She nodded. “I have to say I’ve never seen anyone in all my years of teaching do that at this level.” She winked and patted my shoulder. “Well done.”
Finished at the other elemental stations, we all gathered around the pool to wait for instructions from Poseidon. The other professors had joined us as well to watch. Nerves zipped through me, and I couldn’t stop fidgeting.
“The object of this exercise”—Poseidon leisurely walked behind us, handing each of us a small mesh bag—“is to stay underwater and collect as many rocks as you can. Sounds easy enough. Except for one thing… you will have to evade my adorable pet Charybdis.” He pointed to the water.
I gazed down into the pool to see a three-foot long, serpent-like creature whipping around in the water. I’d never seen a Charybdis in person, but the rumor was they possessed nine eyes that circled a round mouth lined with razor sharp teeth. I swallowed the bile rising in my throat.
“Don’t worry, a bite from a baby Charybdis isn’t lethal, but it does sting a bit.” He grinned. “The prize for gathering twenty of more rocks is the favor of the Gods, and you will enjoy a lavish dinner in Zeus’s Great Hall with me and Zeus himself.”
I saw a lot of excited faces at that prospect. I wasn’t one of them.
“BEGIN!”
One by one, my fellow recruits dove into the pool. I watched them go under, frozen in spot, completely petrified, the images and sensations of my dreams holding me hostage. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t jump in.
Then Poseidon shoved me in from behind.
As I plunged under the water, I nearly collided with Jasmine, as she grabbed a couple rocks and put them into her mesh bag. When she saw me, she gave me a thumbs up and pointed to the rocks. I nodded and kicked my legs to dive to the bottom.
I scooped up a handful and put them in my bag. Movement next to me drew my attention. I looked up just in time to get Revana’s fist in my face. The viscosity of the water softened the blow, or I was sure that it would’ve knocked me out. Blood floated in front of my eyes. It was coming from my nose.
She reared back to hit me again, when Lucian swam in between us. He shook his head at her, pointing for her to go. She did, but reluctantly. When she was gone, he swirled around to me, pointed at me, then gave the okay sign.
I nodded to let him know I was fine. Smiling, he scooped up a couple more rocks and put them in my bag. I shook my head at him but couldn’t stop the grin on my face. My stomach lurched, and my grin faded in an instant when I spotted the Charybdis swimming right toward us. It must’ve been attracted to my blood.
I shoved Lucian to the side just as the creature lunged. I kicked up with my legs, giving me leverage, and punched it right under its mouth. My stomach churned at the feeling of its fleshy mass on my skin. But it did the trick and it scuttled away.
Lucian looked wide-eyed at me. I gave the okay signal and pointed at him. He nodded. Together, we gathered more rocks. I looked around and noticed there were only about five others in the water with me and Lucian. Ren, of course, and Marek, Revana, and two others I didn’t know well.
After another minute, my lungs started to burn. The incident with Revana had distracted me, but now that I was floating here, I was reminded of being back in the portal and not being able to breathe. Noticing my rising panic, Lucian swam close and grabbed my hand. It helped calm me down a little.
After another minute, one of the others kicked to the surface. Then Revana looked over at us, and I could see the anger on her face. She struggled to stay under. She started to thrash around, as I imagined the urge to open her mouth pounded at her. She flipped me the middle finger and then kicked hard up to the surface.
I, too, began to struggle. My head grew fuzzy. Black spots started to form in my vision. Then the whispers infiltrated the back of my mind.
Don’t be afraid. Let go of the panic. You won’t drown. I won’t let you.
I didn’t know who was talking to me but I listened. Lucian eventually let go of my hand, kicking up to the surface. Then Marek went up, and then the other girl who I didn’t know. It was just Ren and I left. When he noticed, he swam over to me, smiling.
We happily floated in the water together. My lungs started to burn again, but Ren looked like he could stay down here forever. I wondered if he was half fish. He most definitely had Poseidon’s blood swimming through his veins.
Knowing Ren would win the prize, I was more than happy to give up and swim to the surface. I was about to when his face changed and his eyes widened. I could sense movement behind me. I spun around to see the Charybdis’s mouth just about to clamp down on my head.
Chapter Twelve
LUCIAN
I paced along the edge of the pool, trying hard not jump in, especially after I saw the Charybdis zip through the water toward Melany and Ren.
“She can take care of herself,” Poseidon said at my distress.
Everyone watched the pool, waiting to see what would happen. Some were scared, like Melany’s friends, Georgina and Jasmine, others, like Revana, looked on in glee, hoping for a lethal outcome.
I watched, my heart in my throat, at the erratic movement in the water, and then the Charybdis came shooting out like a cannon and landed at Poseidon’s feet. The little creature looked unharmed, but definitely indignant at being tossed out of the pool.
Laughing, Poseidon picked up the sea slug and patted its head. A few moments later, Melany and Ren popped up out of the water to a round of cheers and clapping.
“Well done, you two are the winners of the competition.”
I reached down and helped Ren out of the pool and then Melany. She was shivering, and I draped a big towel around her shoulders. There was still a trickle of blood coming from her nose.
“You still got a bit of blood.” I gestured to her nose.
She pressed the edge of her towel to her face. “Thanks.”
“Does it hurt?”
“Nah. She punches like a girl.”
I laughed, which earned me a lethal glare from Revana, who was chatting with Isobel nearby.
“You should have seen her.” Ren was talking to Poseidon and the others who gathered around. “She just reached out and grabbed that thing by the neck before it could bite her and just tossed it through the water like a missile. I’ve never seen anything like it.” He chuckled.
“I don’t think it was as cool as that.” Melany rubbed at her hair with the towel.
“Oh, yeah it was.” Grinning, Ren patted her on the shoulder. “You’re hardcore.”
Her cheeks flushed a little at the compliment, but I had to agree. Melany was hardcore. She’d saved me from getting bitten by that creepy water slug. And she was consistently kicking my ass in hand-to-hand combat training.
“He’s right, Blue.” I leaned down to her ear, as we all left the training facility. “You are a badass.”
She gave me a look, and I thought she was going to say something, but her friends came up on her sides, pushing me out. I stepped away and joined Diego, Jonah, and Trevin; they were congratulating Ren for winning the competition and basically for being part fish.
Back at the dorms, I’d finished having a shower and was changing into regular clothes since classes were done for the day. I was anxious to get down to the dining hall and chill out. I was hungry, but I also realized it was because I wanted to see Melany. I didn’t get a chance to thank her for saving me from getting bitten by the Charybdis, and I just wanted to hang out with her. I didn’t know anything about her and I wanted to.
“Can you believe that bitch today?” Diego ran product into his hair. “I mean, Revana should’ve really kicked her ass.”
“Don’t talk about her like that.” I pulled on my T-shirt.
Diego smirked. “Why are you sticking up for her? Revana’s supposed to be your friend.”
“She is, but sometimes she gets what she asks for.”
“What does that supposed to mean?”
“She’s not always a nice person.”
I sat on my bed to put on my shoes.
“Nice is overrated,” Diego said. “It’s not going to get you anywhere in this place.” He frowned at me. “And since when were you nice to girls like Melany?”
I shrugged. “She’s different. I like her.”
“I’d like her, too, if she put out.” He made a rude gesture with his hips.
“Don’t be an asshole.”
I left the room without him. Diego and I had been friends before the academy, same with Revana. We all ran in the same affluent circles. We were all from devout families, who had started our training when we were young. Someone in each of our families had been called to the army in the past. For me, it was my brother, Owen. Diego’s uncle from Argentina had been called thirty years ago. Revana’s patronage was even older—her maternal grandfather had gotten the invitation mere months after her mother had been born. So, I basically grew up around them, but I was starting to realize that neither of them were good people. If we hadn’t known each other before, I wasn’t sure I’d go out of my way to know them now.
I hurried to the dining hall, grabbed some food, and sat at a table near the main doors. I wanted to see when Melany came in. Soon, Diego and the others joined me.
“Why are you sitting here?” Revana set her tray down beside mine.
“Change of pace.” Taking my eyes off the main door, I shoveled some food into my mouth.
Isobel stole a fry from Diego’s tray. “I think it was totally unfair Melany won along with Ren. It should’ve just been Ren.”
“She must’ve cheated,” Revana said. “She hasn’t shown an affinity to water at all over the past few weeks. Last time, she couldn’t even make a spout.”
I sniffed and shook my head. “She didn’t cheat.”
She gave me a haughty look. “How do you know?”
“Because I was down there with her, and she was just better than everyone else. Me included.”
Frowning, she turned to talk to Isobel, who was busy eating all the fries from Diego’s tray. I didn’t think he minded, though, because I was pretty sure he was crushing hard on her. He always looked at her like a clueless puppy.
“Hey, did you guys here about New Athens, Kios, and Pecunia?” Trevin asked. “Supposedly, there have been some earthquakes around there.”
“Where did you hear that?” Jonah frowned. I could hear the concern in his voice.
“Are you from there?” I asked.
“Around there. I’m from the town over, Histria.”
“Someone snuck a cell phone in,” Trevin said. “It’s all over the news.”
“Sounds like a bad rumor to me. No one would be able to sneak a phone in. No way,” Isobel said. “Besides, they’d tell us if something like that happened to where we’re from.” She looked around at everyone. “Wouldn’t they?”
“Of course they would.” Revana patted Isobel’s hand. The girl looked like she was about to cry.
When I spotted Georgina and Jasmine entering the dining hall, I got to my feet. “I’ll catch up with you guys later.”
“Where are you going?” Revana called after me.
I didn’t stop until I reached Georgina and Jasmine. Surprise flashed across both their faces at seeing me at their table. I slid in beside Jasmine.
“What do you want?” she asked.
“Where’s Blue?”
Georgina’s eyebrows shot up. “She’s back in the dorm, resting. The whole thing in the pool took its toll on her.”
“What do you want with her?” Jasmine gave me a pointed look, which I didn’t blame her for. I hadn’t been the friendliest person over the last month or so.
“Nothing. I just want to see if she’s okay.”
“She’s fine.” Jasmine went back to her food and talking to Mia, who sat on her other side.
I guessed that was the end of that conversation.
I got up from the table, but I didn’t want to go back and sit with Diego and the others, and I didn’t want to return to my dorm room. I wanted to see Melany. After I did a drive by the food line and grabbed a couple of chocolate cupcakes, I headed out of the dining hall and toward the girls’ dorm.
I didn’t know how I was going to get past the dorm monitor, but I was going to give it a go. What was the worst that could happen?
I ran up the stairs and turned left toward the girls’ dorm rooms. Before I entered the main corridor, I stopped and peered around the corner, planning my strategy. I could dissipate into the shadows like Erebus had taught us. I wasn’t great at it, not like Melany, but I had improved. I just needed more shadows to move through; there was too much light in the hall.
I looked around on the ground and spied a small pebble. I picked it up, rubbing it between my fingers, gauging my aim at the light in the sconce along the wall. Taking a deep breath, I reared back and threw the rock. Like a targeted missile, it hit the light and broke the bulb. Shadows instantly filled that side of the corridor.
Before anyone could come investigate the sound, I streaked down the hallway, keeping to the darkness hugging the far wall. I concentrated on refracting the light, so if anyone peered out from one of the rooms, they wouldn’t see me, not unless they really stared into the shadows hard, then they’d probably see some movement.
As I made my way through the dorm, I realized I had no idea which room was Melany’s. All I knew was that she bunked with Georgina. But I did remember one time when Georgina mentioned that they were always the last ones out of the dorm in the morning. So I assumed they were one of the last rooms.
At the end of the hall, there were two rooms; one had the door open, and it was dark inside, and the other’s door was shut, light spilling from underneath, and the sounds of some kind of thrash metal emanated from within. This had to be Melany’s room. She was the only girl I knew who would listen to thrash metal.
I knocked on the door and waited, feeling nervous all of a sudden.
The door swung open to a scowly face. “What?” Then her eyes widened.
I held out my hand, a chocolate cupcake balanced on the palm. “I come bearing gifts.”
She took a step out and glanced down the corridor. “What are you doing here?”
“I heard you weren’t feeling all that well, so I thought you might need some sustenance.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You know this is weird, right?”
I grimaced. “I guess. But we’re at a school for demigods, I think weird is relative at this point.”
“Good point.” She plucked the cupcake from my hand.
I leaned in the doorway. “Can I come in?”
She opened the door wider and gestured with her arm. I entered, my shirt starting to feel a bit constricting at the collar. I pulled at it and looked around. Everything looked the same as my dorm room. I wasn’t sure what I had expected. Maybe pink wallpaper and furry pillows, although Melany wasn’t the pink and furry type at all.
I sat on the floor; I didn’t want to be presumptuous and sit on her bed. She joined me, sitting cross-legged. She peeled off the cupcake wrap and took a big bite. Icing got on the tip of her nose, and I pressed my lips together to stop from laughing.
“What?” She gave me a funny look.
I reached over and wiped the icing off her nose, and then we ate in silence. It was nice to just sit with her and not have to make conversation. When she was done, she licked her fingers clean.
“That was delicious, thanks.” She gave me a small smile.
As she fidgeted a bit, I took the moment to take her in. All of her. She was so different than the girls I was used to. The ones who I grew up with were poised and polished, cultured and refined, raised from day one to be a perfect specimen, devout to the Gods, loyal to family. I saw nothing like that in Melany.
I reached over and touched the dark tattoo winding around her arm. “What does this one mean?”
“How do you know it means something?”
“Because you don’t seem like a girl who does things senselessly.”
>
“The snake. It means rebirth, an awakening. It reminds me that I can be whatever I want to be. I’m in charge of my destiny.”
“Says the girl invited by a mysterious metal box to train in an army for the Gods.” I chuckled.
“Hey, I chose to come here. I didn’t have to. The invitation is just that, isn’t it? An invitation. It’s up to every person whether to answer it or not.”
I frowned at her. I’d never thought of it that way. Although in my family, there was no question about me coming to the academy. I didn’t think I would’ve been allowed to say no.
I gestured to the others on her arms.
“It’s two ravens intertwined. They’re for my parents, who died when I was little. Some kind of accident I’m told.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
She shrugged. “It’s fine. I was like maybe three or four. I was taken to an orphanage. Bounced around from foster home to foster home, until my mother’s estranged sister, Sophie, discovered I existed. She adopted me when I was thirteen.”
“That must’ve been hard.”
“It is what it is. I try not to dwell on it.” She ran her fingers over the last markings on her forearms. “And the skulls… well, I just think they look cool.”
“That they do.” I laughed. “What did your adopted mom say about them?”
“She was fine with them. It was the Demos family that hated them.”
The name sounded familiar. “The Demos’s?”
“Sophie worked for them. We lived on their estate.”
“They have a daughter named… Callie, right?”
She gaped. “Yes. You know them?”
I shrugged. “A little. My father knew Mr. Demos. They did some business together.”
She shook her head. “Wow. Maybe we crossed paths at one of their huge parties.”
“I don’t think so. I would’ve definitely remembered you.”
She blushed a little, and I wanted to grab her leg, pull her closer, and kiss her. The urge raced through me like wildfire. I was surprised how potent it was, how potent she was.
Then another thought intruded. Something someone had said earlier in the dining hall.
Demigods Academy - Year One Page 9