ωμέγα (Omega)

Chapter γ

Thunder POV:

I watched sadly as Omegas eyebrows scrunched together in fear. Or maybe it was pain. I couldn't tell. I took his hand gently and sighed. He had refused to tell me what his dreams were about, but I had my suspicions. He had never told us what had happened down in the pit, but the scars said enough. We just saw those on his arms, but they were bad enough. I looked down at him, the soft rise and fall of his chest. He wimphered silently and I had to prevent the tears from spilling. He was like my brother, and it pained me to see him in pain. I wondered what really happened down there. Annabeth had told us once that she'd wanted to die, just because he was in so much pain. She cared back then. He almost died down in hell, but Annabeth hadn't told us more, because she'd said that it was his place to tell us what exactly had happened to him. I wish he would open up to us already.

Suddenly there was a smell I knew far too well. The metallic smell of blood. Slightly panicked, I pushed down Percy's hood and gasped at the blood-oozing cut that appeared on his forehead. What the hell was happening? He was fine just a second ago. Okay, he did lose consciousness, but he wasn't hurt, at least physically. A scream tore through his lips, as his bedsheet turned red. I turned the son of Poseidon around as careful as I could and lifted his hood. I can't say I didn't expect the scars, hell, we all had them, but the sight was still sickening. White marks criss-crossed his back and my eyes began to water. It's not like the demigod life was easy, monster claws tend to leave scars, but it was still horrifying to see someone else than oneself marked by them. Percy wimphered again, this time more pained than fearful and I helplessly watched as a bloody mark appered on his back. A curse. It was the only explanation I had. Someone had cursed my bad friend and was hurting him now. I squeezed his hand tight. Why was this happening to Percy of all people. The loyal, idiotic Kelp Head.

OMEGA POV:

I found myself chained to a wall in a very familiar cell. The stone walls were stained red with dried blood. My dried blood. My breath quickened at the familiar surroundings and my heart was pounding in my chest. I began to pull on the chains, to no avail. Why am I here again? The last thing I could remember was Chaos saying that Tartarus was going to be our enemy and the next thing I know, I'm here. Did I black out? In front of Zeus?! The fuck?

A door creaked open and without looking I knew who had entered my cell. It's not like anyone else would be able to access this place. He chuckled. "Is that fear I smell?" I didn't answer, stubbornly turning my head the other way. I could hear his steps coming closer and despite my anger at myself, my heartbeat sped up.

I wasn't afraid of many things, but he made me tremble in fear. He grabbed my hair, forcing my head against the wall. I grunted roughly at the impact. Leaning forward, he whispered, "It's good to see you again, sea spawn."
"I can't say the same thing about you?" I snarked. Sass was a natural revenge mechanism of mine. He laughed again, the sound sending unwanted shivers down my spine. "I know you are afraid Jackson. Don't deny it." I flinched as his breath touched my skin. Too hot.

I wasn't afraid, I was terrified. The last time I was here, I had Annabeth with me. She had been my anchor, the only reason I'd stayed sane. Now though, for whatever reason, I was alone. "I can't hold you here for long, which is a shame, but we will have fun for at least a few hours." I shrunk further into the wall, glaring daggers at his face-vortex thingy.

I knew what would happen. It's not like it hadn't happened hundreds of times before, but seeing Tartarus with a weapon meant for torture was not a sight I could stomach.
He took out a long blade with a black and gold leather handel and brushed it against my cheek, almost tenderly. I squeezed my eyes shut. I knew this blade. Why did he have to use this damn blade?
"I see you recognize the dagger," Tartarus said, voice filled with malice and hidden satisfaction.

It was the same dagger he had used to push down my spine as I was down here the first time. I hadn't been able to move for days and was helpless as he tortured me day after day, until he finally healed me enough for me to move again.

Tartarus made a small cut on my cheek with the cursed blade. I gritted my teeth and clenched my fist in an attempt to not make any sound. He cut my forehead with a smooth move, nothing I couldn't handle, but it still stung. The blood that ran into my eyes wasn't helping either and the metallic smell made me want to throw up. With a snip of his fingers, I was unbound and I was grabbed by my hair before I could even find my footing. It was all moving too fast. I had no time to clear my thoughts as the pain began to be the focus of my mind.
I was dragged to the middle of the room. The Lord of hell forced me to my knees and I winced as my skin tore apart on the rough ground. Suddenly my wrists were encircled by thick, heavy chains and I was pulled forwards, so I was sitting on my knees, my back facing Tartarus. I feebly pulled at the chains, my brain trying to catch up with the unfolding events. I knew what would happen, what Tartarus would do. I had been in this position many times before.
I knew how barbaric his whippings got.

He chuckled at my panicked movements and the burning of my eyes. "You know what will happen, Perseus. Just wait until I get to you in the real world, then we can spend millennia together." And then he send the whip down with a sickening crack. A searing pain flared through my body, but I refused to scream, not yet. I merely grunted and sagged forward. The next blow was worse. I could almost hear the skin on my back tearing, and with the feeling of being split apart molecule by molecule, I let an ear piercing scream escape my chapped lips.

He seemed satisfied enough, and ran a finger down the long whip mark. My back hurt like hell and it felt like there were daggers piercing my spine (again) and I bit my lip hard enough for it to bleed as I hung limply in the chains. He licked the blood from his finger. "Will you beg for mercy?" He asked mockingly, knowing well enough I wouldn't. It'd take a lot more than that to get me to beg for anything. He knew that, too. It was a power play. I grittened my teeth. "Rot in hell."
"I am hell."
"You sure smell like it," I spat. Wrong thing to say. Anger flashed in his eyes, and he brought the whip down again, the glass attached to it digging deep into my skin. I let out another scream, slowly losing consciousness.

I awoke with a gaps, my back hurting like Hades, and my head feeling as if someone had hit it with a sledge-hammer repeatedly.
I looked up to see a panicked Jason hover above me, hands red. He wrapped his arms around me tears began to spill out of my eyes. I shouldn't cry, I knew that, but the shock of what had just happened was still anchored in my bones and I had all those pent up feeling that needed to be let out, so I cried because of Tartarus, I cried because I had to go back to earth and I cried because of Annabeth and her betrayal.

Thunder, who laid me on my stomach after I had calmed down enough, asked, concern clearly in his voice, "What happened? And don't say 'nothing'. I won't let you push me away again. Someone hurt you, and I want to know who and why." He was determined, his eyes hard and solid.

I didn't know why, maybe because of my emotionally unstable mind, or the fact that I was losing way too much blood, my head feeling as if it was filled with cotton, but I told him everything. While I talked, he cleaned my wounds and bandaged them, his mouth pulled into a concerned frown.
"Do you know how it happened?"
I shook my head silently and he gently graded his fingers through my hair. "It's okay, we're going to figure it out. You wanna stay here or rejoin the others?"
"We have a war meeting going on, I can't miss that." He looked at me worriedly. "I'm fine," I reassured him, "just pure some water on my back,"
"If you say so." He didn't seem happy with my decision, but left to get some water anyway. A few minutes later he returned, and I sighed in relieve as the cold liquid ran over my back, closing the wounds of the whip lashes, and washing away the blood. The pain was still there, but it was bearable and I sat up with a wince. "There will be scars," muttered Thunder.
"What is one more?" I replied and slipped my hood back on. On the door frame I turned to my cousin. "Not a word, to anybody. I need to deal with this one alone." He nodded hesitantly and we left my room, along with the bloody memories.
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A/N: This is my first time I write torture scenes, so don't judge me. I tried to write it as authentic as possible, because I think even Percy isn't strong enough not to scream while being tortured. Thanks.
(Can you black out in a dream??)