Monsters - A Teaser for A Hero's Blessing

Monsters did not exist.

As Hyperion shakily stood up from his position, that thought ran through his head. It was one that he had had often over the years really. By definition, a Monster was something of strange or terrifying shape, or something abnormal.

As a Titan that grew up amongst creatures like cyclops and telkhines, the abnormal was simply the norm. And with his own strength and power there were few that could challenge him.

When that was your life, it allowed one a different perspective - monsters, simply put, did not exist.

When Atlas had first contacted him and reluctantly requested assistance, Hyperion had been intrigued. Though he disliked his fellow Titan’s brutish nature, his strength and skill were legendary, even stronger than his own. In all the time that he had known him, he could count the number of times that Atlas had asked for help on one hand.

Of course, when he found out that he was being brought in as a precaution against a demigod, he thought Atlas’s exile under the sky might have eroded his sanity somewhat. He, Atlas, and Kronos together were enough to take on the entirety of the Hekatonkheire and Elder Cyclops by themselves - for him to join forces with Atlas against a mere demigod? 

Still, he would not turn down a request such as this. The task that Atlas had been given was too important to Kronos's plans, and it would be something to hold against he uncouth Titan later. 

When the demigod group had first made it to Mount Orthys, Hyperion had hidden himself and his presence, observing the procession. To his surprise, the adult demigod wasted little time, swiftly launching himself at Atlas.

His shock only grew as the fight progressed. The man, this demigod, was good. Nay, that was not enough - his skill with the sword was simply incredible, better than any demigod that Hyperion had seen and spoke of decades of training. Furthermore, it was clear that his strength wasn’t lacking either, as he was able to not only match Atlas, but push him back.

The other demigods were fighting as well, but their fights were more or less going as he would have predicted, and were hardly worth his attention (though the daughter of Atlas seemed far stronger than she should be... She was also wearing a sash that was most definitely not part of the Huntresses uniform. It almost felt like... But no, that was impossible). The adult demigod - this Alcides - he was actually worth his respect and caution. 

Unfortunately, despite his respect the large demigod for his strength and ability, he had a duty to his king. And so, though he was loath to perform such an action, when the opportunity had presented itself he had launched himself at the demigod, promptly stabbing him in the chest with his flaming sword.

Everything should have gone simply after that. The other demigods had no chance against two titans, and especially not against him and Atlas combined.

So how did it all go wrong?

The eruption of familiar power took him by surprise, the roar of primal anger sending chills down his spine.

He had been dead, he was sure. His sword, the symbol of his power, had pierced the chest, the very body turned into a burned out husk!

He spun back to the corpse once more, but somehow it hadn’t been fast enough. Something clutched his arm, the armor easily being crushed under unfathomable strength, and he vaguely remembered being thrown.

It took going through a wall or two before he finally managed to stop himself, and it took a second more before he could stand. When he finally had, it was to the sight of the demigod that should have been dead smashing through the wall.

Monsters did not exist…

When he had first seen him, before he had thrown himself at Atlas, the demigod had clearly been upset at something, but it had been buried. Instead, there had been a sharp focus in his gaze that spoke of a good degree of intelligence, every move precise and calculated.

Staring at the large man now, Hyperion no longer saw any of that. Instead, it was replaced by barely fettered fury, his rage flowing off of him in a wave as debris and walls were shoved aside with casual disregard, a loud growl permeating through the air. His eyes, once sharp and calculating, showed only madness.

But what truly unsettled the Titan of Light and Fire was the sheer power that flowed from him, and more importantly, it's familiarity. It had been years since he had felt it, but no enemy of Olympus could mistake it.

Several millennia prior it had thrummed throughout the world proudly, and he had certainly travelled enough to make himself known. He had fought Giants and Gods, had tricked men and Titan, and travelled to the Underworld itself. No other Demigod had made such a name for himself, nor made as many enemies as he had.

Hercules, son of Zeus.  

Hyperion breathed out unsteadily as his mind raced… It didn't make any sense! Hercules was still in Greece! And even if he wasn’t, there was no way that the man in front of him could be Hercules - while strong, Hercules didn't exude power like this, even at the height of his strength. Not to mention that the two looked and acted nothing alike!

And yet that power... The scent of unrestrained lightning that came from being the son of Zeus, along with the subtle mixture that set Hercules apart from other scents... It was his, even if it was far stronger than it had any right to be. 

His thoughts were interrupted when the demigod roared once more, no intelligence left in his eyes. As Hyperion tensed and prepared to move, he glimpsed Atlas charging behind the maddened warrior that caused him to breath a small sigh of relief. Before he could move, Atlas leapt at him and stabbed his spear at the back of the enraged man's head with a speed that few could match, let alone dodge… only for the demigod to shift his head without even glancing, allowing the spear to move by harmlessly. His entire body then followed the movement - spinning around with an arm outstretched - and his fist slammed into Atlas, sending him hurtling through another wall.

His gaze returned to Hyperion and caused him to shiver.

Monsters did not exist… yet that did not change the fact that right here and now he found himself staring at one. 

Author's Notes:

I apologize for the lack of activity on my part lately - this last month has been very chaotic, and I haven't had much in the way of downtime. The last week I've actually been in Indianapolis for GenCon, and that was the first bit of relaxation that I've had in a long while. 

I'm going to try to post another chapter for one of my stories here on Patreon this Friday, and a week after that I'll post it on Fanfiction. The one that is closest to being done is 'Victim's of Fate', so there is that to look forward to. Here's hoping that I'll actually be able to follow through with my word this time!

I hope that all of you are having a good month, and I'd like to thank you once more in being willing to support me here on Patreon. I'll talk to you later!