The four of them joined the throng of students flocking around Madam Grayson.
‘I want a good view for the whirlpool,’ Demi declared, skirting around the students with Hailey, Alec, and Aaron, and stopping in front of the sea.
Master Anderson, wearing gold shorts and a white polo shirt, sauntered towards the shoreline. Waves rolled onto the beach, washing over his gold training shoes as he pitched a shiny blue orb into the sea.
Hailey pressed her hands to her ears a second before a deafening CRACK split the air. The ground shook with the strength of an earthquake, and the sea whipped into a frenzy, swirling into a whirlpool that swallowed Master Anderson.
‘I love our ride to school.’ Demi bounced on her toes, watching the fifth years form groups and leap into the sea.
What’s waiting on the other side of that whirlpool? Hailey wondered. Maybe the nereids have teamed up with sea-monsters and taken control of the palace from Amathia? Maybe they’ll be waiting in the grounds to attack us? Stop freaking out. Amathia probably had someone cast an anti-nereid spell over the palace to keep them out. She’d be crazy not to.
The fourth years jumped into the water. ‘Okay, our turn everyone,’ Madam Grayson announced.
Demi latched on to Hailey and bounded towards the sea before any of the other third years could make a move. Hailey barely managed to keep hold of her suitcase as the two of them leapt into the whirlpool.
The sea swirled around them like a tornado, sea-spray misting against their faces and tingling Hailey’s tongue with salt.
‘Woohoo!’ Demi hollered.
‘I can’t believe I was ever afraid of this whirlpool.’ Hailey trailed a finger through the cool water spinning around her, remembering back to her first year when she’d almost collapsed at the thought of jumping into it.
The water vanished, and Hailey slipped through the air for a few heartbeats before her black buckle-up shoes hit solid ground. Above her, the whirlpool spun, waiting to drop the next students into the grounds.
‘Welcome back, girls.’ Master Anderson stood beside them, holding the glass orb he’d thrown into the sea. As far as Hailey could see, no nereids—or sea-monsters—lurked in the grounds. Everything looked normal. Blue skies.
‘I’ll never get tired of seeing this place.’ Hailey stepped away from Master Anderson and gazed at Poseidon’s palace. It looked as if it had been carved from ice, with its blue crystal exterior sparkling as imitation sunlight glinted off its spires and turrets, which rose towards the sea above.
The gigantic grounds that encircled the palace were just as incredible. Sea-anemones and coral formed bright gardens of pinks, purples, blues, and greens. Trees with coral trunks were scattered around them, each one growing different types of jewels every colour of the sea—emeralds, tanzanite, lapis lazuli, and dozens more. Other trees grew big bunches of pearls, and seaweed draped from some trees, with seashell flowers blooming along their branches.
The sea surrounded the entire thing, stretching over the grounds and the palace like a dome of water. Hailey was grateful for the invisible force field that kept the water from flooding in on them like a tsunami.
‘Thanks for waiting.’
Aaron and Alec sauntered up beside Hailey and Demi.
‘You can blame her,’ Hailey told Aaron, nudging her head at Demi, who was pinching a sapphire between her fingers, as if contemplating whether to break the rules and shove it into her pocket.
After a heartbeat, Demi tossed it back in the pile scattered at the base of the sapphire tree beside them. ‘Come on, let’s go inside before you-know-who and his girlfriend show up.’
They strode across the transparent diamond ground, Hailey gazing down at the rainbow reefs and darting fish, and passed through the palace’s mother-of-pearl double doors. Thousands of pearls—probably even millions—covered the entryway’s floor, and seashells and jewels decorated the frosted crystal walls. A glass statue of Poseidon raising his trident stood in the centre of the open space, with a curving crystal staircase on either side of him.
Hailey and her friends dumped their suitcases in the giant pile scattered in front of Poseidon’s statue, and wandered through the archway between the two staircases, entering the main hall. Big orbs of light floated beneath the ceiling, illuminating the long room, where over fifty mother-of-pearl tables stretched across the vast space, the gold plates, goblets, and cutlery on them glittering under the orbs’ light.
The place was already crowded with fourth and fifth years, their chatter echoing around the hall as Hailey and her friends settled at a table in the middle of the room, waiting for the rest of the student population to stream in.
Demi touched the gold plate in front of her. One moment it was empty, and the next a peanut butter cookie was sitting on it, its sweet buttery scent making Hailey’s mouth water.
‘Demi, we have to wait for everyone else before we eat.’ Alec glanced around, expecting a teacher to swoop in and tell them off.
‘It’s just a cookie.’ Demi bit into it, crumbs scattering over her light blue button-down shirt.
‘Hey, guys.’ Kora dropped into the scallop-shell chair across from Hailey.
Tahlia settled into the chair beside her, her long dark hair gleaming like satin. ‘Where’s Jayden?’ she asked in an Australian accent that matched Kora’s.
‘Don’t ask,’ Demi grumbled, swallowing the last of her cookie and wiping crumbs off her shirt.
‘He has a girlfriend,’ Aaron explained, leaning back in his chair.
‘I like your new hair,’ Hailey said to Kora, noticing the pink tips in her honey-blonde hair.
‘Thanks. I like to try something different every year.’
‘How was your holiday?’ Alec asked.
‘Fun,’ Kora said. ‘You guys should come to Australia with us on the next one. You’ll love the beach. There’s this one beach that has an Artemis who gets dolphins to give rides—the dolphins have to agree of course. And then there’s this other beach that has Poseidons who create waves as tall as the Academy’s third floor. It’s great for surfing.’
‘My holiday was extra fun.’ A smile broke across Tahlia’s face, her crystal blue eyes glittering. ‘My powers grew. I can wake people up now. Watch.’ She leaned across the table and blew a puff of gold dust into Alec’s face.
His head lolled back instantly, and his body slumped down in his chair. Tahlia pressed her index fingers to the corners of his eyes; his eyelids flicked open in an instant. ‘What happened?’
‘Sorry, Alec. I probably should have asked first,’ Tahlia said, settling back in her chair with a proud smile.
‘I wish my stupid powers would grow,’ Demi said, materialising another cookie on her plate—this time chocolate chip.
About an hour passed before the nervous first years finally filed in, followed by a few teachers who took their places at the table stretching across the front of the hall.
Amathia, the nereid who ran the school, rose from the teachers’ table, her pale blue dress shimmering like the iridescent scales of a fish. Curtains of platinum blonde hair fell over her dress, and her turquoise eyes darted around the room. ‘Welcome back everyone. I am hoping this year will be uneventful compared to last year. For those afraid of PET returning, please be assured I have taken extra measures to ensure no one can materialise inside the palace.’
Aaron sunk down a few inches, attempting to hide from the few students around them who shot him a look.
‘To the new students, my name is Amathia, and I converted this palace into a school seven years ago so that humans could learn the true accounts of history and how to harness their powers. The older students know that my sisters did not approve of my plans, but I went ahead with them anyway. At the end of last year, my sisters made the decision to leave Poseidon’s palace, so you need not worry about crossing paths with them—they will not return.’ Amathia smiled. ‘Let us eat.’
Hailey blew out a breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding.
A small part of her had thought that maybe Amathia had been stupid enough to let her sisters back. She grinned at the thought of having a nereid-free year, where she wouldn’t have to worry about them killing everyone in the palace or resurrecting the gods. She could finally enjoy just being a student. Blue skies.
The only thing she had to worry about now was the stupid Olympian Mysteries. ‘So have you heard anything more about that person who broke into your place?’ Hailey asked Alec quietly enough that Kora and Tahlia wouldn’t hear, but they were too busy talking to Tanzy and Lexa—fellow third years—to even notice Hailey’s whispering.
Battered fish and salt and vinegar chips materialised on his plate. ‘Just that she was definitely part of the Olympian Mysteries.’
‘Did she give up the other people in the cult?’
Alec nibbled on a chip. ‘Not yet. Sorry.’
Hailey sighed. So they’re still out there: some stupid cult who can bring about the prophecy of the gods returning and a Zeus having to fight them. Well this Zeus almost died going up against Hades. Her body shook as she remembered the fireball burning in his hand. Of him drawing his arm back to throw it at her.
‘You really don’t have to worry though, Hailey.’ Alec cut up his fish. ‘My mum was telling you the truth when she said they’re a bunch of people who have no idea how to resurrect the gods.’
Something cold and wet splattered on Hailey’s shoulder, dripping down her blazer and onto her blue button-down shirt.
‘Oops, I spilt my kale smoothie.’
Hailey glared behind her at Venus, who stood with Nerissa and Cleo—twins with dark hair that fell in loose curls to their waists, and sparkling deep blue eyes. The three of them were beyond beautiful, which made Hailey hate them all the more, considering how hideous they were on the inside. ‘You did that on purpose.’
‘Prove it.’
A stream of chocolate milk sprayed into Venus’s face, soaking her pristine blonde curls.
‘Oops.’
Venus’s violet eyes shot to Demi, who was innocently holding an empty gold goblet. ‘You’re dead!’
‘Is there a problem?’ Madam Grayson appeared beside their table so quickly it was as if she’d been waiting for something like this to happen.
Venus gritted her teeth before turning to Madam Grayson with a sweet smile. ‘I accidentally spilt my drink, and then Demi threw hers at me. Totally uncalled for.’
‘It slipped,’ Demi said with a shrug.
‘I’d really hoped you’d worked out your differences last year,’ Madam Grayson sighed, acting as if they were siblings who refused to get along. ‘Venus, go back to your seat. You shouldn’t be walking around with a drink.’
Venus huffed and stalked away with the twins, her blonde hair still dripping milk.
‘Please try harder,’ Madam Grayson said to Hailey and her friends before turning on her heels and wandering back towards the teachers’ table.
Hailey hated that she’d disappointed her overseer, but in her defence Venus was the one who always started everything. All Hailey and her friends did was defend themselves. ‘Tanzy, do you mind?’ Hailey said, waving a hand at the smoothie covering her blazer.
Tanzy, who was sitting next to Tahlia, straightened the purple ribbon in her dark hair. ‘Not at all.’ She clicked her fingers, and the green liquid soaking into Hailey’s uniform vanished, as if she’d just had it dry-cleaned. ‘I think I’m getting close to making people disappear too,’ she said with a wink.
3
African Safari
After finishing dinner, Hailey headed up to the fourth floor with her friends, wandering into their common room.
The left half of it resembled a study area, crowded with scallop-shell chairs and desks, as well as an enormous coral bookcase that stretched along the back wall. Sofas, armchairs, and plump pillows filled the right side, where an ornate fireplace crackled with blue-tinged flames, the burning driftwood inside it filling the common room with the faint scent of smoke.
‘Wait up,’ a familiar voice called after Hailey and her friends as they drifted into the room’s centre. They swung around to face Jayden—and Cady, who was lurking behind him.
‘Oh, so now we’re good enough to talk to?’ Demi crossed her arms.
‘Don’t be like that, Dems,’ Jayden said. ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t hang out with you over the holidays. You see, Cady and I are dating.’ He reached back and grabbed Cady’s hand, gently tugging her forward.
‘So what exactly do you want from us?’ Demi snapped as more students poured into the common room and started disappearing into the boys’ and girls’ dormitories.
‘I was hoping the six of us could hang out in the grounds or something.’
Before anyone had a chance to reply, the door in the centre wall burst open.
‘Ooh, there’s another room in here.’ A rake-thin girl with her hair tied into two ponytails stumbled into the common room.
‘I don’t think we’re supposed to be in here, Lacey,’ the girl standing behind the first one said, her black hair shimmering with a kaleidoscope of colours.
‘You’re right.’ Demi rested her hands on her hips. ‘You’re not supposed to be in here. This is the third years’ common room, and you look a little young to be third years.’
Lacey stepped further inside, not noticing Demi’s surly tone. ‘We’re first years,’ she said absentmindedly, peering around.
‘You need permission from one of us to be here,’ Alec said matter-of-factly.
‘We’re sorry,’ the girl with black rainbow hair said, her cheeks turning pink. ‘We’ll go now.’ She grabbed Lacey’s wrist and tried to tug her backwards. But Lacey didn’t move, too focused on staring around the room.
A boy with a freckly face and an impish grin slipped in behind her. ‘Well, this is boring. It looks exactly like ours.’
Demi threw her hands up. ‘We might as well invite all the first years in.’
The girl with black rainbow hair winced and took a step back, as though she were afraid Demi would yell at her.
‘Hi, I’m Hailey,’ she said in as nice a voice as possible, trying to make up for Demi taking her bad mood out on them.
‘I’m Lacey, and that’s Zara.’ She waved a hand at the other girl, who smiled sheepishly.
‘We’re going now.’ Zara tugged Lacey’s wrist again, this time dragging her back through the door.
But the boy didn’t budge.
‘And you are?’ Jayden asked him, voice light.
The freckle-faced boy eyed him up and down, as if deciding whether Jayden was worth the effort of responding. ‘Bryce,’ he eventually said.
‘Well, I’m—’
‘I don’t care,’ Bryce cut Jayden off.
‘Excuse me?’ Demi ground her teeth, her hands clenching and unclenching at her sides. ‘You’re in our common room, which you’re not meant to be in, by the way. You can’t be rude. Get out!’
Bryce grinned. ‘I’d be careful how you talk to me.’
‘How I…’ Demi froze for a second, as if she’d forgotten what she was about to say, and then whipped around to Jayden. ‘You think you can come up to us whenever you want and pretend like everything is fine?’ she yelled. ‘You think you can treat us like lepers? Well, you can’t! We’ve been friends for ten years, and now you’ve turned your back on us because you have a girlfriend. I never thought you were that kind of person, Jayden.’
Hailey’s jaw dropped. What in Tartarus is happening? Why is Demi freaking out? ‘Um, Demi.’ Hailey touched her arm.
Demi shook it off and focused her raging eyes on Cady, who looked as if she were seconds away from bolting for cover. ‘And you. You stole him from me. How dare you!’ She threw her arms forward, shoving Cady.
‘Ouch,’ Cady yelped, thumping to the pearl floor.
Jayden shot in front of Demi, staring at her as if she were a complete stranger. ‘What is wrong with you?’
Demi froze again for a second, and then her w
hole body un-tensed. ‘I’m so sorry,’ she gasped, the anger melting from her face. ‘I didn’t mean what I said.’ She reached a hand down to Cady.
‘Stay away from her—stay away from us,’ Jayden snapped before helping Cady up and disappearing down the stairs with her.
‘Demi, what in Tartarus was that?’ Hailey asked.
Demi shook her head. ‘I don’t know. I suddenly felt really angry—like want-to-murder-someone angry.’
Bryce chuckled.
‘You.’ Aaron pointed an accusatory finger at him. ‘You did that to her, didn’t you?’
Bryce shrugged. ‘Maybe. It was very entertaining.’
‘You’re an Eris,’ Alec gasped. ‘You can’t use your strife-creating abilities like that. It’s against the rules.’
‘Who’s going to stop me?’
‘Me.’ Aaron’s hand shot out.
Bryce leapt back into his common room before Aaron could lay a finger on him. ‘See ya later.’ He slammed the door in Aaron’s face.
‘I’m not letting him get away with that.’
‘It’s okay.’ Demi stopped Aaron before he could throw the door open. ‘You’ll end up with detention if you do anything. And I meant what I said to Jayden—I just never meant to say it out loud. I shouldn’t have pushed Cady though. That was bad.’ Demi shook her head in shame, and then noticed everyone in the common room was staring at her with a mixture of shock, anger, and disgust. ‘Can we please leave. I’m so embarrassed.’
***
Photos and hand-drawn pictures of monsters and creatures covered the walls in the Monsters and Creatures classroom: minotaurs snarling with glowing red eyes; pegasi gliding through the sky on feathered wings. So many terrifying and beautiful beasts watching Hailey from those pictures.
Demi headed towards the first row of polished-coral desks and slumped into a scallop-shell chair. ‘Everyone is staring at me.’
Aaron tipped his book bag onto his desk, textbooks, notebooks, and pens spilling everywhere. ‘Ignore them. Any sign of weakness will only make it worse—pretend like you don’t even notice the glares.’
Poseidon's Academy Box Set Page 65
