Cassandra didn’t know what to say to that. A lot of things were other with them, magic wasn’t so far-fetched, she thought. She had visions, Alexander could control others with his voice. Ben could appear out of thin air. It wasn’t exactly magic but it wasn’t far from it either.
“Anyways, there is no other explanation for this”, Jim continued, yawning. “I am not even sure that it would take someone very knowledgeable with magic to do it. I think someone who is willing to go down a dark road would do just as well.”
Again Cassandra had to think of Mia and wondered whether there was something hiding beneath that mouse-grey appearance that was more than met the eye.
“I am not sure there is anything else I can tell you”, Jim said and yawned again.
Cassandra, seeing how tired he was, told him thank you and Jim nodded with a tired smile.
“You are welcome”, he replied and crawled towards his bed. “I really have to get some sleep now. Tomorrow is the big day. Second challenge. Don’t wanna disappoint the ladies.”
He lay down on his bed, cradling a huge teddy bear.
“He is there to protect me”, he murmured, already half-asleep.
Cassandra carefully closed the door behind her. What a strange little boy. So torn between his outside appearance and inner development. She remembered how proud he had been when Hector had asked him to come to the challenge with him. With a sigh, she retired to her room. He was right, it was time to catch some sleep before tomorrow.
The next morning found Pandora jumping up and down in front of her until Cassandra asked her whether she had already packed for the challenge. Pandora squeaked, shook her head and dove into her room. Cassandra touched the small black bundle that was the coat Ben had given her for New Year’s. It was the only thing she would bring today as they weren’t allowed to carry weapons. The coat felt warm to the touch and she had a feeling that she might need it sooner or later that day.
Cassandra followed her sister and stopped dead at the door when she saw the chaos in it. Pandora’s room looked like it had been hit by a hurricane. There was stuff lying everywhere and Pandora was still whirling through her room, rummaging through the closet and throwing clothes on her bed.
“Are you packing a bag?” Cassandra asked incredulously.
Pandora didn’t answer but instead dug deeper.
“I. Can’t. Find. My… Ah, there it is”, she said and emerged with a huge umbrella.
Cassandra used all calming techniques she had, took the umbrella from her sister’s hand and sat her on the bed.
“Please, let me do this for you”, she said and dumped out the bag.
While Cassandra was going through Pandora’s things trying to find at least one useful thing to take with her, Pandora sat bouncing on her mattress and pestered Cassandra with questions about fighting monsters, the upcoming challenge and their chances of dying a horrible death.
“Would you like me to braid your hair?” she asked but Cassandra shook her head.
“It is fine as it is”, Cassandra said.
“But it is the first time you are going to see Alexander again”, Pandora said excitedly.
Cassandra tried to shove the image of an almost dead Alexander from her thoughts and dove under Pandora’s bed instead.
“Finally something useful”, Cassandra said and held out the piece of clothing she had found towards Pandora.
“I am not wearing that”, Pandora said appalled and backed away from Cassandra until she hit the wall. “Not if all of Hades froze over and there was not a single hot-blooded girl left willing to warm me.”
Cassandra held up the huge coat that looked like it had been a bear once.
“Consider Hades frozen over and me not available for any cuddling”, Cassandra said and tried to lift her arm. “This will keep you warm today. The temperature in those caves is colder than Arissa’s heart and they didn’t say how long we have to stay down there. You will thank me later.”
Pandora wailed and Cassandra went to see how Jim was doing. Jim was so nervous that he shrieked when she came in. He almost dropped a bottle of red liquid that somehow looked like it was alive.
“I hope that is not blood”, Cassandra said and Jim threw her an imploring look.
“I have no idea what I am supposed to bring”, he said, looking like he was ready to throw up any moment. “Everything could be useful. Something to make fire, something to extinguish it, acid that eats through stone, liquid food” – with that he held up the red bottle and Cassandra almost gagged – “a knife, a sword, ten of them? I don’t know how to use them but still…”
Cassandra carefully lifted the red bottle from his hand and then took him by the shoulders.
“Calm down, breathe”, she said and waited until she felt that his heart rate had slowed down a little. “You will take something to make fire, a warm coat and that big brain of yours. There is no need for anything else. This won’t be like the first of the challenges. This will be about finding something, about using our heads instead of muscles. Well, at least until we have to face the Minotaur. But you’ll be fine, Hector will take care of the beast.”
Jim had gotten even paler when she said Minotaur but he held on tightly to the knife he had grabbed and Cassandra took that as a good sign. She finally got him to leave his room but not before he had made sure he was really bringing everything that might be useful with him.
They all met in the kitchen and Cassandra was glad to see that Summer and Hector seemed to have come to an agreement and Summer was helping him pack. When she saw Cassandra coming in, she gave her a sad smile and told her to take good care of herself.
“There is no use in trying to stop you, is there?” Summer said and hugged Cassandra.
“It would be like stopping you from taking care of sick people”, Cassandra said and hugged her back.
“Only sick people usually don’t try to kill you.”
Summer wished her luck and went back to packing up some bread and cheese. Cassandra called out for Charlie and Pandora to come down but there was no reaction. When her sister finally came, Cassandra had a hard time not smiling.
“You didn’t say how much of it I have to wear”, Pandora muttered and spun on her heels. “Looks good though, doesn’t it?”
She had cut off so much of the bear hide that all that was left was a kind of vest.
“Yup. Excellent”, Cassandra said. “You’ll freeze to death but at least you’ll have looked your best.”
Pandora stuck out her tongue and Cassandra drew her into a quick hug. They called out for Charlie once more and then left when there was no reaction.
The snow had covered everything around them, turning the whole university into a beautiful winter landscape. It wasn’t too cold either and as it hadn’t been snowing the past few hours, the roads had been cleared and they were able to walk on unhindered. But the sky was covered in thick, grey clouds again and it would only be a matter of time before it would start snowing again. Cassandra was glad she had been able to afford good boots that would keep her warm and threw a worried look at Pandora who had already started shivering.
By the time they passed the Colosseum, they weren’t alone anymore. There was excited chattering and some waving towards her and her brother. They passed the fighting arena and a little later the spot where the three girls had been killed. Cassandra saw several people bow their heads and did the same, renewing her vow to avenge their deaths should she ever get the chance. Cassandra also remembered the strange metal scrap they had found. There had been no further incident since that night; maybe the creature that had made the strange scratches in the rocks had simply left the island again.
They arrived at their destination which proved to be a rather smallish rocky arch close to the water. Once they entered, it opened into a kind of natural staircase that led them up at least fifty steps, away from the rumbling sea.
The entrance to the caves smelled slightly fishy but the further up they got, the nicer the smells
were that were greeting them. There was a hint of burning wood and there was definitely food and something sweet and lemony that turned out to be heated red wine with fruit in it. When they entered the cave with the ice-skating rink, Pandora gasped and simply stood there in open-mouthed wonder. Summer gripped Hector’s arm and Cassandra, who wasn’t immune to the beauty in front of her either, gently took her sister’s arm and led her further in.
The cave was almost as big as their training arena and half of it was covered by a small lake that was now frozen over. It was shimmering light-blue and turquoise and there were already lots of people sliding along, some doing pirouettes, some barely able to hold themselves upright, but all of them having a good time.
Surrounding the rink were icicles that were in some parts so thick they looked like trunks from a frozen tree. There were statues of the gods carved in ice everywhere and the seats, also carved from ice, were covered with animal skins and blankets. Servants were skating through the crowd offering food and drinks and other servants handed out ice-skates that could simply be strapped on to their shoes.
“This is like flying”, Pandora squealed and did a pirouette.
She seemed to take naturally to ice-skating and was soon off, darting through the crowd as if she had never done anything else in her life. The demigods had already come in. They were sitting at the side and instead of skates they were wearing big, comfortable looking boots with spikes at the bottom. Arissa looked like the ice-queen herself with her long white coat that had a hood lined with white fur. Her blond hair was braided and her ice-blue eyes looked cool and detached on the crowd before her. Bear attempted to talk to Arissa but she ignored him. River, Sol and Beatrix were their usual selves, talking animatedly and waving to Cassandra when they saw her looking at them. Ben seemed not to be there yet and Mia, too, was nowhere to be seen. Cassandra made a mental note to confront her about the Ambrosia once all of this was over.
Alexander was sitting in his wheelchair but this one had skids instead of wheels and looked like a miniature sleigh. She tried to wave at him but he wouldn’t look at her or maybe he was distracted by everything that was going on, she wasn’t sure. It had only been a couple of days, but he already looked so much better. He had gained weight and there was a healthy glow in his face but when their eyes finally met, she couldn’t detect any warmth in them for the first time since they had met.
Cassandra stopped moving. She had no idea what was going on but when she wanted to approach him, he shook his head and looked away. Cassandra, who felt incredibly hurt by his behavior, started to slide over to talk to him but was intercepted by her sister who simply glided into her path.
“I know what you have done to save him”, Pandora said, reaching for her sister’s arm. “But something seems to have happened and I don’t know why but he seems to be blaming you for something. And I know that it is usually me who needs to be told to stay out of trouble but today I am telling you to let it rest. Not here, not in front of all the others, ok?”
Cassandra, sensing that her sister was right about that, nodded and turned around only to find Ben standing exactly in front of her.
“I forgot how much fun this is”, he said, grinning, and took her by the hand. “Let’s skate for a bit, shall we?”
Cassandra felt the warmth of his hand in hers and held on tighter. He smiled at her and for a moment it seemed like no one else was there with them. Then he took her other hand and started to spin them both in a circle. And suddenly they weren’t in the ice-rink any more. Cassandra knew that their bodies were still out there but it was like their minds had been able to step aside to another place, a place where they could truly be alone.
“What is this?” Cassandra asked and looked up at Ben who was still holding both her hands and standing right in front of her.
His eyes were burning into hers and she felt that all she needed to do was take one step closer.
“This is how I wish things could be”, Ben whispered and bent down, drawing her close.
She felt the heat of the silvery band on his wrist and before he reached her lips, Cassandra was pushed away from him with such force that – in the reality of the ice-rink – she landed on the floor. She threw an angry look at Ben and then at Arissa. Arissa looked like she was about to shoot her with daggers, while Ben simply stood there, breathing heavily and balling his fists.
“I am sorry”, he said curtly and turned around.
Cassandra got up and followed him.
“If your girlfriend ever remote-kicks me again, I will make sure she regrets it”, she said and Ben involuntarily reached for his wrist.
“I wish it were different”, he said and stopped to look her in the eye.
“Why don’t you fight it?” she said and only then saw the raging desperation in his eyes. Again he reached for his wrist where the band was still glowing and then turned away to slide towards Arissa with nothing of his usual grace. Arissa threw her a look that said that she had won this round and suddenly Cassandra knew what Charlie had meant when he had said that Arissa and Ben were bound to each other in ways she couldn’t imagine. Well, now she could. She had experienced it firsthand.
She followed him and the other contestants who were now lining up in front of Heracles, Arissa and Alexander.
Arissa gave Ben her hand and then bent down towards him.
“Good luck, soldier”, she said and coolly kissed him on the cheek.
Ben accepted it but kept rubbing his wrist angrily. Arissa threw Cassandra a another venomous look but Cassandra wasn’t interested in her because she was looking for a sign of recognition, a sign of anything actually, in Alexander, anything that told her that his demeanor was just for show and that behind all of it he was still her friend.
“Won’t you wish your contestant luck?” she said when she came to a halt before him.
Alexander’s eyes were almost as cold as Arissa’s and with a start Cassandra noted that they weren’t that different after all.
Alexander nodded but didn’t say anything. Cassandra, fed up with playing a game she didn’t know the rules to, grabbed his arm and drew herself towards him. She noted with satisfaction that he was strong enough to hold her weight.
“Glad you are feeling better, Alexander”, she whispered and kissed him on the cheek before she let herself fall back once again.
“Good luck, Cassandra”, he said, his cheeks flushed and for a moment she saw the slightest change in his behavior.
But it wasn’t gratitude or love she saw but white-hot anger and Cassandra realized that Arissa had not been the only one watching Ben and her do their little dance on the ice. Alexander, who had told her how he felt about her not too long ago and who had almost died in her arms, had just seen the way she felt for his best friend and despite the fact that he had been strange and distant even before that, this had done nothing to improve his general attitude towards her. Heracles, who had followed their little interchange with a frown, told the contestants to get into position.
At the back of the cave there were eight separate entrances to the tunnels that were revealed when the servants slid the carved statues of the gods to the side. Following Hippolyta’s instructions, Cassandra went to the first entrance to the left with Pandora. Hector and Jim followed and took the second one. Jim looked like he wanted to bolt but when he saw Cassandra looking at him, he waved and faked a brave smile.
The third entrance was occupied by Jack and Robin, two of the Claimed who had managed to survive the first of the challenges. But only Jack seemed to have stayed in the competition. Before Cassandra could wonder about the reason why he chose to quit the Protector’s classes, she saw him move in a slightly stiff way and knew that he must have been hurt in a permanent way somehow. He didn’t look like someone who would quit easily and Cassandra felt sorry for Robin. His friend Jack was a wiry little fellow with too much nervous energy and a mean streak and Cassandra didn’t like him very much. When Jack bumped him in the side, Robin took out a compass and c
oncentrated on it while his friend rocked nervously back and forth.
“Does a compass even work in here?” Cassandra asked and Pandora shook her head.
“There is too much magnetism in here”, she answered quietly and Cassandra could see that her sister was pretty nervous too, “but I guess he knows what he is doing. He joined our class in tactics just this week and he is really nice. A bit shy, but nice.”
Entrances four and five were occupied by Bear and Wolf who were each accompanied by someone from Pandora’s class on tactics while Sol had opted for a fighter who looked like Bear’s older brother and would undoubtedly be able to help with the Minotaur.
But entrance number seven held the real surprise. River, who was leaning languidly against his father’s statue standing next to him, had chosen an Unclaimed girl as his companion. She was tall and pretty, a descendant of Demeter like Summer, with long, blonde dreads.
“I think this is the first time that a Claimed contestant has teamed up with an Unclaimed”, Cassandra said quietly and saw how River stretched himself to his full height when he heard the murmurs of the crowd and stood beside the girl as if he wanted to shield her. The girl, sensing him standing beside her, reached for his face and River took her hand and guided it to his cheek. The girl smiled.
“Her name is Tiresia”, Pandora whispered and Cassandra nodded.
The girl’s eyes were milky white and the stick she was carrying was wrapped in colorful stripes.
“The blind seer”, Cassandra muttered.
“Exactly”, Pandora grinned and smiled proudly at her sister. “My history lessons weren’t in vain after all.”
Cassandra raised an eyebrow but as usual Pandora simply ignored that.
“Everyone knows she is a descendant of Tiresias, the blind seer who was able to predict the future”, Pandora whispered. “He wasn’t supposed to have children and so she’ll stay Unclaimed.”
Just like us, Cassandra thought and when she looked at Tiresia and River, who were holding each other in a tight embrace now, she was suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of grief and knew that this happiness wouldn’t last forever.
The Unclaimed (University of the Gods Trilogy Book 1) Page 22
