by Simon Archer
It was my turn to roll my eyes. “Look, I get that, but seriously? What’s going to happen? Is the Argo just going to teleport into the Atlantic Ocean or something?”
“Something like that, yeah,” Katlynn said with a matter-of-fact tone.
I closed my eyes to try to process her words, but the minute I did that, the swaying in my belly sped up. It was as though I could feel the motion of the boat as it ventured through the water. My eyes popped open, and I rushed for the closest thing to hold on to.
I wrapped my arms around the center mast and bent my knees a little, squaring my stance. I caught the eye of my old and dead half-sister, who looked at me with wide eyes.
“Oh, come on,” I snapped at her, pushing some of my frustration out through my voice. “You can’t possibly tell me that you didn’t hate this when you were alive.”
“I mean I did,” Katlynn admitted with a slight shrug. “But that doesn’t take away from the fact that it’s hilarious to watch you struggle now.”
I released a puff of air through my nose. “I think I’m going to take olivia up on her offer to go down and rest with the lotus juice.”
“You mean go below deck,” Katlynn corrected.
I shot her a violent glare accompanied by a snarl. Ignoring me, Katlynn added, “It’s a nautical term.”
“Do you want to go back in the locket?” I threatened with my words and my eyes.
Katlynn held up her hands in surrender. “Fine. You do what you want. She wasn’t wrong when she said it was going to be a long journey.”
My knees knocked together as I crossed across the deck of the ship and descended into the depths. Luckily there were some pre-lit lanterns down there. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to see a thing. The swaying was better below deck, but still, my stomach sloshed about. I bounced back and forth along the narrow hallway, using my arms to brace myself against the walls.
There weren’t that many doors, so I quickly managed to find one that led to an open cabin. There was a set of solid bunk beds built into the wall. I tumbled towards one and fell into it. The padding was thin and stiff, but I didn’t care. I just wanted this misery to end, so I unscrewed the lid to the lotus juice and instantly chugged it.
Immediately, I felt the effects. My eyelids grew heavy, pushing to stay open while my body fell still. Unlike the other two times that I’d been infected with some form of the lotus drug, I was expecting it this time. As such, a final beat of relief sang through me before I was plunged into darkness.
Unfortunately, the darkness didn’t hang around for long.
At first, I thought I was dreaming, which had never happened before on the lotus drug. Then I thought that the drug might not have worked at all because I still felt queasy. But as I looked around at my surroundings, I knew that couldn’t have been the case because I wasn’t on the ship anymore.
My surroundings resembled my mom’s living room in her apartment. Her old gray couch had two handmade crochet blankets, with brown and orange yarn, draped across it. The throw pillows were on the floor, and a half-finished puzzle sat on the coffee table.
Everything appeared to be normal, from my mom’s clogs by the door to her keys in the bowl on the end table. For a second, I wondered if this whole scene was happening in real-time. Was it possible that I had somehow transported to my mom’s apartment? How was that even possible?
Katlynn’s mocking voice resounded in my mind. Magic, she would chorus, complete with jazz hands. I groaned at the thought. As if she were summoned there by the sound in my throat, a figure appeared on the arm of the couch.
It was a young woman I instantly recognized with her long black hair, always braided tightly and hanging down to the small of her back. She smiled at me as my gaze landed on her, brightening her flat face.
“Finally, you fell asleep!” the woman said as she slapped her thighs and stood up.
“Irema?” I balked at my fellow Enka soldier. “What are you doing here?”
“I have a message for you,” she replied with a very official voice, as though she was only there on business, and she wanted to get it over with.
But I wasn’t going to let her get away with that. “Okay, that’s great and all, but what’s going on here?” I held out my finger and gestured around the room with a skeptical look on my face. “What are we doing in my mom’s apartment when I’m supposed to be on the Argo headed to Italy, and you’re supposedly back on campus?”
“I should have known you would want an explanation,” Irema said with a forgiving half-smile. Her tone instantly shifted to one of sympathy and understanding. “You’re asleep, and I’m communicating with you through your dreams.”
“You can do that?” I said with a slack jaw. “I mean, I knew you were the daughter of Hypnos and could put people to sleep but damn, dream walking? That’s powerful.”
“I don’t really like to do it,” Irema admitted, her arms flying up to cross over her chest protectively. “It feels invasive, and I know that if the Stratego and the other Elemental Officials found out about it, they would make me use it against people.”
“So, why are you doing it now then?” I asked as a sliver of fear snaked down my spine.
“Because I owe you one. You helped me get reinstated into the Academy,” Irema said plainly, as though that fact were obvious.
Even though it was technically true, I never thought about what I did for Irema as something that she owed me for. When Tainted Love spread around campus last year, she had been one of the first people infected by it. The Stratego and the other Officials threatened to kick her out for her infraction. That is until I was able to figure out that she wasn’t really acting of her own accord and had been infected by Aphrodite’s desire powers.
“You really don’t,” I tried to assure her, but my fellow soldier cut me off.
“I’ll never be able to repay that, not really,” Irema said. “So this is the least I can do, and dream walking was the only way I felt like I could give you this message without anyone else overhearing.”
“Gotcha,” I said, picking up on her cautious demeanor. Whatever Irema had to tell me had to be important enough for her to use a gift that she was clearly uncomfortable with using. Suffice it to say, she had my curiosity piqued.
“You won’t tell anyone, will you?” Irema asked. “About my ability to dream walk? When you get back to campus, that is?”
“You have my word,” I agreed to keep her secret. After all, she wasn’t the only one with powers she wanted to keep from the majority of campus. “So you’re dream walking… into my dream. But why?”
“Like I said, I have a message for you,” Irema said as she lowered her arms. She pushed her shoulders back and seemed to regain her soldier demeanor. “It’s from your mom.”
“My mom?” I repeated her words. That was the last person I thought would be delivering a message to me from Irema. “Is she okay? What’s wrong with her?”
“Nothing like that,” Irema assured me as she held out her hands, as though she were stopping a charging rhino, rather than tempering my panicked questions. “She’s fine.”
“When did you see my mom?” I wondered, jumping on another thought.
“When I went to deliver your letter,” Irema answered.
“Oh,” I said, pinching my eyebrows together. “I would have thought they just mailed that.”
“They can’t trust the mortal postal system,” Irema reasoned. “Anyway, when I handed her the letter, she had a warning for you.”
I took a step back and eyed Irema wearily, wondering how much she knew. “What kind of warning?”
“A prophetic kind of one,” Irema said with a raised eyebrow.
“So…” I blew out a puff of air. “You know?”
“I know,” Irema said with a slow nod. “I’ve seen a prophecy or two, and there was no mistaking that.”
I squinted as though she’d just pinched me, releasing an accompanying wince. “Okay. Lay it on me. What did she say?”
“I’ll let the memory speak for itself,” Irema said as she gestured towards the front door.
All of a sudden, the scene around us shimmered. The lighting changed to something dimmer, like twilight. Figures of Irema and my mom appeared in the doorway. My heart leaped at the sight of Mom. She was wrapped in her favorite faded pink robe and snowflake pajama pants. A steaming mug of tea was on the coffee table next to the puzzle, and I knew that Irema had interrupted her nightly relaxation ritual.
They stood as still as statues across from one another, the threshold between them. Each of them held a letter in their hands, connecting the pair. They looked into one another’s eyes when my mother’s mouth began to move.
A familiar tune filled the room along with my mother’s bright singing voice. As much as I didn’t want to hear it, I knew that I needed to listen intently. Who knew how many times I would get to hear this warning, direct from my mother’s mouth?
“Oh la de dah de dah de dah, la de dah de dah
Oh my son dear
Overseas you are bound
Lessons of defense
Are set to confound
But while you are there
You need to be aware
A threat is on its way
To the Cyclops lair
Oh la de dah de dah de dah, la de dah de dah
This decision will start
A series of events
An open box overturned
Spilling all its contents
Charge forward
Only ahead you will go
Trust in those around you
Rely not on only what you know
Oh la de dah de dah de dah, la de dah de dah
If you don’t do this
Death will come swift
Your quest will surely lose
All your goals adrift
More than one is needed
This you will learn
Or else all is lost
And fate be overturned
Oh la de dah de dah de dah, la de dah de dah
The vision rippled once more and returned to its original state when I first arrived. I tapped my fingers against my lips and thought about the words.
“Well, they seem a little more straight forward this time around,” I mused.
“I hoped they made sense to you because I don’t understand it,” Irema said with a shrug. “But then again, it’s not for me. It’s for you.”
“Yeah, unless my mom has another son I don’t know about, I think that’s a safe bet,” I said, unable to keep the hesitation out of my voice.
“You think you got it, or do you need to watch the memory again?” Irema offered.
“I think I’m good,” I replied honestly. “I have a knack for remembering my mom’s prophecies. Especially when I’m directly in the situation they referenced.”
“They tend to work that way,” Irema said.
“Yeah,” I resigned with a sigh. “Hey, thanks for taking the risk and coming out here to find me.”
“Yeah, well, it seemed really important,” Irema reasoned, trying to brush off her actions. “So enjoy Italy, I guess.”
“I’ll do my best,” I answered with a half-smile. “If I, you know, make the right decisions and don’t let ‘fate be overturned’ or whatever.”
“Look,” Irema said as she reached out and put a hand on my shoulder. Even in the dreamlike state, I could still feel the weight of her reassurance. “Cameron, prophecies aren’t all that common.”
“Are you sure you met my mother?” I joked, but Irema continued on.
“They occur for a reason, when the gods think we need a little help,” Irema informed me. “As much as you probably don’t want to hear it, take your mom’s advice, and you’re going to be fine.”
I smiled at the Enka soldier. “Thanks, Irema.”
“You better bring some badass weapons back with you,” she said as she pulled away from me. “Ready to get some real sleep?”
Before I could give her an answer, Irema clapped her hands together, and the world fell, once more, into darkness.
15
“Hey, Cameron,” a voice echoed from far away. “Cameron. Cameron!”
Suddenly there was a stinging sensation that jolted me away. I sat up with a jerk, and then a new pain erupted from the top of my head. I laid back down on the thinly padded bunk and held a hand to my pounding forehead.
It was then that I remembered I was on the Argo, in one of the small cabin bunks. However, I wasn’t alone. My half-sister stood in the narrow space between the bunk and the door with her glowing blue arms crossed, and a cheeky smile spread across her face.
“Well, that was the most hilarious thing I’ve seen since I’ve been back,” she snickered.
“I’m glad you find my pain amusing,” I groaned as I rubbed the welt forming right on my hairline. My hand traveled down to my cheek, and I hissed as the stinging returned. “Did you… did you slap me?”
Katlynn answered me with a shrug. “You wouldn’t wake up. How much of that lotus juice did you take?”
“Just what Olivia gave me,” I said, the last few words swallowed by a yawn.
Katlynn clicked her tongue. “Well, awake or not, we’re here.”
“Already?” I blinked up at her.
“You’ve been asleep for hours,” Katlynn pointed out. “So yes, already. I came to find you because as much as I don’t want to, I thought it would be the responsible thing to get back in the locket while you meet your new mentor.”
“Good plan,” I agreed. I swung my legs over the edge of the bunk, careful to duck my head out of the way. Once I got to my feet, I realized the boat was no longer moving, and the sloshing in my stomach had ceased. I sighed a relieved breath and reached for the necklace at my throat.
“You promise to let me out the minute you can?” Katlynn said with a pointed finger.
“I promise,” I told her. After opening the locket, I added, “Now hop on in.”
The ghost huffed an exasperated breath but transformed into her mini flame form and zapped into the locket. I latched it closed with a satisfying click. I ran a hand through my red hair. I wished I had a mirror to check my pale complexion for red spots or blemishes. Even though I wasn’t a vain person, I wanted to make a good first impression. It didn’t escape me that the Cyclops were doing me a huge favor for accepting me into this study abroad program a couple of weeks into the semester. I needed to prove to them that I was worth their faith and trust.
There was a bang at the door. “Cameron!” Olivia called out. “You should get above deck. Your ride’s here.”
I sucked in a big breath, hoping to acquire some courage and calm as I did so. “Coming!” I shouted back to the captain.
Without another second to lose, I ascended the stairs and out into the daylight.
Which was hella bright. Going from the dark, enclosed quarters below deck to the shining outside did a number on my eyes. I shielded them with my hand as my pupils adjusted and took in my surroundings.
We were docked out on a remote beach with golden sand stretching for miles on either side of the shoreline. Rolling hills with flourishes of green and brown rose up from sea level, intimidating and impressive in their sheer size. There were some square villas scattered about the hills, looking like mini castles overlooking their lands. The water we floated in was the brightest blue I’d ever seen. It didn’t seem real, how the sunlight glistened across the white sea foam, making it shine with a pearly glow. Sea salt filled my nostrils, clearing my sinuses instantly. A light breeze whipped my hair up around me, welcoming me to the shores of Sicily, Italy.
Once my eyes got used to the heavy sunshine, I spotted Olivia chatting with another woman. Her skin had that sun-kissed glow, like a surfer who was out on the waves from sun up to sun down. She had long waves of dirty blonde hair that was pulled up into a messy bun atop her head. While she spoke with Olivia, one hand moved about enthusiastically in time with her words. The other hel
d tight to a copper staff that came up to her chin. The top of it was formed into a strange symbol that took my brain a second to recognize. It was a half-circle with seven points coming out of the top of it, making the staff a deadly piercing weapon. The arrangement was reminiscent of the Hekotas symbol, which depicted the sun’s rays as arrows. Once I made that connection, I instantly knew who this woman was.
“Phaethusa?” I asked, interrupting the two women and their conversation. Both of them paused and shared a quick glance of surprise. I ignored this and continued on with my introduction, sticking my hand out. “I’m Cameron, son of Hephaestus.”
Phaethusa eyed my hand warily, but then she took it with a strong and callused grip. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Cameron. And a surprise. How did you recognize me?”
“Your copper staff,” I said as I indicated the weapon. “It’s carved in the shape of Helios’s symbol of the Hekotas. He gave that to you when he instructed you and your sister, Lampetia, to guard his cows, which Odysseus and his men later slaughtered.”
A grim expression crossed over the minor goddess’s face at the memory of the mortal’s trickery. I bit my lip and reconsidered the notion of bringing it up. It probably hadn’t been the smartest idea, but it was the story that Phaethusa was most well known for.
“You have quite the knowledge of Greek mythology,” Phaethusa commented with a calm tone. “It’s impressive that you could pick me out, recount my history, not only that but also be able to tell me apart from my twin, who is certainly the more well known of the two of us.”
“Well, Helios gave you the staff,” I reasoned. “While the myths claimed that Lampetia was his favorite, he trusted you more. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have given you that weapon.”
That compliment earned me a smirk from the daughter of the sun god. At the sight of it, I instantly felt a warmness in my chest, a mark of her approval. She narrowed her eyes at me, the half-smile still present.
“You can call me Phae,” the goddess told me. “That is what Arges calls me, so he will probably want you to do the same.”
