The Untold Stories Of The Demigods

The Fall Of 300

Leonidas looked at the tree and walked forward, motioning for Dillios to follow him. But before they could cross the tree, a horse stepped into their path. The horse looked normal- aside from the fact that its upper half was that of a human, muscular and fit. He held a loaded bow, his chiseled arms steady.

Leonidas smiled, keeping his calm, "Cyrus, we request a meeting with your Demigods", he said to the centaur. Cyrus simply nodded and walked into the camp.

Demigods stared at them, observing them as they made their way to the large house that sat on the side of the pavilion. Cyrus led them inside and looked at Dionysus.

"The Spartan army has asked for our help", Cyrus explained to Dionysus. Before Dionysus could respond, Dillios slammed his fist against the table, "We are not an army", he snapped. "We're a small unit that is willing to fight", Anger seethed in his tone.

Dionysus smirked, laughed mockingly. "Ask the campers yourself at the pavilion tonight," he said, that malicious smile still on his face. "But I strongly urge both of you to stay here." He suddenly doubled over, his whole body shaking as he started coughing.

Leonidas looked at him and shook his head. "We will ask, but we will not stay to be useless to Greece," he said plainly.

Nighttime came, and when it was time for the campers to eat, Leonidas stood tall at the front of the pavilion.

"Brothers, sisters we have a great enemy gathering. We will strike soon but we will need help. We cannot do this alone." His voice boomed while he spoke, but no one moved.

They all watched as Dillios shrugged. "We need to leave brother, the people here aren't trained like we are," he said to Leonidas, disgust evident in his tone.

"We live in Sparta just as you do!" One of the campers shouted.

Leonidas looked at the crowd and spoke loudly and clearly. "You may live here, but you are unwilling to die for this place. Your powers keep you content, for now, but what happens when you need to fight?" They were silent while Dillios and Leonidas started to walk away, leaving the camp.

Leonidas looked at his men and sighed, "We have no reinforcements." The words stung as they all marched out, hearts heavy.

Silence reigned in the darkness as the ghosts walked the earth; this would be the aftermath of the battle.

When the morning came, it was heavy with thick fog.

The troops lined up with swords, shields, and armor equipped. Some spoke in shallow whispers while others stared straight ahead, knowing this could be the end.

King Leonidas walked to the front of the 300 Spartans. He stared them down and took a look at where they would hold the battle.

He flashed a smile at Dillios, his right-hand man, then turned back to his troops and spoke in a commanding tone. "This will be the end. We stand at the gates of the underworld, prepared to be welcomed in, and we shall fight to the last. No surrender, no retreat. We lived as Spartans. Now we shall die as Spartans."

Some soldiers cheered. Others looked pale, as they had thought the speech would be more encouraging. All was quiet as an arrow suddenly whistled over the soldiers' heads, piercing the ground in front of Leonidas's tent, a note tied to it.

The note read: "Surrender and we will spare the lives of your men. This bloodshed is useless, the deaths of your brothers will be on your conscience. There is no help coming, not from Greece or the gods. The only reasonable choice is to surrender peacefully. The pathway to my throne is an open one. -Xerxes"

King Leonidas walked toward the path where dozens of Persian soldiers flanked him, they led him into their camp under their king's orders. Leonidas smiled upon reaching a large tent that acted as Xerxes' palace, then proceeded to the throne room, where Xerxes sat on his golden throne, also smiling.

While the outside looked normal the inside was magnificent. They had put up golden walls that reflected off the marble floor. Statues of gold stood tall, one was clearly Xerxes' father, a man with a great beard and blood-stained reputation to his kingdom. His sister had one of her knives as ruby instead of gold like all the others. One statue stood in the center and it was clear who Xerxes marveled most, himself. The statue was all golden until the neck where chains strung of diamonds laid, Leonidas looked at Xerxes seeing it was a perfect match.

Beautiful women sat around the lavish room, gold necklaces glinting against their slender necks. More gold jewelry decorated their bare arms, their ears. They wore elegant dresses, their hair unbound to their waist, circlets upon their heads. They watched Leonidas, observing him as he spoke with their king.

Xerxes' voice boomed as he spoke. "I see you have decided to come before me and work out a peace agreement."

Leonidas simply smiled coldly at Xerxes. He spoke loudly and clearly, "No surrender, no retreat. We fight to the death, to the last soldier, if we have to."

"You will regret your decision," Xerxes warned as Leonidas stalked off. His voice lowered as he hissed in Greek: "Oι θεοί θα πέσουν, σε έστειλαν στο παλάτι του Άδη (The gods will fall, they sent you to the palace of Hades)." Pure hatred was evident in his tone.

Leonidas continued on. With a wicked grin on his face, he turned and responded: "Άη γαμήσου. (Fuck You)." Then he continued. The women gasped, scandalized by his words.

Xerxes frowned at the language and shouted to his commander, "Attack as soon as he gets to his men. I want them to see him die."

As Dillios watched Leonidas return, he saw the military of Persia pushing behind him and shouted to the Spartan soldiers who stood ready to fight. "CHARGE!"

The Spartan lines moved to take the middle of the battlefield. Limbs were cut off, throats were slit, and swords pierced bodies. Leonidas easily cut his enemies down, their bodies falling to the ground around him as their blood fell to the dirt.

Dillios smiled wiping his sword clean on a Persian cloak while watching the men cheer.

The first wave of the Persian army finally ended. Every Persian soldier was dead, while the Spartans took no casualties. Leonidas spoke loud and fierce, "We will not have backup today. We must end this here. We don't let them invade and we stand strong. No retreat, no surrender."

As the night fell, a few Persian spies stole a look at the Spartan defenses. They scoured around until they noticed the right flank was wide open, through a tight passage of cliffs dangerously close to collapsing.

They hurried back to report to Xerxes. Xerxes listened as they explained to him that it would be the only way to win this battle, but it would also be dangerous.

Xerxes spoke calmly, his voice strong. "Send all we can. We must win this battle if we are to invade Greece."

Meanwhile, in Athens, the leaders spoke to the gods, asking for their help. In Olympus, the gods discussed the downfall of Greece.

"We must intervene," Zeus stated. Poseidon looked at his brother whilst he spoke.

"Let the Demigods know their true powers, this is the time."

"The monsters will come out; we will have a greater war to fight," Hera argued. Zeus and Poseidon nodded, frowning.

"This will give the titans and giants time to rise," Zeus said.

Apollo spoke out from his side of the war table, "I know a certain group of Demigods that will end the Titan war and the Giant war that will come."

The gods stared at each other uneasily. Apollo spoke slowly, "The time for those battles is not now. These warriors will add to the legends of great Demigods. We must trust the fates, for they have foreseen the future. I know what will happen." Zeus nodded as the others gave their approval.