out of the three stumbling instead of walking-.

Maya lifted a hand for the couple so they would hang back. They didn't really know the dangers crawling over Tartarus yet like she did. She made her way further, seeing the shattered windows. One of the car's tires was floating in the water. Under the crushed hood laid some tattered, glistening remains of what seemed giant silk spider web. No monster was on sight, though Maya was able to see a few slash marks in the sand, making a trail downriver.

Maya clicked her tongue. It looked like a heavy spider monster had scuttled away into darkness.

"It's gone" Maya told them, relaxing her tense posture, turning to face them, confused at the horror in their faces. "What?"

"She's alive" the girl whispered in horror and rage.

"It's Tartarus" the boy pointed out. "Monster home court. Down here, maybe they can't be killed"

"They do get killed" Maya corrected, "But they reform fast. Luckily for us, they don't reform in the same place you killed them"

"That's reassuring" The girl looked slightly less likely to throw up.

The boy glanced at Maya with a look she couldn't decipher, giving her a slight nod.

“If it survived, whatever it is, it looks wounded” Maya said, gesturing at the slash marks. Several marks looked like dragged marks, as if some of the monster's legs were dragged behind it as it crawled off. "There are worse monsters that pray on even their own kind, mostly if they look weak"

The couple behind her exchanged nervous looks.

"We need-" the girl's breath sounded even more ragged.

Sweat covered their skins and they were shivering too. Their cuts kept bleeding on them. The both of them stumbled on their feet as their breathing got more and more labored.

Maya realized they desperately needed the River of Fire.

Maya cursed under her breath; "This way"

Maya led the way to the cliff, stopping right at the ledge of the cliff, waiting impatiently for them to catch up.

The girl glanced at the illuminated flames below them, still a few feet away, "Is it true...?"

The boy looked between the two girls, "What? You've got a brilliant plan, don't you Annabeth? This… other river thing this girl, uh-"

"Maya" Maya grumbled at the boy's questionably look.

"Maya" the boy repeated, "That Maya mentioned earlier?"

"It's a plan" Annabeth murmured, looking back at the girl, Maya, seeing her flicker her eyes everywhere, never stopping in one place for more than a couple of seconds as if she knew they were too exposed where they were.

"It's a stupid plan" Maya told them, her breathing labored. She needed the River water too. "But it's the only way to survive down here"

Annabeth nodded in agreement, looking at the boy who gave Maya a doubtful and distrusting look. "She's right, Percy"

The boy, Percy nodded slightly, and so they reached the ledge.

Chapter Text

MAYA watched them as they leaned forward to observe the fall of the cliff under them with wary and scared expressions. She had been like them once, when she first noticed the eighty feet fall, certain she'd signed her death sentence.

And well, because they just fell into Tartarus. Anyone would be traumatized from such fall.

Looking down herself, Maya saw the bottom of the River of Fire cutting a path through a jagged obsidian crevasse, the glowing red current casting shadows across the cliff faces. Maya could feel the intense heat from even up there.

Maya glanced at Percy and Annabeth as they observed the scene under them. She didn't bother examining their appearances anymore, knowing they looked really bad. Every breath took more effort the longer the chill of the River Cocytus dragged them down.

"Uh..." Percy examined the cliff. He pointed to a tiny fissure running diagonally from the edge to the bottom. "We can try that ledge there. Might be able to climb down" He sounded weird to Maya, giving him a dumbfounded look but Annabeth looked grateful for the tone of his voice.

"I'll go first" Maya offered.

At first, Percy looked hesitant but when he swayed slightly, he nodded slowly.

Maya strapped her dagger to her waistline, going down first. The ledge was barely wide enough to allow a toehold. She carefully looked for the most steady cracks in the glassy rock, quietly pointing them out to Percy who had gone down second after her. He never answered but whenever Maya looked up, she noticed he'd actually followed her instructions.

She didn't know what to think about that trust they both were putting on her.

A few steps above Maya, Percy grunted as he reached for another handhold the girl below him instructed him to, "So... what is this fire river called?"

Maya wasn't sure if the question was directed her way so she remained quiet.

"The Phlegethon," Annabeth told him. "You should concentrate on going down"

"The Phlegethon?" Percy repeated as he shinnied along the ledge. They'd made it roughly a third of the way down the cliff, still high enough up to die if they fell "Sounds like a marathon for hawking spitballs"

Maya scrunched her nose, confused.

"Please don't make me laugh" Annabeth told him.

"Just trying to keep things light" Percy defended himself.

Below him, Percy heard the girl slip slightly, hearing her grunt in surprise.

"Thanks," Annabeth grunted above him. "I'll have a smile on my face as I plummet to my death"

Percy risked the chance of a fall to glance down at the girl who had a crease in her eyebrows as her lips pursed. There was no smile on her face, nor any sign she found his attempt of humor, well humorous.

They kept going, one step at a time until they made it to the bottom of the cliff.

Maya jumped the last meter, feet touching the ground with a thud as she landed in a crouch and she immediately unsheathed her dagger while she waited for Annabeth and Percy to reach the ground.

"Just a few feet" Maya told them once they landed, glancing around, making sure they wouldn't be ambushed.

Maya heard them behind her as she walked around massive boulders and sharp stalagmites but didn't bother checking on them. She's been deprived of human company for so long, she forgot what it meant looking out for another.

She knelt at the banks of the Phlegethon, ignoring the steamy hot air caressing her face. She placed her cupped hands on the fiery waters, the coldness being very welcoming on first contact, which was a contradicting sensation as this was the River of Fire but Maya always shoved aside the logics of it because after a couple of seconds, she could feel the blisters in her hands starting to fade away and so she drank the fiery water as Annabeth and Percy crumpled to their knees next to her.

Maya just coughed a couple of times, feeling her mouth and tongue being deeply fried, until she felt herself being able to breathe better.

"You both have to drink" Maya told them, clearing her throat, feeling a sting in her empty stomach and a wave of nausea that left as fast as it came.

Percy swayed, his eyes half-closed. It took him a three-count to respond. "Uh... drink fire?"

"The Phlegethon flows from Hades's realm down into Tartarus" Annabeth struggled to explain, barely able to talk. Her throat seemed to be closing up from the heat and the acidic air. "The river is used to punish the wicked. But also…some legends call it the River of Healing"

"Some legends?" Percy asked.

Annabeth swallowed, trying to stay conscious. "The Phlegethon keeps the wicked in one piece so that they can endure the torments of the Fields of Punishment. I think…it might be the Underworld equivalent of ambrosia and nectar"

Percy winced as cinders sprayed from the river, curling around his face. "But it's fire" he stressed weakly, "How can we-"

"Like this" Annabeth thrust her hands into the river.

Maya shook her head. Very stupid.

She had to ease down a bit the exposure to the fire liquid.

Percy looked like he was going to pull Annabeth away from the water so Maya quickly went behind him to restrain him. He barely put up a fight, unable to fight against her strength as Annabeth drank the water from her cupped hands.

"She'll be fine" Maya told Percy as Annabeth suddenly collapsed, gagging and retching.

"Annabeth!" Percy exclaimed in worry, struggling against the girl's grip as Annabeth shook violently in the ground. "You call that fine?!"

Maya observed Annabeth convulsing for a second, shrugging, "Yeah"

Still, she went to restraint Percy with one hand while she snapped the other to grab one of Annabeth's arms, pulling her back so she would roll on the ground and not into the river.

"Look" Maya snapped, Percy going limp on her arms as Annabeth stopped convulsing.

Annabeth took a ragged breath as she managed to sit up, the next time she breathed in, it came more easily which Maya knew exactly that feeling. Maya watched the blisters in Annabeth's arms starting to fade.

"It worked" Annabeth croaked.

"I told you" Maya murmured.

Annabeth looked at the boy in Maya's arms, "Percy, you've got to drink"

Percy looked surprised, "I..."

Suddenly, his eyes rolled up in his head, slumping against Maya.

Maya gasped at the death weight pulling her down, instinctively holding him up, awkwardly falling to her knees, letting Percy lay gently on the ground as Annabeth desperately cupped more fire in her palm, dripping the liquid into Percy's mouth. He didn't respond. She tried again, pouring a whole handful down his throat.

This time Percy spluttered and coughed.

Maya pulled back and stood as Annabeth held Percy as he trembled, the magical fire coursing through his system. His fever disappeared. His boils faded.

Percy managed to sit up after a moment, smacking his lips. "Ugh" he said. "Spicy, yet disgusting"

Annabeth laughed weakly. "Yeah. That pretty much sums it up"

Maya walked around the perimeter, keeping an eye for any danger.

"You saved us" Percy said.

Annabeth glanced at Maya, "Not just me" Percy followed her gaze, nodding. She didn't have to help them, yet she did. "The problem is, we're still in Tartarus"

"Holy Hera" Percy exclaimed from behind Maya, "I never thought…well, I'm not sure what I thought. Maybe that Tartarus was empty space, a pit with no bottom. But this is a real place"

"You haven't seen all of it" Maya said, turning back, walking closer to them.

Annabeth nodded, pointing at Maya, "This could be just the first tiny part of the abyss, like the front steps"

"The welcome mat" Percy muttered.

Annabeth and Percy gazed up at the blood-colored clouds swirling in the gray haze.

Maya sighed, twirling lightly her dagger not at any point relaxed enough she'd drop it as she gave another sweep with her eyes for any sort of danger.

"We'll find a way out" Percy said. "The Doors of Death"

Maya snapped her head to them, "What did you say?"

Annabeth and Percy exchanged a look, hesitantly.

"The Doors of Death" Percy said slowly. "Have you heard of them?"

"Those doors I chased that cyclops to?" they heard Maya murmur to herself.

"You know where they are" Annabeth scattered to her feet, staring at the girl intently.

"I think I've seen them once" Maya said, pursing her lips, "If those are even the same doors you're looking for"

"Monsters go through them to go topside" Percy told her, standing with the help of Annabeth, "The moment we kill them, they keep coming back through them. They're guarded by some strong monsters"

"Giants and titans, isn't it?" Maya looked between them warily. Annabeth and Percy exchanged a look, sighing with a nod, "No wonder there hasn't been sightings of a lot of monsters lately. They're all going there to leave Tartarus"

"We have to close the doors" Percy explained, staring at the girl who knew Tartarus the best. "We have friends out of here who will close the doors from their end. We have to close the ones down here. In order for the doors to permanently close, they have to be closed on both sides" he looked at Annabeth, "We have to do it, not just for us. For everybody we love, otherwise Gaea's forces will overrun the world"

Gaea.

Maya heard that name before, from a monster before she stuck her dagger into their eye socket.

Annabeth and Percy looked at her expectantly, an expression she couldn't quite place in their faces. They needed her expertise in Tartarus. They knew they could trust her because she was like them, a half blood.

"I suppose I can help" Maya said after a moment.

"Thank you" Annabeth's lips twitched in a small relieved smile, taking a deep breath turning to Percy, "In that case, if we stay close to the river, we'll have a way to heal ourselves. If we go downstream-"

It happened so fast, Annabeth would have been dead if she'd been on her own.

Percy's and Maya's eyes locked on something behind her.

Annabeth spun as a massive dark shape hurtled down at her, a snarling, monstrous blob with spindly barbed legs and glinting eyes.

Without even thinking it through, Maya and Percy launched. Percy's blade - which Maya couldn't see where it came from - swept over Annabeth's head in a glowing bronze arc as Maya moved so fast neither of them saw her as she slashed low to the ground past Annabeth's legs.

A horrible wail echoed through the shore.

Maya and Percy stood panting, caging Annabeth.

Annabeth stood there, stunned as yellow dust rained around her like tree pollen.

"You okay?" Percy scanned the cliffs and boulders, alert for more monsters, but nothing else appeared.

The golden dust of the spider monster settled on the obsidian rocks.

Annabeth stared at Percy in amazement, glancing at the other girl. Both their weapons glowed brighter than usual in the gloom of Tartarus.

"She…she would've killed me," Annabeth stammered.

Percy kicked the dust on the rocks, his expression grim and dissatisfied. "She died too easily, considering how much torture she put you through" he murmured. "She deserved worse"

"You think?" Maya stepped on a twitching leg on the floor, watching it turn yellow dust. She did the same with another twitching leg, turning to Percy with a tilted head. "I did cut off its legs the moment you cut off its head"

Percy watched her crush a third leg, feeling a vague sensation of satisfaction as the crushed leg turned to dust beneath her heel.

Annabeth looked between them, looking slightly unsettled. "How did you two move so fast?"

Percy shrugged. "Gotta watch each other's backs, right?"

"You learn a thing or two down here" Maya said, kicking slightly the yellow dust under her feet. "You were saying… downstream, right?"

Annabeth nodded, still in a daze.

The yellow dust dissipated on the rocky shore, turning to steam.

"Yeah, downstream," Annabeth managed. "If the river comes from the upper levels of the Underworld, it should flow deeper into Tartarus-"

"So it leads into more dangerous territory," Percy finished. Maya nodded casually. "Which is probably where the Doors are. Lucky us"

"We're not lucky" Maya told them, rolling her eyes, "We're half bloods. It's not for us"

"That was..." Percy trailed, blinking at her, "Sarcasm"