Hazel's POV
Things were looking bleak, very bleak. Bianca was almost finished killing the shades, however, I was unable to defeat Alcyoneus, even with the help of Arion and Frank couldn't release Mors (Roman form of Thanatos) from his chains and end the fight. He was able to fend of my attacks on Arion even at the supersonic speed he could easily achieve. In the multiple attacks we had done, we had only managed to land one cut on his metallic-gold like skin, and even then, we only managed to get a few drops of his blood, which I could feel were oil, to splatter the ground. His iron staff, the size of a totem pole, made it almost impossible to get through his defence, specially with his super speed, which was surprising considering his rust coloured dragon legs which gave off the impression of power not speed. Added with the light but heavily defensive platinum armour links he wore, it made it harder and more frustrating to continue our assault. I was snapped out of my thoughts by the sound of a sword being run through someone, and immediately turned my attention to the sound, where a sword was sticking through the stomach of Alcyoneus. I looked at it, and saw that Bianca had somehow managed to throw her sword high enough to stab Alcyoneus whose 40ft tall body made it almost impossible to land a critical hit.
A loud thump resonated through the area as he was forced to one knee as his oil polluted the floor, turning it to a sickly black. Bianca rushed forward and held her hand out, and the sword returned to her hand. However, just as she was about to charge, a deep voice interrupted everyone. "STOP!. Killing him here will do nothing, he will merely reform somewhere else in Alaska almost immediately and be healed of all damage". That stopped her charge in its tracks, and stopped me from readying mine as well. I looked at where the voice came from, although from how cold it was, I should have recognised it to be Mors'. Arion quickly galloped towards him, and Bianca walked over to him. I looked to Frank, who looked like was going to pass out from exhaustion, and he gave me small nod, seemingly unable to respond vocally.
Bianca was the first to speak, and said, "How do we defeat him then?".
Mors had a thoughtful look on his face, and said, "If you let me borrow enough of your energy, I will be able to call someone who will be able to help us". We all gave him a nod, and he said, "I need you all to recite, Mors accessum ad vim dabo." (I hereby give Mors access to my power)
We all recited what he told us, and almost immediately, I was hit by a wave of pain that grew to greater heights by the second. It felt as if my very soul was being teared apart, however, his voice was loud enough to be heard, even through all the screams from me, Frank and Bianca.
"O Princeps inferni. Vocem meam audi et succurre in proelio. Hostis nostri sanguine Terram labefaciat"
And then, as if a flip had been switched, the pain all stopped. I slowly stood up, my hands shaking, and feeling as if all the heat in my body had left. I looked around, expecting a sign, at least something to happen, but nothing changed. Suddenly, I could hear laughing, and turned to see Alcyoneus laughing like a madman.
"When will you learn daughters of Pluto, I am Alcyoneus, the bane of your father, and now, the new master of Death" he exclaimed proudly. However, as if fate itself was conspiring against him, a cold and powerful gust of wind hit him, toppling him over and forcing him onto the floor. A small but feint cracking sound could be heard around the area, and I looked around wondering what was happening, but suddenly, Bianca all but screamed.
"Look around". I was almost immediately on alert and looked around frantically, and at the far corner of the room, a feint and small, but rapid wave of ice was encasing everything, and was headed towards Alcyoneus. His eyes widened at this, but he could do nothing, not with all of the oil that he was losing which was causing his energy to deplete very rapidly. He struggled to stand up, but managed to nonetheless and used his staff to hold himself upright. Just as the ice was about to reach him, a collumn of earth rose and surrounded him, and when it dropped, Alcyoneus looked like nothing happened to him, and yet, I noticed how the crazed look and mad glint in his eye never wavered. It was almost as if he knew what was coming, and was trying to convince himself that nothing was going to happen. As soon as the ice had managed to cover the whole room, and I'd assume the hole house too, Alcyoneus readied himself and held his staff as if preparing for a charge.
I was still on Arion, but I couldn't stop my hands shaking. Wheteher it were from the sudden drop of temperature or from nerves, I was unsure.
CRACK!
The sudden noise startled me and I looked at where it came from. Large spikes of ice, at least 20 altogether with each one 10ft tall and 4ft thick, had risen from the ground. Alcyoneus looked at it nervously, before suddenly, a massive shockwave knocked everyone back, and a medium sized mist settled where the spikes had once been. Alcyoneus slammed his staff into the ground, and a small gust of wind blew away the ice, revealing a figure who stood there with his back turned to us. He twisted his neck a bit, and his face came into view. I couldn't help the gasp that escaped my face as soon as I saw his face. From his face, I could see he had fair, yet pale skin which was accompanied by black and white swept back hair that emphasised the stoic, yet fierce look on his face. His pupils easily resembled a black hole as they almost looked to be sucking in the light around, with his irides being so white that it was impossible to tell where they began and where they ended as it was indistinguishable from his sclera. He had a slightly sharp nose, high cheekbones and a strong and sharp, yet elegant jawline that any man would die for. He had a long black coat, with, from what I could make out, gold lining along with three separated coattails. As he turned around, I was finally given a perfect view of him, and I couldn't deny, but he was handsome, almost devilishly so. He wore a crisp and ironed white shirt under the coat, with the first two buttons undone, which gave a feint view of his large sculpted chest, along with two rings on one hand. One was gold with carvings on it, topped off with a diamond, that as I looked closer at noticed looked like the ying yang symbol. The other was an elegant silver ring with snack engravings on it, which had a small blue gem that gave off to me a strange aura. He wore black pants with faint snake like patterns running across its surface. And to finish off, he wore black boots with gold etching and some blue lining. Underneath the coat, I could make out a katana within a scabbard made of some metal I had never felt before. Before I could ay anything, his deep, velvety voice interrupted us.
"I am always around but never seen. I am often avoided but always behind. I could find you at the end of the road or at the end of your line. What am I?". It was a riddle, that I could make out, but what it was talking about remained a mystery to me. A sudden gasp shook me out of my thoughts, and looked at the source, and found it to be Bianca. A smug yet handsome smile settled on his face at this and he said. "Well Alcyoneus, do you have an answer? If so, please enlighten these demigods". I, along with the others, looked at Alcyoneus, but he seemed unable to respond. "No answer it seems. I had hoped as the eldest of your siblings you would be the first to find the answer, but it seems my hopes were falsely placed. How about an easier one then?". Alcyoneus seemed able to only feebly nod at this. "I have a beginning, but no end, and all that will ever begin, shall find me at the end. For some try to hide, some try to cheat, but time will show, we will always meet. Try as you might, to guess my name, I promise you'll know, when you I do claim. What am I?". Thoughts raced through my mind as I tried to find an answer to this riddle. What began but never finished. Words like darkness, life and multiple others zoomed across my eyes as I tried to find the answer, and yet, I couldn't find the answer. My thoughts finally ended when he spoke. "Tut, tut, tut. Perhaps I should have asked your brother instead, perhaps then I would have gotten an answer. You continue to disappoint me Alcyoneus, but this punishment will teach you the answer".
I looked over at Alcyoneus, and found that he was trembling. It was almost funny, the massive Giant terrified of a boy who could be no older than 17, and yet, seeing the boy, I felt scared as well. It seemed that he wasn't going to give up that easily, because a few seconds later, he threw his staff with deadly accuracy and speed at the boy's head. I could only watch in slow motion as the staff sailed towards him, but when it was just an inch or two, his head snapped to the side, and the staff flew through the air, missing him by what looked like a cm or 2. "Now Now, thats just rude Alcyoneus, has your mother never taught you manners. It is dishonourable to attack your opponent without a warning. Perhaps this will teach you otherwise". And within the blink of an eye, the guy stood in front of Alcyoneus, with his katana through his stomach. He slowly withdrew it, and almost immediately, oil errupted from his wound.
"You ... cannot ... kill me ... where ... I ... have been ... reborn. Fate ... herself ... declared ... this" came the weakened response of Alcyoneus.
"Luckily for me, fate isn't set in stone". The eyes of Alcyoneus became as wide as a saucer at this point, but he could not respond, as within a second, his head was separated from his body, and fell to the floor, covering it with oil. I expected his body to dissolve into golden dust like it did with most monsters, however, the body remained there, dripping oil like a fountain, until the earth swallowed the body and it disappeared from view. After this even, the guy turned around, and his gaze set on Mors who looked like he was about to pass out from exhaustion. The guy slowly walked over to him, a distinct crunch sound resonating throughout the room with his steps. He reached Mors, and looked at him with a small smile on his face.
And then, within the blink of an eye, the chains holding him down fell to the ground, like they had been cut. Mors stood up, his appearance seemingly changing as he did so. His hair, once a bright white, now a black that almost sucked in your soul. His eyes, pure black as if he was dead inside. His tattered clothes being replaced by a black robe with a cloak that seemed to consume the light donned on top. He held his hand out, and the room darkened, and the shadows gathered on his hand, and as they dispersed, a scythe was left in his hand. The handle, a terrifying black dipped in a similar metal to that of the katana the guy held. The blade was made of a murky iron that looked like it had been sharpened beyond normal needs. Mors gave it a few experimental slashes, and a small smile settled on his face. The deep and heavy voice of Mors interrupted my thoughts. "I thank you brother for answering my call of aid, I am forever grateful for your help. I am sure you have better things to do".
The guy said, "No problem bro, better get back to V, she's probably pissed I left all of a sudden, and you know what shes like when angry".
A quiet laugh escaped the lips of Mors, and he said, "Of course brother, but if I remember correctly, it was only you that was scared, everyone else was laughing".
The guy let out huff, and without another word, he melt into the shadows, and disappeared. Second by second, any trace of him ever being here disappeared. Mors turned around and looked at us. "You have done the house of Nyx and Erebus a great favour, and for that I thank you. However, I must return to my duties and collect the souls of all the dead". And with a small nod, he disappeared in a similar manner to the guy and there at the feet of where he had been, stood a small golden ring. I hesitantly picked it up, and noticed the markings of the 12th Legion on it. I quickly put it in my pocket and looked at the others. Bianca quickly said, Guys we have a deadline so we need to get back to California quickly".