A/N:
Goodsir:
Mr.P3pp3r: You see this? This is what happens when I stay up until midnight and write what I think. It's beautiful!
Lance: Looks like an incoherent script, you jackal.
Mr.P3pp3r: *Le gasp!* Moi? A jackal? I was sure I would be more of a Doberman… Oh well! Now, where'd I put that jar?
Mr.P3pp3r: AND PENGUINS!
Lance: As usual we're getting along like wasps and babies.
Iznelomviing: Yes and no, Lance isn't capable of enough control to do that. Percy himself can change water tension, but the only application I remember is punching people, which doesn't even seem to be that effective against demigods. Remember a bullet has a hell load of energy, I (Goodsir) think that it's going to take a lot more skill to form an effective water shield. Better to have a lot of water and block bullets that way.
Darknaim: We know :)
I had already made it inside the compound when the gunfire started. Judging by the distance, Perseus had led them back into the woods. And judging by the slowly fading calls for retreat, he was destroying them. I couldn't fail him, then. Not when we had come so far. The base was less populated than we had originally believed, no more than a hundred-fifty here. That meant they either used their machines to make themselves a larger army than they actually were, or this wasn't their main base. Either way, we needed to destroy it.
After Perseus' water fist had died out, the soldiers appeared to start organizing themselves again. I ducked underneath a box to avoid a squad of four soldiers running to join their team, and ran towards the vehicle compound. At least, I hoped it was the vehicle compound. Perseus had only known that it was at the opposite side from where we entered, but at least military bases weren't supposed to be very confusing to navigate.
I breathed heavily from the anxiety, nervous to hell. Even if this was my idea, everything was far easier said than done. It was only my second mission… I regretted not taking up more. I shook the dark thoughts from my head. Now was not the time for distractions.
The edge of the barracks created a sort of barrier with the bright lights shining against it. As carefully as I could, I peeked around the edge, having to look down to block the blinding lights with my hood. Gods, why was it that this base had so many bright lights? Were they trying to blind their troops?
Another group of soldiers stood outside the locked gates to the compound, discussing some sort of strategy. I felt the need to listen in, but eliminating them was a better idea, or at least distract them long enough for brother to continue the plans. Distracting them from the watchtower would take too long, and once they spotted me, I would be dead. The grenades… well, I wasn't trying to attract anyone, so that was a no-go.
That left me only one choice. Magic.
I usually felt lacking in my capacity of magic, but weeks of refinement and practicing its limit had helped me stretch its stamina. I pulled my hand back like a bowstring and cooked up some godly energy, focusing on the intent of disintegration and chaos.
The soldiers hadn't even finished checking the weapons when the first three soldiers in front of their leader had searing gold patches through their chests. Unfortunately, they were more prepared than I realized, as my corner suddenly became the magnet for every bullet in the area. Gunfire cackled against the storm, pinging off the barracks side like a xylophone gone mad. I channeled the golden aura again and moved away from the bullets. This move was expensive and messy, but emergency was still emergency.
Shit, Percy would have found an actual way to mess them up with much greater efficiency than I could ever do on my own, and now because of my excitement I'd jeopardize the mission.
RAWR!
Wait, what?
All at once things went from bad to sideways.
The black-white shape of a huge, lean mutant wolf hopped over the walls, landing on a soldier. The man was crushed into paste instantly, and it lunged for another.
RATATATA
A hail of explosive gunfire went towards the wolf, but it was fast enough to raise two armoured arms, blocking a few of them. The sound of bullet penetrating flesh had never been so strange… A bear crashed through the barricade, white claws mauling apart another soldier. I decided to take my chances, dashing towards the vehicles. Just as I was about to make it, someone decided I made a better target than the monsters in front of them, because I once again found bullets flying my way. Most of them missed, but one of them hit me square in my arm, causing it to flinch backwards and almost lose my balance.
I dove behind another building, twisting as to not land on my now injured arm. The rise in heart rate was inevitable, and I bit back from fainting. Pain burned in my arm as my muscles felt like they'd burst from my skin. I leaned against the building, checking the wound for how bad it would be. Well, how do I put this… I was… less than competent in terms of medical expertise.
Be it by luck or by a whim of the dead Fates, the bullet cut straight through and hadn't hit any bones. At least I wouldn't have to worry about removing the damn thing, though I knew I would absolutely hate the next few seconds. Why? Because I had to close the hole, and the only way I could do that currently was with magic. You see where I'm going with this?
Having no idea how to cast a healing spell (wasn't like I was ever taught), I decided a trial by fire was the best choice. A searing, magical left grip latched onto the wound, and I cried in pain (it certainly felt more like a growl). I waited until most of the pain subsided a little in my arm, before once again making my way around the chaos that had sprouted within the base. The monsters were everywhere, and I was sure they'd overwhelm the base soon. Like, it was just a feeling. No one had ever seen such a large incursion before… actually, this could be a bad thing. If the military didn't take care of them, we would never have the firepower to hold off such large amounts of mutants.
In the night, I healed faster. I could feel small portions of muscles start to shift as they grew to fill up empty space, but it was still a slow process. I figured my arm would heal eventually, probably in about a day or so, but I didn't have that kind of time. Already more and more monsters were swarming the base.
Through the madness I ran, toting what little munitions I had left. I had lost one bomb, which now I realize I could have been blown to bits because of it… so thanks to whatever might count as fate I didn't die then. My special box was still intact and its contents were undamaged. I hoped the weapon, that weapon would be the key to destroying the base.
I dodged rogue mutants, fought passed the occasional human guard- having no trouble making it quick since a monster usually came around to finish the job. My mind was hyper focusing on the task at hand, literally pushing out anything that wasn't necessary for my survival as I made haste for the vehicle depot. Now I know that I'm not one to look a gifted Pegasus in the mouth (is that how the saying goes?) but even I had to question the validity of the base construction overseer putting the vehicle storage right next to the fuel storage. I mean, I understand it's to make refueling easier, but no self-respecting commander would put anything that could cause a spark right next to their most valuable assets.
Whatever. It wasn't like I could complain to the commander, seeing as how he was probably dead.
I set up right between a large troop transport truck - the ones with the large beds and the tarp tent over it- and the nearest fuel container. Many rows of green, steel cylinders each laid on a support of four steel legs, all marked with warning signs. I placed a time bomb for every other fuel tank, and used the spare ones on the vehicles, just for good measure. I stepped behind another rigged jeep and…
Holy crap.
Nice.
The tank was a beautiful yet terrifying machine, and I couldn't help but run around it, looking for all the little details. The machine gun, the curvature of the barrel, each individual piece of the tread… If only I could drive this! But a little voice at the back of my mind reminded me of what the soldiers could have done to us with it, if it was ever deployed.
"Well, lookie what we got here," a gruff voice growled. Slowly I turned, a healthy dose of fear creeping into my heart. The commander from the previous encounter was standing over me, his left eye closed from a large gash going down that side of his face, his mauled left arm creating a small waterfall of blood. His shoulder was dark with the crimson, some unseen wound being left untreated. He was a dead man, but that didn't stop him from pointing a pistol at me.
"That was some plan you had, kid."
Shit.
"I'll admit, I would love to know how you managed that light trick when you killed three good men, but seeing as how we'll both be dead soon…" He coughed once, a spray of blood coating the air in front of him. "I'll let it slide."
Neither of us moved. I got a good look at him now that I wasn't being shot at. He was a tanned man, his skin reminding me of those sandpaper strips. You know, the ones with that khaki-colored lighter side? Yeah, those. His eyes, by contrast, were a sharp blue, piercing with the same look Zeus gave any demigod on Olympus, myself included. His hair was a buzzcut, and I couldn't make out the color against the dark sky. Speaking of which, it had stopped raining. Shit… I didn't know if I could cast a bolt faster than his trigger finger.
"Before you shoot me," I started. "Tell me, why attack a harmless little village just trying to get by?" I couldn't hide the accusation in my voice when I asked him. How could I? This was probably the guy who gave the order to slaughter nearly everyone I cared about. I at least had the right to get pissed off.
"Because you were a threat."
"I beg your fucking pardon?" He laughed at my question.
"Just orders from the bossman." He chuckled. "Like you and that other kid."
I felt a cold chill run down my spine. "What do you mean?"
He seemed to ignore my question. "Uh… ah… oh…" he chuckled deliriously. "Then again, he did manage to kill 15 of them mutants with a farm tool."
While he was talking, I used my mediocre influence to try and manipulate the nearest water into coming to my aid. Maybe I could form a pressure shield? No, my mind reasoned. There would not be a second of my soon-to-end existence where I could make a sheet of water build enough tension to block a bullet. Hell, I didn't even know how much tension would be required for that. So… Ice maybe? I cursed and remembered the crap was out of my domain, as usual.
My control wasn't working. Everytime I tried to influence the water, pain shot through my head like a thunderbolt. No matter what I tried, it just wouldn't work. Magic bolt was far too slow, and I was sure he'd be prepared, despite his unstable state of mind. I mentally cursed, hoping the commander would keep talking long enough for me to figure a way out. Or at the very least, stall long enough for Brother to come through and save the day, just like the stories.
"You know, I really hate to do this kid," the man gruffed. I didn't believe him for a second. "But this is curtains for you." I looked down the barrel of the pistol, watching, hoping.
He pulled the trigger.
Percy
In the cold, rainy, and wet nigh, something felt wrong. I just knew it. Something wrong had happened, and the uneasy feeling in my gut never proved me wrong. Well, except in cases of self-doubt and mental instability.
I spun Kronos out, a metallic smelling gush of wind caressing my face. I got into a lazy, unbalanced stance and swept Kronos' extended blade across my field of vision, making two pieces out of anything it came into contact with. Men, women, mutants. I sent a stray rifle round deflected with the length of Kronos, and hacked apart a soldier, his weapon and uniform falling into two perfectly cut parts. There, the grey uniforms. It was very strange, wasn't it?
I ignored the bastard's innards spilling out from my cross section. The rain quickly filled up in his body, spilling out great portions of blood and guts.
The feeling got worse, like when you know something bad's going to happen but you just don't know what that something bad is. Fighting through felt like eternity until I realized the layer of muck and blood, be it evaporating or not, stopped being washed off by the rain. I was caked in dry, red, fluid, only this time, it didn't smell of gold.
It was iron.
Human blood.
The rush for Lance turned down several notches in intensity when I entered an "alley" between two buildings, of sorts. Sounds of rapid gunfire became numb to my ears as my mind filtered them out. A left… A right. Had it not been for the muzzle flash and the intense spotlights, even I would have had a hard time navigating.
I briefly wondered if all the blood on me would attract a mutant or two to trap me, although I'd survived enough attempts of assassination by sandwiching enough times to developed a counter-attack. Eventually, after being lost for a minute, I turned on my earth senses to find the gasoline again.
There, to my right. The wet ground had dampened them, but I could still locate certain things with the ability. I ran at a pace slow enough that I could react if a certain enemy was to be spotted, black boots splashing in the equally dark pavement.
I leaned through a field of battle, and seeing three grey-uniforms on the ground, each with a wide hole through them, I knew Lance had been here. They didn't have faces of shock… so… ambush, I would say. The kid was probably trying to get in. It pained me to think about my brother killing three people, but these were no fucking ordinary, innocent people. These men attacked a village of people who just wanted to settle. I stalked through the rows of transports, letting Kronos hang in my hands in sickle form, so I would have decent space to work with.
"A245."
That was all she would say. Tanya was one of two that had joined us on the way to establish the settlement, and I never heard much from her. After all, my job was to protect them, not make friends I'd regret not saving. A245.
"Hey, Tanya," I would say. "How you holding up?"
The woman looked up at me with a set of lifeless eyes. "A245." She would always say.
Then I would sigh to myself for even trying in the first place, and wonder what had happened to the poor thing.
John later told me that her fiancée got crushed into paste under the wheels of an armoured Humvee.
Well, this was it. The truck. On its rear, four perfectly printed white letters: A245. Guess this was it, the one that crushed him. Still can't remember the guy's name, for gods' sake, maybe i should start feeling bad. Never mind, not like it was going to matter once we destroyed this place- hopefully the last of troubles from our military friends.
I heard voices, talking against the sound of rushing liquid. The smell of gas stung my nose, which meant Lance had actually decided to open a tank for one of his grenades. If I didn't know he was my brother, there would have been no doubt now. Only one other person would do something so stupid, and that was me. Guess we sons of Poseidon are crazier than given credit for.
"You know, I really hate to do this, kid." That sounded like a stereotypical commander, if I ever heard one. Which meant Lance hadn't finished his part of the plan. Even worse, he was caught.
"But this is curtains for you." My heart grew cold with realization. I rounded the corner as fast as I could.
BANG!
Time slowed as I watched the bullet fly from the gun, right for Lance. My body froze and I could only watch as Lance fell back, his chest sprouting red.
Red.
Red.
Red. Red. Red red red. Red red red redred redredredredredREDREDRED!
I'd completely lost it, he would tell one that shot Lance, I conjured a ball of water and knocked him right into the tank of gas. Something inside me shattered, just like the revelation with poison. My powers over water rushed forth like a tidal wave, whatever rainwater that had remained on the ground rising to my call. No one fucks with demigods while I'm still breathing.
And no one gets to live if they kill a demigod.
All around the base, men, women, and monsters found themselves targeted by the very water beneath their feet. Rain drops formed pressurized shotgun blasts that tore apart whatever wasn't covered in armor or bone. Remember how in my first volume told that hitting the water fast enough was like hitting concrete? Hundreds of thousands of bullet spheres came upon them, and I was barely aware of any of it.
I couldn't tell the shapes of soldier and monster apart as the onslaught continued. It was sickeningly reminiscent of the first time I'd piloted a machine gun, hundreds of rough shapes, downed with three, downed with four. I felt like I had broken. I had lost Annabeth, my mom, camp half-blood, camp Jupiter. I failed them all. I had lost almost an entire settlement, my sole responsibility. Now, I lost a brother I didn't even know I had before. You think I was throwing a temper tantrum? Doesn't matter, I thought i'd deserved a little let-loose after this… fucking thing.
As the number of warm, moving spots of water dwindled rapidly, I moved on to the buildings. They'd already been torn with hundreds of holes, but now? I concentrated a mass burst of several hundred on the steel beams of a tall building, and the structure's very core shook and fell. Any vehicle I saw became bent, twisted, and swiss cheese. My stomach twisted into knots so much that there was an epic moment of release; of break. I'd broken past it.
And despite the slight tire, I felt more than ready to continue.
Lance
The first thing I saw was white.
Like, there was nothing else.
Just white.
Everywhere.
I sat up, grunting in pain as my body ached. Wait, wasn't I somewhere before? I looked around, trying to find out where I was. "Oh good! You're awake!" I heard a rather chipper someone blurt.
I looked around, trying to find the source of the voice. All I saw was, you guessed it, white.
My legs were starting to numb and fall asleep, so I decided if I was going to deal with something weird, I'd might as well face it standing. My legs felt like jelly as I pushed myself to stand.
Once I was on my feet, I once again searched for the voice. Honestly, I had no idea where I was or what I was doing. All I knew for certain was that my heart ached. Not metaphorically, like going through a bad relationship, but literally, like it had been punched. I moved my hand to try and massage the pain away, but as soon as I touched my chest, I felt something, warm and sticky, stain my fingers.
I looked, and found a giant red splotch over my heart. I brought my fingers closer. There was a red liquid that clung to them. It had an iron-y smell to it, and was still very warm. Wait a minute, I remember now, I thought. Yeah, it was coming back to me.
My… brother(?) and I were attacking… a place. No, a base. Yeah, it was a base. A.. military base?
We were attacking, and I had rocks. No, bombs. Wait, uh… pineapples? No, bombs! Yes bombs! And I was planting them and then…. Oh, right.
I was shot.
Honestly, I thought it would hurt more. I mean, it still hurt like a bitch (seriously, try getting punched in the heart. Hurts.) but it didn't feel like I was shot.
"Hello?" I called out into the expansive whiteness. I guess this was the afterlife? I'm not sure how things worked now since the gods fell, but if I could escape you can damn sure bet I would try.
"Oh good, you finally figured it out!" the chipper voice from earlier called out once again. I turned as quickly as I could, finally catching sight of the voice's source, and at the same time making myself dizzy. Who knew you could get dizzy even when dead?
"Whoa there, don't want you dying on me, now," the voice chided. I could hear a chuckle coming from the person. Why did they sound so familiar? "Who knew you could be so reckless?" asked the voice. I felt someone grab hold of me and steady me enough to sit me down in a chair… one that obviously wasn't there a few seconds ago.
It felt comfortable, the chair. The white room didn't look it, but it felt like it was spinning. The person sat across from me, behind a large ornate wooden desk. "Now, comfortable?" he asked. It was most definitely a he. And seriously, why did he sound so damn familiar?
I heard a snap, and as I was trying to process why they were snapping when the room shifted. No longer was it a large expanse of white. With my vision returning to normal, I could see it was an office. Nice one, too. Oaken floors, one side of the room was just straight glass overlooking a snow-covered town. As I looked out the window, I realized more of the flying machines from my earlier dream were here.
I looked to the person at the desk, finally able to make out what they looked like, and why they sounded so familiar.
"So, how are things?" I asked… myself. Literally. The person sitting across from me… was me. Only, not me. I mean, almost everything looked the same: the skin, the hair, the teeth, even the bullet wound. But the eyes… they were wrong. For starters, they were red. They reminded me of a cat's eye, you know, how they have that huge slit going down the middle as if someone had carved right down the middle.
"Who… are you?" I know I said it was just me, but after dealing with gods for so long you sort of question whatever's in front of you whenever it seems wrong. He (I'm going to call the other me as 'he' because my head already hurts, and not from dying) grinned and said, "I"m you! Well, sort of you. The better you!" He sounded like he was going for a sales pitch.
"What?" I asked, still trying to wrap my head around two mes.
He stood up from his desk and walked around, leaning on the front and crossing his arms, just like a salesman. "You see, I'm you, but at the same time I'm not. Integrated if you really want to think about it." He smiled at me as if he were closing the deal. "You see, I'm the one thing that can make you better."
"Better? How do you mean better? And where are we?" I gestured to the room around us.
"You like? It's actually ours, from the future anyway. Oh, spoilers!" He shushed me before continuing. "When you were tied up in that den, those veins weren't just pumping liquid into you. They were pumping me."
I looked right into his eyes, and he had the same look as Hermes whenever he was going to play a trick on the Myrmidons. "So… you are… what, exactly?" He made himself sound ominous, but I had no idea who or what he was supposed to be.
He didn't expect that apparently. "You- you're serious? You have no idea who I am? You- you can't be serious! You should know exactly who I am!" He sounded rather flustered. He saw that I was serious, and sighed. "Didn't they teach you anything on Olympus? Okay- okay. Let's play a game then. I'll give you just one hint and you have to figure out who I am from that hit. Sound good?" That did not sound good, but I couldn't speak over him as he said, "Great! Alright. Now, you're hint is this. Who was the only monster that nearly destroyed Olympus?"
If this was the afterlife, I was sure I was in Hell. "Typhon," I whispered, hoping that it wasn't true, that this was just some fever dream while I was dead.
"Ding ding ding! Let the boy have his prize! You guessed right, little demigod!"
How was this possible? Typhon had been destroyed after the Kronos War. The gods put him down for good… didn't they?
"Oh, come on now. I'm not that bad!" Typhon said across from me. He was back in his chair, balancing a pencil on his upper lip. "Once you get to know me, I'm sure we'll make fine partners." The way he said partners made me think it would be more like a puppet and a master, and I had a fairly good idea which Typhon (good gods) wanted to be.
He seemed to read my thoughts, and stated, "You can stop worrying about me trying to take over. I was serious about being an integrated part. Your brother, bastard that he is, interrupted my gestation process by a full two years.
Two. Years.
I was only about halfway done when he so rudely interrupted me. Now I'm… different. I mean, it's not bad. I actually enjoy a nice change of pace. Back then it was always tromping and stomping around, scaring gods, devouring mortals, the usual."
The way he talked about doing all that sounded no different than Percy talking about the day's training or Gwen talking about the weather. "Why me?" I had to know. Why was I the one that drew the short straw to receive Typhon. Better yet, why in Hades was Typhon being put into someone in the first place?
"Because of Nyx," he replied, again as if he were reading my thoughts. "You see, by the time the war actually got around, Nyx was stronger than led to believe. She was stronger than the Gaea, she was stronger than Tartarus, hell I'd wager she was even stronger than Chaos herself. That whole 'Gaea ending the world thing?' That was Nyx using just a little of her power to push things along. Everything else: the monsters, the black goop pumping in your veins, even Luna breaking, those were all her."
"You see, Nyx knew you humans were a bunch of persistent little bastards, and could survive just about anything, so she decided to make her own, final performance. Her swan song. She actually had me brought back to Tartarus to be the first and most crucial step in her plan. I was to be placed within the body of a demigod, and gestate for a few years, slowly taking over as the demigod's body would slowly accommodate my power, before I would be free to join the world, infiltrate every last settlement you humans would build, and basically become a Trojan horse, only instead of soldiers, I would bring with me the monsters she made from her own blood and power. And not just any demigod would do. Nyx needed a magical user strong enough to handle initial contact with my power, otherwise they'd burst like a balloon."
My body felt cold, and not from the blood loss. No, I felt cold because from the start I was doomed. Even before I had been sent on a mission, even before I was trained by the Myrmidons, even before I was brought to Olympus, I was nothing but a means to an end. I had been personally selected by Nyx to be her little puppet.
I didn't feel honored. In fact, I felt glad Percy managed to throw her plans to the sharks. At least I could give the idea of Nyx the finger as I thought of her eternal frustration of her ultimate plan, her cumulative work to end all humanity once and for all, had the rug pulled from under it by Percy. Take that you stuck up bitch, I mentally cursed at Nyx. If she was still alive, even by some smidge of a miracle that she had enough conscience to hear and understand me, then I would rest well knowing she couldn't do jack-squat anymore.
"Well I guess that plan went belly-side up, didn't it?" I asked in a condescending tone. You would too, if you suddenly found out that your ultimate enemy had planned to use you as the means to wipe out your kind.
Typhon chuckled, nodding as he went on. "Yes it did. And now, I'm here to discuss with you the ramifications of our new partnership. As much as I love being stuck inside your noodle with my only contact to either you or the outside world being you dying, I'd much rather prefer a more direct solution." He stood up from his chair, leaned on one hand on the desk, and offered me the other. "How about a merger? In return for letting me essentially piggyback on your subconscious out of here and letting me actually see, hear, and feel what you do, you get to use my power."
I looked at his hand. Was Typhon, father to all monsters and the one thing that actually made Zeus wet himself, offering to help me? Not only that, but without asking for more than something to prevent boredom? That was literally too perfect to be true.
I leaned back in my chair. "What's the catch?" I asked.
Typhon's grin was sly, just like George and Martha when they found ways to blackmail me into giving them rats. I didn't like it. It gave me an uneasy feeling, like I shouldn't have asked in the first place. "Well for starters, you won't get every ounce of power I have, not yet anyway. I give you that much and you're as likely to destroy the base as you would have with your little 'secret weapon.' He gave air quotations for the words secret weapon.
I grimaced. That weapon was handcrafted by Hephaestus himself, forged within the fires of Olympus, and infused with the strength of the weapons of Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades. It was meant to be a weapon strong enough to blast Nyx far enough into the Void to keep her there forever. But it came at a price. 'The ultimate sacrifice for the greater good,' I was told by Zeus. I didn't care, by then I was just ready to find some rest and get away from the Olympians. Paradise, my ass. The gods were anything but on Olympus.
Typhon must have had some mind-reading capabilities because he just began to laugh out of nowhere, a loud, busting laugh like he heard the world's funniest joke.
"Lighten up, champ! You won! You made it out of that place and made gold by finding your brother. Now, you got me… if you agree to the terms." He outstretched his hand once again, leaning over the desk to reach me.
I wasn't going to hesitate. I reached for his hand almost immediately. Before I could shake it, he pulled back. I couldn't tell what look he had since he dropped his eyes to the table, but the sigh gave it away. "Damn it, you really are influencing me. All right, there is one other catch I might have failed to mention."
I sat back in my chair. "Really man? I thought we were having a bonding moment." I couldn't even begin to hide the sarcasm in my voice. I was tired of being told half-truths, and I thought being in a literal Apocalypse would change that. Guess even I lie to myself sometimes.
"Okay, well this last part… is kind of a good news/bad news get up. You see, I told you I was supposed to lead the monsters using you - no offense - against mankind. Well, since we met we've established a sort of connection, kind of like finishing the setup, only without me controlling you. Buuuuuuuut, you won't be able to control my powers… for awhile. And unfortunately - and since I can peep into the future I know exactly what I'm talking about - the only way you could get better at it is to use it over and over. Kind of like one of those muscle things you humans were always prattling on about."
I'll admit, this entire last power thing was sounding completely cliche, like I was in a video game or a show or something and I just got a new power. Great, I mentally sighed. Just another experience to add to the ever growing list of weird things even for demigods. Maybe I should actually write all those things down. Probably make a book or two. Ah, I dunno. Maybe the version for the gods would be a better sell.
Typhon snapped his fingers in front of my face. "Hey hey hey, come on buddy, pay attention." Ass.
"I heard that, but I'll let it slide. Anyhoodle, we got a deal?" This time as soon as he reached his hand out I clasped it, shaking firmly. Typhon smiled. He looked up, like he heard something. "Well, looks like our time is just about up. Got anymore questions before you head back out?"
Oh, I had questions, and I had plenty that I had wanted to ask right then and there… but I had one that I needed to ask most of all. I looked down at my (and I do mean my) bullet wound, and had just one question to ask before I woke up.
"Does this mean I give love a bad name?"
Percy
My anger had long since drained, leaving me feeling exhausted, and I was. Mentally, physically, and spiritually. My brother had died before my eyes. The only other demigod I knew of, and basically the only other person I cared about, was gone. And I once again found myself Alone. Wasn't that just fucking dandy?
Even after my throwdown and power blast, I was still surrounded by monsters and people. The last few surviving humans had managed to barricade themselves in a nearby building, locking - and possibly barricading - the door, and doing whatever they could to keep the monsters out. Meanwhile, I was sitting on my knees in front of Lance.
I didn't cry. Demigods lost the ability to cry after a while. It was a luxury we weren't allowed after we killed enough monsters. The monsters surrounded me on all sides, the flying ones keeping their distance, but they still looked like glorified vultures.
The monsters had formed a circle of gnashing teeth, foaming mouths, and demonic eyes. Even with Kronos I doubted I would survive through this.
Oh well. Guess the others would have to make do without me. I had faith they would.
Still, I wouldn't go down easy. I was prepared to die, but I wasn't going to go out without at least giving one last show. Who knows? Maybe if I killed enough of these things they would actually leave the settlement alone.
My right hand grew heavier as the familiar scythe of my grandfather reformed in my hand. It hummed with energy, probably excitement if I had to guess. Guess even the scythe knew.
My legs moved on their own, pushing back to stand up. I wasn't scared… I was relieved. Relieved that soon I'd be with Annabeth again. Soon I'd be back with Mom, and Paul, and… her.
I was ready to charge, to make my final stand, when I heard a groaning noise. I looked back to see that bastard who shot my brother, and he was still alive. "You son of a bitch," I growled. I may have been ready to die, but there wasn't any way I was going to let this asshole off without consequences.
He made to crawl away, I'd assume he was desperate to try and escape… even if he was crawling right for a monster mob. He didn't get far before I grabbed him by the leg and dragged him back.
"You're not going anywhere," I told him. Kronos was just a few inches away from his chest, in full scythe form. Even the slightest touch and this man would be barbeque in a matter of seconds, and then just dust in the wind after that. But I'd have my fun first, even if it meant getting my hands dirty. Kronos found itself a temporary sheathe in the ground, its blade buried about halfway up in dirt.
I had one hand grabbing his shirt to lift him up and the other was wrapped around his throat. He was pale, and judging by that wound on his shoulder he'd been steadily bleeding for minutes now. The guy didn't even have enough strength to look directly at me.
Still, that didn't mean I couldn't have fun. I shook him a bit, just to get his attention. His half-lidded eyes managed to look in my direction. He didn't have much time left.
"Hope you believe in a God," I said. "Because there's no afterlife, everything just goes black." Granted, I was lying as far as I knew. My previous experiences with the afterlife (nothing permanent, personally) had told me that there would always be a place, because otherwise we'd… have… ghosts. Oh, shit. Annabeth. Was she actually a spirit, and not me losing my mind? No, bad Percy. Deep thoughts later. Fun torture time, now.
The man sputtered weakly, drawing ragged breaths as he held on to life. Poor bastard should try to be offing himself so he wouldn't have to deal with me. Oh well.
My hand continued to squeeze down on his throat, further stopping him from breathing the smallest amounts of air possible. I didn't squeeze too long because I didn't want to kill him yet, nor did I want him to blackout.
Before either happened, I dropped him. I was fully aware, at that point, that the monsters had stopped growling and snarling and instead watched silently, save for the occasional beating of wings from overhead as even the birds made lazy circles to watch.
I was brought back to the commander by another severe grunt from him. His throat already had my handprint on it. He coughed and sputtered, gasping weakly for breath. He was on his last leg, and I was about to leg sweep his sorry ass.
I grabbed Kronos, easily ripping it from the ground, and strode over to the meat sack called a human. The holy/unholy blade glinted in the cracked moonlight. It was beautiful, the way the blade was so slick and clean, even if it would be stained by blood in a few minutes. It was almost a shame to have to dirty it so horribly. Almost.
I brought up Kronos, twisting to the point would pierce his heart and rip him in two when I pulled down. My arms tensed, my legs stood fast against the ground. This was it.
I had just started to bring the blade down, ready to slice my prey apart, when - and I shit you not - someone grabbed the commander by the collar and tossed him into the air, right for the large birds. My eyes never left the man, watching with no small amount of glee as the birds crowded around him in the sky, each taking their own souvenir of the kill. I heard his scream even all the way from down here. It was music, my friends.
Kronos was still raised when I looked from the eviscerated base commander to the one person I never thought I'd see again.
"Oh my gods… Lance?" Before me stood my brother, a large red stain on his clothes, but standing before me, looking no worse for wear. I would have hugged him, possibly even kissed him on the cheek, had it not been for his eyes. His shiteating grin was still there, full of excitement… but his eyes. They weren't his. This wasn't Lance.
Kronos was at the ready faster than even I could blink. "Who are you?" I questioned, keeping myself at the ready. The bird monsters still circled overhead. None of the other monsters made a move to try and kill me now. They were…. Bowing? Wait, hold the flipping phone!
Bowing? To Lance? Okay, now I know some serious shit had to have happened when I was trying to kill that man. Lance had been dead… what? Five minutes? Did something happen in the last five minutes I wasn't aware of? Seriously? What is this bullshit?
He didn't answer. Instead, he walked right up to the nearest wolf mutant. No joke. He was literally in front of it, looking at it as it kneeled. Then, he raised his hand, pet… PET, the damned thing, before it exploded. Honestly, I've seen some weird things happen, even by gods' standards. This just took the entire bakery, nevermind the cake.
Nothing was said. He just looked at every single one of the other monsters, and they just… left. No monsters trying to maul me on their way out. No monsters turning around and going PSYCHE! Not even a passing glance from them as they left. It was like watching the student body at Goode shuffle out of the auditorium.
I turned back to Lance, hoping that I'd get some sort of information, but he just winked at me. What, did he think I'd want this as some sort of surprise party? Demigods don't just cause entire monster armies to shuffle away!
Not a moment later, he dropped again. Fell right onto his back. I would have felt bad, downright terrible even, but my brother just came back alive to send away a bunch of monsters? He didn't even say 'Hi, Percy!' or 'Man, dying sucked.' Nope, just went right back to laying down on the ground.
I had to give my brain a couple of minutes to at least processed that this just happened. Believing it was an entirely different story altogether, but at least noting it happened was… good enough.
Ten minutes passed (thank you Kronos) before I moved to Lance's side. He hadn't woken up since then, but at the very least he was breathing. "Oh thank the-"
"SHOT THROUGH THE HEART!" Lance shouted, bouncing up like some sort of springboard. I can tell you that two things happened at that moment. The first, and I'm not ashamed to admit this, was I screamed. Loud. I wasn't expecting my brother to wake up so soon, and I really didn't expect him to wake up singing the opening chorus to Bon Jovi.
The second was that I punched Lance in the gut. It was a reflex I had developed after dealing with monsters jump-scaring me. The effect was immediate. "Ow!" shouted Lance. "What was that for?"
"That? THAT? That was for dying on me, coming back just to send the mutants away, and then come back again singing Bon Jovi!" I shouted back. Damn, this was fucking great! Lance was still rubbing his stomach, no doubt feeling for his intestines, before I pulled him in for a hug. Good gods, I was getting sappy.
Lance was confused at first, which made me flinch just a little. "Uh, Percy? What are you doing?"
"I'm hugging you," I mumbled, just wanting a few moments to myself. Now don't go thinking that this was me trying to make sure he didn't leave me… again. No, this was me making sure he was real, and not some hallucination I had come up with. He was real, thank goodness. "Come on," I said, standing up. I offered him a hand and said, "Let's go back."
A/N:
Goodsir: Huh, the magical resurrection was too early. It doesn't follow the standard rules of a hero's journey! *cries* *breaks down* You can't do this to me! What do I do?
Mr.P3pp3r: *singing an out of tune version of the Hallelujah Chorus* Since when are we standard?! WE LIVE FOR THE INSANE! Lance! Bring me my buttermilk biscuits! I wish to teach Goodsir the element of happiness!
Lance: How about no.
Goodsir: Yeah, sounds about right. Just like how you are actually an alternate reality version of Lance-17239475 from dimension of the same name, brought here so we could question you and therefore avoid interference to the Lance we are currently telling the story of.
Mr.P3pp3r: LIES AND SLANDER! You have no proof! Everyone! Review and tell Goodsir he was lied to. Do it! FOR ME! FOR THE PEPPERS OF THE WORLD! Oh, wait. Caps Lock was on. Yay!
Goodsir: I can't handle this cringe anymore. I need to take my pills now. Anyways, REVIEW!
Mr.P3pp3r : Until next time: DEUCE!