Chapter 35:
"Susanoo?" Ryūjin said in surprise. The dragon god narrowed his reptilian eyes. "And why the hell should I do that? In case your mortal stupidity overcame you for a second, I can't just grant you an audience with a god. And in case you forgot, Susanoo-sama is a major god. There's no way that he'd meet a measly half-blood. Especially one not even from our pantheon."
"I know that," Markus said, glaring at Ryūjin for the insult. "But I have a request. One that I hope that he'll be interested in."
"And that would be?"
"To become his champion."
The dragon god stared at him. And continued staring at him. And then he threw back his head and laughed loudly. He laughed so hard that he almost toppled over in the waters that he was standing in. Markus continued staring at him through the spell that he had created, not bothering to react to the god laughing at him. In all honesty, he couldn't blame him. His request was very odd, if not outrageous.
Still, the demigod didn't say or do anything but look blankly at Ryūjin, who had now stood up and wiped a tear from his eye. "I-I haven't l-laughed like that for almost a century. Y-You really know how to make someone laugh."
"Are you done?" Markus asked with a raised eyebrow. "Because you know that I'm serious."
"I know," Ryūjin said, trying to look serious but ultimately failing. "That's what's so funny. If I didn't know you, I'd just dismiss you as being an arrogant and stupid brat. But I do know you, and I know that you're serious... you're still arrogant and stupid though."
"Maybe," Markus responded with a shrug. "But geniuses are the ones who come up with hypotheses and ideas. Fools are the ones ballsy enough to follow through with it."
"Spoken like a true fool," Ryūjin agreed with a smirk. "You're probably either ballsy or stupid to go through with what you're talking about."
"Possibly. But you didn't answer my question."
"And why would Susanoo-sama even allow an audience with you? What would make you so special?"
"Maybe the fact that a child of a storm god would ask another for help? Or maybe for the same reason that you're interested in teaching me?" Markus shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. At best, Susanoo could listen to my request and agree, or decline. Worst case scenario, I'll get smote."
"And you're okay with that?" Ryūjin asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Of course not. But I wouldn't be here if I wasn't eager to take risks. This is one of those moments."
Ryūjin sighed. "You stupid brat... fine. But if you do get smote, I hope your daddy won't come bitching to me. This was your idea."
"I agree," Markus nodded firmly.
"Fine, fine. Cut off the connection, brat. Hopefully, I come back with good news." With that, the dragon god swiped his hand through the image, cutting the connection and making the mist vanish from his side.
Markus dismissed the spell, sighing. "Hopefully, things will work out."
XXX
Markus stood with the Hephaestus and Athena cabins, marveling at their creation.
What they looking at was the finished and completed Hestia cabin. And, in their opinions, it was magnificent.
The cabin was situated beside cabin twelve. There normally wouldn't have been enough space for the entire cabin, but Markus solved that problem using space-expansion charms, changing the space of the rather small area.
The cabin was brown in colour, with shades of red placed in the mix. At the roof of the cabin, a symbol of the hearth faced the others proudly and largely. There were large Greek columns at the four corners of the exterior of the cabin. Despite the structure and design put into it, the cabin looked simple but welcoming.
The interior had the same colour, but also a large central hearth that was roaring brightly. Surrounding it were several pillows and couches. There were numerous amounts of beds equipped with pillows and blankets of the softest materials, courtesy of Markus making frequent trips to several stores. There were also several counters and tables that were lined with plates, forks, spoons and knives. The utensils were charmed for the residents so that they could summon home-cooked meals for themselves to enjoy. Beckendorf - with help from Markus - was able to make the walls enchanted. Every resident of the Hestia cabin would be able to view the good times that they spend with each other, be it at Camp Half-Blood or elsewhere. The walls were able to capture the thoughts of all the residents, so that no one was jealous.
Attached to the wall were a TV screen with several game consoles. Markus put it there mainly because he wanted the unclaimed kids to enjoy themselves and to not forget the mortal world that was outside the camp. They were demigods, yes, but they were also half-mortal, which was something that he didn't want the kids to forget. Along with that was a loudspeaker for music. He also packed some snacks and drinks in a fridge that he managed to get. Although he did not want to mentally go over the process of attaining it.
The cabin was much larger than the Hermes cabin, so that everyone was able to fit. Hopefully there wouldn't be too much unclaimed kids, but Markus didn't hold his breath.
Markus was also able to get Hestia to personally bless the cabin. The more people who called the cabin their own home away from home, the stronger the feeling of hope would spread across the cabin as well as the strength and defense of the cabin.
All in all, the Hestia cabin was perfect in its creators' eyes.
"It's amazing," Annabeth said beside Markus, awed. "I-I mean, I know that we were going to complete it, but still... wow."
Markus chuckled beside her. "May want to close your mouth, Annie." Annabeth glared at him heatedly for that retort.
"I don't blame her," Beckendorf commented. "It is amazing."
"True," Malcolm, a son of Athena, said behind him. His grey eyes scanned the cabin, looking for any major or minor detail in each part.
"Well, time to introduce the official Hestia cabin," Beckendorf said, a proud gleam in his eyes. He turned to look at Markus. "Would you like to do the honours?"
Markus blinked. "Wait, me?"
"Yeah, man," Jake Mason, a member of the Hephaestus cabin, said. "I mean, it was your idea."
The other demigods nodded in agreement, though the Athena cabin did it grudgingly. Due to their hubris, they thought that since they were the better builders, they should introduce the cabin. But Markus did come up with the idea, and contributed the most. So they held their tongues.
Seeing this, Markus was a little nervous. Sure, it was his idea, but he didn't think that he would be the one introducing it. Nevertheless, he was up to the task. So, after speeding around to every cabin and asking for the residents to come to cabin thirteen.
When all of them came to the Hestia cabin, along with Chiron and Mr. D - who he did not remember inviting - Markus got ready for his introduction. After glaring at the others who were snickering at him.
Turning to the gathered crowd, Markus spoke. "I'm going to keep this simple. Behind me is the new Hestia cabin, otherwise known as cabin thirteen. After discussing it with the goddess Hestia, we decided to make this in honour of her. Since she's a maiden goddess, she doesn't have any children. So that is why the cabin is for the unclaimed children as well as the children of the minor gods that reside in the Hermes cabin." At their shocked faces, Markus smirked. "Yes, you heard me. This cabin is for those who's parents haven't claimed them, as well as those who's parents don't have a cabin. Think of it as your little home away from home. From this day forth, no more unclaimed children shall go to the Hermes cabin. Nor shall any children of the minor gods and goddesses be treated with disrespect by being shoved into the Hermes cabin. This cabin isn't just a normal cabin. It is a home to those who consider it a home. A home where you'll be treated with respect and not be brushed aside." Markus took a deep breath after saying that. Turning to look at the awed and elated looks he was receiving from several campers, he turned his gaze to look at the central hearth. He smirked in response to the wide smile on the goddess sitting at the hearth.
"While we -" he pointed to himself, the Athena and the Hephaestus cabin, "- built the cabin, all the thanks goes to Lady Hestia, who has given this new hope upon you all." His finger pointed to the goddess, the others following where he was pointing. Hestia was shocked at all the attention now being on her. She blushed prettily, her cheeks flushed with gold. The sight was adorable on her current form.
Starting to applaud, Markus called out "Hestia!" "Hestia!"
Seeing this, the others copied his chant. "Hestia! Hestia! Hestia!"
By now, the entire camp was chanting the goddess' name. "HESTIA! HESTIA! HESTIA! HESTIA!" Everyone was applauding her, some of the campers crying a little at now having a place to call home, along with the children of the minor gods getting a little respect, even if they didn't get a cabin. This was a close second.
Hestia had slight tears of happiness trailing down her cheeks, very happy that people were thankful of her for giving hope to many of the campers. Turning her tearful eyes to the one who came up with the idea, she mouthed 'thank you' to Markus, who nodded back. He was simply happy that she was getting the respect that she deserved.
Suddenly, Annabeth stepped forward, raising her hand to halt the applause. After a moment, the applause died down a little, though they did it reluctantly. "While we all contributed to building this cabin, it wasn't us who came up with the idea." Smiling slyly, she pointed to Markus. "It was Markus who came up with the idea and consulted the goddess. It was him who contributed the most and got each cabin to help. All hail Markus Henderson, Hero of the Unclaimed!"
All the campers broke into applause. "Hero of the Unclaimed!" they shouted out, some in thanks, others in glee.
Markus blinked at the title and the applause. "What? No! I'm not a damn hero!" He quickly turned his head to glare at the smirking Annabeth. "You little bit-"
"All hail the Hero of the Unclaimed!" Beckendorf and Jake applauded behind him, smirking. They, like Annabeth, knew that he didn't like the notion of being a hero. So this was a chance at teasing him about his new title that they came up with.
"Shut up! Shut the hell up!" Markus' shouts were blocked out by the deafening cheers from the crowd.
"I think our hero deserves some praise," Beckendorf said towards Annabeth, smiling.
"Yes," Annabeth said, smiling slyly. "I think he does."
"No! I said no! Don't you dare!" Markus' shouts and threats were ignored as Beckendorf and Jake grabbed him by both his arms. Before he could break out of their hold, both sons of Hephaestus threw him into the crowd, who caught him. What followed after was Markus crowd-surfing along the raised hands of the crowd. Each hand held him up before passing him on to another set of hands.
"Hero of the Unclaimed! Hero of the Unclaimed!" the crowd chanted.
"Get me down!" Markus shouted, though he was ignored. "You guys are going to pay in full - oi, watch where you're hands are!" He shouted that last part when a hand pinched his ass.
The crowd of demigods continued cheering, with Markus being overly grouchy at his title. Still, he - along with everyone else - had smiles on their faces as they celebrated.
That day, everything changed at Camp Half-Blood. Hope was given to practically all those who lacked it.
XXX
Markus was doing one-handed handstand push-ups in the arena, building up his physical strength.
Since the celebration yesterday, practically every camper, nymph or naiad referred to him as the 'Hero of the Unclaimed'. Some did it out of thanks, while others did it out of teasing or mocking. He was annoyed every time they did that. Seriously, he didn't want anything to do with being a hero, and then they stack this on top of him! Honestly, the nerve. Besides, the title wasn't even intimidating or badass. It sounded so cliché.
All his friends wouldn't stop calling him that. Only the threat of pranking the shit out of them made them back off. Though all of them were practically smiling as they did it. Bastards.
In the morning, he went to meet Hestia to see her reaction. When he saw the goddess, instead of being in her child form, she was in the form of a grown woman, about twenty-eight. When she saw him, she stood up and hugged him, whispering 'thank you' over and over again. Markus just hugged her back, thankful that she was happy. Plus, her aura had increased drastically, for some reason. She explained that it was due to the prayers and thanks that she had received from all the residents of the Hestia cabin.
Speaking of which, the unclaimed children and kids of the minor gods enjoyed their new cabin. Especially the gaming systems. Markus showed younger kids how to play the games, with him showing them skills and tricks needed for each game. Before, they all looked gloomy and sad. This was what Markus saw on his first day at Camp Half-Blood. Now, they looked way more cheerful and happy. Which made Markus a little happy.
Another good thing that came from this was that much less campers joined Luke's side. Now that they had hope and were treated with a little more respect - maybe not to their parents but to themselves - they had less of a reason to join the Titans. This wasn't actually Markus' intentions, but it worked all the same.
The Hermes cabin now had much less campers since yesterday, something that the children of Hermes were grateful for. Since then, the Stoll twins had offered their thanks to Markus and said that they owed him a favour. Markus waved away the offer, saying it was fine. The twins insisted though. So Markus said that he would think about it.
He was happy about all the praise and thanks that he had received. He could just do without the title. He cringed every time someone called him by it.
Pushing those thoughts out of his mind, Markus thought about his offer that he had given to Ryūjin. In all honesty, he wasn't exactly sure that Susanoo would even accept his offer. Or even hear him out. But Markus was banking on the fact that Susanoo would be so astounded by his request that he would want to meet him. A foolish thought, but when has his plans ever been smart or sane?
The reason he even wanted to be made Susanoo's champion was because, in Shinto mythology, he was one of the top-tier gods, with his sister Amaterasu and brother Tsukuyomi matching him in terms of power. Plus, he was a storm god as well as a sea god, so, with his divine heritage, he would be compatible with the powers that he may receive.
His plans were a bit suicidal, he had to admit. But Markus had made it out just fine. Fighting the Cetus, meeting with Ryūjin and taking the god up on his offer, meeting with Savitr, they all worked out fine. Even tricking Cerberus into-
Markus almost toppled over from his handstand push-ups in surprise, but managed to right himself and keep him going.
He completely forgot about the three-headed dog. In all honesty, he only remembered the monster just now. And because of that, he remembered the promise that he made to the dog. About how he would visit and show him other songs as well as the Aquaman theme song. At first, he only said that because he felt guilty about leaving Cerberus to meet with Hades. And he hadn't given any thought to his promise.
Markus was going to ignore it, but he remembered the sad look on Cerberus' face when he left him. It suddenly made him feel sad. The thought of Tyson flashed into his mind for some odd reason. He was considered a monster, and yet he was gentle. Plus, he was also his brother, but still...
The thought made Markus think that monsters did in fact have feelings and emotions, despite not having souls. He wasn't developing sympathy for all monsters, but the revelation did make him pause on the mental image of Cerberus.
He groaned, dropping from his push-ups. "I'm developing a conscience again. I personally blame Tyson, the softie that he is."
Drawing water vapour from the air, he washed off any remaining sweat from his body. He cracked his neck, wondering how he was going to go about visiting Cerberus. He could easily run to Los Angeles and get past Charon. Just bribe the greedy bastard. Then again, he didn't have any room to talk... Anyway, getting in was easy. Getting out was the problem. He got out the first time with the gifts Poseidon had given him and the others. Now, he was limited.
He could turn into vapour and literally sneak past the ceiling in the Underworld. That could work. All he had to do was avoid Hades. The first time him and the others got off lucky. This time he had no such luck.
Well, he could think about it when it happened. Checking his iPod in his pocket (which he had bought recently, and downloaded some songs that he liked), he quickly went to his cabin, shooting a quick goodbye to Percy who was startled, and got some paper and snatched Riptide from his brother's pocket. Writing some notes for the others, he quickly explained where he was going to Percy, who was struggling to pick up on what he said.
Grinning like a loon, he dashed out of the Poseidon cabin and went to the Aphrodite cabin. Opening the door in a blur, he made his way to Silena's bed, where said girl was there. She blinked in surprise as he gave her a quick peck on the lips and dropped his note in her lap. Smiling, he dashed out of the cabin in a blur.
Summoning some speed clones, he handed them the notes to give to the others. Done with that, he equipped his 'speed gear', a name that he needed to change, fast. With that, he dashed out of the camp, creating a sonic boom. He loved doing that each time he took off.
As he ran, he mentally went over his journey to the Underworld last time. By transport, him and the others would've made it to Los Angeles in roughly three or four days (discounting all the monster fights, side quests and Lotus Casino). On his own, pre-Savitr blessing, he could've made it in possibly one or two on his own. Now? Well, it was time to find out.
Markus blitzed through New York, feeling the breeze pass his skin. He should really start to enjoy the runs that he took. It was exhilarating.
Having popped his earphones in his ears, Markus was listening to some music on his iPod. His selection of music was somewhat limited, as he had went to Will Solace for any advice on what to listen to. Knowing Markus, Will had said that rock, metal or pop music would do him good. Markus wasn't sure, but decided to trust him. After a moment of looking up some songs, Markus found a couple of favourite songs and bands/singers. His favourites were Linkin Park, Three Days Grace and Disturbed, with Indestructible being his current song that he was playing. The beat was really catchy, at least to him. He had some other songs by other artists, but the three bands were his favourite.
He hummed along with the song, blitzing past any incoming object in his way. Deciding to be playful, he performed several tricks while he dodged, be it jumping over cars, doing flips in the air, or performing zigzags in a certain direction. Huh, didn't know that he was so flexible.
Deciding that he didn't want to waste time, he increased his speed. He was already in Vegas. Taking a quick break, he stocked up on his high metabolism demand, that being eating pizzas, burgers and drinking cocktails. Ah, he loved Vegas. Well, minus the Lotus Casino, even if it did have games, manga and luxury.
Done with his food, he zipped past the Santa Monica beach and made his way into Los Angeles, into Procrustes old hideout. Checking his watch, he saw that he had made it in twenty-five minutes. Good, but could be better.
He entered the doorway leading to DOA Recording Studios, making his way up to Charon's desk. Charon's tortoiseshell glasses peered down upon him. Markus met his gaze without flinching, staring defiantly back.
"So, you're back," Charon said with a lazy drawl. "What, escaping the Underworld once wasn't enough for you? You want to try again?"
"Lovely to see you too, Charon," Markus said, bored. "Listen, I'm here to fulfil a promise that I made. By the way, did you get your pay raise?"
Charon glowered at the demigod. "Don't remind me! Instead of paying me like the good lil' ferryman that I am, Hades throws a bitch fit due to your actions, and refuses to pay me! So what the Hades makes you think that I'm going to let you go through here?"
Holding out a pouch, Markus held it out to reveal it full of drachmas. He had gotten this much by converting some of his mortal money to drachma. The service wasn't known, but the children of Hermes ran the entire money trading system, with Hermes being in charge of the whole thing. And because he had an infinite amount of mortal money, he had an unlimited amount of drachmas. Awesome trade-off.
Charon drooled at the amount, but he managed to reign in his greed. "Hold up, kid. That trick won't work again. You ain't gonna pull a fast one on-"
"I'll give you 10% of this amount," Markus offered, holding up the amount in his hand.
"50%," Charon spoke before he could control himself.
"15%."
"45%."
"20%. Take it or leave it."
"Alright, fine," Charon growled, snatching up the amount offered. "Least I was able to get more money. I need more Italian suits."
Markus raised an eyebrow at the ferryman. "You're an immortal ferryman who sails upon the River Styx. What the fuck would you need Italian suits for?"
"Because they're stylish," Charon answered simply with a shrug.
"...Can't argue with that," Markus said after a moment. It wasn't a valid reason, but you couldn't argue against fashion.
A quick descent and a trip across the Styx later, Markus was reaching the gates of the Underworld. Seeing the being that he wanted to meet, Markus took notice of Cerberus' three set of eyes look upon him. The three heads growled, before recognising who it was.
Eyes wide with delight, Cerberus barked, rattling Markus' eye sockets and scaring off any passing ghosts.
"'Sup, boy?" Markus asked with a grin. He held his iPod up, showing the creature the device. "You want to listen to music, stay."
Cerberus looked impatient, but managed to stay in one place.
Grinning, he held up the iPod again. "Sit."
The three-headed dog sat on its haunches, squeezing any unlucky ghost on its ass. Markus smiled. "Good boy."
Slowly, he walked towards the dog. Gesturing for the creature to lower itself, Markus was able to sit on the top of its middle head gently. Cerberus seemed to like this, as he barked happily.
Smiling down at the heads, he spoke. "I don't know if you'll like the songs, but they're much better than the last one I played."
With that, Markus played several songs that he had in his selection. From 'Breaking the Habit', 'Papercut' and 'In the End' by Linkin Park, to 'Time of Dying', 'Pain' and 'I Hate Everything About You' from Three Days Grace. Cerberus barked loudly and hung out his tongue when he liked a song, or either growled deep in his throat when he didn't like one. Maybe he should play some pop music next time.
Cerberus was so happy that one of his heads craned its neck so that it could lick Markus' face happily. "Ugh, gross," Markus said, quickly wiping his face from the large amount of saliva that Cerberus gave him. But he was smiling as he did so.
He rubbed each head, making Cerberus whine happily. It was nice, hanging out with Cerberus. Kind of like hanging out with a pet. He guessed that he was kind of jealous that Percy had his own Pegasus, while he didn't. But still, the mood was nice. Although he never expected to say that while in the Underworld.
He wasn't sure how much time had passed, so he was surprised when a voice interrupted his sessions with Cerberus. "Ah. So you are the one who has entered my husband's kingdom."
Markus whirled his head to look at the person who had spoke. And was speechless.
The one who had spoke was a beautiful woman who looked to be in her early thirties. She had brown eyes that were so dark that they looked almost black. She had long curly black hair that looked lustrous and wore a crown of flowers. She wore an Ancient Greek dress that kept on shifting to different shades of brown.
The goddess - Markus knew she was one - had a resemblance to Katie, which surprised him. But Markus wasn't focused on that. He was examining her figure. Especially her dress. Markus guessed that underneath her clothes was a lithe and slender figure that he desperately wanted to see. At this moment, he really wished he had X-ray vision at the moment. Markus raked his eyes over her beautiful form: the large swell on her chest, showing that she had an ample bust, her wide hips and long legs that were slightly revealed through her dress. Before Markus could continue his examination, the goddess interrupted him. "As flattering as your gaze and thoughts are, I suggest that you perish them. I wouldn't want my husband to get jealous," she said with mirth in her eyes, not in the least offended by Markus' gaze.
Markus blushed slightly at being caught at that. He was really starting to hate his runes, despite the benefits they offered him. And he already had a girlfriend, dammit!
Seeing Cerberus whine and bow slightly to the figure, Markus had already identified the goddess. "You're Persephone, goddess of springtimes and Queen of the Underworld," Markus said.
"Well, it's nice to see that you know of me," Persephone said. "So, Markus Henderson. What can I do for you?"
"You know of me?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Of course. Why wouldn't I know of one of the two sons of Poseidon who were accused of stealing my husband's Helm of Darkness and managed to escape the Underworld?"
"Oh, yeah," Markus said, as if he just remembered the thought. "That's me. That reminds me: your husband's an asshole."
Instead of getting offended, Persephone threw back her head and laughed loudly. The sound was melodic to Markus' ears. "T-this is t-the first time I've heard someone insult him in his own kingdom. I think I'm starting to like you."
"Thanks. I like me too."
"My, you are cheeky. Humour is something you rarely find in the Underworld."
"I know. You poor thing, you must be so depressed down here, with Hades and his pasty self to keep you company. You have my condolences."
Persephone giggled. She was about to say something but was interrupted by the Underworld rumbling, the ground shaking.
Instead of being worried, Persephone had an annoyed expression. "Ugh, he's so impatient." She turned to Markus. "Hades has sent me to retrieve the person who entered the Underworld. Meaning you. By the way, why are you here?"
"I came to give Cerberus some comfort via music."
The goddess blinked at his response. "...You came to comfort Cerberus..." she said slowly. She then shook her head slightly. "I don't know if I should call you stupid, brave or kind-hearted."
"I'd prefer all three, if I'm being honest," Markus said cheekily. "They all add up to my charm."
She laughed again. Honestly, how the hell was the Queen of the Underworld so bright and cheery? He wished Persephone was there when he first came here. Maybe Hades would've been more pleasant.
"As entertaining as you are," Persephone said, controlling her laughter, "I do believe we should meet my husband."
Markus sighed. "Fine." He slid down the side of Cerberus. The dog whined sadly, but Markus patted his side. "Don't worry, boy," Markus consoled. "I'll be back. Not like Hades will stop me anyway." That got Cerberus to bark happily, making him wag his tail widely.
Facing the goddess, he sighed dramatically. "Well, let's go meet the undead bastard."
"Indeed," Persephone sighed along with him. "Let us be off."
And so, Markus followed the queen through the EZ DEATH line. All of the ghosts parted when she passed by and bowed in her presence. As the two made their way through the Fields of Punishment, Markus was struggling not to look at the goddess' swaying hips and large ass. Have a girlfriend, have a girlfriend, have a girlfriend..., Markus chanted in his head, overpowering his lust and managed to look at her back. Just her back.
As if sensing his thoughts, Persephone looked back at him and winked slyly, smirking. Markus did his best not to react to that.
The walk to Hades' palace seemed much shorter than when he last came here, which was good. When they passed Persephone's garden, the goddess gave an adoring and longing look to the garden. Then she continued walking, Markus following her.
They neared the gates, with skeletons holding their guns guarding the place and the realistic images of death carved into the walls and surfaces. The skeletons bowed in Persephone's presence, but she paid them no attention. Reaching the gate, she pushed them open with ease.
Turning to face the demigod, she warned, "As much as I hate him, you should be careful in his presence."
"I'll do my best," Markus nodded with mock seriousness.
Persephone's lips twitched upwards. "Don't die too soon. It'd be a shame to see you as a ghost in this dreadful place."
"Least I'd get an awesome afterlife if I saw you every day," Markus teased.
She smiled. With that, the two of them walked into Hades' throne room.
The god looked the same as when Markus had first seen him, with his soul-attached clothes, pale demeanor, and dark and powerful aura. He had his helm on his head, which shifted into different images, a crown of thorns, a dragon's head, a wreath of bones, etc. Hades' presence was much more powerful than before, which must've been because of his symbol of power attached to his head, but Markus didn't falter. Nor did he bother to listen to the tiny voice in his head telling him to submit to the god. He was much stronger now than he'd been almost two years ago.
"'Sup, uncle," Markus waved cheerfully, purposefully pissing off Hades.
The god looked at his wife with impatience, and then glared at the demigod. Persephone scoffed at him and joined him by sitting in her smaller, more colourful throne.
"Markus Henderson," Hades spoke in his typical oily voice. "I thought that you'd be smart enough to not return here. It seems the stupidity of mortals astounds me even to this date. And should you not bow in the presence of a superior being? In his own home, no less?"
"That's only if you have my respect," Markus spoke back without fear. "I refuse to bow to you because you do not have my respect. You earn it. And you have done no such thing."
Hades' eyes glowed with power and burned with hellfire as he glared at him. "You dare speak to me in that tone, mortal?" he whispered furiously.
"I'll speak to you how I want to, Hades," Markus said, glaring back at the god. When he made to speak, Markus interrupted him. "Enough with the chitchat. What do you want?"
Hades' hands twitched, as if he was contemplating on whether or not to destroy him. "You are extremely lucky, boy. If not for you being your father's son, you would experience the most deadliest tortures in the Field of Punishment. And as for what I want? I want to know why you are here. It amuses me what reason you have to return to this place."
"Simple. I came here to comfort Cerberus."
"Cerberus?" Hades blinked. Then he narrowed his eyes. "That's your reason? As if your stupidity could not astonish me even more. Cerberus is a guard dog. A beast. Nothing more. He has no need for such pathetic needs like comfort."
"... As if you weren't an ass already," Markus insulted, narrowing his eyes. Sure, Cerberus may have been a guard dog but he still had emotions. "No wonder this place is so depressing. Your feelings represent this place perfectly." Studying Hades' face, Markus got the strangest sense of déjà vu. His pale face, pure black hair, black eyes, oily expression. Where had he seen them before? Like he had met someone with similar features to him before. Not from a god, but from a... demigod.
And suddenly, Markus realized where he'd seen Hades' features before. Lotus Casino. Reading manga. Bumping into a little kid and meeting his sister. His eyes were wide as he came to a conclusion.
"You're childish insults are of no concern to me," Hades spoke, waving his hand dismissively. "Now, if you have no other reason. You shall remain here for eternity with no escape and suffer in my kingdom for your insults towards me."
Narrowing his eyes, Markus smirked. "You know, I didn't think I'd want to see your face more than once. But it looks like I've seen it three times, four if you count now."
"What are you talking abo-"
"Nico and Bianca di Angelo," Markus spoke suddenly, causing Hades to stiffen. "They're your children, aren't they? Man, I really pity them."
"How do you know those names?" Hades spoke chillingly, black energy crackling around his form in rage and fear. Markus paid no mind to the display of power.
"I met them in the Lotus Casino," Markus answered with a smirk. "And here I was actually respecting you. Seems like your the same as your brothers, breaking the oath on the Styx. What, one of you do it so the others follow?"
Persephone glared at Hades. "Those children of that woman are still alive? I thought they perished!"
"Be silent, Persephone," Hades said through gritted teeth.
"But-"
"Silence!"
The goddess glared at her king, but held her tongue.
"I don't know how you know of those two," Hades spoke slowly, shadows drifting off his figure, "but if you have harmed a hair on their heads, so help me-"
Markus scoffed. "You think I'd hurt them to get back at you? Please. You're an ass, but I'd never stoop to your level. That would be insulting."
Hades visibly calmed down, though his body was still tense.
"So let me ask you a question: why are the two still in the Lotus Casino? They must've been there for gods know how long in real time? Trying to protect them because you broke your oath?"
"For your information, godling," Hades said, "they were born before the oath. I have not conceived them on a broken promise."
"Oh, good. So you're slightly redeemable, then. Let me guess, you're trying to protect them from the King Whiner's wrath?"
Persephone's lips twitched at Zeus' nickname despite her anger, but Hades didn't react. "Yes, along with your father."
"My father wouldn't attack your children to get back at you. Unlike Zeus, he's not a hypocrite," Markus scoffed.
It was Hades' turn to scoff. "You do not know your father like I do, boy. He may have mellowed now but he is still a ruthless being who'd kill without hesitation. Mortals change over time, gods do not."
"Whatever," Markus said. "So when do you actually plan to release them from the Casino?"
"That is none of your business, boy," Hades snarled.
"It is my business because I consider them friends even after meeting them once! Do you even plan to release them and instead trap them? Or instead use them for the Great Prophecy?"
"Do not dare to accuse me of something that I would never do!" Hades bellowed, anger dancing in his eyes. "I would never use my children for those purposes! They're are my son and daughter! I will never let them suffer for some stupid prophecy that might not even be fulfilled! And when I release them is none of your business."
Markus almost smirked at seeing his reaction. "Well, at least you have a heart, as black as it is." Wanting to see if he could get something out of this, as well as save the two of them, Markus spoke again. "So you do plan on releasing them, then? Tell you what, Hades. Let's make a deal: when you release them, I will take them to Camp Half-Blood safely as long as you inform me when they're released. In exchange, I want something from you."
Hades sneered. "I do not need your services, boy. I have thousands of minions that could do the job easily."
"Yeah, but can you really trust them? After all, you sent the Furies after me and my brother and they were killed quite easily, no?" At Hades' frown at the matter, he continued. "Look, I don't see why you're against this. I'm doing both of us a favour. I save your kids and get them to safety and act as a bodyguard. Your kids are safe and I help them from your pale and undead ass. In return, I want, uh...," Markus paused at the end, deciding what he wanted. Riches? Nope. He was rich enough. And Hades didn't have anything that he wanted. Except... Markus smiled a cold smile.
"What? What is it that you want?" Hades asked angrily.
"I want... three souls from the Underworld," Markus requested. "Three Spartan souls."
"What? No!" Hades denied.
"Why? The offer benefits you greatly! Your children are safe, and you lose, like, what? Three souls out of a billion? It's a fair deal!"
Hades thought about it for a minute. Truthfully, the offer did benefit him. And losing a couple of souls wasn't really a loss. Still, he wasn't content. "What would you need the souls for?" Hades asked suspiciously. "You are not of my lineage, so you can't control them."
"Magical purposes," Markus said. He wasn't lying, just not telling the whole truth. "I merely wish to study them. And your children are safe once you release them. I'll even swear on the Styx, so long as you don't use that to your advantage. I'll protect your children, nothing more."
"... Fine," Hades said after a moment. "I accept your terms. Swear on the Styx that you'll protect them and bring them safely to your camp."
"You first," Markus said. "And I'll do it after."
"You do not trust me?" Hades asked with a raised eyebrow, offended.
"Paranoia is something that I'd trust more than your word," Markus said simply.
Growling, Hades spoke. "Fine. I swear on the Styx to provide you with the souls you desire and not to manipulate you further." A loud boom of thunder resounded in the palace.
Markus nodded. "And I swear on the Styx that I shall rescue Nico and Bianca di Angelo and take them to Camp Half-Blood safely." Another loud boom of thunder resounded in the palace.
Clicking his fingers, Hades summoned three souls that took that form of spheres. Nodding, Markus cast a wordless Sagitta Spiram to the floor, creating a small crater and producing small rocks from the broken ground. He then used transfiguration to turn one of the rocks into a large jar. Picking it up, he wrote several containment runes over the thing, making sure that the souls would be contained.
At Hades' command, the three Spartan souls floated into Markus' jar. Quickly transfigurating one of the pebbles that he had made into a lid, he closed the jar, the runes taking effect by glowing brightly.
"It is done," Hades spoke with finality. "Now begone from my sight, lest I destroy you."
"Love you too, uncle," Markus said sarcastically. He made to leave, but not before giving one final message. " By the way, I had my wicked way with your wife. On your bed." Winking at Persephone, he transformed into a body of vapour and moved upwards, passing through the stalactites and ignoring the loud shout of "WHAT?!" from the Lord of the Underworld.
XXX
Markus stood on top of the Tokyo Tower in the Special Observatory. He was waiting to meet Susanoo, who Ryūjin had managed to get contact with. Surprisingly, the storm god had agreed to meet with him. All Ryūjin had said to the demigod was to meet Susanoo on top of the Tokyo Tower in Tokyo, Japan. When Markus had asked how he was going to get there, the dragon god had transported him to the Tower and had warned him to be careful when speaking to the god.
So Markus was waiting to meet Susanoo while eating Takano ramen. When he was shown the food, he was a little sceptical on trying it out. Five minutes later, he had several bowls packed with him. The Asian dish was surprisingly delicious. Maybe he could get the stuff to be sold at Camp Half-Blood.
Instead of focusing on his food, though, Markus thought of the new rune that adorned his upper back, above his Yin and Yang tattoos. It wasn't really a rune, more of a magic tattoo. It was in the shape of the symbol for the Rage of Sparta in God of War. It was a bright gold colour.
This was essentially what he wanted when he had retrieved the three Spartan souls from Hades. The tattoo was filled with the remaining energy of the souls, which were bled dry. The reason for this was because he had read somewhere that dead souls still contained ambient energy. Not life energy, but soul energy. Markus didn't know the difference between the two, but he knew that soul energy was a link to necromancy and was used quite a bit in the art.
So he basically used a spell to sap the energy out of the souls and managed to contain it into a tattoo on his back. So he essentially had the Rage of Sparta boost, because he was able to access the energy in the tattoo and use it as his own. The good thing about his new boon was that it was good for three lifetimes. What that meant was that, because he had the soul energy of the Spartan souls, he technically had one as lot of energy from each soul. Meaning that, if he had taken the soul energy of one Spartan ghost, he could use the Rage of Sparta for one lifetime. Because he had sucked the energy out of three ghosts, he could use it for three lifetimes.
However, the energy wasn't infinite. If he used it too much, which was kind of ridiculous since he was going to use it for a last resort and it lasted up to gods know how long but still, he wouldn't have access to the Rage of Sparta at all.
Markus didn't know what had happened to the three ghosts, as when he had sucked all of their energy, they had disappitated, like mist. Were their souls destroyed or were they in a state of Limbo or something? Markus didn't know and couldn't find himself caring.
Anyways, Markus focused on his surroundings. The afternoon sun was glaring onto his back. The typically crowded tower was empty. Just when Markus thought that Susanoo had lied to him, he saw a man dressed in a black kimono with a haori depicting an ocean in a violent storm. The image was complete with crashing waves, thunderclouds and lightning. The odd thing about the images was that they were moving.
Looking at the man's face, it showed features of Asian descent with signs of old age. Nevertheless, the mans eyes were a youthful sky blue that brimmed with power. His hair was black and reached his shoulders.
"Well," the man said. His voice was deep and rich, making Markus shiver slightly at the immense power behind his voice. "You are the son of Poseidon that Ryūjin has taken an interest in. I can see why."
"Susanoo-sama," Markus said, nodding his head in greeting. He used the Japanese honorific because he was cautious of the god, so it'd be best to get on his good side. The only reason he was respectful to gods outside of the Greek Pantheon was because they actually helped him, even if it was for their own reasons. He couldn't say the same for the Olympians or Hades, save his dad and Hecate.
Susanoo smiled. "There is no need to be so formal with me, Markus Henderson. Ryūjin has informed me of your mannerisms. He described you as 'rude, arrogant and disrespectful, but actually worth a damn due to his potential'."
"Sounds like the scaly bastard," Markus said loudly, not even bothering to hide his words because Susanoo gave the okay.
Susanoo chuckled. "Yes, he is quite a troublesome brat. But enough about him. I'm interested in the offer that you made about becoming my champion."
"Yes," Markus nodded, wanting to get straight to the point. He ignored the shivers up and down his spine due to Susanoo's presence. "I would like to become your champion, ignoring my Greek heritage. I believe that due to my storm and sea affinity, you would be the best patron god to turn to."
"And because of your greed," Susanoo spoke without accusation.
"Yes," Markus nodded without shame. No point in denying it.
Susanoo's powerful eyes looked over Markus' form, making him squirm a little. After a moment, the storm god spoke. "Well, I can tell that you are a very powerful demigod," he complimented, making Markus mentally puff up his chest but physically nod in thanks. "And you are well-versed in the mystic arts. You have no knowledge on Shinto magic, do you?"
Markus shook his head.
"I see. Well, I have no reason to deny you being my champion. From what Ryūjin has told me, you are selfish, quick-tempered and power-hungry. But you are driven. Your goals are commendable, and you are a powerful demigod who will continue to grow stronger. Plus, your aspects of the sea interest me."
Markus was waiting for the 'but' in his statement. Nothing was ever easy.
"But that alone in not able to convince me," Susanoo said. Looks like Markus was right.
He sighed. "So what do you want me to do, then?"
Susanoo turned his gaze from Markus to look at the city below. "The Shinto Pantheon is one of the more peaceful pantheons that you'll meet. Nevertheless, there are still monsters that roam our lands to this day. One in particular has been a... thorn in my side."
"Yamata-no-Orochi," Markus said, knowing of the legend.
Susanoo nodded. "Yes. Even though I slated him thousands of years ago, he has found a way to come back, just as us gods have done. He has a reincarnation that takes the form of a human. He has inhabited the soul of his reincarnation, corrupting him and has practically become the same snake-dragon from before."
"And you want me to go kill this thing?" Markus asked with a little trepidation. "I don't know if you've noticed, but I don't think I'm capable of slaying something that can rival a god."
"True, but Orochi has been weakened," Susanoo reassured him. "Despite corrupting his reincarnate's soul, his powers have been weakened, due to not synchronising properly with the body and soul. Because of this, he does not have access to his full powers or form. So I ask that you slay Orochi and retrieve his Kusanagi for me."
"Isn't that the sword you got from slaying Orochi?" Markus asked, confused.
Susanoo frowned. "Yes. Although his version is a copy of the original imbued with his powers. It is not as strong or more powerful than the original sword, but it is still deadly. Retrieve the fake and slay Yamaha-no-Orochi's reincarnation, and you will be gifted with the title of 'Champion of Susanoo', as well as receive the original Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, wielded by Yamato Takeru."
Markus' almost popped out of their sockets due to how wide they were. He was going to receive a legendary sword from a dragon? That alone was almost worth fighting such a dangerous beast.
Wanting to be sure, though, Markus asked, " And you're sure that Orochi is weakened?"
"Positive," Susanoo responded. "Orochi is taking residence in an abandoned warehouse east of here, trying to gain more power. I trust that you'll be able to locate it. I wish you well, Markus Henderson, in your endeavour."
With that, the god was surrounded by a small whirlpool that covered his whole form. When the whirlpool faded, Susanoo was gone.
Markus sighed, packing up his ramen. "Going on a dangerous quest, killing a legendary and supposedly unbeatable monster... this is becoming a pattern." With that, he disappeared in a cloud of vapour.
XXX
Markus walked into an abandoned warehouse, where he was walking through a corridor. His senses told him that no traps, at least no magical or supernatural ones. Walking up to a locked door, he spread out his senses again, sensing a large energy signature that wasn't moving or doing much of anything.
Markus sighed silently. The only advantage he had at the moment was the element of surprise. So let's keep it that way.
Casting a silencing charm around him, Markus summoned a condensed ball of crackling lightning in his hand. Aiming it at the door, with the sound silenced by the charm, he commanded it to extend into a spear and pierced the door and aiming directly for the energy signature in the room. Markus' senses told him that the person inside already moved, dodging the extended spear of lightning.
With that, Markus kicked down the door, knocking it off it's hinges and sending it towards the figure. The figure, which Markus knew it was Orochi, ducked under the sailing door, letting it smash into the wall.
The figure was male, Markus already knew that, but his features suggested otherwise. He had long silky hair that went down to the end of his back. His skin was chalk white, similar to Hades', and had golden eyes with a reptilian slit in the middle. He had purple tattoos on his cheeks and necks. He also wore a black bodysuit that showed his skinny and lanky frame with no shoes on his feet. When he grinned, his abnormally long and sharp canines poked out (A.N. - Think of Orochimaru from Naruto, because that's who he's based off in appearance and power).
"So," the man said in an unusually bored tone, like he was way too lazy, "Susanoo has sent a fool in hopes of slaying me. How pathetic. And you're not even of this Pantheon. That's just desperate and sad."
Markus didn't say anything, calling back his spear of lightning.
"What?" The man asked with a lazy drawl. "You're not even going to respond to witty banter? How bor-"
Markus chose that time to move, apparently disappearing from view to the naked eye. His attack was dodged by the man's sword that he had brought out of thin air. His blade had blocked the now revealed Tsunami (A.N. - Appearance is based off Kusanagi sword in Naruto).
"Oh?" Yamata-no-Orochi grinned in excitement as he held his sword between the prongs of the trident. "You're a really interesting guy, aren't you?"
"Already spoken for. And I'm not interested in someone who looks like a goth reject," Markus responded, pushing his weapon forward but held in place by the fake Kusanagi.
Orochi frowned. "Oi! That's raci-" He couldn't finish as he screamed, getting electrocuted.
Markus smirked as He channelled lightning through his trident, the Kusanagi conducting the electricity and shocking Orochi. Markus shoved the sword out of the way and lunged at his opponent. However, Orochi was able to distort his body at an unnatural angle and dodge the attack. Not missing a beat, Markus redirected the attack so that one of the tips was aimed at Orochi's neck. But the snake-dragon ducked, his body acting like rubber. He kicked at Markus' stomach, pushing him back only slightly.
Markus mentally patted himself on the back for activating Hierro at the last second. Aiming his trident, he threw it like a javelin towards Orochi. The snake-dragon chuckled as he ducked under the projectile. He opened his mouth to taunt Markus, but Markus disappeared in a blur of speed using Sonido twice, once to appear to the left side of the room, and another to appear behind Orochi. Grabbing Tsunami in mid-air, he spun it around skilfully so that he pierced downwards at the snake-dragon's back in quick succession.
However, Orochi managed to twist his body like a snake so that he moved to the right in a streamlined position. His head morphed into a giant python's, fangs dripping with venom and mouth raised to devour the demigod.
His reflexes saving him, Markus vibrated his body so that he was able to phase through the half-snake, head and all. Passing through Orochi's body, Markus cancelled the vibration and brought his arm out to catch his leg with his super strength, halting his motion. Markus took that time to stab Tsunami into Orochi's midsection, lodging it in there.
The snake head hissed loudly in pain, making Markus smirk. But then his expression turned to disgust as the snake head opened its mouth and a hand covered in saliva reached out from the throat of the snake, followed by a head, and then the rest of Orochi's body came out, bathed in saliva.
In disgust, Markus threw the previous sack that was Orochi away. "What the fuck are you?" he asked in disgust.
Orochi smirked evilly, displaying his fangs. "A god."
Markus scoffed, his earlier disgust fading away. "Bitch, please. If you're a god, then I'm a god slayer." Before Orochi could move, Markus clapped his hands together, creating a thunderclap.
Orochi roared in pain, holding his now-revealed sensitive ears. Markus took that to stab Tsunami in the ground by its hilt and to leap forward, equipping Beowulf and Superman-punching the distracted snake-dragon in the sternum, cracking it. Orochi threw up blood as he was launched to the wall, hitting it and cracking it slightly.
But before Markus could continue attacking him, Orochi hissed deeply, speaking in a language that Markus didn't understand. He waited for Orochi's supposed spell to occur. And it came in the form of dozens of tiny white snakes to creep through tiny crevices that Markus hadn't noticed before.
Dismissing Beowulf, Markus took out his guns. Applying kinetic energy to the two of them, Markus shot rapid fire bullets at the incoming snakes. The bullets moved faster than normal bullets due to the added kinetic energy. This had the effect of destroying several snakes and the ground that they slithered on due to the speed that they travelled at, taking out even more snakes.
Done with the snakes, Markus turned his guns to Orochi, who dodged the gunfire. He looked fully healed now, though he was panting heavily. Guess his freaky healing ability took a lot out of him.
Moving at super speeds, Markus channeled earthquake energy to his leg and lashed out with a mean sweep kick that snapped Orochi's leg in half. The snake-dragon roared in pain.
Before Markus could continue with his attack, his left hand exploded in pain. Markus yelled in pain as he broke off his charge, clutching his burning hand that was in pain. Why was his hand burning? He didn't touch anything hot-
Suddenly, Markus felt woozy. His vision shifted, showing three grinning Orochis. He knelt, feeling like passing out.
"Do you like it?" Orochi asked gleefully. "It's a new poison I've been working on. One so potent that it causes agonising pain. You really shouldn't have touched me."
Markus' mind was still on the burning pain that ran up his arm. He managed to remember him grabbing Orochi's leg, trying to skewer him. He didn't know that he even had poison on his hand.
Before he could think on it, Markus felt a foot connect with his chin. He was thrown back as he landed on the floor, his mouth filled with blood due to him biting his tongue when he was kicked.
His hazy vision managed to pick out Orochi standing over him, leg fully healed. He raised his hand and punched Markus in the stomach. The demigod coughed up blood due to not applying Hierro in time. The snake-dragon continued pummelling him, beating on his face, stomach and chest. Each time delivering extreme damage to Markus and making his entire body explode in pain.
Orochi finished his assault, leaving the demigod bleeding and bruised. "Now, to finish you off," Orochi gloated with a grin, summoning his Kusanagi and raising it upward to finish Markus off.
He didn't see Markus hold out his hand in a certain direction.
Orochi was so caught up in killing him that he didn't see the incoming trident that pierced his side. He dropped is sword in pain as he screeched, clutching his bleeding side with Tsunami lodged in his side.
Markus groaned as he concentrated on the poison now in his bloodstream. He couldn't heal himself with the poison in his body. Slowly reaching for his Chimera knife, he stabbed his hand that was injected with the poison, causing it to bleed. Using his toxikinesis, he slowly extracted the poison from his blood and brought out all of the poison in the form of a liquid onto the ground, which acted like acid and practically ate through the ground.
"Should've gone with magic first," groaned Markus as he summoned some water from the air, and dropped it onto his bleeding and bruised body. His wounds healed and closed up, erasing any bruises and healing all of his cuts instantly. Fully healed, he stood up, re-energised. He'd come far in using his powers that he was able to control poisons, which were usually in the form of liquids. He unlocked his toxikinesis on accident when he experimented on the poison on he Lamia knife. He didn't think he needed to use it that much. Turns out he was wrong.
He was thankful that he managed to summon Tsunami back to him in the nick of time. This was due to its connection to the sea. Markus could command the aspect of the sea in the trident to come to him, and it obeyed him instantly. It was a little trick he had learned when he received the spear.
A yell broke Markus out of his thoughts. He whipped his head to see Orochi now healed of his wound, though he was panting heavily and sweating. Probably due to the drain on his healing ability. Tsunami laid on the ground next to him.
"Y-you fucking b-brat," Orochi growled out, his lazy drawl gone. "I'll fucking ki-"
But Orochi was unable to speak as his body was locked, unable to move. This was due to Markus using his haemokinesis to control the flowing blood in Orochi's human body. It didn't matter how powerful Orochi was, if he had blood, Markus could control him.
Making the blood expand past the veins, arteries, heart and other organs, Markus caused Yamaha-no-Orochi to explode in a large shower of chunky flesh and blood. The blood stained the floor and walls while the chunks of flesh splattered everywhere.
Not in the least bit disturbed at the display of a 'blood explosion' - because Orochi's mouth-vomiting was more disturbing - Markus sighed and walked forward to pick up the Kusanagi and Tsunami. He put the trident back on his keychain and hefted the Kusanagi in his hand, examining it.
"All this trouble for a fucking sword," Markus muttered. He then shrugged. "Oh well."
As Markus made to walk out, a raspy voice spoke out, "Not yet..."
In shock, Markus whirled around, Kusanagi raised, as he laid witness to what looked like a purple-coloured soul. "I... said... not... yet..." the soul rasped out, hanging onto nothing but will.
"How the fuck are you still alive?!" Markus yelled in shock and anger.
The soul didn't answer. Instead, it exploded with purple energy, pushing Markus back. He stabbed the Kusanagi into the ground, halting his movement. He closed his eyes due to the gale winds that were pushing him back and stinging in his eyes. They continued going on for what felt like forever, before they died down. Markus looked up, and was shocked stupid at what he saw.
Looking down on him was a humongous serpent, which practically destroyed the room they were in with just its body, with eight giant heads with white snakes as necks, all bunched up to form at the body. It was literally a giant, more deadly and scarier version of a hydra, just with eight heads. It had the same facial structure as Orochi in his human form, but more serpentine.
"... Fuck my life," Markus muttered, before one of the heads sailed towards him.
Markus was able to swiftly dodge, but then its neck uncoiled to reveal smaller snakes heading towards him. Markus used Kusanagi to hack and slash at each snake, cutting each one down. But whenever he killed one, more took their place. In only a few moments, three snakes had been replaced with fifty.
Markus was going to continue cutting when he saw three of the large heads ready to devour him. Putting the sword handle into his mouth, he equipped Beowulf and narrowly avoided the mouths of the heads. One got too close so he ducked and performed a Shoryuken from below, making it raise its head due to the strike. In mid-air, he was about to perform an axe kick when another head headed towards him.
Not having any chance to move, Markus instead channelled lightning through his body, before unleashing it outward, cloaking himself in a sheen of lightning. This resulted in shocking the incoming head due to the arcs of lightning and causing it to shriek in pain.
Needing more room, Markus vapour-travelled out of the room and outside, where he reappeared. Orochi's fully body destroyed the warehouse trying to chase after him.
Markus summoned four speed clones and performed a spell. "Ionioi Hetairoi: Ten no Kusari!" Four long chains made out of Mist formed and the speed clones held onto each end. He poured a sizeable chunk of magic in each chain so that it could hold. Each clone went after two heads, going to pin them down.
Providing support, Markus performed another spell. "Ionioi Hetairoi: Girisha Kaze!" Multiple Greek weapons formed and sailed towards Yamaha-no-Orochi. Each head tried to dodge, but the speed clones jumped and wrapped the eight heads in the chains, weighing them down. The weapons hit each head, causing all of them to shriek as their eyes, mouths and faces were pierced by the spell. This allowed the speed clones to wrap two heads each in the chains, nailing them to the ground. It took almost all of their strengths - with Markus putting a giant chunk of kinetic energy into them - to pin them down, but they managed.
Taking out Red Queen and storing Kusanagi away in a sealing rune, Markus activated Second Gear by speeding up his blood flow tremendously. Steam billowed from his form while he started sweating a lot. While his physical attributes were increased, the downside was that he couldn't use his other powers as that would disrupt his concentration of controlling his blood flow, which needed to be controlled.
Dashing towards the pinned heads and practically cracking the ground from his movements, Markus revved Red Queen, bathing it in flames. Going towards two of the pinned heads, Markus struck down. Due to revving Red Queen and the added boosts from Second Gear, Markus was able to practically slash through one of the necks, causing one of the heads to be severed and black blood to spray everywhere. The wound was cauterised, making each head roar in agony and for the blood to evaporate.
Not being deterred, Markus leaped up and slashed down on the second pinned head, getting the same result as the first severed head. He was going to continue, but it looked like Orochi had had enough.
One of the heads flailed and broke one of the chains, making one of the clones stumble. It roared and headed towards the original, fangs bared. Backing away from the incoming head, Markus sped up the blood flow to his left hand, clenching it. The added blood made the fist red.
"Jan... Ken..." Markus chanted, his runes glowing bright to his response. He waited for the incoming head to come towards him, and then promptly dodged. He punched forward with his fist to the side of the head, his punch creating a small sonic boom due to the increased blood pressure and his super strength. "Po!" he finished, his fist crushing into the head and breaking bone. The head shot sideways due to the force, landing on the ground heavily, unconscious. Quickly, Markus sliced off the head with Red Queen. "Fuck yeah! It actually worked!" Markus cheered, punching his fist in the air in celebration.
He was interrupted by the roar of the other five heads. He looked to see the snake heads had broken free from their restraints, making the chains fade away. Markus dismissed the speed clones along with Second Gear, due to the strain both techniques put on his body. To boost himself back to full strength, Markus chanted an Atlantean spell that he'd read. "Άρχισε η Άνοιξη! (Spring's Rush!)" he chanted.
His entire body was bathed in a blue light. All of his exhaustion faded away, and he was returned to full power with a little extra. The spell was similar to him being doused in water, just with magic as a substitute. It did its job slightly better since his boost lasted for three minutes. But the requirements were a little taxing.
Nevertheless, he brought out Wavebreaker. In response to this, Yamaha-no-Orochi roared, making the ground tremble.
Markus used his powers to summon a giant hurricane out of wind and vapour, his powers making it larger than average. He stood atop of his creation, reaching slightly above the snake heads. Orochi's heads snapped at the top of the hurricane, trying to eat him, but the water vapour and winds kept snapping him back. Around the two beings, the wind picked up sharply. Above, thunder boomed and lightning flashed. Markus roared and dug deep into his powers as a son of the Stormbringer. Raising his sword, Markus called down lightning from the sky and directed it to one of the heads from the sky, essentially vaporising it in a flash.
Having enough of being beheaded, Orochi summoned more of his white snakes from his necks and aimed them towards Markus. Markus dealt with this by summoning a water dragon using the surrounding water vapour and summoning lightning to it. The result was a water dragon bathed in electricity, creating a water-lightning dragon. His creation dived forward, incinerating the snakes with the lightning and crushing and destroying them using the water.
The remaining heads shrieked and tried to move away from the hurricane, but Markus turned parts if the water that was dousing three of the heads into ice, encasing them in ice. Seeing his chance, Markus leapt from the hurricane, equipping Beowulf to his arms and legs. He jumped on one head and punched it, destroying it. He hopped to the other two and did the same thing before leaping to the final one, getting ready to behead it.
However, the head didn't want to give up. It hacked a glob of burning poison at the descending Markus. Thinking quickly, Markus dismissed Beowulf and quickly activated the shield Tyson had given him, holding it out in front of him. The poison hit the shield, instantly eating away at it and trying to kill the demigod.
Not being deterred, Markus took out the Kusanagi and closed his eyes, the poison spray stinging his eyes. He swung downward as he fell, his blade cutting through the head cleanly.
He fell to the ground, throwing away the melting shield and blinking his eyes, tears leaking out of them due to the sting. He quickly summoned water to douse himself and removing any lingering poison on his body, too tired to use his toxikinesis.
He panted, laying on the floor and feeling like shit. "Ha," he panted heavily, trying to stay awake. "I'm, huff, probably, huff, going to get, huff, killed one day," he muttered deliriously to himself. He giggled, exhaustion making him feel delusional.
Clutching the fake Kusanagi, he transfigured a rock into a vial, scooping some of the poison for future use. Taking a scale from the slowly decaying monster as a trophy, Markus vapour-travelled out of the area, job completed.
Done. Man, this was a long one.
Lot of stuff went down here. Markus finished the Hestia cabin and became 'Hero of the Unclaimed' - which was a funny title in itself - met Persephone for the first time (interesting interaction) and struck a deal with Hades while receiving three souls in return. Along with gaining the Rage of Sparta from God of War and killing Yamata-no-Orochi. Yeah.
Keep in mind that Orochi was weakened from taking over his reincarnation's soul. If this was the original, it'd be very, very hard for Markus to kill him, almost impossible. Since it took Susanoo to kill him, and he's a major god in the Shinto mythology.
Next chapter, Markus will receive his title, along with training from Susanoo. Then, hopefully, we get onto Titan's Curse. Nice string of non-canon chapters so far, if I do say so myself.
I was going to post this before Christmas Day, but I was too busy enjoying my holidays. And I was out all day yesterday. So this was posted as my Christmas gift to all readers, reviewers and lovers and supporters of this story. Enjoy your Christmas, all of you!
Merry Christmas!