Outsider Chronicles: Winged Lightning

Gods, Angels, Demons and Dragons make for great storys. Well, so long as your not living it. Aw well, at least I can throw lightning bolts! Now if only I could get this bloody Dragon to shut up.

And here we are with more. Lets have some more fun with Luke! Enjoy!

Chapter 4

I cursed as I slowly flew back up to the top of the cliff. I couldn't believe I'd messed up on that. I knew it was coming and had been ready and yet I still managed to make a right hash of saving her. To make matters worse, the fact I'd failed to save Annabeth cut even deeper considering we were both Children of Athena. I had failed my sister and that hurt. I sighed as I reached the top of the cliff. Nothing I could do about it now I guess. All I could do was tag along and help out with the quest in the not too distant future.

I flew over the cliff edge and touched down, ignoring the Hunters and Artemis as I walked over to where Percy was being held down by two Hunters. I knelt down in front of him and bowed my head.

"I'm sorry," I said, "I wasn't fast enough."

"W-what do you mean?" asked Percy.

"I mean that someone was waiting for them," I said, "She and the Manticore were teleported away before they hit the water."

"NO!" shouted Percy, redoubling his struggling against the Hunters, "I can still save her! Let me go!"

"You are in no condition to be hurling yourself off cliffs," said Artemis as she approached.

"Let me go!" demanded Percy, "Who do you think you are?"

Zoe stepped forward, clearly intending to wallop Percy with her bow.

"No," said Artemis, "I sense no disrespect, Zoe. He is simply distraught. He does not understand."

She turned to Percy.

"I am Artemis," she said. "Goddess of the Hunt."

She turned away from Percy, who was gaping at her like a fish, and turned to me.

"And you are Luke Morgenstern, the Grandson of Baraqiel, correct?" she asked.

"At your service, my lady," I said with a stately bow.

"What is a member of the Grigori doing here?" asked the Goddess, "This doesn't seem like the sort of place that would attract the attention of your boss."

"We found a Holy Sword here," I said, "I was sticking around to make sure it didn't attract any...unwanted attention."

"I trust your little spat with Heaven won't affect us?"

I shrugged.

"How should I know? I'm just a Grunt."

Before Artemis could respond, Grover suddenly appeared in front of her and bowed deeply, babbling about something as he did.

"Thank you, Lady Artemis! You're so… you're so… Wow!"

"Get up, goat boy!" snapped Thalia, "We have other things to worry about. Annabeth is gone!"

The Daughter of Zeus was switching between glaring at the Hunters and staring at me, almost as if she was trying to remember me from somewhere. Exactly how she could have forgotten my very distinctive purple magic was anyones guess, but she had been a tree for the better part of seven years.

"Whoa, hold up, Time out!" shouted Bianca, drawing everyone's attention to her.

She pointed her finger at all of us in turn, like she was trying to connect the dots.

"Who… who are you people?"

Artemis's expression softened.

"It might be a better question, my dear girl, to ask who are you? Who are your parents?"

Bianca glanced nervously at her brother, who was still staring in awe at Artemis.

"Our parents are dead," she said, "We're orphans. There's a bank trust that pays for our school, but…"

She faltered. I guess she could tell from our faces that we didn't believe her.

"What?" she demanded. "I'm telling the truth."

"You are a half-blood," Zoe Nightshade said.

Apparently she had as much tact as she did understanding of the nuances of language.

"One of thy parents was mortal. The other was an Olympian."

"An Olympian… athlete?"

"No," Zoe said, "One of the gods."

"Cool!" said Nico.

"No!" Bianca's voice quavered, "This is not cool!"

Nico danced around like he needed to use the loo.

"Does Zeus really have lightning bolts that do six hundred damage? Does he get extra movement points for—"

I laughed and cut him off by pressing down on his shoulders, stopping him from dancing around to much.

"Again, not really the time for Mythomagic," I said.

Apparently that brought Bianca's attention back to me.

"And you, what the hell are you?!" she demanded, "Are you a Half Blood too?"

"Eh, sort of," I said, "Technically I'm a Nephilim, hence the wings."

I spread said appendages.

"Wait, Nephilim?" asked Bianca, "Y-you mean like from the Bible?"

"Yep," I said, "You don't think that the Greeks are the only Mythology out there, do you?"

"AH!"

Everyone jumped at Thalia's sudden shout. I turned and saw that the Daughter of Zeus was pointing a shaking finger at me.

"Its you!" she said, "You're the kid who saved us from those Cyclops!"

"Really? You just remembered that?!" I grumbled.

"N-no, t-this is impossible!" moaned Bianca, "There are no Gods!"

I sighed and walked over to my friend, kneeling down in front of her and wrapping my arms around her in a comforting hug.

"I know this is a lot to take in, but its all true" I said.

Bianca sniffed and grabbed onto me, probably seeking a solid anchor in a world that had just been flipped on its head.

"Hey, don't cry," I said, leaning back and wiping away her tears, "Come on, cheer up. This world is full of magic! Sure it can be dangerous, but it can be beautiful as well."

"Dangerous… like the girl who fell?" asked Bianca, apparently missing the last part of my statement.

"Do not despair for Annabeth," said Artemis, "She was a brave maiden. If she can be found, I shall find her."

"Then why won't you let us go look for her?" demanded Percy.

"I already told you, shes gone," I said, turning away from Bianca, "Someone took her."

"Can't you sense it, Son of Poseidon?" asked Artemis, "Some magic is at work. I do not know exactly how or why, but your friend has vanished."

Percy looked mutinous, but stayed where he was.

"Oo!" said Nico raised his hand, "What about Dr. Thorn? That was awesome how you shot him with arrows! Is he dead?"

"He was a manticore," Artemis said, "Hopefully he is destroyed for now, but monsters never truly die. They re-form over and over again, and they must be hunted whenever they reappear."

"Or they'll hunt us," said Thalia.

Bianca shivered.

"That explains… Nico, you remember last summer, those guys who tried to attack us in the alley in DC?" she said.

"And that bus driver," Nico said, "The one with the ram's horns. I told you that was real."

"That's why Grover has been watching you," said Percy, "To keep you safe, if you turned out to be half-bloods."

"Grover?" asked Bianca, staring at him, "You're a demigod?"

"Well, a satyr, actually."

He kicked off his shoes and displayed his goat hooves. Bianca let out a small whimper and I wrapped a wing around her so she wouldn't fall over. The girl looked surprised by something.

"Grover, put your shoes back on," I said.

It was at that point that Grover finally noticed my wings, paled and keeled over backwards with a whimper, stiff as a board.

"Really? He didn't notice my wings until just then?" I growled, "How distracted by Artemis was he?!"

"Bianca," said Percy, apparently deciding that it was better to deal with what he knew than figure out a fainting goat, "we came here to help you. You and Nico need training to survive. Dr. Thorn won't be the last monster you meet. You need to come to camp."

"Camp?" she asked.

"Camp Half-Blood," said Percy, "It's where half-bloods learn to survive and stuff. You can join us, stay there year-round if you like."

"Sweet, let's go!" said Nico.

"Wait," Bianca shook her head, "I don't—"

"There is another option," Zoe said.

"Yeah, I could put in a good word with Azazel," I said, "Most of the Grigori are Fallen, but they also take in those with nowhere else to go."

"That is not what I meant, boy," sneered Zoe.

"Ouch, harsh," I deadpanned.

"Thats not an option," said Thalia.

Thalia and Zoe glared at each other and I took a few steps back, just in case they decided to start fighting.

"We've burdened these children enough," Artemis announced, "Zoe, we will rest here for a few hours. Raise the tents. Treat the wounded. Retrieve our guests' belongings from the school."

"Yes, my lady."

"And, Bianca, come with me. I would like to speak with you."

"What about me?" Nico asked.

Artemis considered the boy.

"Come on Nico, we can play a game," I said, holding up our decks.

"OK!" said the boy.

I guided Nico over to the edge of the woods so we wouldn't be in the Hunters way and summoned a table and chairs with my magic, much to Nico's awe. We sat down and I handed Nico his deck. I kept an eye on everything that was going on as we played. The Hunters set up their camping site in a matter of minutes. Seven large tents, all of silver silk, curved in a crescent around one side of a bonfire. One of the girls blew a silver dog whistle, and a dozen white wolves appeared out of the woods. They began circling the camp like guard dogs. The Hunters walked among them and fed them treats, completely unafraid, but I decided I liked my bum un-nibbled, so I stayed close to the tents. Falcons watched us from the trees, their eyes flashing in the firelight.. Even the weather seemed to bend to the goddess's will as the wind died down and the snow stopped falling, so it was almost pleasant sitting by the fire playing cards, although I had switched my Mythomagic deck for actual cards and was now teaching Nico and Grover to play Poker.

Unfortunately, it seemed that not everyone was enjoying the pleasant atmosphere. Percy was sat across the fire, staring morosely into the flames as he rubbed his injured shoulder and Thalia was pacing up and down at the edge of the camp. I felt a stab of guilt, knowing I was at least partly responsible for their current mood.

Finally, one of the Hunters brought everyone's things from the school, allowing Grover to treat Percys injury.

"It's green!" said Nico with delight.

"Hold still," said Grover, "Here, eat some ambrosia while I clean that out."

I ignored the rest of the byplay as I made my way to the edge of camp, rummaging through my bag and pulled out my mirror as I went.

"Azazel, you there?" I said.

The mirror started to glow and the image of Azazel, sitting in his dressing gown with a glass of something alcoholic in his hand appeared on the glass.

"Well well, I wasn't expecting you to call again tonight," he said, "So hows it going Sparky? You get lucky at the dance."

My eye twitched.

"No, I did not get lucky at the dance," I growled, "And I have a report to make."

"Is that so?" asked the Fallen Angel Governor General, "Very well, lets hear it."

I gave Azazel a quick rundown of the nights events. Once I was done, he looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding.

"Alright, I understand," he said, "We'll move up our plans to retrieve the Holy Sword. You should make your way back to…"

He trailed off as he looked over my shoulder.

"On second thought, I want you to go to Camp."

I blinked. That was unexpected. Since I had received a ton of training from the Grigori and I was plenty powerful enough to make most Monsters think twice about picking a fight with me there was never any need for me to go to Camp. True, I had intended to tag along with them, but I thought I was going to have to sell the idea to Azazel.

"Um, OK," I said, "Why?"

"Things are getting hot in the Greek Pantheon and I want to know what's going on," said Azazel, "And since you're a ready made spy…"

"Right, got it," I said.

"Plus, you'll have an opportunity to get with one of Aphrodite's…"

I disconnected the mirror before Azazel could make the lewd comment and slipped the mirror back into my pocket. I headed back over to the fire and rejoined the others. As I sat down, Nico turned his attention from Percy to me.

"So, what are you?" he asked, "You said you were a Nephilim easier, right? Is that anything like a Demigod? What…"

I held up a hand before he could go to mad with questions.

"Slow down kid, I'll answer your questions," I said, "Nephilim is the name given to the offspring of Humans and Angels, usually Fallen Ones since True Angels don't 'debase' themselves with Humans. Technically, I'm a second generation Nephilim, meaning that I'd normally be weaker than my Dad, but thanks to Mum, my Angel side got a boost."

"Why, whos your Mom?" asked Percy.

"One of the Olympians," I said.

"WHAT!?"

"Who?" demanded Thalia, "I don't know any Goddess with purple eyes."

"Thats because my hair and eye colour both come from Grandad," I said, "Hes a Leader Class, powerful enough to take on both God and Lucifer during the last war with Heaven and Hell, so only the Big Three are stronger than him. As for who my Mother is, I know but I'll be keeping it to myself for now."

I grinned cheekily.

"Its not Hermes is it?" asked Grover, "Because that would be really ironic."

"No," I said.

"Why would it be ironic?" asked Percy.

"Because his name's Luke," said the Satyr.

I blinked.

"Oh, how rude of me, I completely forgot to introduce myself," I said, "My name is…"

Before I could finish my introduction, Zoe came over.

"Percy Jackson, Luke Morgenstern," she said, looking down her nose at us.

"Kill joy," I muttered, pouting at losing the opportunity for an awesome introduction.

Zoe fixed me with a glare so intense that I'm surprised I didn't combust right there and then.

"Come with me," she said. "Lady Artemis wishes to speak with thee."

And thats the end of that. Before I sign off, a few points.

First, while the existence of other pantheons isn't widely known among the Demigod population, the Gods are very much aware of them.

I wonder why Azazel was so eager to get Luke to Camp? What was the sourse of the Magic Circle? Who knows but me! Until next time!