Nico di Angelo, Flowers of Death

Chapter 45

Amber's P.O.V

"I can't. "Nico gasps in pain, clutching to his freshly injured side. He looked up at me, his eyes round as he gasped for breath.

"Now is not the time for this Nico, get up," I insist, digging my nails into his arm, trying to hoist his body up. He cries out but stands none the less; I sling his arm around my shoulder and try to take a step forward. Nico's legs buckled, and we both almost crumple onto the ground.

"Amber! I can't, just leave me," Nico says.

"NO! We're in this together."

"We'll be ok guys, I mean, they won't attack us with all these people around will they"? Grover bleats, and I can tell he is stressing out.

The Spartoi started circling around us, forming a semi-circle; this new girl with the mask was at the lead position. The skeletons flanked her, listened to her silent cues as she held up her hand, and their movement stopped. No one paid them any attention, it seemed Nico, Grover, and I drew more of it with Nico crying out in pain. That is, except one of the museum guards, a stocky man with a grizzled beard. He walked towards this new girl, leisurely.

"Excuse me miss, but there is a policy about masks in the museum, I'm gonna have to ask you-" The girl moved so fast I barely saw the movement; one moment, the guard was standing at her side, the next...

There was an addable snap, the guard's head turned at an awkward angle, and his limp body fell to the floor. Gasps rang out from everyone present in the cafe, but no one moved. The entire time the hollow eyes of the gold mask bore into my soul.

The girl picked up the officer's gun and pointed it directly at me. I swear I saw those black holes glint. Then she twisted around and shot at the crowds of people. She made most of her marks too, families cried out as their loved ones collapsed from a bullet wound. Suddenly everyone was screaming and running, it was pure chaos. The girl shot till the gun had no more bullets, then she discarded it with little care.

"or not," Grover whispers.

"Grover get Nico out of here, I'll keep them distracted, "I tell him, drawing my sword.

"Are you crazy? That chick just snapped some dudes neck without a second thought, we aren't leaving you," Nico says.

"Grover! Now!" I turn to him, and Grover looks between Nico and me before taking him from my grasp and wrapping Nico's arm over his shoulder.

"Lets go, we can take the the kitchens service doors down to the receiving area and escape threw there." Grover explains, beginning to sprint away from the scary lady and her skeleton soldiers. Nico has no choice but to follow along; without Grover supporting his weight, Nico wouldn't be able to stand, never mind run.

"Remind me how you know this place so well," Nico asks.

"I live here dude," Grover tells him.

"Wait what?"

The girl gives a rapid movement with her fingers, and the skeletons chase after them. I swing at the closest one, knocking its head clean from its body. Then I kick me as far away as possible. I dismember 3 of them, but unfortunately, most skeletons know to avoid me and run around my reach. The girl slowly approaches me, and I abandon my attempt to kill any more of the Spartoi. She was clearly the more significant threat.

"Look I don't know who you are, but I do know that I have done nothing to you, just leave us be, we mean no harm," I yell at her. Her head tilts to the side slowly, and I just know she is giving me a sly smile from under the mask. Then she makes a series of rapid hand gestures; I am stunned for a moment, unsure what they mean. Then I recognize the pattern.

"You mean no harm, but I do," she signs to me, then draws her Katana and lunges. I sidestep, but she anticipated that, and upward cuts with her blade, slicing my upper arm. I drop and roll to get some space. However, I end up tumbling into a family, knocking over a mother and her child. I try to untangle myself from them as fast as possible; the mother looks up at the girl, fear in her eyes.

"Please, don't hurt us."

The girl swings her blade, slicing the women's throat; blood pools out of her neck like an overflowing bathtub. The kid starts screaming, and I am too stunned to move. I simply watch as the women bleeds out in front of me, it was probably only a few seconds, but it felt like hours. I realize that this girl wasn't using celestial bronze or imperial gold; her blade was designed to kill mortals.

"Stop! These people have done nothing to you," I cry out as I regain my footing.

"They're in my way," she signs. She slices at my stomach, but I block the blow, so she attempts to side sweep my feet. I jump over her, sweep, and thrust kicks her chest, sending her back a foot or two.

"Who are you"? I demand.

"Y-u-n-a"

She regains her footing quickly and thrusts her sword at my shoulder; I have to lean to block the blow. Clearly, Yuna was expecting his because she lunges into me, throwing me off balance and knocking my sword from my grasp. I scramble backwards, attempting to put space between us, but she is relentless and continues her attacks. Jabbing, slashing, thrusting, she does not hesitate, and I am defenceless to counter, my sword resting across the room. I simply bob and weave to avoid her blows, analyzing her technique and looking for weaknesses.

"Amber, look out," Comes Gorvers call, and I duck in time to see something round, and white smash against Yuna's shoulder; it shatters, and I realize it's a plate. I allow myself a second to look at where Grover's voice was coming from; he still had Nico leaning against his side but was chucking plates at Yuna from across the room. The Spartoi was a few meters away, struggling to get out of the vines tethered to them.

I look back at Yuna as she slices a plate Grover had thrown at her in half. There was a bleeding cut on her cheek where the shards of one of the dishes had sliced her. While she is distracted by dodging Grover's plates, I roll under her feet and lunge for my sword. I grab onto the hilt and twist around just in time to black the blow Yuna had aimed at my neck.

"You're not a monster, you're a half blood," I cry out, kicking up with my legs and sending Yuna back a few feet, allowing me to scramble onto mine. "Why are you doing this"?

"I never said I wasn't a monster," she signs as she walks towards me. I can see Grover and Nico over her shoulder; one of the Spartoi had escaped and was attacking them, Nico kicked it, but that did more harm to him then it did it. Yuna attacks, slicing upwards, forcing me to twist my hold on my sword to block it.

Yuna fought unlike a Greek or a Roman; her style consisted of basic stances and techniques, but effective ones. She used her Katana, not as one would a greek sword, because the blade was curved it was more useful to slash then strike. Her moves were evasive, but she fought with vigilance and precision, less moving, but more contact. She was nimble and quick, and with a sinking feeling in my gut, I realized a lot better than me.

Yuna doges my stoke to her shoulder, slipping under my arms and slashing my back open. I kicked out blindly, making contact with her knee. Her legs buckled and rolled away in an attempt to put distance between us again. I felt the blood trickle down my back as I stood up; Yuna gained her composure faster than me, but she allowed me to face her, and we started circling one another.

"Why are you doing this? Who do you work for"? I shout at her. Her gold mask glistens under the lights of the cafe.

"I serve my master. I serve the demon king, Alastor."