Previously on Immortal Warrior,
The pegasus shot forward at unbelievable speeds. The air around them compressed as the pressure dropped. A funnel of thick air condensed around them in a ring before ... BOOM!. Blackjack went supersonic.
Percy's blades sliced through the birds like butter. Every bird was dead before it even knew anything. "Goddamn!" Percy exclaimed. He hadn't expected the pegasus to be supersonic. Not that he minded.
The flying horse shot through the clouds, causing the clouds to thicken and thunder to rumble. Percy kept his blades in front of his face, the clouds separating at it's touch.
Up ahead, he could see Orthrys. "Let's do this shit!"
(At Hephaestus's Junkyard)
If one looked upon the junkyard, they wouldn't actually notice if something was amiss. Even if there was a gigantic robot whose insides were scattered over the place. Nearly three hundred metres from the remains of Talos, a young girl lay crumpled amongst the scrap metal. Her clothes were torn up due to the metal and the silvery glow around her faded to almost nothingness.
The sky rumbled as a figure in black armour landed harshly in the area. The scrap metal around him was blasted several feet away due to the surrounding shockwave. His golden cape fluttered aimlessly in the wind as he made his way to her. Acknowledging the fallen demigoddess, he turned around so his back faced her. Sighing, he removed his helmet, placing it on a small mound of metal and proceeded to wipe the sweat off his forehead.
"Tell Kronos I've got her."
The demigoddess slowly stirred from her unconscious state. The first thing that hit her was the headache. It sucked. She frowned when she saw a man in black armour standing in front of her. What was that he said? Something about Kronos? She wondered.
"Will do, Lord Darkstorm." A slithery voice came from the earpiece. But Bianca's heritage meant enhanced senses. She could hear the conversation.
Bianca had never heard of a Darkstorm. Was it a codename?
He wasn't a god. That much she knew. As a child of Hades, she could feel for godly power. Not that she knew that. All she knew was that the man before her didn't seem as godly as Artemis. His voice seemed rather human.
Darkstorm almost wanted to turn around, but he shook his head. "Not yet." He muttered. Putting back his helmet on, he turned and raised his leg, delivering a punishing blow to the demigoddess, knocking her out instantly.
"Well that's done."
With one hand, he hoisted her on his shoulder and bent down in a kneeling position, or rather, a position to get ready for a sprint. The next moment, Darkstorm vanished in a black-gold blur, shattering car windows and rear view mirrors as he ran through the cities, making sure he got to Orthrys quick enough.
(With Zoe Nightshade and Co.)
The group now consisted of Zoe, Thalia and Luke. Perseus was assumed dead by now and Bianca too, was dead or as Zoe thought, 'missing in action'. It did seem easier to think about. Maybe the two of them got lost. Foolish hope, but what else could they do? Finally, they reached the top of the mountain.
"My lady!" Zoe rushed forward, but Artemis said, "Stop! It is a trap. You must leave now."
Her voice was strained. She was drenched in sweat. The weight of the sky was clearly too much for Artemis. Zoe was crying. She ran forward despite Artemis's protests, and tugged at the chains.
A booming voice spoke behind them: "Ah, how touching."
Everyone turned. A being was standing there behind them. Luke knew for sure this had to be Atlas ... in his brown silk suit? At his side were Ethan Nakamura and half a dozen dracaenae bearing the golden sarcophagus of Kronos. Bianca kneeled at Ethan's side. She had her hands cuffed behind her back, a gag in her mouth, and Ethan was holding the point of his sword to her throat.
The questers were both happy and sad. Bianca lived!, but she was in terrible shape. Extremely terrible shape. Her eyes were red and one of the eyes was swollen shut. There was a slap mark across her cheek and a handprint around her neck. Her clothes were in tatters and frankly she wouldn't have looked much different even if she was stark naked. The silver glow around her was completely gone. It was almost as if she wasn't a hunter anymore.
Zoe's eyes widened. She knew what they did to her. "THIS IS CROSSING THE LINE FATHER!".
Luke jumped in shock. "Atlas is her father?", he asked Thalia, who merely told him to shut up. She too, had noticed Bianca's sorry condition. Her fists sparked with electricity, and without thinking, she charged Ethan. The demigod didn't expect her to charge at him, so naturally he swung at her, trying to catch her off guard. But Ethan severely underestimated the daughter of Zeus. If Luke was the best swordsman in Camp, then Thalia was the best spear wielder. She deflected the blade and rammed Aegis into his stomach, making the demigod double over.
Stepping behind Bianca, she swiped her spear, expertly sliced off the Celestial Bronze handcuffs. Using the momentum of cutting the handcuffs, Thalia swung the spear hard at Ethan, making a resounding CRACK! against his ribs.
The demigod was sent crashing into a boulder, cracking it ever so slightly.
Meanwhile, Luke had foolishly engaged Atlas, who was the only other threat there. Luke might have been as skilled as the titan, but sadly he was severely outclassed in the strength department. Every attack Luke dodged nearly sent him toppling over due to the air rushing at him from the attack. Whenever Atlas struck the ground with his spear, small cracks appeared. As a son of Hermes, his inborn speed kept him alive, dodging everything the titan threw at him.
Unfortunately, everyone makes mistakes. Luke's mistake was antagonising the war god two years ago. His blade grew heavy in his hands and his slashes became sluggish. Atlas's next attack was coming. Panicking, he dropped the sword and rolled in the opposite direction, narrowly escaping the life of monster food.
In his distraction, Atlas managed to come up with a follow up attack, sending Luke into the side of the mountain. Luke groaned as he tried to get up. A three-inch deep imprint of his body was left on the side of the mountain. He looked at the titan, who was taking his own sweet time coming at him. He knew there was no way he could beat Atlas.
He glanced at Artemis. Maybe she could.
He counted to three before rolling to the side and leaping away from the titan and towards Artemis. Without saying a word, he slashed out her chains and pushed her out. Artemis was roughly shoved aside before she could even protest the fact that Luke could most likely die trying to hold the sky.
"Oh well", she muttered. Two hunting knives appeared in her hands as she leaped towards the titan.
Luke could never explain the weight of the sky. It was unbearable and he was sure he would've snapped in half if it weren't for Thalia who rushed beside him and helped. Zoe was continuously firing arrow after arrow at her father, who merely smacked them away. Some which hit him bounced off his armour. Others hit non lethal areas only. The fight wasn't going good.
Above them, the clouds cleared and a beam of yellow light smashed into the titan at full force.
"AAARGH!" Atlas screamed in pain as the light burned his skin.
When the light stopped, everyone gasped. Standing there in the middle was none other than Apollo. The sun god was in battle armour, with a bow in his left hand. The bow itself was a wonder. The bow seemed to be made of solid metal while the string was thick, stronger than the sinews of a bison.
Atlas's eyes burned with fury. The burnt skin quickly regenerated, closing up his wounds. "YOU DARE INTERFERE?!"
The sun god wasn't in a jolly mood. His eyes glowed yellow, contrasting the night sky. "You made a mistake when you took my sister."
Faster than thought possible, Apollo dashed towards Atlas, his bow morphing into a war-hammer. Using the momentum, he took a thunderous swing at the titan, lifting him into the air and sending him crashing and tumbling down the mountain.
"It'll take a while before he climbs ba-AGH!"
A black boot suddenly impacted his stomach. The sun god felt a sharp pain in his gut as he flew across the area, hitting the floor and then rolling two times over before coming to a stop. The sun god groaned as he got up. That was one strong kick.
Suddenly, in front of him, a man in black armour appeared. His face was covered with a spartan helmet, but something was very wrong. The plume wasn't red, it was shining gold. There was also a golden cape fluttering behind.
"Darkstorm?! You're not supposed to be alive!" Apollo exclaimed. He had frankly never seen this being for a very long time and was hoping he was dead. This being was too powerful for him. Only his father had managed to beat him, and even that was a surprise attack.
"What? And miss the opportunity to destroy Olympus? Not a chance."
Quicker than Apollo could think, Darkstorm landed a thunderous right hook to his face, followed by his left fist into his chin, lifting the god a bit into the air. Here came the unbelievable part. While Apollo was mid-air, Darkstorm kicked his chest so hard that the god went head first into the side of the mountain, with his legs sticking out of the rocks, trying to get out.
Artemis's eyes widened. Darkstorm took out Apollo like he was nothing. She had to be careful. Silently, she crept behind the being, then lashed out out with her two hunting knives which impacted between the chinks of the black armour.
To her horror, he bled. But not golden ichor. She was utterly surprised when red mortal blood flowed out of his wounds. "A mortal?! But how?" She exclaimed.
An enraged Darkstorm backhanded the goddess hard and fast enough to flip her twice mid-air before painfully being smashed to the ground by a metallic black boot. Through the blackness of his helmet which covered his face, Artemis could see his eyes which glowed an ethereal green.
"Not mortal. Only half." Darkstorm said. His voice had lost some of it's power. Her symbols of power had done some damage. At least there was that.
"Impossible!" The goddess snarled. "No demigod is that powerful. In fact, nobody is that powerful!"
Darkstorm's eyes glowed brighter. "Do not be so sure, goddess!"
Just before he could inflict any further damage on the goddess, he was suddenly thrown into the air, his shoulder part of the armour dented. With a painful grunt, he stood. A black pegasus neighed and stomped it's hooves as the rider got off, holding a pitch-black sword in his hand.
Darkstorm laughed a little. "Ah yes. I've been expecting you, Perseus.". He looked at the pegasus. "Hello, Blackjack."
The pegasus neighed in surprise. Silently he thought, 'Does this guy also know we're in a fanfiction? How does he know who I am? More importantly, how come I don't know who he is? I know everyone in this fanfiction!'
Percy readied his blade. "Round two, Jackass."
Darkstorm didn't say a word. He merely dashed forward at incredible speeds. Faster than Percy could even think about moving his sword, he was hit with the force of a freight train. Just like Apollo, he went straight into the mountain, crashing headfirst and then dropping to the ground.
A frightened Blackjack shot off to the skies. "Aw man! I liked Rick Riordan's version better. This particular chapter was a lot simpler! ... but then Lukey boy would be on the evil side, so let this be."
Percy's eyes widened as he struggled to get up. He still had no way to counter Darkstorm's speed. He had no clue what to do. All his attacks met thin air and every time Darkstorm would appear beside it. Somehow, he always dodged it.
Darkstorm was merely toying with him and Percy knew it. He managed to take out two Olympians within a minute. Percy knew he was gonna have to figure out something fast.
While he lunged at Darkstorm, he noticed something. He wouldn't dodge in a regular manner. It was almost as if Darkstorm casually walked to the side and allowed the blade to miss him. It scared Percy because of the sheer speed involved, but it also meant that his opponent severely underestimated him. He wouldn't be paying attention.
Controlling the earth wasn't a power Percy used often, nor was it a power he could easily control. It barely came under Poseidon's domain due to him being the Earthshaker, but Percy focused on it anyway.
Not expecting an underhanded tactic, Darkstorm roared in pain as sharp spikes erupted from the ground and pierced through his boots.
Not wasting time, Percy slashed at the armoured man at his midsection, but all it did was leave a tiny scratch on the armour. Percy's eyes widened. The armour looked really light, and yet it was able to completely shield the wearer against a direct attack by a Celestial Bronze blade. There was also the strange fact that Darkstorm refused to pull out his sword. Was Percy really that outclassed? Was he so easy to defeat that the man in front of him didn't even need his sword?
He looked at Darkstorm's boots and saw red blood spilling out.
"What the?" He was a demigod?!
It angered Percy to be defeated by a demigod. He was one too but he knew he wasn't that weak! Not so weak that his opponent didn't need a sword! He felt a little tug in his gut. The ocean on the other side churned and started to sway the enemy ships left and right. Darkstorm merely glanced back and as if by magic, the waves stopped crashing into the ships. The water calmed down almost instantaneously.
Percy didn't notice that but Artemis did, and she was beyond surprised. Darkstorm had to be a child of Poseidon! ... But she shook her head. He may very well be a child of Oceanus too. It would certainly explain his attendance during the first great war between the gods and the titans. But then humans didn't exist at the time! For all she knew, it could be another person in the same armour. Yes, that had to be it.
Regaining her bearings, she stood and charged at the armoured figure from behind, hoping to impale him again.
Sadly, her target merely turned his head before bringing his knee up and smashing it into her wounded stomach. Golden blood spilled out of her mouth by the sheer force of the kick.
While he was distracted by Percy and Artemis, Apollo had gotten out of the mountain and he managed to land a blow on Darkstorm's chest-plate with the side of his bow. Percy could only imagine his surprise when Darkstorm didn't even budge.
The god's eyes widened. "What the? That's impossible!"
"Apollo ... you were never even half-decent in close quarters."
Darkstorm merely flicked his wrist and both gods went flying against a black marble pillar. What shocked them to the core was that they found themselves completely immobilised. Like how gods would sometimes telekinetically toss around mortals.
"HOW?!" Artemis shrieked. Both gods were beyond terrified.
"There was no way he should be able to do this! Even Zeus can't do this to us!" Apollo exclaimed.
Without saying a word, Darkstorm dragged Percy to the golden sarcophagus of Kronos. Stretching his hand, he ripped a golden piece from the top of the coffin and plunged it straight into the demigod's heart.
Percy's eyes widened and a gasp escaped his lips as the golden shard pierced straight through his skin and entered his heart.
Meanwhile, Zoe was firing down at Atlas to keep him from reaching the top of the mountain. Her eyes widened when she heard flesh being pierced and momentarily stopped firing at Atlas from the edge of the mountain. She gasped in horror upon seeing Percy impaled in the heart. Her eyes turned to Darkstorm who merely dusted his hands and then suddenly disappeared in a golden streak.
She heard the sound of rocks cracking and gasped as her father reached back to the top. When she stopped shooting at him, the titan was able to climb up without his hands being shot.
She rolled away as his palm tried to swat her away. But the next one got her when the titan kicked her across the palace like a football.
Atlas smiled, looking at the fallen forms of Percy and Zoe. "And that's two goals for the titans. What a shame, it's not even half time!"
He cracked his neck and turned around, only to be sent flying towards Luke and Thalia who held the sky.
"NOOO!" He yelled as he crashed into them, sending them tumbling out of the weight.
For a moment, the pillar supporting the sky remained mid-air before suddenly falling. On instinct, the titan lifted his hands and stopped it. Several bones cracked due to the immense weight, but they quickly healed, and Atlas was once again stuck under his old burden.
"NOT AGAIN!" Atlas yelled. "I JUST GOT FREE! NOOO!"
Artemis and Apollo stood in thirty feet from Atlas, their weapons in their hands. Artemis was utterly exhausted while Apollo looked battered up but still relatively alright. The god frowned, looking for Darkstorm. "Where did he go?"
He looked at his sister, who stared in front of her with shock. "Uhh, Arty?"
Frowning, he followed her path of vision before his eyes landed upon a fallen Percy who had a hole in his chest. Red blood leaked out of it like a river emptying itself into the ocean. eyes widening, he rushed to him and carefully looked inside. A golden shard the size of his palm was inside. But when he reached to take it out, the shard dissolved into the blood.
Not bothering, he raised his palm and showered Percy with golden light. Artemis did the same. Within seconds, the wound was closed.
Zoe had momentarily regained consciousness and managed to drag herself towards the three people. Luke and Thalia couldn't move due to their muscles being completely damaged in all aspects. They also had cracks in several bones.
Bianca crawled over too, despite her condition.
Artemis looked like she was about to cry. "H-He's dead."
Apollo looked at her oddly. "No he isn't. Hear carefully, there's a heart beat."
Heaving a sigh of relief, she sat down, only to notice Zoe's broken form next to her. "Zoe?!"
The daughter of Atlas looked weary. Her silvery glow was gone, indicating that her life force was fading. In simple terms, she was dying.
The goddess sobbed. "NOO!"
While she was kept captive, Darkstorm told her Zoe and Bianca would both die. Hell, he even told her that it would be Atlas who killed Zoe. Somehow, he was spot on correct. Atlas's final blow to her dealt a massive amount of damage to her.
Being near the Garden of the Hesperides gave her a little extra strength to face her father, but it wasn't enough. In the end, the prophecy would come true.
Despite knowing that, Artemis desperately blasted silvery light at her lieutenant, trying to heal the broken bones and ruptured organs. But nothing happened. It was as if the body refused to heal itself. Artemis knew she could heal her lieutenant. She had healed worse injuries than this. This time though, all her powers and godly experience amounted to nothing when she couldn't heal simple organ failures.
Apollo sighed sadly. The Fates had cut Zoe Nightshade's string. You could call Asclepius himself and he wouldn't be able to heal the huntress.
He looked at Percy, who was still unconscious. Judging by the heartbeat and the waves emitted by his brain, Apollo knew he was in a coma. There was nothing he could do now, except take him to his palace, where he could be treated better.
For now though, they had to retreat. There were enough losses for the day. He stepped away from Percy and looked up. A golden beam of light engulfed them all and suddenly they disappeared. Just in time too, as the entirety of Kronos's army surrounded the palace of Orthrys.
Sorry this took a little time.
Pls review.
