(A/N) SORRY ABOUT THE LONG UPDATE, MY PEEPS! School was getting in the way and one of my other stories was in much more desperate need of updating.
DISCLAIMER: I. Own. Nothing. But the plot.
Several days after Kenneth Robinson disappeared…
Nico never thought he'd catch up to Perseus, however it was only when he, Jason, and Will had pinpointed his exact location did the realization dawn on him. The demon had started to become sloppy, leaving hordes of carnages in his wake. His existence was picked up by mortal authorities and he is now thought to be a wayward animal, being called the Midnight Slaughterer by many newspaper headlines, which the demigods had shuffled through day and night. Some claimed that he was a tiger escaped from a zoo, while others were positive it was a rabid panther. There was even a paper that suggested Perseus was a killer Dachshund with rabies. Nevertheless there was something that was missing, and the three demigods were well aware of it; most of the crime scenes, all of which were thought to be carnages of the Midnight Slaughterer, didn't really fit his description. Perseus slew his victims and left the house untouched, making it seem like they had disappeared into thin air, but the crime scenes were chaotically horrifying, as the three demigods had discovered when they impersonated FBI agents once more.
The one that really stuck to the back of his eyelids was the massacre of the Princeton family. It was so sloppy and manic that Nico had nearly chucked his guts into the nearby garbage can. Mr. Princeton was practically torn open, his ribcage but a hollow shell sitting within the gaping hole, all of his other organs missing, though his small intestine had been found hanging from a tree branch in his yard, dried blood staining the grass below, where it had dripped. Mrs. Princeton was no better, her back shredded, her decimated body suggesting that Perseus had eaten her like that, not bothering to flip her over. Bits and pieces of the Princeton's five-year old daughter lay scattered around the house, and the only thing left of their newborn son was a bloody bib.
Nico almost threw up as he recalled the wretched sight, which made him even more resolved in killing Perseus. Later in their research, Jason had suddenly realized that they were "looking in the wrong direction." Instead of killing him, which was impossible since there were no other demons alive to do it, the son of Jupiter had suggested they capture him instead; lock him in a Pentagram and just leave him there to rot for eternity. He had relayed his thoughts to the two other boys, who seemed to find it practical. They could get Hazel to manipulate the Mist there and make him seem like a tree or a rock, or they could have the Hephaestus cabin make a small magic barrier, much like the one that protected and concealed Camp Half-Blood. They had decided that it was worth a shot, no matter how slim the chances; innocent mortals were dying, whole families of them, and it was the demigods' duty to protect the others from suffering the same fate.
Nico's heart pounded as he, Jason, and Will emerged from the shadows, holding each other's hands. The two other demigods seemed quite rattled as they released their white-knuckled grips, but Nico was used to it, though it reminded him all too much of the Giant war, when he had nearly become one with the shadows. Despite their eventful, and rather quick, travels, they didn't utter a sound as they gazed around warily, their wide eyes scanning the dark woods around them. Nico didn't dare move, for fear that Perseus' hearing was so good he could hear a twig snap from a mile away, and the moment the son of Hades had stepped out of the shadow he had sensed death. It chilled him to the core, nearly paralyzing him, and he wondered how he had not been able to sense it before.
It was so overwhelming that his hands began to shake slightly, though that was partially out of the fear. Jason had paled to a color normally reserved for the spirits Nico met in the Underworld, and Will looked no better, though Nico had to admit that the son of Apollo looked stunning, the moonlight glancing off of his golden hair, which framed his face in perfect curls.
Now is not the time to marvel at how freaking hot and sexy your boyfriend looks right now. Nico thought, prying his eyes away. He motioned to the two other demigods, pointing to the ground to signal that they should step where he stepped. Nico hated to admit it, but he actually practiced being scary and imposing, and therefore he was an expert at treading silently, though he didn't know the extent of Perseus' hearing abilities. The son of Hades still found it difficult to work his way over the ground, which was strewn with leaves that could crackle and twigs that could snap. Nico didn't even know how close he even was to the demon.
Jason and Will followed hesitantly, monitoring their footwork so closely that it seemed like their eyes were glued to the ground. Their weapons were already drawn, and the black blade of Nico's Stygian iron sword glowed wickedly in the darkness, as if drinking up the shadows to add to its own. Nico followed the feeling of death, which was pulsing out and repelling him, seeming to say, "Go back. Go back." Nico took note of the fact that the forest was completely and utterly silent. The crows didn't crow, the songbirds were deadly quiet, and the crickets seemed to have lost their ability to make music. Mice didn't rustle in the underbrush and squirrels didn't even scamper through the trees. It was wholly and immeasurably soundless and noiseless, and Nico felt exposed in the silence, like anything could jump out at him and his companions.
They walked for a while, and every so often one of them would brush against some leaves or accidentally step on a twig. Every sound that was made, every disturbance, caused them to flinch. The trees began to thin out as they walked, and Nico wondered where the shadow travel had taken them. The wind nipped at his cheeks and nose, pecking at any exposed skin and causing his hairs to stand on end. He shivered, despite the fact that he was wearing his aviator jacket, which Will had given him last Christmas to replace his old one.
The trees began to thin out, and Nico felt quite exposed amidst the skinny boughs and sparse brush. They hadn't been climbing uphill, so that could only mean that they were approaching a clearing. His heart was racing a thousand miles an hour, and blood was roaring in his ears like a ferocious lion, his palms sweaty and slick as they clung to his Stygian Iron sword like a lifeline. Then, as he peeked through the trees, the ferocious lion seemed to whimper and run for its life as his heart almost stopped beating altogether. Jason and Will nearly bumped into him as he froze, becoming stiffer than a board, though they knew better than to ask why. As they followed his gaze, they became statue-like, their expressions frozen into one of horror.
There he was, his backed turned to them and his mussed black hair gleamed in the moonlight, as dark as Nico's sword. Even though Perseus was looking in the other direction, it was clear the he sensed their presence, and had possibly been waiting for them all along. His muscles were tense under the thin fabric of his black T-shirt, and he didn't even shiver as the wind buffeted his form, which made him seem weaker than he actually was. Nico knew it was Perseus simply by the way the death rolled off of him in waves that nearly brought the son of Hades to his knees. He was pretty sure he hadn't even felt this way when he'd confronted Death with a capital D, and the dude was the one who actually brought souls to the afterlife.
Jason and Will clearly sensed this death, however on a much more muted level, due to the fact that their fathers weren't the gods of the Underworld. Nico felt as if his heart was going to stop, and his eyes watered as if he were sticking his head out of a car window when the car was zooming down a highway. Will mistook it for tears and concern clouded his face, however Nico waved his boyfriend off. The dense of dread was becoming increasingly overwhelming; how were they going to trap Perseus when the demon already knew of their existence? He had slain thousands, and had practically torn mortals open. But when Dakota had claimed his killer was named Lilith and not Perseus, it had really bothered Nico. Only demons and gods were known to have such abilities of inflicting the damage that Lilith did, and it made Nico wondered whether Perseus wasn't the only demon out there. It would explain the sloppy killings, which weren't Perseus' but actually other demons', but that was impossible. Artemis had killed them a long time ago, which made Nico wonder. How could Artemis kill demons if the only thing that could kill a demon was another demon?
He was jerked out of his thoughts by a smooth, sleek voice, "Alright, there's no use of playing hide-and-go-seek when I already know your hiding place young demigods." Will paled considerably, and Jason seemed as if he were going to puke up his guts. It took Nico a moment to realize it was Perseus who had spoken, and, despite the fact that the demon was several yards away, his voice had been barely above a whisper, though it had carried in the silence. Nico turned to his companions, who shook their heads wildly, and stepped out of hiding. Without the trees to shield him he felt so exposed, the wind swooping down to batter him relentlessly. Perseus still had his back turned, and he felt helpless even as two of the most powerful demigods he knew took their places on either side of him. He grasped for Will's hand and found comfort in the soft lines of his boyfriend's soft, cushiony palm, gripping it tightly as if the son of Apollo would disappear if he let go.
"Aww, what a pleasant surprise," Perseus crooned, turning around to face them. Nico had liked it better when he had been looking away. As a homosexual who had feelings at the worst possible times, Nico's first thought had been, "Hot diggity damn," or something along the lines of that, since his brain was so muddled with fear he could barely process information being given to him. Then he looked at Perseus more closely and felt guilty that he'd thought he was hot. The demon was breathtakingly gorgeous at first glance, but once you really studied him he was a bit unsettling. Perseus' skin tone had tiptoed across the line of innocently pale, slipped through the land of Irishness, swaggered past the "dude-you-really-have-to-get-out-more" zone, and had ventured deep into the territory of corpse-like. Spider webs of blue veins raced up and down his arms and crept along the edges of his face. His eyes were a nice boy-next-door kind of sea green, however when his pupils slit like a snake's, Nico knew that he, Will, and Jason were in deeper shit than they'd thought.
The demon spread his arms in a gesture that could mean one of several things: "Welcome to my lair", "Come at me, bro", "Group hug", "Come closer", or "This is an evil villain gesture that signals that if you do, indeed, come closer I will rip you to pieces and then devour your remains." Nico was 99.9% positive that it was the last choice, and he was willing to bet his life and all that was precious to him that it certainly was not, indeed, "Group hug."
"Nico di Angelo," the son of Hades shivered as the demon uttered his name, testing it on his tongue as if he were trying on a new outfit, "how nice it is to meet you." His words were so chilled that he might as well have said, "How nice it is to eat you." Perseus studied him for a moments, and the demigod felt like the demon's snakelike gaze was ripping right through his soul, though maybe it was; prying through all the other layers to see what was hidden underneath,
The black-haired monster looked at Nico's friends, as if just realizing that they were there. His eyebrows hiked skywards, though that was the only thing that betrayed a form of emotion; his face was like that of a statue's, still and expressionless. "I see you have brought guests, though I should have known," his eyes slid to Jason, and out of the corner of Nico's eye he saw the demigod seize up, "I can smell the reek of Zeus spawn anywhere." Will, though he seemed to be a tad bit jealous, looked mostly relieved that the demon had not singled him out, and Nico couldn't really blame him.
"So I suppose you are here to kill me? Sorry, boys, but no such luck," the demon chuckled; a cold, humorless sound, "And for my first testimony I say that I didn't do it."
"You'll need a lot more evidence than that," Nico growled, finally managing to find his voice.
"Well I'm so-rry, Your Honor," Perseus scoffed in reply, and Nico found that, on top of being terrifying and powerful, the demon had room for sass as well. "But I have to admit that my brothers and sisters do get a bit sloppy at times, especially Mother. I apologize on their behalf." Nico's stomach seemed to drop like a stone, and the satisfaction of seeing the demigods' shocked looks was clear on Perseus' face.
"B-b-brothers and sisters?" Nico squeaked, which didn't sound as heroic as he had intended. Perseus chuckled once more, and the son of Hades would have given anything for the courage to scream, "SHUT THE HELL UP! WHAT IS SO FUNNY?" at the top of his lungs.
"You see, boys," the corners of Perseus' mouth pulled upwards into a chilling leer, "I'm not alone anymore. Oh, stop gaping, you know you suspected it, son of Hades." Nico snapped his mouth closed indignantly, his expression hardening. "Anyway, I'm afraid that you three are of too much value. Mother will love me even more when I bring her the three most wanted demigods in the history of monsterkind." Despite the fact that, technically in context the last sentence was supposed to sound sweet and excited, Perseus wore a scowl as he said it, as if he were not very happy about his "Mother."
"Yeah, not likely," Nico challenged. He wanted to keep Perseus monologue-ing for as long as possible, but the demon was too intelligent to fall for bait like that. His words were clipped and cautious, not giving away too much, and his body was as wound up as a coil, ready to spring in case he was attacked.
"You see, since I freed my siblings, Mother was bound to come along. She sired all of us, all demons that lurk in the dark. You mortals, of course, call her Lilith." Nico swallowed hard, his heart racing. Dakota and Amalthea had faced off against the mother of all that was unholy? They had been dead as soon as they'd laid eyes on her. "And, as expected, Mother takes over the entire operation as if the whole thing was her idea! Of course, none of my brothers and sisters even know that I exist, much less the fact that I was the one that laid out the framework for freeing them. No, they're too busy worshipping the very ground Mother walks on." Perseus' fists were clenched tightly at his sides, his eyes blazing with anger. Nico tried to back up, and he saw Jason and Will's efforts to do the same, however they found themselves glued to the spot out of fear.
"It would be more fun to kill you, scatter your remains in front of the demigod camps' entrances and watch your friends' reactions," Perseus hissed, his voice akin to how a snake would sound if it could speak, "but Mother gave me strict orders. You're going to have to come with me."
"Not on my watch," Nico's voice was barely a whisper, however he found himself leveling his sword in Perseus' direction. Jason and Will seemed to have found their courage as well, and they both went into their battle stances. At first Perseus looked at them like, "Seriously?" but then it seemed to dawn on him that he'd be facing off against three of history's most powerful demigods. He cracked his knuckles and neck, rolling his shoulders. It took Nico a moment to realize that Perseus was weaponless, but that soon changed as his fangs grew longer and his fingernails turned into wicked sharp talons.
Before any of them could react, Perseus sprang like a wild panther that was hungry for blood. The three of them leapt out of the way, but with inhuman agility Perseus twisted in the air and landed right on top of Will. A sound much akin to a shriek of pure fury ripped its way from Nico's throat as the son of Apollo cried out in pain, Perseus' claws raking across his cheek. The demon would've torn Will open right then and there, but Nico, in a bout of rage, leapt onto his shoulders. For a moment the son of Hades considered how utterly idiotic his move had been, but he didn't dwell on that as Perseus stumbled back, letting out a bellow of anger that would send grizzlies running for their mamma bears.
Nico could feel the corded muscles shifting below Perseus' skin as the demon turned his head at a horrifying angle, his vertebrae crackling, and bit into the son of Hades' hand, which was gripping his shoulder tightly. Nico screamed bloody murder as Perseus' set of teeth met in the middle of his flesh, puncturing through bone as easily as if it had been butter. Blinded by the utter pain, he drove his sword into the demon's back, hearing the delicious sound of fabric tearing as it went through the other side. Perseus let go of Nico's hand, the son of Hades screaming as his fangs slid out of his flesh, and grunted in discomfort, tugging at the blade as if it were an uncomfortable piece of clothing.
Nico took his moment of distraction to yank the Stygian Iron out, soaked in crimson, and stumble away, cradling his injured hand against his chest. Will sprinted over to him as Jason, being the stronger demigod, immediately engaged Perseus in combat, though the demon's strikes were so lightning-fast it was like watching a blur. Nico whimpered and spluttered, trying to form words as a burning pain bombarded him, and he refused to let his boyfriend look at it.
"We…have to…help Jason," he choked, his voice pinched tight. He allowed Will to slip a piece of ambrosia into his mouth, but even though the healing effects weren't supposed to start right away, for some reason Nico didn't feel like he was being mended at all. It was very odd, but after Will used a spare cloth to wrap around his wrist as a tourniquet, he couldn't think of anything else except the battle. Even only after a few minutes, Jason looked exhausted, drenched his sweat as his parries became slower and slower, though Perseus' attacks were still as ferocious and unyielding as the wind that roared in their ears.
"Try to herd him over here," Will told Nico, pulling a can of red spray paint from his backpack, "I'll be fixing up a nice big pentagram for you two. Pass it on." Nico nodded curtly in reply and raised his sword in his dominant left hand, his right one continuing to throb as all circulation was cut off from it, charging towards the heat of the fight. Perseus caught a glimpse of the son of Hades sprinting towards him, taking another swipe at Jason with his claws. Jason boasted a long cut down the side of his face, the shallow nick ghosting past his eye by only a millimeter, and it was bleeding steadily down his face, which was tight with concentration as he blocked and stabbed.
Nico and Jason worked together perfectly, like a well-oiled machine, even though Nico was injured. Nico would go on the defensive while Jason tried to get a few good stabs in, but with every wound they made, one of their previous ones would close up. Perseus knew that he had the upper hand; he could inflict damage that would last and actually affect them, unlike the demigods, who were making as much progress as a general who ordered their armies to stab the ocean. Slowly, but surely, they began to drive Perseus towards the pentagram. Will had finished his handiwork and now a hailstorm of arrows was raining upon the demon, who pulled them out without even a wince and discarded them. Nico's hand still shrieked with pain, beginning to go numb with pins and needles as the tourniquet did its job, but he soldiered on. For his friends. For the mortals. For Dakota and Amalthea. For the demigod world.
That's when Perseus paused, sighing. He held up his hands and the three of them froze, unable to move even the slightest of muscles, not even their eyes. Perseus' foot was a few inches away from the edge of the pentagram. "I'm bored," he said simply, "this wasn't nearly as fun as I thought it would be, mostly because Mother wishes you three to be alive. Nighty-night." He touched Nico's forehead, his fingertip icy cold, and everything went dark.