55 DRAGONSLAYER
"GRAAAARRRRRGHH!!!"
It'd been an hour since he woke Ladon and the previously hundred-headed monstrosity was now reduced to a livid dragon with merely ten heads. The entire garden was in ruins, save for a small circle around the giant tree. The previous fragrant and beauteous surroundings now smelt of acid and decaying organic matter, while the ground was cracked and splintered, mounds of dirt gouged out from the earth. Ladon's strength was truly frightening. It was no wonder his father lost.
Its unending strength maimed the earth while its potent acid disintegrated the multiple master-crafted Stygian Iron swords as though they were nothing but pieces of worn-out parchment. Its heads whipped about like clubs smashing into anything and everything around it as its legs mercilessly pummeled the ground - reducing and ripping apart beautiful bunches of scented flowers to specks of organic matter. The spartoi were burned, crushed, broken and dissolved more times than one could count, yet they reformed again and again - fighting with such zest that the chattering of their skeletal mouths could be mistaken for cries of joy.
His arm grew sore from repeatedly drawing the bow but his aim never wavered - his movements almost mechanical. One spartus would leap around like a monkey, yanking arrows from fallen heads and returning them to him before bounding back, repeating the very same thing. Four spartoi acted as the main distraction, slicing at Ladon's heads and luring Ladon away from him while the biggest Spartus lopped off the blinded heads. Ladon hadn't caught on that every head that got shot would get cut off. He was hired for his strength, not for his intelligence.
"GRAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!!", the last head weakly snarled as it stared at the unkillable skeletal warriors before it. No mortal living being made of flesh and blood could face Ladon and survive but the spartoi? One cannot kill what is already dead.
"What is dead may never die, eh?", Athos whispered drawing and releasing the last arrow.
The spartoi gave the biggest one a boost and with an elegant flip the last head fell to the ground which was followed by the main body. The ground rumbled when the giant dragon's chest slammed onto the broken earth and Athos became visible sporting a satisfied grin on his face.
The six spartoi immediately lined up before him and snapped to attention. Their combat gear was reduced to rags but not even a single lesion decorated their limbs or torso. They clicked what remained of their heels and gave him a salute, before slowly sinking back into the ground.
'So, they're the one-time use types', Athos thought sadly. If they could be used again, his journey would've been so much easier.
The evening light shimmered once more and the Hesperides materialised before him, staring at him with absolute disbelief and slight fear.
"Thou...Thou have slain Ladon. Not even Herakles....", a Hesperid muttered, trailing off.
"Ah! I knew he could do it! Handsome and strong~"
"Shush sister! Thou make us look bad! As for thee demigod, does thou understand the consequences of what thou has done?"
"Enlighten me", Athos said calmly.
"As thou wish. If thou decide to turn back now, thou shall face little to no repercussions but once thou so much as touches the apples with the intent of self-gain, thou must face the wrath of the Queen of Gods herself. Thou must sacrifice the apples to the Olympians if thou pluck them. It belongs to them and It shall not take long for the news to reach her if thou does not.", the Hesperid explained, her volcanic eyes glittering in the setting sun.
"Is that all? I guessed as much", Athos shrugged. Even the apples his father managed to snag were snatched away by the Olympians - but he wasn't his father. What he was about to do at the mountain's summit would have far greater ramifications. It would shake up Olympus. Literally.
"Do not underestimate her anger, half-blood. A good woman's anger could shake mountains but a goddess' wrath could do far worse."
"There is no need to lecture me, Hesperid. The most important question right now is will you stand in my way, or will you not?", Athos said, his eyes narrowing.
The Hesperides collectively sighed, "So be it, demigod. Let it be known that we tried to warn thee" The evening light folded and bent around them and the next second they were gone.
"Alright then. Let's see what's all the fuss is about", Athos muttered, looking up at the aurous apples. A blue half-mask materialised around his face turning his skin akin to steel, and Perastos formed metallic claws that helped with gripping.
He jumped on the smooth bark finding it surprisingly easy to sink his claws into the wood. He grinned once more and began climbing the ginormous five-story tree that could dwarf his previous life's mansion, his eye's on the golden prize far away.
***
Climbing was surprisingly hard but he managed to reach the top quickly enough. He looked at the boughs next to him in awe. The Apples of Immortality? More like the Pumpkins of Immortality. Fine, that may have been an exaggeration, but the apples were easily more than twice the size of their regular-sized cousins. Their skin was almost metallic and they smelled heavenly.
He reached out and plucked one. It was heavier than it looked and incredibly tempting. He wanted to take a bite right then and there but he pushed down the urge, putting it away in his watch. He plucked another and one more, but when he tried plucking a fourth, the apple refused to budge. He frowned and pulled harder - enough for the branch to start creaking but it was in vain.
"Thou can cease thy efforts, demigod. No mortal can pluck more than three.", a Hesperid appeared on the tree branch, happily swinging her arms back and forth.
"What? That's bullshit! My dad came back with like half the tree", Athos replied.
"That's because he tricked my father into plucking it for him. My father is a Titan, not a mortal. The tree is the Great Mother's gift, she makes the rules", she said, tracing her fingers on the tree's smooth bark.
"Fucking earthen bitch...."
"What?!"
"Nothing"
"Hmmmm....Oh! You better not forget your spoil!", she said, pointing down.
"Huh?", he looked down and his pupils trembled. Ladon's giant body and heads had turned to dust, leaving a giant, copper heart. It looked big even from the top of the tree. He immediately slide down the trunk, his claws leaving trails on the bark much to the annoyance of the Hesperid, and landed on the ground.
He ran toward the heart and got a closer look at it. It was huge - two people his size could fit inside it relatively easily. If he stuffed this in his watch, he would have no extra space left. It was still faintly beating and was filled to the brim with bronze blood. Did dragons even have blood? Weren't they monsters?
"A mighty reward for a mighty warrior. Ladon has never been slain before. Legends shall be woven of this tale for aeons to come", the Hesperid appeared before him.
"Legends....", Athos muttered, placing a hand on the giant heart.
***
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