NPU4: Battle of the Labyrinth
Chapter 5
I LIVE! I AM STILL ALIVE! HAHAHAHAHA! Anyway, 15 inches of snow later and i am still alive. Boy that was fun shoveling...NOT!
OK! Now that all the holiday bullshit is over with….finally…I can focus on this stull. Now, don't take that the wrong way, I just get tired of the holiday season real quick. With all the last fucking minute shoppers, someone in my family is like that, and nobody that wants to fucking cook at home, I have been pretty busy at the pizza place. Not to mention the stress at home on Christmas.
So yeah, this month SUCKED for me. Please don't hate me. But the good thing for me is that I got a new computer. So now the long process of…..date transfer. FUCK! I did not think this through.
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Once Naruto fell asleep, he felt the familiar pull of being pulled into Morpheus' Realm of Dreams to be showing something once more. He even felt Percy there next to him. However, the pull felt different. Like someone else was guiding him along. But who?
He didn't get time to ponder too long as the dream's mist settled and things began appearing. Naruto then found himself in the stateroom of the Princess Andromeda. The windows were open on a moonlit sea. Cold wind rustledthe velvet drapes. The blond did see Percy, but he too was faded like him to see.
Luke knelt on a Persian rug in front of the golden sarcophagus of Kronos. In the moonlight, Luke's blond hair looked pure white. He wore an ancient Greek chiton and a white himation, a kind of cape that flowed down his shoulders. The white clothes made him look timeless and a little surreal, like one of the minor gods on Mount Olympus. The last time Naruto and Percy had seen him, he'd been broken and unconscious after a nasty fall from Mount Tam. Now he looked perfectly fine. Almost too healthy.
"Our spies report success, my lord," he said. "Camp Half-Blood is sending a quest, as you predicted. Our side of the bargain is almost complete."
Excellent. The voice of Kronos didn't so much speak as pierce my mind like a dagger. It was freezing with cruelty. Once we have the means to navigate, I will lead the vanguard through myself.
Luke closed his eyes as if collecting his thoughts. "My lord, perhaps it is too soon. Perhaps Krios or Hyperion should lead—"
No. the voice was quiet but absolutely firm. I will lead. One more heart shall join our cause, and that will be sufficient. At last I shall rise fully from Tartarus.
"But the form, my lord…" Luke's voice started shaking.
Show me your sword, Luke Castellan.
Really? That is his last name? Naruto thought to himself, having never heard Luke actually saw his last name.
Luke drew his sword. Backbiter's double edge glowed wickedly—half steel, half celestial bronze. Even if Naruto was in a dream, he could feel the evil running off that blade and from Percy's stories, he already didn't like it. After all, if Luke wanted to , he could be a mass murderer with the ability to not only kill monsters, but normal humans too. Well…he was going to be if he kept along his path of killing the gods.
You pledged yourself to me, Kronos reminded him. You took this sword as proof of your oath.
"Yes, my lord. It's just—"
You wanted power. I gave you that. You are now beyond harm. Soon you will rule the world of gods and mortals. Do you not wish to avenge yourself? To see Olympus destroyed?
A shiver ran through Luke's body. "Yes."
The coffin glowed, golden light filling the room. Then make ready the strike force. As soon as the bargain is done, we shall move forward. First, Camp Half-Blood will be reduced to ashes. Once those bothersome heroes are eliminated, we will march on Olympus.
You idiot. Naruto thought to himself with a shake of the head. Do you really think Kronos will let you rule with him back alive?
There was a knock on the stateroom doors. The light of the coffin faded. Luke rose. He sheathed his sword, adjusted his white clothes, and took a deep breath.
"Come in."
The doors opened. Two dracaenae slithered in—snake women with double serpent trunks instead of legs. Between them walked Kelli, the empousa cheerleader from Percy's freshman orientation.
"Hello, Luke," Kelli smiled. She was wearing a red dress and she looked beautiful but they had seen what she was hiding: mismatched legs, red eyes, fangs, and flaming hair.
"What is it, demon?" Luke's voice was cold. "I told you not to disturb me."
Kelli pouted. "That's not very nice. You look tense. How about a nice shoulder massage?"
Luke stepped back. "If you have something to report, say it. Otherwise leave!"
"I don't know why you're so huffy these days. You used to be fun to hang around."
"That was before I saw what you did to that boy in Seattle."
Oh, he meant nothing to me," Kelli said. "Just a snack, really. You know my heart belongs to you, Luke."
"Thanks, but no thanks. Now report or get out."
"Cute." Naruto said to himself. "Luke's got himself a monster with crush."
Kelli shrugged. "Fine. The advanced team is ready, as you surprised. We can leave—" She frowned like she heard what Naruto had said.
"What is it?" Luke asked.
"A couple of presences," Kelli said. "Your senses are getting dull, Luke. We're being watched."
That set Naruto on edge. He wasn't sure if he could fight in the dreamscape but this was something else it seemed, like he was both here and back in his bed. Was he having an out of body experience? Wait, that couldn't be good, if he died here then he truly died for real!
Oh no, that meant Percy was in trouble too! Naruto snapped his attention to Percy and then back to Kelli who was already close to them. Then…she pounced at him!
Percy had scared himself out of the dream by then and Naruto had prepared himself for the hurt, but he felt another pull and the dream quickly changed. He had felt the pull from behind and briefly looked back and thought he saw Bianca there!
Is she working with Morpheus? He thought to himself in shock at seeing her in a dream.
Naruto shook his head. He would need to figure out all the powers of an Empousa because if this happened again, then he was in trouble.
As he was thinking this, his surroundings began changing.
Look again brother. A voice rang out.
"Bianca?" Naruto asked aloud as he looked around.
The first thing to appear in this part of the dream was Nico himself, but he wasn't in the Underworld like last time, showing that he had moved on with the Ghost. He was standing in a graveyard under a starry sky. Giant willow trees loomed all around him.
He was watching some gravediggers at work. The distant sound of clanking metal could be heard. Nico was dressed in a black cloak. The night was foggy. It was warm and humid, and frogs were croaking. A large Wal-Mart bag sat next to Nico's feet.
"Is it deep enough yet?" Nico asked. He sounded irritated.
"Nearly, my lord." It was the same ghost from before, the faint shimmering image of a man. "But, my lord, I tell you, this is unnecessary. You already have me for advice."
"I want a second opinion!" Nico snapped his fingers, and the digging stopped. Two figures climbed out of the hole. They weren't people. They were skeletons in ragged clothes.
Ok, I never thought to use the dead since I have shadow clones….interesting. Naruto thought to himself smirking slightly at the fact that Nico was not blinding following this ghost like fool. That showed promise.
"You are dismissed," Nico said. "Thank you."
The skeletons collapsed into piles of bones.
"You might as well thank the shovels," the ghost complained. "They have as much sense."
Nico ignored him. He reached into his Wal-Mart bag and pulled out a twelve-pack of Coke. He popped open a can. Instead of drinking it, he poured it into the grave.
"Let the dead taste again," he murmured. "Let them rise and take this offering. Let them remember."
He dropped the rest of the Cokes into the grave and pulled out a white paper bag decorated with cartoons. It was something Naruto had to do a double take on and then laughed. It was a Mcdonald's Happy Meal of all things!
Nico turned it upside down and shook the fries and hamburger into the grave.
"In my day, we used animal blood," the ghost mumbled. "It's perfectly good enough. They can't taste the difference."
"I will treat them with respect," Nico said.
"At least let me keep the toy," the ghost said.
At least the Ghost has a sense of humor. Naruto thought to himself.
"Be quiet!" Nico ordered. He emptied another twelve-pack of soda and three more Happy Meals into the grave, then began chanting in Ancient Greek. From what Naruto understood from it, it was a spell to bring back the dead.
"Did you pay attention?" The voice of Bianca rolled through Naruto's mind again, making said blond look around for her. "That chant is another way for us siblings to keep in contact."
"Good to know." Naruto replied, taking that chant and ritual to heart. He would need to speak to his sister soon. However, who was Nico trying to contact?
The grave started to bubble. Frothy brown liquid rose to the top like the whole thing was filling with soda. The fog thickened. The frogs stopped croaking. Dozens of figures began to appear among the gravestones: bluish, vaguely human shapes. Nico had summoned the dead with Coke and cheeseburgers. It was brilliant and simple at the same time!
"There are too many," the ghost said nervously. "You don't know your own powers."
"I've got it under control," Nico said, though his voice sounded fragile.
He drew his sword—a short blade made of solid black metal. Naruto had never seen anything like it. It wasn't celestial bronze or steel. Iron, maybe? The crowd of shades retreated at the sight of it.
"One at a time," Nico commanded.
A single figure floated forward and knelt at the pool. It made slurping sounds as it drank. Its ghostly hands scooped French fries out of the pool.
When it stood again, Naruto could see it much more clearly—a teenage guy in Greek armor. He had curly hair and green eyes, a clasp shaped like a seashell on his cloak.
"Who are you?" Nico said. "Speak."
The young man frowned as if trying to remember. Then he spoke in a voice like dry, crumpling paper: "I am Theseus."
"Wait, seriously? Man those stories really pumped him up. Naruto thought to himself. After all, this was the Theseus as he looked like a normal kid like the rest of them. Come to think of it, that was probably was it was like back then too. But still, this guy was the first to take out the Minotaur, just like him and Percy!
"How can I retrieve my sister?" Nico asked.
"You still believe her to be dead?!" Naruto asked aloud in disbelief. He was in the freaking Underworld before, how could he not sense her there?! Unless, she wasn't there at the time.
Theseus's eyes were lifeless as glass. "Do not try. It is madness."
"Just tell me!"
"My stepfather died," Theseus remembered. "He threw himself into the sea because he thought I was dead in the Labyrinth. I wanted to bring him back, but I could not."
Nico's ghost hissed. "My lord, the soul exchange! Ask him about that!"
Theseus scowled. "That voice. I know that voice."
"No you don't, fool!" the ghost said. "Answer the lord's questions and nothing more!"
"I know you," Theseus insisted, as if struggling to recall.
"I want to hear about my sister," Nico said. "Will this quest into the Labyrinth help me win her back?"
Theseus was looking for the ghost, but apparently couldn't see him. Slowly he turned his eyes back on Nico. "The Labyrinth is treacherous. There is only one thing that saw me through: the love of a mortal girl. The string was only part of the answer. It was the princess who guided me."
"We don't need any of that," the ghost said. "I will guide you, my lord. Ask him if it is true about an exchange of souls. He will tell you."
"A soul for a soul," Nico asked. "Is it true?"
"I—I must say yes. But the specter—"
"Just answer the questions, knave!" the ghost said.
Suddenly, around the edges of the pool, the other ghosts became restless. They stirred, whispering in nervous tones.
"I want to see my sister!" Nico demanded. "Where is she?"
"He is coming," Theseus said fearfully. "He has sensed your summons. He comes."
"Who?" Nico demanded.
"He comes to find the source of this power," Theseus said. "You must release us."
"WHO!?" Nico scream.
"I cannot tell you." Theseus said in fear before he seemed to calm a bit and smile. "Do not follow this path of that dark ghost, for both of your loved ones watch in sadness for you."
"What?" Nico asked in shock before hell literally broke loose as a purple light suddenly shined and spirits screamed in absolute terror.
Naruto felt their fear and wanted to scream as well, but he felt a warm hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him. The blond looked at the owner of the hand, who was smiling at him. "We'll be altogether soon, just be wary of the Ghost King."
Then, he bolted up in his bed in a cold sweat. He saw Silena and some of his cabin mates looking at him in worry.
"Are you ok? You were screaming in your sleep!" Silena said, looking very worried for him.
Naruto managed a weak smile. He still felt the terror the dead felt. "I-it's fine. Just managed to see what my little brother is up to thanks to the dreamscape."
"If it was that bad, Morpheus must be trying to tell you something." One of the campers stated.
"No, it wasn't Morpheus…" Naruto replied, getting confused looks. "It was my sister, Bianca and she was warning me of the Ghost King."
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And that is where I am ending folks. I hope the rest of you got through the snow alright.
Review please!