Born in Beauty

by Melody Rose

  Clarissa, the daughter of Hera, also had a different uniform. Over her black pants, she wore a flowing black skirt that sashayed back and forth as she walked. There was also a sharper heel to her boots that clacked intimidatingly as she approached the platform.

  I noticed that each of the Olympic Officials also wore their respective sashes. However, the one thing that was different about theirs was the golden line that ran through the middle of their various colors. Additionally, the insignia of their godly parents stitched, also in gold, at the top near the symbol of their branch. The insignias were obvious: a bow and arrow for Artemis, a drop of water for Poseidon, a skull for Hades. The symbols matched the ones inscribed on their seats in the council room where they met to discuss Academy matters.

  Finally, the General himself walked through the door. An unexpected surge of disgust welled up in me at the sight of the bulky, bearded man. The head of the Academy seemed to have it out for me ever since I came here. I wasn’t sure what he wanted from me because some days he complimented my decisions as a soldier, and others he was challenging me to a dual when I’d had little to no training. Most everyone heard about me because of that day when I refused to fight the General and instead surrendered before anything could happen. Many speculated that it was because our fathers, Zeus and Hephaestus, didn’t get along.

  I didn’t accept that explanation, however. If anyone studied the myths, none of the gods should get along, considering all they had done to one another. There was no reason the son of Zeus should harbor a grudge against the daughter of Hephaestus without also holding one for the children of Hera, or Hades, or Prometheus, or any of the other gods he continuously screwed over.

  Regardless of the reason, I wasn’t the General’s favorite student, and he was far from my favorite teacher. Still, I watched as he made his way over to the platform to the fading noises of the trumpet’s fanfare.

  “Welcome one and all to another year at The Military Academy of Olympus!” the General barked, his voice booming through the room like thunder.

  A cheer rose among the students, new and returning. I joined them because while I might not have liked the General, I did like the Academy and would celebrate that any chance I got.

  “For you new students, we are honored to have you here. This year marks the largest group of new recruits in the last decade,” the General announced. “In particular from our mighty Olympians!”

  I looked over to my friends with a small frown as another cheer rippled around the room, mostly from the new students. Darren offered me a shrug, not knowing how to interpret that information either. Benji growled in frustration at the Olympian comment.

  As much as I enjoyed studying at the Academy, it wasn’t without its flaws. One of the most prominent was the bias towards sons and daughters of Olympic gods. It was obvious that we got special treatment from the officials, thinking us to be the more powerful demigods than the children of lesser gods. Even though both Benji and I were children of Olympic demigods, we were the ones who complained the most about the injustice. Despite being the best healer on campus, Darren was often overshadowed for promotions and required to get a second opinion because his father was Asclepius. The same went for Violet, whose mother was Hebe.

  Both of them were just happy to have jobs and spots in the Academy at all and didn’t like to stir the pot. Benji and I, on the other hand, hated how our friends were treated just because of their lineage. So it was extra annoying to know that these new recruits were already being divided into Olympic demigods and lesser demigods.

  “We will introduce ourselves, and then we expect you new recruits to do the same,” the General continued with the proceedings. “I am the General, son of Zeus.”

  As the other officers and teachers went down the line and introduced themselves and their godly parent, I considered the General’s unusual introduction. No one knew the General’s name. Or at least, none of the students did. He always introduced himself by his title rather than his name, like the rest of the officials and students. It made me all the more suspicious of him, as if I really needed to add fuel to that fire.

  Since I knew most of the officers, I didn’t really listen to their introductions. But when it came to the branch leaders, my ears perked up.

  “I’m Ansel, son of Apollo,” Ansel said with a clear voice.

  My lips couldn’t help themselves. They curled into a smile. Darren elbowed me as he caught me staring, and I quickly neutralized my face.

  “I’m Kiley, daughter of Ceto,” the leader for Nero introduced herself.

  “I’m Samson, son of Selene,” the leader of Aeras continued down the line.

  “Hi everyone,” the new leader of Gi said brightly, breaking the monotony of the introductions. “I’m Zachariah, but you can call me Zach. I’m the son of Hestia and the new branch leader for Gi. I look forward to working with you all.”

  Even though no one explicitly called him out for breaking the form, I noticed a couple of the Olympic Officials shoot side glances at one another. The new leader clearly was not accepted by everyone, despite his Olympic demigod status. I appreciated his differentness and noted that this soldier had no problem with breaking the rules. He probably got away with it most of the time, too, considering the level of charm that oozed off him like dripping honey.

  When the rest of the officers finished, the new students each took their turn standing up and introducing themselves to the rest of the Academy. Benji was absolutely right. It was definitely a less nerve-wracking process than the singling out that had happened to me on my first day. This introduction was short and sweet. The recruit would stand, state his or her name and godly parent, and then sit back down.

  There were around forty of them, which was quite a number. I knew there was only half that or so in my year. While the General was right that there were a number of Olympic demigods in the bunch, I was surprised to hear from some children of obscure gods, like Aglea, Plutus, and Morpheus. I had no idea that the gods and goddesses of charm, wealth, and dreams had offspring as most of them didn’t procreate in the original myths.

  The ceremony continued on, and I quickly found myself growing bored with the repetitive introductions. Luckily, Violet’s arrival from the kitchens broke up the monotony.

  She slid a delicious looking mini pie under my nose. The scents of cinnamon and sugar wafted up to my nose, making me swoon.

  My roommate set a fork gently next to my hand as she sat down beside me. “Enjoy,” she whispered.

  I mouthed a thank you to her and dug right in. It was nice to have something to do with my hands. Being as I worked with them so often and was always moving in the forge, it was difficult for me to sit still for long periods like this. I was grateful not only for the amazing dessert in front of me but also for the ability to move and focus on something, even subtly.

  The pie took over my senses. I relished in the explosion of sweetness on my tongue, with a slight tartness from the mixed fruit. The balance between the spices and the pears was ideal. It was the perfect temperature, too, not hot enough to burn my tongue but warm to still melt in my mouth. I had to keep from groaning openly as I took bite after bite.

  “Gods, Vi,” I whispered to her.

  She rubbed my back appreciatively. “I’m glad you like it.”

  “Let me try.” Benji leaned across the table to snag a bite, but I slapped his hand away.

  “You got yours,” I protested. I used my other arm to shield the dessert from him. “My pie.”

  Benji held up his hands in surrender and sat back down on his bench while Darren chuckled from the other side of me.

  It was so wonderful to be back with my friends. These were the moments I missed the most over the summer. As much as I loved being with my mom and that life we built together, there was something to be said for the life I created here with my friends and my studies.

  “As many of your returning students may have noticed,” the General said, taking the stand again after the new
recruits finished their introductions. “We have an influx of soldiers on campus this year.” He gestured out into the crowd, indicating the graduated soldiers. “This is to increase the security here. Last year, we had an unexpected attack on our Academy. Something that hasn’t happened since the opening of this campus.”

  A piece of pear lodged itself in my throat, and I had to cough to get it down. Violet patted my pack while Darren offered me the last of Benji’s water. Our section of the cafeteria glanced over at me as I disrupted the presentation.

  I was so surprised that they were actually acknowledging the harpy attack. The officials had worked so hard to cover it up before the rest of the student body came back from Christmas break, I didn’t think they would ever reveal what had actually happened during those two weeks.

  There was a murmur that seeped through the student body. They were confirming rumors, changing stories, and letting new recruits in on the gossip. The General, though, held up his hands, and the hissing of voices ceased.

  “As such, we spent the majority of last year devising a plan to further protect this campus,” the General explained. “We have stationed more soldiers on campus, which, in its own way, is a good thing. The fact that we are able to house more of them here means that our needs out in the field are not as dire. I’m happy to report that there has been a decrease in the number of monsters as of late, and we are hoping this trend continues for the foreseeable future.”

  I licked the end of my fork and thought about the plausibility of that claim. While there might have been a lull in the number of monsters popping up, that didn’t mean they were gone for good. When a demigod defeated a monster, they were never permanently dead. In a few years, they would arrive again, fully healed and ready to attack. It was an ongoing battle without a real end in sight. Until the Ultimate Weapon was created, and we could defeat the monsters once and for all.

  “I would like to take this opportunity to remind students and soldiers alike of the no fraternizing rule,” the General said, his voice growing stern. “Relations of a romantic nature between an active student, soldier, or officer is strictly forbidden. Violation of this rule could result in a dishonorable discharge from the Military or expulsion from the Academy.”

  There was a brief moment of silence as this warning hung in the air. The General gave the announcement its due pause before moving forward with the announcements.

  “Now, we will move on to the first round of draft picks for this year,” the General adjusted his tone to something lighter, though for him, that wasn’t that much of an improvement. “As you second years know, this is the year most of you will get drafted into one of the four branches of the Military. There will be various rounds of the draft throughout the year. Some of you will get drafted during the rounds. Others will get drafted individually. It is at the discretion of the Olympic Officials.”

  Upon the platform, the twelve of them stood in their groups of three that represented each branch. The children of Apollo, Ares, and Hestia gathered together under the Fotia flag. The three demigods of Poseidon, Hera, and Aphrodite stood with the Nero banner. Demeter, Athena, and Hades’s children clustered around the green Gi flag. Finally, DeAnne and Fiona stood on either side of the General while the Aeras flag stood above them.

  “If you are not selected for the draft this year,” the General warned, “you will be excused from the Academy, seen unfit to pursue service to the Military of Olympus.”

  When the General stated it like that, the punishment seemed harsher than ever. Though, I did note that the General said nothing about the severity of the punishment. There was no mention of erasing your memories and plopping you back into your mortal life like nothing had ever happened.

  A grin spread across the General’s face as he held out his arms as if preparing to wrap the entire student body into a hug. The smile disturbed me, though I was sure it was supposed to be welcoming. I wondered if I was the only one that had the opposite reaction to his smile.

  “Let us begin!” he said excitedly. “For the first draft of the year, we would like to welcome Janet, daughter of Hermes, to the Fotia branch.”

  Janet stood up with a shout of excitement as her table of friends cheered loudest. The applause continued the whole time that it took Janet to make her way to the platform and accept her new orange sash from Officer Buck.

  A sour taste formed in my mouth, and I took another bite of pie to try to get rid of it. Janet and I had been adversaries since my first day at the Academy. We’d been trading quips back and forth throughout both semesters. I had hoped I wouldn’t be seeing much of her this year, but if she was just drafted on Fotia, I realized I would probably be seeing way more of her than I ever wanted to.

  I sighed and scraped up the last of my pie, savoring the final bite as the draft continued.

  “Also joining the Fotia branch,” the General proceeded, “is Cheyenne, daughter of Hephaestus.”

  8

  To say I was unprepared was an understatement. Upon hearing my name, I snorted into my pie and coughed up the last bite. The noise was disturbing and loud, startling my friends.

  “Cheyenne,” Violet hissed, “are you okay?”

  I nodded, even though I couldn’t seem to get my throat clear.

  “You have to go up there,” Violet said, guiding me up off the bench.

  My eyes were red and watery, and my throat hurt. I tried breathing through my nose, but then I sneezed, which only made everything hurt more. It felt like everyone in the school saw my fitful state as I made my way up onto the platform. I wiped at my eyes and caught the General staring.

  His disappointment and disdain were obvious, and I couldn’t help but cower at his glare, mostly because I didn’t have the stamina to stand up for myself when my lungs were trying to remember how to breathe.

  Annika held out my sash. She, too, looked apprehensive as I approached. I leaned forward and let her slip it over my head. I slipped my arm through the open slot so it could hang correctly.

  The symbolism of the two sashes wasn’t lost on me. I was torn, caught between being a second year and a new recruit to Fotia. The orange and the red sashes intertwined together, a visual representation of fire if I ever saw one.

  “You alright there, Cheyenne?” Annika whispered under her breath.

  “Uh-huh,” I whispered back, my voice harsh from the beating my throat took.

  “Well then,” Annika said as a closed-mouth smile spread on her face. “Welcome to Fotia.”

  “Thanks,” I said as I shook her hand.

  My eyes glanced over at the rest of the student body as I stood elevated from them up on this platform. I quickly wished I hadn’t. It was a shock to see them all staring up at me. It was a sea of faces, more of them I didn’t know than I did. I hurried my way off the platform and snaked my way through the students to get back to my table and my friends.

  My stomach was in knots when I sat back down. I never liked to have that much attention on me. It was overwhelming and disconcerting. I hoped that I wouldn’t have to happen again anytime soon.

  Violet, Benji, and Darren were ecstatic when I came back. “Good for you!”

  “That’s awesome,” Darren beamed.

  “Can I touch your sash?” Violet asked as she already had her hand outstretched towards me.

  “Sure,” I said, holding it out for Violet to examine.

  Her slim fingers reached up and brushed over the Fotia symbol at the top near my shoulder. She released a jealous sigh.

  “I mean, we all knew it was going to happen, but it’s amazing that it happened so early,” Violet said, her face stretched into a smile.

  Knowing my friend as well as I did, I could tell that while she was happy for me, she was also conflicted. Her own feelings and nerves about getting drafted were showing. I wanted to wrap my arms around her and give her some encouragement and comfort like Benji and Darren had shown me earlier. But the ceremony continued on, cutting off individual conversations as it force
d us to turn our attention back to the General.

  “Joining the Aeras branch, JJ, son of Aphrodite,” the General continued the announcements.

  There was another smattering of applause for the redhead who had been in my Mythology 101 class during the first semester last year. I didn’t watch, however, when he went up to accept his sash. I kept fingering my own, not quite believing it was real.

  I had officially been drafted into one of the four branches. Which meant I got to stay. Which meant they thought highly enough of me to keep me. It was a surreal feeling, one that I was sure would take full effect when I was trying to sleep that night.

  Another thought struck me so violently, I gasped. I reached out for Violet’s hand and grabbed it, like a snake striking out for its prey.

  Startled, Violet looked at me with worried eyes. “What’s up?”

  “We’re not going to be roommates anymore,” I said, the whimper in my voice apparent.

  Violet frowned sympathetically and put her hand over mine. “I know. That was the first thing I thought of when they called your name.”

  My heart hurt at the thought of not having Violet as a roommate anymore. While being drafted was the ultimate goal of a second year, the sacrifices, like living in the recruiter dorms or taking specialized classes away from my friends, were things the officials never talked about.

  “But we’re still going to hang out,” Violet reassured me, though her voice told me she was talking to herself as much as she was speaking to me. “You still have to finish your general courses, and maybe we’ll get lucky, and we’ll be in some together. Oh, who knows? I could get drafted to Fotia.”