[CHAPTER NOT EDITED THROUGH GRAMMARLY. WILL BE EDITED AT A LATER TIME.]
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"Somebody speaking."
'Somebody thinking.'
Disclaimer: I do not own PJ, MCU , or any other anime/novel/manga/fanfic that I may use.
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Chapter 6: My life in the Pit below Hell 2
Year 210:
"All! This! Effort! Better! Be! Worth! It! God! Damn! It!" (Perseus)
"Do you have to yell a word every time you hammer that sword?" (Damasen)
"It! Makes! Me! Feel! Better!" (Perseus)
With a final hammer strike, I lifted the pitch-black sword glowing with heat I was hammering and nodded in satisfaction before quenching it in a barrel of pitch-black water from the Styx. Lady Styx gave me express permission to use her water for this, but it must be returned.
Ten years ago, after I calmed down from my rage induced rampage, Styx gave me some helpful information.
I spent twenty years gathering energy from monsters by hunting and for each enchantment, I had to take whatever the item was out, and have it be nearby the monster as it was killed.
This was a serious bitch, but I persevered, and it took me twenty years to finish off all my gear.
Then Styx reminds me about Stygian iron.
You see, mentally, I was still using Percy Jackson's perception of the material in that I shouldn't touch it. Only the divine with connections to death can do so safely.
I forgot the fact that Styx is also one of those gods related to death and I was her direct and only living champion. She literally blessed my entire body with her power. If I couldn't use the metal, a child of hades couldn't.
Using the metal, I would be able to kill monsters and absorb their energy and essence MUCH faster and more efficiently than my 'caveman' method as Styx called it.
I did not try to strangle Bob later that day.
It wasn't trying because I was doing it.
When Damasen restrained me and I calmed down, Bob admitted he never thought of it because he can't use the metal. Only beings connected to death or an incredibly powerful divine could wield it safely.
According to their memories, some titans and giants would gather pitch black armor and proclaim it as Stygian iron to attempt to look stronger than they are such as Koios the Titan, and Mimas the Giant. The only known Giant and Titan to actually use it were Clytius and Krios but that not because of their strength to not be touched by death.
It was because Krios was the grandfather of Hecate and had a strong connection with magic, he had tricks to using Stygian iron.
The same happened with Clytius, the Giant born to be the Bane of Hecate.
So, with those examples, Bob explained that his only option was to use the primitive and rough one. None of us thought of using Stygian iron for different reasons.
From all this, a piece of good news is that I found something to do.
Styx pointed me in the direction of a Stygian iron ore mine deposit, and I spent the last decade mining, refining, and forging with it. Or least I was trying for the first nine years.
This metal is famously known to be harder and sharper than Celestial Bronze and Imperial Gold for a damn good reason.
Damasen couldn't help me since he can't touch the ore but thankfully all the years dealing with Drakon bone helped me out.
Drakon bone is actually harder than Stygian iron. It's just that one's a bone and ones a metal. There's a lot of magic qualities in it all but I'll just say that they are very different to handle.
In my tenth year, I finally got the forging process down correctly and I had just finished putting the last touches on my blade.
In the end, I made a one-handed pitch-black sword with a violet glow to it and ten throwing knives. The final step in the forging process is to quench the metal in the waters of the river Styx. The reason is that the Styx imbues the property of minor invulnerability to the metal. I say minor because it wears off in time unlike the curse of Achilles.
Still, it will wear off in a few centuries.
The metal on its own has the properties to absorb life force and essence of those it kills. Any monster killed with it will have more of their energy taken then just normally killing it and the monster will take ten times the amount of time to reform.
For example, let's say a newly born low grade monster has a score of 10 energy points.
When I kill it with other weapons, 4 points are lost, and the rest is carried over to its rebirth.
Among those 4, I might absorb 2 with my enchantments nearby.
With a Stygian iron weapon, I could rip off 6-8 points from the monster and absorb it all from the blade later on.
The only thing was that unless the monster was on the strength level of the Drakon, I couldn't get a spoil of war from killing with a Stygian iron weapon since the energy that would make the spoil gets absorbed into the blade.
Its trading one thing for another but frankly, I have more than enough spoils by now. I have so many furs I could outfit a town with two sets each.
Looking at my new blade, I gave off a wide smile.
'No longer will I have to suffer.'
"You know, it's pretty creepy when you smile like that while holding up a pitch black blade made from Stygian iron. You look like your possessed by an evil spirit or something." (Damasen)
With my eye twitching, I remembered that I wasn't alone.
"Oh Damasen, I forgot about you for a second. How about you help me test out my new blade huh? Let's have a friendly spar." (Perseus)
Damasen quickly backed up.
"Hell no! There's nothing friendly about that look on your face and stop pointing that ominous blade my way!" (Damasen)
In the end, we did spar, and I lost. Turns out, I wasn't too familiar with the blade which isn't shocking. It takes a bit of time to adjust when you have been using other swords for many, many years.
We are all highly skilled warriors so a slight weakness like that was easily taken advantage of by my opponent.
But I didn't care, my senseless energy gathering hunts were over.
Now I could go back to enjoyable and relaxing hunting that doesn't make me feel like pulling my brains out.
Ah, life in Tartarus is never peaceful for long.
Year 320:
A hunt in a minor realm on a quest for Phlegethon ended nicely but, in my carelessness,, I stopped for lunch inside the territory of a terrifying being.
I would later come to know how I both regretted and looked fondly upon this day.
Taking out my portable kitchen, I quickly got to work.
"*Sigh* I know I ask them for these quests to challenge myself, but they are all fetch quests. I've spent a century exploring these small realms and the number of challenges I've been getting has really gone downhill.
Still, at least I get to see new places and hunt new monsters, like todays lunch."
The last realm was a weird grass plane, but the grass was golden yellow and there were these flower monsters that kept trying to bite my ankles and poison me.
Thankfully, I was able to get the quest item as well as kill some massive boar on my way out with it being old enough to leave me a spoil. I'm more of a steak kind of guy but I learned long ago not to be picky about what I eat.
Moving to the dissection area, I brought out the beast from my storage from a new tattoo and got to work.
As useful as they are, I like to keep a separate storage area for food. I leave most in my portable kitchen, but I still end up keeping some on my person separately.
Within minutes, I had the large beast dissected and evenly cut into different parts. Skin, bones, blood, and organs got disposed of while I kept the meat to the side.
Shoulder, Loin, Bone-In Ham, Side, and Spare Ribs. I had all the good pieces moved aside while I cleaned up, which was super easy with a storage symbol carved on piece of leather which I would later empty somewhere else.
Moving into the kitchen, I tossed a Stygian ice piece of eternal flame into the large firepit for roasting meat and began to cut up the Loin into pork chops and kept the baby back ribs on the side.
The side and shoulder would be stored to be cut into bacon and smoked respectively at a later time.
The spare ribs were also cleaned up and stored for a later meal, this boar was massive. Still, with my appetite, it would be gone in a few days.
The Bone-In Ham is a favorite of mine. I like to slow roast it over a strong fire.
And finally, I cleaned up the pork feet and tossed them into a boiling pot of water for some soup.
I prepped the chops, Ham, and baby back ribs with an assortment of plants and spices I collected from throughout my years and began the arduous and focused job of roasting them just right.
It took me many years, but I managed to create my own recipe for the perfect roast, and it requires a detail to attention.
"Oh! It's you!" (?)
So, it was to my surprise that someone or something managed to sneak up on me. Whether that was because I wasn't being aware enough, which was unlikely since I am a hunter as a profession, or because of the being's ability I wasn't sure.
With a quick call to my girl, I quickly turned around and drew my blade while Yin charged out of my shadow with an aggressive growl.
"Huh? Are you attacking me?" (?)
Looking at the source of the voice, I paled slightly and mentally told Yin to stand down but stay on her guard while I quickly restored my sword.
"*Cough* Lady Nyx, it is an hour to meet you." (Perseus)
Of course, I recognize this force of nature! I went over everything Percy experienced in Tartarus with a damn magnifying glass. The moron had a talent for getting into some of the worst places in the realm in a matter of days.
Annabeth and he had run into Nyx by accident after they were betrayed by one her daughters and when Nyx wanted to kill them for trespassing, Annabeth convinced Nyx that they were just tourists on a tour of Tartarus.
I felt like spitting blood when I kept watching and saw it actually work.
Annabeth tricked Nyx into both summoning all the children that were currently inside her mansion and having all those kids show off to Nyx by competing to see who could make the darkest 'darkness'.
The result of all of them trying at once was a darkness that was so dark, even Nyx couldn't see what was going on. In that moment, Annabeth grabbed Percy and they ran straight through the Mansion of the Night and Percy carried them over the river Archaeon to the other side where they escaped.
It was the luckiest and most infuriating thing to re-watch. I couldn't help but be thankful that Percy managed to survive seventeen years of life so I could eventually be born. I was enjoying life and that kid kept trying to die!
Anyway, back to Nyx, I immediately knew what to do. In the face of this gullible primordial goddess of the night, one of strongest and most terrifying beings in the universe along the lines of Tartarus and Gaea, I will use the ancient lesson of 'Deny till you die. It wasn't me.'
"Aw thanks. You're that tourist from back then right? Did you come for a revisit?" (Nyx)
I shook my head.
"My apologies lady Nyx but this is the first time we are meeting." (Perseus)
And that was technically true.
Nyx's happy look turned sharp and the pressure in the area increased.
"Are you lying to me boy?" (Nyx)
I felt a bit of sweat fall on my forehead, but I kept a straight poker face.
"Not at all my lady, this is the first time that I, Perseus, am meeting you, the primordial goddess Nyx." (Perseus)
'Please buy it, please buy it, please buy it.'
She held the pressure for a second longer before it dissolved like it was never even there and she smiled again.
"Ah, well since you weren't lying, that's my bad, just a case of mistaken identity. Well then, since you trespassed on my territory, I will have to kill you, unless you have a good reason for doing it." (Nyx)
I sweat dropped at that.
'So casually mentioning killing me is depressing but wtf am I supposed to say? Wait! Maybe it will work.'
"*cough* well, I was passing through the area and the thought occurred to me that I had never offered a meal to the best primordial god in all of Tartarus (*cough* the only one aside from Tartarus). You see, I am quite proud of my cooking, it took me a few centuries to reach my level. Would you be interested?" (Perseus)
Nyx puffed out her chest in pride at my compliment and nodded imperiously.
"Food huh? I don't think I've eaten anything in a few centuries aside from a few souls. I could grace you with my presence. Do be warned though, if I don't like it, I will still kill you." (Nyx)
Ignoring her casual death threat, I led her toward the fire and pulled out a leather chair I crafted for her to sit down.
She plopped down with a happy sigh.
"Ah, this is a nice and was that an old language enchantment? Not bad." (Nyx)
Getting told 'not bad' is the same as an Olympian trying to kill you for doing something they weren't able to do.
"Thank you, it took time to learn. Now, before we enjoy our conversation, would you like me to offer some dishes or would you like to try a little of everything?" (Perseus)
Nyx tilted her head and thought about it before nodding.
"A little of everything, I want to see the skills that you are so proud of." (Nyx)
I nodded at that with a smile.
"It would be my pleasure my lady." (Perseus)
With a chef's professional attitude of focusing on their work no matter what, I ignored the metaphorical ax hanging over my neck and focused my all on making the food to the best of my ability.
I turned the Bone-In Ham, flipped the chops, and made sure the ribs were being cooked evenly and with the correct amount of heat.
Using water manipulation, I was able to enhance the taste and store the flavorful juices from the meat inside to give someone an almost literal explosion of flavor. I also used it to stir the soup in different directions without lifting the lid.
While it cooks, I continued to spice it at the perfect moments while conversing with Nyx.
I caught her drooling a bit at the fragrant smell coming off the meat and she covered it up and tried to change the focus back to our conversation.
"Hm… now that I take another look, have you been blessed by Styx? And is that a hellhound? It feels like one." (Nyx)
I nodded without looking at her. Yin was lying next to the fire, slightly in between us while keeping a wary gaze on Nyx. She didn't know whether Nyx was an ally or not.
"Yup. Styx took me as her champion and saved my live. And the hellhound is my familiar, she is named Yin." (Perseus)
"Really!?" (Nyx)
Her surprise ended up surprising me, so I took a look and saw her almost standing on the chair with stars in her eyes.
When I nodded, she spoke excitedly.
"That makes you my pseudo grandson! Styx is my daughter (AN: This is actually a mixed debate in myth), and hellhounds are all my kids as well. That makes two of my daughters attached to you! One as your patron and the other as your familiar." (Nyx)
Seeing her look incredibly proud of her deduction, I couldn't help but simply nod along.
'I mean technically, she isn't wrong.'
"I see, so… what should I call you?" (Perseus)
Nyx took on a thinking pose and seriously pondered the question.
Now that I wasn't under pressure and I could take a second to look, I noticed that Nyx is actually a beautiful woman.
Maybe a bit on the small side but not enough to be called a loli. And those breasts are not meant on a loli.
She was around five feet tall with long midnight black hair, pale white skin, and a doll like face full of innocence.
Well, she wasn't innocent, far from it, but she gave off that vibe of being a gullible airhead type.
'I don't care what anyone says, if she fell for Annabeth's trick back then, she is as gullible as a dog who was thrown an imaginary ball.
She was wearing an all-black dress that was puffy below the waist and propped up her breasts nicely.
"Hm… how about Grandma Nyx?" (Nyx)
I raised in eyebrow at that.
"Are you sure you want me to call you grandma?" (Perseus)
The air darkened a bit, and she narrowed her eyes before it went back to normal.
"Never mind, I don't enjoy the title. Just call me Nyx for now, family doesn't need to use titles for me." (Nyx)
I smiled in response.
"So, does that mean that if anyone picks on me I can run and hug your leg?" (Perseus)
Nyx smiled back.
"*Pft* like you need to hug my leg. The only people you should currently be unable to win or run from are ones I would find annoying to deal with, fight your own battles kid. But if another primordial messes with you, call for me and I'll answer you." (Nyx)
She gave me a calculative look and it felt like my entire being was seen straight through, but it was her last words that made my poker face turned strained and Nyx seemed to realize.
"Oh? Did you actually piss off a primordial? Hahaha! That's my kin. So, who did you mess with?" (Nyx)
I turned away to focus on the meat.
"Well… I kind of drowned Tartarus in the Delta…" (Perseus)
"…."
I didn't get a response for a minute until I heard a *Pft* sound.
"*Pft* hahahahaha! That's great! You actually managed to pull one over that arrogant little ass! Hahaha! Oh god, my liver hurts that's so funny!" (Nyx)
Sparing her a glance, I saw her rolling on the ground, which was magically covered in pure darkness to avoid her getting dirty I assume.
"You two are siblings right?" (Perseus)
"Haha, yeah. He has always been a little brat. Gaea needed a sperm/essence doner and twisted him around her finger with ease.
He has always had an arrogance problem, but she inflated it to a much bigger level. Still, the little brat is scared to death of this big sister of his. He tried to kick me out of his domain multiple times, it's always funny to see him try." (Nyx)
"So, he is weaker than you?" (Perseus)
Nyx nodded.
"Yes, I am a level above him but that doesn't make him weak. In here, in his domain, he could match me, but I can just exit it and bombard him from outside, he can't trap me in here.
I punished him one time he angered me by turning his entire domain so dark, he couldn't tell what was up or down. It was hilarious to watch.
That was actually the last time he made a humanoid body till recently. I think it was something like five or six thousand years ago. It's hard to tell sometimes." (Nyx)
I just nodded along without really being able to grasp such a long period of time. It did answer why Tartarus was so uncoordinated and awkward in his humanoid body.
"I knew he made a new body a while ago because I felt his presence cut off from the rest of his domain, but I didn't know what he was doing. So, it turns out you drowned him huh? Haha, that's great. I think he won't wake up for another thousand years or so. How did it happen?" (Nyx)
I chuckled a bit at that and decided to just explain things as they were.
"Well, I was on a quest at the time…." (Perseus)
Nyx listened along while I worked and only interrupted a few times to ask questions.
"And then I was born. With my newly remade body, I massacred the rest of the army and went back to Damasen's swamp where I trained in different things for the last two centuries." (Perseus)
"So, you both were and were not that tourist I met back then?" (Nyx)
At my awkward chuckle, she just kept a deadpan face until waving her hand.
"Hmmm.. well, I can't say you lied to me, but you didn't speak the truth ether. I'll decide your fate based on the food you make." (Nyx)
I just shrugged at that. I was already planning on cooking at my best whether she showed up or didn't. If anything, I can bet my pride on my centuries of practice with my life on the line. That's the kind of pressure that helps one think outside the box.
With a burst of inspiration, I pulled out a piece of meat I stored for later and cut a nice strip of fat off.
Then I added the fat, and some spices I processed from a couple plants I discovered to a pan. They were buried underneath one of the dead creepy looking trees and full of corrosive poison but once I removed all the poison and heated and dried them out a few times, they became something very similar to rosemary and garlic.
I put the pan right underneath the meat and let the juices that fell get added to the pan while it heated up from the fire and once the fat melted, I started battering the meat with the mixture.
The meat began to glisten, and the smell wafted off nicely.
""*Gulp*""
Without realizing it, I had a primordial goddess hovering over one shoulder while Yin was hovering over the other with equal looking drool at the corner of their mouths.
'Oi oi Yin, what happened to being wary? Is your appetite worth more than me?'
Despite my inner thoughts, I kept my hands moving and soon enough, I had a large wooden cutting board laid out with sizzling and juice filled meat. I broke out my trusty Drakon bone kitchen knife set, and yes, I did use one of the hardest and rarest materials in the known universe to craft kitchen knives, sue me, and began carving the meat up.
My knives were strong and sharp enough to cut straight down the bone of the Bone-In ham. One half I left on the bone for Yin and the other got stripped of the meat.
The ribs followed a similar fate, I know it's fun to eat from the bone but its messy and my life is on the line here.
The chops were sliced evenly and laid hallway on top of bowl I filled with my soup that quickly finished thanks to being able to stir a soup without removing the lid and leaving it over the center of the heat.
I prepared two plates and a large bowl elegantly with an artistic touch and served it up.
"Orders up. It's still hot but please enjoy." (Perseus)
Yin didn't wait a moment longer and dove for her large bowl, she even shrunk down in size to take smaller bites and savor the taste much to my satisfaction, it tells a chef he got full marks.
Turning to Nyx, I waited to hear her judgement and my skills didn't let me down.
Her clothes exploded off her body in a shower of sparks and fireworks and moans of delight….. yeah, no.
She bit into the meat and experienced an explosion of juicy flavor trapped under the surface layer of golden crispness and started chewing like a chipmunk with stuffed cheeks and stars in her eyes. No, really. There were literal stars instead of pupils in her eyes.
'How the hell is she doing that?'
I shook my head and decided to ignore it while biting into my own plate.
The juice held the full flavor of wild game mixed with the batter of spices and melted fat. The skin was crispy, and the inner meat melted in my mouth. It broke apart with ease and fragrance assaulted my senses with every bite.
I gave the manliest nod of pride I could and went for another bite.
*Clang*
My eyes blinked at the unexpected sound. With narrowed eyes, I looked down to see an empty plate and felt my eye begin to twitch.
Following a small trail of evidence, my eyes landed on a chipmunk goddess and my loyal hound with a piece of meat hanging out of her mouth.
They both avoided my gaze.
"Traitors." (Perseus)
They flinched and I kept my silent disappointed stare going to make them squirm a bit until I pulled out a bag of jerky.
'I'm still hungry damn it.'
Nyx seemed to regain her composure while Yin whined and tried to paw my leg looking cute.
"*cough* Well, you may keep your life. I'll even reward you with free access to my territory. If any of my kids try to give you trouble, you should be able to handle yourself." (Nyx)
I gave her an amused look since I could see her trying to look imperious while telling me I could come by more often and deal with any 'small' problems on my own. Still, it would be nice to not have to avoid a large area of land and just cut through it when I pass through, so I just nodded.
"Well Nyx, I'm glad we could meet like this." (Perseus)
I started packing up and Nyx took the hint.
"Mhm, it's always nice to meet a new grandson, sometimes I feel like my kids are all not the parent types, so I don't see many. I'll drop by once when I grab some interesting ingredients, you're going to be my personal chef during those times but don't worry, I'll reward you each time." (Nyx)
I just nodded, I figured it would happen. She isn't the first one to try and reserve my services, the river gods and Styx have been having a mini war among them to make me their champion, but Styx was able to quiet them down.
Even Damasen and Bob just shut and behave whenever I decide to cook.
Anyway, Nyx waved goodbye and managed to give both me and Yin a hug before disappearing into the shadows.
'What a strange experience, well, I guess I have a primordial for a grandmother now, not a bad outcome.'
Just then, my stomach rumbled, and I remembered barely getting a taste of the glorious meat I cooked.
Year 430:
Shortly after my meeting with Nyx, I stumbled upon the answer to the mystery of my blessing from Cocytus.
I noticed early on that my lungs were enhanced, and I quickly discovered a unique talent for picking speaking new languages easily, but it wasn't until I one day started singing a song while cooking that my power manifested.
It seemed that the emotions portrayed through the song was enchanted onto the food I cooked.
This might seem like a lame power and honestly, it wasn't a combat ability, but it was super fun!
Enchanting my dishes with emotions opened a whole new world of cooking to me and I loved it. When someone ate the food, they would swear they felt the emotion take effect on them.
A happy song made the food cause people to be cheerful. A sad song made them depressed. And so on and so forth. It was an interesting experience.
The enchanted food wouldn't do anything else or show any special signs unless you could perceive energy and feel or see it seeping into the food. If you could see it, you would see the food give off a soft glow.
I also couldn't make them last very long. The enchantment would fade within a few hours.
I spend a decade having fun with it before a crazy idea hit me. If enchanting works best with older languages, what would happen if I sung in the old tongue? Did they even have songs?
It turned out they did have songs! But it took me a decade more just to learn one and that was only thanks to my prior experience with the language.
Thankfully, I didn't need to REALLY understand each word like I would if I wanted to enchant something with it but thanks to my gift from Cocytus, and according to Nyx, it was also thanks to me being a child of the sea who could sing like a siren, the normal words I sung would pull on my divine energy and flow into the food I made.
The difference from other languages was that this song actually had an effect on the eater! The food itself still had the same limitation such as fading over time but when eaten, the eater would be temporarily enhanced with a minor boost to speed, strength, stamina, dexterity, regeneration, and energy.
The food also visibly glows and almost seems to hum with power. It actually makes the food seem holy and enchanting.
It won't make a normal human a superhuman, but it seems to work more of multiplying factor of what the eater already has.
So, if a normal human could lift 100 pounds, they might be able to lift 120 pounds. If they could run a mile in 10 minutes, they might be able to do it in 8.
It varies in use, but it was interesting to find out.
The flavor is also greatly enhanced with such a powerful enchantment. I had to force myself to limit making it because all other food would lose their appeal to me if I didn't stop.
Year 435:
Nyx found out.
She popped up on me one day when I was making enchanted food and practically shook me like a ragdoll in excitement. I swear If I weren't mostly invulnerable, I would have been ripped into pieces.
After finishing a massive feast I cooked for her, she got a twinkle in her eye and shouted that she would be right back before vanishing into her shadow.
I just shrugged and got to collecting the dishes to clean.
An hour later, she returned with a huge smile and a sack of her back.
"Perseus! Make me a pie with these!" (Nyx)
I raised an eyebrow at the request and walked over to sack.
What greeted me was a sack full of golden apples radiating power.
I turned to Nyx with a dumbfounded look.
"Did….did you just take the apples of immortality from the Garden of the Hesperides?" (Perseus)
Nyx gave me an innocent smile full of joy.
"Yup! They are super tasty; I go grab them once in a while. They take a while to grow but it's worth the wait." (Nyx)
I could only nod to that before I had to ask a question.
"Wouldn't Zeus be pissed about that?" (Perseus)
"Zeus? You mean that shitty little rapist? Why would I care what he thinks?" (Nyx)
"Well…. I think my past ego heard that Zeus gifted the tree to Hera as a wedding gift." (Perseus)
Nyx just gave me a confused look for a second before she snapped and started howling with laughter.
"HAHAHA! You… Haha… You think… that little rapist boy… could make something like that tree? HAHAHA!" (Nyx)
I immediately realized it was another thing Zeus said to make himself look good.
Nyx took a while to calm down, so I just poured myself a drink and waited patiently.
"Ahhh~ That was a good one Perseus. To answer your question, that tree was a gift from my sister Gaea to Hera. She always had a soft spot for Hera, Hestia, and Demeter while despising the three boys. It won't stop her from destroying Olympus one day, but she wouldn't be cruel to those three." (Nyx)
I nodded to that interesting information.
"So, Gaea wouldn't mind?" (Perseus)
Nyx shook her head.
"Nah, she wouldn't care. She has always been better at growing things where I just kill everything I try to raise. After accidently killing things to many times, Gaea told me to try raising goldfish, baby steps she said." (Nyx)
Here Nyx got teary eyed.
"But…. They just kept dying! Choking on their own food, eating small rocks, getting stuck in the filter, one even drowned! How does a fish drown!?" (Nyx)
I tried hard to withhold my laughter before bursting out and slapping the table in laughter.
Nyx gave me a hard look, but I just tossed her a drink I made, and she let it go.
"Anyway, I gave up growing or raising things. I always let others raise my kids in fear of hurting them. It didn't always turn out well but eh, it's life.
Back to the important point, I want an apple pie!" (Nyx)
I just nodded indulgently and looked at the sack.
"Do you think I could hold onto a couple apples? I could make a few pies with this amount, but you never know when immortality, at least from age, sounds fun." (Perseus)
Nyx waved her hand.
"Sure thing. As long as the pie tastes good, do what you want with the leftovers. Do you want to eat one now?" (Nyx)
I pondered that for a second before shaking my head.
"At the moment I would say no. Thanks to Bob's blessing, I'm aging a year for every century. I would rather be in my mid-twenties when I made it permanent. Being stuck looking like a teenager would guarantee people calling me 'kid' and 'young man' enough to make me remove their heads from their body." (Perseus)
Nyx pouted at that.
"Aww! But it's so much fun to mess with people! I sometimes go out as a loli and then casually do impossible things to freak people out. Their reactions are always entertaining." (Nyx)
She spoke with a wide smile and I couldn't help but chuckle at the mental image.
"I'll pass but thanks, it's easier to pick up women when my face matures more." (Perseus)
Nyx just waved her hand.
"Yeah, yeah, men. Now, mush, I want my pie!" (Nyx)
I chuckled and lifted the sack before heading into the kitchen with a backwards wave.
"Yes ma'am, it should be ready in an hour or so." (Perseus)
Nyx threw her hands up in joy.
"Yay! Yin! Let's play tag until it's done." (Nyx)
*Awoo!*
Yin jumped out of my shadow and ran off to play with her while I shook my head with a fond smile.
'Those two could be sisters for how they resemble each other sometimes.'
An hour later, and the world's greatest apple pie was finished.
Mixed with energy infused ingredients collected from the many realms attached to Tartarus, apples of immortality full of energy from the primordial goddess of the earth, cooked to perfection with an eternal flame, sprinkled with spices from my personal collection, and enchanted with the ancient language.
A pie like no other was born, with a beautiful crisscross pattern, shiny golden crust, a golden glow with a soft hum, and a sweet smell enticing enough to make even the most stubborn of beings into being interested.
Nyx took one bite before literal stars appeared in her eyes.
Yin almost choked from not breathing enough air in her goal of devouring her slice.
I was honestly happy with my creation and enjoyed it with some mead I made.
Nyx even reluctantly sent off a slice to her sister as thanks for the apples. The rumble of the earth was enough to tell us she was pleased.
In the end, I satisfied my troublesome customer, got a bone crushing hug as thanks, and oh, I got seven apples of immortality which I stored in a special storage tattoo on my body.
It was a very eventful Tuesday.
At least I thought it was a Tuesday. It just felt like one.
Year 450:
Looking at the two wolves play wrestling like kids in front of me brought a smile to my face.
I never thought I would be interested in a second familiar.
One was a pitch-black wolf with burning red eyes, my familiar Yin.
The other was a pure white wolf with turquoise colored eyes, my new familiar Yang.
I stumbled upon an injured white wolf in a minor realm of snow and ice when I was running a quest for Nyx, she wanted some kind of snow cones but that minor realm would shatter if she entered it.
I wanted to put the poor wolf out of its misery, but I could see the will to live in her eyes, she was a fighter and I saw real potential in that.
When I offered to heal her and make her my familiar, she didn't immediately accept but stared at Yin, they seemed to have some silent communication before she turned back to me before nodding.
I sat by her side for a week as she mutated and when she came out, she was a stunningly pure white wolf with powers related to ice and shadows.
From that day on, I had two playful wolves living in my shadows, they were my girls, and we were a team
Now you might be wondering why I'm not mentioning the fact that I found real water in the form of that snow.
Well, the greatest sucker punch to the gut was the fact that it wasn't water-based snow but a product of some weird magical trait that turned shadows into snow. So, I had no control over that weird dark and snowy world.
Year 550:
*Shlik*
"Geeee!"
Taking the head off the 4235th goblin and staring at the tiny 'mana' stone that fell down, I couldn't help but scream in frustration.
"Oh come on! Who created a goddamn dungeon dimension connected to Tartarus! Who was THAT bored!"
"RAWR!"
Off to one side, Yang was tearing through a large group of slimes who contrary to their noob level in games, were annoying to beat without an elemental attack. They could spit acid or poison and were deadly if they made contact with anything alive.
She simply slashed them open with precise claws near their core and her ice attacks followed through to freeze and shatter the core. She was so fast and agile; they couldn't even touch her.
Off to the other side, Yin and a small legion of hellhounds were tearing down one troll after another. Their fangs and claws seared the flesh that they gouged so the trolls couldn't use their incredible regeneration while Yin used her massive strength and tank like self to straightforwardly attack and demolish them. She even burned one to ash with a large fireball.
Witnessing the sight, I sighed and approached the stairwell to the stairway with a sign that read '100th floor'.
'I mean really, who made this shit? I only came here because I heard there was a rare monster that can only be found at the end of the pocket dimension but it's just a shitty dungeon with only around five types of shitty monsters.'
Goblins, slimes, trolls, giant bats, and stupidly annoying and fast rabbits with horns.
The place would honestly be fun if it weren't some stupid repeat layout over and over with monsters just being endlessly thrown at you with slightly different weapons and builds. It's so monotone, I just kept swinging my blade without really paying attention.
And another thing brought a twitch to my eye.
'These monsters drop 'mana' stones but in reality it's just a stupid shiny rock! The only fantasy thing about it is that its Tartarus's rocks so it's full of corrupt and chaotic energy! Sure, use it for stuff, watch it turn the user insane, fun stuff.'
I collected them at the beginning with an excited smile only to have my dreams crushed when I realized I was being had.
*Whistle*
With a quick whistle, my girls finished playing around and joined me on the stairway.
"Let's hope this is the last floor girls." (Perseus)
*Whine*
*Bark*
"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure you two are having fun but I'm bored, I want something fun to fight." (Perseus)
My words rang out at we crossed the end of the stairway into a hallway lined with giant armored statues and a large beast tied to the far wall with a chain.
Taking in the sight, a smile began to bloom on my face.
"Haha! Ask and you shall receive! Murphy you son a bitch, you may bring pain to those who tempt fate, but I'll buy you a drink if I ever find you. And then I'll stab you a few times for everyone else but it's in good humor." (Perseus)
With a large groan, the statues began to come to life and shine with a light aura while the massive beast at the end, an abnormally large chimera mammoth creature I have never seen before began to rise and growl.
"Good! Good! Girls, let's have some fun! That beasty has loads of energy, let's make it dinner!" (Perseus)
*AWOOO* X 2
Year 575:
"Hahahahahahaha finally! I finally found water! Even if it's just snow, it's at least not located at the top of glass and curse covered mountains but just everywhere the eye can see!" (Perseus)
With my joy of finding snow, I let my powers run rampart and created a massive hurricane and melted all the snow in sight.
"Mwuhahahahaha! I am the king of the world!" (Perseus)
From the center of the storm, I was shouting and laughing in euphoria at finally having real water not made by myself again when I heard an ominous crack sound.
*cra-cra-CRACK*
My face paled when I remembered where I was.
'Oh fuck, oh fuck, this is a tiny unstable realm and I just created a category 5 hurricane. I need to get out of here.' (Perseus)
*CRA-CRACK!*
With the dimension beginning to collapse, I shot myself like a jet toward the exit while crying.
"I . Just . Wanted . To . Play . With . Water . For . Five . Goddamn . Minutes!"
Year 600:
"Yeehaw!" (Perseus)
*RROOOAAR!*
"Gidde up ya critter." (Perseus)
*GGGRROOWWLL!*
"When I say gidde up, I mean, GIDDE UP FUCKER!" (Perseus)
With a double-sided kick, I urged on the weird T-rex like monster I found in a jungle dimension.
The instant I laid eyes on it, a strange childlike sensation of wanting to ride it rang out strong in me.
The T-rex took off running to stop the pain and I smiled in delight.
"Ah, this is a man's romance!" (Perseus)
Year 650:
"Not cool! Not cool! Not cool! Why the fuck is there a dimension with a massive slime creature in it!" (Perseus)
Running for my life and clenching my ass cheeks while a couple dozen story high slime uses tentacles to try and grab me is not a fun experience.
'I swear I can feel this thing focusing on my ass.'
"Go find a magical girl or something! I'm off-limits buddy! Think of the readers! You think they want to read a hentai about a man captured by a slime?!" (Perseus)
The slime froze for a second and I felt my hopes rise before it snapped and created hundreds more tentacles.
For some reason, my answer seemed to only piss the thing off.
I eventually escaped with my dignity intact but with a new phobia to slimy things. I also placed a giant sign outside its entrance with a warning.
Magical girls please enter here.
That should be sufficient.
Year 700:
So, it turns out, I was causing an interesting chain of events in Tartarus. After my little experience with the slime, I began leaving misleading sign posts outside of all the entrances. None of them exactly lied about the contents inside but it did give easily misleading hints that very few others found amusing.
For a dimension full of steam that is 90% likely to injure you unless your immune to water damage. Free Sauna Experience.
For a dimension full of sand that rains stones for some reason. Sandy Balls Ahead. It had multiple meanings.
For a dimension full of giant blind spiders that are super sensitive to sound. WARNING TO TOURISTS, the natives like jokes. Of course they do, their meal is giving them a giant welcome sign.
For a jungle dimension full of giant-sized mosquitoes. Burn it with fire!
And a few others seemed to really piss people off for some reason.
Please do not throw stones at this sign. Thank you.
If violence isn't working for you, you're not using enough of it! -by the Wise Old Potato
NOTICE, thank you for noticing this new notice. Your noticing has been noted.
Active shooting zone. Beware sudden warheads.
Caution, water on ground during rain. – this was a lava dimension but hey, I was pissed off that day.
I left signs all throughout the dimension and with Tartarus in a deep sleep, all the signs were simply left there for other monsters and beings to stumble on.
If your curious how monsters can read, well I wrote it in Greek or Latin and the vast majority of them can at least read and speak it in their own vocals.
Its either something they were born with or something they picked up after thousands of years of existence but eh, that's not a mystery I care to figure out.
"PERSEUS YOU LITTLE SHIT!" (Bob)
I turned to see Bob charging at me covered in burns while a small horde of monsters were actually charging WITH him, not AT him.
See, that's been happening a lot this last half century. It brings a smile to my face to see them all lively and banding together like this.
"KILL HIM!" (Monster mob with a half-melted face)
"STAB HIS CORPSE!" (Monster mob)
"CUT OFF HIS FINGERS SO HE CAN'T PUT UP ANYMORE SIGNS!" (Monster mob)
"NO MORE SIGNS!" (Monster mob)
"NO MORE SIGNS!" (Monster mob)
"NO MORE SIGNS!" (Monster mob)
"SHUT UP! We capture him first!" (Bob)
Yes, it's beautiful to see such harmony among bloodthirsty monsters and a Titan.
Year 820:
Fun Fact: When your body in invulnerable, at least the majority anyway, it becomes a weapon.
*Shlik*
"Huh, would you look at that." (Perseus)
Pulling my hand out of the corpse I just impaled with said hand, I marveled at the ease in which I just did it.
"It wasn't as comfortable as using a blade but the idea of being able to rip the heart out of my enemies with only my hands sounds badass. Maybe I should practice? It's not like I have much else to do." (Perseus)
And that's just what I did. I put up my blades and had fun with using my body as a weapon. Killing with my fingers got turned into an efficient method but after a couple years, I got bored and went back to using weapons.
When you're bored in hell, every new idea sounds like fun.
I also may be losing some of my sanity, only the boring parts though.
Year 850:
I found a solution to my sanity issue.
Smoking.
Not the idiotic tobacco that mortals love to kill themselves with but a plant I found down here.
It was poisonous like everything else but with a few steps, and a lot of experimentation while bored, I discovered that it can be smoked to induce calm and peace to those who breath it in.
At first, I carved a few cool pipes out of Drakon bone but once Damian and Bob found out, they kept 'borrowing' them. Damian could make his own, but he says making the herb is too much work when I already have a stock.
To get my revenge, I carved one out of Stygian Iron. Yeah, they weren't so bold after that.
No one can steal my stuff if it kills them to touch it.
After a few different pipes I made for fun, I settled on one that imitated a normal cigarette expect for being a metallic black that glowed a bit. It had a storage enchantment and would automatically refill itself, so it never ran out as long as I had the herb in stock.
I loved it so much, I grew my own small garden of the plant and made enough stock of the herb to last a LONG time. How long? Who knows.
Year 900:
Styx gave me an interesting quest. She wants Archon to join their 'river alliance' against Tartarus. She tried to invite him many times before, but Apparently Archon is difficult to deal with.
The quest was optional, and she told me it's not a big deal if I can't complete it but hey, when a guy like me has nothing else to do in HELL, I might as well take up the challenge.
"No. Go away." (Archon)
"But it will be fun~." (Perseus)
"No." (Archon)
"Do you even know what I'm asking?" (Perseus)
"No." (Archon)
"Do you have dementia or something? *Sigh* I'll explain it for the 14th time." (Perseus)
"No." (Archon)
"Do you ever smile?" (Perseus)
"No." (Archon)
"Do you think Nyx is beautiful?" (Perseus)
"N….. Y.E.S." (Archon)
Archon quickly shut his mouth when the area immediately got darker, but it lightened just as quickly. The death glare he gave me was legendary.
Sitting on a stone throne was a REALLY old and ancient looking man. He was hunched over, had a walking stick, and had a beard and eyebrows a few feet long.
And he was more grouchy and stubborn than a radioactive mule or a cat on a bad day. He just had this vibe like he hated everything in existence. I have been coming here for days and he has barely even acknowledged my presence, in fact, the only reason he hasn't tried to drown me in his waters yet is probably my strength and the blessings of the other rivers.
While I can't defeat a primordial like Nyx or Styx, the other rivers I can give a good fight to. Apparently I'm on the high-end spectrum of gods in general and not too far off from a weaker primordial. Styx breached that barrier long ago with her insane durability, command of souls, and the crazy amounts of energy she gets from anyone under oath or making an oath with her name.
That doesn't mean I can do everything a god can, it just means my combat lethality is that high. Especially with me decked out in Drakon bone gear among other things.
If you use numbers on a power scale.
A human would be anywhere between 1 – 10.
A Demigod would be anywhere between 10 – 90.
A god would be anywhere between 100 – 500. If they use their divine mode cheat code, they could temporarily boost themselves up to 1000.
A titan or giant would be anywhere between 300 – 800.
And a primordial would be anywhere between 800 – 10,000 or so.
Weapons, special conditions, powers, bloodlines, rubber chickens, and many more things can boost an individual's ranking so to speak but that's a good way to generalize things.
Anyway, my point to all this is, Archon would not want to try and attack me. With all my powers and weapons, I could FIGHT pretty much anyone in the god/titan/giant tier and run away without trouble if necessary.
I have proved that when I went to have fun with a few titans and giants who revived in Tartarus once in a while.
Year 990:
Quest completed.
Turned out, Archon was a food junkie and critic. He loved good food but was an incredibly hard man to please.
It took me ninety years to hunt down various rare monsters and cook them in different ways to finally please the stubborn old man.
Thankfully, my efforts were rewarded when Archon joined the rivers alliance against Tartarus and gave me a new blessing.
His blessing had two functions.
One, no matter where I am, no matter what dimension or plane, I can connect to the Archon river down here in Tartarus and teleport here from my shadow.
It's not a great function since it can't send you back and you are literally being teleported into the hell beneath hell…..BUT, it's still a useful get out of jail free card so to speak.
Second, in junction with Styx who gave me a stronger blessing, I received the ability to have others make deals on Styx's name no matter where I am. Styx allowed me to collect the souls of those who I witness making the oath and break them. Archon's blessing is to ferry the soul back and forth from Styx, who holds the souls like a bank account, and me who calls on my account with a debit card.
It's an interesting ability. Not one I would use often but it doesn't hurt to be able to have immortal slaves so to speak.
(AN: I don't see my MC using this power often, but I couldn't pass up on the symmetry of powers since Archon would fit the power so perfectly.)
Year 998:
"I'm bored." (Perseus)
"Yeah, of course you are, you have picked a fight with every single thing in the pit in less than a millennia, of course your bored with nothing else to do." (Nyx)
"How about the surface?" (Perseus)
"Eh, it would probably be boring for you. Gaea rose a few centuries ago and flattened everything." (Nyx)
Huh, so that's what that annoying shaking was about.
"So, what's left?" (Perseus)
Nyx pondered that for a moment before suggesting an idea.
"You know, when I was young, my father always told me something interesting." (Nyx)
"Oh? Your father? You mean chaos?" (Perseus)
Nyx nodded
"Mhm, he always told me that if I ever get bored with the world, jump into the gateway he left behind, that big pit of chaos under Tartarus. He said there were endless worlds out there beyond our own, but I simply never bothered with it because of all the kids I had. If I left them alone, they would cause the apocalypse in less than a week. And even then, I guess I just got used to life here.
Why don't you try it out? You can always use your blessing from Archon to come back whenever you want. And if it turns out to be fun, I'll go adventuring myself or join you." (Nyx)
I hummed in thought at that.
'It honestly sounds fun. There isn't much to do here anymore. Why not take a plunge and see where I end up? Like Nyx said, I could always come back through Archon. I do need to free the rivers from Tartarus one day though.'
"Hey Nyx, how long do you think it would take Tartarus to wake up?" (Perseus)
Nyx put a finger on her chin and thought.
"Hm… you scattered his essence pretty well so I would guess a few more centuries at least. Not more than five but at the very least three." (Nyx)
I nodded at that and made my choice.
"I think I'll do it. It sounds fun and to be honest, I need to find some way to complete my quest before Tartarus wakes up." Perseus)
Nyx gave an apologetic look.
"Sorry I can't help you there Perseus. I like you, were good friends but I can't force Tartarus to do anything to complicated. Beat him up? Sure, but he could just fuse with his domain and not come out again if he wanted to turtle up. He never bothers me because he can't do anything aside from getting his stupid swirly face caved in when he faces me." (Nyx)
I waved it off.
"It's fine Nyx, I know were friends and I won't hold it against you. I'll find my own way, but I will still ask for help if I get stuck, you are stupidly powerful after all. It's like having a legendary Pokémon I could ask for help in a fight." (Perseus)
Nyx eyebrow twitched at that before she just shook her head and laughed.
"Hahaha, only you can get away with calling me a legendary Pokémon Perseus. I'll miss you while you're gone." (Nyx)
I just shrugged.
"It shouldn't be long by your standards of time. If I get in trouble, I'll just jump back here and try again. Besides, we both know your bottomless stomach is what will miss me." (Perseus)
At my look, she just blushed slightly and turned away with an innocent whistle.
I chuckled at the sight before she ended up joining me.
After that talk, I went to Styx and told her about my plan. She didn't mind and told me to have fun.
Damian and Bob wished me luck and best wishes. Bob also mentioned his blessing on my life span will expire if I leave Tartarus, but I told him it was fine. I was old enough physically anyway, so I ate one of my apples.
It felt strange for a while, but I adjusted.
My energy pool got a small boost and my cells had changed to being self-sustaining rather than dividing and dying while my blood turned golden.
It's referred to as 'ichor' for immortals instead of blood but it's not that big of a deal.
I was 17 years old physically when I was reborn from the Delta of Despair. With a ratio of one year to every century, I was just past 27 physically when I chose to be immortal.
I didn't like the number 26 for some reason, so I waited a little after Bob removed his blessing to be the right age.
I spent a little over a year going around collecting ingredients, materials, and stuff from my harvesting locations.
I also threw a large party for all my friends and acquaintances I made over the millennia I spent here, just in case I actually run into something that kills me out there.
I'm strong, very strong, but I'm not delusional. I can still die from many things and powerful beings but I'm ok with that.
My goal was never to be an overlord, it was just to complete my quest and enjoy a fun life.
My party had giants, titans, gods, primordial's, strange creatures, and assorted monsters who could be civil under the guarantee of good food and it was a lot of fun.
I found it hilarious to see monsters crying tears of joy to see me leaving. It's a new experience to see monsters getting drunk while crying and howling in joy without being violent.
On the eve of my millennia in Tartarus, I waved to my close friends and walked up to the cliff edge of Tartarus.
Nothing but pitch blackness greeted me beneath the cliff I stood on.
Wearing leather boots with the bottom and tips reinforced with Drakon bone, pants made from chimera hide sown with Arachne silk, an open jacket that fell to my ankles made from hellhound fur with a fur collar, a Stygian Iron gourd filled with water in case of emergencies hanging from my belt, and smoking a metallic black cigarette shaped pipe.
Beneath my jacket, assorted tattoos were visible adorning my wrist's with tribal designs which held my weapons, my shoulder blades which held my two full sets of camping gear in one while the other held my special buildings like my kitchen and forge in the style of yin and yang twin tribal wolves that rose over my shoulders, and two sets of writing that went down my side abdominals with one in Greek and the other Latin that held my food and materials in one, while the other held miscellaneous items.
It might seem like a lot of tat's, but I had a millennia to decide what I wanted and where. And they are all Storage enchantments that I just designed in fun ways instead of being just a stupid symbol.
The Greek writing spelled out: 'Ta panta rhei kai ouden menei', which means 'Everything flows, nothing stands still'. It's my way of saying no matter what happens, life goes on.
The Latin one spells out: 'Veni Vidi Vici', which means, 'I came, I saw, I conquered'. It's my way of saying I lived through and defeated Tartarus.
With a millennia of growth and trained powers, I blew out a cloud of smoke and smiled at the feeling of adventure and slight fear of the unknown before me.
"Well girls, this is it. Are you ready?" (Perseus)
*Growl!*
Two happy voiced growled in acknowledgment from the confines of my shadow causing my smile to grow into a fierce grin.
"Then let's go." (Perseus)
I took the final step off the ledge and spread my arms, disappearing into the pitch black unknown.
*Line Break*
Nick Fury was a man who didn't fuck around.
He had a job, and he did it, efficiently and ruthlessly.
But he was a damn good leader who earned the respect of his subordinates.
They were sure he was a cyborg considering no one ever saw the man stop to sleep, eat, or rest.
The truth was, he was a just a damn good spy and had an expert poker face.
He was a human and when shit hit the fan, he might be cursing up a storm or freaking out on the inside but on the outside he was controlled and gave out orders efficiently.
So, when he was listening to his right hand man, agent Coulson, giving a report while they stood on the deck of the SHIELD cruiser sitting on the ocean in relative peace and quiet, he did not flip a shit when a giant dimensional crack formed in the sky along with the sound of glass shattering.
He did not flip a shit when he saw a human shaped being drop through said crack.
And he most definitely did not flip a shit when he saw the being land in the water and the subsequent massive glow of green energy that flashed in the ocean for a second as far as his eye could see in all direction for a few seconds before everything reverted to normal.
He just stood there for a moment along with an equally silent and poker-faced stunned agent Coulson before sighing and rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"*Sigh* I'm getting too old for this shit." (Fury)