This is the price we pay to live. VOL. 1

Chapter Ten- NUH UH

20 hours before Gods game

Cleopas coughed and gasped as his head was pulled out from the lake. Apollo held him by the hair into the air. "Are you trying to go straight to the underworld again?" Cleopas shook his before falling on ground as Apollo released the ground. "Ouch-" he exclaimed. He quickly got in his feet and took a deep breath. "Well, I think you shouldn't talk about wanting to see dead people who you loved in life like uhm... I don't know, maybe Hyac-" Apollo already picked up Cleopas and threw him in the water of the lake. Cleopas chuckled loudly. "Oh I'm sorry! But it's true you will give up anything to see him again!"

Cleopas got out of the water. "You can't keep me here forever." Apollo looked at the boy in silence as he listened . "I will run away as fast as I can if have the opportunity." He explained to the god. As he got again on the cold grass near the lake. "And how do you exactly want to do it? You are stuck on Olympus ."

Cleopas shrugged. "I will find a way eventually." Apollo looked down at the mortal and smirked. "Then run. If I catch, you won't like to see your ending." Cleopas' eyes widened before he started to running into the woods on Mouth Olympus. Apollo stared at the boy and chuckled. "Humans would believe anything." Cleopas moved the branches away and his feet struck the ground. His hands and arms got scratched and small wounds. After a while, he reached a cliff. He looked around before looking down, he saw the see in an horrific dark blue of the sea. He gasped as his feet slipped off. He grabbed to a rock and tried to pull himself up.

"Emerald, need some help?" Cleopas looked up and saw Hermes. "Uhm, maybe- OF COURSE I NEED YOUR HELP." He barked playfully and grabbed Hermes' hand. He thought he calculated the distance well, yet he didn't. He fallen backwards as he tried to get don't look down at the void under him. He closed his eyes, when he opened them again he was in what appeared as Poseidon's chamber. Poseidon stood in front of  him.

"I think when have to talk." Cleopas laughed at the words. "Oh you want to talk now? Yeah, yeah...like you want to talk to after you and sun man decided to leave me and my family in shit." He muttered as he walked to the door. He was about to leave when he felt something on his wrists. Click.

He looked at his wrists and saw the golden bracelets which were more similar to a pair of handcuffs. He turned around and saw the keys at Poseidon's neck.

He slowly looked down on the floor as thought for a moment. He slowly let his body rest against the door. Poseidon leaned in, Cleopas slowly wrapped his arms around Poseidon's neck. He smiled and then...He was pushed on the floor. He gasped as he looked at Poseidon. "No. You aren't going to trick me and steal the key."  Cleopas slowly looked up from the ground. Poseidon's grabbed the chin of the mortal roughly. "You aren't going to have a nice time here."

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Cleopas sat down on the marble floor of the palace of the gods. "Emerald? Are you here?" Cleopas quickly turned his head before rushing to hug Hermes who quickly catch him. The tears ran down the purplish cheek and he sobbed. "Shh, it's alright...it's all over now, darling." He whispered as he tried to pull away. "No- don't leave me alone!"  Cleopas sobbed as he cried in Hermes shoulder. "I'm not going anywhere,we are going to Hera and we are going to fix this. I'm your friend, Cleo, I don't want to see you hurt." Cleopas shook his head and kept on gripping on Hermes' tunic. "Cleo, we have to tell Hera... you are still her human." Cleopas kept shaking his head as his sobs became louder. He didn't even realize that Hermes started to walk to Hera's chamber while the mortal was still in his arms. He knocked on the door as Cleopas closed his eyes.

When Cleopas woke up,he was in a bed with blanket made with peacock feather upon him. He had a dream about standing next to Ganymedes and watching the gods talking about Odysseus and let him go back to Ithaca. He slowly got up from the bed and spied behind the curtain. "What do you want do about all this? You saw the bruises, I won't stand there and watch him get hurt. " Hermes answered to what seems to be previous question.