A scream tore Hailey’s eyes open. She blinked at the sea-silk canopy above her, confused, and then remembered she was in Demi’s bed. Another scream ripped through the dorm.
Demi bolted up beside her. ‘Vkalike.’
The orb floating beneath the ceiling flared to life, flooding the room with light.
Hope tossed and turned in Hailey’s bed, the sheets tangled around her. Hailey darted to her side, shaking her. ‘Wake up. It’s just a dream.’
Hope’s hand shot out, clasping around Hailey’s neck like a vice. At the same time, her eyes flicked open. But they were empty, like she wasn’t really awake.
Hailey clawed at Hope’s strangling fingers, trying to pry them away from her neck, but her grip was too tight.
‘Let her go!’ Demi yanked Hope’s wrist.
Something glinted in Hope’s eyes—a light flicking back on—and she blinked a few times before gasping in horror. She ripped her hand from Hailey’s neck, restraining it against her chest with the other one as she scooted further up the bed, trying to put as much space between Hailey and her as possible.
The joining door banged open. Kora loomed in the frame, holding a textbook over her shoulder, ready to swing it. ‘What in Tartarus is happening in here?’
Tahlia sucked in a breath beside her, preparing to use her Hypnos powers. She relaxed when she saw Hailey, Demi, and Hope. ‘We thought someone was being murdered.’
‘No murder,’ Demi said, and then half-glanced at Hailey. ‘Well, more like attempted murder.’
Kora frowned. ‘Huh?’
‘Never mind.’ Hailey’s voice was hoarse. Hope had been sleep-choking her, so she didn’t see any point in telling the others, since it was clearly an accident. ‘We’re sorry we woke you.’
Tahlia’s eyes drifted to Hope, who was gasping in tiny breaths of air while keeping her hand pinned against her chest. ‘Are you okay?’
‘A nightmare,’ she said in a quiet shaky voice.
‘I can help with that.’ Tahlia moved towards her.
‘No.’ Hope pressed her back against the wall. ‘I don’t want to go back to sleep.’
Tahlia stopped. ‘Okay. Well, does anyone else want a one-way ticket to Dreamville?’
‘Me, please.’ Demi’s hand shot up, and then she looked at Hailey. ‘Will you be okay?’
Hailey rubbed her neck, the skin tender. Considering Hope was cowering on the bed, Hailey had no doubt what had happened was an accident. ‘Yeah. I’ll be fine.’
Demi scurried back to her bed, burrowing under the covers. ‘Ready. And if you can give me a dream about some hot guy that would be great.’
‘I’m not a Morpheus. I can only make you fall asleep,’ Tahlia said, exhaling a puff of gold dust in Demi’s face.
‘Worth a try,’ Demi said sleepily before her eyes drifted closed and her breathing deepened.
‘I think I’ll have some of that too.’ Kora yawned. ‘Night, Hails. Night, Hope.’
‘Good night,’ Hailey said, and felt a spark of fear when Kora and Tahlia closed the door behind them. It was an accident.
‘I’m so sorry about choking you. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I’m used to being in defence mode when I sleep.’
‘It’s okay.’ Hailey perched on the edge of her bed. She couldn’t blame Hope for hurting her when the past two years had probably been a life of constant fear and danger. She doubted escaping the forest could instantly make Hope forget her survival instincts. ‘Do you want to talk about your nightmare?’
Hope rocked back and forth, hugging her knees to her chest. ‘It wasn’t really a nightmare. I dream about memories. Horrible memories.’
‘Madam Norwood could probably help with that,’ Hailey suggested. ‘I went through something pretty traumatic last year, and she gave me a potion to help me forget how terrified I’d been. It worked pretty well.’ For a little while, she added to herself.
‘I doubt any potion could make me be okay with the memories I have.’
‘Like monsters killing you?’
Hope hugged her legs tighter. ‘Something like that. It doesn’t matter anymore. I’m free. I’m safe here.’ She sounded as if she were trying to convince herself, but Hailey could see the fear behind her eyes.
‘Let me show you something,’ Hailey said, thinking a distraction might help. She wandered towards the window, throwing open its crystal doors. The cool night air brushed against her skin, and she inhaled the salty sea-air.
Hope edged to Hailey’s side. ‘What?’ she asked hesitantly.
Hailey flicked her hand at the clouds covering the night sky, watching them speed away to reveal stars that sparkled like fairy lights.
Hope gasped and staggered backwards, grabbing Hailey’s bed for support. ‘You’re a Zeus.’ The words sounded like an accusation.
‘Yes.’ Hailey tensed, waiting for the usual reaction of a thousand questions.
Hope looked more terrified than curious. ‘I didn’t know.’
‘I’m nothing special,’ Hailey assured her. ‘Please don’t feel weird around me. I’m ordinary, I promise.’
Hope studied Hailey for a second, making Hailey feel as though she were trying to read her mind—or perhaps just trying to confirm the genuineness of her words— before her shoulders slumped and she relaxed. ‘Sorry, you just took me by surprise.’ She inched back up to the window. ‘It must be a fun power.’
‘Yeah, it is. Although I’m not a big fan of all the fame that comes with it—or the prophecy.’
‘I wouldn’t like to have a prophecy written about me either.’
‘It’s not about me,’ Hailey snapped. ‘Sorry, I just hate it.’
‘I wouldn’t worry,’ Hope said. ‘I’m sure the gods are dead.’
No, they’re not. They’re alive somewhere, waiting to be reawakened. ‘Yeah, you’re probably right. Anyway, I wanted to show you the stars. I thought they might help you. I like to look at them whenever I feel overwhelmed. Talking to the sea-horses works really well, too, but since there are PET members everywhere, we can’t really go down there.’
Hope gazed at the twinkling night sky. ‘I’ve always felt a connection with the sky. It comes from my father I guess.’
‘Was he an Apollo?’
Hope swallowed, and Hailey could practically feel grief seeping from her skin. ‘Yes, he could control the sun.’ She turned her back to the window. ‘I think I’ll try and sleep again. Thanks for showing me the stars.’
17
The Grand Tour
The next morning, Hailey woke to find her bed empty. ‘Hope?’ she called, scrambling out of Demi’s bed, her eyes flicking around the dorm. But unless Hope could turn invisible, she wasn’t there.
Hailey knocked on the joining door, thinking maybe Kora and Tahlia had invited her over. Silence greeted her from the other side. She cracked the door open, peering in to find Kora and Tahlia sound asleep. No sign of Hope. Uneasiness settled in the pit of Hailey’s stomach.
She couldn’t imagine Hope running off alone, but what other explanation was there? An image of her sneaking out to find a dark hiding place popped into her mind, and she regretted not staying up with Hope when she’d known how scared she was.
‘Demi.’ Hailey shook her awake.
‘What?’ Demi groused. ‘Classes are cancelled today.’
‘I know, but Hope’s gone.’
Demi’s eyes half-opened. ‘What do you mean gone?’
‘Well, she’s not here.’
Demi dropped her pillow over her head and mumbled, ‘She probably went to get breakfast.’
‘Maybe. I’m worried after last night that she might have had a mental breakdown.’
Demi chucked the pillow at the wall and swung her legs over the bed with a sigh. ‘Fine. I’ll come help you find her.’
They both threw on some clothes and strode into the common room. They did a quick sweep of the students, but didn’t spot Hope. They stopped in front of the PET member guarding the stairs—it was the s
cary-looking one with scars down his cheek.
‘We’re going down for breakfast,’ Demi told him.
‘Go ahead.’
Hailey moved towards the stairs and then turned back. ‘Actually, did you see a girl with strawberry blonde hair go downstairs?’
Scar didn’t deign himself to look at her. ‘It’s not my job to inform students about the whereabouts of other students.’
‘Please, it’s important.’
‘Not my job.’
Hailey clenched her jaw. He’s being purposely unhelpful. She opened her mouth to let him know what a jerk he was when Demi grabbed her arm. ‘Come on, Hails. We don’t need him.’
Hailey bit her tongue to keep from saying anything, and followed Demi down the stairs. These PET people were really starting to bug her. How hard is it to tell someone if you’ve seen the person they’re after? She wanted them gone.
‘I already told you, you can’t come through,’ a man’s voice said.
Hailey reached the entryway, and her shoulders sagged when she spotted Hope standing in front of the PET member guarding the left archway. ‘Hope, what are you doing here?’
Hope spun around. ‘Oh, hi.’
‘Are you okay?’ Hailey asked.
‘Hailey thought you might have gone crazy after last night,’ Demi added.
‘I’m fine. I didn’t want to wake you up this morning. I thought your idea about talking to the horses could help me. But this man won’t let me through.’
‘This area of the palace is off limits until school hours,’ he informed her. ‘Now stop loitering.’
‘Come on, Hope,’ Hailey said. ‘Let’s have breakfast.’
Reluctantly, Hope let Hailey lead her into the main hall. Chatter echoed throughout the vast space, and cutlery clinked against plates as students gobbled down eggs, sausages, and about a hundred other different types of breakfasts. Hope tensed beside Hailey, ready to sprint away.
‘Sorry about all the people,’ Hailey said. ‘We’ll try and find somewhere not so crowded.’
‘That one looks almost deserted.’ Demi pointed to a table near the edge of the hall, where a girl and two boys sat.
The three of them ambled over, sitting two chair spaces away from the other occupants, who regarded them curiously before returning to whatever conversation they’d been having.
‘Okay,’ Hailey said to Hope, ‘these are conjuring plates. They materialise whatever food you want. You just touch them.’ Hailey touched her plate. ‘Close your eyes.’ She closed her eyes. ‘And imagine.’ She imagined porridge with swirls of honey topped with baked apple slices. The smell of cinnamon made her mouth water. She opened her eyes, finding her plate had transformed into a bowl, which held her steaming porridge. ‘See.’
Hope touched her plate and a second later strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries materialised on it.
‘Seriously?’ Demi bit into a chocolate croissant. ‘You spend two years on an island and that’s the breakfast you choose?’
Hope shrugged sheepishly. ‘It’s what I’m used to.’ She popped a blueberry into her mouth, its juices staining her fingers blue.
‘Can you pass the salt, please?’ the girl sitting at the end of the table asked.
‘Sure.’ Hailey pushed the gold salt grinder down to her.
The girl smirked. ‘Thanks.’
Hailey gasped as her spoon clattered to the table. She’d heard the girl speak, but her lips hadn’t moved. The girl laughed, along with the gangly boys sitting across from her, who Hailey realised were twins.
She stared in confusion at the three of them until Demi nudged her. ‘Why’d you pass her the salt?’
‘She asked me to,’ Hailey said in an uncertain voice. Maybe she was the one going crazy, not Hope.
‘Don’t worry, you’re not insane,’ one of the twins assured her.
‘Yeah, I can send thoughts to people,’ the girl explained, pushing her purple-framed glasses up her nose.
‘Cool,’ Demi said around a mouthful of croissant. ‘Can you do it to me?’ A second later she clapped her hands together. ‘That’s amazing! It sounds like you’re actually talking to me, but your lips didn’t move. Can you read minds too?’
The girl shook her head of black hair. ‘No, I can only send thoughts. I’m Ava, by the way,’ she introduced herself, ‘and this is Riley.’ She nudged her head at the boy sitting directly across from her.
‘And this is my twin, Charlie.’ Riley wrapped an arm around the boy beside him, both of them wearing matching devious grins.
‘Riley, be serious,’ Ava scolded him.
‘He is my twin,’ Riley protested.
‘Watch this,’ Charlie said. He touched Riley on the shoulder. His hand turned see-through, the translucency running up his arm and over his entire body within seconds before he vanished altogether.
Hailey’s jaw dropped.
Demi gaped. ‘What was that?’
‘I can duplicate myself,’ Riley explained, leaning back in his chair, looking very smug. ‘I’m an Other like Ava.’
‘Uniques have such incredible powers,’ Demi said, cutting into the chocolate-covered waffle she’d just materialised on her plate.
Ava shook salt over her scrambled eggs and hash browns. ‘So what are your names?’
‘Demi.’
‘I’m Hailey, and this is Hope.’ Hope smiled shyly, her eyes focussed on her lap.
‘Hailey?!’ Riley’s mouth was the one to drop open this time. ‘You’re the Zeus.’
Hailey blushed. ‘Yep,’ she said quietly, wishing he’d stop staring at her like she was a rock star.
Riley seemed to remember himself and shrugged. ‘I mean that’s cool.’
‘Very,’ Ava added, and then squealed when a girl wearing too much makeup dumped a goblet of orange juice over her head. Drops of juice splattered the table and dripped to the pearl floor as the girl strutted off with a Venus-like swagger.
‘I’m going to kill her!’
‘No.’ Ava grabbed Riley’s wrist, orange juice dripping from her black hair. ‘It’s fine.’
‘What was that?’ Demi looked as stunned as Hailey felt.
‘Clarissa,’ Ava ground out the name through gritted teeth. ‘The third-year bully who likes to let Others know how unwelcome they are here.’
‘We’ve got one of those.’ Demi clutched the fork in her hand tighter. Hailey guessed she was imagining it being Venus’s skull.
‘I think every year does.’ Ava smiled sadly. ‘Come on, Riley, I need to get cleaned up before class. It was nice meeting you.’
‘See you round.’ Riley waved goodbye.
‘Um, this might sound like a stupid question,’ Hope said, lowering her voice, ‘but why are there Others in the school?’
‘Because Poseidon’s Academy is a trial school for people with god and Other powers being together,’ Hailey explained. ‘We call them Uniques here though. You’re not anti-Unique, are you?’ she added, worrying Hope’s silence might’ve been from distaste rather than shyness.
‘No,’ she said quickly. ‘I’m just not used to it.’ She bit into a strawberry. ‘So why can students with god powers bully them like that?’
Hailey swallowed a spoonful of creamy porridge. ‘Because they’re smart enough to do it when there aren’t teachers around.’
‘Don’t worry, we make sure Venus—our year’s bully—gets plenty of torment in return,’ Demi assured her.
A conch shell blared in the distance, signalling the start of classes in ten minutes. Cutlery clattered and chairs scrapped across the pearl floor as students finished their breakfast and bustled from the main hall. About forty students were left sitting, mostly from her year, and a few older students lucky enough to have a free period.
Demi jumped up. ‘Come on, Hope, let’s check out the grounds. It’s the best part.’
Scorpion stood in front of the double doors in the entryway. He held up a hand to stop Hailey, Demi, and Hope as they strode t
owards the doors. ‘Why aren’t you in class?’
‘We’re second years,’ Demi said matter-of-factly. ‘We’ve got the rest of the week off to recover from the trauma of monsters attacking us.’
‘Trauma? Back in the Amazon Jungle I lost my entire team to an anaconda with bullet-proof skin, and the ability to spit blinding venom. I spent three days running for my life in that monster-infested jungle, and did I get a day off to recover from the trauma? No. I got shipped out an hour after I was rescued.’
Demi cocked an eyebrow. ‘Um, okay. Well, we’re allowed not to be in class.’
Scorpion rolled his eyes and moved aside, muttering something about kids these days not having any stamina.
‘So this is the grounds.’ Hailey gazed up at the azure blue sky, feeling as though today would be a good day.
‘Incredible.’ Hope reached up to touch a topaz dangling from a branch.
‘I know.’ Demi picked one up from the scattered pile on the ground. She sighed. ‘But they don’t let us keep them.’ She let the topaz slip through her fingers; it made a tiny chink as it landed.
‘Okaeat.’
Haley spun around. Amathia smiled at the three of them before disappearing back into the palace.
‘Ooh, I love this part.’ Demi bounced on her toes.
Vibrations shot through the ground, and the palace began sinking, water replacing the sky. The descent felt like descending in an elevator, only much prettier. Fish dashed past and coral reefs gleamed like rainbows. The palace slowed to a stop, not at the bottom of the sea, but deep enough that the surface was no longer visible.
‘Wow.’ Hope darted to the grounds’ edge. ‘I’m guessing Hephaestus made this.’ She touched the force field and gasped when her fingers passed through.
‘Yes, he did.’ Hailey moved to her side, watching a squid swim past the force field. ‘It only works to keep the water out though.’
Hope stared at the water dripping from her fingers. ‘That’s dangerous.’
‘Only if you’re stupid enough to walk into it,’ Demi said.
‘Or be pushed,’ Hailey added, scowling at the memory of Venus shoving her into the icy water last year.
Poseidon's Academy Box Set Page 46
