Chapter 29
Aidan
Aidan got to his feet and couldn't hide as his mouth curved into a smile. The group of boys were slowly backing up as the demigods were rushing forward.
"Christopher!"
He turned to see Cecelia on top Arcadia, galloping towards him. She held out her hand and he grabbed it and she pulled him on to the back of the horse.
"You okay?" Cecelia asked as they circled around and went behind the group of Ares who were forming a Phalanx formation.
"Yeah I'm good just a cut into my thigh. The meaty part though, nothing serious." Aidan replied. "Also you called me by my fake name."
Cecelia smiled. "Old habits die hard."
Arcadia came to halt near a make-shift first-aid area. Aidan dropped down to his feet and Will stepped forward to him. "You again? Where are you hurt now?"
"Just a cut on my thigh."
"Sit down and spread your legs." Will ordered pointing to a portable chair that they had set up.
"Don't make it weird." Aidan sat down and did as he was told.
Will gathered some bandages, he knelt down to look a the wound on Aidan's thigh. Aidan saw him frown.
"What's wrong?"
"There's no cut." Will stood up. "There's a tear in the pants but there's no wound there."
"What?" Aidan frowned.
Will shrugged. "You sure you got hit?"
"I don't know." Aidan was sure that he had gotten hit, he remembered the pain but he kept his mouth shut.
Will and Cecelia shared a look but said nothing as well.
"Hey Aidan." Zed stepped forward. "You okay?"
"Yeah." He stood up. "I'm fine." Aidan allowed himself to take a sideways glance at Will, who was still looking at him skeptically.
"Alright, here." Zed unslung Aidan's sword and tossed him it, along with his gauntlet. "Come on, let's go."
"Yeah." Aidan slid the gauntlet on and slung the sword over his shoulder. A voice at the back of Christopher's mind wondered how Zed had gotten the weapons. Last time he checked, the sword was in the shape of the cylinder that Lucian had turned it into.
Zed pulled out his lighter and struck his bracelet, both turning into the spear and shield respectively, he joined the ranks of his brothers and sister.
Cecelia climbed back on Arcadia. "Come on Aidan." She held out her hand.
"Alright." Aidan climbed on to the back of the horse and pulled out his sword.
Arcadia trotted forward, stoppind right beside the phalanx formation. The phalanx formation was made out of children of Ares but behind them the children of Apollo were readying their bows.
"There's no a lot of people here." Aidan noted.
"Yeah. Theresa said that it was just a small group, we didn't think we needed to bring out too many people." Cecelia replied. "That girl came out screaming like a banshee, waking everybody up."
"I'm surprised that you even sent this many." Aidan admitted.
"Well." Chiron galloped forward and stopped behind them. "It's not just her.I've been- restless for the past few days as well."
Aidan paused at the demigod teacher. "What are you not telling us Chiron?"
Chiron returned Aidan's gaze. "What are you not telling us Aidan?"
Aidan jerked up. "I don't kno-"
"Spears at ready!" A daughter of Ares shouted, Aidan remembered that her name was Clarisse or something.
Aidan felt Cecelia tense up and he looked forward.
The small group of boys had started moving. The darkness around them started shifting and moving, creating various forms and weapons. One of them crafted a new pair of arms with it, the extra pair of arms were fixed on top of his real shoulders.
"What the-" Cecelia muttered.
"Di immortals." Chiron swore.
Aidan gripped his sword tightly. He could feel the fear and uncertainty amongst the ranks of even the children of Ares.
"Don't falter!" Clarisse shouted again. "Spears at ready!"
The Ares kids grit their teeth and pointed their spears forward.
"Archers at ready!" Chiron ordered and the Apollo kids drew their bows.
Aidan rubbed circles on Cecelia's back. "Hey, come on. We're good."
"Yeah." Cecelia nodded, gritting her teeth. "We're good." Aidan saw her grip her sword tigher. "Their eyes are glowing, it's so unsettling."
"Yeah it is." Aidan replied.
Aidan saw blondie step forward among the ranks of the shadowmen, smiling a crooked smile. He said his spear of darkness and then shadowmen attacked.
Cecelia pulled on the reins and Arcadia reared her feet; almost making Aidan fall. The horse charged forward and the shadowmen struck the Phalanx. Aidan swung the sword managing to dug into the shoulder of one of them, Cecelia swung with her own sabre and cut through some of them.
The shower of arrows feel from the sky and impaled several of them. The ones that struck the phalanx were ran through. Even with the small force, the demigods of Camp Half-Blood still outnumbered the shadowmen and the shadowmen were falling down one by one.
"We're winning!" Cecelia announced.
Aidan wanted to hope, he really did. Maybe it was just that he had lived the life where there were more problems that solutions, a life where things always seem to end up for the worst, that he was skeptical.
He wanted to be wrong, he really did.
But he wasn't.
Aidan saw one of the shadowmen stand up and pull an arrow out of his skull. He saw another straighten his broken neck.
"We're not." Aidan mumbled and gripped his sword tightly.
"Tighten your ranks! Don't falter!" Clarisse shouted again. The shadowmen that they had just slain were getting back up again.
"What- what are they?" Cecelia gulped.
"I don't know." Aidan replied honestly.
Aidan had a feeling that the slaughter was planned. Getting up and defying death...that was very unnerving. A small army that couldn't die was much more terrifying than a big army that could.
From the corner of his eye, Aidan saw one of them raise their hand and the darkness followed his action. The darkness took the form of a black horse, only the horse had sharp silver fangs.
"Hey Cecily." Aidan pointed towards the vampire horse that one of the shadowmen were now mounting.
"Yeah, I see it." Cecelia made Arcadia turn. The shadowman saw them turn towards him and he smiled as if issuing a challenge.
"You got any ideas?" Cecelia asked.
"Just get close." Aidan replied. "I got this."
Arcadia broke into a sprint and the vampire horse did too. The vampire moved with speed that the two of them were unprepared for however as it closed the distance in a few seconds.
"Duck!" Aidan pushed Cecelia down as the shadowman swung his shadow pole arm over their heads.
Cecelia pulled on the rein and Arcadia stopped.
"You got this huh?" Cecelia teased.
"Shut up and move." Aidan spat as Arcadia turned around to make another lap.
The shadowman was spinning his polearm his hand blissfully, that smirk of his was starting to piss Aidan off. What this how people felt when Aidan smirked and made jokes?
Aidan planted his feet on Arcadia's back, holding his balance by crouching and holding on to Cecelia.
"What are you-"
"Just move!" Aidan ordered as the Vampire horse broke into a sprint.
He saw the shadowman's eyes widen as Aidan tackled him off his horse when he got close. The both of them hit the ground hard, rolling a couple of times. Aidan got out on top and punched him with his gauntlet covered fist, it connected with a satisfying crunch.
He tried for another punch but the shadowman caught his wrist and kicked him off. Aidan landed with a 'oof'. The shadowman straddled him and began landed blows at Aidan's face.
Aidan desperately searched the ground around him for something to hit the shadowman with; his fingers found a rock and Aidan clubbed his head with the rock. The shadowman went limp.
Aidan got to his feet but was immediately struck by the vampire horse and fell again. Aidan tried to roll away but was immediately pinned down by the horse with it's silver fangs. Aidan froze in fear, trembling at it's terrible fangs.
"Aidan!" Cecelia's voice called out and then it was followed by the sound of galloping hooves.
Aidan inched backwards away from it as the horse was...sniffing him.
He waited for the horse to attack him or something- but it didn't. In fact it backed away from him, studying him with intelligent eyes. "You- a night spawn. A proper spawn of the night and not an incubus."
"What?" Aidan looked around. Had the horse just spoken to him? In his mind?
"Master. I'm sorry." Horse bent down, in the resemblance of a bow. "I didn't mean to harm you."
"What are you talking about?" Aidan demanded.
"No time to explain." Horse exclaimed. "Get on!" It stood up and turned to that Aidan could climb it. He was skeptical at first but he climbed on the horse anyway.
Now that it wasn't trying to kill him, he could properly observe it's traits. Black skin coloured like obsidian, a black mane that looked like it was made of smoke. Silver, pupil-less and white-less eyes. Also a mouthful of silver, snake like teeth.
"My name is is Arkane, Master." The horse said."It is a pleasure to meet an untainted nightling."
"I still have no idea what you're talking about." Aidan frowned. "But hi Arkane, I'm Aidan."
"A pleasure."
"Nice ride." Cecelia pulled over.
"Thanks. Now come on. We have work to do." Aidan urged Arkane to move and he did. The two horses and their riders charged into the ranks of the shadowmen.
The demigods were doing well on the defensive. The shadowmen hadn't broken through the phalanx yet the problem was that they kept getting up from their injuries.
The worse thing about it? Aidan was sure they were just playing around. All of them had his smile plastered on their faces, as if they were playing with a new toy.
Arkane charged into their ranks and for a moment, they were thrown off. They didn't expect a horse that was on their side to be attacking them. They broke out of it when Arkane opened his jaws and bit into one of their arms and ripped it off.
The shadowmen proceeded to attack Arkane but arrows rained on them (somehow missing Aidan completely. You really had to commend the children of Apollo). The shadowmen proceeded to retreat.
The children of Ares broke into a cheer and repositioned their phalanx, exchanging people out for fresh ones.
Arkane spat out the arm. "Be on your guard."
"Yeah." Aidan replied.
"They can heal almost all injuries but not even their immortality can stop them from bleeding out."
"Gotcha." Aidan turned to face the children of Ares. "Hey, Clarisse right?"
"What do you want punk?" A voice replied. He couldn't really tell where it was coming from because all the children of Ares were wearing helmets blocking their faces.
"Those guys, you can bleed them out." Aidan informed.
There was a long pause before Clarisse said anything. "Alright then. Thanks, I guess."
Aidan nodded and turned to face the shadowmen again.
They had managed to regroup, gathering up their numbers and shadow weapons/constructions again. The shadowman that had his arm ripped off by Arkane was on the ground and clutching his arm while some of them where trying to help him.
While observing them from a far, Aidan accidentally met eyes with that girl shadowman. She was different from the rest; for one her eyes were completely blood red. While the rest stared at him with anger and murderous looks; she looked at him calmly, emotionless even.
"Aidan!" Cecelia called out in alarm.
That moment had distracted him. Blondie had appeared beside him and grabbed his leg. He pulled the two of them into a shadow, both of them appearing in the middle of the shadowmen. Blondie threw Aidan to the ground.
"Hello there." Blondie smiled a crooked smile and kicked Aidan in the head. Aidan had to blink out the black spots in his eyes.
The shadowmen formed a circle around him while some of the them held him down.
Blondie's spear curved itself and turned into a scythe. "There was a crooked man and he walked a crooked mile." Blondie stabbed Aidan in the arm, he screamed in pain.
"He found a Crooked Sixpence upon a Crooked Stile." Blondie stabbed Aidan in the leg, he tried is best not to scream this time.
"He bought a Crooked cat, who caught a Crooked Mouse and they all lived together in a little Crooked House." Blondie stabbed Aidan's hand.
"Aidan!" He heard Cecelia scream but by the sound of it, she was stopped by the circle of shadowmen.
"He met a crooked woman and he found a crooked preach. They had a crooked marriage on a crooked beach." He stabbed Aidan again. "They had some crooked children and they lived a crooked life. The crooked man, the cat, the mouse, the children and the wife."
Aidan went numb from the pain at that point, he endured all the stabs and pain. Cecelia was still screaming somewhere though he wasn't sure, his hearing had failed him a little while ago. He was pretty sure there some other voices at work too.
The shadowmen that was holding him down, put his him into a sitting position.
Blondie smiled his crooked smile, bending down to met Aidan's eyes. Aidan watched as blondie's hair turned black and his eyes turned blood red.
"Do you recognise me?" Not-blondie-anymore asked. His sense of hearing suddenly coming back.
Aidan gathered up his remaining strength. "No...though I would've remembered that ugly face of yours."
Not-blondie-anymore shook his head. "The body that this cycle gave you has a sharp tongue doesn't he?" Not-blondie-anymore chuckled.
The scythe turned into a sword. He raised the sword over his head and Aidan watched as the brought the sword down right into Aidan's shoulder.
Aidan wasn't even scream in pain, he was too overwhelm by the pain to even move.
"There was a crooked man and he walked a crooked mile and when he killed his wife and kids he smiled a crooked smiled." Not-blondie-anymore recited gleefully and dragged the sword out of Aidan's shoulder as hard as he could.
Aidan didn't remember screaming but he probably did.
Not-blondie-anymore grabbed his chin and forced Aidan to look up at him. "My name is Darius. Don't you forget it, brother." He pushed Aidan to the ground and laughed while Cecelia shrieked somewhere to the left of him.
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For the stronger the Light; the thicker the shadows that fall. 20:31, September 30, 2014 (UTC)