Chapter 7 - Defiance

In the Gardens of Olympus, the Goddess of Love was being followed by her son, the Champion of Sparta. Aphrodite was rather running for her life, a choice she pursued because of the failure to control the raging Demi-god who is now after the Gods who have been reinstated to rule Olympus. Matthaios has his mother trapped in the gardens, slowly bringing the Blades of Athena out from his back.

"Son… Please, this behavior of yours is intolerable." Aphrodite fell over, admitting that she has nowhere to go.

"Do you think that Eros will succeed upon killing me? Think again, mother." He has the Blades in his hands.

"It was never his intention! We do not intend to end your life, Matthaios. I beg you, my son. Put an end to this madness instead." She tried to crawl away, but her son caught her legs.

"We are not done talking, mother. The day you all fear has come to strike terror of all Greece. This day... Serves as my ascension. No God would survive my brigade. Not even you, mother." Matthaios held the Blades of Athena while his other hand is gripping Aphrodite's leg, and he was about to chop off her leg when two surging Gods has come to halt him.

"Submit, Champion of Sparta. Let us help you. This is not you, Matthaios. You are just utilizing your weaknesses." It was Artemis and Apollo who tackled the Demi-god furiously.

"My weaknesses made me who am I up until today!" He resisted submitting, standing right in front of them.

"Your disobedience has caused lives, Champion of Sparta. Eos was fortunate enough to recover courtesy of my abilities, but your brother… He's severely injured. It was all because of you, Matthaios. I am afraid we must do this right in front of your mother." Apollo brought his bow and arrow out, pointing it at the Champion of Sparta.

"I stand with my brother into this, Matthaios. We don't want to hurt you, but we don't have many options left to silence you. Perhaps this is the only way to end this." Artemis also aimed her bow and arrow at the raging Demi-god.

"Then let us decide if the Gods could conclude my existence. Since all of you put such pressure on things I didn't even commit, then let this be my judgment." Matthaios was still holding the blazing Blades of Athena.

Once the Demi-god raised the Blades, the Gods he is facing knew that he would attack them with it. Artemis and Apollo have paired up to neutralize the Champion of Sparta, going on opposite positions to get better precision for the bow. And after getting a fine aim, they started to fire arrows at him.

Matthaios was being impaled by the arrows, but he is strong enough to endure it despite his status as a Demi-god. He could still stand after getting his body punctured by the sharp arrows, yanking the pointy objects off him using his bare hands and show how durable he is by performing his battle cry.

"Apollo, do you think you could match his strength?" She asked her brother if he could oppose him.

"His strength is comparable to Kratos and Hercules being fused. But fear not, I will." He was bold enough to make a statement.

"I will stay here and guard Aphrodite. You go and have a battle with him." The Goddess of Hunting has decided on their plan to defeat him.

He nodded, getting up to face the Champion of Sparta one-on-one. Matthaios chose to use the Arms of Sparta to take on the God of Light, and a clash embarks between them as Apollo pulls his divine Golden Sword from his back. It shined through his abilities to use the light, and its feats could be seen as he strikes a dashing light from the sky.

It was used to stun the Champion of Sparta, and it shows that it was indeed effective. Apollo seized the opportunity to slash and stab Matthaios with his sword, but the Demi-god has recovered immediately, taking a step to his right to evade it. With Apollo going straight through the green grasses, Matthaios uses the kick popularized by the Spartans in battle once again.

The Demi-god from Sparta was about to hack and slash his way in when he uses his flares that blinded him temporarily but effectively. The God of Light stood up and decided to throw Matthaios into the pot of plants, doing it so forcefully that the tropics moved because of the impact that has been caused.

The Champion of Sparta stood up immediately as he is desperate enough for retaliation, and when the Arms of Sparta still in his grasp, he goes into position to protect himself with his shield while the spear is pointed at Apollo directly. And now, the battle has begun between both forces.

"You hit like a true God, Champion of Sparta. Grueling, but inadequate." Apollo admits that he is too powerful for a Demi-god.

"You talk too much, Apollo. I regret considering you as a role model." Matthaios spat in front of him.

"I hope this confrontation doesn't change anything to how we are worshipped in Sparta." Apollo has hopes that the people of Sparta wouldn't change their minds if they found out that their Champion has gone rogue.

"Oh, no. They wouldn't. I should be their King by now… But no. You Gods have the deepest desires to use me. But that wouldn't happen!" The Champion of Sparta shouted, using his shield to protect himself while charging towards the God of Light.

Meanwhile, Artemis has evacuated Aphrodite to her chamber. And with the ongoing battle between Apollo and Matthaios, neither of them would go down easily. The walking abomination that is the Champion of Sparta has his anger increased after the God of Light's remarks, screaming once more to anticipate a furious barrage.

Nevertheless, Apollo could withstand his assault. With the two of them battling it out in the Gardens of Olympus, they wouldn't be surprised if the area would be obliterated after their earth-shaking duel. Both are just countering each other's exertion of a mixture of defense and offense, and it is hard to determine whether who is having the upper hand.

Matthaios was wounded from the Golden Sword of the God of Light, yet he was still standing. On the other hand, Apollo still manages to remain on his feet after such stomach-crushing blows from the Champion of Sparta. And as they stare at each other, neither of them would dare to make the next move.

"Aren't you tired from fighting your brother earlier?" Apollo asked, catching his breath constantly.

"Give me a reason why," Matthaios answered while in position.

The Champion of Sparta swings his spear after gathering such momentum, performing it in a circular motion. Apollo didn't bother to block it, knowing that his twin sister Artemis would guard him against such a ferocious move by the Demi-god. He was correct, after all, Artemis has come to help him.

The Goddess of Hunting handled it with ease, gripping the spear before sending Matthaios to the ground with a simple push. "We are commanding you for the last time, Champion of Sparta. Surrender, and you won't be harmed."

"What a way to tell me that you Gods are afraid of the abyss." He just wouldn't let go of his guard, getting into his protective stance with the Arms of Sparta yet again.

"If you call yourself as the abyss of the Gods, you are mistaken. I respect you as a warrior, but you are far too unfitting for the role." She acknowledges his newly-made title, but she won't let it.

"If the death of the Gods would grant the salvation of Greece, I will be the last Demi-god to make history." The Spartan Demi-god rushed into the Goddess of Hunting with his shield and spear, clashing with her before getting outsmarted by the twin gods.

"Then so be it." Apollo raises his sword before stabbing the Demi-god on his back, piercing the armor he was wearing.

Matthaios gets shocked in awe, seeing the God of Light's sword penetrating through his body. It took two Gods to defeat the Champion of Sparta, and by the moment they saw that he is now weakened, they halted themselves from assaulting him.

"Our sincerest apologies, Matthaios. But we must do this for the sake of you." Apollo pulled the sword from the Demi-god's back.

"A Spartan-like you stand tall for battle even in death, yes?" Artemis held his now limp body, placing it to the ground gently.

His blood was drizzled all over the plants and grasses of the garden, coating it with nothing but crimson shades in it. Matthaios couldn't respond from the excessive bleeding on his back, and a weak groan could be heard from him before passing out.

"The curse is broken, he is now free from the corruption of Tartarus. But until then, I sense that he would come to seize chaos now that his pawn was fallen." Apollo also held the Demi-god's cold body.

"His new form is approachable, that is why he managed to disaffect him in the first place. But if he shows himself, we should be prepared for anything." Artemis tells her brother that Tartarus is going under a guise they wouldn't decipher that easily.

"So, where are we bringing him?" We couldn't just let him here or else, his mother's heart will be broken." He was worrying that Aphrodite would see her son who has been slain by them.

"I apologize it ended like this, and we wouldn't want to tear your mother's heart down… Apollo, let us carry him." She still hasn't decided where they should bring the fallen Champion of Sparta.

"To where, Artemis? You didn't answer my question." Apollo asked for the second time.

"River Styx." Artemis has decided to throw the Demi-god down from the edge of Mount Olympus to the river.

"Shouldn't we just bury him next to his family's grave he never met?" Apollo suggested, but his sister finds it foolish.

"No, Apollo. That would break Aphrodite even more. Without his presence, they would care less about him." She tells her brother the reason why they should bring him to River Styx.

"I am anxious to do such a heartless task, but we must do this." Apollo started to carry the Demi-god who was perished by the twin Gods, delivering him at the top of the Mountain to drop him off.

"I admire your defiance, Spartan. But you failed to be triumphant. We hope that you will realize the things you told us before your demise. You will be missed… Champion of Sparta." Artemis spoke before her brother walked into the cliff, lowering the unresponsive body of Matthaios until he falls.

The night they slew him serves as the death of the Champion of Sparta, after such a long fall, a splash was heard before the twin Gods walked away from the cliff. His body was now floating to the deep River Styx, where the dead and the souls of the tormented are lurking, swimming endlessly to remind them of their failure and despair.

To be continued…