Chapter 42:
"Wait, what is Heracles doing here?" Percy asked, shocked at seeing the god of strength and bravery on their quest.
"That's none of your business, weakling," Heracles responded with a sneer, getting Percy and the others to frown. "I'm only here for him." He pointed to Markus, who had a bored look on his face.
Markus didn't speak for a moment, worrying the others, before he spoke. "If it's for the reason I think it's for, I'm going to nuclear." His calm tone slightly scared the others. "I believe you're here on the orders of Zeus?"
"That's right," Heracles said in an arrogant tone. "Father sent me to kill you. Due to you disrespecting and attacking several Olympians." He shrugged. "Frankly, I don't care about all that. I wouldn't mind killing a child of my uncle. What father was thinking, wasting my time to kill a runt like you, I don't know."
"Funny that you call me a runt, since at least I don't swing an overcompensating weapon," Markus said, pointing to the god's club. This got the group to snicker slightly.
Heracles sneered. "Oh? You think you're cute?"
"Bitch, I'm adorable," Markus refuted with a smirk. "Hey, how's going from a doorman to Zeus' bitch?"
Instead of looking offended, the god chuckled. "I get why you're talking big, ya know? You're nervous, afraid, to face me. Don't worry. I'll at least make your death quick. That's the mercy I'll grant you for amusing me."
"Afraid?" Markus threw his head back and laughed loudly. He kept on laughing like he was told a funny joke. Heracles' smirk turned to a frown as the others looked concerned.
"Stop laughing, fool!" Heracles bellowed. "You stand before the god of strength and bravery! The patron of heroes! Son of Zeus!"
"And soon to be dead man," Markus said after he finished laughing. He had a grin on his face. "Believe me, if I wanted you dead, you would be. So I'm going to be offer you mercy. Go back to Zeus and call off his stupid hunt for me. The only thing that he'll achieve is more gods defeated or dead. I'm getting sick of his actions. If he wants me, he's gonna have to come and get me!"
The sky boomed loudly, and lightning shot down to where Markus was standing. The questers shouted for him to move, but he didn't. He just held up his hand lazily and absorbed the lightning.
He kept on looking at Heracles. "Well? What's your answer, god of strength?"
The god snarled, hefting his club on his shoulder. "You want my answer, boy? Here it is!" Moving quickly, Heracles swung his club to Markus' head, who didn't move.
Seeing this, Heracles laughed. "Your funeral, boy!" He swung with all his might, a savage gleam in his eye. It faded from his eye when he saw Markus grab the weapon with one arm. But there was something different about him. His eyes turned from sea green to a bright gold. There were strange red markings on his face. And his Fehu and Yang rune and tattoo glowed, supplying Markus with nature energy to use senjutsu.
Markus grinned at Heracles' shocked face. "My turn."
Rearing his fist back, Markus decked the god in the face and sent him flying, hitting several trees and causing a loud BOOM to come from the forest.
Markus turned to the others, who looked confused at the change in eye colour and the markings on his face. "I'll be back."
And with that, he disappeared. His speed had increased dramatically to the point that he didn't use kinetic energy. Heading towards the place where Heracles was picking himself up, he dashed ahead. Seeing this, Heracles snarled and punched at Markus, the son of Poseidon performing the same action.
A giant shockwave was produced from the force of the two, clearing the trees and cratering the ground slightly.
Feeling the sting but not affected by it, Markus noted that - despite his nonchalance - this actually might be a challenge for him. He grinned.
Pulling his fist back, the god raised his fists back and went for an overhead strike. Markus rolled out of the way, the ground cratering heavily where he previously was. Turning quickly, Heracles went for a haymaker that deflected with his fist and attacked the god, using his fighting knowledge.
Markus' fist hit the god and made him stumble slightly but didn't deter him. When Heracles punched, Markus deflected. When he kicked, Markus swept him from his feet, making him growl. Instead of going into a blind rage, however, Heracles instead used his head and starting fighting with wrestling and boxing techniques that Markus was able to pick up.
Markus noted that he was using the art of pankration, a sort of Greek fighting style that Heracles and Theseus invented in the old days. Markus idly watched Heracles' movements as both fought. While Markus hated to admit it, Heracles was slightly stronger than him. Not by much, but still considerably stronger. While Markus was able to avoid most of his strikes, some did connect. He wasn't winded, due to the added durability that Sage Mode (A.N. - I'm calling it that for simplicity's sake) gave him, but they still stung. However, Markus was faster than him and had better fighting knowledge. Not because he was a better fighter, but he was able to implement each fighting style he used either one after the other, or all together. Heracles, who used pankration, hadn't practiced with his skills, since most of his strikes were a little sloppy and focused more on brute strength.
Having enough of the stalemate, Heracles roared and - to Markus' surprise - backhanded him hard enough to send him flying further into the forest and into the base of one of the snowy mountains, cracking it slightly.
"I will have your head, boy! No one belittles the might of Heracles!" the god roared, running after him.
Markus didn't show any signs of damage or pain as he lay at the base of the mountain. He only grinned, calling out to him. "I love how you say your name with pride when it literally translates to 'Glory of Hera'! You know, the bitch who ruined your life!"
If anything, the charging Heracles roared with even more anger.
Just as the god was almost on top of him and ready to punch downwards, Markus moved quickly and gave him a clean uppercut, lifting him off the ground slightly and stunning him.
Taking advantage of this, Markus kicked his back and made him land on the base of the mountain. Grinning sadistically, Markus grabbed his head and ran up the mountain, dragging the god along with him. Heracles grunted as he left a trail of destruction along the mountain, pushing him deeper into the snow and rock. He tried to struggle, but it was no use.
As Markus was dragging him across the mountain, he saw that he was nearly reaching the top. With a roar, Markus lifted Heracles with one arm and practically launched him in the sky, breaking the sound barrier.
Jumping after him, Markus followed Heracles' trail while in the air. He didn't waste any time in delivering a devastating blow to his stomach, sending him downwards. Kicking the air with his strength, he zipped down to where he was about to land. Markus then delivered a volleyball strike to the god, launching him to the air again. He waited for a moment, playfully looking at an imaginary watch on his wrist. After a few seconds, Markus saw him about to land on the ground. Speeding towards his landing point, Markus struck Heracles' face, slamming him into the ground due to the force of his punch and the god's momentum.
Cracks were created from the ground, acting like a spider web. It reached the base of the mountain that they were at and made it shudder for a minute.
Seeing Heracles stunned for a moment, Markus grinned. He planned to make this a spectacle. If Zeus was sending his son to kill him, it was only right that he was able to witness it.
Grabbing a drachma from his pocket, he used the water vapour in the air to make a big rainbow. "O Iris, goddess of the rainbow. Accept my offering." He tossed the drachma into the rainbow, watching it disappear. "Olympus," he requested.
The mist shimmered and showed the throne room of Olympus in all its golden glory. Sitting in their thrones were the Olympians. They seemed to be arguing about something. Probably Artemis being kidnapped.
"Yo!" Markus shouted, catching their attention.
"You!" Zeus bellowed with fury upon seeing him.
"'Sup, King Bitchfit! Hi dad!" Markus greeted Zeus and Poseidon.
"Hello, son," Poseidon smiled, happy to see his son. He ignored Zeus' growling at his nickname. "May I ask why you are calling us?"
"Just about to show you all the smackdown of Heracles," he said with a shrug, as if talking about the weather. This got the others to gasp at his words, making some whisper. "Hi, Ares! And Apollo, nice to see you! Hello to you too, Hermes."
"Punk." "'Sup, kid?" Ares and Hermes greeted while Apollo glared.
"What is this about Heracles?" a woman on one side of Zeus asked with displeasure at the god's name. She was a beautiful woman wearing a Greek toga. She had long brown hair and deep brown eyes along with a beautifully sculpted face.
"I'm guessing you're Hera?" Markus asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You would be right, boy. Now what is there to talk about that buffoon?"
"I'm just beating his ass into the ground because he was sent by Zeus to kill me."
"What?!" the other gods exclaimed and looked to Zeus. Poseidon was the loudest and the most furious. Ares and Apollo seemed to grin in glee.
"You tried to kill my son by sending Heracles after him?!" Poseidon bellowed in rage, standing up at full height with his trident in hand. "You dare?!"
"The boy is too powerful! And he has already committed crimes against Olympus and its people!" Zeus rebutted, grabbing his master bolt to meet his brother.
"Crimes?! What happened with Artemis was her own fault! She attacked him first! And Apollo and Hermes were sent by your orders against him! If you continue this madness, I will-"
"Dad," Markus interrupted.
"What?" Poseidon turned to his son. "I'm on a roll here."
"I know. But don't worry. I'll kick Heracles' ass, so I'm in no danger. You can still kill Zeus, make my day."
"You? Defeat the strongest god?" a woman with black hair and grey eyes scoffed. She sat in a grey throne and wore a chiton. "Foolish."
Seeing the similarities between her and Annabeth, Markus knew that this was Athena. "Well, Braniac-" Athena's eyes narrowed while some gods laughed. "-if I was able to beat Ares along with my brother at a young age,-" Ares glowered and growled at this "-defeat Artemis on my own, along with binding Apollo and being faster than Hermes-" both gods frowned at that "-I think I'm damn well capable."
"You dare insult me?" Athena whispered in anger.
"Yes. Also-" Markus raised up his hand to catch a punch from a now conscious Heracles. The ground cratered and splintered behind him while a shockwave was produced. The gods gasped at seeing this.
"You know, it's rude to interrupt someone when they're talking," Markus frowned at the snarling god.
"I'll kill you, you son of a bit-" Heracles was interrupted by a punch to the face.
"Language," Markus chided with as much seriousness as he could muster. This made some of the laid-back gods laugh.
"Fuc-" Punch. "Language."
"You little shi-" Punch, followed by a nosebleed of ichor. "I said language."
"Damn yo-" Punch. Loose tooth. "What part of 'language' do you not understand?"
"DO YOU EVER SHUT UP?!" Heracles bellowed and went for an overhead strike. Markus ducked, hitting him with a nasty gut punch.
Heracles managed to recover and recklessly attacked him, giving in to his anger. Markus just bobbed and weaved out of the attacks.
"Why did the chicken cross the road?" Markus asked, blocking several of his strikes and responding with his own.
The god screamed in frustration. "STOP MOCKING ME!" He was so furious that he didn't see the punches Markus delivered to his face, chest, stomach and back. He fell down, grunting and growling in pain.
"Wrong answer. Come on, at least try," Markus taunted, bouncing on the balls of his feet.
Standing up quickly, Heracles ran forward and punched Markus in the face, making him step back slightly. All he did was spit out a wad of blood. "You hit like a bitch," Markus grinned.
Heracles gave another punch to Markus' stomach that made him fold over, followed by slamming his fist on his back. He followed this up with a football kick that made Markus fly slightly. The son of Poseidon landed on his feet, still standing. He made a show of stretching his body, popping slightly. "Is that it? Honestly, your mortal sister could hit harder than that."
Heracles had enough. He charged forward like a bull, not caring about anything other than to smash his face in. Markus dashed forward, meeting his charge. The two powerhouses locked fists with each other, struggling to overpower one another. They ended up using their legs to kick each other, both locked into a stalemate.
Markus was pushed back slightly, still attacking the god. Having enough of this, Markus disengaged from the lock and gave a wicked uppercut. Seeing his opponent stunned, Markus went behind him and performed a German suplex, lifting Heracles up from the ground and slamming him headfirst, making the ground crack and a shockwave to resonate from the area.
Markus simply waited for the god to recover, now bored with the fight.
A few moments later, Heracles emerged fully from the ground. His head was cracked, leaking heavy amounts of ichor. He swayed for a few moments, before standing firmly on the ground. "That is it," he whispered dangerously. His eyes were bloodshot, his toga and Nemean Lion coat caked in ichor. "I have had enough of this mockery. Witness my true power!" Suddenly, he began to grow brightly.
Markus sighed, knowing he was entering his true divine form. Well, he had an ace in the hole as well.
Markus started to turn his divine energy in his body into steam. Using his powers as a son of Poseidon, he carefully boiled his energy the same way that he could access his water powers on himself. What he was doing was heating his body up to produce steam from his energy. However, unlike Second Gear, the steam produced was boiling hot. So hot in fact that he started sweating considerably and melted the surrounding and remaining snow around him. His hair became matted with sweat and clung to his scalp. The building pressure from his boiling energy made his muscles clench with unbelievable power. (A.N. - If you want a better example, think of the Boil Release: Unrivalled Strength technique from Naruto).
Just as he was finished with his build-up, he closed his eyes and faced Heracles, who's body was unleashing more power than before. The god growled, seeing his plan fail. Having enough of this, Heracles raised his hand and fired a blast of godly energy towards Markus, who backhanded the blast away. It was sent towards the mountain near them, which promptly exploded. Stone pebbles were sent flying everywhere and the shockwave produced blew away the ski resorts nearby as well as the snow.
Markus started walking forward to Heracles, who was now nervous. He kept on firing bolts of godly energy, each more powerful than the last. Markus just walked forward, not bothered by the onslaught of blasts that didn't do shit against his senjutsu-enhanced body and steam armour. With each result being the same, Heracles stopped, stepping back slightly in fear as Markus kept on coming. Eventually, his arrogance and anger won out, and he roared. He charged forward, punching Markus in the face.
Not only did Markus not budge, but Heracles retracted his hand, clutching it tightly as he screamed in shock and agony as the bones in his fist broke. Just from trying to punch this insignificant fool. This wasn't supposed to happen! This filth should've been destroyed and turned into a bloody stain! He was Heracles! The son of Zeus! The strongest one there is! This-This half-blood can not - should not - be able to make a fool of him.
Heracles kept on punching, his fists doing nothing except breaking even more the harder he punched. Markus just stared at the god, not doing anything. "Do you realise how beneath me you are?" Markus said, his lips forming into a smirk. He crossed his arms, infuriating Heracles even more. "All you're doing is annoying me now. I'm more godly than you ever will be. You're nothing more than ant that I will gladly crush. And you want to know something?" Markus' grin became wider. "You're nothing more than a joke. Both as a former half-blood and as a god. I will crush you. I will surpass you. I will make your legend as something nothing but mockery and trash!"
"Shut up!" Heracles bellowed, cradling his fists that were nothing more than broken bones and destroyed flesh now.
"I want something, though." Markus didn't wait for Heracles to finish. "I want your title as 'Patron of Heroes'. When I kill you, I want your title. Only, I'll change it to 'King of Heroes'. Do you agree?"
"You will never defeat me!" Heracles refuted.
Markus rolled his eyes. "Do you accept those terms? If you're so confident, swear it on the Styx."
"Fine," Heracles bit out, not bothered by the words. The sky boomed with thunder, signifying the oath.
Markus smiled a cold smile. "Good."
Having enough of talking, Heracles bound forward. Before he could get far, however, Markus caught his wrist, and pulled. Practically yanking the god's arm out of his socket.
Heracles screamed as ichor flowed like a river from his stump, but he was silenced by Markus whacking him with his own dismembered arm. Sending his sailing towards the forest where they fought previously. Before he could get far, Markus was already behind him, slapping him with the god's arm so hard that it splintered, sending him through the air.
Markus didn't let him rest, however. He followed Heracles, beating him with his own arm until it was practically destroyed due to the force applied. So he used his fists. One punch sent the god literally flying through the stratosphere. Markus sailed after him, using the wind to fly. Another punch sent him on a round trip across the world. The friction that Heracles caused due to going so fast burned his body. His godly body was able to hold up, however. He was tumbling and twisting through the air, unable to stop. And then he crash-landed onto a snowy surface.
The impact sent snow flying and the surroundings to rip apart due to the force. Heracles was thankful for the snow, because it was able to somewhat cool his body down from the frictional force. He tried to catch his breath.
"Huh, didn't think I'd be back here," a voice said directly above him, and Heracles almost shrank away in fear. He weakly saw Markus looking around the destroyed area in remembrance.
"I should plant a flag here, saying 'North Pole. Property of Markus Henderson'. What do you think?"
Before Heracles could say anything, he felt a large and agonising amount of pain in his ribs and he felt weightless.
Markus looked at the god that was sent flying, foot outstretched. Then he flew after him, destroying the North Pole even further due to the force used.
Markus reached Heracles and started punching him rapidly, the strikes breaking Heracles' body even more and creating shockwaves across the world. Markus grinned as he chanted a familiar battle cry. "ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA!" The shouts were nothing but music to Markus' ears while the god of strength could barely hear them as he was being punched so fast and so hard that he literally couldn't feel anything.
"ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA!" Markus ended the final shout with an uppercut that shattered the windows of surrounding buildings in what looked like France and caused the clouds to disperse from the force. People from below covered their ears and screamed loudly from the sound.
Markus followed after the ascending god, reaching a level height and clotheslining him so hard that he sailed west, heading straight towards a familiar floating palace.
As the Olympians were watching the Iris-message shown, they all heard a loud bang as the gates of Olympus crumpled and flew, having been crashed. They all stood in alarm, weapons ready in response to what happened. Only to pause and stare in shock and horror at seeing the beaten, battered, destroyed and bloody form of Heracles, the god of strength. All the bones in his body were broken. The ichor caking his body had evaporated due to the friction burning it off, leaving blackened skin that was slowly chipping away. One of his eyes was destroyed, and the other was slightly bleeding.
"F-Father..." the weakened and broken god croaked. The Olympians - even Hera - flinched at how weak and small his voice sounded. "H-Help m-me... please. S-Save me from-"
He couldn't finish as his head was stomped on by a foot that belonged to Markus. He grinded his foot on his skull, cracking it slightly. He looked up to see the shocked Olympians.
He gave a savage grin. "Yo!" He gave a peace sign.
"How did... What did...?" Zeus stuttered, unable to comprehend what had just occurred.
"Your son is about to die. Painfully. Because of your actions. Father of the Year, aren't you?" Markus snarked. Heracles tried to rise, only for the son of Poseidon to viciously stomp down on his head. "Heel, bitch. Oh yeah." He looked to Athena, who flinched at his eyes on her. "Well? Nothing to say? Is the goddess of wisdom speechless?"
Markus reached down and picked Heracles up by his hair. Or what was left of it. He moaned at the pain done to his scalp.
The son of Poseidon looked to all the Olympians. "You're going to have to rename me as the strongest and most powerful demigod alive. I want a statue done by the time I've saved the bitch."
Markus threw Heracles off Olympus, and soon followed after.
Markus was done playing games, and so was beating Heracles black and blue. His body was slowly being reduced to mush and was slowly being torn apart. Finished with his job, Markus held Heracles by his throat. He was barely conscious to hear what was said to him. "I told you," Markus said calmly. "If I wanted you dead, you would be."
And with that, Markus grabbed Heracles head with both hands and, with an inhumane roar, ripped him in half. Ichor sprayed Markus' body as bones, organs, intestines and muscle spilled from the body, still uselessly clinging to the dead god's body. With a grunt, Markus threw the two halves of his body in the air and aimed both his hands to it.
Energy gathered in his palms as he cupped his hands together. "Bye-bye!" A gigantic storm laser was launched from his palms, similar to a Final Flash from DBZ. The laser reached Heracles descending body and engulfed him completely, disintegrating him completely. Not even ashes remained from Markus' attack.
The beam lost some energy, before dispersing completely. And so, Heracles, the god of strength, was dead. At least for a long while. And the newly dubbed 'King of Heroes' was born.
XXX
Done with his god-slaying, Markus appeared before the Olympians, shocking them again. They raised their weapons, but didn't do anything else.
Markus dismissed his Sage Mode and steam powers. He just looked at each Olympian gravely, before setting his eyes on Zeus. "I'm done," Markus said simply, confusing the others.
"What do you mean 'done', son?" Poseidon asked, confused.
"I mean I'm done with you all. I already had nothing holding me back from saving you all, but I'm annoyed. Very annoyed. And pissed off. So I'm washing my hands off of Olympus. You can fight your war with the Titans yourself."
"So you are admitting that you are a traitor and are joining the Titans?" Ares asked with too much happiness.
Markus just looked at the god like he was an idiot. "No, you dumbass. I mean that, when the time comes, I'm not saving Olympus. I know of the prophecy, and that it entails of a child of the Big Three."
"How do you know of the Great Prophecy?" a goddess asked. Markus noted that she had similar features to Katie. Meaning that this was Demeter.
"I have my ways," he answered simply, making some gods frown. "The point is that I refuse to save beings who are arrogant, foolish and follow a pathetic and useless king."
"YOU DARE-" Zeus bellowed in rage, lightning sparking from his form. He was cowed when Markus unleashed his full power among the Olympians. And what they witnessed shocked them.
Emerald - not sea-green like last time - energy swirled around Markus' form. The marble floor cracked and cratered largely, creating cracks that went across the entire floor. Across his form, lightning sparked and surrounded him, along with a whirlpool of water that surrounded him like armour.
Across the globe, storms and hurricanes suddenly formed from Markus' will. The earth rumbled with great force. Due to his lineage as a son of the Stormbringer and Earthshaker, he was able to perform all of this with ease. As a champion of Susanoo... well, the results spoke for themselves.
The sky lit up with lightning. Black clouds gathered, power crackling underneath them. It was silent for a moment, with the clouds only fizzing. Then the sky exploded.
Lightning streaked. In California. In Long Island. In Rhodes. In New Jersey. Practically everywhere in America. The sea churned, floods sweeping up the land and swallowing buildings, livestock and plant life. The earth shook with anger, as if Hades himself was furious. Buildings shook and collapsed. Craters opened up and swallowed incoming cars. The ground cracked and splintered. Hurricanes, furious storms, tornadoes were encompassing the entirety of the States. And then the range of all this destruction, slowly expanded. Beyond the States. Beyond America.
Back in Olympus, ice started to form, covering most of the thrones. But that wasn't what made the gods shiver. It was what was behind Markus.
Colossal. Gigantic. Words didn't begin to describe what they saw. Twelve heads. Twelve - no, thirteen - set of emerald eyes that burned with such intensity and ferocity that the Olympians - bar Poseidon - felt a chill down their spines. The being was black in colour. Devoid of life. Of mercy. Of feeling.
Staring at the beast, they all felt like they were getting sucked into the a black hole. An abyss. They had never felt such fear since Typhon. The fact that a demigod was producing this kind of power stunned them.
Markus grinned, the dragon head mirroring his action. And when he spoke, the heads spoke with him.
"Your day of reckoning is near, Olympians. History is repeating itself. Ouranos dealt with his downfall at the hands of his own children. Kronos dealt with his in the same fashion. And now," Markus chuckled darkly, "the same thing is happening to you. The only difference is that you have a chance to rectify your mistake. Only it's slipping very, very quickly. Know this; I do not fight for Olympus, but for myself and those I give a damn about. I could care less about the war with the Titans. I could either let them destroy Olympus, or do it myself. Or maybe wipe both of you all out at once, saves me the trouble. Thalia, daughter of Zeus, will not fight and die for Olympus. I will make sure of it. I will take her place and possibly decide the destruction of Olympus. Not by a choice made from me. But by my own hands. Because of your actions, you have a possible enemy. One that won't take his time like Kronos, but end your reign instantly. Any action taken that pisses me off - and you know what I mean - I start the prophecy now. Threaten me, I start the prophecy now. Harm any of my precious people - you get the idea. I am not your puppet, but my own man. Dad," here Markus lost his smile and his eyes lost a bit of their glow, "Atlantis will be left alone from the dealings of Olympus. That I can promise you. I will defend the palace myself if need be."
Poseidon quickly nodded his head and smiled in thanks, even if it seemed out of place here. "Thank you, son."
Markus nodded. Then he looked at the Olympians coldly. And called back all his power. All the storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, storm clouds. They now disappeared as quickly as they came. The image of the beast receded, and Markus disappeared in a cloud of vapour, leaving fearful and scared gods that now realised that their end was very very near, and it was all due to their king.
Markus appeared before the questers suddenly, shocking them. All the group heard were the loud bangs across the sky, the mountain being destroyed and a gigantic beam that lit up the sky. Along with the storms, earthquakes and storms. It was like something out of DBZ, to be honest.
The questers balked at seeing Markus covered in ichor and sweat, panting slightly. His shirt and jacket were torn, showcasing his upper body and runes. The sight made Thalia, Adria and Zoe blush heavily, though the two Hunters would forever deny it.
"W-What happened?" Grover asked, almost fearing the outcome.
Markus grinned as he panted. "Guess."
"Is Heracles dead?" Zoe asked with too much enthusiasm once she got rid of her blush.
Markus smirked at seeing her eager expression. "If you want to know, yes. Beat him black and blue across the world, sent him to Olympus with a punch, ripped him in half and destroyed him with a laser of badassery."
Zoe's expression was radiant. She smiled, something that none of them had ever seen. Percy blushed a little, seeing that she looked more beautiful than before. Grover swooned slightly, seeing this. Markus noticed that she seemed lighter, like a heavy burden was lifted off of her. It wasn't much, but it showed.
"I can't believe I am saying this, but thou might just be the male that I like the most," Zoe admitted, shocking everyone. Sure, they knew that she hated Heracles, like a lot. Markus was the only one as to why. But they didn't think that she'd be this happy. "Th-" She suddenly hesitated, her smile dimming a little. Then she scrunched her face. "Thank you," she said slowly, as if the words were foreign to her.
Markus shrugged. "No problem. Got to kill a god, get a new title and - ooh." Markus stepped forward and picked up Heracles' club. He inspected it, tossing and turning it. "Not bad." He sent it into his personal pocket dimension, that held all his other weapons. "Now..." Markus cast repairing charms on his clothes, making them fully whole again. "That's better."
"Uhh, what about the quest?" Percy asked, remembering that they were still on a quest to save Artemis. Grover looked to the bull, who seemed to be struggling to stand. "A gift of the Wild," he muttered.
"I agree," Zoe said, happiness fading away to get back on task. "We must use it."
"Hold up," Thalia said irritably. "Explain to me why you're so sure this pig is a blessing."
Grover looked over, distracted. "It's our ride west. Do you have any idea how fast this boar can travel?"
"Fun," Percy said. "Like… pig cowboys."
"I'd rather run," Markus said.
Grover nodded. "I know. But we need to get aboard. I wish… I wish I had more time to look around. But it's gone now."
"What's gone?" Percy asked.
"The power of the Wild," Markus answered, crossing his arms. "I felt it for a brief moment, before feeling it fading away."
"You said that you were a sage," Adria reminded. "How is that possible?"
"What's so special about being a sage?" Thalia asked, confused.
"A sage is someone who is in tune with nature," Zoe explained. "Someone who can become one with it. Use it for their benefits. There were very few sages in Ancient Greece. Some were disciples of Gaia. Others were children of Demeter. Lady Artemis has tried to master the art of the sages for quite some time, but has never been able to accomplish it, despite being the goddess of the hunt." She turned to Markus. "How were thou able to become a sage? Who taught thou? There is no way that it could have been a human."
"You're right, it wasn't a human," Markus agreed. "It wasn't a human, but a nature spirit. I can't tell you, as the spirit likes the privacy given to them."
"Y-You're a sage?" Grover asked, awe in his voice.
Instead of answering, Markus closed his eyes. Suddenly, the teens were able to feel a warm sensation. It was similar to when the pig came barrelling towards them, but stronger. Grover and the Hunters were the most shocked. The satyr even shed a tear at the feeling of nature. Then they saw that Markus gained red tribal tattoos (at least, it looked like that) on his face, and his eyes turned gold. They could feel the air around him had grown heavier. But the power didn't scare them. It felt... welcoming, warm.
Grover was in a daze as he approached Markus. The son of Poseidon was able to snap him out of it with a whack to the head.
"Ow!" Grover exclaimed. He rubbed his head as he gave Markus a dirty look. Markus only shrugged.
"Incredible," Zoe breathed out, feeling the power of nature swirling inside of the demigod.
"What's so special about being a sage? Apart from being one with nature?" Percy asked, wanting to know more on the subject.
"Becoming a sage allows one to reach unimaginable heights of power. If a regular mortal were to learn the arts of the sage, they could reach the level of the most powerful demigods," Zoe explained, shocking the group except Grover, Markus and Adria. "With his level of strength..." she gestured to Markus, shivering slightly. "I can not imagine it. No wonder thou were able to defeat Heracles."
"But-But how did you learn to become a sage?" Grover asked. "You'd have to be very in tune with nature. And you're the son of Poseidon. Not any nature deity."
"That's true," Markus nodded. "But the sea is also a part of nature. Not a strong connection, but it's still there. That was able to help me in learning the sage arts. But we need to deal with something." He looked to the struggling boar. Walking towards it, Markus bent down and placed his hand on its head. He sent a burst of senjutsu to the creature, healing it of its injury.
Being a creature of nature, it eagerly accepted the nature energy and was able to stand up quickly, shocking the others.
"D-Did you just heal it?" Thalia asked.
Markus nodded. "Honestly. You see me do shit that's either impossible or badass, yet you get surprised each time. It got funny the first few times, then it got old."
"It's not our fault you're stupidly overpowered," Percy retorted.
Markus scoffed. "Details. You're just jealous." He turned to the boar. "Will you help us?" he asked the pig, who squealed enthusiastically. "Cool."
Grover hopped onto its back first, followed by Thalia. Markus got behind her, making her blush a little. Zoe reluctantly got on behind him while Adria and Percy followed. The Hunter turned to Percy with a glare. "If you try anything, I'll gut you."
Percy gulped and nodded quickly.
Markus cleared his throat and looked at the Hunter pointedly. Adria immediately lost her hostility.
With that, the Hunters, demigods and satyr began their journey on the boar.
XXX
The group rode for hours on the giant boar. Nobody was sure how many miles exactly they travelled, but the mountain landscape they left soon changed to that of flat, dry land. The grass and scrub brush got sparser until they were galloping across the desert.
To pass time for himself, Markus leaned onto Thalia's back and nibbled on her ear. This had the effect of making her squirm. "Stop," she hissed.
"I don't want to," Markus whispered back with a grin. He kept on nibbling on her ear, biting it playfully and blowing into it slightly. Thalia continued to squirm and flushed lightly. And since she was riding on the pig, she couldn't hit him, only struggle slightly.
"If thou could keep your advances to thyself," Zoe said from behind him, her face scrunched up in disgust, "that'd be most appreciated."
"Spoilsport," Markus muttered.
As night fell, the boar came to a stop at a creek bed and snorted. He started drinking the muddy water, then ripped a saguaro cactus out of the ground and chewed it, needles and all.
"This is as far as he'll go," Grover said. "We need to get off while he's eating."
"Well, good thing we're departing the Porky Express," Markus said, wincing slightly at the saddle sores that he had received. Looking around, it seemed everyone had that problem.
Grover looked nervously at the boar when he said that. The boar just looked at Markus out of the corner of its eye, but just snorted as he smiled at it. After its third saguaro and another drink of muddy water, the boar squealed and belched, then whirled around and galloped back toward the east.
Markus pouted. "Aw. I wanted to keep it as a pet."
"I don't think it'd appreciate that," Grover said dryly.
"It likes the mountains better," Percy guessed.
"I can't blame it," Thalia said. "Look."
Ahead of the group of six was a two-lane road half covered with sand. On the other side of the road was a cluster of buildings too small to be a town: a boarded-up house, a taco shop that looked like it hadn't been open since before Zoe Nightshade was born, and a white stucco post office with a sign that said GILA CLAW, ARIZONA hanging crooked above the door. Beyond that was a range of hills… but they were not actually hills at all. They were actually piles of junk that went on for miles.
"Whoa," Percy said, taking in the sight.
Markus scowled. Since becoming a sage, he'd had an appreciation of nature. Not to the level of nature spirits, but he did like the outdoors. Seeing the piles of junk left a bad taste in his mouth.
"Something tells me we're not going to find a car rental here," Thalia said. She looked at Grover. "I don't suppose you got another wild boar up your sleeve?"
Grover was sniffing the wind, looking nervous. He fished out his acorns and threw them into the sand, then played his pipes. They rearranged themselves in a pattern that made no sense to anyone not a satyr, but Grover looked concerned.
"That's us," he said. "Those six nuts right there."
"Which one is me?" Percy asked.
"The little deformed one," Zoe suggested.
"Oh, shut up," Percy growled a bit.
"Always knew that we were a little nutty to go on this quest," Markus said with a smirk. That eased the tension as the others chuckled at the joke.
"That was terrible," Thalia said after laughing.
He turned to her. "Made you laugh, didn't it?"
"That cluster right there," Grover said, pointing to the left, "that's trouble."
"A monster?" Thalia asked.
Grover looked uneasy. "I don't smell anything, which doesn't make sense. But the acorns don't lie. Our next challenge…" He pointed straight toward the junkyard. With the sunlight almost gone now, the hills of metal looked like something on an alien planet.
Markus sat down. "I think we should rest for a bit," he suggested to the others. "It'd be much better than charging head-first into danger. We're going to need our full strength for whatever it is." Well, he could continue, but he didn't know about the others.
Zoe nodded at that. "I agree with thee." At that, everyone whipped their heads towards her. She glared at them. "What?"
"Nothing," they all said as one.
Thalia leaned towards Markus and whispered in his ear. "I think she's warming up to you."
"I don't know if that's a good or bad thing," he muttered. He waved his hands, conjuring several sleeping tents.
"Thank the gods," Percy muttered, seeing the tents already set up.
Markus scoffed. "I was the one to summon them. Don't thank those useless dumbasses." The sky didn't even boom with thunder this time, something that confused the others.
The night got chilly fast, so Grover and Percy collected old boards from the ruined house, and Thalia zapped them with an electric shock to start a campfire. Pretty soon they were about as comfy as you can get in a rundown ghost town in the middle of nowhere. Markus conjured some s'mores and some sticks, each person taking one. The mood was similar to Camp Half-Blood, only without the campers or the sing-alongs.
"The stars are out," Zoe said.
She was right. There were millions of them, with no city lights to turn the sky orange.
"It's still a marvellous sight to behold," Adria commented, appreciating the view.
"This is nothing," Zoe said. "In the old days, there were constellations have disappeared because of human light pollution."
"You talk like you're not human," Percy said.
Zoe raised an eyebrow. "I am a Hunter. I care what happens to the wild places of the world. Can the same be said for thee?"
Markus laid on his back, enjoying the sight. It really was a magnificent sight to behold.
"For you," Thalia corrected. "Not thee."
"But you use you for the beginning of a sentence."
"And for the end," Thalia said. "No thou. No thee. Just you."
Zoe threw up her hands in exasperation. "I hate this language. It changes too often!"
"Thals, leave Zoe alone. It's not her fault that she's an old grandma," Markus said with mock seriousness. The others laughed as Zoe glared daggers at him.
"Thou are the most annoying man that I've ever dealt with," Zoe growled.
Markus looked up with shock and happiness. "Really?" He turned to the others. "I think she likes me!"
The whole group, even Adria, was laughing as Zoe tried shooting arrows at Markus, who kept on catching them and putting them in a pile. "Hey! You could kill me!"
Zoe scoffed. "Please. If thou can kill a god, thou can handle a few arrows."
"It's the principle of the thing!" Markus turned to Thalia. "Are you going to allow her to do that to me?"
Thalia shrugged with a grin. "If it can keep you in line."
"Doubtful," Markus scoffed. "Well, Zoe. If it's any consolation, at least you're a hot GILF."
Zoe looked confused as the others the other two boys laughed, Thalia grew red in the face and Adria looked confused. "What is this 'GILF'?"
"It means-" Markus was hit by a bolt of lightning before he could say anything. Of course, it didn't affect him. He looked to a seething Thalia. "You know that it was a joke, right?"
"I don't care," Thalia retorted, scowling. "It's not funny. It's disturbing."
"Fine, fine," Markus said, rolling his eyes.
Zoe and Adria continued to look confused while the others recovered from their laughter.
It was silent for a moment. Grover sighed. He was still looking up at the stars like he was thinking about the light pollution problem. "If only Pan were here, he would set things right."
Zoe nodded sadly.
Markus thought about it. He sympathised with Grover about wanting to find Pan, but he didn't really know how he felt. As a sage, he could appreciate what he was talking about. "I think that the world has seemed to forget about nature all together. Not sure if Pan were to set everything right."
Grover had a contemplative look on his face, but didn't say anything. Maybe he wanted to keep his hopes up. Finally, he said, "Maybe. I need to find him when this is over. Maybe coffee is the way to find him. I need more coffee."
"Grover, do you really think that was Pan? I mean, I know you want it to be." Percy said sadly.
"He sent us help," Grover insisted. "I don't know how or why. But it was his presence. I'm going back to New Mexico when this is over and drinking a lot of coffee. It's the best lead we've gotten in two thousand years. I was so close."
"I could help you," Markus offered, making the others turn to look at him. "I'm a sage. If I were to sense the same feeling from before, I could zero down Pan's location and help you find him."
"You'd do that?" Grover asked with hope in his voice.
"Of course," Markus nodded. "You're my friend, goat boy. Of course I'd help you."
Grover looked extremely happy, the most any of them had seen. Meanwhile, Zoe had a contemplating look on her face as she stared at Markus.
"Thank you!" Grover got up and galloped to Markus, giving him a bear hug. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
"Grover," Markus managed to get out due to being crushed by the hug. "I love you, dude, but I like women. Boobies and ass for life."
"Oh, shut up," the satyr replied. Then both of them laughed.
"Sorry to interrupt your bromance," Thalia called out once they were finished laughing, "but can we talk about those demons that we fought? I want to know why they're allied with the Titans. They're not of Greek mythology." She looked to Markus, as did everyone else.
He sighed. "I'm not sure. I don't know why. Demons usually follow demon masters, not anything outside of their own circle."
"You've faced them before?" Percy asked curiously.
Markus nodded. "I killed one of their masters on a quest for Hecate. A Duke of Hell."
"Hell? You mean the Underworld?" Grover asked in confusion.
Markus shook his head. "No. I mean hell. Like, the Christian hell."
"Wait, what?" Thalia exclaimed in shock while the others had the same reaction. "Y-You mean that God, the big guy in the sky, is real?"
Markus nodded, a smile on his face. "Yeah. You're reactions are exactly the same ones I had when I found out."
Suddenly, Percy remembered something. He looked to Markus. "Wait, when we asked Chiron about God, he said that all that we shouldn't worry about it. All this time, he knew?"
"I suspect that he did," Markus answered, unsure. "I wouldn't know. The reason that none of us knew this was because Zeus decreed it forbidden to speak about it due to his fucking ego."
Thalia looked at Markus. "You really don't like Zeus, do you?"
"No," Markus said plainly. The others knew why, so they couldn't blame him. "But don't worry, my princess. None of that hate shall transfer to your pretty little head."
"Flatterer," she smirked.
"I aim to please," he responded with a grin.
"Wait," Percy said, interrupting the byplay. "Won't Zeus punish us, since you told us this?" The others looked panicked at that. Thalia tried to convince herself that her father wouldn't punish her, but then she reminded herself that he did let her die and turned her into a tree.
Markus waved their worries away. "Don't worry. I'll protect you. If Zeus even tries anything, I'll kill him." The sky boomed, but Markus didn't react. The others were shocked that he could say that so casually and with confidence. They knew that he was powerful, but to say that you could kill the king of the gods? Then again, he did say fight the Big Three and win.
"Would thou protect us as well?" Zoe asked, gesturing to herself and Adria, who looked scared.
Markus didn't say anything for a moment, worrying the others. Then he sighed. "Yeah. Truth be told, you've grown on me, Nightshade. You're annoying, sexist and arrogant. But," Markus had a grimace on his face, but he continued, "you're somewhat tolerable. Somewhat."
Zoe surprisingly smiled for a moment, before letting it fall. "Thank you. Thou still are an arrogant male, though."
"True. And you're a bitch."
"Pig."
"Grandma."
"Man-child."
"Hag."
"Brain-boiled lout."
"Cunt-licking Girl Scout."
"Oh, just shut up and kiss already," Percy interrupted, annoyed. He felt a shiver down his spine as Zoe, Markus and Thalia glared at him, the looks promising pain. "What was that?" all three of them asked ominously.
"N-Nothing," Percy squeaked.
All three of them nodded.
"We need to plan our next move," Adria suggested. "When we get through the junkyard, we must continue west. If we can find a rode, we can hitchhike to the nearest city. I think that would be Las Vegas."
Markus sighed in relief. "Good. I should be able to teleport us all there."
Before anyone could say anything, they were hit with a blazing light from down the road. The headlights of a car appeared out of nowhere. Percy was half hoping it was Apollo, coming to give them a ride again, but the engine was way too silent for the sun chariot, and besides, it was nighttime. They grabbed their sleeping bags and got out of the way as a deathly white limousine slid to a stop in front of the group.
The back door of the limo opened right next to Percy and before he could step away, the point of a sword touched his throat. At that same moment, Riptide and Lowtide appeared in his hands and were at the throat of the one wielding the sword. Wavebreaker was also there as well. The sounds of the rest of the group gave way to them drawing their weapons, ready for anything.
The owner smiled cruelly. "Good. You got better, punk."
"Ares," Percy growled.
The god of war sent him a cruel smirk before looking at the others. "At ease, people." He snapped his fingers and their weapons fell to the ground. Except Wavebreaker, which dug deeper into his throat.
Ares turned to Markus, who looked bored. "Wha-"
"If you're wondering why my weapon hasn't dropped, it's because my will is stronger than yours and that you're nothing more than an ant before me."
Ares' eyes lit up. "Why you-"
Markus disarmed him with inhuman speed and gripped his throat. Tightly. "Two years ago, me and my brother fought you, and you lost. Now, I can erase you like I did Heracles and not lose an ounce of power or sleep over it. I think you forgot when I simply flexed in front of you Olympians and made you piss your pants. Now, if you wish to fight, I will gladly do so. Although it'd be more of a slaughter than an actual fight. Now, what do you want?"
"Please, release him," a melodic voice came from the limousine. It was sweet, beautiful, and made the questers weak in the knees. Even the Hunters. They all felt the need to follow the command, even if it wasn't aimed at them. Markus wasn't affected. If anything, he gripped Ares' throat tighter, making the god of war choke.
"What do you want, Aphrodite?" Markus asked the voice with a drawl, not releasing Ares.
"I'd like to talk to you and your brother. And can you please release Ares for me?" the honey-sweet voice asked.
"Only if you call him off and you cut it out with the charmspeak. It's annoying,"
The voice huffed. "Oh, fine."
Markus turned to Ares, releasing him. "If you try anything, I'll destroy you."
Ares glared, but didn't say anything. He snapped his finger again. The lights inside the taqueria suddenly blazed to life. The boards flew off the door and the CLOSED sign flipped to OPEN. "She only wants to talk to you two. The rest can go eat."
"That'a not-" Zoe started to say, but Markus raised his hand.
"It's fine," Markus interrupted. "Take the others and go. We'll be fine."
Zoe didn't look happy about that, but she relented. The others followed after giving the both of them a worried look.
Markus then turned to Percy. "Come on, Percy. Let's go meet the pants of the relationship."
Percy laughed while Ares growled.
The god held the door open for Percy to step in. Markus made to follow, but Ares stopped him. "She only wants to talk to you one at a time," Ares explained calmly. As calm as Ares can be, though.
Markus arched a brow but waited. He knew that Percy was in no trouble. Both gods knew that harming Percy would incur Markus' wrath, in which he would wipe them both out, even if one of them was Silena's mum.
Five minutes later, Percy came out with a contemplating look on his oddly flushed face and with a slight glare to Markus. Something that confused him. Ares pulled the son of Poseidon out of the way and pointed at Markus. He rolled his eyes and climbed in, noting how comfortable the seat was before looking at who 'summoned' him.
He caught a glimpse of several people: an older Thalia, Silena, Annabeth, Katie. The woman's hair changed from black to blond to brown very quickly. She even changed into several actresses and models that he had found hot before he started dating, which would've been awkward. Her eye colour changed from eelctric blue to forest brown to baby blue to storm grey instantly as well. The odd thing about her shapeshifting was the fact that her bust and other physical features didn't change. Those were very attractive and supple, but were kept the same.
Markus slammed his mental shields down on his mind in an attempt to kill his slowly rising libido. Wouldn't help to talk to the goddess of love and beauty with a boner. Well, maybe... no. It wouldn't.
The woman giggled melodically, but Markus didn't react. He sighed instead. "So what can I do for you, Aphrodite?" he asked, bracing himself.
Aphrodite pouted. "Oh, don't be like that. You don't have to act so tense. I would never hurt you."
"Paranoia has helped me throughout my life," Markus answered, shrugging.
"But I want the fun child of Poseidon. Sure, your brother is very interesting, but you are the one I wanted to see the most!"
"I'm flattered," Markus said with a smile, relaxing slightly but not completely. "I can tell that this talk won't be mainly about the quest."
Aphrodite scoffed. "Please? Helping Artemis? Boooring. I'd much rather talk about you."
"There's really nothing interesting about me," Markus shrugged.
"Are you serious? You're the talk of Olympus! Son of Poseidon, Hero of the Unclaimed, soon-to-be Harem King-"
"Wait, what?" Markus blinked at the last one.
Aphrodite grinned. "Oh? You didn't think I wouldn't know about your unique situation with my daughter and the daughter of Zeus? I was so happy when I found out about it!"
Markus groaned. "Oh, joy."
"The love, the heartache, the drama! Oh, it's so delicious!" Aphrodite was on a roll. "Your love life is the most interesting I've seen in a long time!"
Markus was seriously contemplating on getting out. Aphrodite was like her daughters. Annoying and nosy.
"And there's even more girls on the way! Oh, I'm so proud of my baby girl for suggesting this whole business!" Aphrodite squealed. Loudly. Markus held his ears as the sound was killing them.
"So?" The goddess leaned too closely for his liking. He could see her swaying bust, and was wanting to take a look when he killed his lust fast. Aphrodite was hot, true, but he didn't want to deal with the whole drama that came with it.
She reached out, teasing his ear with her hand. Markus noted that her touch was soft and alluring.
"Hmmm," she hummed. She grinned seductively. "I can see why Silena was so willing. A handsome specimen of man like you is meant to be shared!"
Markus pushed her hand away slightly. "Actually, Aphrodite. I'd like to talk to you about something."
"Oh? Is it about helping assembling your harem? I can do that! Are you asking me to join?"
Markus did like the mental image that came with her words. Very, very much. Reluctantly, he shook his head. "No. What I wanted to ask you was why you allow your children to break the hearts of others? As the goddess of love, isn't that contradicting with your domain?"
Aphrodite's smile widened. "Why, for the drama, of course. It's so delicious! So exciting!"
Markus frowned. That wasn't what he was looking for. He agreed with Silena's notion of love. In that it should be special and shared. "Doesn't Silena speak differently? Why can't you believe in her notion?"
Aphrodite's smile dimmed. "Silena is one of my favourite daughters. Her take on love is one of the reasons why."
"Then why allow your other daughters to go against that?" Markus frowned in confusion. "Love is meant to be sacred. It's... it's supposed to be something beautiful. Something that'll make men wage wars to preserve what they love... I've been spending too much time around Silena."
"But the drama is more fun!" the goddess insisted. "It's something that fans the flames of a relationship! Makes it interesting-"
"No, it doesn't," Markus disagreed. "It brings nothing but sorrow and trouble into the relationship. In fact, there probably wouldn't be a relationship in the first place. You're wrong."
Aphrodite frowned, her seductive aura fading quickly. "Are you telling me, the goddess of love, that I'm wrong about love?" she silently asked, tension rising in the limousine.
Markus nodded without any reprieve. "Yes. I think it's stupid. Now I see why Artemis doesn't like you. You're horrible."
Aphrodite's eyes glowed in anger, narrowing. "You don't want to insult me, demigod. I have ruined people for even less than what you have done."
"Proving that you're just like the Olympians," Markus retorted. "Annoying, arrogant and foolish. Why do you think that I refuse to save any of you? The only thing that you're all good for is causing heartache, despair and death because of the stupidest of reasons!"
A hot pink aura surrounded Aphrodite as she glared at Markus, who didn't react to her display of power. "You think that you can insult me and get away with it?!" she practically screamed. "Me?! The goddess of love and beauty?! I will make you suffer for that! Damn what Zeus and Poseidon say, I'll make you wish that you had never insulted me! First, I will make sure that you and Silena are through! You will suffer the greatest heartache known to man! Then Thalia! She will hate you for all eternity! I'll curse you to never find love or happiness again! You will be found repulsive by anyone you see! And all those girls that you love?! They will be nothing but WHORES!"
As the goddess threatened him, Markus' eyes were burning red. At the end of her speech, his eyes were crimson supernovas.
The limousine exploded with power, startling Ares, Percy and the others as they came running out to find out what was wrong. What they saw would give them nightmares for months.
Aphrodite was being held by a colossal black giant made with an armour of bones and made out of energy. It was ten metres high, and released a miasma of blood and death. It was similar to the spectre Markus had at camp, only this was real. It was black in colour. And it was terrifying.
The goddess of love was held in one of its giant hands, screaming in pain as the miasma burned her body. It didn't leave a mark on her body, yet it ached with agony. Inside the giant, Markus was there. But he looked drastically different. His Devil Bringer was out, and was pulsing with rage. The tattoos on it lit up and was armoured. Half the side of his face was covered in black scales. They looked like they belonged on a dragon. His teeth were now fangs that were bared at Aphrodite. His eyes were pure crimson, as if Satan himself had possessed him. The shocking part? He had black horns on his head. They were curved like a ram's own.
Ares tried to attack the colossal giant, but it moved with frightening speed. It's other hand gripped the now struggling god in its grip. Both Olympians struggled to remove themselves from his grip. Markus, however, only paid attention to Aphrodite. He didn't even move when the giant bent down towards Ares, and practically chomped down on his upper half. Without any grace or finesse, the demonic giant ripped the god of war in half savagely. It opened its mouth wider and chewed on the half of Ares. The lower half was nothing but a pair of legs that had the ends of a spine attached. Ichor became a shower as the giant dropped the lower half of the now dead god of war.
Markus didn't even look at Ares as the process went down. He just looked at Aphrodite, who was now scared shitless. "Be thankful that you are Silena's mother and that she cares for you," Markus spoke with barely restrained fury. "Otherwise I would make sure that you would be burn for eternity. However, I have a fitting punishment for you."
Markus made the giant lower the struggling goddess. Not wasting time, Markus grabbed her face was his Devil Bringer. Instead of crushing her skull, Markus gave an evil fanged grin. "Rot..."
It was silent for a moment, before Aphrodite screamed and howled in absolute agony. The others flinched at the screams and brutal display from before. Even the Hunters feared for Aphrodite. All of them were terrified of Markus. His looks, the demonic giant, his aura, everything.
When Markus finished, he removed his hand. And what was revealed made the others almost throw up.
The goddess' face was unrecognisable. Her skin was burnt, as if poison had splashed on her face. It was so burnt that bits of her skeleton was revealed and flesh loosely hung from her face. Her flawless skin looked like the face of a tortured corpse. Her eyes were burnt and bleeding badly. Her lips were scarred heavily and looked as if she had consumed poison. They were practically non-existent now. Her hair was ruined and nothing but useless straw clinging to her scalp. Her nose was disfigured heavily.
Aphrodite wailed and cried out at the pain and the fact that her face was ruined.
"How do you like one of my demonic spells? I just call it 'Rot'. I know, not very original or classy, but it gets the job done." Markus slowly lost his grin. "Now... you will live the rest of your immortal life as a corpse. Uglier than even Hephaestus. No one will want you. No one will gaze upon you with lust, but with horror and disgust. No one will even touch you. That is my punishment for you. Instead of the goddess of love, you'll practically be nothing." Markus snarled that last part. Wisps of smoke billowed from his mouth. "And if you EVER touch anyone I care about, I will destroy you. If I suspect so much as an inkling of you interfering with my relationships, be it with any girl or the ones I love, I will make it so that you will be fucking the most ugliest, horrendous corpse in the Underworld. And be nothing but it's plaything for eternity. Interfere in my life, I ruin you. And harm anyone I care about, I will seal your vagina with hellfire and make sure that you can't fuck any man or woman again. And let Zeus know..." Markus leaned in to whisper into Aphrodite's horrified face. "... Olympus will be razed and be nothing but a bad dream. And it's all your fault."
His piece said, Markus commanded the giant to rear it's hand back and launch Aphrodite in the air, creating a sonic boom. The flying goddess will head straight for Olympus.
So furious and practically livid at the goddess who dared threaten his girlfriends and the other girls he loved, Markus reared back his head and roared to the sky in anger, his demonic avatar doing the same thing.
Wow... So much blood spilt. Two gods killed in one chapter. And the Olympians are rightfully screwed. And it's all their fault.
Hope y'all liked the chapter. Lots of ass-kicking for Heracles, with a violent death at the end. And with Ares as well. Not to mention Aphrodite looking like a burnt corpse that was tortured and disfigured for shits and giggles. ... Yeah.
Nothing really big to say. Except Markus is the newly dubbed 'King of Heroes' as well as the future Harem King. Awesome titles. And next chapter the questers will venture into Hephaestus' junkyard and meet the one freed from the frozen jail. I really hope that you guys guess well.
Review time ~
1) I like your guess very well. I have read Dante's Inferno, and know the ultimate big bad of that pantheon. Though it has nothing to do with Dante's Inferno. It's actually a mythological character found in the... well, I won't spoil it for you. The only clue I'll give you is that he/she/it is found in an anime.
2) Markus can already kill immortals on his own. Adding the Ophiotaurus will be complete overkill. So much overkill that it would be absolutely ridiculous. And this is coming from the owner of a character who can kill gods and send the world into an early Armageddon. Given enough time, that is.
3) Thanks for the tidbit on the pantheon idea. And going to the God of War universe... I mean I guess so. The universe is already fictional here, so it wouldn't make sense to put it as an alternate dimension. Then again, I could do it. Oh, and Markus would wreck Kratos, true. And I do go through with it (not saying yes), it would be interesting to change the fate of God of War.
4) You were half right. The second half of your guess wouldn't go because Heracles hasn't heard of Markus or his feats yet. And really sorry about nto having Zoe shoot him in the knee. When you reviewed that, I already had his death written out. Would've been damn awesome, though.
5) Cocaine is a powerful drug. Do not underestimate its power or glory.
6) I do have a lot of DMC stuff to put here, since I'm a huge fan of the series. And as for your question, I think... either a pick from Naruto, One Piece, Fairy Tail or Attack on Titan. I mainly picked those choices because if I gave more choices, I'd make a big-ass paragraph. And these were the ones I could think of from the top of my head. For several reasons. You can guess why. As for DBS's Tournament of Power, Markus could... probably beat a good amount of fighters. I'm going to be honest, while he is OP, this is DBS we're talking about. Goku, Vegeta, almost half of Universe 7, etc., would beat him. Most of Universe 11 he could beat (at least, the somewhat irrelevant ones. I.e. excluding Jiren, Toppo and Dyspo). The irrelevant or the not so strong characters he could wipe out. If he wanted to, he could kill them with blood control (and this is a big maybe) but since there's a no-killing rule, it could go either way.
7) Thanks so much for the suggestions! Seriously, I like reading new fanfiction almost as much as I do writing it! I've read the top two, but the rest I'm still reading. Thanks so much for that, gives me more reading time!
8) Glad that you liked the last chapter. Hope you like this one. Unfortunately, you didn't get to see the mother of all curb-stomps given to Heracles by Zoe, Thalia, Markus and Percy. On the bright side, he died a brutal death and was blown the fuck up, DBZ style. So, that's something.
Alrighty! Now, thanks to all those who f,f,r and r the story! Now, taking a small break from Arcane Chaos. No personal reason, just wanna update Celestial Ascension more. For those panicked by this and are no doubt going to become impatient (which makes me warm and fuzzy inside), fear not! I can multitask. Just more chapters produced for CA.
Thanks! Read and Review!