Percy Jackson and The Avengers

Nightmares

Percy POV

After training I feel drained so I stalk along the corridor of 'The team's' bedrooms until I find mine. I barely look at the room before hitting the bed and falling asleep. Unfortunately for me that means remembering what happened while I was in Tartarus.

~flashback~

I stand on shaky legs, blood dripping down my body from the 2 inch deep gash across my chest. I see black spots dancing in my vision making it hard to determine how many monsters I still need to kill.

The problem is I am in their home, I can't kill a monster that will just reform in the place that it died. If I'm lucky they will reform on the other side of Tartarus. Usually luck isn't on my side and they reform about 5 feet away from where they died.

Hundreds of monsters swarm around me like wasps drawn to a flame. Worst part about being in Tartarus? I have killed every single monster down here before, because of this they want revenge. That is why they have all come straight to me.

Also we are the only demigods here, our scents must make it extremely easy for them to determine where we are.

I glance around looking for the one being that makes my life worth living, Annabeth. I've lost sight of her. I just hope that she's not dead...

As I am preoccupied with my thoughts a few monsters grab my arms and pin me down. I'm too tired and have lost too much blood to even think about defending myself anymore. I'll take what comes to me.

They drag me off to an unknown place. Just as I am about to lose consciousness I glance at the symbol of the doorframe of the building I am being dragged into. I nearly completely lose hope as I see the Scythe.

Kronos.

~flashback end~

I sit up in bed panting, I rake a hand through my hair. I can still remember the sea of emotions drifting through my head at the time; confusion, worry, guilt, anger, sadness but most importantly .. weak.

I felt weak because I couldn't protect Annabeth, or myself. I was so tired that I ended up too weak to even lift up my sword.

I never want to feel like that again.

Sighing I decide to have another crack at sleeping. But no such luck. My next dream is a flashback to what happened the day before I finally escape my captors.

~flashback~

Pain. That's all that's going through my head at the moment. So much pain that I can't even move my head to see the weapon that will inflict my next torturing. Too tired and sore to even loud mouth my torturer. For the first few months my torturers were merely monsters with a grudge. They would cut me.. stab me.. whip me. Nothing I couldn't handle.

Then some ... Stronger enemies started to visit me. My torturing become more intense, longer, and more frequent. The worst part was that Kronos had used his godly (titany?) powers to make time in this room slower.

For example one month in this room was a day back in the paradise of Tartarus. So the time I have spent in this room is equivalent to six months.

The first month I had visitors like the Minotaur, emousais, hellhounds. In the next three months I had visitors like titans and any bored giants/followers of Gaea. In the last two months I have been having private sessions with Kronos.

Now you may be thinking, didn't you defeat Kronos? How is he alive? Well the answer is simple. I defeated him on earth, so he won't be able to reform on Earth for another few thousand years. But in Tartarus this is his home, so he can create a sort of body... It is actually really gross.

Kronos's favorite method of torture was what I call 'dead again'. Basically he tortures me until I die then uses his powers as lord of time to make the clock reverse, therefore making me alive again. I was killed about a hundred times with this method..

Anyway on this particular day I lay strapped to the table. The bars holding me down have spikes on the inside, meaning just lying here I have millions of little blades piercing into my wrists and ankles.

Kronos emerges from his place in the shadows. I glance at his hands and am momentarily confused when he approaches empty handed.

I hope and hope that he is not raping me again. Luckily he picks up a key and undoes my restraints. I am so tired that I don't even complain as he shoves me into another room. He makes me face plant into a swimming pool filled with something.

I cry with relief as I realize that it is sea water. The water instantly heals my cuts, burns and aches. Because I can breathe in normal water I go straight to the bottom and just lie on the floor of the pool.

Fear strikes my heart as I see another liquid enter the water, contaminating my paradise. As the water near my skin gets contaminated I scream in pain. Poison. The water has been turned poisonous.

I struggle to get to the top of the pool as I choke on the poison, I can't breathe in poisonous water. This brings out my greatest fear.. The fear of dying and not even water, the one thing I can always count on, can save me.

I reach the top of the pool and crash my head through the water. Gasping for air I try and calm my high heart rate. I stay there treading water.. Treading poison for all of 3 seconds before the water is electrocuted.

Water is a conducted for electricity which means the electricity comes straight to me filling me with a new form of pain. This pain is more of a burning sensation but 100 times more painful.

The problem is; it doesn't stop. Even when my screams of pain get so loud people on earth should be able to hear... It still doesn't stop.

I scream till my throat is dry and bleeding, I spasm till my muscles are too sore and tired to move anymore. Eventually I fall unconscious ..

~flashback end~

I bolt upright in my bed gasping for air just like in my dream. I raise a shaky hand and rake it through my hair to try and calm me down.

'That's enough of trying to get to sleep' I decide while quickly throwing on a shirt and shorts from the closet in my new room.

Throwing open the doors I decide to head for the kitchen and do something. I am so shocked to see that Steve Rogers (the captain flag guy in spandex) is also awake at this hour.

"Hello," he says.. Always so formal huh?

I give him the 'sup' nod and open the fridge. I look for something to eat.

"What are you doing up so early?" I ask him.

"A soldier is always up before dawn... Now it's just a habit."

An awkward silence falls between us before he speaks again.

"Why are you up?"

"No reason.."

"It's four am. What are you doing awake?"

"Nothing important, just drop it. Okay?"

"No excuses. Tell me why."

I turn around to glare at him, honestly could he not get up in everyone's business?

"Why do I have to tell you?"

"I told you why I was awake .."

"That doesn't mean I have to tell you why I'm awake."

"JUST TELL ME!"

"NIGHTMARES.. Alright.. There I said it. I can't go back to sleep because of the nightmares! As soon as I fall asleep the memories come back and I can't deal with them!"

I walk off in search of the pool since water always calms me down. I stop dead in my tracks at that thought. Water.. My greatest fear... There is nowhere to hide anymore.