Demeter frowned. “Shit, man, did I just kill her?”
“No, I think she passed out.” I shook Georgina awake.
She sat back up, with a huge smile on her face. “That was awesome.”
Everyone laughed.
Demeter chuckled. “What’s your name?”
“Georgina,” she murmured.
“Well, Georgina, I think you’re going to be my fave student.”
She nearly passed out again, and I had to hold her up.
Throughout the class, Demeter had us touching the dirt and grass, to really feel it, to think about its construction, and to picture it growing and moving. By the end of the class, Jasmine and Quinn were able to roll a rock without touching it, and Georgina, to the delight of Demeter and everyone else, had grown a flower in her hand. There was no doubt which clan Georgina belonged in.
My group’s next stop was at the shadow station. The moment I stepped into the darkness shrouding the area, my body started to vibrate. It was a strange sensation, as if I was a human tuning fork.
“I’m Erebus.” From the darkest part of the room, a form stepped into view. Up close, he looked even more like a vampire, especially with those pale, almost translucent eyes. The longer I stared at him, though, the more ethereal he seemed. In fact, his body didn’t stay solid. It undulated back and forth. He was part of the shadows.
“Here you will learn how to manipulate light and darkness. When you master it, you will be able to disappear.” He faded into the shadows. “And reappear in a different place.” His voice came from behind me, and I jumped and whipped around, coming face to face with him. Another rush of dread washed over me.
“I’m going to teach you how to refract light, to bend it around your body. It is a form of disguise, so you can move around without being seen.” He put his arms up, slicing them through the air. He did it again and again until they disappeared. “The key is to move quickly. Everyone try it.”
As I walked around in a circle, I moved my arms back and forth in front of me, karate chopping the air. I whipped my arms up and down as fast as I could, so focused I almost didn’t see Ren as he nearly walked into me.
“Whoa, watch where you’re going.”
Ren froze. “Melany?”
“Ah, yeah, who else do you think I am?”
His head turned right then left, as if searching for me. “Where are you?”
My brow knitted together. “Right here. In front of you.”
He swung around toward me, his eyes darting everywhere, but not on my face. “I can’t see you.”
Damn. I’d manipulated the light.
“You know, you’re quite beautiful.”
I whipped around to see Erebus standing behind me, his hands folded in front of him. “Excuse me? That’s a bit creepy, don’t you think?”
He took a step closer, his gaze scrutinizing me. I didn’t like it. It made me feel vulnerable and exposed.
“You have shadows inside you.” He put his hand up and moved it around in front of me. His flesh came apart and then flowed back together. It was like watching an object being refracted into pixels. “I can feel them. It’s why you were able to manipulate the light so easily.”
“How do I become visible again?”
“Stop moving.”
“I’m not moving. I’m just standing here.”
He pressed two fingers to my forehead. “Stop moving inside.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what he meant, but I concentrated on calming my body one part at a time. I started at my toes and made my way up to my head. When I finally took in a long, deep cleansing breath, I felt whole again.
“Dude.” Ren’s eyes bugged out. “You just appeared in front of me.”
Both Jasmine and Georgina ran over to me. “That’s so cool. You, like, totally disappeared.”
I smiled as they congratulated me. The others gathered around me, too, and told me how awesome it was that I manipulated the light so quickly. No one else had been able to accomplish it. Pride filled me up inside but so did apprehension. I was a bit uneasy with what Erebus had told me—that shadows filled me.
The lightning station with Zeus was our last stop. Jasmine was really pumped for this training. Earlier she’d told me she hoped to be assigned to Zeus’s clan. I could see her there; she was strong and bold, two traits of someone who could manipulate lightning.
Zeus had us gathering around what I assumed were lightning rods. The Demos Estate had one on the grounds to try and harness the electrical current whenever it stormed.
“Lightning is just an electrical current,” he said, from his spot in the middle of the three rods. “It’s in the air all around us, all the time.” He clapped his hands together. The sound made everyone jump. He started to rub his palms together. “Rub your hands together. You are creating an electrical charge between them by creating friction.”
I could feel heat building between my hands. My fingers started to tingle. I frowned, unsure if that was what was supposed to happen.
While he kept rubbing his hands together, he walked around the group. Then he stopped in front of me, opened his hands, and set them over my head. “We’ve now created static electricity.”
I could feel some slight tingles above me, and then I felt my hair rise. Strands of blue stuck out all over, some of them reaching for Zeus’s hands. Both Jasmine and Georgina laughed, as I became a human Troll Doll.
I smirked, amused by what I could imagine I looked like. Then something felt wrong. The tingles around my head increased. It no longer tickled but started to sting. A thousand pinpricks turned sharper, stronger. Painful.
Jasmine’s face turned ashen. Georgina took a step back, her eyes widening.
“What? What’s going on?” I demanded, panicking.
I could smell something burning, almost like plastic melting. Then I realized the odor emitted from me. Sparks erupted from my head.
“It’s going to kill her!” Jasmine’s voice echoed around me.
Then everything went black, as darkness took me under.
Chapter Nine
MELANY
The smell of bacon and cheese tickled my nose, and I blinked open my eyes. I was in my bed, facing the wall. I rolled to see Georgina and Jasmine, Georgina sat on her bed, and Jasmine was in the desk chair, both eating bacon cheeseburgers and French fries. Saliva instantly pooled in my mouth.
“Yay, you’re finally awake.” Georgina put another fry into her mouth and happily chewed.
“What happened?” Slowly, I sat up, but my head ached something awful so I reconsidered it.
“You’ve been out for about four hours.” Jasmine came to my side and helped me sit up. She plumped up the pillows behind me. “The healers checked you out, but said you could rest up here in your room instead of in the infirmary.”
Georgina unwrapped another burger. “Are you hungry? Do you want to eat?”
I nodded. I was starving. I took the burger and had a big bite. Once I chewed and swallowed, I looked at my friends. “I’m still a bit fuzzy on what exactly happened. I remember being in elemental class with Zeus—”
“You died.” Georgina bolted off her bed and wrapped an arm around me, hugging me tight.
I choked on the next bite of burger.
Jasmine gave Georgina a look. “We weren’t supposed to tell her right away.”
“I know, I’m sorry.”
Scrambling out from Georgina’s octopus arms, I got all the way out of bed and stared at my friends. “What do you mean, I died?”
“I guess for some reason, a lot of electricity went through your body and your heart stopped.” Jasmine winced. “But Zeus got it started again with a little zap of his finger.” She poked me in the chest.
“Well, it took two zaps,” Georgina added. “And then it still took a few seconds before you came back.”
I gaped at her. I had no idea what to say. What did one say after they’d died and had their heart restarted by a God? “Wow” just didn’t seem t
o cut it.
“I need some air.” I headed for the door.
“Do you want us to come with?” Georgina started to follow me.
“No. I just… need a walk and some time to digest what happened.”
“Okay.” Jasmine squeezed my shoulder. “We’ll be here when you get back if you want to talk about it.”
I left the room and went down the hall, unsure of exactly where I was going. All I knew was that the air inside the school felt thick and oppressive. Thankfully, I didn’t run into anyone as I crossed the front foyer and out the main doors.
The second I was outside I took in a deep breath of air, held it, and then let it out. I repeated the process until I wasn’t dizzy anymore. I needed to move. I hadn’t been outside much on the grounds, so I didn’t know where to go, but I knew there was a maze on the west side. I hopped onto the cobblestone path winding through the grounds and just started walking.
Before I came around the corner of the main academy building, I heard a voice. It sounded tinny and mechanical.
“Meteorologists don’t know what to make of the strange weather in Pecunia. In some areas, there have been varying degrees of rain, wind, and hail. There have been some large ocean swells, and some are even saying that there has been high seismic activity where there shouldn’t be any.”
My immediate thought was of Sophia and if she was safe.
Curious, I came around the corner to see Demeter leaning up against the wall, watching a video on her cell phone, and smoking what smelled like weed. When she spotted me, she quickly pushed a button on the screen and slid the phone in her back pocket.
“Oh, hey, there.” She smiled, smoke coming out of her mouth. “It’s Melany, right?”
I nodded. “Yup.”
She raised the joint in her hand. “You don’t mind, do you? I can’t smoke inside.” She shrugged. “Rules suck sometimes.”
I shook my head. “I don’t mind.”
“Good.” She took another hit. “So, how are you feeling? You gave everyone quite the scare.” She chuckled. “I don’t think any of your fellow recruits saw someone die before.”
I rubbed at my chest; it still burned where Zeus had zapped me. I was afraid to look under my shirt in case there was a burn mark. “I feel… okay, I guess.”
“You’ll be all right. Just give it a few days.”
“Right.” I gestured to her pocket. “Were you watching the news?”
She made a face. “I know I’m not supposed to have a cell phone, either, but sometimes I hate not knowing what’s going on around in the world.”
“What were they saying about Pecunia? That’s where I’m from.”
“Ah, nothing to worry about. Just a rainstorm.” She patted me on the shoulder.
“Oh, okay.” But I wasn’t assured.
She took another puff and eyed me. “You’re different, you know?”
“What do you mean?”
“Your aura. It’s odd. It’s not like the others.”
I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. I didn’t want to be an outcast. I needed to be like the others, so I could pass through the training.
“It’s good being different,” she said. “Being like everyone else sucks. Embrace your differences. It’ll help you survive.”
I was about to say goodnight to her when someone else came stumbling toward us from around the corner. It was Dionysus, and he could barely stay upright. When he saw us, his smile was instant and took up his entire face.
“Heeeeeeeeyyyyy.” He weaved toward Demeter and swung an arm around her shoulders. “What are you doing out here, Demi?”
“Just having a smoke. Talking to Melany.”
He swung his head my way. “Hello, Melany.” He drew out every consonant in my name. “Your aura is funny. It’s black.”
“She died today.”
His eyes bugged out. “You did? How marvelous. What was it like?”
“Um, I don’t really remember it.”
He scrunched up his face. “Pity. I would’ve loved to hear all about it.” He crushed Demeter to his body. “Let’s go party. I made the most amazing hooch.”
“Last time I drank your hooch, I had a rash for two weeks.”
“No, this batch is good. Trust me. I already drank half of it and I’m fiiiine.”
Demeter looked at me. “I’m going to take this one back to his place, so he can sleep it off. You should probably get back to your dorm before curfew. Oh, and I’d really appreciate it if you kept all this to yourself.”
“Yeah, no problem. Good night.” I turned to go back to the main doors, when Dionysus grabbed my arm.
“Aren’t you coming with us, luv?”
Demeter pulled him away. “She can’t come with us. She’s a first year recruit and has to get back to her dorm.”
He nodded. “Riiiiiiiight. I knew that.”
They started to walk away when Dionysus swung back around toward me. “I know what it is about you. Your tattoos are dancing.”
“I think it’s just your eyes, Dion.” Demeter waved at me to continue on, as she guided Dionysus around to the back of the school.
Freaked out by the encounter, I ran back to the main doors. There was something about the way Dionysus looked at me that made me uneasy. Not like he was creeping on me or anything, but he saw something odd about me. Both Demeter and Dionysus spotted something different about my aura. I didn’t know much about auras, but I knew everyone had one, and different colors had different meaning.
I knew red indicated love and compassion and sometimes anger, yellow meant optimism and intelligence, green meant balance and nature, white, of course, indicated truth and purity. But black, black was not a color a person wanted in their aura. It could mean lots of things like pent up anger and grief, maybe some health problems. And death. Black was the color of shadow and darkness and the eternal abyss.
I hoped it was because I’d died but had come back, and whatever energy required for my resurrection still lingered over me. And not because Death hadn’t finished what he’d started.
Once inside the academy, I dashed up the stone staircase and down the long corridor toward the dorm. The lights along the wall appeared dimmer. Every one of them flickered as I passed by. Darkness seemed to be growing along the floor and up the walls. I heard whispering from the shadows.
I stopped and peered into the darkened corners. “Are you playing some kind of game, Erebus? You’re wasting your time if you are.” A shiver rushed down my back.
A form flickered in the shadows. Someone was moving inside the darkness. I took a step closer. “I can see you. You’re not scaring me.”
More whispers sounded in my ears, prickling the back of my neck. I spun around, expecting someone to be standing behind me, but there wasn’t anyone. I was still alone in the corridor. Except I didn’t feel alone. I was being watched.
I turned back to the deep shadows along the wall and swore they had swelled farther along the ceiling and the floor. It was like a slicker of oil slowly rolling toward my shoes. A voice in my head told me to run, but there was also another presence urging me to step into the darkness.
Like a siren’s song, I felt compelled to move forward. I stared even harder into the shadows, seeing a face forming from the ink. It was a nice face, a welcoming one. I smiled. Then I lifted my leg to take that step.
“Mel?”
I felt a tug on my hand.
“It’s curfew. We need to get to our room.”
There was another tug on my hand, and I was suddenly moving sideways.
The spell broke, and I turned to see Georgina leading me back to our room. Before she yanked me inside, I looked over at the shadows once more, and spotted a form standing in the dark, and he was smiling back at me.
Chapter Ten
MELANY
The next few weeks just floated by in a bit of a fuzzy haze. Ever since the accident in elemental class and the strange occurrence in the hallway, I’d felt different. So
mething had changed inside me, and I wasn’t sure what it was. The one thing I did notice was that some of the classes became easier.
I no longer missed the targets in archery. In fact, I hit the bullseyes often now, to the delight of Artemis and chagrin of Revana. She’d made her loathing of me known on more than one occasion, especially if I excelled at something she didn’t.
And I was getting the hang of metallurgy. It helped that I seemed to have an affinity to fire, which had showed itself in elemental class before I got electrocuted and died. The shield I was crafting in class looked the best out of the entire first years. Hephaistos had even gifted me with some praise in the form of a few non-guttural grunts and a hearty slap on the back that nearly toppled me over.
Spears and shield class still proved difficult, but I think it had more to do with the fact that Ares seemed to have it in for me. He took great pleasure in whenever I failed at something. I’d gotten stronger, though, so holding up the shield was a lot easier, and I was decent protecting myself with it. I still struggled a little with holding and maneuvering the spear. I suspected I was going to be much better at handling a sword, and was eager to prove that theory when we had swordplay class next term.
I also saw a jump in improvement with hand-to-hand combat training. Lucian had mentioned it during one class right after I flipped him over onto his back in one quick move that he hadn’t seen coming. Heracles had laughed with delight after that, which embarrassed Lucian. His cheeks had flared red.
I thought for sure he ‘d be all sulky after that and maybe even be a jerk to me, as most boys would after being bested by a girl, but to my surprise and pleasure, he asked me to show him how to do the move. We even practiced it a few times after class until Heracles kicked us out.
During that time, I’d been ultra-aware of everything about Lucian, especially when our bodies pressed against each other during the actual flip, and after when he wouldn’t release my wrist right away. His touch continually made my body tingle and my head fuzzy, which was why I avoided him at all costs outside of the classroom.
Demigods Academy - Year One Page 7