by Katie Dunn
“Alright, girls, here you go.” Tang laid out our baskets of pretzels with delicious cheese sauce on the side and our milkshakes with whip cream and cherries on top.
Rae and I devoured our pretzels in a matter of minutes. Tang’s pretzels were the absolute best because they were handmade, fresh, and huge. No matter what business he changed the place to, he always had pretzels for sale. We slowed down as we got halfway through our shakes and started looking over Tam’s list of songs.
“I call this one,” Rae said, pointing excitedly to a Faith Hill song.
Tamara and Rae divided the list up among the two of them until it was finally time to get up on stage. Tamara stood and walked over to the stage where she typed a song into the karaoke machine. The first notes of What a Girl Wants came over the speakers and Tam took a pose on stage waiting for the first lyrics. Rae and I got up and cheered by the front of the stage as Tamara’s beautiful voice filled the room.
Tamara was by far the best singer I had ever met. Rae and I had urged her to go on America’s Got Talent or American Idol, but she always refused. Rae was a good singer as well which she proved whenever she was on stage. Rae switched between rock and country songs while Tam stuck with classic pop but they both got everyone’s attention every time.
After about the fifth or sixth song, Tam and Rae grabbed my arm, dragging me on stage. I tried to dig in my heel or make my body go limp, but they were annoyingly strong. A microphone was shoved into my hand as my best friends grinned at me. I pleaded with wide eyes to not make me sing, but they ignored me and started the song.
The first notes of My Heart Will Go On started and soon Rae was singing. “Every night in my dreams. I see you; I feel you. That is how I know you go on.” Rae nodded at Tam.
Tam lifted the microphone to her mouth and sang the next verse, “Far across the distance. And spaces between us. You have come to show you go on.”
Then it was my turn. I stared out at the tiny crowd, my heart beating furiously. Rae and Tam smiled at me encouragingly, waiting for me to sing the next notes. I did not have time to think, otherwise the moment would pass. I opened my mouth and sang the chorus, “Near, far, wherever you are. I believe that the heart does go on.”
Rae and Tam joined in on the next part, our three voices blending perfectly. I sounded surprisingly good, and soon my fear washed away. I basked in the music, feeling as if there was nothing else in the world. I felt my soul open and pour out through my voice and the lyrics. I always did think this song was powerful and now I felt it touching everyone’s hearts as I sang. Something tugged in my chest and I closed my eyes, feeling the song go through me and out of me into the crowd, drawing them in.
I noticed that Rae and Tam had stopped singing but I felt like I couldn’t stop to find out why. I wanted to keep singing and finish the song. It was more than a want, it was a need. I needed to keep singing. The last notes rang out across the room and was I met with absolute silence. My euphoria from the moment faded and my self-consciousness reappeared. Was I that horrible at singing that no one wanted to clap? I had thought I did a decent job at not butchering the song but maybe I was wrong.
I looked at the crowd who stood near the stage, staring at me with blank fixed gazes, all with the same wide creepy smile. I couldn’t tell whether they were happy or crazy. I looked to Rae and Tam to see what they thought. Rae stared at me with the same creepy stare and smile.
I walked over to my best friend and waved a hand in front of her face. “Rae? What’s going on?”
I nearly jumped off the stage when a hand rested on my shoulder and a voice broke the silence in the room. “What did you do Serena?”
I looked at Tam’s scared, hazel-gray eyes which most likely mirrored my own crystalline blue ones. “What do you mean? I didn’t do this! Why are they like that? Why aren’t we like that?” My voice rose as fear seeped into every part of my body.
Tam ignored me and pulled her phone with its glittery purple case from her pocket. She urgently tapped the screen with her long purple nails then held the phone up to her ear.
“Who are-” I started to ask.
Tam held up one slender finger telling me to hold on a minute. “Hello? Yes, this is Tamara of CO sector five. I think we have a code blue.” She waited as the person on the other side spoke. “Yes, Blue. Siren, I think.” She paused again as the other person spoke. “Ok, Tang’s Karaoke in downtown. See you soon.” She hung up and put the phone back in her pocket.
“Tamara Abdala, you better start speaking now,” I said slowly and forcefully.
Tam held up her hands to show she meant no harm. “Hold on, Serena. I will explain.” She glanced at the crowd behind me, slight fear shining in her eyes. “You’ve gotta calm down.”
I glanced behind me and noticed the crowd had moved in closer and were now frowning although they still smiled widely. It was disturbing and sent shivers down my arms.
“What’s wrong with them?” I asked, turning back to Tam. “Who did you call?”
Tam let out a deep breath and put her hands on her head, glancing at Rae then back to me. “This was never supposed to happen. Your tests were negative. How did this happen?”
I gripped her arms, forcing her to put them back to her side. “Hey, Tam, stay focused. Who did you call?”
Tam ignored my question and stared into my eyes with worry and a crease between her eyebrows. “I thought you weren’t myth blessed Serena.”
I stepped back at her words. “Wha-I-I’m not,” I stammered.
Tam snorted in disbelief and waved out at the crowd and at Rae. “I think you are.”
I looked out over the crowd, disbelief trying to overpower the growing realization that I did in fact do something to them. I felt it when I was singing. A connection and a tug in my chest pulling in the crowd through the music. What kind of mythological creature could do that?
I must have said the last part out loud because Tamara answered softly beside me, “A siren.”
Before I could comment on that, the doors burst open and three figures walked in. The man leading the charge looked to be in his fifties with salt and pepper hair and a stubbly beard but somehow still looked handsome. The other two were younger, maybe around my age. One was a tall girl with long, flowing, ultra-light blonde hair, a sweet yet dangerous look in her aqua eyes, and holding a silver dagger. The last stranger was a tall guy, just a bit taller than the dagger holding girl, with broad shoulders, short, black spiky hair and a scowl that could cause terror in any soul. A movement by their feet drew my attention to a frightening sight. A giant lizard stood by them, analyzing the room with an eerie intelligence.
“Tamara Abdala?” The older man asked stepping forward.
Tam stepped down from the stage and walked over to the three scary newcomers, greeting each of them in turn yet keeping her distance from the large lizard. I stayed where I was and glanced at the back exit, wondering if I should make a break for it.
“Can you help us fix them?” Tam asked the girl.
The mysterious girl glanced at me from across the room. I felt a weird connection to her from deep within, but I did not know how since I had never seen her before in my life.
“Of course, I can,” the girl sneered and pushed her way passed Tam to stand in front of the enchanted crowd.
The older man took out a set of ear plugs and handed a pair to the scowling guy. Once they had the plugs in their ears, the leader gave a nod to the girl. She started singing, softly at first but intensified it as she continued. That connection from within tugged at my chest, drawing me to the song and to her. I jerked back in surprise when I realized it was the same song I heard in Hawaii from the water. How was that possible?
Without realizing it, I had stepped down from the stage and stood in front of her. Noise from behind me made me turn around and my eyes widened at the sight of the crowd rousing from their trance. They didn’t seem to notice that they were even in one. This girl must be siren blessed…like me. That was a diffic
ult thought to wrap my mind around.
Poor Rae seemed lost on stage, wondering where we went. Finally, she spotted us, and frowned in confusion at the people we were with as she walked over to us.
“What’s going on?” Rae asked.
A bubble of laughter rose up and escaped me. The strangers and my friends stared at me, but more laughter kept bubbling up. This situation was crazy! I wanted to know what was going on, too. Who were these mysterious people?
“I think we better take this somewhere else. Please follow me.” The older man turned and walked out of Tang’s Karaoke. I glanced at Tam and a confused Rae before following the strangers outside.
We gathered around a small table that was set outside with an umbrella over it. Tam, Rae, the leader, and I took seats while the other two stood by with crossed arms. The two standing people kept glaring at each other. There was some kind of history there, but I didn’t have the time or energy to figure it out.
“Can someone please tell me what is going on?” I asked my palms sweaty and dread twisting my insides.
The leader glanced at Rae with suspicion and hesitation, but Tam nodded letting him know it was okay to talk in front of her. The leader nodded in understanding and held out a hand in greeting. “Well, first off I am Dominic Drakari, Principal of the Myth Blessed Academy of Colorado.”
My eyes widened as I took his hand and shook it. “Serena Carter.”
“Myth Blessed Academy? Why are you here?” Rae asked surprised and looked around to find the myth blessed person he must be there to meet.
I shifted in my seat and struggled to meet their eyes. “I, um, kinda did something myth-y.”
Rae stared at me with an open mouth and wide eyes. “What’d you do?”
Dominic sidestepped the question and introduced the other two. “This is Laneli Michaels, siren blessed, Elliot Maganot, dragon blessed, and his familiar, Moto.”
Rae and I sucked in a surprised breath. Being Dragon blessed was rare. In order to be blessed by a mythological creature, you had to have been around one at some point in your life. Dragons have not been recorded in ages so the fact that he was blessed by one was amazing yet frightening.
I didn’t get a chance to ask Elliot about being dragon blessed, what a familiar was or why it was a giant lizard because Dominic drew our attention back to him. “Serena, what you did cannot happen again. Without knowing the full extent of your gifts, you might hurt someone.”
I looked down at the table guiltily. “How was I supposed to know I could do that? Aren’t your tests supposed to pick up on that?”
It was his turn to look guilty. “Well, yes. I don’t know why your tests came back negative. Either way, we know now. You must attend Myth Blessed Academy as soon as possible.”
He produced an envelope from inside his coat pocket and handed it to me. I stared down at the stamp of the school crest and the big letters saying Myth Blessed Academy. I knew going up on that stage would be a bad idea. I just never knew it would turn out like this. At least my parents would be happy. They finally got a myth blessed daughter.
I opened the envelope, reading it over carefully while Tam and Rae squeezed in to read over my shoulder. Apparently, I would be starting Myth Blessed Academy the following day.
Dominic Drakari followed me home to talk to my parents and explained that Laneli would be staying with me until then to make sure I did not use my powers accidentally. Drakari did not even ask if it was okay for her to stay, but it would not have mattered. My parents were way too excited and would have agreed to anything.
“Our daughter is a siren! Oh my! We should have guessed,” My mother said excitedly to my father.
I feel like she would have said that no matter what mythological creature I was blessed by. They sure did try to cover everything when they tested me in their own way. I shuddered, thinking about some of the lengths they went to test me.
Laneli cleared her throat to get my mom’s attention. “She is not a siren. She is blessed by one.”
My mother waved away her words and whispered excitedly to my dad who was smiling proudly as if it was his blessing that made me that way. I left them talking to themselves and walked over to sit by Laneli on the couch.
“So, what should I expect tomorrow?” I did not want to meet her eyes, so I stared at my shoes as I kicked them side to side.
“You will be given a class schedule and a dorm room-”
I interrupted her, “Dorm room? So, I will be staying there all day every day?”
“Yes, did you expect to have to travel that kind of distance every day?” She asked with a raised thin eyebrow.
I deflated. “I guess not.” That just meant I wouldn’t be able to see my friends as much. Something from earlier came back to me. “Why did Tamara call you guys? How did she even have your number? How did you get there so fast?”
Laneli looked uncomfortable, which contradicted her usual confident air. “I don’t know if I am the one who should tell you about your friend, but the way we got there was from the powers of another myth blessed at the Academy.”
I wondered what kind of myth blessed had the powers to send people far distances in a short amount of time. I would have to come back to that later. “Fine.” I decided not to push the Tamara topic and put a mental pin in it. I would wring the truth from Tam if I had to later. “What will school be like?”
Laneli’s confident posture came back as we returned to a safer topic. “Well, you will probably have a roommate of the same element as you, meaning a water type, and you will have classes that teach you about our history and abilities mixed in with your common classes.”
“Water type?” I asked. I feel like I had heard about this at school a bit but could not remember the details.
I thought I saw Laneli roll her eyes but couldn’t be sure. “Every mythological creature is put into one of five elements. Since you are siren blessed, and sirens are of the water, then you are a water type.”
I nodded slowly, but still did not quite understand. “What does our elements have to do with anything?”
Laneli took a deep breath before answering, as if trying to hold on to her patience. “Usually the myth blessed have a small affinity for the element of which they are blessed from.”
I wanted to ask more about affinities and elements, but I could tell she was getting annoyed with my questions. I couldn’t help but ask one more though, as my memories of Hawaii resurfaced. “Have you ever seen a real siren?”
Laneli looked at me, studying me as if trying to see what the real meaning was behind the question. “No. I’ve never seen one, or any mythological creature for that matter.” She sounded guarded but then again, I didn’t know her well enough to know that for sure.
I was starting to wonder if the woman I saw in the water in Hawaii was actually a siren. It would make so much sense, but since Laneli couldn’t tell me what one looked like I had no idea if my guess was correct.
“Well, I guess I better start packing.” I got up and walked to my room, closing the door securely behind me.
I leaned against the door and slumped, thinking about the night’s events. I put a room full of people into a trance by singing. My best friend was somehow not affected and had Dominic Drakari’s number in her phone. I would be going to a school built for teaching people like me. My life had changed, and I did not know whether it was for the better or worse.
Chapter 3
The Academy
A black SUV with tinted windows and the Myth Blessed Academy crest stamped on the side waited for Laneli and I the next morning. I was sure my neighbors were wondering what that car was doing in front of my house and would be gossiping soon enough. If word did not get around through my neighbors, I was sure my mother and father would be blabbing about it as soon as I left.
I took my two suitcases and small duffle bag over to the vehicle where the driver took them and placed them in the back. My parents left the porch and walked over with their arms wide open.
/> “Have fun at your new school honey,” my dad said, giving me a crushing hug.
My mom stepped forward next and gave me a softer hug and a kiss on the head. “I always knew you were blessed. Now do your best in school and take as many pictures as you can.”
I gave her a frown but did not comment. She just wanted pictures to show to her friends. That was what all this was about. Being Myth Blessed would help me get jobs easier since anyone would be lucky to have someone with abilities on their team, but my mom was always wanting the prestige and attention having a myth blessed child would bring.
I waved to my parents and got in the SUV, glad that the windows were tinted so they wouldn’t see the tears building in my eyes. I should be excited that this opportunity has risen but my life changed overnight, and all my hopes and plans would change with it. I was no longer the same Serena Carter, and that fact was going to give me a bad case of identity crisis.
The drive was about an hour long since the Academy was near Denver, more specifically in a section of Roxborough State Park. I had visited the park once before, when I was thirteen years old, but we were not able to get close to the school. We would get as close as possible and my mom would point in the direction of the Academy, telling me I would end up there one day. Looks like she was right. The State park was beautiful, with red rock formations and trees that contrasted nicely with the colors in the rocks. Now I guess I would be living there for a year.
The car traveled along winding dirt roads until it came up to a massive metal gate with the school crest on the front. The driver held out a badge to the guard who looked it over before handing it back and waving us through.
Beyond the gates was a massive green field and stone paths leading in all directions. I could see people, students I presumed, walking along some of them. The students looked so normal, but I didn’t know what I was expecting otherwise. Wings or horns, maybe. The car pulled up alongside the entrance to the school and the driver got out to open our doors. When I stepped out, I took a moment to look around and was secretly impressed by what I saw.
