Light began to dance in the air, and came to my hands. My will mastered them, and the light dared not fight back. I was the son of Apollo, and it would heed my command. The light concentrated on my palm, glowing and emanating with power. A sphere formed, emanating with power.
And then, upon a single thought, the sphere shifted and elongated, becoming longer and longer. Instead of a sphere, the light had been morphed into a spear, as long as myself.
New Skill Created!
Skill: Light Spear
Type: Spell
Cost: 200 MP
Description: Creates a Spear of light, which the user can throw to do damage, which is based upon the user's Intelligence and Willpower. The user is able to insert extra MP to increase the speed (and subsequently damage) of the Spear.
I rest against the tree, tired out of my mind. It had been about 2 to 3 days since I left the Hunter's Camp, and I had been spending most of it walking through the large expanse of wilderness. Perhaps I was in a national park or something, because I never thought the US would have so many trees in one area without any being chopped down. Hell, I haven't even seen any sign of civilisation, apart from the occasional litter.
Of course, I haven't been putting that time to waste. I've been practising my recently acquired Photokinesis skill so I can use it in combat. Since the skill came so high already, I could easily make a ball of light (which created the Light Sphere skill), and make my hands glow (making the Glow Hands skill).
The main reason it took so long for me to make a spear of light was because I kept trying to make the spear outright from nothing. In reality, I had to gather the light, which took a bit of mental energy, and then form it into a spear. Turning the light into a sphere made the process far easier, however I would need to cut it out in the future.
Something fascinating that I learned was that spells that I created were far more flexible and malleable than a spell that the system gave me. I had a far easier time creating a Light Sphere than Fireball, and it seemed more… fulfilling?
Regardless, I was doing pretty well with magic, considering I've had it for less than a week. It's come in handy several times now, alongside my sword, Athanatos. Though I wasn't journeying with Thalia, who was literal monster bait, I was still a demigod, and could be seen as an easy snack for monsters. And since I kept all of my items in my Inventory, the monsters were under the impression that I was completely defenceless.
Thanks to the free EXP practically coming to me, I had reached Level 19, which in turn pushed my HP and MP into the 2000's and gave me 15 Stat Points. I threw 10 points into Strength, and 5 into Intelligence. And not only did I get EXP from them, I also got items if there were multiple monsters attacking me at once, though that only happened twice. It wasn't even useful items, to be honest, just a bottle of coke, and a guitar. I mean, I suppose the guitar could be fun.
I frown to myself. 5 Stat Points per level isn't sustainable, even if I get stat points from some quests. It would take me ages to reach Thalia or Zoë's stats. But still, it was reasonable progress if you consider that I've been in this world for less than a week.
I took out the map that I had gotten from the hunters. It wasn't a traditional map, per say, but rather a large book, in which each state of the US has its own chapter, and then each state was divided by county, making it far easier to see your position and distance to another point in the map. It was pretty odd as to how light and thin the map-book was, but I suppose the Hunters of Artemis had access to skilled craftsmen/women.
Halcyon's mansion had been in Richmond, and since the Hunter's Camp was pretty several miles north of Richmond, the closest city was Washington DC, so I was heading there. Hopefully I could catch a Greyhound bus to New York. Maybe I could see the White House whilst I was there. Who was the current president meant to be? It can't be Obama, right?
With the current pace I was making, I would reach Washington DC in about a day and a half, meaning more walking. At least I had a way to rest without losing precious time.
"Open, Gate of the Clock! Horologium!" I shout, with a silver key in my hand. I did the same motions before, and just like in Halcyon's house, a tall, living, grandfather clock appeared.
"Good evening, Sir Gilgamesh" Horologium greeted, bowing. Yeah, he fucking bowed, as in the the supposedly wooden body had bended. Magic was insane. "I assume we are to do the same thing we did many hours ago?"
"If you would, Horologium" I confirm. Horologium opens up his glass door, and I walk in, sitting down. It was pretty cramped, but thankfully I was pretty small and could cosily stay tight in there. And it was comfy enough for a nap.
3 Hours Later…
Still in a Forest
Darkness had replaced the blue sky, and the stars replaced clouds. I was sitting on a fallen log, with a campfire in front of me. I have finished the last of my MRE's, and now I'm just resting. Is it weird that I kind of enjoy this? Being out in the wilderness, with the stars out in the sky.
I was reading the Wilderness Survival book that I had gotten from the hunter's. It's pretty interesting. Although, I'd much rather read something such as 'A Game of Thrones'.
"Hmm… To think there are so many poisonous mushrooms. How fascinating"
"Oh yeah, hopefully I don't eat-" Wait a minute. Who was I talking to? Crap. I immediately jumped off the log, turning my body 180 degrees to face whatever was behind me. Out of sheer habit, my Guardian Shield was already out and ready.
My body froze at what I saw. A body of a man, with eyes that have no pupil, and skin pale as bones. But the man himself was familiar. A large brown beard, a beer belly, and a straw hat. It was the first person I had met in this new world. The one who I also killed.
Matthew.
"You- You should be dead!" I stutter out. Fuck. Why am I scared? I've already faced death and witnessed the abyss. Why are my hands shaking? There has to be a logical explanation as to why I can see him, but I can't formulate a single idea.
In a horrifying sight, Matthew's mouth began to move. As the mouth opened, what seemed to be flies poured out of the corpse. "Oh? And who do I look like, demigod?" The voice that came from the mouth was not Matthew's, it was that of a woman, but it chilled me to my core. "A friend? A lover? A parent? Or maybe… a victim?"
I took a step back from my body, forgetting that there was a fire behind me. Looking down, my breathing became heavier. My hands were stained with crimson red. So, so much blood. I didn't have to kill him, did I? I could've knocked him out somehow. I could've called the cops on him. I didn't need to stain my hands with his blood, did I?
No… He was evil. Just plain evil. He had a good life, and yet he decided to take the lives of others. Fuck! Why am I still thinking about this? I thought I had left this behind!
"W-Who the hell are you?" My fingers were ready to take out Athanatos. I don't know if I could beat this entity or not. But at least I'd feel safer.
"My, my. Most mortals tend to faint when they see me. I suppose that should allow you to see my preferred form" What happened next was odd. It was as if the fabric of the universe had rippled, as the corpse disappeared, revealing someone else, much to my relief.
But the new form caused almost just as much dread as seeing Matthew. A woman, tall and slender, slightly transparent. Half her body was obsidian black, and looked as if it were made of granite. The other half was as pale as a ghost, and had a dusty appearance. She wore a golden silk dress that loosely covered her body. Her hair was covered by a hood which was just as gold as the dress. And her eyes… They were just as black as the abyss that I went to when I died.
In an odd way, she was beautiful. But still very scary.
I don't think I've really explained how fucking weird it is to see this in real life. Not only this woman, but also the Hydra, the leucrota, even my spells. These were stuff you see in fanart, shows, and writing, but never in reality. Everything looked so odd when it existed in real life. They looked how you would imagine it, but it felt weird to see them in front of you, actually existing.
It was so mind-bending.
"I… You're Melinoe, aren't you?" I questioned. I vaguely remember Melinoe. She only appeared once in the books, and even then it was in a one-shot. Not only was she shafted in Greek Mythology, she was pushed aside in the Riordanverse. But from what I do know about her, she joins Kronos in the future, like most minor gods did. It was understandable, but it did make me wary of her.
"Ah, a clever demigod. Your type are always quite fun" She has an odd smirk on her face. It was almost like a master looking at a puppet. "You must be wondering why I'm here? What could a god want from you?" Shit. She was completely correct. "Think, young demigod, think. Why would the Goddess of Ghosts be interested in you?"
…
Oh shit.
"Ah, you figured it out." Melinoe smugly states, obviously reading my facial expressions. "Yes, it was quite a surprise to see a mortal that wasn't even an exorcist grant salvation to the tortured souls. Most would've just left the bodies to rot. But you gave them the proper funeral rites, even if it was posthumous. Why?"
It was a genuine question. She truly was curious.
Taking a deep breath, I answer, "I… Don't know." Melinoe seemed slightly taken aback by my answer, "It didn't feel right… leaving those bodies. I had to do something, so I burned that whole place down. It was the only thing that came to mind."
"So you did it out of the goodness of your heart?" Melinoe questioned. It sounded almost like she was mocking me, but that might just be the way she talks. "And I suppose you fancy yourself a hero?"
"No. Not yet" I don't know why I said it. It was clear she was asking rhetorically, yet I still felt the urge to answer it truthfully. It felt nice knowing that my conviction ran deep.
"Is that overconfidence I hear?" She lets out a bone-chilling chuckle, "How very demigodly of you"
"No, it's determination."
The goddess stares at me for a few minutes. A very long, and uncomfortable few minutes. It was as if she was dissecting me with those abyssal eyes. "Very well." She says, breaking the silence, "I have a quest for you, hero."
Wait what.
"You are heading to Washington DC, correct?" I nod, not wanting to interrupt her flow, "Near a building called the Jefferson Hotel is where a child of mine is residing at. Save him, bring him to Camp Halfblood, and you shall get a boon from me."
"Wait a-" However, before I could say anything, the goddess disappeared the moment I blinked. Fuck fuck fuck! Crap, less than four days after rescuing Hal, I've already been roped into more shenanigans!
Quest added!
Ghostly Son
In an odd turn of events, the Goddess of Ghosts, Necromancy, and Nightmares, Melinoe, has issued you a quest to save her child.
Objective: Go to the child's house near the Jefferson Hotel in Washington DC and rescue the child, and take him to Camp Halfblood.
Rewards: EXP, ?, ?, ?
Now isn't the time, System!
Damn it. The fact that Melinoe asked me to save her son, meant that he was in danger. "Crap. I guess I can sleep later" I say to myself, putting my book away and retracting my shield. Sure I could get some rest, but the fact that there was a kid in possible danger didn't sit right with me.
I put out the fire and started walking. It'll be many hours of walking before I reach civilization, but I should hopefully reach Washington by tomorrow afternoon.
Sigh, the things I do to be a hero.
13 Hours Later…
Alexandria
After hours upon hours of walking, I had finally reached a city. Whilst it wasn't Washington DC, it was just south of it, a place called Alexandria. Not too remarkable of a city, but it was still full of history. Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to look around at buildings. I needed to get to DC.
It took a while of walking, but I eventually found a taxi that could take me there. I had about $1000 to my name, and the taxi alone would probably take a good chunk of it, considering how exorbitant tax fares were. I also noticed that a lot of people were staring at me. At first I had thought they were curious about why a kid so young was wandering by his lonesome, but then I noticed that the problem was my clothing.
Despite the fact I had the Hydra Scale Chestplate, I had put it over my hoodie, and made it invisible. As such, the chestplate didn't hide the dirt, blood, and holes on hoodie and jeans. I would have to stop by a cheap clothing store. Doesn't America have a store called 'Goodwill' or something that sells cheap clothes for those in need. Perhaps I could check that out.
That taxi ride was long and thankfully quiet. I was relieved that the driver knew where exactly the Jefferson Hotel was, since frankly, I had no clue. The drive wasn't too long thankfully, since traffic seemed to be pretty low. After all, rush hour was a while away.
After reaching the hotel, I gave the taxi driver about $130 in cash, which made his eyes light up in greed. I'll need to find some source of income in the future. Perhaps I could make Minecraft before Notch does?
I stand in front of the hotel for a moment, as I realise that I don't actually have a clue where Melinoe's son is. All she told me was that he was near the Jefferson Hotel, nothing else. Damn that vague goddess.
Hmm… What to do? It's not like I have a phone to call Melinoe… Wait! That's it! I might not be able to use a phone, but I could Iris Message her. I mean sure, gods don't like being disturbed, but she's the one who sprung a quest on me out of nowhere!
Now, where can I find a hose?
15 minutes Later…
Taking a Drachma out of my inventory, I throw the golden coin at the artificial rainbow I had made. Thank the gods that the sun was out. "Oh Iris, goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering." I chant, "Melinoe… The Underworld?" I wasn't actually sure where Melinoe would be. She could technically be at multiple places at once, but hopefully my guess was correct.
There is a pause for a few seconds, before the rainbow ripples and an image of the Goddess of Ghosts appears, "I do not enjoy being disturbed, boy." She coldly greets, "What is it that you want? Have you found my son?"
I rub the back of my head, a little uncomfortable, "Uhm, no Lady Melinoe" I answer, "You left before I could ask, but you haven't really told me where your kid is."
"I said near the Jefferson Hotel, did I not?" She answered with a haughty tone, "Surely you don't expect me to teleport you right in front of his house?" Was this goddess dumb, or was she purposefully annoying?
"Well, yeah. At least the address would be nice." I argue, "Washington is a really big city and there are hundreds of thousands of children here. I don't even know what your son looks like."
There was silence for half a minute, so long that I thought that Iris Message had broken, but no, it seems that Melinoe was looking for a flaw in my argument.
The Goddess sighs, relenting to my request, "Very well" She clicks her fingers, before looking at me once more, "I have marked the area on your map. Page 384" And suddenly, the image of Melinoe disappears, leaving only a rainbow.
I turned off the hose, which was attached to the back of a house. I had snuck into the backyard after seeing the family that lived in the house drive away. Once again, lucky me! As I made my way out of the backyard, I took the map book out and turned to the page Melinoe had told me, and sure enough, there was a red dot marked in. Hmm… How did she manage to mark it if it was in my inventory,
Don't worry Gill, nobody is able to access your inventory! To put it simply, Melinoe sent out a signal towards you, and I picked it up. I decided that the signal wasn't malicious and would benefit you, so I allowed it to go to your map book.
Oh, that's a relief. My inventory was arguable my most useful ability in this new world, and I couldn't risk it being vulnerable to outside forces.
Looking at the mark on the map, I noticed that the location was pretty close. Only a mile or so away. Thank goodness. As I walked, I noticed that the neighbourhood wasn't… the best. Not decrepit or full of poverty, but it was depressing. I used Observe on random people who passed by me. Some of them were in debt, others were addicts, and some were full of grief.
It was unfortunate, but also made me worry for Melinoe's son. According to her, the son was in danger.
After 10 minutes, I found the house on the map. It did not give me high hopes on the wellbeing of the child. Broken windows, dry and overgrown grass full of litter, even the wooden exterior had planks falling off. I don't trust the look of this, but still, there was a kid in there.
Knocking on the front door would be dumb. Americans had guns, and there was no way I would risk getting shot, so I guess it's time to be a ninja. I climbed over the fence to the messy backyard, and though it wasn't hard to do so, it was a very annoying climb. It might just be my short height or the perspective of a child, but everything was so annoyingly large.
I looked at my surroundings, and found a ladder at the back of the garden, so I picked it up and leaned it against the back wall of the house. Climbing it, I could hear shouting from inside the house… followed by a slap. Gods, I hope it wasn't what I think it was.
I reached the top of the ladder, which was just beneath a window, and looked through the window. The following sight pained my heart. A room, messy and untidy. Cobwebs decorated the ceiling, torn paper on the floor, and tears in the walls. It was lifeless and grim.
In the room were two people, clearly father and son, both Asian. The father had short black hair, and a weathered beard. Bags could be clearly seen beneath his eyes, and were it not for the look of rage on his face, one would say he was tired.
The son looked strangely different to his father. His skin was far paler, almost ivory, and his hair blacker than his father's. He had no emotion on his face, looking at his father blankly. But, on his right cheek colouring his pale skin was a red bruise. I guess I knew where the slapping came from.
I hid beneath the window and listened to the conversation.
"An F?!" The father shouted, "You got an F? How! This is easy! I told you to study!" Fury coated in every word, it made me feel pity for the boy. "Do you think I came to this country just so you could get an F? We might as well go back to home. At least we have family there!"
The child said nothing. It was like he was dead inside. I could understand. In my past life, my father was like his. It's what made me move out as soon as I had the money. Pretty sure half the Asian kids in western countries did the same.
I can hear the sound of heavy footsteps before a loud slam of the door. Now was my chance. I took a deep breath, and entered through the window. The child immediately stands up and looks at me. We make direct eye contact.
"...'Sup" I greet. Fuck, I feel like an idiot. 'Sup'? Seriously? What am I? A jock from the 90's? And why the hell wasn't this kid freaking out?
Name: Yurei Tsurumi
Age: 7
Title: Son of Melinoe
HP: 870/910
MP:1700/1700
Stats
Strength: 15
Agility: 19
Endurance: 15
Charisma: 23
Intelligence: 49
Willpower: 29
Description: Yurei always knew something special was about him. And he found out the truth on his 5th birthday, when his mother visited him. He learned the truth about his heritage, and though he fears that monsters will one day come after him, his scent is far too weak to attract any. He keeps an emotionless face to hide his insecurities.
He is excited to see you. He knows why you are here and can't wait for his new life.
That's interesting. His intelligence is clearly on the level of grown men despite being only seven, and he's been interacting with his mother despite that being against the Ancient Laws. Did Melinoe genuinely care for this kid? I don't think she has any kids found in canon. What happened to Yurei in the canon universe? Why would Melinoe join Kronos if she actually loved her son?
Could something have happened to this kid? Is this why Melinoe wanted me to help him?
"My mother sent you. Didn't she?" Just like Observe said, Yurei already knew why I was here. I mean, his Intelligence stat was higher than mine. If so, why would he get an F on a test? Surely he should be smart enough to pass a test for children. "I've already packed my things." He goes to his bed, crouching down, and brings out a small suitcase.
If he's smart enough to have some forethought, then just how intelligent is a child of Athena?
"Hey kid… are you ok?" I ask nervously. Something… put me off about him. Was it his parentage? His emotionless face? His dull tone? What had he endured? What has he seen?
"Yes." He says simply, "Can we go now?" I looked down and saw his fingers. They were wriggling around like worms. Of course. He must have ADHD, and probably dyslexia as well. That must be why he flunked the test. Poor kid.
Now that I think about it, I don't think I've experienced ADHD or dyslexia. Hell, I'm pretty sure that I don't have lactose-intolerance like Frank does!
That's because Gamer's Body has blocked the negative effects that come with being a demigod. Well, all effects barring the weakness to godly metals like Celestial Bronze.
Ah, I see. Thank the gods. I'd rather not have to deal with dyslexia, considering I quite like reading.
"Yeah sure. Pass me your suitcase." Without even a look of confusion, he passes me the suitcase, and with a tap of a finger, I send it to my inventory. Yurei doesn't question it, though I swear I could see a glint in his eyes. "I'll give it to you later. Come down the ladder, quietly."
I scale back down the ladder, and look up to Yurei. Not a single sound could be heard with each step. Hell, I doubt even his breathing could be heard. He jumps down from the last step and looks up to me. "Where are we going?" Huh. He was actually shorter than me, even if it was a little bit.
"Hmm… Do you know if there are any McDonald's close by?" I swear, Yurei's eyes lit up like the sun.
Looks like I have a new travelling companion.
Author's Notes: Hey guys! New chapter, woohoo! Sorry it's not really action filled, but on a good news, I'm pretty sure we're one or two chapters away from finally reaching Camp Halfblood! I know it's been a surprisingly long journey, but we're nearly there.
And once again, I wanna thank you all for the support you've been showing! Thank you guys for reading!
Anyway, here are Gill's stats:
Name: Gilgamesh Ashford
Age: 8
Level: 19
Title: Child of Apollo
HP: 2099/2099
MP: 2360/2360
Stats
Strength: 39
Agility: 42
Endurance: 26
Charisma: 33
Intelligence: 36
Willpower: 33
Luck: 35
Stat Points: 0