Chapter Text
Percy’s eyes shot open, a sense of dread washing over him immediately upon awakening. His head felt as though it had been wrung from his neck and stuffed full of cotton. Groaning, he attempted to sit up, but he found that his hands were bound tightly to the wooden chair he was forced to sit in. “Where am I?” He asked, his voice cracking.
“We have so many questions for you, demigod.” A voice answered from the gloom that surrounded him.
As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, Percy was eventually able to make out an imposing silhouette standing in front of him. A large figure, with something shiny glinting dimly in the darkness. Slowly the figure stepped into the light, revealing himself to be a tall, broad shouldered, burly man with dark hair, piercing brown eyes, and a small scar across his face. He wore leather armor clad with sharp spikes and studs. His presence sent an immediate shiver down the demigods spine.
“What’s going on? Who are you?” Percy asked, straining against the ropes. The man laughed and replied, “Relax, demigod. I’m no threat just yet.” He took a step closer to Percy with a sinister grin, causing the boy to tremble ever so slightly.
“I am Autolycus, the most feared bandit king in the kingdom of ancient Greece. You may have heard of me.” Percy began to wonder what he had stumbled into. The man leaned in close and whispered in his ear, “I know all of your secrets, demigod.”
Percy began to get a handle on himself, and his voice returned to him again. With a smirk, he replied, “What would a bandit king like you possibly want with me? I have no money or riches.” Autolycus stared at him for a long moment, his mind twisting and churning with possibilities. Then, he reached into his leather vest and took out a small dagger and walked up to Percy. He leaned in and gently trailed the blade along Percy’s skin, from his jaw to his collarbone.
“Oh, but you do have something even more valuable than gold, demigod.”
Percy tried to pull away despite his bindings, but Autolycus had a vise grip upon his shoulders. With an almost loving touch, he ran the edge of the knife down Percy’s neck. Percy’s eyes grew wide and his body trembled violently, the adrenaline and fear pouring into his veins. He was powerless to stop this madman’s hand. Finally, Autolycus leaned just so when the tip of the knife was over the demigods jugular, barely touching his skin. “You see, I need your help with something, demigod. And you have no choice in the matter.”
Percy felt his heart pumping furiously in his chest, but he held himself together and glared at Autolycus. With a smirk, he said nothing, refusing to give away anything. “Ah, you’re a stubborn one, aren’t you? That’s alright. We have time.” Autolycus took the knife away from Percy’s neck. His dark eyes met the demigods own blue ones, and he stepped even closer. “I know everything about you, demigod. Your family, your friends, you’re greatest fears, and you’re greatest desires.”
This gave Percy pause for a moment. How could this man know all those things about him? Suddenly an idea occurred to him. “Tell me,” he said, with just a hint of steel in his voice, “if you know so much about me, what is my greatest fear?” He narrowed his eyes at Autolycus, watching him closely. The bandit king stared back. Finally, he stepped away from the restrained demigod and crossed his arms. “Your greatest fear,” he replied, “is losing your loved ones.” Percy felt a stab of panic in his heart, his breath catching in his chest. How could he possibly know that?
Autolycus smiled, a terrible and menacing grin. “I know more than that. Yes, your greatest fear is losing those closest to you. But I also know a secret – your deepest desire that you would never admit to anyone. And that is that you are afraid that no one can possibly know or love the true you.” Percy was stunned into silence. How could Autolycus know all of those things? It was as if the bandit king had seen into his heart. His greatest fears and his deepest desires – that he had never even admitted to himself.
Percy remained quiet, his eyes locked on Autolycus, trying to comprehend what was happening. It was if the bandit king had known him his entire life. With a dark laugh, Autolycus continued speaking.
“Now, demigod, I have a proposition for you. Help me find something I am looking for, and I will leave you and your friends alone.” Percy remained still, but his mind was spinning. What was the bandit king referring to? He thought for a moment, then asked, “What is it that you seek?”
Autolycus grinned at the demigod and walked closer to him, putting a hand on his shoulder and leaning down close to his ear so the other bandits couldn’t hear his reply. “You’ll find out if you accept my deal.” He leaned back again and said out loud for the other bandits to hear,
“Demigod, I have seen the way your eyes flicker whenever there is action. You are a warrior, born and bred.” Percy looked up at the bandit king with a grim expression, his mind still whirring, trying to piece together what was happening.
“But, you are also a kind soul. Compassionate, concerned… which is why, I must give you some incentive. So, consider, demigod. Take up my offer, or I may just have to visit those friends of yours… the daughter of Athena, the son of hades… your camp’s fate is in your hands, Perseus Jackson. So do choose wisely.”
Percy’s eyes widened and his heart skipped a beat. He didn’t need this reminder. Annabeth, Nico, Grover, his precious friends, were all too vulnerable right now. He had to accept, despite the fact that he had no idea what Autolycus wanted from him. The bandit king noticed the expression on Percy’s face, and with cold amusement he said, “You care deeply for your friends, don’t you? How touching.” He released a cruel chuckle. The demigod’s eyes flashed angrily.
Percy denies the terms, knowing auticlus wouldn’t lose his leverage over him by hurting him. With an eye roll and a snap, Percy was being transported to another room as he struggled in his bindings. autolycus had to take a more physical approach.
When the demigod reawakened, his eyes took in the scene with a
sense of mounting horror. He was in a dark and grimy room, chained to the wall, with a metal collar tight around his neck. There was blood everywhere, a sign that he was not the first person to be subjected to this torture. The demigod could barely move his neck due to the tight grip of the collar around it, but his mind immediately began racing. He had to get out of this room, and he had to do so quickly.
Before him was a pool, filled with water. It seemed like an opportunity, however, upon closer inspection, it was murky, and thick. He tried to control it, seeing nobody around him to stop it, but couldn’t. And before he could make an effort to control the water inside his own body, the door slammed open and autolycus walked in, towards him. He injected a potent poison into his bloodstream, which made him jerk back violently and flail around violently. The poison was also fairly hallucinogenic, which gave him horrible visions of annabeth, Nico and Grover suffering the same pains as he. He was getting sank in the murky water, in which he couldn’t breathe for some reason, and pulled back out a while.
Percy began to hallucinate even more heavily, watching his friends trapped
deep underwater, gasping and suffering for air as they sunk to the bottom of the depths.
He began to scream in agony and terror, reaching out for his friends while autolycus just stood to the side, laughing maniacally
The images remained in his head as he was yanked out of the water, his mind still filled with images of his friends drowning and suffering.
Percy gasped for air, coughing water out before being dunked back in. He fought back, trying to get his head above water, but to no avail.
He continued to be dragged into the deep waters by autolycus, and with each sinking the illusion of his friends drowning grew stronger and stronger until he could barely differentiate hallucination from reality. But Perseus refused to succumb. At least for the first few months it was so. Slowly, his sanity began to decay and his resilient wall crumbled away. Eventually, he couldn’t help but fail. “Stop!” He screamed, “Stop, I’ll do whatever you want! Just, leave my friends alone!” The bandit king stood back with a smug grin, his head cocked to the side. “Finally,” he said, “you’ve seen the sense to accept my offer... Now, let me explain the task you must fulfill to get your dear friends back.” Autolycus spoke, knowing full well that Percy’s friends were in no danger whatsoever.