Arthur:
"So you gutted him with earth spikes? Fucking metal."
"Yeah, it took a good bit of juice to do though." Percy muttered as our group and a now rescued Grover made its way toward the boat, "Didn't think the bastard was ever going to die with how much I was hitting him."
I heard Michael snort from my side, "He forgets to mention the part where he made giant rock fists come out of the ground and smashed the damn thing into a bloody pulp."
That put a pleased smile on my face. It was comparable feet to a 16-year-old book Percy who had summoned giant fists made of water at the Roman border. Effectively I had pushed Percy to achieve about the same thing a whole 3 years earlier than he would have.
Very good progress.
Note to self though, do a bit of training when I get back and create some flashier techniques. I can't be totally outdone in the cool department by Percy in every way.
I should have some pretty good practice dummies to use as well. That league of dark lords sounded like it needed slaying, and if the rewards were similar, I needed to do it anyway to build The Colt.
Might need to steal Percy to help for the rest of the summer though.
In fact…
As we approached the beach where the boat was moored I shot a glance at Percy, "How long until we make it back to Florida once we set off?"
Percy pursed his lips in thought, "If I push how fast we can go without breaking the boat apart from the sheer friction? I don't know, about 5ish hours.."
My brain did the calculations, considering we were about smack dab in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle and the average flight to Bermuda itself was about 5 hours and some change. Percy would be pushing us to near airline speeds in a small boat.
This was about to be an incredibly fun ride.
I nodded, "Push us as fast as you can. I can also manipulate the air to reduce friction and drag on us even more as well. The faster we make it back to Florida, the faster we can get these 4 onto an Airliner and back to the camp. Time is of the essence."
"The four of us? What about you two?" Silena asked.
"Percy and I drove down here." I shrugged, "Besides, Percy isn't exactly able to fly around in the air because of gramps and we have some business to take care of in other parts of the country."
Percy perked up, "Oh so we are going after those other lords then?"
"Don't see why not. We got the rest of the summer to do so and if it's anything like the bloodsuckers, people are in danger as long as they are around." I reasoned with him, "Unless you just wanna chill out at camp, I can probably handle it myself."
"Not on your life." Percy said, "Someone has to be there to pull your ass out of the fire, and besides, it does sound a lot more fun than foot races and dealing with Mr. D all day."
"Hell yeah. I'll contact Uriel once we get back to the mainland and see if he can point us in the right direction."
"Does anyone else find it crazy that you two are doing monster-hunting work for an entirely different pantheon? Or that said pantheon even exists at all?" Silena said as if we were the crazy ones.
"Is it really that much of a shocker? Your mother literally came from a primordia's nutsack that fell into the sea. The world's largest religion that has held the title for thousands of years existing really isn't much of a stretch."
"I guess not." Grover spoke up, "But question, do they have the equivalent of Pan in their Pantheon?"
"I don't think so?" I replied unsure of whether they did or not.
Certain Angels, Archangels, and other beings were responsible for certain aspects. Michael was the patron of soldiers and the sick for example. That much I did know, but was there one for nature?
The conversation continued with Grover and an interested Annabeth continued even as we made it to the boat and began to climb in. It however ended with Grover's question on how the Biblical faction viewed enchilada's going unanswered as Annabeth changed the topic.
"Wait. Percy, did you say you could get us back in around 5 hours? We'd be going as fast as an airplane to do that."
Ah, she finally caught on.
Percy just smirked in response, "You might all want to hold onto something then."
The other two Demigods and Grover took the hint and dropped down to hang on for dear life.
The Daughter of Athena narrowed her eyes, "Jackson you wouldn't da-"
Her sentence was left unfinished as the boat suddenly shot forwards as if someone had strapped a rocket engine to it and let loose. The only thing preventing her from being thrown into the ocean was me catching her as she flew back into me.
Annabeth didn't have powers like Percy and I, but she was still a Demigod. A daughter of a war goddess to be exact and still very superhuman. At 13 years old she could probably shatter a mortal body builder's skull with just a punch.
A painful fact that I was reminded of as her arms wrapped around my sternum to hang on for dear life. I swear I felt some of my ribs creak under the iron-like grip.
After what I was about to do, they'd probably be more than cracked in the next few moments.
"Better hold on blondie, because we're about to go into warp speed." I cackled and activated my air manipulation.
!
Skill leveled up!
Aerokinesis, Lvl (14): An ability that allows you to manipulate wind.
- 46 MP per minute
The boat's speed suddenly doubled as the air drag became almost zero. All the while the roar of the wind and sea drowned out my laughter and Annabeth's increasing screams.
Half a day later, a drive in a packed 67 Chevy, and a handful of broken ribs, we were ordering their tickets from the Miami Airport.
A swipe of my Lotus card later and I was handing them their tickets and the fleece, "It's a direct flight and first class. You should have a fast and comfortable flight to New York."
Michael nodded, "Thanks a lot, both of you. Without Percy and you, we'd still be neck deep up shit creek. Not bad for a kid who could barely even swing a sword correctly a year ago."
Percy chuckled from my side at that but it didn't escape Michael's attention.
"I don't know what you're laughing about Jackson. You still couldn't hit the broad side of a barn if you were two feet away from it."
"Yeah well, bows are stupid anyways." Was Percy's brilliant reply.
I rolled my eyes, "Unlike Percy I've gotten better at my shortcomings through sheer practice. Next time I make my way to camp I'll show you by whooping your ass."
"I'm sure." The head Apollo counselor laughed and slapped my shoulder, "Be seeing you both around."
Silena and Grover exchanged their goodbyes as well and the three of them began making their way inside the airport towards their terminal.
Annabeth on the other hand didn't follow and instead stayed put.
"Um Annabeth, you know that flight leaves in like 20 minutes right?" Percy asked.
"Oh, I know." Annabeth answered before taking her ticket and ripping it in half, "Problem is, I'm sticking with you two."
Percy and I looked at each other before looking back at her, "Really?"
"Of course. Someone has to make sure the both of you don't fry that single poor brain cell you both share and besides." She said as she made her way around us and back towards the car, "I already told Percy last year that I'm sick of sitting around camp as a year rounder with almost nothing to do. Normally I can't really go anywhere since monsters would be constantly attacking me, but now I have two overpowered demigods to help fight them off."
She popped open the passenger side door and sent a smirk at us, "Oh and I call shotgun. Sorry Seaweed brain, but it seems you get to ride in the back."
"What!? But the front seat is a bench! There's plenty of room for the three of us to sit up front!" Percy protested.
"True." Annabeth hummed as she put a finger up to her lips in mock thought, "But then I wouldn't be able to lean back and stretch my legs."
"You can't!"
"Already did. Called shotgun, remember?"
The blonde ducked into the car and my best friend turned towards me.
"Sparky you can't let her stuff me in the back! It's your car, overrule her or something!"
Putting my hand to my to rub my nonexistent beard in thought I hummed, "I normally would, but not only did she already call the sacred rule of shotgun. She's also a blonde and as a son of a sea god once made fun of me for while hunting vampires, blondes are in fact my weakness. Sorry waterboy."
Yes, I did in fact hold that grudge.
The light of hope that suddenly died from Percy's eyes made my betrayal all the more worth it.
"WinchesterI just want you to know, you're both a traitor and a simp." Where his parting words as he slumped his head and made his way towards the back seat.
I chuckled, "At least I'm not riding in the bitch seat."
"Pump it up your ass Winchester"
Ah, yes. The corruption of Percy's vocabulary continued.
We had been in around Chicago for about a week and a half now. While Annabeth was dragging Percy around the museum of science and industry in Chicago, I found myself sipping coffee and eating a stack of flapjacks in a diner.
Damn good flapjacks I might add.
I wasn't here for the food though. I was mostly waiting on a certain someone to hurry his ass up and not be late.
"You know I have to say I'm rather impressed by what you and that other Demigod accomplished in under a week." A familiar voice admitted from the seat across from me.
You know judging from all our encounters thus far, I was beginning to see a pattern.
"Yeah well, that tends to happen when two exceptionally powerful demigods work together," I said and took in Uriel's appearance.
It seems today he had forsaken the robes he normally wore for a rather well-made suit.
"True, true." The Archangel admitted, "You've also acquired a daughter of the goddess of wisdom as well into your party. An excellent team makeup. Young Perseus brings sheer strength and power into the fold, you bring range and speed into the mix, and this Annabeth excels in history, lore, and strategy. Very good indeed. It would seem I do not have to waste time in teaching you the benefits of allies and versatility."
To be fair, it was kinda by chance that we were all traveling together.
"Thank you, but to get into the meat and potatoes. What do you have next for me?"
"Eager to slay more monsters, are we Arthur?"
"My mother is the Goddess of the Hunt." I shrugged, "It's in my blood to do so."
"I suppose that is true." Uriel mussed as another thick file folder suddenly appeared in his hands and was handed to me, "Then this should be right up your alley. These fur balls have been causing trouble up in Michigan for a while now."
Flipping the file over I scanned through it briefly, "Werewolves huh?"
"A particularly violent pack of them have broken away from the more civilized tribes that occupy the American west and have set up shop there. Much like the vampires you slew in the northeast, these monstrosities have been purposely eating and turning humans." Uriel explained.
"So exterminate them all, got it."
"Perhaps not so Arthur." He chided, "Have you ever heard the term Positive Feedback Loop?"
"I have."
"Then if you look into the files you'll see that this pack has done just that. They've targeted females more often than males in the cases where they turn people. Can you guess why?"
It seemed that Uriel wasn't joking when he said I would be an apprentice under him if I accepted his offers. The man truly was trying to teach me.
"Because if they turn a male that's a simple plus one to their population or pack size. If they turn a female it's a plus one with the ability to get them pregnant, turning linear growth into exponential growth as it goes on. The more females they turn, the faster the pack grows with time." I reasoned.
Uriel nodded, "Yes, and as they have been at this for a good while already, so there are surely children present."
"So once again exterminate them all. Got it."
An interested gleam appeared in the Archangels eye, "You would slay the children as well?"
What point was he trying to make here?
"Uh yeah, they're monsters, not humans." I said, "When a pack of wolves sets up shop outside of your farm to prey on your livestock and family, you don't just kill the adults. You kill the pups as well so the problem doesn't come back after a few years."
"Interesting." Uriel mussed, "But to not even give them a chance? Surely that is hypocritical considering you even offered young Ethan a chance to change his ways."
Ah trying to hit me with the low blows huh? Also, how did he even know about that?
He really was a freaking black ops angel.
"Ethan was given a chance because, at the end of the day, he was human. He doesn't have a hard-wired prey drive that drives him to hunt innocent people. He didn't purposely target people and turn them into monsters." I replied tersely, "Werewolves and Vampires on the other hand purposely target humans to grow their packs and family. In that sense, they are literal plagues upon humanity."
"So I take it you hold humanity above all else?" Uriel summarized, "Strange considering you are only but a quarter human at the most Arthur."
"I am, true." I confirmed, "And yet so far the only interaction I have had with the supernatural has been nothing but negatives. The first Devil I met slaughtered innocent people and the second kidnapped and was beating a young girl in broad daylight. And every monster from both pantheons has tried its damn best to kill me. So excuse me if I decide to side with humanity."
Part of my motivation for taking the quest to kill that blue-haired asshole at the airport was because of this. Not so much because he killed Richard or the quest rewards itself, but because of all the humans he had killed during the attack.
As long as I was around, I wasn't going to allow the supernatural to bully humanity just because they had the power to do so.
Which sounded a bit hypocritical considering my family was the Greek Gods themselves who had a bit of a reputation for that sort of thing, but old Rick said they had mellowed out over the centuries.
Besides, it wasn't like I had the power to challenge them.
Yet.
"Your father didn't share that view. He chose to see the good in all beings." Uriel responded.
"Tough shit. If it preys on humanity, it's going to die. If it leaves humanity alone, it can live. No exceptions." I shot back, "If you don't like it, shove it up your ass."
The Archangel held my gaze for barely a moment before letting out a deep chuckle, "Arthur, you shall find me the last one to disagree with you about slaying these monstrosities. It was often a point of contention between your father and me. I already foresee us working far better together than Richard and I ever did."
I nodded at that. Thankful it seemed I got a cool Angel in my corner and not some morally righteous one.
"But in this case I believe you should make the exception my boy."
"Why?" I asked in confusion. Where we not on the same page like I thought?
"Think of this as another lesson. You know the expression "Don't Burn Bridges. You'll be surprised how many times you'll have to cross the same river?"?" Uriel started, "Well in that same vain, don't make any unnecessary enemies. Especially when you can make allies and those that are thankful towards you instead."
I hummed in thought, "How so?"
"Simple. All it takes is one of those children to survive to either spread word of what you have done or to personally vow to seek revenge against you. Why make a potential enemy when instead you could save the children who had no choice to be born as they are and save those poor mothers. Why let some see you as a Villain when for the nearly the same amount of effort, you could instead be the Hero?" He sagely said to me.
Hmm, he did have a point.
"What would I do with them than? I can't just let a bunch of Werewolves and their spawn run around the country side." I argued.
"True. But I believe I can help you in that regard. For those you save simply give me a ring. I shall either send them to the civilized packs out west where they will be no problem, or I will take them to the underworld where other members of their species live. You do remember when I mentioned that the Biblical underworld hosts more than just Devils and Fallen yes?" He lectured.
"But why would you go out of your way to do that?"
"Simple. To help your image and possible own information network in the future. You will find those who owe their lives and freedom to you can be quite grateful and will be willing to go the extra mile to help you should you need it." Uriel continued, "We shall be working together for decades or even possibly centuries Arthur. It will benefit me as greatly as it does you to have such resources available."
So an Archangel older than most civilizations was incredibly wise. Who knew?
I let out a sigh, "Fine. I'm convinced."
"And before I forget Arthur, what would you like in return for the last mission you carried out for me? I believe I mentioned that information was never free and you have now done me another favor." Uriel cusped his hands in a business-like fashion, "Would you still like to know about your father's lineage?"
Meh. That was kind of just a side thing at this point. Especially since it seemed like I would need to do extra steps beyond just learning the information to get any powers from it. Which considering I still had a whole pantheon on my mothers' side to gain powers from, wasn't worth wasting a favor from such a powerful being.
But I needed something else at the moment.
"As I'm sure you are somehow aware of, I will be giving Abyss Watcher to my elder brother Cadius at some point in the near future." I explained.
The Watcher nodded, "I have heard. A smart move on your part. While a powerful artifact, Cadius is indeed far beyond your reach to challenge in a straight fight at the moment. By giving it to him freely, you avoid possible death and possibly gain his favor by recognizing his right as the eldest child to inherit the family weapon."
I nodded, appreciating the fact Uriel recognized by play for what it was. Artemis wasn't nearly as understanding.
"Cadius is said to be one of the strongest of the youngest generation of Devils. Figured it wouldn't hurt to not have him pissed at me for a weapon I don't use that much." I shrugged.
Which was true. Now that I had working guns and my magic was finally getting to the point where I could use it constantly without draining my reserves, I found myself using Abyss Watcher less and less.
'Besides.' I thought to myself, 'I could always just challenge him to take it back years from now when I'm stronger.'
"But I would still like a weapon to replace it. I don't use blades that much, but when I do they often come extremely handy." I reasoned, "So would you have any idea where I could find a replacement legendary sword for Abyss Watcher?"
"Hmm." Uriel hummed in thought, "A few do already pop into mind. Though if you are open to weapons from outside the Greek and Biblical pantheons, that will broaden your choices quite significantly. Any particular preferences?"
"A few." I admitted, "Besides the fact it needs to be a sword of some kind, I'd like it to work with my lightning powers. Also yeah, I'm fine with a weapon from other pantheons."
"Lightning-based weapons then. I already have a few ideas." Uriel muttered in thought,
"I shall do my own research and reach out for leads on what you desire. By the time you finish with this hunt, I should have the information. It will be up to you to retrieve said weapon yourself."
!
New quest issued!
Quest type: Normal
You're Angel sensei has given you another quest! You have some rabid dogs to put down in Michigan and innocents to save!
Rewards:
Colt Cylinder
Note If you want to support me or read five chapters ahead in advance here's the link - https://www.patreon.com/c/AWinSter.
The latest chapters there are double the size of usual ones.
Also kindly show me your support through comments and stones