Matt's back, and better than ever. Get ready for a big fight! We're moving into the final phase of Book Five, so expect plenty of that to go around!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters (except the OC's) Percy Jackson & The Olympians, Heroes of Olympus, or Trials of Apollo. All of that belongs to Rick Riordan.
14. I Make A Grand Entrance
Matt
Okay, that entrance may have looked cool, but you should've seen me three minutes earlier. I was kind of freaking out.
(Three Minutes Earlier)
Kyros go! I screamed in my head. They're in trouble! We need to hurry up!
If you have a problem with how I'm flying, then teleport us!
We went through this two minutes ago! I haven't teleported someone else before! I don't want to mess up and hurt you!
Then be patient! We're almost there!
I'm still trying to get used to talking with Kyros via telepathy. It's weird. I mean, he talks like a normal human, makes the same noises, and his voice even sounds like someone I might run into at school. Not at all like an ancient monster. But when he actually opens his mouth, it's eagle noises. Weird shift.
He sighed, calming down a bit from his temper. It's the same area, right?
As far as I know. Let me check again. I reached out with my aura sense for the millionth time, making sure everyone was still in the same spot. Last time I reached them, they were in some really secluded part of the wilderness in Japan, and it was only a handful of my friends, Sera and Annabeth excluded. Oh, and they were fighting this massive ball of energy, too much for them to handle even together, which is why I urged Kyros to go faster.
When I checked again, I stiffened in the saddle. They were gone, along with the powerful creature they were fighting. Well, he and Malachi were still around, but had moved from that location, and seemed to be struggling in the air, Malachi using a lot of energy just to stay away. But the others just...vanished.
Oh crap! They're gone!
He cawed out loud and turned to look at me. What do you mean gone?!
What does it sound like?! Their auras disappeared!
Well find them!
I closed my eyes and pushed my aura out further, expanding it a few miles. When I didn't find them there, I just gave it all I had, not caring if it would be harder to locate. I just needed to know they were alive.
When it expanded completely, covering the entire planet, I got them. They weren't too far away from the last location, but it was still obscure. Off the coast of Japan, on a big cliff, next to a...really mysterious layer of energy. It almost felt like some kind of barrier.
But that wasn't the bad part. The bad part...Ouranos was there, and a bunch of other powerful guys, probably his hired goons.
I knew Ouranos's energy like the back of my hand, even if we hadn't seen each other in a while. This wasn't good.
I found them! Keep going in the same direction, it might just take a little longer than we planned!
How much?!
Half a minute, maybe? I don't know, just fly!
They were in more trouble than I could've guessed. I mean, that giant energy they were all ganging up on was one thing, but to add Ouranos, and a dozen more powerful auras on top? They wouldn't last long. I needed to help them.
Wait...maybe I'm jumping the gun here. Will I last that long? I hadn't exactly been able to compare my new strength to anyone yet, except Zeus, and that's such a high bar, you might as well not even bother. Maybe it won't be good enough.
Maybe all that training won't pay off...
Kyros noticed my turmoil, and looked at me over his back. Are you okay, young master?
Yeah, it's...nothing.
Talk to me. I won't have you charging in conflicted.
It's just...what if I'm not powerful enough? What if all that training was for nothing? My friends are probably counting on me, and what if I can't deliver?
Kyros groaned. You don't sound like someone that just finished training with Zeus. Be confident! You learned so much in there! Those guys won't know what hit them!
You're right. But I haven't had the chance to really show off anything yet. This is kind of the opposite of taking it slow, don't you think?
Look, everything will be okay once you land on the battlefield. You'll know what to do. I'm sure of it. You're a lot like your father in that way. Nervous beforehand, but when it's time to work...you deliver.
I smiled. Yeah, I don't know what I'm even thinking. I just trained the equivalent of five years with Zeus, king of the gods. If anything, I should be overconfident in my abilities. Not nervous.
Thanks Kyros. The cluster of auras pinged in my radar, making my neck tingle. We're close. Get ready!
We closed in by the mile. I felt all of the auras power up, one in particular more so than it usually held, meaning it was probably about to attack, and it didn't belong to any of my friends. Something was about to happen.
I waited three more seconds; it was just enough time to get close enough. If we were farther towards the ground, I could probably see them in the distance if I wanted to.
Alright, Kyros, I'm jumping! You can slow down!
Good luck, young master!
Kyros slowed down a bit, and I wasted no more time. It was now or never.
Quickly, I placed my boot on the side of the saddle and leapt off, diving into the sky. Closing my eyes, I envisioned how it might go.
Don't overthink, just do. Let your power flow like a river.
When I opened them back up, I was falling. Falling fast through the gray clouds. Everyone was right below me, and if I kept it up at this rate, I'd never make it in time.
With a flex of energy, the red glow surrounded me, as it always does. It filled me with adrenaline and energy, like I'd chugged an entire gallon of Red Bull. I clenched my fists and zoomed forward, or in this case, down.
The ground was closing in fast. I finally reached the end of the cloud thicket and saw them. My friends standing in one line, facing off against a giant...crow man? Whatever. Him, what looked like Ouranos, a bunch of guys in samurai armor, and...some dude standing under a hill.
Okay, seems like a normal Tuesday. Here we go.
I picked up the pace. With another flex of energy, I was on the ground. I threw my legs forward and lifted my head up so I could switch positions fast enough to land. It was perfect, I hit the grass right on the soles of my boots, containing my aura tightly so I didn't form a big crater.
The shockwave went and passed like a rapid series of tornadoes. Standing there, looking at everyone, I realized my red aura had gotten brighter, or no, stronger from the training. It was making the big crow guy turn his head.
Like a light switch, I turned it off. Able to see now, I could tell that I landed right in front of the crow guy, in between his attempted strike. Wow...he was really big, I only sized up to his toe claw.
The red aura went away with the wind, and I heard several shouts behind me, everyone in unison screaming, "Matt!"
I turned around and looked at them from my shoulder, unable to help the smirk that grew on my face.
(Present)
"Sorry I'm late guys. Traffic was horrible." I glanced up to look at crow guy's face. Yep, it was a crow. Like a dark storm avatar sort of thing. "So...is this the guy who's causing all of our problems?"
Wait a second, did I just get deja vu?
Oh...I remember that. When Zeus came to help us fight Typhon, he said the exact same thing.
Crap, I really did spend the equivalent of five years with him. I'm even starting to sound like the guy.
Anyway, everything went silent for a second. I looked away from crow guy to lock eyes with Ouranos. The spark between our stares crackled instantly. Yep, still the same evil bastard, and we hadn't even said a word to each other yet. He'd changed, just like I figured. Growing several inches, and looking a lot more like Malachi.
"Matthias..." He said, just above a whisper. He said it without his body or face even moving, but his cheek was twitching, which told me he was furious. I got a dose of pleasure from that little detail.
I looked him up and down, smirking. "You've grown."
He forced a laugh, which turned into a hateful growl. "So have you."
Talon's voice rang out behind me, addressing my first question. He spoke with a relieved laugh, which only made me feel better. I really missed these guys.
"That big ugly crow would be Susanoo, kid." He said. "You know our shit eating friend, Ouranos. He's hired a few cowardly samurai to be his bodyguards..."
My eyes fell to them, one by one. They all looked the same, faces mostly hidden by ancient armor, katanas sheathed on their waste. Six...no, seven of them. All considerably powerful on their own. Together...very considerable.
Talon continued, "Floating in the background is Kagutsuchi, the fire god. Yep, it's a god that's a dragon. He's trouble."
I looked at the back, beyond the hill and into the ocean, hovering just above it, flapping its wings, was a massive red dragon. Like the final boss to a video game or something, staring at us, mouth half open, ready to breathe fire down on the entire country. That was the big energy they were fighting. I'd have to keep an eye on him.
"Got it." I said, and then looked at the guy standing next to the hill, or well, now that I see it, next to the weird energy I felt. Under the hill, sat a big cave-like hole, with dark purple energy covering it, moving around like water. Must be some kind of barrier.
The guy standing there...looked familiar. It took me a second, but I remembered him from one of my visions during training. The first one, when I fell off the side of the mountain on the first day.
"Oh!" Talon said, "And that ashy guy is-"
"Tsukuyomi." I said, "Yeah, I've seen him before."
Tsukuyomi himself didn't really give a reaction, he just raised the spot where his eyebrow should've been. Maybe it was there, just white like his hair.
Finally, Susanoo, aka Crow guy, looked around like he'd been interrupted during a big speech. "I'm sorry, but who and the hell are you? How dare you interrupt my attack!"
I nodded up at him, "Matt Beckett, Son of Hercules."
"He's the one I told you all about." Ouranos said with distaste, crossing his arms. "The one missing from the group."
"The one training with Zeus." Tsukuyomi said, which caught me off guard a little. How did they know about that?
I decided not to let them know that shook me a little, instead putting on a casual face. "That's right. Better late than never. Whatever crap it is you're up to now, Ouranos, it stops right here. And whoever you've got involved with you...well, they never should've listened. I'll destroy them too."
I heard excited sounds from my friends behind me, Ouranos glared at me, while Susanoo thought my words were one big joke.
"Destroy?" He howled with laughter. "I don't know who you're addressing, brat, but you won't be able to lay a finger on me!"
For some reason, the way he said it only filled me with more confidence. They were worried. They didn't even have to feel my aura yet or see me fight to be scared. The simple notion that I trained with Zeus had shaken them.
I've already won.
Susanoo spread out his giant arms, challenging me to charge him. "Well? What are you waiting for?! Destroy me! Go ahe-"
I lifted my hand and showed him my palm, "Hey, crow dude, shut up for a second."
He immediately stopped, and reared his head back, too baffled to even speak.
I shifted around to face my friends. There they all were, smiling from ear to ear. It warmed my heart.
Returning the smile, I shook my head in disbelief. It felt so long, so long since I'd seen them. When really it had only been a week, it was more like...well, five freaking years.
"Hey guys. I missed you." When my eyes trailed over them, they specifically found Harper, and lingered there for a second. We didn't even need to say anything, we'd gotten to the point where we could have a conversation with a single gaze.
But then I found someone to the far right, who I didn't recognize.
My smile fell, "Who's..." Then it hit me. The clothes...the height...the fact that she was still with my group...
It was Asuka. Unmasked no less. Wow, she really didn't look like how I expected. I mean, I don't really know how I imagined her to look, but it was certainly someone older, and less pretty.
What shocked me more, was the person that 'introduced' her to me, was the guy that argued with her the entire time at the Big House. Talon.
He noticed my confusion, and gestured to her. "Oh, Matt, I forgot, you ain't seen her without the mask. This is Amaterasu."
I reared my head back, my jaw flying open. What did he just say?
"Amaterasu? Wait a second, I thought she was her daughter. Asuka."
"It's a pretty long story. You know what, I'll tell ya later."
Before I could even nod or respond, behind me, Susanoo let out a loud roar, shaking the ground and nearly throwing everyone off their feet. Everyone except me.
When I spun back around casually, I saw him with his arm above his head, a giant, dark sword encased in lightning gripped tight in his hand, about to come down on me.
"I will not be ignored!" He brought one foot up, and stomped it, using all of his weight and momentum in the attack.
Like a comet, the blade came down towards me, but I didn't fear it whatsoever. In fact, it was a mere nuisance.
Without even trying, I raised my hand towards the sky, and waited for the impact to come.
It did. The blade slammed right against my palm, not moving it even an inch. Shockwaves flew everywhere, uprooting craters of dirt beside me and blowing huge loads of grass in the sky, causing too much destruction for my liking. This guy didn't care whether stray blasts of his energy destroyed this part of the country or not. Funny, considering it's the one he belongs to.
Susanoo's dark, empty eyes widened when he saw the emptier results of his attack. He'd given a good amount in that one, while I just caught it, not even accessing my aura.
Yep, I'd say the training had paid off. Before, this guy would've been a problem. Heck, I would've had to use the Master Bolt against him, and might've considered throwing it too. But now...piece of cake.
"Hey, I was trying to say something to my friend." I quipped, "Not cool."
"W-What?!" He croaked, voice not sounding as deep as before.
With a push, I forced his blade to reverse its path and recoil back to sender. You would've thought the entire Earth just pushed it back on him, because the force of my simple push blew the blade back so fast, Susanoo barely held onto it, and lost his footing.
He stumbled backwards and even fell to one knee. It was kind of funny. He had roared and attacked with this big swing, and here I am, just messing around. I'd really have to thank Zeus later, again. This is amazing.
But then I remembered another point of the lesson. I couldn't let it get to my head. Use enough force to win. Don't get egoic. Remember why you fight, and how you fight.
When Susanoo regained his balance, he glared at me. "Samurai! Kill him!"
The seven guys in armor all nervously unsheathed their katanas, coming towards me with a spread-out formation. I knew what they were trying to do, surround me on all sides and attack at once. Okay, we can play that game.
From behind, I heard my friends footsteps start towards me, it made me look at them and shout.
"Guys, don't!" I smiled, giving them a reassuring nod. "Just stand back, I got this."
They all exchanged crazed looks, probably thinking I'm insane. Well, can't exactly blame them.
Harper's good eye pleaded with me, "But Matt-"
"It'll be fine. Just relax. You guys have done plenty of good fighting so far. Let me unwind a little."
She shook her head in disbelief. I could see the others not wanting to stand still, but trusting my words.
Really, part of it was me wanting to test out my new power, yeah, but the other part was not wanting them to get caught in the crossfire. Sure, I'm a lot stronger now, but with that comes the need for better control. My stray energy and shockwaves become more destructive, which means a bigger chance of someone accidentally getting hurt. Since it's my first time out of the gate with this new power, I didn't want to take any risks.
Thankfully, they listened to me, and stayed where they were. I hardened my gaze, waiting. One by one, the samurai all got in position, standing in a circle around me, an equal distance apart from each other.
"Osu!" They yelled, a Kiai to signal they were ready. With katanas drawn and energies flared, I stood straight, hands at my sides, completely calm. Like a rock in a river, when the tide rushes, you roll with the punches. You adapt to any situation.
Complete control and awareness.
I took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Once the air completely left my lungs, the string that held them back snapped. They all charged me.
Each step was simultaneous, even the way they had their swords aimed, all pointed straight for a stab...told me they'd spent years fighting together. A very well coordinated team, rarely ever losing.
In the second that I had to spare, I went over a couple of scenarios in my head that might work.
First, I could just jump above them and avoid any damage, then come down with one big attack that'll affect all of them.
Second, I could roll through an open spot between their legs, which...isn't a lot of space, but I could take the chance, and come out from the circle. But that would be pointless. Circle or no circle, I would engage them all at once again, just from one direction this time.
Or Third, I could use telekinesis to knock them off their feet, and then engage them one by one, in the order that they get up.
Unless they all get up at the same time...
Nah, I doubt they do that. I'm going with option three.
Focusing on all of their auras, and meshing them with mine, I had complete control, no resistance. It didn't take much to push them back. When I did, their momentum reversed completely, their feet slipping out from under them cartoonishly.
Everyone fell on their backs, rolling around in the grass. I stood there, waiting for the first one to get up.
Like I'd hoped, one got up sooner than the others, the guy to the left of the one straight in front. He shot up and didn't change his attack. It remained a straight stab to the neck.
I sidestepped easily and tucked my body into his rib area, closing the distance and evading his strike zone without much trouble. Once his elbow was right in my eye level, I brought my palm up and slammed it against the bone.
CRACK!
The crunching sound was so loud I worried I might've gone too far. But then I saw that it was a pretty clean break, I didn't just blow his arm off from too much force. Not that this was much better. I snapped his arm in two, pretty much, the latter half of it dangled like a twig not completely snapped in half.
He cried out in agony, and I quickly knocked him away with a sweep to the ankles. By that time, the next two guys were approaching.
Two this time. Okay.
Both went for a different approach this time, changing it up from stabbing to an overhead downswing. Easily avoidable.
Before they even had a chance to flex their arms, I ducked down and dashed forward, planting both of my fists in their guts.
I held back enough so that the fists didn't go right through their bodies, but the punch would break a few ribs and knock the wind out of them.
It sure had the intended effect. Both guys coughed up blood on the grass and lost control of their swords. Before they could be knocked into next week, I caught them by snaking my arms around their midsections and clasping my hands together on the other side, holding them like a net trap.
They were so shocked by the gut punch; they couldn't even struggle to break out of my grip. Not like they would even be able to anyway. With a hoist, I lifted them up, spun them around, and let go. Instead of slamming into any of the others, they ironically flew into the now empty spot they once stood in, skidding across the dirt like sacks of potatoes.
"Raghh!"
The next guy came at me with the opposite swing, holding it towards the ground until the last second, then swiping upward. He got about halfway through, when I caught his sword on the dull side, squeezing, and shattering it.
The shards froze in the air to my will and shot themselves at him. I knew they'd pierced his armor and hit skin when he started screaming. I could imagine it probably felt like jumping in a pit of cacti, which...really sucks to even think about. But hey, these guys picked the wrong side.
He hit the ground, and the other three exchanged nervous looks on their rears.
"Alright guys, that's four down. You might wanna try something different."
They all stood up, moving faster than the last four, and held their swords in striking positions. But this time, instead of charging me, the swords glowed, not with a completely different color of aura, just a lighter shade of the already gray metal.
Slicing the air at the same time, three lines of energy flew at me far faster than light. I figured this was a good time to show off my teleportation.
It all happened just like I'd practiced so many times, only so much faster now that I'd perfected it. I broke apart my aura and moved it faster than their strikes could hit me. I reappeared behind them and avoided any damage.
They hadn't even realized what I'd done until they watched their attacks soar off into the horizon. I kicked the middle guy right in the spine, sending him flying forward, while the other two hadn't even put the pieces together of what was going on. I just moved way too fast to discern.
I grabbed their helmets and pushed their heads hard into the ground, literally. Like their heads dug through the dirt all the way to their necks, and they stayed there, like ostriches.
Just like that, they were done. The guy whose arm had been broken passed out from the pain, and pretty much everyone else followed suit. With the force I hit them with, they were out cold, and probably would be for a while. Oh, except for the guy that got stabbed with the pieces of his own sword, he's still awake, but he's not moving any time soon.
I finished it in under a minute, and I didn't even have to kill them, or access my aura.
"Well...that's done." I glared up at Susanoo, "You want to give it a go again?"
I heard my friends whispering and talking to themselves, not able to make out what they were saying, but just by the sound of it, they couldn't believe how much stronger I'd gotten. To be honest, I'm surprised too. I think the only reason I'm remaining composed is because I'm so in the moment. Once my ball gets rolling, it doesn't stop until the fighting's over.
Susanoo practically snarled at me, "You bastard...you think you can just come here and ruin my fun?!" He stood up straight, "I won't allow it!"
He shouted, and aura exploded around him, creating a feiry outline of dark blue, complemented by little specks of lightning. It looked pretty cool, but I didn't have time to admire his aura color, because next thing I knew, he was attacking me.
He used his free hand to summon a tsunami's worth of funneling water, channeling it in the air and condensing it's point into a drill shape. It shot at me like a bullet, faster than those samurai's attacks came, I had to use more effort to dodge.
Woah! I thought. Alright, no more joking around. This guy's a little stronger.
I dove out of the water drill's way, barely avoiding it. It crashed into the ground just as I landed in a roll about twenty feet away. I watched as the water burst into a crashing wave, salt and giant collections of water flying all over the place.
Okay, this guy's destructive. If I let this play out for too long, it could get testy. Besides, I know the only reason Ouranos, Tsukuyomi, and that dragon are on standby is because they want to see what I've got, and they're stupid. Letting Susanoo have his little moment, when they should be rushing me at once. Then they might have a chance.
I needed to end this with one shot.
My eyes steeled, and I clenched up my entire body. Here we go. He won't get another chance to strike.
"Time to put you down, Susanoo!" I shouted, the red aura returning as I did so. It surrounded me with its warmth and light, and I felt empowered. If I felt in control before, then I really felt on top of the world now. I had strengthened my own energy so much; it was a far cry from what it used to be.
With one press of my legs, I darted in the air and stopped right above Susanoo, who caught up with me surprisingly fast, his head turning to spot me.
"Don't run, Matthias!" He taunted, moving his body around so he could swat at me with his sword. "It'll only take a moment!"
At this point, the others were starting to realize this wasn't a good idea, or a good situation for him. Tsukuyomi actually looked serious now, as opposed to his rather relaxed demeanor before.
"Susanoo, stop! He's going to kill you!"
"Like hell he is!" Susanoo barked. "You got your time to shine, brother! You got the sword! I'll take this moment!"
"No, you won't." I said, and flew down, ready to obliterate him.
Susanoo had just enough time to begin his swing, but it didn't matter. Even without the aura, I'd outmatch him in speed, and pretty much every department but experience.
I soared down in an instant, throwing my fist against his face. When it connected, the reaction was instant. His entire giant avatar reverberated, like a skyscraper being blown up on every floor. It literally shattered, and combusted from the inside, shooting out lightning and blue aura like fireworks.
It happened so quick I second guessed if I'd even hit him or not. Because when his avatar vibrated and internally exploded, it disappeared in dust, gone within a second.
I remained in the air, fist still outstretched. I didn't have to look too far for a body, it was down there.
Retracting my fist and uncurling it, I floated down towards him, landing just beside his fetal position.
He wasn't dead, but he was hurt bad. His energy had been broken from my attack, dropped down to the bare minimum of keeping a soul intact. As far as physical appearance, his bones hadn't caved in, and his insides weren't hanging out. In fact, it was just his busted lip and bruised nose that had ichor leakage. You would think he didn't take it too hard, but if you can sense auras...you'd know I almost killed him.
He couldn't even move, his voice sounded like he had to use all his strength to get it out. "Damn...you..."
I scowled down at him, "Just a little advice for the future; think twice before you agree to work with somebody next time."
Not wanting to use any more energy than I had to, I powered down back to normal. No matter how abundant, I still wanted to stay on the conservative side, just in case. Susanoo and those samurai are one thing, but that dragon in the back is another. Not sure how much I'm going to have to try with him.
I looked back and forth between Ouranos and Tsukuyomi, who were speechless, faces stricken with pure shock. I'd never seen Ouranos so flabbergasted.
I didn't let it boost my ego though. In fact, beating down half of the opposing team got me a little fired up. I lifted my arms, presenting myself. "Who's next? Come on! You want to kill my friends? I'm part of that group too! You're gonna have to kill me first!"
They glanced at each other, then back at me, not saying a word.
I got in my fighting position, gesturing for them to come with my fingers. "If you can. Come on, let's do this."
Tsukuyomi was the first to move, stepping out from under the hill and brandishing his sword. Not just any sword...the sword that Asuka, or well, Amaterasu talked about. Izanagi's sword. She wasn't kidding about this thing, it radiated death, not like the kind of death I'm used to feeling from opponents, but literal, infinite, endless death. It was gut wrenching.
"Not bad, boy." Tsukuyomi said, "This is an interesting turn of events. Shame we don't have time to get to know each other, but I'll tell you one thing about myself. I'm a god of persistence. You're not stopping me from becoming the most powerful being in all creation."
"No, I'm not." I agreed, keeping my eyes glued to him. "I'm stopping you from hurting anyone else."
He chuckled, "Quite the hero, are we? Still young. Never been betrayed, never had anything stolen from you, waited eons for the chance to get it back. You have no idea what it's like."
"To be jealous? Yeah, I do. It's not worth it." I tried to reason with him, even if it was probably pointless. If I could talk first, before punching, I'd always give it a shot. "Look, I know you think you're smarter than him-" Pointing at Ouranos, "-And that you're in control. But you're not. He's gonna betray you. You need to give this up now, and go back to doing whatever it was you were doing."
"All lies." Ouranos said, suavely. Despite destroying Susanoo with one hit, he seemed relatively composed. "I wouldn't dream of betraying him. He'd kill me if I tried!"
Tsukuyomi nodded, "Even still, he is a small part of all this. He merely planted the idea in my head, and gave me the drive I needed to take back what belongs to me. Now...I'm fully in control of my destiny. I have what I need, and I'm about to gain even more power."
I sighed. Well, there goes my shot. "Not happening."
We stood in a triangle now. Tsukuyomi to my right, Ouranos to my left. Ouranos had gotten stronger, no doubt, but he wouldn't be much more trouble than Susanoo. Tsukuyomi was a little stronger than that, but it was the sword that really made him dangerous. Something about just didn't sit right...
Matt, can you hear me?
The voice entered my head, and thankfully I didn't flinch or make a reaction. Tsukuyomi and Ouranos didn't notice.
Yeah, I can. Who's this?
Amaterasu.
I was a bit surprised. She sounded a little different now. Either that, or I was just used to the slight muffle her mask gave off at the big house. That's probably it.
Oh...what's up?
Listen, be wary of the sword Tsukuyomi's holding. That's the Kusanagi, the one I spoke of. Remember?
Yeah, I remember. It feels like...a massacre. Like that feeling of death you get when someone close dies.
Death itself touched that blade. Whatever you do, don't let it hit you. It kills its victim with a direct hit, and it only takes one shot. No matter how powerful you are.
Woah...that's really dangerous. But thanks for the tip.
She didn't say anything else. I wanted to ask so much more, like what happened to make her take off her mask, and obviously how she was Amaterasu, when she literally told us she was her daughter. But there wasn't time for that.
I guess we stared at each longer long enough, those two got the impression that I wasn't going to attack first. So Tsukuyomi held the honors.
He came at me in a single dash, not a run. It wasn't a speed I couldn't easily handle, but I needed to be on my guard. One slip up, and that things hits me...I'm done for.
He lifted it above his head and swung down, missing me in a sidestep by an entire foot. Quickly, he retracted the sword and tried the same attack, but I moved to the other side in a shuffle, a quick one-two.
I saw an opening to his chest and took it, dropping down to a horse stance position and driving my fist right below his sternum. The blow knocked the wind out of him, Tsukuyomi stumbled and coughed up a little clump of Ichor.
From behind, I felt Ouranos's aura flare up, and a new energy enter his own bubble. Chaotic energy. He just brought out that nifty spear of his.
Anticipating the strike, I dove to the side and rolled out of the way, just as the spear came down where I was standing, and nearly clipping some of Tsukuyomi's hair off.
He noticed, and clamped a hand to his hair. "Watch it, fool!"
Ouranos scoffed at him. "You don't have to outrun him, you dolt, you just have to stop his movement."
Tsukuyomi seemed to get whatever he was suggesting, and stood up with a smirk on his lips. "Oh yes, you're right."
I only furrowed my eyebrows. Huh? Stop my movement? Were they about to try telekinesis?
From behind, I heard Harper's voice, "Matt watch out! He controls people's shadows!"
Even if I wanted to, I couldn't do anything about it. Tsukuyomi already laughed with delight at catching me. "Too late now!"
It felt like I had been taken over with telekinesis, only this was somehow even worse. I couldn't budge or flinch a muscle, there was no room for resistance. No matter how hard I struggled or tried to break free, no matter which angle I squirmed in, it didn't work.
"I've got him now!" Tsukuyomi said, his hand outstretched, trembling with effort. "Go, kill him!"
Ouranos charged at me, spear tucked behind his back. Now I started to get a little worried. If I couldn't break out of this thing, Ouranos would erase my soul permanently, I would cease to exist.
I tugged really hard again, but nothing happened. Ouranos was really close now. He jumped up in the air and grabbed onto the spear's hilt with two hands, ready to slice me in half.
In an act of desperation, I strained all of my muscles and allowed my aura to flow throughout my body, unleashing it on the outside.
I let out a loud roar, screaming at the top of my lungs. Red light scattered around me, double my body size, pushing back the shadow grip Tsukuyomi had on me.
"Impossible!" He shrieked, a rather hoarse sound. As soon as I was free from his grip, I powered down back to normal, aiming to knock Ouranos out of the air. But he was quicker than I thought, he already anticipated I would do something to break free, so he teleported away in blue light back to his original spot. Smart.
So I went for Tsukuyomi instead. Reaching out with my mind, I wrapped my invisible force around his neck and pulled him to me.
Forward he came, lurching with his back arched. I caught him by the throat and slammed him on the ground.
"Had me going for a second there." I said, almost pausing at the sudden irony. Huh, that's usually what my opponents say when they slam me into the ground. It's nice to have the tables turn for a change. "But it won't work. I'm stronger now, and I'm not giving you any more chances to surrender."
He choked against my grip, which held much less force than if I actually wanted to strangle him. This was more of a little collar hold. "Good, because it'll never happen." He turned his head to the side, and opened his mouth as wide as it would go. "KAGUTSUCHI! KILL HIM!"
My eyes widened, finding the dragon in the background, finally making his move. So that was it, huh. He followed this guy's orders. But why? It didn't make any sense. He was stronger than all of them. Probably the only one that could give me some serious trouble right now, so why was he being bossed around?
Unless he's a mindless monster. But that can't be true. They said he was a god.
It hardly mattered. Point is, he's making his way towards me, and if that energy I felt earlier is enough to go off of...then I'm gonna have to focus solely on him.
Quickly, I stomped my boot on Tsukuyomi's wrist, the force probably breaking it, if that's what that crunching noise was.
He growled in pain, fingers loosening his grip on the Kusanagi. I ripped it away from his hand and picked it up, checking Kagutsuchi's progress...the dragon was close. Coming in hot.
I didn't take my foot off Tsukuyomi's wrist, and Ouranos didn't dare make a move on me. "Amaterasu! Catch!" Probably not the best idea in the world to throw maybe the most lethal weapon in the universe like a baseball, but I did it anyway.
It soared in the air for a second before landing right in Amaterasu's right hand. She nodded at me.
"Alright guys! You can jump in now!" I yelled, knowing that it would be really tough for me to keep up this one man show if Kagutsuchi got involved. I could handle him alone, and probably even beat him with effort, but fighting everybody at once, eventually Kagutsuchi would send an overwhelming blast I'd focus too much on, and either Ouranos or Tsukuyomi would clip me from behind, killing me.
A friendly reminder that...no matter how much stronger I got; I'd always need my friends. It's comforting, to be honest.
I jumped off Tsukuyomi's wrist, and in no time, Amaterasu was there, stabbing the death sword down on him. Or well, attempting to. He managed to kip up and back away at the last second, despite his previous injury, which was probably already healed. Gods had crazy annoying regeneration factors.
While those two began to go at it, I caught Ouranos's glare.
"Shall we?" He asked, smirking devilishly.
I knew this would get under his skin. I shrugged, "Wouldn't want it to be too much of a massacre. I've got bigger fish to fry. Besides, I think there's someone else more deserving of your defeat than me." Right on cue, I pointed to my left, and his right.
Ouranos turned to see Malachi flying at him, enraged, with blue energy leaving its trail, like a jet in the sky.
"Get him, Malachi!" I shouted encouragingly, "Defeat him for good! It's you that needs to do it!"
He didn't have time to nod or acknowledge me. Hell, he might've not even heard me. He tackled Ouranos at light speed and took him off into the distance, the two of them clashing and spinning along the way. I lost sight of them when they hit the forest.
"Talon, come on!" Sera shouted, grabbing Talon by the shoulder, "Kai needs help!"
Talon hesitated. Even though his sunglasses covered his eyes, I could see their trail. He was staring at Amaterasu.
I seriously needed to know what happened between those two. From the way they talked to each other at the Big House, you'd imagine Talon wouldn't think twice about worrying over her.
"She will be fine!" Sera tugged, "Come on! Incendiaries need to stick together!"
That word, the one I'd heard before from Talon, seemed to break him from his trance. He shook his head, "Y-Yeah, I mean, hell yeah! I'm in, Princess!"
The two of them took off towards the forest. Okay, so Tsukuyomi's covered, for now, and Ouranos is covered, that just leaves Kagutsuchi. I guess that's me.
Or well, maybe not entirely. As soon as I turned my head from watching Talon and Sera go, Harper, Annabeth, and Percy came jogging over to me, Harper looking like she wanted to say a million things, hug me, punch me in the arm, even...slap me? Okay, it's hard to tell with all these expressions she's giving.
Thankfully, she didn't do any of that. "Okay, Shark Boy. What's the plan?"
I glanced at Kagutsuchi, taking his sweet time to get here, probably for intimidation factor. But he wasn't far away. I had about ten seconds to come up with something.
"Real quick." Percy interjected, "You got any food?"
Harper shoved him, "Not the time, kelp head!"
"Percy, help Amaterasu." In my peripheral, she seemed to be doing just fine, now that she had that sword back. It seemed way more comfortable in her hands than it did Tsukuyomi's, but I figured we could go for overkill. Why not. "Harper, you can stay with me. Annabeth...you might want to stand back."
She didn't take any offense to that. "You don't have to tell me twice."
Percy twirled Riptide around, unleashing his sea green aura. "Got it." He took off in a burst of color.
Harper shifted so she was standing right next to me. "Missed you, by the way."
"Missed you too."
"So...lots of new tricks, huh?"
"Yeah, I learned a lot."
"Did you actually teleport, or were you just moving fast?"
"Harper-"
"No, seriously, I couldn't tell-"
"Harper!" I pointed, Kagutsuchi had his mouth wide open, ready to scoop us up. We needed to dodge. "Get out of the way!"
Both of us jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding getting chomped. Kagutsuchi flew past, whatever casualness he had in getting here long gone.
Because this guy started moving like a falcon. He swooped up and stood straight in the sky, with his tail pointed towards the ocean. He didn't stand still for long, I sensed energy being condensed in his mouth, little specks of yellow light poking out of his mouth to match.
"He's about to fire a blast! Get ready!"
Kagutsuchi wasted no time in releasing his blast. He opened his mouth and fire came out, looking a lot like my Cannon, only bigger. I knew I couldn't just dodge or teleport from that. If it hit the ground, it would destroy the Earth.
"Block it!" I yelled, and Harper brought up her sword, unleashing its aura in a wide shield. I did the same, pushing out mine in front of me to act as a wall.
His fire hit our makeshift shields, and I wasn't expecting such a blowback.
We both stood firm, in perfect formation to block an attack like this, but we still got pushed into next week. I don't know how our shields didn't break on impact. They might as well have, once that fire made contact, they cracked all over the place, barely holding themselves together.
"Damn, he's strong!"
Harper's teeth were gritted with effort. "Yep, could've told you that!"
"Gonna have to...kick things up a notch!" Really kick things up a notch. I ignited the red aura around me, which healed my shield a little, but didn't get rid of the blast. I wanted to get rid of the blast.
I glanced down at the watch, knowing it was time. I didn't want to have to break this thing out if I could help it, but this was an extreme situation. I should've expected it.
Taking one hand off for a second, I clamped it over the metal on my wrist. The Master bolt's energy emerged, surrounding me in lightning. I felt ten billion times better, feeling the pressure of Kagutsuchi's blast against me melt away.
With one hard swipe, I got rid of the shields and dispersed his blast into smoke. Harper stood next to me, wide eyed.
She had her hand on the Eros sword, meaning she could feel my energy. "Woah...Matt, holy shit."
It was pretty outstanding, if I say so myself. I try not to brag, but this...man, this feels good. I'm way stronger than I was before, way stronger. That training really paid off, and mastering the bolt only made it all the better. I know how much energy to tap into now, how much to combine with, and how much to throw. It was like an entirely different world from before.
"Alright, Harper, act as a decoy."
"Uh..."
"It'll be fine. Just get him to charge at you. At the last second, I'll come in and deck him in the snout. Sound good?"
"Alright." She leapt off to the side and sliced at the air. Pink energy left the sword and shot at Kagutsuchi like an arrow. It hit him in the face, only smacking his head to the side a little, but he recovered quickly.
"Over here, big lizard!" Harper waved at him, using the sword as a beacon. "That's right, you can eat me if you want! I won't resist! I uh...taste good!"
I snickered, and she glared at me. "Shut up!"
"No, no, I'm sure you taste good, seriously." Yeah, I know that sounds dirty, but thankfully she didn't realize it as I did. She just shook her head.
Kagutsuchi took the bait, ignoring me entirely. He glared at Harper with slitted yellow eyes, and snorted out a big cloud of breathy air.
"Alright, he's looking." She whisper yelled, "Get ready!"
I nodded at her, clenching my fist. Kagutsuchi flapped his wings and came down hard, nose diving headfirst for less air resistance. Despite how big he is, it didn't take long at all for him to reach land.
As soon as his nose crossed the grassy hill, I jumped into action. He opened his mouth, ready to bite Harper in half, but I made it just in time, using all of my weight and momentum to hit him right above his upper row of fangs.
Now, with the bolt helping me, I had plenty of force to do some damage. Kagutsuchi's entire body changed course, veering to the right. A loud screech came from his throat and echoed out everywhere, likely reaching Manhattan back home with its volume.
Harper grinned, "Nice!"
I didn't stop there. With his body leaving the island again, I came up with an idea for a follow-up attack. I ran up to him, passing his tail, then his back legs, then his stomach, and finally making it to his face, just as he cleared the edge of the hill.
Pulling an action stunt, I jumped off the hill as far as I could, and landed right on his lower row of fangs, standing in between a gap of two teeth.
Kagutsuchi made a noise of protest, and tried to shake me off, but it didn't work. I'd already grabbed onto his snout for dear life, hanging on with an iron grip.
"Time to take a bath, big guy!" I stepped off of his teeth, but held on to the snout. With my momentum and enhanced strength, the bolt backing me up all the way, I threw his snout downward, pushing his entire body towards the water. Even though he was much bigger, and the physics should've never worked this way, you would've thought Kagutsuchi turned into a javelin. He flew forward with his tail up in the air, crashing nose first into the water, sending waves flying like an underwater atom bomb.
To avoid getting soaked, I willed the wind to push me back on the hill. I landed softly and watched as Kagutsuchi disappeared below the depths.
His loud screeches sunk further and further, prompting me to turn around, facing Annabeth and Harper.
Harper just crossed her arms. "Wow."
Annabeth shook her head in amazement. "Boy, am I glad you showed up. What on Earth did Zeus teach you?!"
"A ton of cool techniques. We-"
"AGH! NO!"
The shout made all of our heads turn. About fifty feet away, near the barrier, Tsukuyomi was getting his butt handed to him by Amaterasu and Percy.
I didn't know how and the hell he'd managed to avoid Amaterasu's strikes with that sword, but he somehow managed, more than likely melting into his own shadow, kind of like how Nico does, only faster and with less drawback. He, however, did not avoid some of Percy's attacks. The small cuts on his collarbone and arm told me that.
"I will not be denied my destiny!" He said, dodging another of Amaterasu's swipes, blocking a kick from Percy. "I won't let you have that sword!"
Amaterasu stood back, holding the sword with both hands. "Just accept what you deserve!" On cue, she struck the Kusanagi across the air, sending out a line of energy just like Harper did. Only it wasn't pink, it was cosmic black. Tsukuyomi's eyes widened, he managed to weave his upper body to the side, just missing a graze from that strike.
Instead, it hit the barrier covering the cave. When it didn't bounce off or just disperse, I was surprised, it actually looked like it...absorbed the attack.
No, when I looked closer, it actually damaged it. The hit left a long crack right down the middle, the rest of the barrier glitching back and forth, like it was being drained of its energy.
Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi realized what happened at the same time, but their reactions were completely different. Amaterasu's mouth parted in horror, while Tsukuyomi's mouth spread into a smile.
"I see. That's what we've been missing..."
I didn't know what, but I knew he was about to do something. "We gotta help." I started forward, but with perfect timing, the ocean erupted below me.
My eyes darted towards the cliff's edge, spotting a flash of red coming right at me. It was so fast, I didn't even have time to register what it was, let alone put my arms up in defense.
It smacked me hard all across the front of my body, and sent me flying through the air. I hit the ground after soaring for a bit, and rolled like a tin can.
Finally, after a rollercoaster ride through the dirt, I stopped on my belly, feeling a throb course through my chest. I groaned as I pushed myself up, that had to be only one person...
Kagutsuchi.
He didn't even fly up the cliff to attack me, he stayed on the side and used his tail so I wouldn't see him, and unleashing his energy at the last second so I wouldn't sense him. Very clever. I may have judged him wrongly when I guessed him to be a mindless monster before.
And that attack hurt. I won't hide it. He was tough, and I couldn't let many more of those tail whips hit me. Especially with Tsukuyomi scheming and grinning like that.
Across the distance, I saw him thrust his hand out towards Percy. I knew what was coming...shadow control.
Percy stiffened, "W-Woah, what's happening?!"
"What are you going to do, Amaterasu? Can't kill him!" Tsukuyomi whipped his hand toward her, and Percy went flying, Riptide pointed to stab her. I couldn't believe it, Tsukuyomi had complete control over him, just by manipulating his shadow. He didn't just have the ability to stop someone, he could puppeteer their every move.
Amaterasu weaved out of Percy's stab and kicked him in the side, knocking him away. That made for the opening Tsukuyomi wanted. He dove forward and grabbed Amaterasu from under the arms, gripping her wrist.
She tried to struggle, but it was no use. He hadn't just grabbed her, he controlled her shadow too, making it even harder to break free.
"What are you doing?!" She yelled, doing her best to move, but it only came out as small convulsions. Tsukuyomi pushed her forward, closer to the barrier.
"I should've realized it sooner. The sword will break the barrier, but only when it's wielded by its original owner!"
One glance at Kagutsuchi, who had left his cover from under the cliff, and Tsukuyomi, I knew we were close to trouble. I had to focus on the dragon, or else we'd all get hurt.
"Harper, help her!"
"Got it!" But before she could even think about it, Annabeth screamed, and pointed up at Kagutsuchi.
"Look out!"
The dragon had charged up a blast without me even knowing it. What? How did he do that without emitting an energy surge? That had to be...impossible. Unless he was just that good at hiding it, but even still.
He launched a massive fire pillar towards Annabeth, threatening to burn her away. Harper immediately dove after her, sword propped up in her hand, arm straight, like she was offering it to the fire.
At the last second, I saw a pink aura shield go up, and then the fire hit them, engulfing them completely with its abundance.
Kagutsuchi didn't sit still and do any of this. When he began his blast, he started flying towards the island again. Getting closer now, I intended to meet him halfway and break that blast, hopefully knocking him away for a second...then maybe I can help Amaterasu. I didn't know why Tsukuyomi wanted that barrier broken so bad, but it couldn't be good.
I jumped off the side of the cliff and reared my fist back, ready to give it all to him.
But Kagutsuchi surprised. His eyes flickered towards me, his right hand plucking me out of the air with an intense, crushing grip. It was big enough to wrap around me three times over, like some kind of hamster ball. I tried to break out by pushing up with what little wiggle room I had, but it was no use. His grip had already been closed fully, and it was too tight for even me to resist.
Suddenly, I felt my entire body get pulled forward, leaving my stomach behind, which sent vomit up my throat. Then promptly back down when he pushed me back the opposite way, letting go.
I shot out of his fist like a cannonball, heading straight for the ground. It was too fast, I had no time to fly or stop myself, so I just tucked my arms and head in, and braced myself for a rough landing.
BOOM!
Oh yeah, I hit the ground hard, going deep enough to crash through rocks. I felt my boots against soft dirt, and my head against solid stone. So I had definitely been buried alive. It didn't hurt so much as it felt so weird. You ever been buried alive? Well, I wouldn't try it. Dirt will get everywhere. Especially in the spots you want it least.
All it took was a flex of energy to disintegrate the dirt and rocks around me, creating a flat crater for me to stand in. I hopped out of it to see Kagutsuchi still firing his blast at Harper and Annabeth.
My heart began to race a little. This wasn't good. Harper had a strong defense, but even she couldn't last much longer against his continuous assault.
I looked over at Tsukuyomi. To my horror, he'd forced Amaterasu all the way over to the barrier, and still had her by the wrist, pulling it back to strike for her.
"NO!" I shouted, not doing any good whatsoever. The Kusanagi directly hit the barrier, and it immediately exploded, releasing a horrible cracking sound, between giant firecrackers and a breach bomb, knocking Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi back, and spreading purple energy in a fading ring.
It was gone. The barrier was out of the way now, leaving an empty, dark hole. Anyone could walk in.
Tsukuyomi sat up, "Yes...Yes! It's open!" He scrambled over to a stunned Amaterasu and grabbed the sword, pulling it from her weak grip like I did to him earlier.
"Crap!" I said as he ran straight through the cave hole and into the darkness. Okay, I knew that couldn't be good. I came here dominating, showing off my new power, but...I took too long, messed around too much. I let the tables turn back on me.
Stupid!
I shook my head, "No, no, we can fix this. There's still time." Letting out a long breath, I knew what I had to do. Even if I didn't plan on it, I knew the situation called for it. I would have to give it all to end this quickly and chase after him. Kagutsuchi was the main threat, but the mystery behind Tsukuyomi's desire to get in that cave...worried me. I knew I needed to catch up with him as soon as possible.
So I clamped my hand over the watch again, growling with how long it takes to activate the actual bolt. Only a couple of seconds, but that's two seconds too long.
Not knowing what else to do to stop that blast from destroying Harper and Annabeth, I let my instincts take over. Kyros!
Okay, Kyros. Let's see what he can do.
I didn't know where he was, but he answered right back. Yes, young master?
You close?
Yes.
See that dragon? His eyes are exposed, fly into them with your beak, now!
I knew eyes were the one weak spot on every physical being. You poke them as hard as you can, it doesn't matter how strong you are, it's gonna do something.
And thank Olympus Kyros didn't argue. He just said, on it!
He must've been closer than I thought, because it only took half a second for him to appear from the clouds and dive into Kagutsuchi's head space.
I knew he hit his eye when Kagutsuchi screeched and recoiled. I wanted to pump my fist. Yes! He stopped the blast!
It died down when Kyros hit him. I waited for the fire to clear so I could see the two girls. Please let them be okay...
His blast stopped from his mouth, and melted away gradually down the line, like falling dominoes, you had to wait until it reached the end. When it finally did, I saw Harper and Annabeth, still alive. The former with her arm wrapped around the latter's shoulder, pink shield one second away from being shattered.
I sighed with relief, turning on Kagutsuchi. I felt a little fired up at that, combined with Tsukuyomi getting away...
I'm pissed off.
"Alright, I've had enough." I pulled my hand away from the watch, and the Master Bolt came with it, a two-foot-long cylinder of pure, wild energy, under control in my grip. I bent my knees a little and aimed with my free hand, putting Kagutsuchi's midsection in the crook of my thumb and index finger. Hit the heart, just like Zeus said.
Since I'd mastered it, I could gauge the bolt's energy, determing how much power to use, and what it would take to beat an opponent. For Kagutsuchi though, I knew I needed all of it, no doubt. He was tough. If I wanted to do any fatal damage, one hundred percent was the key.
So that's what I powered it up to. It whirred with energy, sounding like a hazard alarm, the lightning crackled all over the sky, blowing storm clouds here and there, creating new ones to replace the old. It was awesome. I got chills every time I used this thing.
Finally, I threw it.
As hard as I could, putting my back into it. The bolt travelled so fast, I didn't even get to see it's blur flash from here to Kagutsuchi, I just immediately saw the dragon get split in half, a blue line glowing in the clean cut.
He roared and screeched with pain, throwing his head back to let out the loudest noise any creature could produce. I almost felt bad for him, considering he didn't seem to have any control, or free will. But I knew I couldn't think that way, if I hesitated, we could all die. These guys would take advantage of that.
I thought about firing another shot when he flapped his wings, then retracted that thought when said wings went up in flames. He was being burned from the electricity back to front.
Man, maybe I should've went for the head. I get he's trying to kill us, but I didn't want him to suffer.
A bit too late for that, once those wings were gone, the upper half of Kagutsuchi fell into the ocean, like before, only I had a feeling he wasn't coming back up this time.
With that out of the way, I could check on the others.
"Guys!" I jogged over, "Harper, Annabeth, you alright?"
Harper still had her arm around the daughter of Athena, both of them coughing from the smoke. "Yep, just...peachy."
"What happened?!" Annabeth asked, head darting around wildly. "Did you- oh..." She saw that Kagutsuchi was no longer in the sky.
"Shot him down with the bolt. He's gone. Now we need to check on Amaterasu and Percy."
As we ran over to their area, Harper noticed the barrier had been broken. "Oh no...dammit! He got through!"
"He broke the barrier?" Annabeth said, craning her neck to see.
"Okay guys, what's the big deal with this barrier anyway? Where are we?"
"It's a long story, but to sum it up, this is the entrance to Yomi, Shinto Hell-" Harper started.
Annabeth couldn't help herself to explain. "-Tsukuyomi wants to go in there to find his mother, Izanami, the Primordial-"
"And absorb her energy to get stronger-"
"-We need to stop him!"
I scrunched my face at both of them, "...Couldn't one person have said that?"
They both groaned and pushed me, giving me a unified, "Shut up!"
We made it over to the downed Amaterasu and Percy. Annabeth and Harper went to check on him, while I knelt next to Amaterasu, offering my hand.
"You okay?"
She blinked several times. That barrier blast must've heavily disoriented her. Tsukuyomi had used her as a shield after all and made her take the brunt of that insane explosion.
I thought of the number three and held up that many fingers. "How many fingers am I holding up?"
"Three."
I was surprised. "Oh nice, you got your vision back."
"No, I can just read your mind. I'm still dizzy."
"Well, whatever." I grabbed her hand forcibly and pulled her up, making sure she didn't fall. "Is Percy alright, guys?"
"He's fine!" Annabeth shot back, helping Percy up, who was holding his side from Amaterasu's kick.
"We can't let Tsukuyomi find our mother..." She croaked, and cleared her throat so I could hear better. "...If he absorbs her power, he could become too powerful for even you to handle."
"I see. And with that sword...that's a bad combination." I nodded, "Alright, I'll go in and stop him. You guys stay here."
"What?" Harper protested, looking at me like I was crazy. "You're not going in there by yourself."
"I second that." Amaterasu said, "I must go. I once briefly ventured into Yomi, I can be a guide."
"No." I let her go to stand on her own, and she was thankfully able to. That would've been awkward, if she just fell right back down. I would've looked like a real dick right there. "Guys, I can take it from here. You've struggled and fought for five days while I got to take it easy training. Let me do the struggling from here on out." Well, the training wasn't all that easy, but they didn't have to know that.
Percy gently pulled himself away from Annabeth's grip to lock eyes with me. He looked dead serious. "Don't be stupid, man. We're a team. We go together, or not at all."
"Besides-" Amaterasu urged. "-I am the leader of this pantheon. I've turned my back on it for too long...I must redeem myself and stop Tsukuyomi, no matter what it takes. I'm going, whether you like it or not."
I wasn't sure what she meant by turning her back on the pantheon and redeeming herself, but it was the way she said it. She didn't give a shit if I had gotten stronger or not, she wouldn't let me stop her from doing this. I could literally feel the drive in her emotions. She would stop him even if it killed her.
"Alright. Well, we'd better get going. He can't have gone too far!"
Together, we all jogged up to the gates of Yomi. I took a last glance at the sky, not knowing if it would be the last time I saw it for a while. I'm thinking hell, then I'm thinking a Tartarus situation. Traversing the dark paths for hours, maybe even days, without stopping.
It gave me chills to think about, but I couldn't be afraid. I'm better now than back then. I can take it.
Kyros, wherever you are, buddy, stay safe. I'll be back in a little while.
He heard it, and relayed a message back to me. Of course, young master. You be safe as well.
Just before I took the last step in the mortal world, I prayed that Malachi, Sera, and Talon would be okay. I hoped that Malachi gave it to his father, finally, after all the years of abuse and manipulation. He deserved to have that, to defeat him, and bring ultimate peace to himself. Even if it's a dangerous, bloody path, it's the only one that leads to what he needs. I know that now.
I had been so hyped up to face him, but when I got here...he was secondary. That thought wasn't even really on my mind. I came, and did what needed to be done, for the most part.
Maybe Zeus was right. All of that hate and desire to struggle with Ouranos...maybe that's beneath me.
Maybe my only real enemy is hatred. Like he said. Because that fight doesn't have to go to me, and that honor isn't even really mine.
I think it belongs to Malachi. No matter how personal my feelings are with Ouranos, it pales in comparison to his.
Smiling, I thought. Do it, man. Send him away, for good.
No need for telepathy on that one. Malachi didn't need my encouragement. He had it all right next to him, Talon and Sera were there.
With that thought in mind, I led the path into the darkness of Yomi.
(000)
Wow, I really just wrote this one back-to-back, didn't I? I couldn't even tell. I just had a lot of fun writing that fight. Hope you all liked it!
Next one, we finally get Talon, Malachi, and Sera fighting together. We need more moments with these three, and I plan to deliver. Incendiaries never die.
Anyway, stay tuned!
Until Next Time.