The Underworld Trials (⚢)

Sweetwater Green

I am not ready for war.

At nineteen, I am not ready to fight for the gods, and I am definitely not ready to lead an army, but what demigod is?

I stand before Half Blood Academy, stunned by the silence of the courtyard. It's the middle of August, and normally the school would be flooded with laughter and training demigods. The stairs would be crowded with students telling tales from their summers, and the professors would have to shoo groups of demigods off the freshly mown lawn.

It has been two months since the ancient gods declared war amongst themselves.

Two months can rapidly change your life, especially if you are a Greek demigod. Two months has turned each carefree child into a battle ready warrior. Two months has tore open the belly of the god's family, spilling the intestines of their problems onto their children.

The gravel path alerts me to another presence as I stares up at the columns of the entrance. I blink back tears, staring at the tympanum carved above the doorway until they burn away.

"You will all come back."

My voice is hoarse as I responds, "No. Not all of us, Professor Adrestia."

The minor goddess' face remains impassive, but she breathes in deeply. Her dark eyes lock onto mine.

"Haliae, I may have domain over revolt, but I also stand for balance. Neither good nor evil can prevail dominantly in the world, because that is not how things work." Adrestia follows Haliae's gaze upwards. "This war has only begun, but I can feel the scale of balance being unhinged. I can see a weighted stability in you, and my family could learn a great deal from you. I will not fight in this war, but know that I am behind you"

I turn my face to the dark haired woman, unfamiliar with this side of my professor. Adrestia teaches the older demigods at the Academy the art of fighting without letting revenge and hasty thoughts consume the mind. She gives advice, but she never directly inserts herself into a student's life.

"Will your support bring all of my friends home alive?" I can't help the bitterness creeping into my mind.

"You know it won't, Haliae, don't be unreasonable. Your job is not to bring everyone home alive, it is to bring home back."

My spine stiffens, "To who? We already have home. We have this school, we have each other. This is not our war."

Adrestia's gaze softens into something sadder, "Home is not always warmth and comfort. Family does not always get along, and you can not always turn a blind eye from those who need your help. Hades has decided to fight for a throne in Olympus, since Zeus has refused his request on numerous occasions. The brothers are stuck in their old ways, bickering like children and dragging their heroes into fights they do not belong to. The gods are your home, even if you do not like it."

I feel small, like I'm a first year again, with no idea of the myths that live around me. "I don't want to lead anyone. I don't want to be responsible for the lives of hundreds of demigods." I turn to Adrestia, pleading. "Can't the gods put aside their differences? Is this truly worth fighting for?"

Adrestia shrugs, "I can not speak for my family, but I know that the gods have always repeated their mistakes. They do not see the impact their immortal hand has on the microcosm of mortals."

I don't speak, instead turning sweetwater green eyes to the Academy garden wilting in the heat, empathising with the suffocating flora.
The longer I stand there, fist clenched tightly at my sides, the louder the tectonic rage inside me rumbles.

"I won't do it."

Adrestia shrugs again, "You were elected as strategos, young demigod, and it is true that it was not your decision. Your decision comes with what you plan to do with that power. If you don't like what is going on, what do you plan to do about it?"

Adrestia doesn't wait for an answer, turning back down the gravel path. I listen to the crunch of her footsteps grow quieter.

The summer heat melts away my dismay until I'm left empty, sweat causing my auburn hair to stick to the back of my neck. I stay under the sun so long that my eyes grow heavy and my legs grow weary, but none of the gods hear my prayers.

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So my friend said this story reads like a Drarry fic and I've never been more flattered honestly

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