Demigods Academy - Year Two Read online

  DEMIGODS ACADEMY

  Year Two

  Elisa S. Amore

  Kiera Legend

  Copyright © 2019 by Amore Publishing

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  ABOUT THE AUTHORS

  Chapter One

  MELANY

  Stunned, I stood, frozen in spot in the second row of the arena, staring at the God of the underworld wondering if all of this was an elaborate joke. He was known for his trickery and deception. Maybe this was his idea of a prank to pull on the most important day of the year for the academy. The most important day for the first year recruits. The most important day for me.

  He most definitely looked beyond pleased with himself. He even had the nerve to wink at me, like I’d been in on the whole thing.

  Chaos erupted around me. I didn’t know what to do.

  “You are not welcome here!” Hera shouted at Hades.

  “Ah but sis, it’s been too long. Aren’t you happy to see me?” Hades gave a little bow to her, which just enraged her even more.

  “Where are the guards? Why aren’t they here to apprehend him?” This Hera asked of Zeus, but he looked just as confused as everyone else.

  Revana stepped into the circle and pointed at me. “She cheated! Obviously Hades helped her through the trials. She should be expelled for this and kicked out of the academy.”

  Of course she accused me of this stunt, anything to get rid of me. She couldn’t stand that I was just better than she was.

  Others joined her in the cry that I had somehow cheated. They were just looking for some lame excuse to implicate me in some nefarious plot. I wanted to yell at them that I didn’t have anything to do with it, but I didn’t think anyone would hear me, it was so loud in the arena with everyone talking at once, let alone listen to what I had to say.

  While some of the Gods chose to be vocal about Hades’ unexpected arrival, others attacked.

  Ares waved his arms around in a panic. “Seize him!”

  Armed with a sword, Heracles ran up on the platform and charged at Hades. Smiling, Hades waved his hand in the air and a whip-like tendril of black smoke appeared and wrapped around Heracles’s ankles, tripped him, and then hung him upside down over the platform. He started shouting and cursing as he dangled comically over the cadets.

  I pressed my lips together to stop from laughing, as it was pretty funny.

  Poseidon stepped out of the circle and created a huge cyclone of water around Hades. This started a panic among the recruits who risked getting swept up into it. Screams echoed over the rush of water as recruits jumped down from the platform and rushed toward the main door which was still closed. Most of the other Gods got out of the way too. Hermes hovered above the fray with his large golden wings spread wide and powerful.

  I saw Jasmine and Georgina running in that crowd, and I rushed down the rows of seats to meet them. Lucian had been on the other side of the stadium so I didn’t see where he went. But I couldn’t get past the crush of other students who were all clamoring to get out.

  The water spout encircled Hades; I couldn’t see him through the blue spray. Poseidon smiled as did Zeus, thinking they had captured their brother. They should’ve known better. Hades didn’t have his fearsome reputation for nothing.

  There was a flash of fire in the middle of the platform where Hades had been standing. Then the water just evaporated, and steam filled the arena like a giant sauna. I could feel the mist on my cheeks. Once that cleared, I saw Hades standing there the last remnants of flames disappearing from his fingertips. He wasn’t even wet.

  “Really?” Hades shook his head, a wry grin on his face. “Is that all you got? I expected more from you baby brother.” He lifted his hands toward Poseidon, but before he could do anything, Zeus clapped his hands together; white sparks erupted from between them and fell to the ground, sizzling the floor on impact. A crack of thunder shook the whole building. I grabbed the railing beside me so I didn’t fall over.

  “ENOUGH!”

  Silence filled the stadium as the echoes of thunder faded.

  Hades let his hands drop to his sides with a disappointed sigh.

  “Open the door and release the recruits.” Zeus nodded to Antiope and Achilles who had been guarding the door. “Please assemble in the dining hall and wait for your further instructions.” The doors opened and everyone started to stream out. I pushed into the crowd to follow. “Everyone may go but you, Miss Richmond.”

  My heart dropped into my gut. Of course. I locked eyes with Jasmine, she gave me a horrified look, as she was swept up the crowd and out the door. Everyone else went too, until I was the only student left in a room full of Gods and demigods.

  All eyes locked on me as I slowly made my way up onto the platform. I didn’t know where to stand. Next to Hades, because he claimed me? Next to Zeus, because he was making the decision about my fate? I ended up standing by myself, on the edge of the platform, in case I needed a quick exit strategy.

  Ares and Aphrodite continued to grumble about Hades’ appearance.

  “I’m here. Deal with it.” Hades glared at both of them. “And like I said before everyone had a hissy fit, I’m here to claim Melany for my own clan. She belongs to me. She’s in my charge, and I will train her as I see fit.”

  “You can’t just claim a recruit,” Zeus said. “That’s not how it works. A recruit must show signs that they belong to your—,”

  “She’s beyond proficient with fire, is she not?” Hades raised an eyebrow at Hephaistos.

  After a slight hesitation, Hephaistos nodded. “Yes. She is gifted, but—,”

  “She has produced black wings.” Hades looked at Hermes, who was still hovering in the air.

  He floated down to the platform, golden wings folding in behind him. “Yes, and it is an anomaly, but doesn’t necessarily mean…”

  With no effort at all, huge black wings unfurled from Hades’ back. He gave everyone a pointed look, and then his wings folded in again and disappeared.

  “And she has a mastery of the shadows.” His gaze swept the stage, and found Erebus who had been almost hiding in the corner. “Come and tell them.”

  Erebus stepped up onto the platform, swallowing. “Melany is very skilled in the shadow arts. She can manipulate the shadows to do her bidding. She can even tr…er…” He brought his hand up to cough, and then he started talking again. “She can use them as a p—,” He coughed again. It was almost like he was choking.

  I noticed Hades staring at him. Was he purposely stopping Erebus from saying something about me? If so, then why? What did he want kept secret about my abilities?

  Every time he opened his mouth to talk about me, he started to cough, and then he started to spit up something onto the ground. At first it looked like small stones, but they were reddish. After he did it a few more times, everyone stepped away from him; I saw that they w
ere pomegranate seeds.

  “Anyway,” Hades turned away from Erebus. The shadow master sucked in a greedy breath of air. “The point is she possesses all the attributes belonging to me and my clan.”

  “She can also manipulate water, and earth and lightning.” Demeter stepped up beside Hades.

  Hades’ smile was slow and lazy, but vicious. “Yes, and so can I to some extent.”

  Zeus glanced at Poseidon, who looked a bit concerned, then back to Hades. “You don’t have a clan here. You’re not part of the academy.”

  “Yeah, and whose fault it that? You wouldn’t let me be part of this.” He gestured to the arena. “Besides, it’s not really yours, is it?”

  Everyone on stage glanced nervously at each other.

  What did he mean the academy wasn’t theirs? That didn’t make any sense. The Gods had been recruiting for the academy for over one hundred years. As a society we reestablished all the temples of worship around the world, so we could make offerings to the Gods for their favor. If that wasn’t for them, for the academy, then who was it for?

  Zeus stepped forward, grabbed Hades’ arm and pulled him away from everyone else. They bent their heads close together to talk. I couldn’t hear what they said to each other.

  I looked around, unsure of what to do. I looked around for an ally, but wasn’t sure I had one here. Demeter had helped me in the past, and she did seem to be arguing in my favor here, as had Dionysus in his own way. Hephaistos was certainly less grumpy toward me than the others and had worked with me on my shield after regular forging class. Or maybe I’d been stupidly mistaken, and none of the Gods cared about what happened here, or what happened to any of us. Maybe we were just pawns in some ancient family squabble.

  After another few minutes of awkward waiting, Zeus and Hades walked back over to where I, and the others, stood. Zeus looked slightly agitated, his brow deeply furrowed, while Hades beamed.

  “Melany will be under Hades’ tutelage. She will go to live in Hades Hall outside of the academy and train with him in whatever skills he sees fit to benefit the army.”

  Poseidon shook his head. “This is a mistake.”

  Hera threw up her hands and walked away.

  Ares and Aphrodite expressed the most outrage.

  “There should be a discussion and a vote,” Aphrodite said. “This isn’t fair.”

  I was curious why they were so adamantly against Hades’ presence at the academy.

  Demeter, Dionysus and Hephaistos all shared concerned looks but didn’t say anything. Apollo, Artemis, Athena and Hermes just shook their heads.

  “Do I get a say in this? Since it is the rest of my life,” I finally said, my voice a bit shaky.

  Everyone turned toward me. I saw looks of concern, whether for me or the situation I couldn’t distinguish, and looks of disdain.

  “No,” Zeus and Hades said in unison.

  Zeus addressed the others. “This matter is settled. There will be no more discussion about it. Not between you and definitely not with any of the recruits.”

  His gaze came back to me, and I could feel the intensity of it right in my bones. “I trust we can expect discretion from you Miss Richmond.”

  I nodded enthusiastically, although I knew I was going to have a hard time not discussing it with my friends. The second I saw them, they were going to bombard me with a million questions. And honestly I wouldn’t have any answers. Something most definitely went on here, something monumental, but I had no real idea what it was.

  “Okay, we have a celebration to prepare for,” Zeus said. “The recruits will be expecting their reward for completely their trials.”

  “Am I allowed to leave and join my friends?” I asked, nervous of the answer.

  “Of course. You earned a celebration.” Zeus gestured toward the open door of the arena.

  Before I stepped off the platform, I glanced at Hades. He waved his fingers at me. “I’ll see you later Melany. We’re going to have a grand time together.”

  I swallowed, as I wasn’t so sure.

  Chapter Two

  MELANY

  I joined the others in the dining hall. Everyone sat at the long wooden tables in groups talking. Basically that all stopped the moment I passed through the tall double doors. Jasmine, Georgina and Lucian rushed toward me, all talking at once.

  “What the hell just happened?” Jasmine put her hands on her hips and gave me a look. “You didn’t have anything to do with that did you?”

  I frowned at Jasmine, surprised she’d ask me something like that. “Of course not.”

  “Are you okay? Did they do something to you?” Georgina grabbed my hand; she looked like she was going to cry.

  “I’m okay. I swear.”

  Lucian pulled me into his arms. “What did Zeus say? Surely you won’t have to go with Hades. The most logical place for you is in Zeus’s clan. With me.”

  I pulled back and looked at my closest friends, wondering what all of this meant. Would we even see each other again? No one had been clear on exactly what happened to us after we were sorted into our clans. Maybe this was it. Our last goodbye.

  “I, ah, I’m going to be training with Hades.”

  They all gaped at me as if I’d just grown a second head. Then the comments came like rapid fire and I felt attacked.

  “You can’t.”

  “Are you crazy?”

  “There has to be another way.”

  I shook my head; I was starting to get a little bit angry at the implications that I had control over the situation. “I don’t have a choice. Just like you guys don’t. We are all stuck in the clan chosen for us.”

  Thankfully Jasmine had the decency to look admonished for her earlier accusation. She sighed, and reached for me to give me a hug. “I’m sorry if I came off as a bitch. I was just so scared for you. This is all so messed up.”

  I agreed it was messed up, but what could we do about it? This was our lives now. We survived our first year in the academy. This was what we signed up for. It’s just that I didn’t expect Hades. No one did. He threw everything for a loop. And now we were two years away from being active soldiers in the Gods Army. Maybe by then, I’ll have found out what happened to my town of Pecunia, to Sophie, and be able to exact my revenge with all the power of the Gods behind me.

  “Look I don’t know what’s going on or what’s going to happen to us in the future, but let’s just go and enjoy the celebration together.” What I didn’t say, was it might be the last time we’re all together. By the troubled looks on their faces, they already knew that.

  After another ten minutes or so of milling about in the dining hall, two ceremonial horns blew, echoing through the hall. Moments later a parade of champions marched in, led by Heracles and Hippolyta. Behind them were Achilles, Bellerophon, Antiope, Helen of Troy, Eros, Psyche, and a few others I didn’t know or recognize. A buzz of excitement rippled through the room and everyone got to their feet, watching and waiting in anticipation of what came next.

  “Congratulations recruits!” Heracles bellowed. “You have successfully completed your first year of training and have now achieved the rank of cadet!”

  A wave of clapping and cheering flowed through the room.

  “Because of this great feat you have been rewarded with a special position in one of the Gods’ clans. You should be proud of this achievement. Not everyone who trains at the academy makes it through. You are the best of the elite selection of recruits.” He beamed at us all. “Now it is time to celebrate!”

  More clapping and cheers. I didn’t join in, as I didn’t feel rewarded but like I was being punished. Others in the room gave me suspicious and cautious looks. Like I was someone to be skeptical of, or even feared. I didn’t like it. It made my stomach churn.

  “We are here to escort you to your celebratory feast.” Heracles gestured to the path that the champions made between them, and we all lined up. Some jostled for position to be at the front, but I, and my friends, including Mia, Ren
and Rosie, stayed back so we were the last of the group to file out of the dining hall and into the main corridor.

  As the procession wound its way through the stone corridors of the academy to the great hall where even now I could hear the distance echoing thump of music, a rush of excitement circulated through the group. Jasmine and Georgina positively glowed with exhilaration. Lucian did too. He walked with his head up, proud and jubilant about what he’d achieved. They all deserved to be praised, to feel triumphant in their achievements. I’d never want to take that away from them.

  Despite my smiles and attempts at frivolity, I didn’t share their eagerness and excitement for what was to come. I was filled with ominous dread.

  There was something else, something nefarious, going on in the academy behind the scenes. I didn’t know what it was, but I did know it revolved around Hades and his unexpected arrival…and around me.

  When the front of the procession reached the towering double doors of the great hall, they slowly swung open and we were flooded with loud thunderous music, Dionysus must’ve been DJing again, and bathed in golden light. One by one, in pairs, and in small groups, we entered the hall for our celebration.

  Before I could enter, Heracles gently grabbed my arm and pulled me to the side, leaning down into my ear. “I just want you to know that I’m on your side. Others are as well. You have friends in the academy.” Then as if remembering himself and where he was, he straightened and pushed me into the room. “Go have fun cadet.”

  I stumbled into the great hall and caught up with Lucian and the others. We all paused for a moment and took in the splendor of the gallery. Everything was all gold and white and radiating with warm light. Hovering about six feet above us, like golden balloons, were candle filled lanterns immersing the room in a luxurious glow. Tall gold vases of white flowers encircled each white pillar filling the air with a slightly sweet perfumed aroma. Long tables covered in gold cloth lined three walls and were stacked with every imaginable food possible. Roast chicken and duck, tiny sage stuffed partridges, roasted potatoes and root vegetables next to every pasta dish imaginable. And the dessert table had its own chocolate fountain, which Diego was now shoving his face under. Students were lined up eager to fill up their plates.