From Gods

by Mary Ting

  “Are you okay?” Nick asked, standing up to see his cousin on land.

  “Why am I the only one off the boat?” Amanda got up and brushed the dirt off her clothes. The boat had collided with a huge boulder that was oddly set, preventing the boat from advancing. Thankfully, it was what had prevented them from being tipped.

  Extending his long legs, Everett took a step to Amanda. He examined her body from head

  to toe with his eyes and the flashlight. “You’ll live. Let’s go.”

  “Whatever, Mr. Insensitive.” Amanda rolled her eyes.

  Mason got off the boat second to last and extended his hand to Skylar. “Jump. I’ll catch you.”

  Skylar wanted to, but her legs wouldn’t listen; still weak, they were shaky and unstable. It was difficult to see, but she knew water separated her from Mason. Managing to stand on the edge of the boat, she could see Mason and his flashlight, so she jumped, and flew into Mason’s arms.

  Without a glance from him, he held her hand in silence, lagging behind the others. After several steps, he stopped. “What happened back there in the boat?”

  “There were loud whispers in my ears, like they were trying to tell me something. But it was overwhelming. Why is this happening to me?”

  “I’m not sure. That’s why we are going through all this trouble to find the Oracle. Supposedly, they have answers to everything.”

  “Have you seen them before?”

  “No. We tried, but they didn’t show themselves to us. I guess our question wasn’t worth their time.”

  “What was your question?”

  “Before Nick’s mother died, she said that our father told her there was a prophecy foretold by the Oracle that something evil would enter the human world that could possibly end the lives of all the gods’ children and Hades’ evil creations. Being curious idiots, we decided to risk our lives to find the answer.

  “We came here before, though our journey wasn’t as rough. We saw the swamp monsters the last time we were here. They looked ugly as hell, like the vultures, but they left us alone. Anyway, the prophecy states that the keeper of death will destroy us all. Hades’ monsters were bad enough. We needed to know what this something evil was. We still don’t know to this day.”

  Hearing Mason’s words gave Skylar goose bumps, making her suddenly cold. She recalled Remus and Everett asking her if she was the keeper of death.

  “Do you think that’s what I am?” Skylar asked hesitantly, afraid of what he might say.

  “No…why would you think such thoughts?” Surprisingly, Mason tucked strands of Skylar’s hair behind her ear so he could see her eyes after a sudden breeze ruffled them.

  Skylar’s heart fluttered. Timidly, she whispered, “Remus asked me if I was.”

  “Remus was weird, odd, and malicious, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he was one. Don’t think of him. And besides, I’m sure the keeper of death would look hideous, and you don’t…I mean…you’re more pleasant to look…I mean…you’re not….”

  Shyly, she shot her eyes down. She knew what he meant. In a way she wanted to think that it was a compliment. Then she noted she never thanked him for saving her life. Though she was humbled that he would go out of his way to help her, she knew he was doing it for himself too, especially since she’d killed Remus…or at least he thought she did. He needed answers.

  “Thanks for um…saving my life back there. I thought…well…I thought that was it.”

  Mason fixated deeply on her eyes as his lips parted to speak. He looked as though he had much to say. Changing his mind, he closed them, and nodded with a grin. Skylar smiled back.

  “You should smile more often. I like your smile, Echo.” He grabbed her hand and started walking.

  They finally caught up to the rest of the gang, but they all stopped when they couldn’t go any further. Strangely, dark had turned to light. It was as if they had stepped into another dimension without knowing they had. In front of them was an old structure, looking almost like a castle. Vines and branches with dead leaves cascaded downward, covering a dark, narrow entrance and parts of what was once a marvelous construction.

  “You want to go in there?” Kayla murmured, grimacing, looking terrified and annoyed at the same time. “Why? For the love of God...why?”

  “If only humans continued to believe in the gods, we wouldn’t be in this mess,” Amanda commented.

  “Why do you all keep saying ‘humans’?” Kayla scoffed. “Of course we believe in God…and what mess are you talking about?”

  Disregarding her, everyone looked deep in thought.

  “Let’s go,” Everett snapped, heading in first, followed by Amanda.

  “Don’t worry. I got ya,” Nick winked at Kayla, wrapping his arms around her waist. “It might be fun in there.” He gave her a playful look.

  Taken in by his charisma, she giggled like a schoolgirl, and snuggled closer to him as they paced forward. Skylar abruptly stopped when Nick and Kayla bounced back upon attempting to enter. Kayla stumbled backward and almost fell, but Nick caught her just in time.

  “What just happened?” Nick huffed. Looking confused, he entered by himself without a hitch. With his finger, he gestured Kayla to enter. As directed, she dragged her feet cautiously. As if there was an invisible wall in front of her, she couldn’t take another step.

  “Nick,” she called, patting nothing but air. “What’s going on? Why can’t I enter?”

  Frustrated, Nick stepped next to Kayla, then turned to Mason. As if they could read each other’s thoughts, Nick nodded. “I’m going to have to stay here with her, aren’t I?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  Hearing footsteps, they looked up as Everett and Amanda appeared. “What’s the hold up?” Amanda asked, crossing her arms.

  “It’s Kayla. She can’t enter,” Mason replied, sounding frustrated.

  “I told you not to bring her,” Everett sneered.

  “We knew this would happen. Somewhere along the journey, there would be a fine line where humans couldn’t enter, and this is it,” Nick murmured. “I just didn’t think it would be here.”

  “We’ve never brought a human along, so now we know,” Mason muttered.

  “Hello…I’m standing right here.” Kayla waved her hand. “What’s going on?”

  Narrowing her eyes at Kayla, Amanda spoke. “The Oracles are in there. Nick, you’re gonna have to stay here with her.”

  Nick heaved a long sigh, looking disappointed. “Damn…I wanted to see what they looked like.”

  “We have no idea what we are doing. You should be glad you’re not going,” Amanda commented.

  “We’re wasting time.” Everett pointed to his watch. “Hurry up. Figure it out and meet me inside.” He went back in.

  “Let’s go,” Mason said to Skylar.

  “Wait, wait, wait. What are you all saying? Why are we here? Who or what are these Oracles?” Kayla started rolling with her questions.

  “It’s okay. Everything is fine,” Nick explained, placing his hands on her shoulders, trying to calm her down.

  Kayla swatted his hands away. “You need to explain now, and Skylar isn’t going anywhere.” Kayla looked at Skylar to confirm. When she didn’t respond, Kayla spoke again. “Skylar, tell them you’re not going.”

  “I…I…,” Skylar started to speak, feeling confused as to how to handle this situation.

  Kayla didn’t wait for her response. “No…you don’t have to go. You don’t even know what’s going on. We’re going back home.” Kayla reached for Skylar’s arm.

  Amanda raised her hands with annoyance. “Would you just put her to sleep? We don’t have time for this.”

  Nick swung Kayla around. “Listen. Everything is going to be okay. You need to trust me.”

  “I want to go home,” Kayla cried. “Nick, please take me home.”

  Nick softened from her plea. “Look at me Kayla.” She did as told. He rested all of his fingertips on her head and dim light seeped from them
. “Sleep. You won’t have memories of today.” Nick’s dark eyes turned the color of silver and then turned back to their original color.

  At that moment, Skylar remembered Mason’s eyes turning the same color the night she got pulled over by him. Kayla closed her eyes and Nick caught her fall. “She’s asleep. I’ll meet you back at the cabin. I’ll find our way back. I have a human with me. We’ll be okay.”

  “Be careful,” Mason nodded. Holding Skylar’s hand, he guided her toward the entrance, then dropped his hand to enter first and waited for her. “Just in case.”

  Skylar looked over her shoulder, seeing Kayla in Nick’s arms. She knew Kayla was safe…Nick had compelled her to sleep. Obviously it worked on Kayla, but it had no effect on Skylar. Wondering if she would bounce back like Kayla, she swatted the vines blocking her way and dragged her feet. Taking baby steps, she entered without any problems. She knew for sure now that Mason was right about her.

  Chapter 22

  Carefully Skylar paced forward with Mason. A fast, cool breeze brushed her face, causing her to suck in air. This place stunk with the smell of soil and something rotting, stinging her nostrils with a repulsive stench. Ducking the spider webs, she couldn’t wait to get through what looked to be a long hallway. The flashlights gave just enough light as they headed further in.

  As they continued on the path, there were more withered vines and spider webs whichever way Skylar turned her head. The ivory pillars were knocked down, broken, and scattered on top of furniture that was hardly recognizable. Though it looked like this place would have been a splendid castle, once fit for a royal court right out of fairy tale, it was wretchedly ruined. It clearly showed it had been abandoned and turmoil had its way there.

  Out of the dim light, they entered another tunnel of darkness. If Skylar could feel death, she could feel it crawling on her skin. Being the only ones there and not knowing what was ahead, trepidation raised to the surface, ready to turn into a full-blown anxiety attack.

  Shortly, the flashlights weren’t needed any longer when another world materialized in front of them. Never would Skylar have imagined seeing such beauty there. The fluffy clouds looked heaven sent, and under her feet was plush green that seemed to go on for miles and miles. To the right was a small waterfall, trickling softly, flowing to a narrow stream.

  Upon approaching the waterfall, Skylar saw another entrance she hadn’t seen up till now. “We have to go in there?” Skylar asked, looking into the darkness, grimacing. They had just come out from a dank, dark place into this beautiful one. She didn’t want to go back into darkness again.

  “Come on. Let’s get this over with.” Everett entered first.

  The dry air was comfortable and the flashlights were not needed after a short distance. They followed the bright light and stepped into the warmth of daylight. The first thing Skylar saw was a ray of light, spotlighting the center of the garden. With radiant golden hue, it looked like they were at the end of the rainbow with a promise of treasures of diamonds and gold. Filled with various wild flowers, the garden produced a pleasurable scent, and each tree sprouted their own special fruit. Following the path, she took in the beauty of the surrounding nature, but what she saw next was unfathomable.

  An ivory statue was in her line of vision. Further in, she saw many more of them lined up side-by-side to the left and right of her in a horizontal formation. Mesmerized, she gaped at each one in detail. Looking at her friends, she saw they were doing the same.

  “Oh my god! Is this…? It can’t be!” Amanda gasped, looking at a statue in front of her with admiration. “This is…Athena. Athena was goddess of wisdom and war. Nick is going to be so pissed he missed this.” Athena held her head up high, holding a sword in one hand and a shield in the other.

  Skylar recognized the statue next to Athena. It was Ares, Athena’s half brother. Curious, she let her fingertip glide down its cold, smooth arm. Ares was a god of war just like his sister, but unlike Athena, he was bloodthirsty and vengeful. Though it was just a statue, just knowing of his evil gave her chills down her spine.

  “This must be Aphrodite.” Mason examined her from head to toe. “She is breathtaking.” Aphrodite’s garment had a high slit, revealing her right leg. The front was low cut, showing her cleavage, and her hair was adorned with flowers. It was a perfect image of the goddess of love, who was the fairest of all.

  Though Skylar knew she shouldn’t be jealous of a statue of a goddess, she couldn’t help feeling a sting from Mason’s statement, assuming he would never say such words to her.

  “These are all statues of gods. Are they real?” Everett looked up, placed his index finger on the lines of Zeus’s robe, and ran it down with wonderment.

  Zeus was huge compared to Everett. Skylar wondered if that was his actual size. She also wondered how he felt at this moment to be face to face with Zeus, knowing he was one of Zeus descendants, even though it was just a statue.

  “They are real to me,” a small voice said.

  Startled to hear such a voice, Skylar turned to see a short, rounded old woman with a cane standing in front of a colossal tree. Her hair was salt and pepper colored and long, down to her waist. Oddly, though her eyes were shut, she looked straight at Skylar as if she could see her.

  “Are you the Oracle?” Mason asked. His eyes lit up with hope.

  “It depends on who’s asking. Since you’ve crossed over, I know for a fact you are half bloods. It’s a pleasure to meet you. You are one of the last generations of the gods’ children.” She wobbled forward, using her cane for stability, stepping out of the shadows. “Yes, I’m the Oracle. There were three of us, and now I’m the only one left.”

  “There are more of us out there…correct?” Amanda asked.

  “There were many, but unfortunately some have been killed by Hades’ creatures. You know of the prophecy? It states that an unknown factor could possibly wipe out all of our kind, the good and the evil. I wonder if it has already begun. We called them the keepers of death.”

  “Unknown factor?” Amanda repeated.

  “Like Remus,” Everett said, narrowing his eyes with a look to Mason.

  “Yes, unknown factor. This is one that has me troubled. My sisters, god bless their souls, and I have been trying to determine when or how or who this keeper of death could be. Will it be in a human form? Will the keeper possess a unique ability? Unfortunately, we were unable to figure that one out before they passed away. Even Oracles don’t live forever.”

  Amanda looked at the statues again with amazement. “Are they real? I mean…are they the real gods and now they’ve turned to statues? I know this is a silly question, especially since we’ve been told that they crumbled into nothing but ashes.”

  “No…they’re not. You are standing on the grounds of what is left of Olympus, the home of the gods. These statues were made and situated in the very same spot ages ago by Zeus.”

  This profound revelation struck Skylar to her very core. Reading about them during her school years was fascinating, but to be standing on Olympus and being a half blood was too much to bear all at once.

  Seeing everyone was too busy staring at the statues, the Oracle tapped her cane once on the ground, producing a thunder-like sound. Assuming the Oracle’s action was to get their attention, it worked. “Why have you come?”

  “To get answers,” Everett said, turning his head to her.

  “I have no answers to give you. I’ve told you as much as I could.”

  “No…this is different. We don’t know what she is.”

  It was the oddest sight to witness the Oracle turning to Everett when he spoke, especially since her eyes were shut. “Who are you talking about?”

  Everett pointed to Skylar. “Her. She is the reason why we’ve come. She is different.”

  “How different?”

  “If I knew would I be here?” Everett snapped.

  Surprisingly, the Oracle was calm. “What I know for sure is that you have a temper. It will get you
into trouble…it’s the part of Zeus I never liked. He had a bad temper, causing his judgments to be disarrayed. As for her, I feel her heart beating in the same pattern as yours, indicating she is not a vulture of some sort. I can also feel her warm heart. Hmmm…I see…she has a soft spot for someone.”

  Blushing, Skylar flashed her eyes on Mason, wondering if he clued in on her comment. When her eyes met his, she dropped them to her feet.

  “Please,” Amanda stepped in. Amanda looked at Skylar for a brief second and turned her eyes to Mason. “I feel the same as Everett.”

  The Oracle heaved a heavy sigh. “I don’t normally get into people’s business…it is one of the reasons why I refused to play your silly game the last time you tried to enter, the reason why you couldn’t enter Olympus. I don’t have time for ridiculous questions. But I figured you coming again must be vital. You wouldn’t have crossed the bridge and passed the water beasts unless it was that important.”

  “We almost died on the bridge,” Amanda huffed. “We went through hell. You have to see us.”

  “What do you mean you almost died on the bridge, my child? The bridge is sturdy.”

  “We didn’t have trouble crossing it the first time, but this time, the bridge fell apart. There is no bridge now.”

  “Impossible! Why didn’t you tell me in the first place?”

  Amanda rolled her eyes. “Duh…if only we knew it was important information,” she mumbled under her breath. Mason nudged her to shut her mouth.

  Seemingly, the Oracle was deep in thought, unaware that Amanda made a rude comment. Mumbling to herself, she looked like she was doing some kind of spell. Suddenly, a door appeared in front of the tree she was standing in front of… an entrance. “Come, quickly.”

  Everyone followed, but just before the Oracle entered she stopped. “No, only you.” She pointed to Skylar.

  “No,” Mason snapped. “I go in with her.”

  “No, only her.”

  “Either I go too or she doesn’t go at all. How do I know you won’t hurt her?”