VIII - The Persian War

I was awoken by a weight on my chest. I opened my eyes and rubbed the sleep from them. I looked up. It was Ker. I groaned.

"The first thing I have to see when I wake up in the morning Is your ugly face sitting on me. This is how I want to wake up every day." I said sarcastically.

"Well if you insist, little brother." I groaned again.

Ker is technically my uncle, but I thought that was weird so we developed more of a brotherly relationship. "Get off me you fucker," I said rolling over and dumping him on the floor.

Years ago when I had first arrived in Tartarus and when I had first met Ker. We had talked on my second day. You see Ker could see straight away that I had been tortured and we had talked. We had also realized that we were as crazy as each other and we had immediately hit it off.

I tried to fall back asleep but Ker started to hit me with a pillow. "Perce, you gotta get up Mom has a mission for you."

Nyx also became my motherly figure.

I rolled out of my blankets and walked toward my clothes drawers. I then grabbed some black pants and a sleeveless blue tunic walked past the mirror running my hands through my bed hair, I then walked toward the stairs. When I reached the stairs I looked at the mahogany banister. Winking at Ker I jumped up onto the banister and slid down. When I was almost at the bottom I backflipped off landing cleanly not making a sound. I turned around and saw Nyx standing behind me glaring.

"Hi, Grandma."

"Perseus! What have I told you about stunts and parkour in the house?!"

I Gulped "Not to…"

She glared at me for a second longer then sighed. "Come along Perseus. Let me tell you about your mission."

My Job sounded more simple than it was. Get in, kill the target, get out. Except the target is a god. The Greeks were in the middle of the Persian war. But at this rate, they could not win. King Xerses was being aided by the Angra Mainyu, the spirit of evil from the Persian Pantheon. I felt that Xerses calling upon the actual spirit of evil was a horrible Idea… but I don't know what was going through his head at the time so maybe he had a good reason.

Angra Mainyu was using one of Xeres' advisors as a host for his spirit. The man was already dead so I would not mind killing the body. The Persians were attacking Attica. And the only way the city wouldn't be lost is if I took out their god. I was wearing my battle armor, with my sword strapped to my back, my daggers in their sheaths on my thighs, and my belt with my bow and portal pouch on my waist. Next to me, Alpha walked in step with me. Alpha was large enough that he was a little taller than my waist.

Looking up I saw Angra Mainyu standing on a cliff above the city laughing. I brought my bow and drew back the string. An arrow made of shadows and stygian Iron formed as I took aim. I fired at the god. My goal was not to kill him with that shot but to get his attention. I succeeded. Right before the Arrow was going to hit him. Angra wrenched it out of the air. He glared down at me. I started running toward him. Leaping among roofs till I got to a bridge that led to the cliff. Angra looked at me with a glare and placed his hand on the ground. A large crack appeared in the cliff and floating demon-like creatures seemed to be made of fire. They were all looking at me. They were the Efreet demons from the Persian underworld.

They all started coming towards me. The first that reached me I slashed at with my sword. Nothing happened. My weapons do not work on these guys I realized. Thinking fast I summoned a ball of water and sent it at the nearest Efreet. The demon-like creature seemed to writhe in pain then burst into a cloud of steam.

Fire + water = steam/no more fire demons. Drawing on my powers I willed the sky to rain. It was something I had found recently. I had not been able to use it in Tartarus but here, the skies were open. I smirked as I heard screeches of pain as the Efreet were sent back to their underworld the painful way. I looked up at Angra whose face was scrunched up with rage. Suddenly he calmed and looked down on me with a smirk.

The ground seemed to rumble like an earthquake and I felt myself fall to one knee. I stood up again and used Alpha for support.

'You good boss? he thought at me.

I nodded. Oh did I forget to mention I could understand him? Probably because he is part shade or maybe because we are bonded in some way. "Alpha I thought I told you not to call me Boss."

"Understood Boss." He said, I swear I could see his lips curl into a grin.

Suddenly the stone bridge broke and the stone went flying as a giant snake slithered itself onto the bridge.

'It's a fucking Basilisk, boss, A mother fucking basilisk!' Alpha shouted mentally 'when you woke me up this morning I was like I would love to fight a basilisk today.' he said sarcastically. 'That son of a bitch summoned a basilisk. Boss we are going to kill him right?"

I laughed. "Yes Alpha we are going to kill the god," I then muttered under my breath "or try to at least." Just for future reference, my wolf has one of the worst mouths. I blame Ker.

I turned away so that I wouldn't look it in the eye. "Alpha buddy, do me a favor and take out its eyes."

'Course you fuckin give me the hard job,' he muttered before shadow traveling onto the head of the basilisk.

Sinking his claws in Alpha held on for dear life as the basilisk tried to shake him off. Quickly Alpha slashed his claw through the giant snake's right eye. The Basilisk hissed in pain and finally managed to shake off the wolf. I watched in horror as my friend was sent hurtling down to the burning city below.

Suddenly I heard a small pop behind me and saw Alpha trotting back up next to me panting heavily. 'Your getting the other eye boss.'

I sighed, How was I supposed to do that without looking at the basilisk? All of a sudden I remembered some training I did with uncle Tarturus around 2 years ago.

He had blindfolded me and taught me how to use my powers over water and darkness to see instead of with my eyes. I grabbed the rod from my belt again and squeezed until I heard the familiar chink as the bow finished unfolding. I closed my eyes.

Around me, I could hear the screams and shouts of the battle below. I could hear the ragged panting of Alpha. I could smell smoke and the foul stench of the giant serpent. First I found the serpent's shadow, next I searched for the water molecules in the air. I found them and began to trace the outline of the Basilisk. I finally saw its eye. It was a blurry glowing yellow surrounded by sweat and liquids. Taking aim I fired. I knew I had hit my mark when I heard the angry hissing. Opening my eyes I saw the basilisk thrashing wildly not being able to see.

I grinned at Alpha. "You ready for this bud."

He gave me a toothy grin back. He watched me as I rushed at the Basilisk. Lunging upwards I wrapped myself in shadows. Hearing my approach the basilisk opened its mouth, rearing to bite me with its poisonous fangs. Quickly I shadow traveled into its open mouth and stabbed upwards. The weakest part of the Basilisk is its mouth. Otherwise, it has impervious skin.

Stabbing it right through the brain, the basilisk fell. Falling off the bridge into a cavern below. So as to not be carried down into the darkness, I lunged out of its mouth landing on the bridge with a roll. Turning around I smiled at the Persian god.

The god gave up summoning things for me to fight and decided to finally face me himself. Summoning a thin curved sword he rushed me slashing faster than any mortal could. But he was limited in this mortal form so I was faster. I quickly knocked his sword away and grabbed his arm, breaking it, then punching him in the face sending him 10 feet backward through the air.

He stood up quickly and I noticed his lip was bleeding golden ichor. He tried to use his powers and they didn't work. He looked at me in confusion. I smirked and pointed at his broken arm hanging limply at his side. On it was a golden band.

I had asked Brontes. The same cyclops who made Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades their symbols of power to make a band that blocked a god's powers and trapped the spirit in the mortal body. He had agreed though had sworn on the Styx never to build one again unless there was a very good reason.

I had effectively rendered Angra Mainyu a mortal. Acting fast I stabbed the god in the gut, then in the heart. I felt the god die but not fade however it would take him more than a millennia to reform. Though I gotta say if the Persian god was not in a mortal body he would definitely have annihilated me.

I collapsed next to Alpha with a sigh. 'Good job boss.'

Suddenly I felt a godly presence nearby. "Well that's not good," I muttered. Grabbing onto Alpha's back I quickly had him shadow travel us away.

A.N: Sorry that chapter was shorter, they will be longer in the future. Also, the next chapter is called the passage of time so if you would like Perseus to do anything through the passage of time let me know. I will see you all next week oh and:

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!