epiphany ━━ chapter v. . . . cyclops' worst nightmare
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THE LEFT TUNNEL was a dead end. After sprinting about a hundred yards, the quintet ran into an enormous boulder that completely blocked their path.
Nova wasn't used to running, so her lungs were beginning to burn from the lack of oxygen. She was trying really hard to keep up, not wanting to be the one to slow down the group. None of the others seemed to have the same problem—Percy wasn't even panting in the slightest bit—so she tried to hide it, but she was in some way thankful when they were forced to stop.
Her content lasted very shortly, though, because soon it became clear that they weren't in safety. They had just reached a dead end, and it seemed like they were very close to being caught by whatever non-human thing that was following them with dragging footsteps.
"Tyson," Percy was the quickest to react. "Can you—"
"Yes!" he slammed his broad shoulders against the rock so hard the whole tunnel shook. Dust trickled down from the stone ceiling, and Nova subconsciously moved closer to Annabeth.
"Hurry!" Grover stressed. "Don't bring the roof down, but hurry!"
The boulder finally gave away and Tyson pushed it into a small room. It made a horrible grinding noice when it moved, and the group hurriedly dashed through behind it.
"Close the entrance, quickly!" Annabeth exclaimed as soon as everyone was through.
All five of them pushed, and together they got the rock pushed back into place. The monster chasing them wailed in frustration, and the sound made Nova's hands feel sweaty. She felt as if her heart was constantly up in her throat, and she was questioning whether going on this quest was a good idea or not.
"I think we trapped ourselves," Grover's words did not help the unsettling feeling in her stomach, and when she turned to find them standing in a twenty-foot-square cement room with a wall covered in metal bars, she was close to breaking down and giving up. They had trapped themselves in a cell.
"What in Hades?" Annabeth questioned, tugging on the bars. They didn't budge at all.
Through the space between the bars they could see rows of cells in a ring around a dark courtyard. There was at least three stories of metal doors and metal catwalks.
"We're in a prison." Nova sighed to herself.
"Maybe Tyson can break—" Percy started to say, but Grover interrupted him.
"Shh," The satyr whispered. "Listen."
Somewhere above them, a deep sobbing echoed. There was another voice too. A raspy voice was whispering something unrecognisable.
