Demigods Academy - Year One Read online

  Callie had everything: loving parents, a good home, lots of money and possessions, friends. And she didn’t appreciate any of it, not one morsel. She always complained to me about not having enough, or her parents not letting her run off to the Cayman Islands in the middle of a school term. She complained about not being pretty enough, or thin enough, gorging on caviar and macrons, while three neighborhoods over, people were homeless and starving.

  A thought crossed my mind. What if I kept it for myself? No one would know. Callie already thought the Gods had rejected her, commanding me to destroy the beautiful Shadowbox. She’d never know. If the academy really existed, maybe it would give me true purpose—something I’d never been able to find.

  For the last eighteen years, I’d felt lost, like a ship without an anchor, being tossed around in a storm. I’d been an outcast my entire life, not knowing my parents, wondering why they’d left me, always feeling like I was worthless. And now, I could finally become someone who had worth and direction.

  It was a once-in-a-lifetime-chance, and it required a hard decision.

  I stared down at the box, my heart and my head at war. I had done really bad things in my life but stealing Callie’s opportunity to attend the Gods’ Academy? It was going to be the worst.

  I knew it was wrong, but my heart longed to find my place in the world. Was it at the academy? I couldn’t know… but I had to find out.

  Chapter Two

  MELANY

  I picked up the parchment lying on my bed and flipped it around, looking for the rest. Rumor was that inside the box, along with the invitation to the academy, would be instructions on how to get to the famed but secret institution and the date and time. I didn’t see any of those things scrawled on the paper.

  Lifting the box, I peered inside it again, paying particular attention to any clever hiding spot for another scroll. I ran my fingers along the smooth edges and planes to find nothing. But when I touched the velvet inlay on the bottom, a tiny bit of the corner curled up. Maybe there was something underneath.

  I gripped the velvet between my fingers and tore it away. It didn’t come easily, and I had to remove it in strips. When it was gone, I squinted into the box and saw an inscription etched into the metal on the bottom. I held the box up to my lamp and read the words out loud.

  “To reveal the secrets of the academy, you must use the thing that has no legs but dances, has no lungs but breathes, and has no life to live or die, but does all three.”

  A riddle. Perfect. I groaned.

  It couldn’t be too hard, or none of the recruits would make it to the designated time and place, but I supposed that was the point, as they’d only want the best of the best. I read it over again, trying to put the pieces together.

  I rose from my bed and paced a little. I did all my best thinking while moving around. What could dance, breathe, and live or die? Humans, but that wasn’t it, as we had legs and lungs and had a life. It couldn’t be an animal because the same parameters existed. As I marched around my room, my gaze kept going back to the Shadowbox. Every now and then, it would flash from a direct beam of light reflecting off the metal as I moved around it. I thought about how it felt in my hands; the wave of heat that rushed over my skin. Halting, I picked up the box again and studied the symbols of the Gods etched on the exterior.

  Zeus – lightning.

  Hera – star.

  Aphrodite – rose.

  Ares – wolf.

  Apollo – sun.

  Artemis – moon.

  I flipped it around and looked at the other six, something irritating my mind like a piece of a popcorn kernel stuck in my teeth.

  Poseidon – trident.

  Dionysus – chalice.

  Hephaistos – fire.

  Athena – owl.

  Demeter – cornucopia.

  Hermes – snake.

  Frowning, I brushed my fingers over the box, feeling the metal. Again, heat enveloped my fingers. It was as if I’d set my hand over a burner on a stove. The craftsmanship of the metalwork was beyond anything earthly. It had to have been designed by one of the Gods. Heat, metal…

  Fire.

  That had to be it. Flames in a fire appeared like they were dancing, fire needed oxygen, like lungs did, to burn, and fire could be snuffed out, the flames dying. That had to be the answer. There was only one way to find out.

  Since I didn’t have a fireplace to make a fire in, I gathered all the pillar candles I had in my room, set them in a cluster, and lit them. Then I held the Shadowbox up over the tiny individual flames, hoping I wasn’t making a fool out of myself in thinking how clever I was.

  I held the box over the candles for ten minutes at least before I could feel a temperature difference in the metal. After another few minutes, it started to become difficult to hold, as my fingers burned. Wincing at the sharp pain, I didn’t know how much longer I could keep the box over the flames.

  Reaching my threshold, I was about to drop it when thin curls of black smoke rippled out from inside the box. The vapors snaked around in the air, animated, as if blown by an unseen wind. I looked to my window to see if it was open; it wasn’t. It was closed tight. At first, I thought the smoke nothing more than a result of melting metal, but then the tendrils started to make words and numbers in the air.

  Cala.

  3 a.m.

  Pier…

  I leaned forward, my breath hitching in my throat, as a number formed. But I couldn’t decipher if it was a nine or a six. It looped around, set into a spin by either the unseen wind or my frantic breathing. It looked like a six, then a nine, then it stayed as a six. Then after it had all formed in front of me, as if someone had been writing it in the air with a quill and ink… it vanished.

  The flames on the candles flared. I dropped the box, as my fingers couldn’t hold it any longer. I glanced down at my hands; the tips of my fingers were red, and a few tiny blisters had formed. It didn’t matter, as I had my information.

  Cala was the small town near the bay. There was a large dock there; Sophia had taken me there once to watch the huge cruise ships come in. I didn’t know how many piers were there, but I only had to find the one—pier six. And it had to be at three a.m. I grabbed my cell phone and looked at the time. It was eleven. I had four hours to get to the right spot to find the academy.

  It didn’t give me much time to reconsider my decision or to think about the consequences of it, either. If I was going to go, it had to be now.

  I jumped to my feet, went into my closet, and grabbed an old ratty duffle bag that I’d had since being in the orphanage. I opened dresser drawers and grabbed whatever I could—underwear, bras, socks, jeans, a couple of T-shirts—and stuffed them inside the bag. On top of that, I settled in the Shadowbox. I imagined I would need it as some sort of proof that I belonged.

  After zipping up the bag, I put on my old weathered leather jacket, my combat boots, slid my phone in a pocket, and then peered out. Sophia wasn’t in the living room and her bedroom was closed, so she’d obviously gone to bed. After stepping out from my bedroom, I stopped in front of Sophia’s closed door. I wanted to leave her a note to let her know where I’d gone, but I knew that would confess what I’d done. No one could know that I’d stolen the invitation. Instead, I quietly opened her door and crept in.

  My heart filled when I looked down at her, sleeping so soundly, her face relaxed and devoid of all the worry lines I knew I’d carved on her skin over the years. Leaning down, I pressed a kiss to her forehead and whispered, “I love you.”

  Fighting back tears, I left the cottage and crept silently across the garden, keeping to the dark shadows, until I reached the driveway. As far as I knew, there weren’t any buses that came to this neighborhood, nor would any be running this late, anyway, so I needed a way to get to Cala, which was at least ninety miles away from Pecunia. I had only three and a half hours to get there on time. On foot, I’d never make it.

  I heard voices nearby. It had to be been party guests
leaving. For a brief second, I considered hitching a ride with one of them, but they would definitely inform Callie. I couldn’t have that. I needed to leave here undetected, at least until sunrise. In the morning, they could all think what they wanted. Most likely that I’d run away. According to them, I was that type of girl. Sophia wouldn’t think it though, she’d worry that something nefarious had happened to me, or that I had a good reason to leave. It broke my heart to put her through the anguish of not knowing, but I had to do it.

  Headlights swept over the spot of pavement I stood in, and I jumped back, breath hitching, into the shadows, so I wouldn’t be seen. When I turned, I spotted a street motorcycle parked in the corner away from all the other vehicles. That had not been valet parked.

  A smile crept over my face, and I sent up a small thanks to the Gods, although I knew they couldn’t give a shit and weren’t likely paying any attention to what I was doing. I was insignificant.

  Ten minutes later, I raced down the driveway of the Demos Estate, thankful of the illegal skills I’d learned during my time in and out of foster homes. I turned left onto the main road and roared out of Pecunia. Although I was excited to have my past in the review mirror, I felt guilty for leaving Sophia. I hoped over time she’d understand why I left.

  My heart raced as fast as the bike as I drove toward the coast. I couldn’t believe what I was doing. I prayed it would work. I needed it to work. If it didn’t and I was booted out before I could even begin, I wasn’t sure I’d return to Pecunia. Maybe it would be a sign to just keep on going until the road ended, and I could have a new start.

  I thought about that all the way to Cala.

  It didn’t take me long to find the dock, as the touristy town was fairly small, and all I needed to do was follow the sounds of the ocean. I parked the bike at the main boathouse and then climbed over the chain link fence.

  As I made my way to pier six, the silence surprised me. Where were all the other recruits? Surely, I wasn’t the only one who figured out the riddle and was able to get here. The rumors were that every four years the Gods recruited thirty-six teenagers to train in the army. I’m not sure why that particular number, but knowing the Gods, it likely had some significance. So, where was everybody?

  I found pier six easily enough, despite the lack of overhead lights. As I walked out to the edge, the darkness smothering me with each step, an eerie quiet settled over everything. All I could hear was the soft lapping of the water at the metal posts holding the pier up and my heart thundering in my chest.

  I gazed out over the rolling ocean and thought, now what? Did I need to wait for a boat or something? But that seemed almost too easy for the Gods. Knowing them, the way into the academy would be complicated and dangerous. It wasn’t like Jason was just given the Golden Fleece; he had to complete three very complicated trials wrought with danger at every turn.

  I wondered if I would get a chance to meet Jason at the academy and ask him how he escaped smashing onto the rocks when a school of sirens attacked the ship he’d been on. All my thoughts about ships and sirens made me speculate the entrance to the academy was going to be underwater.

  Squinting, I looked out over the water and spotted a buoy floating about a hundred meters away. Every few seconds, it lit up. That was where I needed to go. Strapping my duffel to my back, I took in some deep breaths, wondering if I was really going to do this.

  “One, two, three.” I dove into the water.

  I swam down into the darkness, expecting something to happen. A portal. A door. I’d even take a submarine at this point. But there was nothing but seaweed and the soul-sucking black of deep water. Lungs bursting, I started upwards, my arms aching with fatigue by the time I broke the surface. I sputtered out water and circled around toward the pier.

  And that’s when I heard the very male sounds of laughter and spotted the outline of someone on the end of the pier watching me. I didn’t have to see him to know he was getting a right kick out of seeing me floundering around like a guppy.

  “Little late for a midnight swim, don’t you think?”

  I swam to the pier. The closer I got, the more I could make out the person’s features. He was definitely male, and young, my age I thought, square jaw, sharp cheekbones, golden waves swept back to frame striking blue eyes, and to my misfortune, he was exactly the type of guy I’d swoon over.

  I reached up and grabbed the edge of the wooden dock so I could heft myself out of the water. He took a step forward, and I thought for sure he was going to crush my fingers under the thick tread of his combat boots, especially when he grinned down at me.

  Chapter Three

  MELANY

  I was about to drop back into the water to avoid having my fingers crushed when he crouched and grabbed hold of my arms, lugging me up onto the pier. I rolled onto my back, dragging hair out my face, and blinked up at him, unsure if he was friend or foe.

  “You’re on the wrong pier.” He nodded toward the other piers, and I spotted several other teenagers my age making their way down the main dock, backpacks slung over their shoulders, or firmly affixed to their backs.

  I sat up, trying to keep some of my dignity intact, although I suspected it was much too late for that considering I was sitting here sopping wet, my hair looking like blue seaweed, and I could just imagine my dark makeup had run down my cheeks. The gorgeous stranger probably thought I looked like some deranged raccoon.

  “Maybe I just wanted to go swimming.” I wiped at my face with the sleeve of my jacket, which didn’t do much of anything since it was wet, too.

  “Right.” He offered his hand to help me to my feet, but I ignored it and stood my own. He lowered his hand, shaking his head a little. “It’s pier nine, in case you’re wondering. You must’ve misread the smoke.” Picking up his pack, he walked away, joining the swarm of other people.

  Before following him, I waited for a few minutes. I didn’t want to seem eager or that he’d just saved me from a huge mistake, although, he totally did. I got in line with the others moving down the ramp to pier nine. There had to have been at least thirty people, maybe more, gathered on the dock.

  No one was really talking to each other, except for my mysterious savior. He was near the front of the pack, chatting it up with another guy and a pretty girl with long, dark hair. She giggled a lot and kept touching his arm. I hated her on principle, alone.

  I took out my phone, which of course was now wet, but I’d wrapped it in plastic before I left, so it wasn’t completely damaged. The time said it was 2:55 a.m. We were all cutting it close. I wondered what everyone was waiting for. Maybe I had got it wrong, and there really was a boat coming for us, which would mean I made an even bigger fool out of myself then I needed to.

  The guy standing next to me frowned. “Are you wet?”

  “Yes. Do you have a problem with that?”

  He shook his head. “Nope. Each to their own, I say.” He said it with such conviction that I smiled. He returned my smile then it faded a bit. “Are you scared?”

  “Hell no.” I peered at him, taking in his lanky frame and perfectly coifed jet-black hair. “Are you?”

  He scuffed his converse sneaker on the dock. “Nah, I’m ready for the academy.”

  Except he didn’t look all that ready. In fact, none of the people on the dock looked ready. Except for maybe mystery guy. He seemed ready for anything; he had that kind of confidence about him.

  Almost everyone flinched when twenty-some alarms sounded on twenty-some cell phones. It was three o’clock. One by one, people leapt off the pier and into the water. It was more like a mass exodus then single file. When I got to the edge, I dove in as well.

  This time, I knew where to go. I just followed the swimmer in front of me, as we all dove down. It was dark and murky, extremely difficult to see anything in any direction. But then up ahead, I spied a soft white glow. Everyone’s course adjusted, and they swam toward the light.

  The closer I got to the light, I saw that it was a
blue-white cylinder hovering in the middle of the vast dark ocean like a giant glowing worm. It was a portal. This was how we were all going to get to the academy.

  Each person who reached the portal ahead of me breached the barrier and was swept up into it. It looked they were being sucked up through a large, white straw. Maybe one of the Titans was having a delicious cool glass of water, and we were the dirt specks getting drunk along the way.

  As I got nearer, my heart hammered in my throat and my lungs burned. I didn’t know how much longer I could hold my breath. Slowly, I reached out to the portal. My fingers pushed through the barrier, and I could feel the suction on my hand. If I weren’t careful, my fingers would be ripped off from the force.

  Here goes nothing.

  I kicked my legs harder, propelling myself forward, and was instantly engulfed by the whirlpool. I hurtled along inside the portal, my body spinning around and around. It was hard to focus on anything, as I was spun like cotton candy.

  The guy who’d been standing beside me did a couple of somersaults in the water as he hurtled by me, a huge smile on his face. While I watched him, something just on the edge of the portal drew my attention. Squinting, I could see a dark form moving beside the portal, just outside of its boundaries. Was it some kind of ocean creature, curious about the whirling dervish of water?

  Except it was moving too fast to be natural.

  I kicked my legs to move a little closer to the edge of the spout. I peered out into the darkness, flinching backwards when the water seemed to gaze back at me. Coldness crept through me, as if something had sliced into my very soul. Someone was out there, moving as quickly as the portal. Curious, I reached out with a hand, the tips of my fingers piercing the veil between ocean and portal.