The Five Demigods Who Saved Olympus | Book 1, 2, & 3

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Hypnos tossed Noelle's head back, growing more and more irritated by the second. They were back inside that closet from before. Noelle wheezed as the back of her neck rested on the chair. She had been taking the hits like a champion. She didn't complain once. She figured she'd bear it for as long as she could until she was out of the sleep realm and back into her own body. At this point, she would fight her subconscious like her friends had said and try to tell them who was behind everything. She however didn't see her abuse ending anytime soon.

"I can't take it! She's too fucking stubborn! I keep using your killing methods and none of them are making her break!" Hypnos roared as he swiped the desk clean of all of the torture weapons being used.

"Take a walk if you need a break." Thanatos said calmly. Hypnos didn't comply. He instead took a metal rod that hadn't been brushed off the desk and stabbed her in the shoulder. She breathed heavily but kept her composure.

"Gods, just give in!" Hypnos shouted, frustration lacing his voice.

"And give up my freedom?! Maybe it's not me who's out of my damn mind!" Noelle shouted, resulting in him twisting it further, making her grunt only a little.

"Of all of the demigods that have been allowed into Olympus over the last two years, Thanatos, it was this one that caught your attention?!" Hypnos shouted.

"I've never known her to be such way." Thanatos defended.

"I've literally only ever greeted him if we passed each other in the halls! That's it! I've never even had a conversation with him!" Noelle gritted through her teeth, making Hypnos frown and scoff at his brother.

"You are no better than the Gods in Olympus." Hypnos said, disgust lacing his voice. His opinions of those in Olympus weren't the greatest. He revealed that the day of Noelle's coronation he indirectly controlled her to say most of the things she said. To his knowledge, nobody could see through her and realize the opinions weren't her own. Hypnos then swung, the back of his hand hitting Noelle harshly on the cheek. She moaned out before spitting blood from her mouth. Hypnos then had an idea.

"Perhaps we've been going about this wrong, Thanatos." Hypnos spoke.

"What do you have in mind?" Thanatos asked tiredly. Hypnos didn't speak. His thoughts became clear in his mind for Thanatos to read. After a moment, he chuckled.

"Alright, I shall return momentarily." Thanatos spoke before exiting the sleep realm. Hypnos leaned forward, his face inches from her own as he rested his hands on the armchairs.

"We'll get you to comply, believe that, Noelle." Hypnos spoke. Noelle's nose twitched before she spat in his face, resulting in her receiving another backhand to the face. Meanwhile, Ares groaned as he followed Donovan throughout the meadows. He had hoped for some action, that he and Donovan would find their enemies and that he could get his hands on them. He had no particular attachment to Noelle, though he admittedly missed her a little. He more so wanted to fight, per usual being the God of War. He didn't understand why they were in the meadows at this moment. And when he tried asking, Donovan would reply with 'don't worry about it', followed by a sneeze due to his allergies. It annoyed Ares that Donovan wouldn't just tell them where they were headed.

"Could you at least answer me this? Why are we doing whatever the hell it is we're doing instead of going to look for Noelle?" Ares asked. Donovan stayed silent for a moment before speaking.

"Heath and Zander will find her." Donovan spoke.

"Oh, yeah? And how would you know that?" Ares asked as he kicked his feet through a field of flowers.

"Because Heath and Zander are more determined than anybody else to have her back. Don't get me wrong, I love Noelle. She's one of my greatest friends, and Amara loves her too. But, Noelle is like a little sister to Zander, and Noelle is the love of Heath's life. Nobody is more determined than the two of them to find her." Donovan explained as he stopped.

"Now, would you like to know why we're here?" Donovan asked, turning to face Ares. He scoffed.

"You know I do." Ares spoke. Donovan smiled at him. After a moment, something emerged from the water of a nearby pond. It slowly stuck its head out, only revealing its eyes. Ares knelt down to get a closer look. Just then, the figure splashed water at him, making him stumble and fall to the ground. Amphitrite laughed as she pulled herself up out of the water and rested her arms in the grass, gazing at him.

"Amphitrite is the stepmother of Noelle." Donovan spoke.

"And what is she doing here?" Ares asked, sounding annoyed as he wiped the water off of his face. He looked down to find the pond water mixing in with the dirt, turning into mud. He looked down to his knees, finding he was covered in it, emitting a sigh from his throat.

"I've come to help. Poseidon informed Donovan before you guys entered the mind realm that he'd be sending me to you." Amphitrite explained. She then hoisted herself up to sit on the edge of the bay, revealing her light blue tail. Ares watched as it fluttered in and out of the water, splashing him each time. He groaned before standing up and taking a step back to keep from getting any more wet.

"You do realize we'll be out of this realm soon enough and none of this will have happened to your actual body." Donovan spoke. Ares only rolled his eyes at him. Amphitrite turned only slightly as she reached into the seaweed wrapped around her neck like a satchel. She pulled out seashells and placed them on the ground beside her.

"What are these for?" Ares asked.

"Noelle goes with my sisters and me to search for seashells around Atlantis. If you're lucky enough, inside the seashell you receive a pearl. Pearls are said to be tears of one very well-known Goddess." Amphitrite spoke. Ares sighed as he realized which Goddess she referred to.

"Aphrodite." Ares responded with light disgust lacing his voice. Amphitrite hummed in response.

"If you receive a seashell with a pearl inside of it, Aphrodite owes you a favor because you caught her tears. And because these are Noelle's, Aphrodite would do her a favor." Amphitrite said.

"Yeah, only one thing, Aphrodite would never help Noelle because she helped defeat her." Ares said as he crossed his arms. "Plus, she's crazy!" Ares continued. Donovan rolled his eyes, hitting him upside the head.

"While Noelle did do that, Aphrodite made a promise to heal other's hearts. It'd break her own to hear the cries of those who prayed to her, asking her for her help. So, if you find one, you remind her of that promise she made." Amphitrite spoke before entering the water once more, leaving the two of them on their own. Donovan sat down on the ground, beginning to crack up seashells when he noticed Ares hadn't joined him. Donovan patted the spot next to him, making Ares groan but comply and help crack seashells.

"If we find a pearl, I am not going with you to find Aphrodite once we get out of here." Ares spoke.

"And why's that?" Donovan asked calmly.

"Because, she is crazy, Donovan." Ares said, making Donovan sigh.

"Have you ever stopped to wonder why Aphrodite did what she did?" Donovan asked.

"Because, she's crazy!" Ares repeated himself as he cracked an orange shell on the ground beneath them. Donovan sighed once more and shook his head.

"Because it was the men like you in Olympus that pushed her to it. You all treated her lowly. You demeaned her not only because she's a Goddess and doesn't have a dick like the Gods, but also because you thought all she was good for was Love and Sex. Which couldn't be further from the truth." Donovan said harshly, making Ares sit there and ponder, stopping what he was doing. He was pulled out of his thoughts when a gasp came from Donovan, making him turn in his direction. Donovan had just cracked open a cream-colored seashell with a shiny pearl inside of it. Donovan lifted it up with two fingers before saying,

"Found it."