Chapter Twenty-Nine

Nick stares straight ahead while I shoot daggers into that chiseled cheekbone of his.

"What deal did you make with Hades?"

He only side-eyes me.

"Nick." I say his name once, my tone vehement.

He drops his chin to his chest, then finally meets my eyes. "I granted Hades access to Hell whenever he should need it."

"Is your father going to kill you for that?"

"Probably," Nick mutters, raking a hand through his hair. "But he can't kill me twice." He grins playfully.

I avert my gaze, my chest tightening. "Don't joke about that."

With one finger against my chin, he directs me to look up at him. "I meant what I said the other night. The only time I feel alive is when you're next to me, so if you're to be my undoing, then I'll let you break me, bones and all, because there is no worse feeling than not having you by my side."

I inhale sharply as Nick presses his lips to mine. The elevator doors slide apart at the same time we do, and I blink rapidly to take in the barren landscape before me. "This…this is Tartaros?"

Nick and I step out onto muddy terrain. Thunder rumbles in the distance, and thick, angry storm clouds blanket the sky. Lightning fissures through the dark gray canvas.

"Not really. It's up there." He juts his chin toward the distance. "Surrounded by a thick bronze wall and guarded by Hekatonkheires."

"Who is-" I stop and shake my head. "I mean, did we really just take an elevator to get here?"

Nick glances at me quizzically. "What did you expect?"

"For it not to be that easy?"

Nick huffs a laugh. "Trust me, nothing about dealing with Hades and Persephone is easy. Besides, we aren't actually in Tartaros yet. Wait until we face the storm winds and constant hurricanes."

Oh, fuck.

We walk as Nick explains about the Hekatonkheires, three monstrous giants each with fifty heads and one hundred arms. They are brothers known as Cottus, Briareus, and Gyges, and each takes turns guarding the gates of the prison. While none of the brothers are exactly friendly, Briareus and Gyges are the more congenial of the three, their brother Cottus earning the nickname "the Furious" for his hot temper.

"Do you know which one is which?" I ask, worry taking root at the sight of the bronze structure coming into view.

Nick nods before understanding my look of concern. "Hades said we won't have his protection once we are in Tartaros, but whichever one of the brothers stands guard has to let us through without struggle."

"Ok." I press my lips together as the bronzed wall is now mere feet away. It towers above us, its true height obscured as it disappears into the dark clouds.

A pair of iron gates halt our entry. They sit back into the bronzed wall, their width and height massive and utterly imposing. Two wrought-iron rings the size of a backyard swimming pool hang as door handles, clanging with an undeniable force as something behind the doors rattles them .

"Those are the storms," Nick says regarding the shaking door.

"Nevermind the storms," I tell him. "How are we supposed to open the doors?" The rings themselves are much too large for Nick or myself to grasp, never mind the sheer strength it would possess-

"You're not," a deep voice answers, trembling the earth beneath my boots.

Nick and I turn, our gazes climbing higher and higher and higher until they rest on the face - er - faces of a giant who stands nearly as tall as the gates themselves.

"Pleasure to see you, Cottus." Nick addresses him cordially, as though he's merely greeting an old friend, and fuck, did he just say Cottus?

A total of one hundred arms protrude from the giant's otherwise normal limbed body. A sculpted chest and equally defined torso give way to only two legs - thank gods - his lower half covered by black breeches.

Yet, his neck and back house another forty-nine faces between the two of them, the ones on his neck stretching out on additional abnormally long necks. Currently, Nick and I have fifty pairs of deep brown eyes staring down at us like we are pesky insects waiting to be crushed beneath his vehicular sized feet .

"Your Highness," he greets and dips his head in a respectful bow. "And…" His dark eyes narrow, and he reaches to scratch the equally dark beard at his chin. "Scylla?"

"Rhi," I say quietly.

Cottus glances at Nick. "What did your little mouse say?"

"Her name is Rhiannon, or Rhi," Nick says much more loudly than me.

"Hmm." Cottus crosses his arms. "I don't know what Bargain you have with Hades, but it was certainly impressive enough for him to grant you access to Tartaros. Though I cannot imagine what is so important you would risk your lives coming here." He shakes his head. "Fucking mortals."

"I'm no more mortal than you are, Cottus."

My attention slides from the giant in front of me to the man beside me.

"And her?" Cottus asks.

Nick's golden eyes narrow, as if he's contemplating something. "I suppose I'll find out soon enough."

Cottus chortles, again shaking the earth. "And who is it you seek beyond those walls? Don't tell me it is one of the Titans?"

"We seek the Cave of Nyx," I answer, my voice strong, loud, and unwavering this time .

Cottus stomps an enormous foot, one of his hundred hands clutching his abdomen as he laughs. As soon as his foot hit the floor, Nick and I both fall on our asses.

"Apologies," Cottus says as he wipes tears from his eyes. "No wonder Hades granted permission for you to enter Tartaros. You apparently have no intention of leaving!"

I climb to my feet, the Scylla within me hissing and snarling at my bruised ego. "Instead of laughing at us, why don't you do your job and open the fucking doors?"

The giant stills, his already broad chest puffing out impossibly wide. His fifty faces contort at the same time into an expression of undiluted rage.

Fury.

Nick grabs my hand and whispers, "When I say ‘run,' you run, got it?"

" You may get a pass, Nicholas, because you are of royal blood. But her ," he points a finger the size of a tree trunk at me, "I'm going to squeeze her frail body inside my fist until her blood paints my fingers."

"Run!" Nick yells, and I take off towards the gates. Nick is screaming something, but my heart is pounding so furiously in my ears I can't make out what he's saying.

Cottus roars, completing drawing out any other sounds, and I press my hands against my ears when they throb in pain from the intensity.

I sprint towards the gates, wondering what the fuck I'm supposed to do when I get there. As they draw closer, Cottus releases another scream that threatens to make my ears bleed, and I finally turn to see the commotion.

The giant, lumbering mass is falling, his colossal body heading towards the earth.

Right towards me.

I'm going to be crushed beneath him.

The adrenaline coursing through my veins seems to amass solely in my palms. A burning pressure overwhelms the center of my hands, and I do the only thing I can think of in this moment: I hold up my hands, palms facing up, to shield me from the impact of Cottus, praying to whatever gods might hear me to keep Nick safe.

Dust pillows around me, clouding my vision before it settles, and I hear a voice screaming my name.

Nick.

I scream his name, an acute sense of relief flooding me that he's alive. He sprints towards me, his dark clothing and agile frame making him look like a sleek beast cutting through the jungle in search of its prey. Nick effortlessly leaps over one of Cottus's many unmoving arms and pulls me into his own as soon as he reaches me.

"Gods, Rhi. Are you okay?" He breaks away, holding me by my waist as his eyes swiftly assess my body. "How the fuck-" He shakes his head.

"I don't know," I admit, finally taking in Cottus's enormous body lying on the ground beside me. Miraculously, each of his arms missed the area where I currently stand, the ground completely unmarked.

Nick's gaze follows mine, observing the untouched terrain.

"You shielded yourself," he says, disbelief marking his voice.

"I….if I did, I don't know how." I pull my hands away from him, clenching my fists, the memory of the pressure in my palms crashing into me like a speeding car. The action doesn't go unnoticed by Nick, who glimpses at my tightly closed fists before pressing a gentle kiss to my forehead.

"It doesn't matter. What matters is that you're okay." He sighs, closing his eyes, lips still brushing my forehead. "I thought I lost you."

Sweat trickles from his brow, and I wipe it with my thumb before cupping his cheeks. "Never."

We embrace for a few moments longer, then Nick pulls away. "You were supposed to run that way." He jerks a thumb behind him.

I can't resist the laugh that tumbles from my throat. "Give more detailed instructions next time. All you said was ‘run.' So, I ran. Ugh." I throw my head back in frustration. "How are we supposed to get through the gates? Cottus is-"

Nick turns me around before I can finish. Cottus' body lies sprawled out beyond the gates, his shoulders and head having crashed through them, leaving them open.

Oh, shit.

"Is that bad?" I ask.

"Well, it's not good ," Nick says. "But all of Tartaros's prisoners are locked away in their own dungeons, so it's not like this will cause an all out prison-break."

"Ok. That's good news."

Nick smiles wryly. "Ready?"

I nod, and we edge closer to the destroyed Gates of Tartaros.

"How did you defeat Cottus?" I ask.

Nick shrugs. "It wasn't hard. He might be humongous, but he's slow and somewhat stupid. All it took was me disappearing a few times for him to get tangled within his own feet, and, well, you know what happened."

I open my mouth to speak, but stop when I glimpse the landscape on the other side of the gates.

A waterfall of water obscures anything that exists beyond the threshold. Flashes of electric blue break up the otherwise impenetrable wall of water, which I determine to be streaks of lightning. Winds whip through the rain, an unearthly wail sounding in their rage.

Nick grabs my hand. "We can do this. It's the landscape itself that is treacherous. Nothing will harm us until we reach the Cave of Nyx." He presses a kiss to my knuckles, rubbing his thumb along the joints. "Just hold on to me the entire time. Don't let go."

I swallow, mumbling, "Okay."

Nick wraps a hand around my nape and kisses me. "I love you," he says, and before I can answer, he pulls us both through the gates and into the storm-wracked prison of Tartaros.