Naturally, before I begun this mission, I had been briefed. During my preparation in Switzerland, Central had sent me a file containing all the information they had on Aphrodite.
Abilities, appearances (well, as accurate as they could be. Apparently she changed form depending on who perceived her), known haunts and most importantly, weaknesses.
It was thanks to this file that I knew her taste in men. She liked suave and charming men, but with a hint of bad-boy. (No clue where Ares fitted in. Then again, most legends and myths from the Pantheons weren't exactly accurate.) I knew she liked her men to be forward, but not too forward.
With Gabriel and Cassian, I had spent hours practicing and memorizing scripts and possible scenarios. (Yes, I was that bad at this.) But despite all the practice, I was still utterly terrified.
"Aphrodite…like the Painting." I murmured, looking the target in the eye and trying to sound flirty. "A beautiful name for a beautiful person."
God that was cheesy.
As much as I hated the Voice, it was right. That line was really bad.
Aphrodite however, seemed to lap it up. "Didn't know you were a charmer as well." She purred, running her hand up my arm. "Where are you from, Daemon?"
"Annapolis, Maryland." I replied, following the cover story. "I go to school there."
Bad move. Shouldn't have mentioned school. Sure enough, I could see that Aphrodite was a little taken aback. Her hand, while not leaving my arm, stopped moving.
"Oh really? Where?" I could sense that she was weighing up options. Depending on how I answered would change the course of the mission.
Hold on. I'll add some power to your voice. I felt another surge of power. There. Don't know how effective it is on the Goddess of Love, but we'll see.
"USNA." I replied. Aphrodite's eyes widened, the interest renewed.
Good save. All women love a sailor. The voice said approvingly. Though, the charm seems to be working. Weird.
"Oh so you're a sailor." Aphrodite purred again. "You must have a big boat then."
…I don't even know how to react to that. I had to agree with the Voice in this case. Of course, I had a follow up line prepared, but even I didn't want to use it.
"Why don't we find out?" I said, trying my best not to choke. Aphrodite's eyes flashed. "I'm staying not too far from here."
Oh God that was painful. How can you live with yourself?
"That sounds divine." Aphrodite slid her arm into mine. "Shall we go?"
"Sure." I replied, paying for Aphrodite's drink. "My bike's outside."
"That big black beast is yours? I'm liking you more and more every minute." Aphrodite whispered in my ear, before giving it a nibble.
You're enjoying this aren't you? The Voice sounded bemused.
"Shut the fuck up." I muttered as softly as possible, making sure Aphrodite couldn't hear me.
—
The ride back to the hotel was the most agonizing twenty minutes of my life. Aphrodite held me way too tight, her body too close to mine. I knew her intention, but thanks to the Voice's intervention, I was completely unaffected. I flashed back to my conversation during the war council.
4 days previously.
"Wait. Why do I have to do this?" I asked. "I suck with women."
"Well." The hologram scratched his head. "We considered Michael first, but then we realized he probably…couldn't keep it in his pants."
"Hey! I take offense at that!" Not surprisingly, not one bothered to protect Michael. "OK…maybe its true. But still!"
"And that's why you have to do it." The hologram said. "Because we are fairly sure you can complete the mission without getting..sidetracked."
Back to present day.
"Fucking Michael. Can't keep his thingie in his pants." I muttered a curse.
"Did you say something?" Aphrodite asked. We were crossing the street to my hotel and she had glued herself my arm. I could feel the murderous gazes of all the males on the street.
If looks could kill, you'd have died a million times by now. The Voice added, sounding amused. I was sorely tempted to swear at it, but this was a crucial part of the mission and I couldn't afford to screw up.
Walking through the doors to the hotel, I could see the concierge's jaw drop. Aphrodite gave him a smile and a wave.
"Almost there." I whispered, stepping into the elevator and pressing the button for the 10th floor.
"I'm looking forward to it." Aphrodite gave me what I suppose was a seductive smile, but I honestly didn't feel anything. "How big is the bath?"
"The bath?" I replied, not quite understanding her question. "Quite big, why?"
Stupid. Read the signs damn it.
Aphrodite giggled. "Do you like your girls to talk dirty?"
Oh. Now I got it. Despite the protection, I blushed. Aphrodite, seeing this, giggled even louder. "I finally got a reaction out of you!" Aphrodite placed her hand on my cheek. I could see her coming closer and closer.
Ding. Saved by the bell. I immediately pulled away, leaving Aphrodite hanging.
You shit! You should have kissed her! Kiss her now! The Voice was literally screaming in my mind. I could tell that Aphrodite was having second thoughts. I needed to move now.
"Fuck." I swore. "I'm going to kill them when I get back." I knew that if I thought too much about what I was about to do, I'd chicken out.
Acting on instinct, I pulled Aphrodite out of the lift, before swinging her around and embracing her tightly.
"Dae-" Before Aphrodite could say a word, I planted my lips firmly on hers. I could see her eyes widen in surprise, before feeling her relax in my arms. I kept my lips on hers for a few seconds, before breaking apart. To my surprise, Aphrodite's face was bright red. It hadn't even been that passionate of a kiss.
Snuck some Power into it. She's absolutely smitten now, but doesn't know why. You owe me for this. It's pretty damn difficult duping the Goddess of Love. I may not have liked the Voice, but it certainly knew when to intervene. You need to take action now. Even if we're from a different Pantheon and use different types of Power, she'll eventually notice the spell words.
"Sorry, my lady." I muttered. Shit, this sounded so bad. Even with the Power, this crappy acting really shouldn't be working. I knew that the spell words would probably last a few more minutes at most. "I couldn't help myself."
Aphrodite, thank God, was at a loss for words. She was grinning like a teenage girl on her first date.
Errrrrr…may have overdone it with the spellwords. I subconsciously rolled my eyes.
"Anyways, shall we go? My room is over here." I said, gently guiding Aphrodite forward. She followed, as compliant as a puppy.
Huh...what did I cast on her? She was supposed to act as if she was in love, not like some doll. Weird.
By the time we reached room 10-03, Aphrodite had regained her ability to speak. I could sense that some of the spellwords were wearing off. She was still charmed by me, but not as much as before.
I just needed to hold her attention a little longer, just long enough for her to lower her guard and get her into the room.
"Daemon, I don't think-" Aphrodite begun to speak, but I put my finger on her lips.
"Shhh. Don't think, just feel." This time however, the cheesy line didn't work. Instead of looking smitten, Aphrodite gave me a look of pity so strong that even I felt pathetic.
"I think I should go."
Oh burn! The Voice cried. You just got rejected son!
"But Aphrodite-" I begun, but this time it was me who got the finger on the lips.
"No buts Daemon. I'm much too old for you." Aphrodite gave me a smile, but I could sense the boredom in it. "Perhaps in a few years."
"…Damn it." I sighed, scratching my head. "I was hoping that I could get this done without resorting to violence." I could see Aphrodite react to this.
"If you think you can take me by for-" I laughed. I could feel the haze disappearing quickly. The urges were returning. And this time, I let them.
"Don't flatter yourself. I have no interest in your body." I laughed at Aphrodite's indignant look. "I bet that's the first time you've been told that."
The Voice was no longer giving me advice. Not that it needed to. I was the Voice. "It's been a while since I took this form. Has it already been three years?"
"Daemon?" Aphrodite asked, trying to fathom the situation. "No wait. You're not Daemon." Aphrodite's eyes widened as she realized something. "You charmspeaked me!"
"Indeed! Ironic isn't it?" I asked. I could feel my power returning to me. Around me, the air begun to glow with my power. "The Goddess of Love, falling for charmspeak."
Aphrodite's eyes shined with anger. "You dare-"
Whatever she was about to say was cut short when I, with incredible speed, drew my combat knife from its forearm sheath and drew it across her stomach. The blade simply scrapped off her skin, unable to cut through her celestial body. It did however, succeed in cutting her clothing.
Which, in Aphrodite's case, was probably worse.
"Teh. Seems like regular weapons don't work." I muttered, returning the knife into its sheath and drawing my sickles from their hidden sheaths. "These have Imperial Gold crafted into them. Should leave a mark, right?"
Aphrodite was trying to figure out what was going on. Her potential date, who she realized now was not completely human, had just attacked her with a combat knife. Upon failing to hurt her, he had discarded the knife, instead drawing two sickles that he claimed contained Imperial Gold. Aphrodite could sense that he was telling the truth.
The most important thing was, however, that her date had just cut her dress. Her bespoke dress crafted by a world famous designer.
"You bastard!" Aphrodite roared, launching herself forward.
I immediately blocked her scratch. To my surprise, the attack was a lot more forceful then I expected. I heard my sleeves; enhanced with defensive magic, tear to shreds from her attack.
"Woah!" I yelled, jumping backwards. Fresh blood spurted from the four deep scratches in my left arm. "That's painful." I said, inspecting my arm. The metallic smell of blood caused me to grin. "Ah. This is what I wanted."
"You-you." Aphrodite was incapable of coherent speech, her anger reducing her to her basic instincts. "Die mortal!" She screeched, launching a jump kick at my forehead. With her ten-inch heels and monstrous strength, such an attack would have been like getting shot with a sniper bullet.
I ducked, dodging the kick. Aphrodite however, continued forward, punching through my door and into my room, landing on the bed.
Just as planned.
Suddenly, my subordinates, who had been hidden in my room, sprang into action. With incredible speed, they threw a net over Aphrodite. The net, based upon the one made by Hephaestus in Legends, had countless anti-divinity runes woven into it. Any Deity, no matter how powerful, would be rendered powerless in the net.
"Go fish." I said, laughing at my own joke. In front of me, Aphrodite was violently struggling against the bonds. But the runes were doing their work. I could see her struggles slowly becoming weaker as the runes sapped her divinity away.
I smiled, reaching behind my back and drawing out another weapon. My wakazashi.
"Now then, time to put you out of your misery." I said, walking towards Aphrodite. I could see her staring at my blade, sensing its disgusting aura, feelings its insatiable bloodlust. Kind of like me actually.
I was about one meter away from Aphrodite when the first slug hit me in the chest. As I stumbled backwards, I felt a dozen more impacts all over my body.
"Not again." I muttered, feeling the haze return
Then I blacked out.
Well then. Part two is here. The sudden conclusion to the introduction. Wonder what happens next? Well too bad! The next perspective is Percy's, not Samael's. Let's see how Camp Half-Blood takes the sudden kidnapping of Aphrodite.
Review and fave if you enjoyed it!
Daemon