ARUNA

~•♡•~

The tunnel spiraled gently downward, the ceiling supported by white tone arches that made Aruna think of a whale's rib cage.

As they walked, Hazel ran her hands along the masonry. "This wasn't part of a temple," she whispered. "This was... the basement for a manor house, built in later Greek times."

"A manor house?" Frank asked. "Please don't tell me we're in the wrong place."

"The House of Hades is below us," Nico assured. "But Hazel's right; these upper levels are much newer. When the archaeologists first excavated this city, they thought they'd found the Necromanteion. Then they realized the ruins were too recent, so they just decided it was the wrong spot. They were right the first time. They just didn't dig deep enough."

They turned a corner and stopped. In front of them, the tunnel ended in a huge block of stone.

"Oh. That isn't weird at all," Aruna remarked as she tilted her head.

"A cave-in?" Jason asked.

"A test," Nico answered. "Hazel, would you do the honors?"

Hazel stepped forward. She placed her hand on the rock, and the entire boulder crumbled.

The tunnel shuddered. Cracks spread across the ceiling. As soon as the rumbling stopped, and the dust settled, Aruna felt it.

Death. So much endless death. Pain washed over her. Horror, terror, fear, panic. Any emotion one might feel during death coursed over her like a supersonic sound wave. She felt herself trembling. Her heart raced aggressively, like she was the one being killed. A million and one voices washed over her, whispering to her, pleading for her mercy, her kindness, her help. It felt like her bones were trying to rip apart. She felt like her heart had exploded in her chest. Her head felt like a bomb about to go off, ticking rapidly in her skull.

She hadn't realized her eyes were closed until Piper started tapping on her shoulder. Aruna shot her eyes open, staring at Piper, her eyelids practically peeled back so she wouldn't try to shut the death out.

"Are you okay?" Piper asked nervously.

Aruna stared, not blinking. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

Piper frowned as Aruna turned back to the doorway. A set of stairs curved deeper into the earth, the barreled ceiling held up by more repeating arches, closer together and carved from polished black stone. The descending arches made Aruna feel even more woozy, her barley cake rising into her throat. Painted on the walls were crude pictures of black cattle marching downwards.

"I really don't like cows," Piper muttered.

"Agreed," Frank said.

"I like 'em," Aruna said quietly, barely trusting her own voice.

"Those are the cattle of Hades," Nico said. "It's just a symbol of-"

"Look." Frank pointed.

On the first step of the stairwell, a golden chalice gleamed. Aruna was fairly certain it hadn't been there a moment before. The cup was filled with a dark-green liquid. As aruna stared, it almost seemed to be bubbling and toiling, but she knew it wasn't.

"Hooray," Leo said half-heartedly. He almost seemed like he was trying to be funny, but Aruna could feel some sort of fear. Then again, everyone around her was fearful, and the fear of the dead souls within were disorienting her. "I suppose that's our poison."

Nico picked up the chalice. Wwe're standing at the ancient entrance of the Necromanteion. Odysseus came here, and dozens of other heroes, asking for advice from the dead."

"Fucking hell, where has Odysseus not been?" Aruna muttered.

"Did the dead advise them to leave immediately?" Leo said, almost pleadingly.

"I would be fine with that," Piper admitted.

Nico drank from the chalice, then offered it to Jason. "You asked me about trust, and taking a risk? Well, here you go, son of Jupiter. How much do you trust me?"

Aruna had a feeling he was talking about whatever had happened on their solo trip together. Aruna had been told just about nothing about that adventure, but she knew something major had taken place there. Something that was making Nico feel heartsick, longing, something that was making him feel like he needed to distance himself.

It was why she'd brought the books and the food to him. She knew how Nico felt. He felt like he didn't want someone to comfort him, to tell him it was okay, to bring him company. But when Aruna had been feeling like that, and Leo came over, she realized it wasn't what she wanted, but what she needed. She felt like even if Nico did not have his person, he needed something. A distraction from his own mind, from the world. Something to make him feel something other than hatred and pain and depression.

Jason didn't hesitate. He took the cup and drank, and then handed it to Aruna. She stared at it a minute, but figured if she died, it wouldn't be so bad. She took a hearty sip, and passed it on.

Frank was the last to drink it. He made a terrible face, and once he drained the chalice, it turned to smoke in his hands.

Nico nodded, apparently satisfied. "Congratulations. Assuming the poison doesn't kill us, we should be able to find out way through the Necromanteion's first level."

"Just the first level?" Piper asked.

"if jason dies, I claim his Spiderman collection," Aruna called out.

Jason blinked like he was offended. "Why me? Why not hazel or your boyfriend or Piper?"

"Out of all of us, you are the most likely to succumb to poison," Aruna answered bluntly. Jason looked around for support, but everyone awkwardly looked away.

Aruna saw the corner of Nico's mouth twitch before his face turned cold again. He turned to Hazel, and gestured at the stairs. "After you, sister."

~•♡•~

It took maybe ten minutes for Aruna to want to off herself. The stairs split in three different directions, and every time Hazel chose a path, they split again. They wound their way through interconnecting tunnels and rough-hewn burial chambers that all looked the same- the walls carved with dusty niches that might have once held bodies. The arches over the doors were painted with black cows, poplar trees, and owls.

"I thought the owl was Minerva's symbol," Jason murmured.

"The screech owl is one of Hades's sacred animals," Nico explained. "Its cry is a bad omen."

Aruna wanted a screech owl to claw her brains out of her skull. She was losing her mind already. Whispers were infiltrating her brain, making it impossible to even think. Pain and fear hung in the air like a blinding, suffocating smog.

"This way." Hazel pointed to a doorway that looked the same as all the others. "It's the only one that won't collapse on us."

"Good choice, then," Leo said,

Aruna took his hand, eliciting a weird look from him. She interlocked their fingers, holding onto him tightly as they followed Hazel. Aruna felt her chest tightening again, like her rib cage was being constricted with rubber bands. She needed something to ground her. She felt like she was floating away with every single step.

Leo's warm, calloused hands were very grounding.

Aruna.

Aruna froze. The only person who noticed was Leo, and he quit walking. Aruna turned to the side, looking at the walls carefully. They were now at the back of the group, and slowly, the others stopped and stared.

"Who called me?" Aruna asked, looking to the group.

"I was hoping that wouldn't happen until later," he growled, his face sullen. "Aruna, don't listen to it. It isn't real."

"Yes, it is," Aruna insisted. "That's real. That voice- that person is alive."

"Who?" Jason prodded. "Who is it?"

"Guys," Nico called. "We need to keep going."

Aruna didn't miss the warning look he shot her. She sighed heavily, stared at the walls a bit longer, and pulled Leo to follow the group.

They finally reached an archway carved in the shape of human skulls- maybe they were human skulls embedded into the rock. In the purple light of Diocletian's scepter, the hollow eye sockets seemed to blink.

Frank almost hit the ceiling when hazel put a hand on his arm.

"This is the entrance to the second level," she said. "I'd better take a look."

Aruna.

Aruna felt a shiver run up her spine. Goosebumps trailed up her arms, as she flicked her eyes around, trying not to bring attention to herself.

You're a failure.

Aruna felt a cry rising in her throat. Her body twitched and her grip on Leo's hand tightened.

He winced but she barely noticed it, casting it to the side. She felt her breathing quicken and sweat pool as she forced her eyes to focus ahead of her.

Hazel traced her fingers across the carved skulls. "No traps on the doorway but... something is strange here. My underground sense is- is fuzzy, like someone is working against me, hiding what's ahead of us."

You let them fall.

"The sorceress Hecate warned you about?" Jason guessed. "The one Leo saw in his dream? What was her name?"

Hazel chewed her lip. "It would be safer not to say her name. But stay alert. One thing I'm sure of; from this point on, the dead are stronger than the living."

"Where are the monsters?" Frank asked. "I thought Gaea had an army guarding the doors."

"Don't know," Jason said. His pale skin looked as green as the poison from the chalice. "At this point, I'd almost prefer a straight-up fight."

"Careful what you wish for, man." Leo summoned a ball of fire in his hand. For the first time, it made Aruna uncomfortable. She let go of his hand and looked away. "Personally, i'm hoping nobody's home. We walk in, find Percy and Annabeth, destroy the Doors of Death, and walk out. maybe stop at the gift shop."

"Yeah," Frank said. "That'll happen."

When Aruna didn't say anything, Leo turned to her. Everyone else followed suit, and Aruna raised an eyebrow at them.

"What?" she asked.

Nobody could say anything. They looked at each other, confused, then looked away again.

The tunnel shook. Rubble rained down from the ceiling.

Hazel grabbed Frank's hand. "That was close," she muttered. "These passageways won't take much more."

"The Doors of Death just opened again," Nico reported.

"It's happening, like, every fifteen minutes," Piper noted.

"Every twelve," Nico corrected. "We'd better hurry. Aercy and annabeth are close. They're in danger. I can sense it."

As they traveled deeper, the corridors widened. Somehow, it only made Aruna feel more shut in. The ceilings rose to six meters high, decorated with elaborate paintings of owls in the branches of white poplars.

All Aruna could think of was running away. Everything was telling her to. The dead were screaming at her to turn back, and Aruna didn't think the dead should be able to do so. Really, it wasn't like they were speaking; it was a feeling.

Still, Aruna had to keep going. She had to find Percy and Annabeth. If she hadn't let them fall in the first place, this part of the quest would have been so much easier. She felt like if Annabeth had been by her side, a plan ready, her face strong and dagger drawn, she would have felt safer.

Leo held his fire close to the walls. Aruna saw Ancient Greek prayers written on them, created by pilgrims from millenia ago. the tunnel floor was littered with ceramic shards and silver coins.

"Offerings?" Piper guessed.

"Yes," Nico agreed. "If you wanted your ancestors to appear, you had to make an offering."

"Let's not make an offering," Jason suggested.

Nobody argued.

"The tunnel here is unstable," Hazel warned. "The floor might... well, just follow me. Step exactly where i step."

You dropped them. It's all your fault.

Aruna felt like she was going to puke. She forced herself to pay extra attention to whered hazel and the others stepped, following them to a T. The sense of dread was pooling into Aruna like a tsunami; she felt like Deimos was clawing at her, infesting her.

You'll never survive.

Aruna shot up, but Frank did too. They stared at each other, and Aruna wondered if they'd heard the same voice.

"Frank?" Jason whispered. "Hazel, hold on a second. Frank, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Frank said.

"He heard it, too," Aruna said, the fear biting at her voice. "Didn't you? That- that woman..."

Frank stared at her. "It- It wasn't a woman. They... they said my name."

Aruna realized they were hearing two different things, and so did everyone else. They looked around, panicked, and Frank jolted again, hearing his voice.

You'll watch everyone die before you're killed, too.

"Who is that?" Aruna called out, looking around.

"Aruna, don't move," Hazel warned. Aruna realized she was about to run off. She knew she could probably use an anti-gravity move to do whatever she wanted and survive the tunnels, but she had to conserve her strength. Something big was on the way, something impossible.

"Lead where?" Frank asked aloud.

"Uh, big guy?" Leo asked. "A-Aru? Could you not freak out on us? Please and thank you."

"Nico?" Aruna asked. Nico looked at her and Aruna gulped, coming close to no longer being able to hide her fear. "These voices... Are they supposed to sound like people who are still alive?"

Nico frowned and Aruna took that as an answer. She felt bile rising in her throat, her saliva pooling as she looked around, breathing heavily.

"I'm okay," Frank managed. "Just... a voice."

"I did warn you," Nico said. "It'll only get worse. We should-"

Hazel held up her hand for silence. "Wait here, everybody."

She forged ahead alone. After about half a minute, she returned, her face drawn and pensive.

"Scary room ahead," she warned. "Fon't panic."

Leo took Aruna's hand, but whether for his own comfort or hers, Aruna didn't know. "Those two things usually don't go together."

Even still, they followed Hazel into the cavern.

The place was like a circular cathedral, with a ceiling so high it was lost in the gloom. Dozens of other tunnels led off in different directions, each echoing with ghostly voices. The floor was a mess of bones and gems- human femurs, hip bones, rubies, emeralds- if it was a bone or a gem, it was molded into the floor. They formed patterns, like skeletal contortionists coming together and curling to protect the precious stones; a dance of death and riches.

"Touch nothing," Hazel said.

"wasn't planning on it." Leo muttered.

Aruna squeezed his hand as Jason scanned the exits and asked, "Which way?"

For once, Nico looked uncertain. "This should be the room where priests invoked the most powerful spirits. One of these passages leads deeper into the temple, to the third level and the altar of Hades himself. but where-"

"Aruna!"

Everyone froze. Aruna felt a stabbing sensation in her head as she breathed heavily, looking around the room, gazing into each tunnel.

"Aruna, help me!"

Aruna couldn't stop herself. Everybody tried to block her path as she surged forward, but nobody was quick enough.

"Dad! Dad, where are you?!" she wailed, her voice thick with emotion. It'd been eight years since she heard that voice, and it sent her mind into a frenzy.

"Help me, please!"

"Dad!" Aruna screamed.

She heard everyone behind her screaming for her to come back. Their cries pierced the air, but still, she could only hear the broken, tormented voice of her own father. Hot tears streamed down her face as she darted into a tunnel blindly, her thoughts clouded.

"Papa!"

"Aruna, help me!" The voice was close now. Aruna could faintly hear rocks tumbling, cutting off the screams of her friends. She threw herself into a room, not bothering to check it first.

"Papa!"

"Aruna!" The voice was in the room with her, a single torch lit. Aruna looked around, her night vision canceled out from the flame. The voice was in the shadows, hidden behind a cloak of darkness. "Aruna, help me!"

He emerged, and Aruna wished she had listened to Nico instead of allowing her emotions to take over. A swollen, puffy, green eye gazed down at her, the color of pond scum. It blinked slowly, standing out against skin the color of whole wheat bread. Dark black dreadlocks hung to the monster's shoulders, woven with what Aruna believed to be finger and hand bones, the pieces all too tiny to be anything else. He wore a single burlap toga, his smile evil, with teeth larger than Aruna's fist and more rotten than a politician.

He grinned, and spoke in the same voice: "There you are, sweetie. I've missed you."

~•♡•~

my parents are gone overnight so my brother is sleeping in their bed and shitting in their bathroom which sucks cuz thats what I wanted to do :(