Like the title? I know, it's very creative. Totally thought of it all on my own. It's not like it's Nico's name translated or anything. *coughs awkwardly*

Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

~Δ~

Victor of Angels

νικητής των αγγέλων

Prologue: Fallen

There was something perfect about the way wind would stir through his hair and robes while he flew. It was an indescribable feeling: the strong beats of wings propelling him through the air, lifting higher and higher with every stroke. The chill of the air never quite piercing him, instead easing him along and cooling his body in a satisfying way. He loved the exhilaration of it—he loved flying with his friends through the endless skies and playing until dusk. It made him feel invincible, complete.

It made him yearn to reverse time, to take back the moment that made him Fall.

Nico di Angelo exhaled slowly and took one more fleeting glance at the starlit sky. A heavy ache was swiftly replacing the lightness in his heart. Reversing time…if only.

Stuffing his hands in the pockets of his jacket, Nico ducked his head down and quickened his pace for the entrance to the Underworld. Wind lashed through his hair and bit his cheeks as he walked, but he didn't turn up his collar to it. He was immune to the cold and heat ever since he Fell. He had to be, if he was going to live out his days in the extremes of below.

He could have just phased through the shadows straight to the Underworld, too, but he would rather take his time and spend as long as he could in the mortal realm before dawn arrived. There was something relaxing about being there. He was so close to all three realms that he could nearly taste the light of Heaven. He could almost imagine he was a child again, flying through that same sky.

Nico grimaced at the pain of the memory and bit it down. It was better to forget. All of the Fallen told him so—forget about the light, and it made the transition so much easier. One was less likely to be maimed and shamed in front of everyone if they grew to love the darkness. It was easier to, after all. It was so much work to maintain the purity of the angels. Love the darkness, and life would be so much easier.

Except it wasn't. Nico never loved the darkness—not in the way everyone expected of him.

Sure, the powers he gained after he Fell were cool as heck. His shadow manipulation and reanimation skills were highly sought for in the Fallen, and having them meant he would become a powerful demon as time went on. But what good were those powers when all he wanted to do was fly?

Nico looked skyward again. He had never flown during the night before, he mused. It was beautiful. The stars and moon cased a silvery glow on everything, and Nico loved it. He loved how the light would eventually break even the darkest of nights. If he had wings now, he would have enjoyed soaring through the silver-casted clouds.

He had to stop thinking like that. He was making things so much worse for himself. Love the darkness. Love the darkness only and life would be so much better…

Nico found he was close to the entrance to the Underworld when he looked back ahead.

With a breath that puffed from him like smoke, he continued down the aged concrete path towards his goal. Little light made it that far through the smog of the city. That made it the perfect location for the doors to the Underworld. No angel would ever dare to tread that far into the impure territory that mortals and Fallen alike called their home.

Or so Nico thought until he heard the crash and burst of lights ahead that only a choir of angels could have produced.

The dark haired man stopped in his tracks, staring at the light show in the distance with something akin to awe bubbling in his gut. He hadn't seen an angel since his Fall. He had been beginning to believe that they didn't show themselves for the lesser Fallen, but it was obvious their attention wasn't directed at him. The cries and roars of demons and older Fallen pierced the air after the burst of light. The noise alone had Nico racing forward to catch a glimpse at the spectacle. He had never heard of a band of angels attacking so close to the Doors. He had to see before they all disappeared.

Dawn was coming, the stars fading and the landscape brightening ever-so-slightly. With it, the angels would only get stronger. Nico slowed and jumped the five stories it took to reach the top of an apartment complex and watch the fight from above. The mortals would no doubt have no clue about what was going on. They were all probably sleeping the last few minutes of night away.

Nico scuffed the heels of his boots on the edge of the building, leaning over slightly to get a better view. The groups were fighting in a large expanse of trees and grass—the only park for miles. It was shocking to see that the fight hadn't already taken deeper into the city—demons had an addiction to threatening mortals to gain the upper hand against the angels.

But it seemed like the fight had only just begun. The angels had a severe upper hand with the surprise department, and it was obvious they were taking full advantage of that fact. Two of the younger Fallen on the field were already crumbling to dust under the purification light that had struck them. The others out in the open were scrambling to retaliate.

Nico debated whether he should join the fray or not, but he was leaning towards the negative. Though he knew once they found out he would be beaten to a pulp, he didn't enjoy the idea of dying. Angels of that sort of caliber would make quick work of him. It was best if he laid low and observed.

Sitting on his heels, Nico watched with growing interest as one of the angels shot another beam of light—in the form of an arrow—at one of the older demons. He dodged it effortlessly. Nico recognized the demon instantly: Perseus Jackson, the heartthrob of the entire Underworld. Though he was more mischievousness and sass than evil, that still didn't stop most of the men and women of the dark side to yearn for his presence. He was undeniably hot, and—

Nico shook his head quickly. No. Not that again. He was not going to be one of the infamous Percy's mindless followers.

Even though he was very hot.

While his mind was elsewhere, the fight was heating up below. Initial shock fading, the demons were gaining the upper hand on the angels even as the dawn slowly grew brighter. The angels had apparently thought they could beat the demons in a short period of time, because they were faltering while the demons fought strong still. That was one of the few things Nico appreciated about being a Fallen—he was stronger and he had enough stamina to exert himself for hours before he finally collapsed. Angels were strong as well, but their true strength was in their speed. Once that was compromised, they tired relatively quickly.

They wouldn't last more than a few more minutes if backup didn't arrive.

Nico knew he shouldn't, but he wanted to help the angels. Perhaps it was his child self speaking to him, or perhaps it was some perverted part of himself that was still trying to cling to whatever light was still inside him. Whatever it was, it wouldn't bode over well with the Fallen. Especially with Percy Jackson. So Nico was better off just staying away.

He just hoped the angels were smart enough to retreat. Once people started crowding the streets, it wouldn't take much prodding before the area became a homicidal mess. That's what Nico hated the most—watching the helpless, unaware mortals perish because of some idiotic feud.

A boiling anger sparked in Nico's chest. Not the mortals.

This realm was the only one he could feel even slightly at home in. It wasn't too much dark and—though his child self would gawk at him for thinking this—not too light, either. A perfect balance of both things, with the two working in perfect harmony to create color and complexity.

Plus, it was the only place he didn't have to think about being a Fallen all of the damn time.

So those angels had better well run soon.

Nico straightened and braced a foot on the very edge of the complex. He tightened his focus on the disappearing shadows all around him so that if he had to run off the angels, he could do so quickly.

Percy and the Fallen seemed to be thinking in a different direction. The angels were trying to save one of their own that had fallen to the ground covered in blood, all while the handful of Fallen and demons mocked them and kept them away from their goal. Maniac laughter filled the air, making the hairs on Nico's arms rise.

Shit.

The sun was easing up the horizon and brightening the mortal realm. If the angels didn't abandon their comrade and escape…

But of course they wouldn't abandon one of their own. That wasn't like the angels, and it never would be. So Nico had to step in and keep the bloodshed from happening.

Nico groaned at the thought of what would happen to him after he helped the angels, but there was no other choice. At least, not to the mortals who were filling up the streets.

Forcing himself to think about the good he was doing, Nico hopped down from the complex and landed at a run towards the chaos. There were other young Fallen like him gathered at the sidelines that shouted at him as he passed, but he paid them no mind. He gathered the shadows around him a little closer to himself, coiling in preparation.

A burst of light from above halted his progress just before he was about to shout out. He skidded to a stop and stared as a new choir of angels came from the clouds to rescue their people. Bands of gentle light wrapped around the entire area, protecting the mortals around them and bringing forth screeches of pain from the demons.

"This dispute is petty," spoke one of the angels. She was dressed in the exquisite robes of the Archangel, marking her as the strongest of the choir. With a face that was devoid of all emotion, she pointed what looked like a dagger down at the demon Percy Jackson. "Back down now before all of the Fallen in this area is purified and eradicated. You would not want their deaths on your head."

Percy flinched at the same time as Nico, whose shadows had retreated as soon as the new angels had arrived. Nico knew that the Archangel had the power to take them all out in one burst of light, even the young Fallen that still had light in their bodies. So now he was stuck stumbling backwards and cursing his idea of jumping in. What good would one young Fallen do, anyway? He was still one of the weakest of the Fallen. What good would that have done against Percy Jackson?

The archangel and the demon stared each other down for a drawn out moment before Percy was chuckling. The impish look on his face was something everyone in the Underworld recognized: he was flirting to get out of trouble. "You really want to kill us? I didn't think it was in you to do something like that, Annabeth."

The archangel, Annabeth, did not react to being recognized. "You would be a fool to cause harm to your own people, Perseus."

"It's Percy, actually," said the demon with a wicked grin. He sheathed his glowing weapon and lifted up his hands. "There, see? I'm a good boy. I'm surrendering." He turned his back on the archangel, that same grin on his face. "Come on guys, let's beat it. The fun's over."

Though there was a lot of complaining and cursing involved, no one did anything to object to Percy's order. They scampered off, leaving the wounded angel without a touch more of damage. That alone was a step up for Nico—they didn't even egg the angels on with giving the wounded a kick to the ribs. They really were intimidated by the archangel Annabeth.

A breath of relief left Nico's lungs before he could stop himself.

Annabeth noticed and turned to him next. The cold grey eyes of her face unsettled him, but there was nothing immediately threatening about her appearance. "You are too young to fight," she mused. "And yet you came to join the fray? How bold of you."

Nico shifted uncomfortably as the angels turned their attention to him.

Annabeth looked him up and down. "What is your name, Fallen One?"

Nico's nose turned up at the phrase, but he refuse an archangel for information. "I am Nico. Nico di Angelo."

The archangel nodded and was about to speak just as someone gasped somewhere off to the side. "Nico?"

Nico turned to the voice, eyes narrowed in confusion. The one who had spoken fluttered forward, landing gracefully on the ground in front of him. He was much taller than Nico, much to the dark haired man's annoyance. He bent back his head as the bronze-skinned angel edged even closer to him. There was something alight in the angel's blue eyes, something that made Nico even more nervous than when he had been confronted by Annabeth.

The angel reached forward as though to touch Nico. Exchanging confused expressions, Nico looked the angel up and down, trying to piece together where exactly he could have recognized him.

Then it struck him. There was only one angel Nico knew with sun-kissed hair that fanned his head just like a halo. But it had been years, and they had only been children then. Naïve, happy children that knew no evil…

No, it couldn't be. He should never be able to see him again. Never again.

And yet there he was.

"Nico?" the angel asked again, oh-so-softly. He tilted his head, messing up the halo effect of his hair. His blue eyes seemed to pierce right into Nico's very being. "Is that really you, Nico?"

Nico allowed himself to breathe the name he never expected to say since he had Fallen:

"Will?"

~Δ~

I hope you enjoyed. If you'd like more, do review. That's right—we're going back to the Gwillym review threats. Review or never find out what happens next…the choice is yours.