This totally wasn’t how I expected storming Olympus would go, but I would take it.
Chapter 20
Pavlina
T
hings were moving rapidly, and I honestly didn’t think we would have so many Olympians on our side. I knew what Hades wanted, and I would have tried to do it, but I think every last one of us thought we were going to get here and have to kill every last Olympian. As much as I thought I hated them, I wasn’t looking forward to that. Sure, I might have thought they deserved it before I got here, but I didn’t relish wiping out an entire race. None of us did, no matter what they had done to us.
We’d met Apollo and Hermes. I didn’t have any beef with them, and they ended up being nice. Hermes had to be the cutest thing I’d ever seen in my entire life. He wasn’t huge like the other Olympians and probably gayer than I was. I wanted to adopt him and bring him back to the Underworld. I knew that wasn’t possible, so I would help kill Zeus so he could be with Eros.
The big plan was to have Artemis take out Zeus with an arrow once the secret passage opened a bit, then we would spill in and take everyone out. Apparently, every last one of them was skilled with a bow but out of practice since bringing humans here. Artemis kept up her training and frequently went on hunts with her handmaidens.
I agreed she should be the one to take the shot, but her involvement entirely depended on me convincing her. Apparently, her twin had already tried to get her to join them, and she thought the entire thing was a lost cause because neither side had any way to end the conflict. Even with Hephaestus’s weapon in play, I guess she was playing it smart by not picking a side.
No pressure or anything.
Artemis finally came in with Apollo, and they were both so gorgeous it was disgusting. They had white-blonde hair and ice-blue eyes. Even for Olympians, they were both just too pretty. What the fuck did Aphrodite look like if she was supposed to be the most beautiful person here? Hephaestus, Hades, and Persephone were all beautiful too. It was like it was impossible for there to be an ugly Olympian, and I didn’t know how since they tended to marry their own siblings.
Artemis looked annoyed at being there, but she looked shocked when she saw all of us. She probably wasn’t expecting to see Hephaestus with four monsters, and she probably had no idea what the demons and witches were.
“Brother, what did you just bring me into?” she asked.
“A brand fucking new world. You didn’t want to get involved because you thought it was pointless. Well, it’s not anymore. Hephaestus crafted a weapon that can kill us. He’s made arrowheads. If you take out Zeus, we can take out everyone else.”
Artemis looked shocked.
“Hephaestus, why would you do such a thing? I know people were cruel to you, but many of us were just trying to avoid the same fate by angering Zeus. Why would you make a weapon like that?”
“It was just a theory at first. It was meant to be protection if Zeus ever came to my volcano. I didn’t forge it until you lent Demeter your handmaidens, and she lied to me about rescuing Persephone when she asked me to make something for her. This wasn’t just about Persephone. Demeter had the monsters in the Underworld fighting to the death for sport. She wouldn’t have left quietly, and trapping an Olympian in the Pits of Tartarus is complicated. Your handmaidens willing to fight for her made it even more so. Demeter was a rabid dog who needed to be put down, and it’s because of her your handmaidens died. I would never have made the weapon again if Zeus hadn’t kidnapped me back home and tortured me to get his hands on one. He would have indiscriminately killed anyone who challenged him, and you know this.”
I didn’t know Artemis. I didn’t know how she would react to that. Athena would have flown off the handle and started flinging curses. Artemis just bowed her head.
“I know you’re right, and I’m sad it’s come to this. Still, isn’t there another solution?”
“Artemis, I want you to meet Pavlina. Just have tea with her. She wants to tell you her story.”
Artemis didn’t seem like she was looking down on me, which was shocking, but she seemed confused.
“Fine, but I’m not sure what this will accomplish.”
Apollo indicated Dionysus’s sitting room, and I followed Artemis in. Dionysus served tea and sandwiches himself. I pretty much never thought an Olympian would serve me tea. Shocker.
“I can tell an Olympian has touched you, but I’m not sure what you can tell me that an alternative solution wouldn’t be better.”
“Do you know how Poseidon and Athena have that feud going on?”
“Of course. Everyone knows. They’ve kept it up even now.”
“I share this story with several monsters in the Underworld. Poseidon would come to Athena’s temple when there was only one priestess there. He’d appear and overpower us. He’d rape us as roughly as possible and physically abuse us with his fists. Poseidon would leave us beaten on the floor of the temple to be discovered by the next person.
“We’d always pray to Athena for help. She’d appear, but she never took our side. She’d curse us in the most horrible way possible. I’ve embraced my spider and the fact that I’ll never have children, but she really fucked Medusa up. She can’t even look at people without the glasses Hades gave her, or she’d turn them to stone. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’ll never have children, and I’m fine with that now, but it’s not like that for all of us.”
Artemis frowned at me. I could see her mind whirring behind those intense blue eyes.
“Why can’t you have children? Was it something Poseidon did when he was hurting you?”
“Raping me. Let’s not mince words. I was pregnant with his child, but I laid a ton of spider eggs when I gave birth. They weren’t like me, and they couldn’t change into humans. They were just spiders. I haven’t tried again, and I’m not into men anymore.”
Artemis just tossed her hair over her shoulder.
“Yes, Poseidon has that effect on women. I’m still not sure what you want me to do.”
“Did you see the man with green hair and all the guyliner and nail polish? That’s Poseidon’s Kraken. We aren’t just here to help you start a new society. We need our revenge. I have a beef with both Poseidon and Athena, but I understand Tryphon needs his revenge too. I love that girl with the long, black hair and the legs for days. We all do. We need to be able to protect her. You could help us by taking out Zeus so we can get closure and protect our mate.”
“I’d say you could get better closure by talking to them, but I’m afraid I know Athena and Poseidon all too well. That won’t work. I guess I could also say I know why we can’t imprison them. You’ve apparently all been through a big enough ordeal that I know why we can’t get them to the Underworld too. I just don’t like the idea of killing my family, no matter how awful they are.”
“Zeus will not stop until he gets his hands on Hephaestus’s weapon. When he does, he’ll start killing your family. When Athena, Poseidon, and Ares find out about it, they will not stop until they have it either. I think you know what they will do with it.”
“I wish my handmaidens had contacted me! I would have put a stop to Demeter before he ever made that weapon.”