Phantom; Blessed by the devil, Cursed by the gods

Chapter 12 Antony

"Impossible!" Sal yelled as he shot to his feet, his heart was burning with rage, the same rage he'd felt when Peter had told him the truth, about him and about the gods. “You're lying!”

"Salome cool your temper" cautioned Bloom.

"If you were wise you would listen to the Fey girl, they are the most reasonable of all you Shaded beings" Neptune said. "Do not forget that you are in my realm, seeking my permission, to take my son on a hunt that you most likely will not survive, do not test me Phantom, I've killed your kind before, I can do it again"

Sal took a deep breath, but he didn't kneel back down, he glared at Neptune, for the first time he felt his eyes burn.

Antony visibly gulped but Neptune simply frowned in displeasure and continued speaking.

"Your mother was indeed one of the most beautiful mortals I've ever seen, her legacy as a Nightshade was evident in every thing she did, and her transmutation magic was simply sublime, she was perfect and strangely enough she was my friend first, oh the things we talked about, the laughs we shared, she was one of a kind, until she inevitably fucked up"

Sal clenched his jaws and dug his nails into the palm of his hand, his heart pounding with anger.

"She just had to defy us, her and her husband Logan, who I must say was quite handsome in his own right, they were so human, had so much emotion, now emotions can be your strength or your weakness, you're the one who decides what to make of it, but they decided wrong, they helped Lucifer, let him run free, and as a result had lost not one, but two children"

Neptune laughed, the sound filled with mockery and contempt, as if the tragedy of Sal's parents was some sort of amusement, a story told to make audiences laugh and chortle, for the first time since Sal got here he saw Antony look at his father with disgust, it was clear he'd been told the story before, it was clear he'd seen nothing to laugh about.

"I hadn't been surprised when she came to me one night wallowing about her problems" Neptune said, in-between laughs. "Her misery was priceless, her sadness leaking out of her eyes in rivers of tears, I had tried my best to comfort her, to "be there" and then one thing led to another and well….you can guess the rest"

Neptune smiled dreamily and Sal felt his mark burn and his eyes blur as tears streamed down his face, it was that moment he decided that he hated the gods, forever and ever he would hate them.

"Father that is enough" Antony said.

Neptune looked to his son.

"But I'm not done Antony, now please hold your tongue" Neptune said, his voice like the beginnings of a thunderstorm.

Antony flinched and backed away.

"Excellent" Neptune said.

He turned to Sal and walked forward, Sal was shaking with anger, his fingers pressed so deep into his palms he could feel them leaving indentations in his skin.

Neptune reached Sal and looked straight into his eyes.

"Your mother was a warrior but she had emotion, she had a heart, and unfortunately she gave that trait to Antony, he has this thick sense of duty and responsibility, it's sickening at times but no matter how hard I try I just can't seem to make it go away, the Fates have written his destiny and so there is nothing I can do, therefore before he can go on this hunt you all will need to prove yourselves"

"Just give us the fucking test" Sal said, though his voice was shaky.

Neptune smiled and snapped his fingers.